Setting Out for the Land of Waves!

Early the next morning, at the gates of the Hidden Leaf Village.

Kado directed his workers as they arranged the convoy and cargo. When he saw Kakashi and the three members of Team 7, he invited them aboard the luxurious carriage he rode in.

Aside from Menma, the other three each carried an enormous travel pack. Facing Sakura and Sasuke's questioning looks, Menma pointed to the huge scroll on his back. "This is an Item-Sealing Scroll. All my luggage is sealed inside it. Pretty convenient, right?"

"But Menma, your scroll isn't much smaller than our backpacks!" Sakura stated the obvious.

Menma froze. That was true. Then why the hell had I brought an Item-Sealing Scroll?

"Don't say that. There are still benefits to Menma carrying an Item-Sealing Scroll..." Kakashi explained on Menma's behalf.

Menma looked at Kakashi with shining eyes as background music seemed to play: "Anticipation~ Anticipating you discovering my love~"

"At the very least, Menma can seal all of our luggage inside it too!" Kakashi said as he tossed his travel pack to Menma.

Sakura and Sasuke suddenly understood and followed suit, tossing their own packs to Menma.

"Damn it!" Menma burst into tears.

Thus, a world where only Menma got hurt was achieved.

After that little interlude, they boarded Kado's carriage.

Along the way, Team 7 admired the scenery through the carriage windows. None of the three had ever traveled far from home before, and the unfamiliar sights, coupled with the excitement of leaving home for the first time, left them feeling somewhat thrilled.

Kakashi Hatake, meanwhile, chatted with Kado now and then. As an experienced shinobi, though, prying mission intelligence from a client had become an instinctive habit.

Before long, Kado proudly spilled his entire story as if pouring beans from a bamboo tube.

"The Land of Waves only enjoys such peaceful days because of me!

Those ant-like poor people simply cannot understand my painstaking efforts. They insist on building a bridge to make the Land of Waves prosperous.

What the hell do they know? The poorer the Land of Waves is, the safer it is!

The Land of Waves occupies a position of immense importance. As the strategic buffer zone between the Land of Fire and the Land of Water, it has been contested by military powers since ancient times.

The Shinobi World may be relatively peaceful right now, but who knows when the next war will break out?

Once war begins, a wealthy little island nation will be nothing but meat on a chopping block!

Prosperity, prosperity, prosperity—is it really that important?

Which matters more, life or money? They cannot even understand something so simple, yet they insist on opposing me. How foolish!

Especially that bridge-building expert. His entire family is full of short-sighted fools.

His son leads the resistance against my rule, while the old man wants to build a bridge across the sea to break free from my control.

Even more foolish are those villagers who treat them as heroes!

Heroes? Is becoming a hero really so easy?

Heroes emerge in chaotic times. A Land of Waves with heroes must surely be suffering misfortune!

Those fools are willing to let the Land of Waves suffer misfortune just so they can become heroes. How selfish!

And I have actually allowed such people to live until now. I truly am a great ruler."

As Kado spoke, tears and snot streamed down his face. He had moved himself to tears.

Menma and the others watched Kado's performance with great interest. They had no idea whether what he said was true, and they knew little about the Land of Waves anyway, but there was no harm in treating it as a story.

After traveling for most of the day, they were already quite far from Konoha.

Suddenly, a commotion broke out at the front of the convoy. The entire convoy came to a stop. Kado's self-admiration was interrupted, and he stormed out of the carriage, roaring from the carriage shaft, "What's going on?"

A worker ran over from the front of the convoy and explained breathlessly, "Lord Kado, two shinobi are standing in the middle of the road ahead. They say the Land of Waves does not welcome us and will not allow us to pass."

"What?! This is outrageous!" Kado laughed in rage. "What two blind shinobi dare block my path? Do they not know that I am the ruler of the Land of Waves?"

"Reporting to Lord Kado, judging by their forehead protectors, they are shinobi from the Hidden Mist Village."

"What, the Hidden Mist Village?" Upon hearing that, Kado suppressed his anger. This was not something he could handle, so he turned and entered the carriage to ask Kakashi for help.

Kakashi had heard what happened inside the carriage as well, so he led Menma, the other two, and Kado to the front of the convoy.

Two male shinobi stood before the convoy. They wore tattered linen robes and metal masks. Each had metal guards on both arms, with sharp metal claws extending from the ends.

"They're the Demon Brothers, veteran Chunin from the Hidden Mist," Kakashi immediately identified them.

"That hair color, that mask... Could you be Konoha's Copy Ninja, Kakashi Hatake?" One of the Demon Brothers recognized Kakashi as well.

"Well, if there isn't another person in Konoha named Kakashi Hatake, then that would be me." Kakashi lazily replied while picking his ear with his little finger.

"Mr. Kakashi, we have no wish to be your enemies. If we step aside, could Mr. Kakashi let us go?" The Demon Brothers had a strong desire to survive.

"Well, ordinarily, letting you go would not be a big deal. But if I remember correctly, this is still within the Land of Fire. As shinobi from the Hidden Mist Village, entering our country without permission from the Hidden Leaf Village is completely illegal entry." Kakashi spoke with apparent difficulty.

"Mr. Kakashi, please be direct. What exactly must we do for you to let us go?"

"How about this? I will not make things difficult for you. As long as you defeat my three newly graduated Genin subordinates, I will let you go. What do you say?" Kakashi proposed an offer the Demon Brothers could not refuse.

"Fine. We hope Mr. Kakashi will keep his word."

Hearing that shinobi were about to fight, Kado immediately became an eager spectator and directed the workers to use carriages to hastily form a simple arena by the roadside.

Kakashi looked at the three of them. "This is a rare opportunity. Go exchange a few moves with those two and get an early feel for the fighting style of another shinobi village."

Sasuke had already been interested in the ninjutsu of villages outside Konoha. Once Kakashi Hatake gave the order, he immediately formed hand seals and launched the first attack.

Snake—Ram—Monkey—Boar—Horse—Tiger.

Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!

Scorching flames rushed forward, forming a massive fireball that directly swallowed the Demon Brothers' figures.

However, as the most merciful ninjutsu in the world of Naruto, the blazing high-temperature flames did not kill the Demon Brothers. The two rushed out of the flames. Aside from their tattered cloaks being burned away completely, they had only suffered minor burns.

The moment the Demon Brothers escaped the flames, before they could even catch their breath, Menma and Sasuke lunged at them with kunai in hand.

The Demon Brothers were veteran shinobi of the Hidden Mist after all. One on the left and one on the right, they used their steel claws to block Menma and Sasuke's kunai. With an upward flick, they sent the two flying with overwhelming force, widening the distance between them and the Demon Brothers.

The Demon Brothers exchanged a glance and formed hand seals.

Water Release: Water Whip.

Two streams of water lashed toward Menma and Sasuke like whips, coiling around the two before they could evade them like snakes.