"All right, I'll go right away."
Ino set down the half-embroidered Hokage Robe and deftly took a Sealing Scroll from the little bag she carried.
She had bought it specially from a ninja tools shop to store important belongings.
She carefully rolled up the Hokage Robe and her sewing supplies, formed hand seals, and gave a low cry of "Seal!" The robe and sewing supplies were safely stored inside the scroll.
Only then did she take the so-called "letter" from Yoshino.
It felt very light. There was no envelope, just a simple folded piece of notepaper.
Once she took it, she saw the words written on it, and the corner of her mouth twitched.
The handwriting was indeed Shikamaru's familiar, slightly casual scrawl, but the contents were so brief that she was speechless:
The first line read: "Mom, give this letter to Uncle Inoichi."
The second line read: "Uncle Inoichi, we need Shino's help. Have him come to the border between the Land of Bears and the Land of Rain."
That was it.
Just two lines-the recipient, the location, and the request, all pared down to the essentials without a single extra word.
Ino: "..."
That really was Shikamaru's style!
She took a deep breath, quickly folded the note again, and nodded earnestly to Yoshino. "I'll give this to my dad right away. Aunt Yoshino, I'll be off!"
"All right. Be careful on the way."
Yoshino nodded with a smile, watching the blonde girl rush out of the flower shop like a gust of wind, clutching the Sealing Scroll and that "short and to-the-point" letter.
As an ordinary villager who was not a ninja, Yoshino watched a child of her daughter's generation carry out a friend's request with such energy. A knowing smile crossed her face, carrying the pride and