Within the Land of Earth.
A small campfire burned in a sheltered spot near a rocky cliff, driving away some of the chill.
Uchiha Hikari sat on a flat rock, her posture decidedly graceful.
Her head was slightly bowed, and she held a thick, golden-brown flatbread with irregular scorch marks on its surface in both hands.
It was a specialty of the Land of Earth: Rock-Skin Flatbread.
Traditionally baked directly on a heated, flat stone slab, this bread was thicker, harder, and chewier than ordinary baked flatbread.
That was how Rock-Skin Flatbread got its name.
This was Hikari's first time eating it.
A small jar sat in front of her, filled with sauce Naruto had just made.
She nibbled at the hard Rock-Skin Flatbread, occasionally dipping it in the sauce. Her eyes were lowered, her long lashes casting delicate shadows in the firelight, and her quiet presence formed a curious contrast with the rugged surroundings.
She looked less like someone eating between dangerous infiltration or assault missions and more like someone conducting a meticulous tasting.
Not far from her, Naruto sat facing a burly, middle-aged man with a steady, solemn air.
The man had short red hair that flared like flames and a thick, curly beard of the same color. Dressed in simple clothes, he was none other than Roshi, the Land of Earth's Four-Tails Jinchūriki and a wandering monk.
Two rough ceramic bowls and an empty liquor bottle sat on the ground between them.
They might have been "drinking together," but Naruto had not touched a drop of alcohol; his bowl held only water. Roshi's bowl, on the other hand, still had liquor stains around its rim, and his bronze face was slightly flushed from drinking.
Clearly, almost the entire bottle had ended up in Roshi's stomach.
Roshi let