Taking It For Granted

Chapter 6: Taking for granted [Seeking recommendation votes]

One night.

Spent on a slightly bumpy carriage.

Whether it was because of the Two-Tails or not, Toneri felt he had slept very comfortably and his spirit had recovered exceptionally well.

Most importantly, Toneri felt his body had recovered even better after this rest.

As a former battlefield doctor who had escaped death multiple times on the battlefield, he knew his body better than anyone.

However, the human body in this world was significantly superior to the human bodies he had encountered in his previous life.

He stretched his body a little in the narrow carriage and performed a set of special exercises.

"Tsk, I can only say, it truly is a ninja world. In my previous life, even for myself, after doing this set of exercises, my body would become scorching hot, and steam would even rise from me.

But now, with this frail and malnourished body, after a set of exercises, I only feel slightly warm.

But...

I'm hungry... Do I have to eat Military Rations Pills again?"

Toneri muttered to himself after finishing his morning exercises, sitting in the carriage, his voice clearly conveying his revulsion.

While Toneri was still contemplating what to have for breakfast, the wooden door of the carriage was knocked upon.

An old man wearing simple clothes, who looked somewhat like a servant, slowly opened the door. In his hand, he held a tray with a simple-looking but steaming hot breakfast.

"Young sir, this is your breakfast."

Saying that, the old man chuckled and placed the tray on the carriage.

A bowl of seemingly bland noodles and two boiled eggs.

"Oh? There's breakfast provided?"

Although Toneri was hungry, he didn't immediately pick it up to eat. Instead, he looked at the old man with a hint of curiosity.

The old man's expression remained unchanged.

The wrinkled skin didn't look as frail under his smile.

"Yes, our master said that you paid generously, so he instructed the cook to make a portion for you as well when preparing breakfast. It's just a little extra effort in terms of ingredients and utensils.

The breakfast is a bit simple, I hope you don't mind."

Upon hearing this, Toneri's eyes narrowed subconsciously.

He quickly returned to normal, a smile appearing on his face, "I don't mind at all, please thank your master for me, old sir."

The old man nodded with a smile, "Then please enjoy, young sir. I will come to collect the bowls and chopsticks later. Lunch and dinner will also be delivered on time, all simple, plain meals. I hope you won't mind too much.

After all, we are a small business. Traveling on the road, we ask for nothing more than a warm meal, and we are content."

Toneri waved his hands repeatedly, "You speak too kindly, old sir. Being able to have a meal while traveling is already a great fortune. Whatever you eat, I will eat."

In this era of war, let alone eating well, simply being able to fill one's stomach was not an easy feat. Toneri had previously lived a life where he didn't know where his next meal would come from, living precariously.

Being able to have a warm meal while traveling with a merchant caravan indicated that this caravan was not a small one.

Most would be content with just some dry rations.

The owner of this caravan actually carried cooking equipment and ingredients with him, clearly indicating he was quite well-off. Furthermore, he didn't seem to take the potential dangers the caravan might encounter on the road very seriously.

This point surprised Toneri somewhat.

Of course, this was only within the current Land of Lightning and Land of Fire, where the two countries were allies and relatively safe. If it were another country, they would likely have been arrested as spies before even leaving.

Hearing Toneri's words, the old man chuckled and was about to leave. Toneri quickly asked, "Old sir, may I ask where we are now? How many more days until we reach the Land of Fire?"

After a slight pause.

"We are currently within the borders of the Land of the Moon. In a couple of days, we should pass through the Land of the Moon and enter the Land of Hot Water.

The Land of Hot Water's territory is much larger than the Land of the Moon, so it might take a little longer, but we should arrive in about three to four days. May I ask what you are going to the Land of Fire for?"

The smile on the old man's face remained unchanged.

This merchant caravan had traveled this route dozens of times, so he had a general idea of the timeframe.

"It's nothing, I'm just asking casually. Please go about your business, old sir."

Having obtained the answer he wanted, Toneri didn't pester the old man any further.

He watched the old man, with his hunched back, smile and leave.

But Toneri, sitting down, furrowed his brow slightly. He looked at the steaming noodles in the carriage, felt the slight bumps of the vehicle, and... the small amount of soup spilled due to the jolting.

