The Loulan Remnants looked nothing like a merchant caravan. They were more like Middle Eastern refugees... They had all come from the desert and were all heading for a wealthy country... After Yuhara left, Sarah led her people eastward. They passed through cities without entering them, cooked outdoors when they were hungry, and pitched tents at night. They spent the entire journey exposed to the elements.
Civilians could not match a ninja's speed. On top of that, these five hundred people were traveling with their entire families—there were old people, children, the wounded, and the sick. No matter what they did, they could not move quickly. Thus, even after entering the Land of Fire for half a month, they still had not reached Konoha.
However, their destination was not Konoha either. Their main purpose in heading east was to find a signal and contact Konoha.
The longer it took, the more Sarah felt that she had been deceived. She increasingly felt that she should not have let Yuhara go so easily. What if he never returned? What if he was not a Konoha Ninja? What if...
But at the time, she had no choice but to leave the desert. A Sand Ninja had died in their home. If they did not leave, what if the next Sand Ninja who came was exceptionally bloodthirsty? They would not even need many—just one team of ninjas could easily destroy this country, leaving not even the chickens and dogs alive.
Just as Sarah was letting her imagination run wild, a crackling sound came from beside her ear. Had they received a signal? Then a voice came from the small metal plate: "Yuhara? No, you're not Yuhara. Let me think... Koharu Biyori?"
Sarah answered instinctively, "Kiki Ippatsu."
Wait, that did not seem right. Had they