Wood Release Training Manual
After a night of conversation, dawn was already breaking.
Cooking smoke mingled with the morning mist over Tanzaku Town, wrapping the whole town in a gray-white haze.
Kakashi dozed against a tree beside the hitching post at the town entrance. He had bought the latest issue of Icha Icha Paradise and tucked it under his arm, carefully wrapped in a rough gray cloth cover.
At the sound of footsteps, he opened one eye. Sōji was approaching with Tsunade and Shizune, while Tonton yawned from Shizune's shoulder.
Hm?
Kakashi blinked, then blinked again. He slipped the book inside his clothes and straightened up.
"Lady Tsunade!"
Kakashi nodded respectfully, his voice missing its usual lazy drawl for once.
He looked at Sōji, then at Tsunade, but asked nothing. Some things needed no questions. Smart people knew when to keep quiet.
"Yes, I'm returning to Konoha with you," Tsunade said with a nod.
"Lord Third Hokage has been looking forward to this day," Kakashi said, nodding respectfully.
After a brief exchange, they set off.
They went without horses, racing down the dirt road they had taken into town and heading for the main road. At their speed, they caught up with the Land of Water delegation's convoy before noon.
The delegation's guards had already made camp beside a relay station on the main road. Officials from the Land of Fire's foreign ministry bustled about, loading supplies onto the carriages.
Wolf Demon leaned against a carriage wheel, chewing dried squid. When he saw Sōji return with Tsunade, the squid fell from his mouth without him noticing.
Hozuki Mangetsu stood some distance away in the shade of a carriage, an orange half-peeled in his hand. His expression remained as flat as ever.
But his gray-blue eyes rested on Tsunade for two