Chapter 26
The snow-covered mountainous path was a beautiful sight to behold. However, it wasn't easy to traverse. Even with chakra control, the snow on the path was unstable and sometimes broke off, sliding beneath their feet.
Though they never got injured even when they fell, it was tiring. And the cold was bitingly chilling. The winds themselves never stopped hitting them either. It was truly a treacherous path, at least at this time of the year.
Well, at least they were now completely out of the Land of Fire and all the dangers it posed for them. Yahiko had no wish to run into either Konoha's or any other village's shinobi. This one encounter was enough for him.
He thought he was strong, but there was no competing with monsters that had been on the field of shinobi for years. And he still thought he could end this kind of fight without killing anyone. That was just a death sentence for him, so he would rather not face any shinobi to begin with.
There were plenty of shinobi who would cause danger to them. And it didn't seem like they would even need to look for them. Hopefully, the Land of Iron would be more peaceful, and it would be a place to settle for a bit to continue his training.
He didn't think that Amegakure would ignore them any longer if they stayed within their territory. And there wasn't really any other place for them to go. That only left a country without any shinobi system.
Finding a crevice to stay away from the upcoming blizzard, Yahiko huddled together with Konan and Nagato to ward off the cold. Yahiko imagined that trying to live in such an environment would make anyone stronger, in mind and body.
"I don't want to see snow anymore," Konan complained. "It got everywhere, and now it's melting inside my clothes."
Yahiko had nothing to say about it, as it happened to him too. Not only were his feet wet and cold, but snow got into his nape and back and started melting from body heat before it began to freeze from the cold once again.
They simply weren't prepared for such weather. After all, it was their first time in such a place, so they couldn't have known. But either way, their clothing was too light and thin, no matter how many layers they wore.
"Endure it," Nagato said as he made a makeshift fireplace from rock, and Yahiko lit it up.
Although they didn't have much fuel to keep the fire going, it was enough to warm the rocks and dry their clothes. They just had to stay huddled together to warm each other up. It was just like their first winter together.
Hiding in cramped places, trying to keep each other warm while hoping that the next day wouldn't be so bad, only for it to be even worse. Sometimes, Yahiko missed his cave. It was his first real home, and where he met Konan and Nagato.
"Don't worry, we're sure to reach some kind of settlement soon if we follow the path," Yahiko said, as he tried to lift the moods of the other two. "It's just a small test by this new country, and like always, we will pass it, no matter what it is."
"It is our stupidity not to prepare for winter in one of the coldest countries, not a test," Nagato countered Yahiko. "So, just shut up and get closer to me, I am freezing."
Nagato seemed to be a bit too grumpy to argue with. So, covered in blankets, they continued to huddle together to ward off at least some of the cold, ignoring the howling of the wind, which got louder and louder with each second.
"I don't think that's the wind," Konan commented as the howling got closer and clearer.
"Wolves," Nagato agreed. "Probably hungry wolves, too."
"Yes, yes, everything is terrible," Yahiko said, not liking how the mood got even worse. "The crevice is narrow, so there's nothing to worry about. Even if they find us, they won't be too much trouble. So, let's be quiet for a bit and try to rest."
To Yahiko, nothing was as bad as it looked. To normal people, wolves might be dangerous beasts to encounter in a place like this, but to them, they posed no danger, only annoyance. With a zap of his lightning, Yahiko probably could ward them all away.
But he also couldn't blame Nagato, as he was quite tired and cold. They didn't even have anything to cook food to warm up their bellies, and that got the better of them. The stale bread and cold sausage could help only that much.
There was little Yahiko wouldn't give up for a hot cup of tea right now. But hopefully, they would be able to get a good night of sleep, and their clothes would get dry overnight, so they would start the next day fresh and full of energy.
…
As Yahiko should have expected, it got even colder during the night. And if the howling wind wasn't enough, the wolves sure did keep them all awake. Well, it wasn't like they could get any sleep with all three of them trembling in the cold to begin with.
Either way, the only good thing was that their clothes got dry. Even if it only lasted a few hours of walking through the mountainous path, they soon got wet once again. And they didn't even know where they were.
Any road that had once been there was now completely covered in snow. Only what they thought to be a path could barely be seen, so they followed it. They knew that they were getting deeper into the country, but they didn't seem to be getting out of the mountainous range.
And the blizzard completely covered anything and everything. It was impossible to see into the distance. So the thought that they might have missed a settlement was shared between them. But there was nothing to be done about it, and they could only continue to walk.
This time, though, they took any wood they could find along the way. And every time they found a place to rest and shield themselves from the wind, they used the opportunity. Not knowing how far they would need to go, they decided not to rush it and to rest as much as possible.
It is also a great training method, though not very desirable. Not only were they forced to control their chakra through their bodies to shield off the cold, but also to control their chakra to keep themselves warm.
