Inn

Hyuga Yizhe headed north, moving slowly.

For three days straight, he did not encounter a single intact village or town. Everywhere he passed was abandoned and deserted, forcing him to sleep rough in the wilderness.

"Damn this war!" Yizhe cursed bitterly as he gnawed on his rations.

He had originally brought a rough map with him, but the previous war had turned many of the inhabited villages marked on it into wastelands.

Fortunately, though the journey had been difficult, he had not encountered any thieves or bandits. This showed that Leaf Village's influence extended quite far.

"Looks like I made traveling training sound too easy!" Yizhe sighed, put away his rations, wrapped his blanket tighter around himself, and fell asleep inside a tree hollow.

"Ha, ha!" Yizhe cried excitedly.

At last, on the fourth day, he spotted a column of black smoke in the distance. Activating his Byakugan, Yizhe clearly saw that it came from an inhabited village.

Having gone so long without seeing any sign of human life, he felt a little excited as he entered the village.

The village was not large. After wandering around for a while, Yizhe finally found a small inn tucked away in a corner.

"Owner, one room!" the boy called, his clear voice echoing through the lobby.

"Esteemed guest, there's only one room left. Would you like it?" Hearing him, an old man rose from behind the counter and asked Yizhe respectfully.

The old man looked to be around sixty. His complexion was sallow, his face covered in wrinkles, and he wore reading glasses. Every gesture of his was exceedingly courteous, without a single fault to be found. He seemed like an easygoing old fellow.

"Only one room... Well... I'll make do!" After some thought, Yizhe decided to stay first and worry about the rest later. He had truly had enough of sleeping out in the wild these past few days.

"Do you have anything to eat? Bring me some food!"

"There's only some beef and a few steamed buns left. Would you like them?" the old man asked amiably.

"That's fine, bring it all!" Having eaten dry rations for days until he nearly wanted to throw up, Yizhe ordered the food without hesitation.

"Please wait a moment!" The old man smiled faintly and turned away.

Before long, the old man returned carrying a plate of beef and several steamed buns.

Yizhe did not stand on ceremony and immediately dug in.

The old man simply stood nearby, quietly watching the boy wolf down his food.

"Sir, have any merchant caravans or other large groups passed through recently on their way to the Land of Iron?" Yizhe asked after gulping down some water and swallowing his food.

Generally speaking, taverns and inns had the most complicated flow of people, and their owners knew more about current events. That was why Yizhe had decided to ask him for information.

"You're going to the Land of Iron?" The old man looked somewhat surprised.

It was a neutral nation dominated by samurai, a land covered in snow all year round. He did not understand what this little fellow planned to do there.

"Mm." Yizhe nodded, then said, "Traveling alone is too lonely and difficult, and I'm unfamiliar with the route. Resupplying along the way would also be a huge problem, so I want to travel with others!"

"Judging by your attire, you should be a ninja, right?" The old man gave the boy a once-over.

"Mm, I've already graduated from the academy. I'm traveling to train."

"I see! Then... would you like to earn some travel expenses?" the old man asked with a smile.

"Hm?" Hearing that, Yizhe put down the steamed bun in his hand. "What do you mean, sir?"

"A few days ago, a group of merchants came to my little inn. They're preparing to do business in the Land of Iron. Though they've already hired several samurai as guards, they still feel it isn't enough and want to find two ninja to oversee things."

"However, our village is in such a remote location that ninja rarely pass through. They haven't been able to find suitable ninja guards, so they've delayed their departure until now!" The old man explained the situation with a smile.

"So you want to recommend me as one of their guards?" Yizhe's eyes shifted, and he immediately understood the old man's intentions.

The old man did not answer, merely nodding with a smile.

"This... I'll think about it!" Yizhe neither refused outright nor agreed.

"That's fine! Take your time thinking it over. Just let this old man know once you've made up your mind!" The old man remained unfazed and replied politely.

"Sir, how much is the room and all this food altogether?" Now that Yizhe was full, all he wanted was to rest. He wanted to settle the bill and return to his room to sleep without worry.

"Ten thousand." The old man named the price with a smile.

"Ten thousand... what?"

"Isn't that a little too outrageous? This rundown inn of yours, plus this bit of food, costs ten thousand?" The exorbitant price instantly set Yizhe off. He sprang to his feet and glared furiously at the old man.

"Young man, dining and dashing is not a good habit! This is a small business. No credit!"

As he spoke, the old man's smile vanished, and a powerful chakra aura radiated from his body.

What?! Yizhe's heart jolted.

The aura emanating from this old man was no weaker than Hyuga Hizashi's.

He had never expected such a remote little inn to conceal such a formidable figure. This old man was actually an Upper Ninja-level expert. No wonder he dared charge such an outrageous price.

If he insisted on resisting and caused a conflict, he would likely gain nothing from it. With that thought, Yizhe could only loosen the fist clenched behind his back.

"Take it!" Feeling the old man's powerful aura, Yizhe had no choice but to back down. After shooting him a vicious glare, he decisively took out his money and threw it onto the table.

Although Huo Jian and Hezi had left him a considerable inheritance, Yizhe had not brought much money with him on this journey.

After paying the bill, he was nearly penniless.

"Esteemed guest, your room is the one at the far right end of the second floor!" After accepting the payment, the old man withdrew his aura. As though nothing had happened, he continued smiling as he showed Yizhe the way.

Late that night, Yizhe lay in bed recalling what had happened during the day. The more he thought about it, the worse he felt. He tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep.

"Only five hundred left! With this little money, the journey will be difficult!" Looking at the only five bills in his hand, he felt deeply troubled.

When traveling, without money, one could not take a single step. Though he had set out to train through travel, he had not intended to torment himself by sleeping outdoors every day and living like an ascetic.

In truth, he had been quite tempted by the old man's proposal that he become a caravan guard.

For one thing, he could travel with the caravan and head to the Land of Iron along the way. For another, he could earn a payment by guarding the merchants.

It could be said that it was a suggestion with multiple benefits.

However, the caravan had delayed its departure for so long, insisting on finding ninja guards. The road ahead was probably difficult and full of trouble.

When traveling alone before, though he was outnumbered and unsupported, presumably no one wanted to provoke a ninja who clearly did not look like he had much worth stealing.

On the other hand, if he became a caravan guard, countless desperate men might come to rob them. Then, whether fortune or disaster awaited him would be impossible to tell. He would truly be asking for trouble.

But even so, without experiencing bloody battles and the baptism of the battlefield, how could he gain proper training?

Yizhe was somewhat confused. He began to regret rashly setting out to train on his own.