Chapter-72

"Just look at it... some trash from the Fire Nation."

Azula came to a halt as a figure blocked her path. He wielded a metal Bo staff, standing tall and robust – the quintessential mercenary.

"Nice pants she's got," remarked a smaller silhouette. A woman with brown hair, armed with a bow, maliciously surveyed Azula from head to toe. "You must be far from home, an exile, huh?"

"I'm not in the mood for this..." Azula's eyes gleamed with murderous intensity, a swirling mix of frustration and rage. She considered the tempting idea of taking her anger out on these mercenaries.

"Wow, the bitch that barks but doesn't bite," the largest silhouette quipped. He stood well over two meters tall, heavily built, with a shaved head, and wore a mocking expression. "I can't wait to teach this bitch a lesson." With that, the giant charged toward Azula.

But his attack was futile. He lunged, Azula evaded him, and mid-flight, she aimed a kick at the back of his head. Before her blow could connect, an arrow struck the giant's right leg.

"Ahg!" In the chaos, Azula was seized by her ankle in mid-flight, forcibly thrown to the ground. The arrow buried itself deeper into her leg, causing her to scream in agony. Then, the giant grabbed her by the hair and hurled her into the air.

A series of five blows rained down on Azula. She had no means to defend herself against the merciless mercenary with the staff. His final descending blow struck her head with brutal force, sending her crashing to the ground.

What followed was a cruel ordeal. The mercenaries circled Azula, subjecting her to a prolonged beating. She lay defenseless on the ground, unable to protect herself from the relentless onslaught. Blood streamed from her nose and mouth, and one eye was swollen shut. She squirmed in futile attempts to rise, but a final blow to her face left her immobile.

"Fire Nation trash," spat the man with the Bo staff. He delivered a last kick to her stomach, yet she barely flinched.

"I'll take this," the mercenary claimed, stripping Azula of anything valuable, including her clothing. She was left nearly naked in the alley.

"You're not so tough now, are you?" The giant leered as he touched her face, his gaze filled with lust. He ran his fingers across her lips, but his reverie was abruptly cut short.

"Ahhhhh!" The giant screamed in pain as two of his fingers were violently torn off by Azula's teeth.

"Ahggg," she heaved, vomiting blood along with the severed fingers, which she had ripped from her attacker. The giant retaliated with a fierce kick, sending her crashing into the alley wall.

"Damn bitch!" He subjected her to a few more kicks before inspecting his wounded hand. Two of his fingers were now missing – the ring finger and middle finger.

"You're stupid," the woman with the bow mocked. She enjoyed seeing the agony of her companion, who covered his wounds to stop the bleeding. "We're leaving," apparently she was the leader of the group, she gave the order to leave, now They had finished her off, she doubted Azula was alive, no one could survive a beating like that. The three ended up withdrawing from her, leaving her behind.

"..."

Azula couldn't even lift a finger, she was lying on the ground with blood running down from her wounds, with a vacant look in her one open eye, she stared at the blue sky, with white clouds and passing birds.

With tears of blood running down from her injured eye, she sighed softly. Her consciousness was slowly fading, and in her current state, it would only be a matter of hours before her body went into shock from her wounds, bruises, and starvation.

"I will die..."

She had no reason to deny it.

But... Die this way?

A prodigy like her, dying in a fight against some third-rate mercenaries in a dirty alley, was a pathetic way to go, so stupid...

She no longer had the strength, and little by little, she closed her eyes. The last thing she saw was a bird flying nearby.

"White feathers..." That was the last thought before finally falling unconscious.

"Child..."

Azula weakly parted her lips to drink what seemed to be soup. Her stomach growled with delight at finally having some food, and her mouth savored every drop as if it were divine.

Dazed, the teenager opened her eyes and could barely make out a silhouette next to her.

"Stay still." She wanted to refuse to comply with that order, but she stayed still when she felt a soothing sensation of moisture flowing through her chest and stomach. It was a new experience, the warmth and fluidity moving throughout her body.

"A waterbender." Azula immediately recognized the healer and knew what it implied.

Trapped by the enemy, it seemed a group of waterbenders had kept her alive, either for information or as a bargaining chip to use against her father – a hostage to blackmail him.

Good luck with that.

Opening her eyes again, she noticed she was now alone. Her eyes adjusted to the light, and she realized she was lying on what seemed to be a roof, resting on an old futon. It took nearly ten minutes for her to regain enough senses to sit up.

She had been healed.

Examining the spot where she had been shot by the arrow, she found nothing – not even a scar. The same applied to her face; her injured eye wasn't swollen, though it still hurt. She ran her hands over her body, confirming she had bandages on her forehead and around her chest. Breathing reminded her that her ribs were still tender.

As she explored the room, she noticed a mirror. Her appearance had improved; she had even gained some weight, and her skin looked healthier.

Her gaze roamed the room and settled on a pair of scissors in a basket with bandages. Why would the enemy leave her with a pair of scissors? Which she could use to cut their throats.

Stopping thinking about that, she heard someone coming up the stairs, she immediately put the scissors behind her, and waited for enemy to arrive, she would kill the enemy and escape, she refused to be the prisoner of dirty waterbenders.

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