It wasn't just Kakashi.
Five little ones trailed behind him.
Neji Hyuga.
Tenten.
Rock Lee.
And Naruto Uzumaki, carrying a little backpack.
"Why are you here?" Lin Qing asked.
The Country of Demons was weak and impoverished, with few lucrative missions and no tourist attractions worth visiting. Aside from horror movie enthusiasts seeking thrills, outsiders rarely came here.
Seeing Lin Qing, Kakashi glanced at Konan standing nearby, looking aloof and distant. He had no idea how those two had ended up together, but he still gave a brief explanation.
"A week ago, we received a distress letter from the Country of Demons."
He took a letter from his backpack and handed it to Lin Qing.
Lin Qing opened it and took a look.
The handwriting was messy and crimson, with only five words written on it:
"Please save us!"
He brought it to his nose and caught a faint scent of blood.
Lin Qing flipped it over and back.
"That's it?"
"That's it."
Kakashi met Lin Qing's astonished gaze and understood what he meant—
"You came all the way to the Country of Demons over a letter with no details, no signature, and no recipient?"
Kakashi sighed and pointed at the incomplete seal in the corner of the envelope.
"This is the seal of the Country of Demons' Daimyo. We compared it and confirmed it was genuine, which means the letter was indeed written by the Daimyo of the Country of Demons.
"Konoha established diplomatic relations with the Country of Demons during the First's time. Since we received a plea for help, we couldn't simply ignore it."
No, even if they had never established diplomatic ties, based on Lin Qing's understanding of Konoha, they usually wouldn't stand idly by in a situation like this.
Although Konoha had spent decades declining