The Client

The wealthy merchant, Mr. Ito, who commissioned this task, was a shrewd-looking middle-aged man.

He carried a briefcase with great care, and it was obvious at a glance that it contained something important.

His butler was a small, thin old man with white hair, his expression very placid, as if he didn't care what kind of dangerous place they were going to as long as he was by his master's side.

The guard beside him was a tall, strong samurai, with two tachi hanging at his waist, looking quite capable.

However, when he looked at Satoru and the other two, his face was filled with disdain.

"You dare go to the border battlefield with this group? How big is your business..."

Satoru muttered a silent complaint, watching Mr. Ito frown slightly.

"Satoru, Nawaki, Mikoto, the mission starts now. So first, you three will plan this out."

Orochimaru seemed to want to be a completely hands-off manager, having arranged nothing. Seeing the client's bewildered expression, Orochimaru smiled:

"Mr. Ito, please rest assured, these three are my excellent students. As their teacher, I have absolute confidence in them."

"Moreover, with me, an Elite Jonin, overseeing, I will point out any shortcomings they may have."

"This... then I'll have to trouble you, Lord Jonin. I'm willing to pay such a high price precisely because of your reputation!"

Mr. Ito took out a handkerchief and wiped his sweat, tightening his grip on the briefcase.

Orochimaru was a disciple of the Hokage, an Elite Jonin, and coupled with his reputation as a genius and his excellent past mission records, he was an outstanding figure among the Jonin left to teach.

This was why Mr. Ito had gritted his teeth and made the decision to pay a high price to secure Orochimaru's squad for escort.

"It's wartime now, and if I could, I wouldn't want to go to the Land of Wind at this time, but if I don't, my assets there will be confiscated! That's absolutely unacceptable!"

Mr. Ito gritted his teeth fiercely:

"Those guys in the Land of Wind are simply unreasonable! Taking advantage of the war, they actually want to seize my assets for war funds!"

Satoru and the other two exchanged glances. So that was what it was.

Then the pressure from Sunagakure shouldn't be small.

If Sunagakure was calculating against foreign merchants like this to ensure war expenses, they would likely use "appropriate" methods to avoid the principal appearing.

It all depended on Mr. Ito's assets.

"But, I remember that traveling from the Land of Fire to the Land of Wind, you can also pass through the Land of Rivers, right? Why must you pass through the Land of Rain, which is in a state of combat readiness?"

Satoru pointed out a key detail. The Land of Rivers was sandwiched between the Land of Wind and the Land of Fire, and didn't have its own hidden village, so wouldn't it be easier to travel through?

"Because... because I still have some assets in the Land of Rain, and I need to obtain some documents there before I can go to the Land of Wind..."

Mr. Ito said with a wry smile, "I wouldn't want to take risks if it wasn't necessary..."

Everyone understood. No wonder it was so troublesome.

Nawaki and Mikoto exchanged a look with Satoru, and the latter scratched his head, showing a helpless expression.

"Ahem... then, Teacher Orochimaru, I will make the plan."

Orochimaru nodded gently. Satoru looked Mr. Ito and his entourage up and down, stroking his chin:

"Mr. Ito, right... is that briefcase of yours very important?"

"Uh... yes, this is another set of important documents. Without them, I won't be able to prove my ownership of the assets in the Land of Wind. Even if I go there myself, I won't be able to keep them!"

"In a country in a state of war, are such documents useful?"

Nawaki asked, questioning whether the Land of Wind would care about documents belonging to a merchant from an enemy country. Confiscation was the normal course of action, wasn't it?

"The war will always end," Mr. Ito said with a strained smile. "If they are too greedy, who would dare do business there?"

"So if the border is sealed and I can't get back, they can do whatever they want with it. But if I can get back to manage things, the Land of Wind won't lose face over my assets."

"I see..."

Nawaki nodded, glanced at Satoru, indicating he had no more questions.

Satoru raised an eyebrow and continued, "In other words, the enemy can achieve their goal by destroying the documents as well. Our objective is to escort you, Mr. Ito, and your documents, and to obtain the documents in the Land of Rain."

"...That's right."

Mr. Ito was taken aback, nodded, but couldn't help but become more nervous:

"Uh... are you going to charge extra!"

"Heh heh... no, please don't worry."

Orochimaru's words made Mr. Ito relax. Konoha was quite principled. If they had asked for more money at this point, he wouldn't dare refuse.

"Then I'll continue."

Satoru nodded, glanced at the old butler and the samurai guard, and smiled:

"Mr. Samurai, do you have any objections?"

"Hmph!"

The middle-aged samurai, who had been holding back his words, heard Satoru single him out and heavily patted his scabbard, disdainfully saying:

"A brat who hasn't even grown all his fuzz. The boss is willing to hire you, and I've always been against it. If it weren't for the Elite Jonin leading the team, do you think you'd be qualified to be here?"

"If I don't speak, so be it. The boss is the boss, after all. I can't change his decision, but you dare to question me? Are you overconfident to the extreme!"

The samurai's words made Nawaki's face turn red, and Mikoto frowned. Orochimaru and Satoru, however, remained smiling.

The old butler still looked as calm as ever, but Mr. Ito's eyebrows shot up, and he cursed:

"You scoundrel! Sanada! Is this the time for infighting! Apologize to the ninja lords at once!"

The samurai, Sanada, hailed from the Land of Iron and was a samurai he had hired at a high price not long ago.

Because the war between the Land of Iron and the Land of Rain was quite brutal, Sanada had witnessed the terrifying nature of the Land of Rain's ninja.

"It's alright. Understanding a companion's strength is also very necessary before a mission begins."

Orochimaru waved his hand and nodded at the samurai Sanada:

"Then, Mr. Samurai, my disciple, Mitokado Satoru, challenges you as a ninja."

"If Satoru wins, please follow Satoru's commands throughout the entire journey."

The samurai Sanada's expression changed. Orochimaru, an Elite Jonin, made him feel pressure:

"Lord Jonin, are you serious?!"

"Of course, this was my original plan," Orochimaru glanced at the conflicted Ito, a slight smile playing on his lips:

"If you win, we will refund your entire commission fee and escort you to the Land of Wind free of charge."

"Deal!"

Glancing at his boss, Sanada saw that Ito was merely wiping sweat and did not object. He immediately understood that his boss was tempted.

"It's a deal!"

Sanada gripped his sword sheath and showed a sinister grin at Satoru:

"Kid, Lord Jonin said it himself. You can still back out and surrender now if you regret it!"

"Otherwise, if we actually fight, I can't guarantee you won't get hurt!"

"Ugh... It's fine, come on."

Satoru sighed. He thought that clients who brought their own guards were always troublesome.

Why couldn't they just pay obediently and follow arrangements? If they insisted on jumping around, why didn't they go to the border themselves?

This samurai was just third-rate in the Land of Iron. Otherwise, why would he be working as a mercenary during this unfavorable war for the Land of Iron against the Land of Rain?

The samurai of the Land of Iron, with their powerful swordsmanship and combat techniques of imbuing chakra into their weapons, didn't think much of ordinary ninja.

In a one-on-one duel, it was hard to predict the winner between a ninja and a samurai of the same level.

But...

"Heh, a dual-wielding berserker against a mage... and one that can't charge or intercept, no less."

"Since you insist, don't cry if you get hurt, kid!"

Samurai Sanada said coldly. Being looked down upon by a mere ten-year-old kid made him furious.

"You don't know the immensity of heaven and earth!"