Wandering Monk

"First to Tanzaku Town?"

Uchiha Sōgetsu looked Tsunade up and down, his face full of suspicion. "You're not really a gambling addict, are you? Planning to go there for a few rounds?"

"Cough, cough, of course not!" Tsunade planted her hands on her hips, her phoenix eyes glaring fiercely at him. "In your eyes, am I the kind of person who can't tell what's important?"

Whether you are or not, you know it best yourself. Uchiha Sōgetsu twitched the corner of his mouth, his face written with doubt.

It wasn't that he didn't trust her—it was that this woman's gambling addiction was way too severe.

A legendary Sannin of Konoha, founder of the medical ninja system, and head of Konoha Hospital—and she'd nearly gambled away the hospital itself in a single night. If the Hokage's personal Anbu hadn't stepped in, this woman might have even gambled herself away. That's how bad her addiction was.

The boy's deeply skeptical gaze made Tsunade's pretty face flush red. She wanted to argue back, but lacked the confidence. "There just happens to be a seal south of Tanzaku Town, so it's on the way."

"The Forest of the Dead is clearly south of Konoha, and Tanzaku Town is to the southwest." Uchiha Sōgetsu's face was expressionless as he pointed at the nearest location on the scroll. "The distance between the two spots is over a hundred and seventy kilometers. Lady Tsunade, are you sure that's 'on the way'?"

"Aren't they both south?"

Pelted with questions, Tsunade twisted her jade-white fingers together like a little girl, pouting in grievance. "I was thinking, since we have so many places to go on this trip, your outfit would draw too much attention. So I figured we'd stop at Tanzaku Town first to buy some disguises."

That was at least a reason.

The scroll recorded over a dozen seal locations, scattered all across the Land of Fire.

Not to mention the Anbu mask he was wearing—Tsunade alone was enough to attract notice. The two of them together were far too conspicuous.

So Tsunade's concern wasn't unfounded.

But Uchiha Sōgetsu wasn't falling for it. He'd seen through her little scheme long ago and called her out directly. "Then why didn't you say so this morning in Konoha?"

"I forgot."

Tsunade spread her hands, putting on an innocent look.

Faced with such a stubborn 'female rogue,' even Uchiha Sōgetsu felt helpless. He had no choice but to agree to her plan. "Fine, we'll go to Tanzaku Town as you said. But we're only staying one day, tops."

"Yay!"

A flicker of cunning flashed in Tsunade's eyes, and she broke into a triumphant grin.

With the route decided, Uchiha Sōgetsu stopped dwelling on it. He planned to reach Tanzaku Town as fast as possible, rest for a day, then head toward the Forest of the Dead.

The journey passed without a word.

By sunset, they finally saw the neon lights of Tanzaku Town.

Having barely rested since last night and sprinted almost nonstop for a full day, Uchiha Sōgetsu was utterly exhausted.

"Huff... huff..." He braced his hands on his knees, panting heavily.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk, kid, your stamina's terrible. Why are you so weak?" In contrast, Tsunade looked completely at ease—her face wasn't flushed, her breathing was steady, and she squinted her beautiful eyes in a teasing tone. "How about calling me 'big sister'? Maybe if I'm in a good mood, I'll teach you a trick or two."

"No need, Lady Tsunade." Uchiha Sōgetsu shook his head in refusal, took a deep breath, and straightened up. "Don't forget what you promised me."

"Oh, I know, I know." Tsunade's eyes cooled slightly. She curled her lip, snorted, and turned her head away. "If you don't want to call me that, fine. I wouldn't bother teaching you anyway."

With that, as if offended, she ignored him completely and strode straight into Tanzaku Town.

"Women are such a hassle..."

Uchiha Sōgetsu sighed in resignation and followed her in.

Come to think of it, though he'd carried out many missions, he'd never once been to Tanzaku Town. This was a good chance to look around.

Tanzaku Town was the Land of Fire's famous pleasure district, packed with casinos, amusement parks, and hotels. Calling it a paradise wouldn't be an exaggeration.

