Guests

Coo-coo-coo—

A pure white dove flew over.

Lin Qing caught it, removed the secret message from its leg, and handed it to Sasuke.

Sasuke held out a handful of rice and a cup of water to the carrier pigeon, eagerly hoping the little bird would eat.

Disdain flashed in the pigeon's small, black eyes. It flapped its wings and landed on the table nearby.

It pecked open a rice ball and ate the slices of meat inside. Then it took a few small sips of the tea Lin Qing had left over before contentedly lying down on the table and lifting one leg to rest.

Lin Qing read the secret message in his hand:

"To Lin Qing:

I know an exceptionally skilled swordsmith. He lives in a village in the northern part of the Land of Water, where it snows all year round. You can go find him. Just tell him Hayato Kamihara sent you, and he'll help you.

Also, various organizations have been setting their sights on you lately. As your contact, I'll be leaving the Land of Water for safety's sake.

By the time you read this, I'll probably be holding a young woman in my arms as I set off for a vacation in Konoha.

If anything urgent comes up, give the letter to Junko-chan (that silly white dove), and you'll be able to get in touch with me.

That's all.

Signed, Hayato Kamihara

P.S. The map to the Swordsmith Village is on the back of the letter.

P.P.S. Don't get caught!"

Lin Qing turned the letter over and saw the map drawn on the back.

There were no satellites in the Naruto World, so the map couldn't be very accurate.

Fortunately, the Level 2 Aero Smith had a patrol radius of one kilometer and could scout the area from above, pointing Lin Qing in roughly the right direction.

Leaving the boat by the shore, Lin Qing bought two horses and set off with Sasuke and Xiaotao.

Along the way, Lin Qing ran into more than a dozen groups of enemies.

They disguised themselves as pedestrians, travelers, and merchants. Instead of confronting Lin Qing head-on, they resorted to poison, assassination, arson, and explosives.

This was another side of being a ninja: using as little chakra as possible to inflict the greatest damage.

This was indeed an area where Lin Qing was weak. As he dealt with their attacks clumsily, he humbly learned from their techniques.

During this time, Lin Qing had Sasuke teach Xiaotao the breathing technique.

Xiaotao wanted to stay by Lin Qing's side, so she needed at least some ability to protect herself. Even if she couldn't fight, she had to be able to run with them when trouble arose.

Lin Qing thought that having something to do might help her recover from her trauma.

More than half a month passed in a flash. Once the three of them left the city and entered the mountains, the bounty hunters pursuing them gradually grew fewer.

Crack—crunch—

Frost covered the grass, spreading in great white patches. The horses' hooves crunched across it like breaking soda crackers.

Lin Qing breathed out, and a great cloud of white mist appeared.

"Xiaotao, look!"

Sasuke pointed at the sky.

A snowflake drifted down before their eyes.

It was snowing?

That was good news. According to Hayato Kamihara, the swordsmith's village was somewhere it snowed all year round.

"Keep the breathing technique going to ward off the cold," Lin Qing said. "We're almost there."

"Okay," Sasuke and Xiaotao answered in unison.

Sasuke had already mastered the breathing technique, but Xiaotao was still a little clumsy with it. The two rode on the same horse, and the warmth constantly radiating from Sasuke helped her keep her breathing steady.

"I hope we find the village today," Sasuke murmured.

They had finished their provisions the night before last. In the freezing cold, there was very little game in the woods.

Xiaotao took an orange from her coat and offered it to Sasuke. It was a treasured snack of hers.

Sasuke shook his head.

He didn't want an orange.

He wanted rice balls, fried eggs, tempura...

The more he thought about it, the more his mouth watered.

But things didn't go as hoped. By dusk, Aero Smith still hadn't found any sign of a village. As the sky began to darken, Lin Qing gave up on finding the village that day and chose an open patch of ground to camp for the night.

Sasuke quickly gathered firewood and used Fire Release to ignite the branches. Soon, a bonfire was blazing.

