On the Eastern Coast of the Land of Fire, Hanfu and Shoutianlie brazenly rented a ship and a dozen sailors at a busy harbor. Then they set sail, heading for the Deep Sea.
Their destination was a deserted island hundreds of kilometers from the coast of the Land of Fire. It was small enough for a single Wood Release: Deep Forest Bloom to cover the whole thing, making it the perfect "dead end" to trap Flying Thunder God.
But when Hanfu saw the island in its entirety, he felt awful.
"Isn't this the Land of Whirlpools?" Hanfu stared at Shoutianlie in disbelief.
Shoutianlie folded his arms and nodded solemnly. "It's hundreds of kilometers from the Network Cable, deserted, remote, and rarely visited. This island fits all your requirements. Great Madara, Rulai, and I all agreed it was a good choice."
You make a good point. I'm at a loss for words... Hanfu turned away in shame.
Once the ship neared the island of the Land of Whirlpools, Hanfu and Shoutianlie jumped off and walked away across the water.
Konoha.
Hokage Building rooftop.
Namikaze Minato watched the village grow busier by the minute, feeling increasingly agitated.
Was he really supposed to watch helplessly as Hanfu fell into a trap?
What should he do?!
Namikaze Minato pondered, but his thoughts were a tangled mess, and he couldn't make sense of them.
Fortunately, Anbu Captain Hawk was an experienced man. He quickly came up with an idea and spoke up. "Lord Hokage, if we can't stop the people from the Abyss from sending out the information, we can still save Hanfu by finding him in time!"
Namikaze Minato's eyes lit up. That was right. Hanfu had left yesterday afternoon, and it had been less than twenty hours. They could still catch up!