From Naruto onwards, I've become a dreamer.

Chapter 94 Cruel Fate

Mei Terumi carried a small bamboo basket and picked up fallen branches in a safe place near the village.

She hummed a cheerful nursery rhyme while jumping and skipping around, she was so lively.

Although her grandmother told her not to run around alone anymore, Terumi Mei, who has always been very opinionated and quite lively, only took half of what she said to heart.

Besides, Grandma's legs are not good, and they hurt in winter, and the house is cold.

Terumi Mei couldn't bear to see her grandmother suffer from the cold, having to brave the snow to collect firewood at such an advanced age. So she would often use the excuse of going out to play to sneak into the mountains and forests, collect some branches, and do what she could to help ease her grandmother's burden.

The small bamboo basket was soon filled with branches.

"Hmm, this should be enough!"

Mei Terumi wiped the sweat from her face, glanced at the darkening sky, and revealed two cute, pointed fangs: "Hmm, it's time to go back, or Grandma will worry again!"

That thin body, carrying a bamboo basket half a head taller than itself, struggled to walk through the thick snow.

She hadn't walked far when she stopped again, staring wide-eyed at a certain spot, a look of delight on her face: "Oh! It's a rabbit!"

There, a plump rabbit, weighing at least ten pounds, had fainted in front of a tree.

It appears that he hit a tree trunk while running and passed out.

"Oh my god! What a fat rabbit!" Mei Terumi, carrying a bamboo basket, waded through the snow with difficulty, tied the rope tightly to the rabbit's leg, then, her little face flushed red, pulled it up with all her might, examined it carefully, and exclaimed with delight, "Great! Hehehe, I'm so lucky today! If Grandma sees this, she'll definitely praise me!"

You should know that they are usually not able to get enough to eat, and meat is a rare treat.

Now, they've suddenly acquired a plump rabbit, enough for the grandfather and grandson to enjoy, and even a little extra oil.

"Grandma hasn't been feeling well lately, hmm. The rabbit's legs are quite big, so Grandma can have them!"

Mei Terumi's mouth was watering. The little girl happily grabbed the rabbit, thinking of taking it back to her grandmother so she could have a good rest: "I'll just eat a little bit~ I'll leave the rest for Grandma, hehehe."

The unexpected gain today made the little girl even happier.

With her bamboo basket slung over her shoulder again, Terumi Mei took a deep breath, clutching the rabbit tightly in her arms, afraid it might escape, and headed towards the village.

Humming a cheerful little tune, I moved forward through the thick snow.

Before long, she could see the village.

"Grandma, Grandma, I'm back!"

Terumi Mei was covered in sweat, but she was overjoyed. Holding up the plump rabbit, she shouted to her grandmother, "Come and see, Grandma, what did I bring back!"

Strangely, the entire village was silent, and no one responded.

"grandmother?"

Mei Terumi, somewhat puzzled, slowly walked into the village.

Suddenly, a blinding flash of bright red appeared in the snow, like a sharp knife, piercing straight into her heart.

In that crimson snow, there were the familiar neighbors, the kind and gentle grandparents, now cruelly cut in half at the waist. Their gray eyes stared wide-eyed, filled with fear, their faces contorted with pain, as if they were telling a story.

"Grandma!"

Mei Terumi's eyes narrowed, and her small face gradually turned deathly pale.

An ominous premonition instantly enveloped her; fear, like an invisible hand, suddenly gripped her heart.

boom!
The bamboo basket fell to the ground.

Even the plump rabbit was thrown on the ground.

Terumi Mei panicked and ran towards the village, shouting as she ran, "Grandma! Grandma! I'm back! Where are you? It's Terumi Mei!"

Her voice echoed through the deathly silent village, but no one answered her except for the echoes.

Finally, Mei Terumi arrived outside the familiar house, panting heavily. She walked towards the house step by step, unconsciously calling out, "Grandma, Mei Terumi is back. Please, don't scare me, okay?" Dead silence.

The wind and snow were howling down, and the cold wind was biting.

There was not a sound in the room; the unsettling silence made Terumi Mei's heart sink little by little.

She didn't know how she got there. She was like a stiff puppet, slowly walking to the door. Her big, dark eyes were filled with unease. Finally, after mustering her courage, she pushed open the wooden door with all her might.

Blood!

The room was covered in splattered blood.

Bright red blood could be seen on the floor, walls, bed, table, and even the ceiling, slowly flowing and dripping along the cracks.

A nauseating, pungent smell of blood assaulted her sense of smell.

"Grandma?"

But when Mei Terumi saw the scene in the center of the room, her pupils suddenly shrank to the size of pinpoints, and her face turned pale with fear.

In the very center of the room, a person was hanging.

The man's palms, soles, shoulder blades, and other parts of his body were pierced by kunai. His entire body was covered in wounds, with almost no undamaged flesh to be seen. The wounds were crisscrossed, and in many places, the bone was even visible. The cruelty of the attack was too much to bear.

"grandmother--!"

Mei Terumi saw the man's face clearly; despite it being covered in blood, she still recognized him.

The person who was hung up and tortured was Grandma.

thump!
Mei Terumi suddenly fell to the ground, her forehead hitting the floor.

Ignoring the pain, she lunged forward on all fours and embraced the elderly woman who was being hoisted up. Tears and snot streamed down her face as her overwhelming grief reached its peak: "No, no! Grandma, please don't leave Terumi Mei behind! Please, please don't leave me!"

“Ahhhhh——!”

Terumi Mei screamed at the top of her lungs, clinging tightly to the old woman: "Grandma, Grandma, don't die, ahhh... please."

"God, please, please don't take Grandma away from me. I only have Grandma left."

An unprecedented sense of despair, helplessness, and fear overwhelmed her in that instant.

When people are sad or upset, they tend to look up.

At that time, people would place their hopes on the ethereal gods and Buddhas, expecting that they, high above, could save them from their suffering.

But no matter how much she begged, no one would respond to the girl.

"Grandma. Grandma."

Overwhelmed with grief, Terumi Mei uncontrollably banged her head against the ground, crying out, "Is there anyone who can help me? Save Grandma! I don't want to lose Grandma!"

"My dear granddaughter."

At this moment, the old man, who should have been tortured to the point of death, somehow found strength and, as if in a final burst of energy, said, "Don't cry."

"grandmother?"

At that moment, Mei Terumi truly believed that all the gods and Buddhas in the heavens had heard her prayer: "Grandma, please hold on, I'll go find medicine right now! I'll go get a doctor!"

In his final moments, the old man grabbed her arm and, with his last ounce of strength, cried out, "Run, my dear granddaughter! Don't look back, and don't stop! Those people! Those ninjas! They're looking for you! Run, run!"

The old man has held on until now, just so that his beloved granddaughter can run quickly and not look back.

Let me tell you something spooky… Last night I dreamt I went to the bathroom to use the toilet, and then I looked in the mirror. I saw someone in the mirror rolling their eyes and looking upwards, which startled me. Then I woke up… and realized I was in the bathroom, having fallen asleep while having diarrhea…

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(End of this chapter)