"Rest for a while. I'll look around for something to eat."

Lin Qing searched through the woods, but even after the sun had completely set, he hadn't found any wild animals they could eat. Just then, a huge patch of red appeared on Aero Smith's detection screen.

Judging by its size, it looked like a large animal.

A wolf?

Or a deer?

Whatever it was, they'd have food for the next week.

He charged toward the target across the snow.

Xiaotao stared blankly at the firelight.

"Big Brother Sasuke, tell me... why do people have to live? What's the point?"

Sasuke picked up a twig and tossed it into the fire. After a long silence, he said:

"I asked Brother Qing the same thing."

On the day of the massacre, the shock had been so overwhelming that Sasuke had felt more fear and confusion than grief.

It wasn't until several nights later, when he suddenly woke in a patch of grass and realized he could never go home again, never see his parents or friends again, that grief truly swept over him.

"If I were answering that question, I'd probably say, 'You've just eaten too much. Go practice throwing kunai a hundred times, and you won't have time to overthink things.'"

Sasuke's words brought a faint smile to Xiaotao's face.

A twig fell into the fire, sending tiny golden sparks dancing in the breeze.

"But Brother Qing told me that if life feels meaningless, then just live meaninglessly.

'In that empty, meaningless world of the mind, create your own value. He said it's called...'"

Sasuke recalled, "Right, 'nihilism.'"

"Nihilism... What's that?"

Xiaotao looked confused.

Sasuke scratched his head. "It's fine if you don't understand. I didn't understand it either, but after traveling with Brother Qing, I've come to understand a little."

The firelight lent a touch of maturity to his young face. "The inner emptiness that comes after suffering isn't the end of everything. It's the beginning.

"I'll set out carrying everything I can bear.

"I want to find my own path in this free, empty wilderness."

Xiaotao nodded as if she understood. She was about to say something else when rustling came from the woods ahead.

Sasuke's smile faded. He stood up and drew a kunai.

Seeing Lin Qing, Sasuke relaxed. Then he noticed a small figure following behind him.

It was an extraordinarily pretty little girl, dressed in a fluffy padded coat and carrying a bamboo basket. She bowed politely to Sasuke and Xiaotao, then smiled sweetly.

"Hello, I'm Haku."

After Lin Qing briefly introduced everyone, they learned who the others were.

Haku lived in the Swordsmith Village. Her mother was sick, so she had gone out alone to gather herbs. Aero Smith had detected her just as she was heading back to the village.

Lin Qing said he was a doctor and asked Haku to show them the way. In return, he would treat her mother.

Lin Qing wasn't just making promises to a child. With the Ripple, he could cure most illnesses, so there was nothing wrong with calling himself a doctor.

"So the village must be nearby. It just happens to be outside Aero Smith's detection range," Lin Qing thought.

Haku pointed northwest.

"Our village is another forty li that way."

Forty li... Haku looked no more than ten. How had she walked all that way alone?

Was this what it meant for poor children to grow up fast?

Fortunately, they wouldn't have to make the return trip the same way. Lin Qing lifted Haku onto the horse and channeled the Ripple into its body.

The horse raised its front legs and let out a spirited neigh before galloping toward the village.

In less than an hour, just before the sky grew completely dark, they arrived at Haku's village.

Snowfall Village.

It was a very small village, with no more than thirty or forty households in all. Haku pointed to a house.

"Brother Qing, that's my home."

She jumped off the horse and ran toward the house, opening the door.

"Mom, we have a guest! He's a doctor!"

Lin Qing followed Haku inside and saw a weak-looking woman sitting in a chair. Beside her, a man who seemed to be her husband was carefully pouring her some medicine.

"Sorry to intrude."

Lin Qing was about to take off his shoes when the kitchen door opened.

Mei Terumi emerged wearing an apron and carrying two dishes.

"Dinner's ready."

She looked at Lin Qing, tilted her head slightly, and gave him a faint smile.

"Do we have a guest?"