Blazing neon lights everywhere, a lively atmosphere, crowds of people bustling through, and prosperous commercial streets—it gave Uchiha Sōgetsu the illusion of being back in his past life.

He'd already taken off his Anbu mask. He followed Tsunade to a hot spring hotel, where they checked into separate rooms.

Seemingly infected by Tanzaku Town's vibrant energy, Tsunade's mood lifted again. She didn't even bother to rest, dropping a single line before dashing off in a hurry.

No need to guess. That woman was definitely heading to the casino.

"It's still early. I'll go out for a stroll."

Night was when Tanzaku Town truly shined. Since he was here for a rare visit, Uchiha Sōgetsu didn't plan on turning in so early.

On both sides of the street, charming, seductive women beckoned to passing tourists with alluring grace.

"As expected—though it's called a pleasure district on the surface, it's not that simple underneath." Uchiha Sōgetsu wandered aimlessly, like a transparent figure detached from the noise, silently 'observing' the pedestrians and tourists flowing through the streets. And that's when he noticed something interesting.

A small number of these people were actually shinobi!

Rogue ninja? Or spies from other villages?

Or maybe both?

Uchiha Sōgetsu fell into thought. No wonder Jiraiya liked coming here to gather intel—since ancient times, pleasure quarters had always been natural intelligence hubs.

Bang!

Lost in thought, Uchiha Sōgetsu didn't notice the person in front of him and collided head-on.

The other party was tall and burly. Uchiha Sōgetsu was knocked back two steps.

"Namu Amida Butsu."

The man seemed surprised at first, but quickly recovered. He pressed his palms together and bowed deeply. "My sincerest apologies, Benefactor. I was lost in thought and didn't notice you ahead. I accidentally bumped into you. Please forgive my rudeness."

"Mm, it's fine."

Uchiha Sōgetsu rubbed the back of his head, revealing a simple, honest smile. "It was my fault. I didn't notice you, Master."

The monk looked young, only about twenty or so, dressed in a white robe with his hair gathered at the crown and a long braid hanging down the back of his head. But what was a little odd was the Roman numeral 'V' tattooed beneath his left eye and a small black mark on his chin.

"Since the Benefactor is unharmed, this Little Monk will take his leave."

The monk pressed his palms together in another bow and prepared to leave directly.

"Master, wait a moment."

Uchiha Sōgetsu suddenly called out, stopping the monk.

The monk paused briefly, then halted his steps and turned back, looking at him with a puzzled expression. "Benefactor, is there something you need?"

"Since we've met, it must be fate."

Uchiha Sōgetsu smiled. "My name is Uchiha Obito. And you?"

"Ah, so you're from the famed Uchiha Clan." The monk froze for half a second, not expecting the boy to be so straightforward, but quickly broke into a smile. "This Little Monk is Jigen, a wandering monk."

"Jigen. A good name."

Uchiha Sōgetsu said with a meaningful tone. "It's a pleasure to meet you. If there's a chance, I hope we can meet again."

"This Little Monk takes his leave."

Jigen smiled, pressed his palms together in a bow, and hurried away.

"Jigen, huh..."

Watching the monk's retreating back, Uchiha Sōgetsu's gaze gradually turned cold.

Just now, he had been in a state of 'Psychological Invisibility,' so none of the passersby or shinobi around had noticed him.

But 'Jigen' had not only noticed him—he'd even bumped into him.

Not on purpose?

Hah. Such a flimsy excuse might fool a child, but him?

"So even Jigen's shown up..."

Uchiha Sōgetsu's mood grew heavy. He looked up at the moon in the sky. "This shinobi world is getting more and more interesting."

Meanwhile, the departing Jigen stopped in his tracks, as if sensing something, and turned around.

"Was that my imagination?" Frowning, he stared back at the road he'd come from and muttered to himself, "That kid's gaze... something about it felt off."

I see some readers asking, so let me clarify here.

No Boruto! No Boruto! No Boruto! The reason characters from Boruto appear is purely for the Ōtsutsuki lore and to set the stage for the protagonist's later journey to the starry sky. So don't worry—Boruto and the like won't show up. From the moment the protagonist appears, the original timeline ceases to exist.