Chapter 43

Most of the Land of Earth was covered in barren rock walls. Beyond its rugged borders, the landscape opened up considerably. Compared with the rolling hills of the Land of Fire, the dense forests of the Land of Lightning, or the countless swamps of the Land of Water, the Land of Earth was second only to the Land of Wind, where the sky was full of yellow sand, in how difficult it was to hide in its terrain.

Since most of the rocks lay along the borders, travel within and through the Land of Earth was inconvenient. After spending seven days getting here, Hashirama, as an outsider, drew almost as many stares as he had in Konoha. It helped that this outsider was quite handsome!

Smiling, Hashirama thanked an old man for the water he'd offered—water was precious in the Land of Earth, too—and asked the locals where the nearest inn was. He was already close to his mission's destination and needed a little time to rest.

"An inn? Ahem! You're lucky you asked me. The others might not even know what that is!" the old man said. "Hardly anyone comes here. What use would an inn be? Just find a family to put you up for the night. Let me think... Who still has a spare room?"

"Wouldn't that be troubling everyone?" Hashirama asked.

"Ahem! Not at all! Just look at how happy they are to see you!"

Hashirama glanced around. The curious stares from every direction made his mouth twitch.

Without the stimulus of the Uchiha's rampant money-grabbing in his original world, the Senju Clan's businesses in this world had developed only to a limited extent. He'd heard that most of them operated in the Land of Wind and the Land of Fire—at any rate, he hadn't come across any on his journey.

He could understand why Madara, despite being a ninja, had devoted himself to spreading his businesses across the entire continent... With Madara's exacting standards, he'd never willingly spend even a moment in a backward place like this unless he had to. The best food, the best clothes, the best things, the best accommodations. He never lifted a finger to do anything for himself. In short, Uchiha Madara would never let himself go without.

...Which meant Hashirama Senju had to suffer in his place...

He sighed silently. Had Madara managed to empty the Uchiha Clan's treasury in this world? That thought sent his mind veering off course, and an image of Madara in a loose bathrobe, his hair down as he leaned against the door and waved him off with a "Come back soon" floated into his mind... It really did look like a wife seeing her husband off on a long journey... What was he thinking?!

The old man had been talking, but when he saw the young man staring off into space, his mind clearly somewhere else, he immediately clenched his fist and coughed twice.

Hashirama came back to himself and gave him an apologetic smile.

"Young man, what are you thinking about? Your face is all red! You ought to listen when an old man is talking. As the saying goes, if you don't listen to your elders, you'll suffer for it. Let me tell you..." The old man seemed to enjoy lecturing the young. Hashirama was forced to listen to him ramble for a quarter of an hour before he finally interrupted. "Could you tell me where I can stay?"

"Huh? Oh, I'll take you there. By the way, where are you from?" The old man led the way at a leisurely pace, leaning on his cane.

"The Land of Fire. Konoha."

"Konoha? Where's that?" The people around them pricked up their ears, too.

"A Ninja Village."

For a moment, the area fell silent.

"A Ninja Village?! Y-you're a ninja?" The old man trembled like a leaf, and his cane clattered to the ground.

Their curious interest, devoid of malice, instantly turned into fear and hostility.

Hashirama's heart sank a little, but he still treated the villagers kindly. He bent down, picked up the cane, and handed it to the old man.

"Thank you for letting me know."

With that, he turned and left. It looked like he'd have to make do with a Military Ration Pill and Wood Release tonight.

Not every village was like Konoha... He knew that. It was something he'd always wanted to change, so he wasn't going to despair over the reality of it—the world could be changed. That was why he looked forward to Konoha changing things, just as Muyun City had in the other world. He'd even decided to follow the example of the First in this world once he returned to his own.

But outside Konoha, little had changed. Konoha's will and influence only reached the area around Konoha. The rest of the world was still the same.

