When they weren't cultivating, Tsunade, Hatake Sakumo, and Hattori Heizo would often go out and play together.
Of course, it was mainly Tsunade and Hatake Sakumo; Hattori Heizo was dragged along unwillingly.
If they weren't fellow disciples, he wouldn't have chosen to come out.
The other two had no good way to deal with Hattori Heizo's personality, but his willingness to accompany them meant there was a possibility of change.
Perhaps in the future, he would naturally join their conversations.
For now, Tsunade and Hatake Sakumo were happily discussing some recent interesting events.
At this point, Tsunade took the initiative to bring up something: "Do you know, Kazemori accepted a request from my aunt and is preparing to go to the Land of Demons to handle something."
"The Land of Demons, I think I've heard of that country.
Is it the one with the miko (shrine maiden) faith?" Hatake Sakumo asked, uncertainly, upon hearing this.
"It should be that one; I heard my aunt mention miko or something," Tsunade said, skipping along with her hands behind her back.
"But Sakumo, you actually know about other countries."
"Just by chance," Hatake Sakumo replied.
"Because the Land of Demons is a bit special; there are not many ninjas, not even many samurai, and the monarch is not supreme.
Instead, the miko are revered.
This is unique in the entire ninja world, so my father specifically mentioned it."
"There's such a country?" Hattori Heizo walked slowly beside them, saying flatly, "So now, they wouldn't have hired any samurai or ninjas, would they?"
"It seems so; Tsunade also said that country still has miko," Hatake Sakumo replied.
"Then why is Sensei Kazemori going to that country for a mission?"
"Is it a very powerful enemy that requires Sensei Kazemori's intervention?" Hattori Heizo asked.
"It doesn't seem to be that; instead, the old site of the Shinobi Sect was discovered in that country.
As you know, Sensei Kazemori and my aunt have always been very concerned about such things, so he's going to help develop that old site," Tsunade answered.
"The Shinobi Sect… I don't know why Sensei Kazemori cares about this," Hattori Heizo exhaled softly.
He felt that such old things from the past didn't need to be brought up again.
"Who knows! Anyway, Kazemori is going to handle this matter.
As long as Grandpa Tobirama agrees, he's going to the Land of Demons."
At this point, Tsunade suddenly turned around, faced the two of them, leaned slightly, and whispered, "Hey, let Kazemori take us with him.
What do you guys think?"
Hatake Sakumo and Hattori Heizo felt a stir in their hearts upon hearing this.
In principle, ninjas cannot leave the ninja village without permission unless they are on a mission; otherwise, it would be considered desertion.
Therefore, after living in Konoha Village, they had never seen the outside world.
Only Hatake Sakumo, who had recently moved to Konoha Village, had traveled outside.
So, at this moment, Hatake Sakumo felt a bit nostalgic and said, "Outside the village… I miss it so much; it's been so long since I've been out."
"Sakumo, what's it like outside?" Tsunade asked Hatake Sakumo.
Hatake Sakumo recalled the past and slowly said, "It's a bit different from the village, with all sorts of people and different shops.
You can see things there that you don't find in the village."
Although he tried his best to describe it, he could only give a vague outline.
"What do you mean, you said nothing," Tsunade rolled her eyes.
"I can't help it; I can't just show you anything directly," Hatake Sakumo expressed his helplessness.
"Anyway, we can't easily miss this opportunity.
It's just this kind of mission, so there shouldn't be much danger.
Kazemori can take us out to see the outside world," Tsunade said enthusiastically.
"Are we going or not? Just say the word!"
Hatake Sakumo really wanted to go; he just didn't know Hattori Heizo's attitude.
He glanced at Hattori Heizo and asked, "Heizo, what about you?"
Hattori Heizo immediately understood what Hatake Sakumo meant.
For himself, he wasn't particularly interested in going outside.
He was, after all, a traditional member of the Hattori family.
However, these days, he had developed some camaraderie with his fellow disciples, which had subtly changed him.
Facing the gazes of the two, Hattori Heizo looked up silently at the sky, as if admitting defeat, and let out a sigh, saying, "Alright, let's go together."
"Good!" Tsunade vigorously waved her hand.
All three wanted to go on the mission together.
Even Fumori Masaki would have to consider it, right?
Although Tsunade was young, she knew the saying that there is strength in numbers.
Meanwhile, Fumori Masaki's conversation with Tobirama had just ended.
This time, Tobirama agreed to Kana's request to accompany him.
In the current state of the ninja world, the five great nations did not wish to provoke conflict, which was enough to prevent powerful individuals from targeting Kana.
The remaining schemers were insignificant, and Fumori Masaki alone could eliminate them.
Given the nature of this mission, Tobirama believed there wasn't much danger, so he agreed.
Tobirama was also relieved by Kana's current achievements.
To be able to prove her worth on a path outside of being a ninja meant he didn't have to worry about Kana's future life.
For this, he still had to thank Fumori Masaki for his influence on Kana.
"Masahiro, I hope this time you can get what you want," Tobirama said.
He knew that Fumori Masaki hoped to find something in the Shinobi Sect's scriptures.
"I hope so," Fumori Masaki could only say that.
He was actually a bit worried; the greater the hope, the greater the disappointment.
If he couldn't find what he needed at the old Shinobi Sect site, he wouldn't be in a good mood.
It was better not to have too much hope from the start and approach it with a relaxed attitude.
After leaving, Fumori Masaki began preparing to go to the Land of Demons.
He originally intended to instruct his three students to study hard during his absence, but he didn't expect them to directly propose accompanying him on the mission.
Fumori Masaki was somewhat surprised.
After a moment of hesitation, he went to see Tobirama again to ascertain his stance.
Although Tobirama was a bit surprised, after a brief consideration, he agreed.
After all, he had even approved Kana's request, so there was no need to hold back here.
Moreover, Hatake Sakumo and Hattori Heizo were highly anticipated candidates in the joint Chunin exams and should go out to gain experience.
So, the people going to the Land of Demons this time were Fumori Masaki, Kana, Tsunade, Hatake Sakumo, and Hattori Heizo.
Fumori Masaki was the captain, Kana was an accompanying member, and the other three were team members.
At the village gate, Tsunade, Hatake Sakumo, and Hattori Heizo all had a sense of novelty from leaving for the first time and were chatting excitedly.
Kana, who was already used to traveling, just smiled at the scene and said to Fumori Masaki, "I was really surprised to hear that Tsunade and the others are coming too.
But, it should be a good thing for them, right?"
"Yes," Fumori Masaki nodded slightly.
"Fortunately, this is just an ordinary mission; they don't need to face any danger.
Honestly, I really don't want children of this age to witness the cruelty of the world."
"Isn't getting the people of the world to accept such a concept what should be done on the path to reviving the Shinobi Sect?" Kana said.
"Yes," Fumori Masaki smiled and started walking.
"Let's go.
I'm really looking forward to the Land of Demons and want to see what it's like with my own eyes."