On a straight forest path, four ninja bearing the Leaf emblem were walking. They were none other than Sakura Haruno's team, departing from Konoha for the Village Hidden in the Waterfall.
"Sakura, when are we going to get to the Waterfall Village?" Yakumo asked, looking very excited. Even her steps were much lighter. Born and raised in Konoha, she rarely had the chance to travel far—or rather, she'd never had the chance at all.
"We've still got a long way to go. We only just left," Karin answered from the side.
"Huh? Karin, have you been to the Waterfall Village before?" Yakumo asked curiously.
"Not exactly," Karin hesitated for a moment. "But I used to be from the Village Hidden in the Grass. The Land of Grass and the Land of Waterfalls are neighboring countries, so I have a rough idea of the location."
"Ehh?" Yakumo said in surprise. "Karin, you used to be a Grass ninja?"
"I... wasn't really a ninja," Karin said, her tone unchanging as she mentioned it. "In their eyes, I was just a convenient healing pack."
"Healing pack?" Yakumo asked, puzzled. "What's that?"
"Yakumo, don't ask," Sakura interrupted. "Karin's past is in the past. Don't dwell on it. You only need to know the Karin of today."
"Oh," Yakumo replied, but she had a faint feeling that something was being hidden from her. No, wait, it's probably being hidden from Sai, Yakumo thought, recalling Sakura's private instructions to her before they left. But she felt a little sorry for Sai...
"Anyway, we don't need to rush on this mission. It's just a diplomatic visit. And you need to rest well, Yakumo, or your body won't be able to take it," Sakura instructed.
Sai followed behind them without a word. Watching their cheerful interaction, he felt a sense of familiarity, but he couldn't quite describe the feeling. The sensation lasted only for a moment before his years of training kicked in, and he quickly reverted to his mission-oriented state, trying to listen for any useful information.
Not long after Sakura's team departed from the Konoha gate, Jiraiya and Naruto, along with two toads, arrived.
"Pervy Sage, where are we going? And why is there a toad here?" Naruto tilted his head, looking at the short toad with a white beard.
"Show some respect, Naruto!" Jiraiya smacked Naruto on the head. He then turned to the toad. "I'm so sorry, Lord Fukasaku. This kid's a bit slow."
"What did you say, Pervy Sage? Who's slow? Why'd you hit me!" Naruto grumbled, rubbing his head.
"P-Pervy Sage..." Fukasaku ignored Naruto's rudeness, staring at Jiraiya with wide eyes. He then burst out laughing. "Haha, Little Jiraiya, 'Pervy Sage' suits you quite well!"
"N-Not at all! Don't listen to this kid's nonsense," Jiraiya said, scratching his head in embarrassment.
"Huh? L-Little Jiraiya..." Naruto was stunned by Fukasaku's form of address.
"Ahem, let me introduce you. This is Lord Fukasaku of Mount Myoboku. On the mountain, he is the most powerful sage after the Great Toad Sage," Jiraiya explained.
"Mount Myoboku?" Naruto looked completely lost. "What's that?"
"..."
Dark lines appeared on the foreheads of both Jiraiya and Fukasaku.
"Did I not tell you?" Jiraiya asked through gritted teeth.
"Hmm? Did you tell me?" Naruto thought for a moment, then scratched his hair and asked back.
"...My apologies, Lord Fukasaku. Let's just get started," Jiraiya said, having given up on him.
"Hmm... very well. Since you've decided, let's head to Mount Myoboku as soon as possible," Fukasaku nodded.
Fukasaku then began to form hand seals. Before Naruto could react, he disappeared in a puff of smoke. It was the Reverse Summoning Technique.
"Alright, Little Jiraiya, you're next," Fukasaku said, preparing to form the seals for Jiraiya.
"Wait!" Jiraiya quickly held up his hand. "Hold on a moment, Lord Fukasaku."
"What is it, Little Jiraiya? Is there something else?" Fukasaku asked.
Jiraiya began to form hand seals. With a puff of smoke, a shadow clone of Jiraiya appeared.
"Please send this shadow clone first," Jiraiya said.
"What is the meaning of this?" Fukasaku asked, confused.
"There's something I'm very concerned about, so I need to investigate it myself. I'll leave Naruto in your care with my shadow clone for now," Jiraiya said, his expression serious and his voice low.
"Is that so? Very well," Fukasaku nodded. "Be careful." Seeing Jiraiya's solemnity, Fukasaku understood that this was likely another extremely dangerous mission. But it wasn't his place to say more; this was Konoha's business, after all.
"Yes, I will," Jiraiya nodded.
Fukasaku then disappeared. Jiraiya looked at the road ahead, took a deep breath, and moved forward, following the trail of Sakura's team.
Jiraiya knew that the Sakura of today was not the same as before. He didn't dare get too close, or he would likely be detected. If she discovered his presence, she would probably abandon whatever she was planning to do.
In the Hokage's office that day, Jiraiya had appeared to be talking about Shuying, but he had actually been observing Sakura's expression and movements. Although Shuying's identity was suspicious, she had given him correct information.
If Shuying's information had been false, Jiraiya would have shifted his investigation to her. But since it was true, it could only mean that Shuying was trying to tell him something without being able to say it directly.
Although Shuying's identity was yet to be confirmed, since the information she provided was true, the person right in front of him, Sakura, became extremely suspicious.
First, it ruled out the possibility that Shuying had given him false information to stop him from investigating Sakura's whereabouts. This proved that Shuying's target was neither Sakura nor Jiraiya. But why did she pass on information about Sakura to him?
Jiraiya's guess was that there must be some problem on Sakura's end.
Moreover, in the office that day, Sakura's expression told Jiraiya that she was hiding something. From this perspective, there might be some connection between Shuying and Sakura.
In any case, compared to the unseen and untouchable Shuying, Sakura was right under his nose. And regarding what happened a few months ago, Jiraiya no longer trusted Sakura as much as Tsunade did.
Therefore, when Tsunade suggested he lead the team to the Waterfall Village, Jiraiya refused without hesitation. If he were leading the team, he wouldn't be able to investigate anything. The best way was to let Sakura's team go alone, while he followed behind, investigating in secret.
Jiraiya hadn't even told Tsunade about this. He felt that because of what happened a few months ago, Tsunade was consumed by guilt towards Sakura and could no longer look at her issues rationally.
Therefore, to avoid unnecessary arguments, acting in secret was the only way to solve the problem. Come on, let me see what you've really become. What are you hiding, Sakura?
Night fell.
Since Sakura's team was taking a nearly straight route and hadn't passed through any towns, they had to camp in the wilderness for the night.
Due to Yakumo's physical condition, their pace wasn't very fast. But it was a good opportunity to train Yakumo to use her Genjutsu: True Creation without any tools while they traveled.
Right now, the team was staying in a house Sakura had created with Earth Style. Looking at the drab, gray rock house, Sakura felt a little melancholic.
Wood Style was really more suitable for building houses. Living in a rock house always made her feel like a caveman.
But Sakura had no plans to further develop her kekkei genkai. She already had a fighting style that suited her. Besides, she had Seijutsu, a relic from an ancient era—or what could be considered ancient. According to Junko's memories, the Tsu God era was an age even more remote than that of the Sage of Six Paths.
In that era, even the current nations didn't exist, and the landmass didn't seem to have its present form. But Sakura wasn't a historian and had no interest in history. The only thing that interested her now was the legacy of that era.
And that collective consciousness, Junko. What did her final words mean? Perhaps these questions would be answered in the future. But for now, the most important thing was to consider how to act in the Waterfall Village this time.
The Seven-Tails... I have to consider the worst-case scenario.