Land of Waves Mission

The following afternoon, the three of them arrived at a port in the Land of Fire.

Commerce in the Land of Fire was flourishing, so there were many ships at the port and even more passengers coming and going. Shikaku casually found an empty little boat and set off.

Before long, however, Shikaku began to regret his casual decision.

The boatman was an elderly old man. Though he rowed with all his strength, the boat was still painfully slow.

At this rate, they probably would not reach the Land of Waves until nightfall.

And if the waters between the Land of Fire and the Land of Waves had not remained calm year-round, this boat might not even have been safe.

Shikaku leaned closer and said, "Sir, can you row any faster? The sea might get rough tonight. We should hurry."

The old man strained at the oars as he turned back and replied, "This old man's no good anymore. This is already as fast as I can go."

Shikaku immediately beckoned Asuma over. "Let my disciple help you."

Asuma looked unwilling, but he could not refuse Shikaku and could only step forward.

The old man let go of the oars and handed them to Asuma.

Then he instructed, "Just keep rowing straight ahead."

Asuma could only take on the hard labor and begin rowing, but he was indeed much faster than the old man.

The old man studied Shikaku for a while before saying, "Oh my, you're ninja, aren't you? I didn't realize before. No wonder this young man is so strong."

Shikaku smiled. "That's right. We're ninja from Konoha."

"We're heading to the Land of Waves this time to survey the terrain and complete a geologist's assignment."

The old man laughed when he heard that. "That whatever-ologist is really making a mountain out of a molehill. The Land of Waves is so small you can circle it twice in a day. Why doesn't he just come and walk around himself? Why send you people?"

Shikaku smiled as well. "Perhaps scholars' time is valuable."

"By the way, sir, has anything unusual happened in the Land of Waves lately?"

The old man asked in confusion, "Hasn't the Land of Waves always been the same?"

"When you said you were going to the Land of Waves, I was wondering why anyone would still go there these days. It's remote and poor, and there isn't even a bridge leading there. Hardly anyone wants to visit."

"As for anything unusual, this old man really doesn't know. Still, a little place like the Land of Waves definitely doesn't have any ninja."

Seeing that he could not gather any intelligence, Shikaku politely smiled and returned to the back of the boat. He noticed Toru watching him, so he gave Toru a slight nod.

If Toru had merely harbored some doubts when the group first departed from the village, he was now certain that there was something wrong with this mission.

Ever since they had set off, Shikaku had been in a hurry. He had even made Asuma row so they could reach the Land of Waves sooner, claiming it was for safety, but all three of them possessed at least Chunin-level strength. Even if the boat capsized, they would not drown.

Coupled with Shikaku's attempt to draw information out of the old man, Toru was completely certain that something was going on with this mission.

Near dusk, they reached the shore. Shikaku paid the old man the regular fare, leaving him deeply grateful.

The first thing they needed to do upon arriving in the Land of Waves was find somewhere to stay.

Though the Land of Waves was small, carefully surveying it as required by the mission would take at least a week.

Finding lodging was therefore necessary.

Shikaku began assigning tasks. "It's getting late. Asuma, find an inn with vacant rooms."

"Toru, you and Kurenai will investigate the terrain within the city. I'll take a look outside the city."

Standing outside the Land of Waves' only city, Shikaku and the others looked rather conspicuous, drawing the attention of passersby from time to time.

Shikaku took out his survey notebook, seemingly preparing to begin investigating outside the city.

The three entered the city, and Asuma was the first to leave in search of suitable lodging.

Kurenai said to Toru, "Let's start our investigation too."

Toru seemed somewhat distracted, because he knew the so-called terrain survey was merely a cover.

Still, he cooperated with Kurenai. "All right. We'll split up. You go east, and I'll go west. We'll meet back here in half an hour."

Kurenai nodded, and the two began surveying the city's terrain separately.

Toru held the terrain survey notebook, but his attention was on the people around him.

Most of the civilians here were thin and gaunt. It was clear that this country truly was poor.

Yet several ninja were mixed among the civilians, and their strength was generally not weak.

From the moment he arrived until now, Toru had discovered no fewer than ten ninja in the city, and nearly all of them possessed Chunin-level strength.

Whenever Toru encountered a ninja, he pretended to inspect the terrain, acting as though he had not recognized them.

In truth, with the Six Eyes, Toru could see through even the most convincing disguise at a glance.

Those ninja had clearly noticed Toru as well.

Several more cautious ones followed behind him and observed him for quite some time, only leaving after confirming that he posed no threat.

Then, a young girl caught Toru's attention.

She had long reddish-brown hair and striking green eyes, but that was not what drew Toru's interest.

What mattered was that, through the Six Eyes, Toru could see that the Chakra within her seemed different from the Chakra of everyone he had ever seen.

Toru immediately thought of one possibility: Kekkei Genkai.

Traditional Kekkei Genkai could often alter a person's Chakra nature, allowing them to use special ninjutsu beyond the five basic elements.

This was common knowledge at the Ninja Academy, and the girl before him fit the characteristics of a Kekkei Genkai user.

Moreover, she appeared to be around Toru's age, yet she was remarkably strong, capable of matching a jonin.

Toru had seen such extraordinary talent in Konoha only in Kakashi.

The girl noticed Toru's gaze as well. The instant she saw him, her eyes lit up, and she immediately approached him with a greeting. "Hello, handsome. Are you a Konoha ninja? That's amazing!"

As she spoke, the girl casually tried to link arms with Toru, but he shook her off.

"I'm a Konoha ninja. What do you want?" Toru asked flatly.

Pouting, the girl complained, "Don't be so cold. I just came over to say hello."

"By the way, what are you here for?"

Toru glanced at her. "That's none of your business."

Yet the girl flipped open the notebook in Toru's hand of her own accord. "Terrain survey? You should've said so earlier. I know this place very well. Want to do it together?"

Toru still refused.

The girl remained persistent, following him around and constantly trying to strike up a conversation.

In the end, Toru made half a circuit around the small city and returned to the agreed meeting point.

Toru said, "Trying to chat someone up like that won't work."

The girl asked in confusion, "Why? Am I not pretty enough?"

Toru answered, "Because you'll scare people."

The girl pinched her cute little cheeks and asked uncertainly, "Am I really that scary?"

But when she looked up, Toru had already walked away. Only when she saw Kurenai beside him did she understand why Toru had been so cold toward her.

Toru met up with Kurenai, and they went to look for Asuma together.

Kurenai asked, "Who was that girl beside you just now?"

"I don't know her," Toru answered truthfully.

Kurenai asked again, "You really don't know her?"

"I really don't. I don't even know her name," Toru said, still not lying.

Kurenai let it go and said nothing more. She merely gave Toru a light punch. "It's all because you're too handsome."

At that moment, the girl overheard Toru and Kurenai's conversation, and her temper flared. She lightly bit her lip as she stared at their retreating backs.

After a long while, she said, "Hmph! I'll make you remember my name, you stinking Uchiha."

The girl had clearly recognized the Uchiha clan crest on Toru's back, which resembled a ping-pong paddle.