Northern Border

The night was deep, and moonlight fell across the courtyard, casting a faint silvery-white sheen over the ground.

He recalled Nawaki's fate in the original story—that boy who was always loud and boisterous, shouting, "I'm going to become Hokage!" only to die in an explosion, his body barely cold.

From then on, Tsunade had begun spiraling toward collapse step by step. After Kato Dan died, she sank completely, spending the following decades fleeing into gambling tables and alcohol.

He didn't want to see that happen.

I need to find out Nawaki's mission route, he thought silently. If Danzo tampered with it, there'll definitely be traces... But I don't have the standing to investigate the higher-ups yet. For now, I'll just have to take things one step at a time.

He drew a deep breath, suppressed his stray thoughts, lay back down, and closed his eyes.

The night passed without incident.

Early the next morning, when Mirai woke up, Kushina had already left for the hospital. She had only left a note pressed beneath the breakfast tableware: "Remember to eat breakfast! Be careful on the road! Come back early!"

The handwriting was crooked, with a simple smiling face drawn at the end.

Mirai smiled, folded the note, tucked it into his pocket, hurried through breakfast, and headed out.

Minato and Zhili had already arrived in front of the Hokage Building.

As usual, Minato had gotten there before them. He wore that expression of, "I'm full of energy today too!" Zhili leaned against the wall with her eyes closed, resting. Only when she heard footsteps did she open her eyes and glance at Mirai, treating it as a greeting.

Jiraiya had unusually not been late today. Though his hair was still a little messy, there was at least no trace of a hangover on his face.

"There are currently three missions outside the village. First, flooding along the eastern coast needs to be dealt with. Second, spies from a neighboring country have supposedly appeared in the south, so that needs investigating. And lastly, a group of bandits in a gorge along the Northern Border needs to be eliminated..."

Holding three mission requests, Jiraiya waved them at the three of them. "Which one do you want?"

The moment Mirai heard the words "Northern Border," his heart stirred!

Tsunade had mentioned it yesterday—Nawaki was carrying out a mission over there!

"Let's deal with the bandits!" he decided without hesitation.

Minato and Zhili, who had still been hesitating, glanced at him and didn't object.

"What about you two?" Jiraiya was a little surprised. Why was Mirai so interested in bandits?

"Let's listen to Mirai!"

"Fine, then we'll take the third mission."

Once the mission was settled, Jiraiya returned the other two scrolls to the mission center.

Only Jiraiya, the Hokage's prized disciple, had that kind of privilege. What other ninja had the qualifications to be picky?

"You've spent more than half a month pulling weeds and hauling bricks. It's time to do something real!

Are you packed? If you are, we're leaving."

"Ready!" Minato was the first to respond.

Zhili said nothing, but straightened up and lightly touched the strap of her ninja tool pouch.

Mirai nodded as well, lifting his gaze from the mission request and looking north.

Nawaki... I wonder if I'm still in time?

The four left the Hokage Building, passed through the morning streets, and headed toward the village gate.

When they reached the gate, Mirai paused and couldn't help glancing at the gate guards.

Unfortunately, they weren't Izumo Kamizuki and Kotetsu Hagane, that inseparable duo from the original story.

He turned back and took one final look at Konoha in its entirety—the Third Hokage's face on Hokage Rock stood sharply outlined in the morning light, while the streets below were orderly and closely packed.

"What's wrong?" Minato followed his gaze and looked as well. "Can't bear to leave the village?"

"Not really." Mirai withdrew his gaze, his voice calm. "It's just... it's my first time leaving the village in so long. I'm a little curious."

"Let's go!" Mirai stepped forward and crossed through the village gate.

His heartbeat quickened slightly, filled with a mixture of anticipation and vigilance.

Northern Border, here I come!

"Jiraiya-sensei, can we go a little faster?" Mirai took the lead, leaping from tree to tree.

When he had read the original story, he hadn't really understood why ninja always traveled by jumping through the trees.

Now that he was a ninja himself, he had discovered that it was indeed a faster and relatively less strenuous way to travel.

Provided there were enough trees.

He was moving quickly. Minato and Zhili had no choice but to speed up as well, and the pace of the entire team was pulled forward with him.

"Hey, hey," Jiraiya called as he hurried after them. "Why are you in such a rush? It's not a timed mission. We can take it slow, enjoy the scenery along the way, maybe even stop for a little—"

"Jiraiya-sensei," Mirai said without looking back, "when I think about those villagers waiting in the bandits' den to be rescued, I just can't slow down!"

Jiraiya looked at the red-haired back ahead of him and raised an eyebrow.

The kid usually slacked off now and then, but he had always been steady by nature. This was a rare sight.

Jiraiya had wanted to retort, but his gaze swept over Minato and Zhili beside him—

Both had picked up their pace too. Their faces held a shared understanding: if Mirai was moving fast, then they would move faster too. Neither complained, and neither lagged behind.

Jiraiya rubbed his chin and swallowed the words, "Let's stop at the town ahead and soak in a hot spring."

"Well! Since you're all so motivated, I can't exactly hold you back as your teacher."

"Then let's finish the mission early and head home early. Konoha's bathhouses are something special too!"

"Yeah!"

The three little ones charged ahead with even more enthusiasm.

Jiraiya hurriedly reminded them, "But remember, forced marches are basic ninja training too. Don't focus so much on rushing that you forget to conserve your stamina."

So the four traveled north, from morning until the sun stood high overhead, then from noon until the sun began to sink westward.

By evening, the outline of a small town appeared ahead.

"This is the town closest to the border. We'll rest here tonight." Jiraiya strode into town. "We'll find an inn, stay the night, and continue north tomorrow."

Mirai and the other two naturally had no objections. It was their first time leaving the village, after all.

Jiraiya chose a fairly decent inn and rented four rooms—one for each person. Prices in the small town weren't very high.

"Free time," Jiraiya tossed out before entering his room. "I'll look around nearby and gather some information on the bandits."

He turned and left after saying that, and the three boys didn't pay it much mind.

Jiraiya-sensei had always been like this. His so-called "gathering information" most likely meant going to a tavern in town to drink.

After night fell, the inn grew quiet.

Mirai stood by the window, watching the direction Jiraiya had disappeared in as he calculated the timing—

Nawaki's mission site was also on the Northern Border. If he was lucky, perhaps he could sense their chakra.

He quietly got up, threw on his coat, pushed open the door, and left.

He found a secluded high spot at the edge of town, sat down cross-legged, closed his eyes, and tried to maximize his sensory range!

"Kagura Mind's Eye—"