10: How did you know I play Azur Lane? She's just a flat-chested one, too.

At 10:30 PM, by a river somewhere in the west of the Land of Fire, Sakuya and his three companions stopped to rest for a while.

Sakuya simply strung a rope between some trees by the riverbank.

It was for sleeping at night.

They had departed suddenly, and the sealing scrolls they carried only contained sleeping bags. After all, being out in the wild, sleeping on the ground like this was nothing for a ninja, but as a transmigrator, Sakuya still felt a bit uncomfortable.

Before he transmigrated, he was a city slicker from Tokyo, not some hillbilly from America who had been executed. Sleeping in the wild like this—wasn't it a bit shameful?

It would be better to cosplay as the Little Dragon Maiden.

But it would only be for a few nights; in a few days, they would reach the Land of Fang, and naturally, there would be a place to stay then.

Sitting on the rope, Sakuya kept his mind on guard while focusing on his cultivation.

Although this was within a simulation, it was, after all, the body of an elite jonin. By practicing with this body, much of the knowledge could be brought back to his real body once the training concluded.

It was just like grinding a dungeon in a game; while the gear obtained from the run couldn't be brought back to reality, the strategies for mobs and end-game bosses, as well as the accumulation of combat experience, could all be carried over.

Not to mention the massive amount of Fire Release ninjutsu this body knew; he had to take advantage of this simulation to learn them well.

"Rustle, rustle, rustle..."

Footsteps came from the nearby jungle, and Sakuya opened his eyes at the sound.

He saw the bushes part, and Nawaki stepped out from within.

"It's you? What is it?"

Sakuya jumped down from the rope.

"Why come to my side all of a sudden?"

Although they had chosen to rest in this area, Tsunade, due to the earlier jonin meeting, did not want to stay with him. Orochimaru had noticed this and suggested they rest in the north, east, and south directions respectively, while keeping watch over one another.

Sakuya was in the north, Orochimaru in the east, and the siblings Tsunade and Nawaki were resting in the south.

Seeing Nawaki approach, Sakuya found it strange.

"That... that..."

Looking at Uchiha Sakuya, Nawaki scratched his head and said in a low voice, "Uchiha-senpai."

"Just call me Sakuya. I'm not much older than you; calling me senpai makes me feel old."

Sakuya said.

"Um, Sakuya-senpai... I just—I just wanted to thank you."

Nawaki nodded, looking at Uchiha Sakuya.

"Thank me?"

"Yes, for convincing Master Orochimaru and my sister to let me participate."

Nawaki spoke somewhat awkwardly, but with great determination.

He actually knew in his heart that for this trip, even with the support of the Third Hokage, if Tsunade hadn't agreed, it would have been absolutely impossible for him to participate in this operation.

After all, Tsunade was the true head of the Senju clan now; even Hiruzen Sarutobi couldn't force her to compromise on how she disciplined her younger brother.

"It was just a small matter."

Sakuya shook his head. "Besides, even if I hadn't agreed, you would have snuck along anyway, right?"

"Yes."

Nawaki nodded heavily. "Uncle Shota is my closest kin. Aside from Grandma and my sister, he is the most important person to me. If I don't find him, I won't be able to rest easy."

"I see."

Sakuya glanced at Nawaki and nodded inwardly.

Although the original work only featured this guy for a dozen seconds, those few seconds were enough to show that he would be extremely impatient during this mission.

Now it made sense; it turned out that a relative named Shota had met with trouble.

That explained it; it all made sense now.

"Um, Sakuya-aniki."

Seeing Uchiha Sakuya's expression shift, Nawaki gathered his courage and asked, "Does my sister have a grudge against you?"

"What do you mean?"

Sakuya raised an eyebrow.

"Because... it's just a hunch."

Nawaki laughed awkwardly.

In truth, when he left, Tsunade had stopped him and told him that this Uchiha fellow didn't have a very good head on his shoulders, telling him to stay away from him and so on.

But after interacting with him now, wasn't he actually a pretty good guy?

"I suppose that woman said some bad things about me in front of you, didn't she?"

Sakuya didn't care in the least: "Looking at your expression, that's the case, isn't it?"

"Ah, well... Sister, she, Sister she..."

Nawaki was choked up by Sakuya's words, his face turning tense as he found himself at a loss for how to reply.

"But that girl was always a blockhead, completely brainless."

Sakuya smiled dismissively: "Let her talk trash about me if she wants; it doesn't matter."

"Block... blockheaded?"

Nawaki tilted his head.

"Of course she is, but she's still a comrade."

Sakuya said: "We're all from the same village, so even if she is a bit dim, I don't mind."

"Sister isn't dim, she's very smart."

Nawaki tried to salvage his sister's reputation.

"If she's really not dim, how could she not see through your personality?"

Sakuya raised an eyebrow, looking at Nawaki's rough fingers: "Looking at the calluses on your hands, you... have you been practicing the medical ninjutsu she cobbled together for the past half-year?"

"...Yes, I've learned the basics of the medical ninjutsu Sister developed, including the most difficult Mystical Palm Technique as well..."

"That's not what I asked."

Sakuya said: "How long has it been since you trained in standard ninjutsu and taijutsu?"

"Uh... not that long, I suppose."

Nawaki scratched his head.

"The group of rogue ninja we're dealing with on this mission might be small, but it's not exactly a simple task."

Sakuya advised: "While there's still time, pick back up the skills you've let slide. Otherwise, once we reach the Land of Fang, there won't be any opportunity for you to rehabilitate."

"Does Sakuya-aniki mean... this mission to the Land of Fang isn't simple?"

Nawaki blinked.

"Heh, that's hard to say."

Sakuya smiled faintly: "But I hope you take my words to heart. If a ninja goes a long time without practicing ninjutsu and taijutsu, your reaction to danger, physical fitness, chakra control... and so on, all these things that should be second nature will gradually dull due to your slackness. Especially when out on a mission, this kind of thing is particularly terrifying."

"I understand."

Having heard this, Nawaki nodded solemnly: "Thank you for the reminder, Sakuya-senpai."

As he lowered his head, a green pendant hanging from his chest bounced out from his clothes, and Sakuya felt a chill in his heart upon seeing it.

Noticing Sakuya's gaze, Nawaki smiled and held up the pendant, showing it off: "Senpai, yesterday was my birthday. This was a birthday gift from Sister before we set out yesterday; it's a treasure left behind by my grandfather."

I know, it's that special-grade cursed object, right?

Legend has it that those who wear it always meet a tragic end, and in the end, only the protagonist Naruto managed to escape that fate thanks to his plot armor.

It also indirectly proves how terrifying Tsunade is.

The men associated with her basically never have a good ending.

But Sakuya plays Azur Lane, so no matter how terrifying it is, he has to go for it!

Who told her to be so small (no, wait).

He thought to himself.

I just don't know if I can handle it.