They both were very different methods, and both were very difficult to use perfectly. So, when they were forced to use both methods simultaneously, it was almost impossible. But even a little success with it was much better than none at all.
"They are following us," Konan said as she turned back to see grey spots in the distance, hidden under the falling snow. "Should I take care of it?"
"They're just wolves, leave them be," Yahiko said, as he didn't want to lose his focus while he already struggled to walk on the snow. "And if you use any of your explosions, we will be buried under the snow. Even with our abilities, it would be difficult to escape from the tons of snow from the avalanche that would follow any wrong action we make."
And just as Yahiko finished speaking, he lost his focus in concentrating his chakra in his feet and fell face-first into the snow. Not only did they need to protect their bodies from the cold, both inside and outside, but also to control their chakra in their feet.
Well, unless they wanted to let their feet fall into knee-deep snow, get all wet, and make it even more difficult to walk. Some of them were better at controlling their chakra than others. It wasn't hard to tell who the others were by the footsteps left behind.
"There are woods ahead," Nagato informed them, as Konan helped Yahiko get out of the snow. "Looks like we are finally making some progress out of these mountains."
Sure enough, before them lay a lush forest. Just entering it made their lives a lot easier, as the thick trees shielded them from the wind and the blizzard somewhat. But Yahiko was already too exhausted, and the forest didn't make the blizzard disappear.
"Let's find some place to rest," Yahiko said. "My boots are completely wet."
The other two quickly agreed, as they were also completely drained of energy to continue, especially when they didn't know these woods or where they led. It was impossible to tell how far they would need to go to leave them.
Finding a bigger tree as the foundation, Nagato made a hole and a roof of solid earth, blocking the wind and snow completely. It wasn't hard to find branches and wood, and with Konan's paper, a fire was quickly made.
Melting some snow and boiling the water, they were able to make some tea from the herbs they still had with them to warm their bellies. Yahiko put his drenched clothes and soaked boots by the fire, letting them steam while he was covered in a blanket, and ate some bread.
"We are being surrounded," Nagato noted.
Ignoring his shivering body, Yahiko listened carefully to the surroundings. They were soft but still audible steps. It wasn't the steps that he heard, but the crunching of snow under weight. At first, he didn't even think it was wolves, from the weight they must have had to make such a noise.
"Let's warm up," Yahiko said. "No jutsu or making a scene. Even if we got away from the mountains, the distance isn't far, and causing an avalanche would be a death sentence for us."
Nagato and Konan seemed more than happy with that, as they quickly drew their kunai. Nobody liked to be hunted; even Yahiko was annoyed that some beasts thought they were just prey to be devoured.
After making themselves ready, Nagato made a tunnel to the outside, separate from the entrance, so they could all jump out together at the same time and finish this quickly. But they made a miscalculation.
They had never seen wolves, but they knew of them. They should have only been a bit bigger than the wild dogs Yahiko had encountered many times while living alone. But this was a different country, a different environment that bred a different kind of animals.
Now, they could tell why they could see their forms from a distance, even in a blizzard, because they were as big as horses. Even though Yahiko could tell those wolves were lean from hunger, they were still massive.
There were seven of them, encircling them, and they were already very close and towering over them. The wolf nearest to Yahiko opened its maw, showing off long and sharp fangs. Then it launched at Yahiko, thinking it was nothing but a food source.
As regretful as it was, Yahiko had no choice but to close that maw by putting his kunai through it. There was no reasoning with these beasts, though the same could be said about people; at least he could believe that he could talk with them without resorting to violence.
Still, he didn't like how blood spilled on his hand as the starving wolf dropped to the ground dead. He felt sorry for the animal, but Yahiko couldn't do anything more than give it a quick death.
Just as he accepted that, he turned to face another wolf, only to hear a whistling sound coming through the falling snow, getting closer breathtakingly fast. Yahiko had no idea what it was, but he knew it was dangerous.
"Duck!" Ignoring the wolves, Yahiko caught Konan and Nagato and made them drop to the ground.
The next moment, an arrow flew above them, taking one of the wolves with it and nailing the animal to a thick tree. Then another arrow did the same with yet another wolf, before another arrow repeated it, over and over, until all the wolves were dead.
Yahiko only had a chance to look at the arrows, noticing how long and thick they were and what incredible power they had, before he heard footsteps approaching them. Now they were surrounded by people, a dozen of them, with bows pointing at them.
The fact that they got so close to them without either of them or the wolves noticing told Yahiko enough about how skilled those people were. They were all covered in white and grey fur, and from the sight of them, Yahiko could tell they were all warriors.
A.N. As always, thanks for reading and supporting me, so I can continue writing without any concerns, and if you want more, up to seven more chapters, you can support me on pa treon. com \ ironwolf852.