Signal Flare

"Rumble—"

In the distant sky, muffled thunder and rain rumbled, a low, oppressive pressure hanging in the air.

The Hyuga ninja, clad in a special rain cloak, kept his Byakugan active as he stood atop a treetop, silently gazing off to one side.

Within a range of several kilometers, everything came into view.

Occasionally, at the edge of his vision, he caught glimpses of fleeting Chakra silhouettes.

Those were traces of the Cloud Village patrol units.

Not their target.

This large-scale observation continued intermittently for about half an hour, but he never found the group of figures they were supposed to rendezvous with. Only when his Chakra was nearly half-depleted did he finally stop the reconnaissance.

After exchanging passwords with the hidden sentry in the shadows, he braved the downpour and stepped into a bear cave serving as their rest stop.

The cave was quite deep, with winding passages. He walked more than ten meters inside before spotting the faint glow of firelight in the depths.

Perhaps it was the sight of the light that eased Hyuga Shoichi's mind somewhat. He stowed his dripping rain cloak, hung it on a natural stone hook at the corner, and greeted the person by the fire.

"Lord Sakumo."

Hatake Sakumo, sitting by the fire, looked up at him.

Hyuga Shoichi closed his eyes and shook his head:

"I've searched all around here."

"If they haven't all been wiped out, then they've relocated."

"Did you find any traces of large-scale battle?" Hatake Sakumo asked further.

"No."

"Then that's good news," Hatake Sakumo said calmly. "For a ninja of Tsunade's caliber, even if she died, she'd leave some traces behind."

"Shoichi, go rest for now."

"Have Makoto relieve you in four hours."

"Understood."

Only after Hyuga Shoichi turned and walked to another fire to sit down did Hatake Sakumo's previously stern and composed face suddenly crumple with a 'whoosh.'

"Ha..."

"Where the hell did she run off to? That Tsunade."

Seeing this, Sahara Mizu and Namikaze Minato exchanged knowing smiles.

Having known this unreliable 'Lord Sakumo' for a while, seeing him suddenly act serious felt oddly jarring.

Still, the situation was indeed pressing.

It had been three days since they crossed the border between the Land of Fire and the Land of Lightning and infiltrated the Land of Lightning.

As early as yesterday evening, they had found the original ambush point for Tsunade's Team.

But there wasn't even a ghost around.

It was only thanks to the Hyuga team's search capabilities that they managed to find traces of a large-scale pursuit and escape amid the torrential rain—though those traces were at least two days old.

Based on the evidence and available intel, it was highly likely that Tsunade's Team had also detected a leak during their mission and begun relocating early, yet they hadn't abandoned the task. While concealing their strength, they persisted in maneuvering nearby, waiting for an assassination opportunity.

For the arrogant Third Raikage, this kind of thinking had some merit.

A man wielding both the Strongest Spear and the Strongest Shield wouldn't change his path just because of a few Little Bugs in his way.

But for Sakumo's Team, sent to rendezvous with Tsunade's Team, this posed a major problem.

They had no way to tell whether Tsunade's Team had already abandoned the mission and fled during their maneuvers, or if they were pushing deeper into the Land of Lightning on a broader scale.

Moreover, after days of full-speed travel, Sakumo's Team was already exhausted.

In the three days since crossing into the Land of Lightning, this was the first time they had lit a campfire.

Just by looking at Sahara Mizu's expression as he held a bowl of warm pre-cooked canned food, you could tell how much they missed the comforts of civilization.

"Mizu."

Seeing his blissful look, Uchiha Yayoi, leaning beside him, lowered her voice and held up her own small can: "Do you want some more? I'm full."

"No need."

Sahara Mizu reached out, pressing his warm fingers gently against the girl's chilled, pale cheek: "Scoot closer; you're losing heat too fast."

As he spoke, he spread the blanket wrapped around himself and added another layer over Yayoi's.

Miss Yayoi's cheeks flushed slightly, feeling that this gesture was a bit too intimate in front of everyone. She discreetly glanced around, and when she saw no one looking their way, she carefully edged closer to him, pressing lightly against his side. Her peripheral vision flickered toward his face, her lashes trembling faintly.

Sahara Mizu, however, leaned casually against the wall, still holding his warm can.

"Ooh, ooh, ooh~"

Hatake Sakumo noticed this and teased them like a child: "How nice~ I wish I could snuggle up warmly with a girl in a cave too."