Perhaps the First in this world had tried, but there was always a gap between an ideal and putting it into practice. Once Konoha was built, the situation had been set. Even holding on to what they'd achieved was precarious, let alone trying to do anything more... They'd had the will, but not the strength.

Was this what he wanted?

...No, it wasn't enough. Konoha alone was still far from enough!

"Rockfall! The rockfall's coming! Quick, get inside!" Someone shouted. The people on the road panicked and forgot all about the ninja, hurrying into their homes and bolting the doors. Soon, a low hum came from the western horizon as a storm of gray-yellow gravel swept toward them.

Smack! Smack! Clang, clang, clang!... Rocks pelted the ground and the sides of the houses. Hearing the blows land harder than usual, the villagers grew increasingly frightened.

"Ah! Where's Jiro—my Jiro! He's still outside! Someone, please save him!" A door on one house suddenly flew open, and large chunks of gravel rolled inside before someone quickly shut it again from within. The man's voice came through, strained with grief. "Don't be foolish, Haruna! Taro, Saburo, keep a close eye on your mother! I'm going to look for him!"

Knock, knock, knock. A steady rhythm of knocks sounded clearly over the rocks clattering against the houses. The family inside froze in terror.

"Who is it?"

"Dad, it's me!" A child's clear voice came from outside.

"Jiro! It's Jiro!" The woman burst into tears of joy. "Go open the door, honey!"

The man opened the door. His son stood there with an innocent smile, not a scratch on him. And the person holding his son was... the ninja from before. The boy rushed into his father's arms. "This uncle brought me back! He's so amazing!"

The man stammered, "...Thank you so much."

Hashirama smiled warmly. "It was the least I could do."

The woman rushed over and hugged her son, kissing him again and again in her excitement. Then she stood and said to Hashirama, "Thank you! Thank you so much! If you don't mind, please stay at our house tonight!"

"...So, the best time to paint the Land of Earth is in late summer or early autumn. It isn't as barren as it is in winter, or as scorching as it is in midsummer. Toward evening, when the sun has just sunk halfway below the horizon, its warm golden-red light illuminates half the rock walls. The striking contrast of light and shadow bathes the endless ocher roads and the jagged cliffs in its glow. It's magnificent, yet tinged with sadness, and the effect is hard to describe. Also, 'rockfalls' are rare at that time, so ordinary people like us can stay a little safer."

Madara interlaced his fingers and gently rested his chin on them, smiling as he listened to her finish. "Miss Hayakawa certainly knows a great deal. Listening to you describe it makes the whole world seem much more beautiful."

The handsome face and pleasant voice made the girl lower her head without thinking. Her neat bangs fell forward, hiding the shyness in her eyes. "Not at all. Lord Madara is a ninja. You must have traveled to far more places."

"I've certainly been to many places, but I always had a purpose for going, so I rarely noticed beautiful scenery the way you do, Miss Hayakawa. Now that I think about it, I wonder how many beautiful sights I've missed. If you were the one to see them, you could bring even more paintings to everyone." Madara sighed, a hint of regret on his face. "I think it's because you truly love this world, Miss Hayakawa, that you can see the beauty others miss and paint such hopeful scenes."

"You're much too kind, Lord Madara!" The girl blushed slightly. "I've only been painting for less than two years. I still have a long way to go before I'm as good as my grandfather!"

"You mean Hayakawa Masato? That Painting of Mountains and Rivers Reflecting the Sun is beautiful. Compared with other paintings, it has a rare grandeur and sweep," Madara praised. Japanese-style paintings tended to be elegant but lacked grandeur. It was rare to find a masterpiece that brought refinement and majesty together. Hayakawa Masato seemed to be a talent hidden among the common folk, with the means to study painting and an artistic family background. He wondered whether he was descended from some fallen noble family.