"Something's not right..."

After a long while, Toneri murmured, his gaze somewhat distant.

Something was very wrong!

After a moment of thought, Toneri gradually realized what felt so off.

This merchant caravan was being overly friendly towards him!

Whether it was the solitary carriage or the breakfast delivered by the old man who seemed like a servant.

Everything that had just happened looked like a scene that could only occur in a peaceful society.

But don't forget, what kind of world are you in now, and what era is it?

In this era of war and chaos, it was good enough to be able to eat one's fill, let alone worry about others. Even those with slightly more substantial backgrounds wouldn't engage in such tasteless charity.

It wasn't that Toneri had to view others with the mindset of "the whole world is plotting against me," but only by doing so could he live longer.

After all, the word "cautious" had always been etched deep within Toneri's heart.

He stood up, walked to the carriage window, and slightly lifted the curtain to look towards the distant horizon.

The fiery red sun was gradually rising.

He remembered when he had just left the Land of Lightning, it was dusk. The sun had been in the west at that time, which was to the right of the carriage's direction of travel. Now, Toneri had opened the curtain on the left side of the carriage, and the sun was rising from this side, which was perfectly fine.

His tightly furrowed brows did not relax; instead, they grew tighter. He walked over to the bowl with half the soup spilled, picked it up, and sniffed it gently.

There was no strange odor.

He picked up a single noodle and slowly put it into his mouth.

There was still nothing unusual.

After eating half a noodle, Toneri placed the bowl back on the wooden board of the carriage.

He sat quietly for more than ten minutes.

Still, nothing happened.

"Could I have been overthinking it?" Toneri looked at the now-cold noodles, and this thought couldn't help but surface in his mind.

He fell into thought again.

Maliciously speculating about others' intentions might not seem like the action of a good person, but it was the best way to ensure his own survival.

At least, that was how it was in this world.

After a long while, Toneri finally remembered where the problem lay.

A slightly bitter and helpless smile appeared on his delicate face as he patted his forehead.

"I really got ahead of myself, acted a bit foolishly. Showing a Kumogakure forehead protector to a merchant caravan doing business in the Land of Fire and the Land of Lightning... I don't know if I should call myself clever, or if my cleverness backfired."

Showing them a Kumogakure forehead protector and then heading to the Land of Fire.

Did they mistake him for a Kumogakure ninja going to the Land of Fire on a mission?

That must be why they treated him so well along the way.

Regardless, a ninja, no matter their age, was not someone ordinary civilians could afford to offend.

In this world where human lives were as cheap as grass, ninja were considered unconventional weapons, privileged individuals with special abilities.

To ordinary people, they were no different from ants.

Even more so for a ninja daring to undertake an international mission.

Even though Konoha and Kumogakure were currently allies, there was still constant probing between them.

For example, Danzo had many informants stationed in the Land of Lightning.

If this merchant caravan was from the Land of Lightning, it would be a good thing. But if it was from the Land of Fire, it was likely that they had ulterior motives.

"So, regardless of whether this merchant caravan is from the Land of Fire or the Land of Lightning, I must leave before we reach the Land of Fire!"

Toneri thought to himself.

Immediately afterward, his stomach rumbled in protest.

Only then did Toneri pick up the bowl of cold noodles and start eating ravenously.

Even if it was only for a few days, he would recover as much as he could for this body!

A healthy body is the foundation of all endeavors!

PS: Thank you to all the readers for your rewards! Jinmu has noted all your IDs in his little notebook!

Now that we've reached a hundred people, Jinmu won't be asking for rewards anymore.

Of course, if anyone is willing to sponsor Jinmu, that's also fine. After all, Jinmu is good at keeping warm and can make cute noises--

Finally, please send some love to our Toneri and the Two-Tails kitten, B, as it's related to future bonus updates. Feel free to leave any suggestions or ideas in the comments, as Jinmu needs book reviews to "borrow" from!

As for the concern that the Two-Tails isn't strong enough, you don't need to worry at all. Jinmu Shanren has his own clever plans.

Have you ever seen me raise my eldest son, Qingmu, poorly?

Even the second son shouldn't be neglected!