Mount Hakkoda

After Keisuke had been gone for a while, Shiri called Qiancao and Wuming over. The three sat facing one another.

She pulled two scrolls from her backpack and said, "Lord Naoto gave me these before he left. They contain Sealing Jutsu that can suppress the seals on your bodies."

As she spoke, Shiri opened the scrolls one by one. Qiancao looked at them. The intricate patterns drawn in black ink were far beyond his current level of ninjutsu, and he couldn't make sense of them at all.

Shiri continued, "Once used, these scrolls can temporarily suppress the chakra seals on your bodies, but remember, the effect only lasts three days."

"Three days will be more than enough to complete our mission." Shiri then had them bite their fingers and drip their blood onto the corresponding scrolls.

Qiancao and Wuming did as instructed. The black patterns on the scrolls slowly rose into the air like writhing little snakes, then turned midair and burrowed into the seals on their stomachs.

A ring of black lines appeared around the seals on their stomachs, reminding Qiancao of the Evil Sealing Method Kakashi had placed over Sasuke Uchiha's Heaven Curse Seal.

Seeing that the scrolls had worked, Shiri nodded in satisfaction, but she still reminded the two of them:

"This mission isn't very difficult. Keisuke and I can handle it."

"Lord Naoto wanted you two to come along so you could see what a ninja's work is usually like."

Qiancao remained silent. Beside him, Wuming wore a scornful expression.

Shiri hadn't expected either of them to feel any goodwill toward Uchiha Naoto. She herself was terrified of that man.

She continued, "Unless it's absolutely necessary, don't get involved. Just stay to the side and protect yourselves."

Qiancao nodded in agreement, while Wuming thought, I only need to protect Qiancao.

Shiri then had Qiancao try controlling his chakra. Sure enough, the moment he gathered it in his feet, he cracked the floor beneath him.

The tenfold increase in his chakra left Qiancao unused to it, but thanks to a month of hard training, he quickly adjusted under Shiri's guidance.

Unlike Wuming, a genius who taught by intuition, Shiri's teaching was clearly better suited to ordinary people. Qiancao found it easy to understand.

Shiri then taught Qiancao how to use chakra to silence his footsteps, how to move quickly with chakra, and how to use the Body Flicker Technique and a few ninjutsu techniques for staying alive.

It was late at night by the time the three finally lay down side by side.

For the first time, Qiancao had left the narrow, damp wooden bed in the dungeon and was lying on the broad floor of the prayer hall. He still felt out of place, staring blankly at the ceiling above him.

His body was exhausted, but his mind was so alert that he couldn't fall asleep. Only when the sleeping Wuming rolled over beside him and nestled into his arms did that change.

As Wuming's tightly furrowed brow gradually relaxed against him, Qiancao slowly unwound as well. Sleep welled up within him, and he drifted off.

Shiri sat meditating nearby, watching their overlapping shadows in the lamplight as her thoughts churned. She wondered how she could set the two of them free.

At daybreak, the four packed their things and left Quanshan Temple. In the sunlight, the gloomy, eerie temple from the previous night seemed to possess a certain solemn grandeur.

They went to a rice shop in the west of the city. Many ragged refugees crowded outside, watching the customers pass by with eager eyes, waiting for some kind soul to give them a handful of grain.

The four entered the shop. The clerk had come over with a smile, but when he saw their plain clothes, his enthusiasm vanished. He asked lazily, "Are you here to see the owner?"

Keisuke nodded and smiled obsequiously. "We're from Tsukuba City by the coast, and we're hoping to find relatives in the mountains of Mount Hakkoda."

The clerk frowned. "You're going to Mount Hakkoda. What's that got to do with our rice shop?"

Keisuke said, "We only know our relative lives in the mountains, not exactly where. We heard he bought grain here, so we came to ask around."

The clerk wasn't very friendly, but he didn't refuse to help. After Keisuke described the wandering ninja, the clerk thought for a moment, then clapped his hands. "There was someone like that who bought rice here—and quite a lot of it, too!"

He looked over the group and asked hesitantly, "But are you sure you're looking for him? Would someone like him have relatives as..." He trailed off.

Though he didn't finish, his gaze made it clear what he meant: How could a rich guy who bought so much grain have relatives as poor as you?

Keisuke smiled ingratiatingly. "A rough idea of where he went will be enough!"

The clerk thought for a moment, briefly described the route used to deliver the grain that day, and sent them on their way.

Once they were far from the rice shop, the group found a quiet corner. Shiri spoke first. "If we enter the mountains during the day, we'll stand out too much. Why don't we rest and wait until nightfall before going in?"

Keisuke didn't object, so the four went to the entrance at the foot of the mountain and found a secluded patch of forest to rest in for a while.

Keisuke climbed a tree to keep watch, while Qiancao took the opportunity to practice moving through the trees.

The four waited patiently until night fell. Shiri took four black robes from her backpack, each decorated with dark green leaf patterns.

When Qiancao put his on, the robe reminded him of both a ghillie suit and the Akatsuki's cloaks. It looked pretty cool.

After thinking it over, Shiri told Wuming to carry Qiancao on her back.

Qiancao didn't have any ninja pride to speak of. He obediently climbed onto Wuming's back. Fortunately, Wuming was older than him and a little taller.

Wuming said nothing, but her ears reddened. Feeling Qiancao's warmth against her back, she wished the journey would never end.

Unfortunately, the group moved quickly, and before long they reached the meeting point the rice shop clerk had described.

Shiri gestured for the other three to wait where they were, then cautiously climbed to the top of a tree. From there, she used her Sharingan to carefully survey the surroundings.

When the group met again beneath the tree, Shiri whispered, "I saw fires in three different directions. I don't know which one is their camp."

Qiancao studied the area. Only one direction had deep wheel ruts and footprints, clear evidence that heavy loads had been carried that way. He pointed toward it and asked, "Is there a light in that direction?"

Shiri nodded in agreement, while Keisuke praised him aloud. "You figured out where the enemy was from the wheel tracks. Looks like you've got some ninja talent after all."

Qiancao felt a little embarrassed. He'd only watched a lot of TV shows, that was all.

The four set off through the trees again, moving with even greater care this time. Like three silent ghosts, they quietly approached their unsuspecting prey.