"Yes, Grandpa was happiest with that painting! It's a shame he already sold it." The girl's expression dimmed. She and her grandfather hadn't been living here long, and money was tight. Konoha had only just been built, and the people who'd settled there didn't have much money to spend on paintings. The only person who'd wanted to buy one had set his heart on that painting, and they'd had no choice but to sell it. "Grandpa talked about it for ages afterward."

Anyone who made a living from painting knew that a work they'd poured their heart and soul into was, in the eyes of the buyer, merely a decoration for the wall that could be replaced at any time. It was bad enough if the buyer understood art. If they didn't, they'd surely ruin it.

Madara gently swirled his teacup and smiled. "I was the one who bought it."

"Ah, that's wonderful!" the girl said with delight. "I know you'll take good care of it, Lord Madara!"

"Of course. I've always admired Hayakawa Masato's artistic vision, but I've never had the chance to meet him."

The girl puffed out her cheeks. "That's just how Grandpa is. He's always wandering all over the place. Once, he almost got called in for questioning by the Konoha Defense Department. A few days ago, he went to the Land of Water to paint. He won't be back until the end of the month. I'll let you know when he gets back, okay, Lord Madara?"

"Really?" Madara's delight was immediately plain to see. "Thank you, Miss Hayakawa! By the way, from what you've said, were you and Hayakawa Masato wandering from place to place before settling in Konoha?"

"Ah, that's right. Grandpa made money by painting as he took my younger brother and me all over."

"You must have visited many countries."

"Yes. Besides the Five Great Nations, we've also been to the Land of Fields, the Land of Bears, the Land of Grass, the Land of Waterfalls... Look, these are all records of places we passed through!" Hayakawa Rei stood and lifted the dust covers from a row of paintings. Their vivid colors made the eye catch its breath. The Land of Snow's white landscape at dusk, the Land of Earth's rugged cliffs beneath the setting sun, the sparse woodland of the Land of Grass on a summer afternoon, the lively streams of the Land of Waterfalls in early spring... Besides landscapes, there were also some scenes of everyday life in towns. Madara recognized one as Izumo City in the Land of Lightning, though it was nowhere near as prosperous as it had been in his original world.

"The brushwork is strong and vigorous. Even the gentle waters brim with life. It truly is Master Hayakawa's style." Madara's gaze drifted slowly over the paintings as he commented on each one. In his mind, he quietly analyzed the dates and places recorded beneath them, all while subtly drawing information out of the girl.

A painter who'd spent years wandering from country to country could enter the estates of nobles and the homes of ordinary people alike. He knew far more than some Konoha Intelligence Department. Meanwhile, most of the paintings sold here were landscapes, with very few portraits... Madara smiled meaningfully. Was that an attempt to hide something in plain sight?

"Big sister! I'm hungry!"

Madara looked in the direction of the voice. A boy of about five was leaning halfway through the doorway. He looked a little like an Uchiha, but his dark eyes held nothing but wariness as he watched Madara.

The girl jumped and instinctively glanced out the window. "It's already noon? I'm sorry, Lord Madara. I've kept you here too long!"

"Not at all. Your little brother is adorable. Who could bear to let such an adorable boy go hungry?" Madara smiled at the little brat. The boy shrank back slightly, then glared at him, unwilling to back down.

The girl patted her cheeks. "When Grandpa's away, I'm the only one who looks after him. Kazuya, wait inside. I'll be there in a moment!"

"His name is Kazuya?"

"Yes, Sai Kazuya."

Madara let a hint of surprise show. "Sai? Why isn't he called Hayakawa?"

The girl's expression darkened slightly. "Grandpa found him. Things were too chaotic a few years ago..."

"Sorry for bringing up something painful. Since you still have things to take care of, I won't bother you any longer."

As he walked out of the Hayakawa family's art shop, the midday sun was dazzling. Madara glanced back at the sign, his thoughts unreadable.

Hayakawa... Sai...

Comparing them with the information from the other world, he gave a silent laugh.

A casual stroll always turned up unexpected surprises, didn't it?