Don't Push It

"Don't worry, I'm still here. If anyone attacks us again, just hide in the carriage. Leave the enemies to me!" Jiraiya laughed, thumping his chest.

In truth, Jiraiya was almost out of chakra himself. But as Team 5's leader, his job now was not only to encourage his teammates but also to shoulder the burden of fending off their enemies.

"Huh? Where did Matsuri go?" Minato Namikaze suddenly realized that Uchiha Matsuri, who had just joined their team, had disappeared half an hour ago.

"You all stay here. I'll go look for him."

After realizing Uchiha Matsuri was gone, Jiraiya hurried toward the depths of the woods.

A few minutes later, Jiraiya found Uchiha Matsuri lying unconscious on the ground.

After confirming that Matsuri was out of danger, Jiraiya let out a long breath of relief. He carried the unconscious Matsuri on his back and returned to the merchant caravan.

Seeing Jiraiya return with Matsuri on his back, Minato Namikaze asked anxiously, "Matsuri... he..."

"He just passed out after using up all his chakra. He'll be fine after a couple of days' rest," Jiraiya said, looking exhausted.

"But strangely, I found Matsuri in the woods more than a hundred meters away. There were clear signs of a fight around him. It looks like he clashed with another group," Jiraiya said with a slight frown.

"Another group?" Minato asked in surprise.

"Yeah. Probably other shinobi lurking in the woods. But it looks like they didn't come out of it unscathed either," Jiraiya replied.

"If you ask me, he definitely couldn't beat the enemy, so he snuck away. Then he ran into another group, and that's how he got injured and passed out," E said with a sneer.

"E, don't say that. Matsuri is unconscious now, and we don't know what happened to him, so we shouldn't jump to conclusions," Minato said, displeased.

"Tch."

After traveling for most of the day, the caravan finally reached a village before nightfall.

It was called a village, but hardly anyone lived there anymore. The Land of Grass had been in turmoil for years. The residents had either died or fled, and those who remained were the elderly, weak, and infirm, unable to travel far.

After they found an inn, the owner respectfully showed them the rooms. After all, ordinary civilians like him couldn't afford to offend shinobi like Jiraiya and his companions.

Once they had chosen their rooms, Jiraiya went to find the caravan's steward, Koji Moriya.

In the spacious, brightly lit room, Koji Moriya sat on the tatami, savoring a cup of strong tea. When Jiraiya arrived, Moriya gestured for him to sit.

After exchanging a few brief greetings with Moriya, Jiraiya got straight to the point. "Mr. Moriya, I came to discuss one of my subordinates."

"One of your subordinates?" Moriya asked with slight impatience. "What does one of your subordinates have to do with me? Just get my cargo delivered safely."

"Here's the situation, Mr. Moriya. One of my subordinates passed out during the battle. I'd like to stay in this town for a few days and set out again once he wakes up," Jiraiya said gravely.

"Stay for a few days?" Moriya immediately sat up. "Absolutely not! My cargo needs to be delivered to the Land of Earth as soon as possible!"

Jiraiya wasn't surprised when Moriya flatly rejected his proposal. With the first option dismissed outright, he immediately offered a second.

"Then how about I leave one subordinate to look after him while another and I continue escorting the caravan?"

"Hmph! Jiraiya, don't push it." Moriya spat out his cigarette butt and stamped it out. "Our employer paid for all four of you to escort us. Now you want to cut your numbers in half? That's too much."

"Then what do you suggest, Mr. Moriya?" Jiraiya asked respectfully, despite his displeasure.

"If he can't wake up, leave him here," Moriya said without room for negotiation. "Hmph, even then, we'll have paid you for one more shinobi than we needed!"

Hearing that Moriya intended to abandon Uchiha Matsuri in the village, Jiraiya grew furious. He stopped bothering to be polite.

"If you won't discuss this, then we'll terminate the mission," Jiraiya said, suddenly standing and speaking with a hard edge.

Moriya froze at Jiraiya's fierce reaction, then asked in confusion, "Jiraiya, what do you mean?"

"Mr. Moriya, Matsuri is part of our team. Even if we give up the mission, we can't leave him behind." Jiraiya stared into Moriya's eyes and warned him, "If you insist on forcing us to abandon him, then our team will no longer escort your caravan."

At that, Moriya slapped the table with one hand and shot to his feet. Pointing at Jiraiya, he shouted, "Jiraiya, do you understand what you've just said?"

"I do."

"Hmph! Our employer is a relative of the daimyo of the Land of Fire, and you're saying you'll just quit?" Moriya sneered. "Aren't you afraid the daimyo will cut Konoha's funding?"

"I'm sure my teacher will understand my decision," Jiraiya said calmly, then turned to leave.

"Stop!"

"Is there something else, Mr. Moriya?" Jiraiya asked, turning back.

Jiraiya had never intended to abandon the mission. His threat was simply a way to make Moriya accept his terms.

Besides, Jiraiya knew Moriya would have no choice but to agree.

Only a fool would travel alone with a caravan through the dangerous Land of Grass.

"Why are you so determined to take him with you?" Moriya stared into Jiraiya's eyes, as if trying to read his thoughts.

"Because we're teammates," Jiraiya said with a smile. "I won't leave any of my teammates behind."

"Teammates..."

After a few seconds of silence, Moriya reluctantly gave in. "Since you refuse to abandon your teammate, we'll stay in town for two days."

The following evening.

Inside the inn room.

Uchiha Matsuri slowly opened his eyes on the bed.

Seeing Matsuri wake up, Minato Namikaze hurried over to his side, delighted. "Matsuri, you're awake."

"Mm." After sleeping for more than a day, Matsuri felt groggy when he woke.

"Minato, how long was I unconscious?" Uchiha Matsuri asked weakly.