Back in Konoha, after finishing her training for the day, Karin was informed by Kurenai Yuhi that she was done and didn't need to come back tomorrow.
The Fifth Hokage's order to Kurenai had only been to instruct her in methods of resisting genjutsu, not to train her into a full-fledged genjutsu-type ninja. While learning genjutsu was difficult, there were only a few ways to break it. After several days of study, the only thing left was for Karin to practice on her own.
With Sakura out on a mission, she was alone in the house again. Yakumo had her own place to live, and now that Sakura was gone, Tsunade had assigned several ANBU to closely monitor her movements.
Karin, for her part, didn't really want to hang out with Yakumo. Lately, for some reason, Yakumo had been acting strangely, constantly muttering numbers under her breath and seeming a bit dazed.
And although some pretty boy had shown up claiming to be a member of Sakura's team, Karin hadn't been told anything by Sakura, so she was a bit skeptical.
"Old man, one bowl of ramen," Karin said, arriving at Ichiraku Ramen and addressing the owner, Teuchi.
With no one at home recently, Karin couldn't be bothered to cook for herself. Although she had no income at the moment, as the Hokage's disciple, she would never be short on money for food. She received a considerable relief fund every month.
"You got it! Same as yesterday?" Teuchi asked without looking up from making the ramen.
"Yeah." Karin found a seat, only to realize that the blond boy sitting next to her was Naruto.
"Uh, Naruto..." Karin looked at Naruto's downcast expression, unsure of what to say.
"Oh, Karin, it's you." Naruto glanced listlessly at Karin, who had just sat down beside him. He had clearly been lost in thought and had only just noticed her.
"Heh, yeah." Karin saw that Naruto's ramen bowl was still full. Had even his beloved Ichiraku Ramen failed to wash away his sorrow?
"Has Sakura come back yet?" Naruto asked.
"No, not yet." Seeing Naruto still looking so dejected, Karin offered some comfort. "You don't have to worry so much. Since Sakura has already gone to find him, there won't be any problem."
"Thanks, Karin," Naruto said politely, then began muttering to himself again. "That guy, Sasuke... just... why... dammit..."
"..." Karin remained silent. She wasn't very close to Sasuke; their only real interaction had been when he sought her out during the previous attempt to corner Sakura. From that one encounter, however, her impression of him had changed slightly. He seemed like someone who wasn't a bad person at heart, just proud and aloof.
"Here's your ramen." Just then, Teuchi brought Karin's bowl over.
"Thanks," Karin said. Although she regretted Sasuke's defection, it was far from enough to make her sad. So, she ate and drank as usual.
Naruto seemed to have his appetite sparked by Karin and began to eat heartily as well. Since the day he had gone to Granny Tsunade to find out what was going on, he had been unable to do anything but wait anxiously in the village, which made him miserable.
Jiraiya had already decided to take Naruto out for more training, but because of this incident, he decided to wait until Sakura returned before leaving. Otherwise, Naruto would just be distracted.
"What are you planning to do?" Tsunade asked Jiraiya, who was in her office.
"About what?" Jiraiya asked, not understanding.
"About Naruto. This was really a bad time for him to come back," Tsunade said with a headache.
"You mean about the Uchiha kid?" Jiraiya asked, stroking his chin.
"We can't be certain that Orochimaru abducted Sasuke. Sakura suggested that Sasuke went with Orochimaru willingly," Tsunade analyzed. "Naruto has already come to me to cause a scene several times. If Sakura fails this time, are you going to take him to look for Sasuke?"
"That is indeed a problem," Jiraiya said, his face serious. "Taking Naruto to train was also to avoid the Akatsuki's attention. If we have to fight Orochimaru, it's inevitable that our whereabouts will be exposed."
"So what's your plan?" Tsunade asked again.
"Hmm..." Jiraiya pondered for a moment, then his expression turned grave. "In that case, the only option is to take him to that place."
"That place..." Tsunade thought for a moment, then said in surprise, "Mount Myoboku? Don't you think it's a bit early for him?"
Jiraiya nodded. "It is a bit early. But once there, it's impossible to leave. It's also a great place for training. He might be able to calm down and focus on his training there."
Although Jiraiya wasn't familiar with Sasuke, he understood how Naruto felt. He, too, had been saddened by Orochimaru's betrayal. But now was not the time for sadness. This was the time for a ninja to build their foundation; training couldn't be delayed by these matters.
If they stayed out in the world, Naruto's personality would have him constantly thinking about finding Sasuke. But taking him to Mount Myoboku would completely sever that line of thought, allowing him to put more energy into his training.
Originally, Jiraiya had only planned to use these few years to give Naruto a solid foundation. But if they went to Mount Myoboku, then they could try to have him train in that technique.
Sakura lay lazily in a steaming open-air hot spring. Across from her was a blushing Hinata. The Land of Hot Water didn't have much else, but due to its geography, it had an abundance of hot springs. So, after the wars ended, it gradually developed into a tourist country.
Lying back brazenly in the hot spring, Sakura found Hinata's shyness amusing. She also found it a little strange. What on earth did Hinata eat to get so... developed? While not huge by adult standards, she was already quite large for her age. It really must come down to genetics.
Sakura used a towel to wipe her face and continued to enjoy the hot spring. They had been in the Town of a Hundred Flowers for several days now, but it seemed the ubiquitous floral scent was truly interfering with the Bikochu's sense of smell. It had led them around the town for days with absolutely no results.
So this was the limit of the Bikochu. Although it could track scents from long ago, it could still be disrupted. There were too many types of floral scents here, making it difficult for the Bikochu to distinguish anything.
However, Sakura wasn't in a hurry. Rushing wouldn't help. She might as well take the opportunity to relax. As her stomach let out a growl, Sakura said to Hinata, "Let's go get dinner. We can ask Shino about today's results while we're at it."
That was right. Because the smell was too strong, Kiba disliked it here and spent all his days at the inn. The only clue they had now was the Bikochu, and only Shino could control insects. So, the task of following the Bikochu had fallen to him.
"O-Okay... I'll be right there," Hinata quickly replied.
Sakura tightened her yukata. Unfazed, she moved through the garden of beauties, a leaf untouched by the flowers. With a wave of her sleeve, she left them all behind, heading for the changing room. After changing into her clothes, she made her way to the dining hall.
This kind of hot spring inn offered quite comprehensive services. Although Sakura and her team looked like a group of kids, their Konoha headbands prevented the innkeeper from looking down on them.
A short while later, Hinata followed. The two of them arrived at the dining hall to find Kiba and Shino already sitting there. The table was already laden with a sumptuous meal. They went over and sat across from them.
"Hinata, why did even you go to the hot spring?" Kiba said to Hinata, dissatisfied. "We're not here on vacation."
"I-I'm sorry. Sakura insisted on dragging me there," Hinata hurriedly explained.
"Hey, I said it's fine. It's not like we're making any progress anyway," Sakura said with a dismissive wave of her hand.
"By the way, Shino, any discoveries today?" Sakura then turned to ask Shino.
Shino shrugged helplessly. "Same as yesterday. The scent here is too strong. Sasuke stayed here for a long time, and the mix of floral scents has confused the Bikochu's sense of smell. It will take some more time to sort through these scents."
"Isn't there a faster way?" Kiba asked.
"There is no other way," Shino said, shaking his head. "The Bikochu relies on instinct to search. It cannot track based on residual traces, so distinguishing these scents involves a lot of uncertainty."
"I see," Sakura said with a nod. "In that case, we can only wait. You guys shouldn't be too anxious. I've already made a decision. Once the Bikochu finds which way Sasuke went, you all will stay here in this town."