Miss Yayoi shot him a sidelong glance. After these few days together, the filter she once had for 'Konoha's White Fang' had long since shattered. Unfazed, she drawled out:

"Apologies for making you witness such an unseemly scene~"

As she spoke, she pressed in just a little closer.

Sahara Mizu, however, smiled without a care.

Life in the wild was far harder than imagined, and occasionally, a little diversion was needed.

Namikaze Minato sat across the campfire, watching Sahara Mizu, whose entire presence was so perfectly restrained that if one didn't look up, he seemed almost 'nonexistent.' The inexplicable curiosity in his heart grew stronger than before.

Ability development, hand seal-less ninjutsu, extraordinary observational skills—

In any aspect, he should have been an exceptionally outstanding figure.

Yet, having grown up alongside him, Minato felt as though he had never once noticed his presence.

This phenomenon struck even himself as somewhat unbelievable.

"Lord Mizu."

He thought for a moment, then scratched his cheek as if a little embarrassed, and asked, "This might be a bit shameless of me, but may I ask you for some advice on developing hand seal-less ninjutsu?"

"I've been working on a Wind Release hand seal-less technique for over a year now, but I haven't been heading in the right direction."

Having possessed extraordinary talent since childhood, aside from seeking guidance from elders like Jiraiya, this was the first time Namikaze Minato had made such a request to someone his own age.

On top of that, at the sensitive age of fifteen, a young man's pride was thinner than paper.

Yet, driven by an urgent desire to 'grow stronger,' Minato still pushed through the pressure and managed to speak up.

"Sure."

But before he could explain further—

He heard Sahara Mizu agree as if it were no big deal.

"Huh?"

Namikaze Minato was taken aback.

Sahara Mizu continued, "The Limitless Technique requires extremely high computational power; an ordinary person would likely find it very difficult to learn. The only thing I can teach you is probably the Rasengan."

"Wait, wait."

Namikaze Minato waved his hands repeatedly, his face flushing with tension: "I'm not trying to steal your technique, just the development aspect."

In the world of ninjas, stealing a technique was a very serious offense.

However, Sahara Mizu simply smiled. "The simplest way to develop a hand seal-less ninjutsu is to learn one first, isn't it?"

"Besides, our fighting styles are quite similar."

"I think the Rasengan might suit you very well."

Namikaze Minato's eyes widened in surprise as he stared at Sahara Mizu.

Shock, mixed with a touch of gratitude.

To teach a technique without any ties or obligations—this was an extraordinary favor.

Miss Yayoi was also stunned for a moment. She turned to look at him, then quickly snapped back to reality and suddenly interjected:

"It can't be for free! At the very least, you have to trade it for a technique you developed yourself."

"Yayoi?"

Sahara Mizu turned his head instinctively.

He didn't think that Minato would be unable to recreate the Rasengan because of him; using it now as a favor would clearly be more valuable.

Then, he saw Uchiha Yayoi glance toward the other two campfires.

Following her gaze, he noticed quite a few people secretly watching their direction, clearly having overheard their conversation. Only then did he understand her meaning.

"Of course."

Namikaze Minato immediately agreed without hesitation, his eyes practically shining as he looked at Sahara Mizu.

"What about me? What about me?"

Hatake Sakumo also chimed in, squeezing himself into the young people's conversation, pointing at himself. "Can I learn too?"

Miss Yayoi was still holding a grudge, snorting like a miser. "Then you'll have to trade it for the White Fang Swordsmanship—the complete version!"

"Hey, hey!" Hatake Sakumo's face instantly fell. "Not even married yet, and you're already acting like a nagging wife? Women who are too controlling aren't liked, you know!"

At the first half of his words, Yayoi's face flushed red, but then it immediately darkened, and she snapped irritably, "An old, unserious man like Lord Sakumo is the one who'll never find a wife!"

"Hehehe!"

But Hatake Sakumo was beaming, his face radiating a disgustingly smug happiness. "Your senior here already has a son who's three years old!"

"Eh—?!"

Everyone couldn't help but draw out their voices in shock, staring at him.

It was precisely in this brief pause that an Anbu ninja lurking outside on guard duty suddenly burst into the cave and spoke urgently:

"Lord Sakumo!"

"To the north—a red signal flare!"

In an instant, the relaxed expressions on everyone's faces unanimously turned into solemn alertness.

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