章節 124: From the Bottom of My Heart

As I tore Hinata's jacket to assess her severe wounds (as bloodied as it was, it would have to be discarded anyway), my face darkened at the sight of several kunai stabs and cuts. If they had been just a centimeter deeper, they would have cleanly cut tendons, crippling her for life.

This only increased my confusion, but I had entered surgeon mode, attending to the worst parts as quickly as I could. Moments like this make me grateful for the exchange of experiences with Tsunade and Shizune.

Unobstructed airways.

Slightly erratic heartbeats, but without major abnormalities.

It seems Hinata lost consciousness minutes ago, and from the state of her hands, it's clear she tried to defend herself without much success.

The right eye... is damaged beyond recovery.

The amount of blood lost is close to critical levels.

Three broken ribs and one possibly dangerously pressing on her right lung.

The right cheekbone is slightly indented.

A small fracture on the left side of the skull, caused by something blunt.

Two missing teeth from the lower jaw.

The right hand is completely broken, requiring severe surgery.

Possible nerve damage in the right leg.

And I'm not even starting. This is not an organized murder by some enemy village; it's pure torture with malicious intent.

It's not an exaggeration to say that if she doesn't receive medical attention within fifteen minutes, she'll have lifelong sequelae and will have to give up the idea of being a kunoichi.

Even being an ordinary person will be complicated!

Without time to lose, I took out the Den Den Mushi along with a specially marked red scroll from my pants and called Nemu while placing the snail on my shoulder.

"Hello, Dad," she answered. "I thought you'd be back later. What's going on?"

"Nemu, do you remember the special reverse summoning technique that Mariko taught you for emergencies?" I asked while spreading the scroll on the ground and placing Hinata on the dense array of seals it revealed with great care, making sure to mark the necessary places with her blood.

"Is there an emergency?" Maybe noticing the seriousness in my voice, she quickly grasped the crux of the matter.

"Drop whatever you're doing immediately and run to the medical bay to prepare for a level three intervention. I want you to perform the reverse summoning in less than a minute. Tell Shizune to help you if you can't find her!"

"I'm on my way." I heard the accelerated steps from the snail. "Who's in critical condition? Give me the details."

"I'll send you the Hyuga heiress, and I'm writing down what you need to prioritize to save her. Then, you'll have to examine and act on your own. Let her recover in the medical pod when you're done, and don't let her regain consciousness."

"Understood! Summoning in ten seconds."

The countdown ended, and Hinata disappeared with the scroll, leaving only the blood on the ground and the assailant as evidence of what had happened.

The scroll was designed to quickly send things to the village in case of need or not carry them if they were too voluminous. I didn't expect to use it with Hinata to save her.

"And I didn't expect that out of all the people in Konoha, it would be you who almost killed Hinata," I walked towards the unconscious person and crouched down beside her.

She was the most gothic person I had seen since I arrived in this world.

Not cool gothic but dark, sinister, and macabre gothic.

Black hair, dark and red eyeshadow, piercings, nail polish, and the whole set that screams bad vibes from the other end of the street.

"It seems like the recent events in your life really changed you, Ino," I sighed, recognizing the Yamanaka heiress with her new look.

If she was like a ray of sunshine before, now she seemed like the harbinger of the apocalypse announcing the end of the world. And it would be by her own hand!

"Now, why did you go to such extremes?" I reflected, trying to understand what the hell was going on.

No matter from which point of view I observed it, Ino had absolutely no reason to become so violent and cruel with Hinata, who was a sweet and gentle soul.

I could perfectly understand if she hated me or someone in the village; it would be fair at the end of the day, and I really hoped she would take action at some point in the future.

But this?

If I hadn't intervened, not only would she have killed a friend who grew up with her, but the Hyuga clan would have pounced on her like bloodhounds as soon as they followed the clues (and they were splattered everywhere). If her Yamanaka clan tried to defend her, it would not only have been a bloodbath within the recovering village but she might even have been declared a traitor and deserter if she managed to escape.

I didn't even want to think about how the Akimichi and Nara clans would react if they got involved in the matter; I highly doubt the Hyuga clan would be intimidated just because they stood together.

A war between four major clans, and I still don't understand the reason for her attack on Hinata!

Did they have some kind of misunderstanding or argument?

But something that could lead her to this emotional extreme...

Hinata is too good to insult Inoichi's memory, and I have no more ideas.

"Damn, this will give me a guilty conscience for weeks," I cursed under my breath as I looked at the unconscious Ino and raised my hand, crackling with a considerable electric charge.

Sai will have to find another woman to put up with him, I guess.

I watched the series and know Ino as much as someone who knows something about the series could. So, unlike those strangers who couldn't care less, I'll really have a bad taste in my mouth for what I'm about to do next.

Although I suppose this is no longer the same Ino...

I'm sorry, truly sorry from the bottom of my heart.