Departure

Even if Uchiha Kei wanted to leave as soon as possible, setting out was by no means a simple matter.

Once they had reached their current positions, they could not simply leave whenever they wanted.

Within the village, they needed to find people to take over their duties after they left. Outside the village, they also needed to communicate with other villages.

This time, they were not going to some small country. If they were headed to somewhere like the Land of Iron or the Land of Hot Water, there would have been no need for any communication.

But the Land of Lightning was no small country, and Kumogakure was considered a village as powerful as Konoha in the Ninja World—at least, that was what most people believed.

Heading there rashly without any prior notice, especially given Uchiha Kei and the others' statuses, could entirely be seen as a provocation.

Even if Kumogakure was, in fact, a defeated nation and had been forced into an alliance with Konoha, that did not mean they could be bullied at will.

Therefore, the necessary notice had to be given. By the time everything was sorted out, it would probably take a day—and that was assuming the fastest possible pace.

"I don't know exactly how long this trip will take."

Inside the Uchiha Clan Head's residence, Uchiha Kei sipped his tea as he calmly spoke with Uchiha Fugaku.

"Still, it shouldn't take too long. Konoha won't allow it, and neither will I. But while I'm gone, the Military Police Force will be relying on you."

"If it's only intercepting one person, it shouldn't take long. Don't worry." Uchiha Fugaku nodded. "I'll keep an eye on the Military Police Force for you. Strictly speaking, even if I did nothing, it probably wouldn't fall into disorder."