After another day of training in Konoha, the two days of leave Captain Tōma had granted them finally came to an end. Kazuhiko Uchiha and his teammates set out on another mission.
Thanks to their outstanding performance on the previous mission, Captain Tōma had accepted a B-rank escort mission this time. They were to protect a merchant named Mr. Kashima and his caravan on their return to the Land of Lightning. The mission would take about ten days.
After making a few simple preparations for the journey, Tōma's Team met Mr. Kashima's caravan outside the Konoha Gate and came face-to-face with their employer, a potbellied, middle-aged merchant.
"Hello, Mr. Kashima. I'm Toma Furukawa, the captain for this mission. These are my subordinates, Kazuhiko Uchiha, Yū Inuzuka, and Kaori Ikemoto. Rest assured, we'll keep you safe."
Upon meeting their employer, Captain Tōma greeted him with a smile and introduced Kazuhiko Uchiha and the other two.
"Hello, Mr. Kashima."
After Captain Tōma's introduction, Kazuhiko Uchiha and his teammates politely greeted the merchant as well.
"Heh, Konoha truly is a land of outstanding talent, with so many excellent young shinobi."
Mr. Kashima did not look down on the three of them because of their age. After all, his years of traveling far and wide had given him considerable experience. He knew that many seemingly unremarkable shinobi possessed fighting abilities far beyond those of ordinary people.
Captain Tōma smiled faintly and replied modestly, "You're too kind, Mr. Kashima. Kumogakure has plenty of young heroes as well. As for these three, they still have much to improve on."
After exchanging a few pleasantries, Mr. Kashima led his sizable caravan on its way, and Tōma's Team's mission officially began.
Mr. Kashima's caravan consisted of ten horse-drawn wagons. Apart from the carriage he rode in, all the others were freight wagons loaded with local specialties purchased in the Land of Fire, so the caravan moved rather slowly.
Under Captain Tōma's arrangements, Yū Inuzuka scouted ahead with a keen sense of smell. Captain Tōma and Kaori Ikemoto traveled in the middle of the caravan, while Kazuhiko Uchiha, the strongest fighter, kept watch at the rear.
It was late April, the season of warm weather and blooming flowers. With the pleasant climate and beautiful scenery, leaving the village on a mission in such surroundings was quite an enjoyable experience.
The first day's journey soon ended, and the caravan stopped to rest in a small town in the Land of Fire.
"Kazuhiko, Yū, how about we go shopping and get something good to eat?"
As a girl, Kaori Ikemoto was far more enthusiastic about good food than Kazuhiko Uchiha or Yū Inuzuka. As soon as Captain Tōma announced that they would take turns resting, she sought the two out and invited them along.
"Sounds good! Those rations at lunch tasted awful. I'm not eating that stuff again tonight. Let's go, Jūbimaru!"
Yū Inuzuka agreed to Kaori Ikemoto's suggestion without hesitation. After twitching a nose to sniff out the direction of the food street, Yū raced off with Jūbimaru without waiting for the other two.
"Sure. Let's go."
With Kaori Ikemoto looking expectantly at him, Kazuhiko Uchiha did not refuse. He nodded and went with her to catch up to Yū Inuzuka and find a delicious dinner.
"Get out of my way, you penniless scum! If you dirty my clothes, selling the lot of you wouldn't cover the cost!"
As soon as they reached the food street, they spotted an arrogant-looking young man accompanied by a bowing, scraping lackey and several Rogue Ninja guards, cursing at the ordinary townspeople in his path.
When the townspeople saw the young man's lavish clothing, they moved aside despite the resentment and disgust in their eyes, letting the spoiled young noble pass. He was clearly not someone they could afford to offend.
Though Kazuhiko Uchiha and his teammates had no fear of those Rogue Ninja guards, they entered the food street from another road to avoid unnecessary trouble and enjoyed a hearty meal at a restaurant with a pleasant atmosphere.
After dinner, the three returned to the inn where the caravan was staying and took turns relieving Captain Tōma of guard duty, passing their first night safely.
Early the next morning, the caravan left the town and continued its journey.
An hour later, Kazuhiko Uchiha, who was walking at the rear, heard horses neighing behind him. His gaze sharpened, and he immediately leaped to the top of a nearby tall tree to look toward the source of the sound.
A group of more than a dozen riders was heading toward the caravan, led by none other than the spoiled young man they had encountered on the food street the day before.
Although he did not know whether the riders were targeting their group, Kazuhiko Uchiha did not hesitate. He quickly caught up with the caravan and reported his discovery to Captain Tōma and Mr. Kashima.
Upon receiving Kazuhiko Uchiha's report, Captain Tōma immediately had the caravan slow down as a precaution against the approaching group, whose intentions remained unknown.
Thanks to their horses' speed, the group behind them soon came into view.
Under the watchful eyes of Kazuhiko Uchiha and the others, the spoiled young man merely glanced at the caravan before riding past them like the wind and disappearing down the road.
Once they confirmed that the riders were not enemies coming to attack them, the caravan resumed its journey. Kazuhiko Uchiha returned to the rear and continued keeping watch.
To strengthen the team and pass the dull hours of travel, Tōma used the caravan's rest stops to teach everyone the Shadow Clone Technique that Kazuhiko Uchiha had long been looking forward to, guiding them until they successfully mastered it.
After learning this incredibly useful ninjutsu, Kazuhiko Uchiha created three shadow clones. One kept watch behind the caravan, another practiced taijutsu out in the wilderness, and the third continued developing an advanced version of the Rasengan. His real body sat on a freight wagon, inscribing the demon mark at an extremely slow pace so as not to compromise his fighting strength.
Perhaps intimidated by Konoha's formidable reputation in the Land of Fire, no one attacked the caravan during the entire three days before it reached the border. They only encountered a few shinobi teams from other countries, likewise carrying out missions. With no conflicting interests, no fighting broke out.
On the fourth day, the caravan left the Land of Fire and entered the Land of Hot Water.
The Land of Hot Water was a small country wedged between the Land of Fire and the Land of Lightning. Its beautiful natural scenery and sightseeing attractions had fostered a thriving tourism industry.
Although the country also had a small shinobi village called Yugakure, cuts to its funding by the daimyo had caused it to gradually decline. It was mockingly known throughout the shinobi world as "the village that forgot war." As a result, the Land of Hot Water had become the country where Rogue Ninja were most active.
"Captain, we've spotted another group of Rogue Ninja five hundred meters ahead."
The caravan had only been traveling for a morning, yet this was already the eighth time Yū Inuzuka's shadow clone had reported an encounter with Rogue Ninja.
"Just keep watch."
Captain Tōma was well acquainted with the rampant activity of Rogue Ninja in the Land of Hot Water and was not overly concerned. He simply instructed Yū Inuzuka to maintain the usual vigilance without provoking them.
The caravan continued onward. After they entered a dense forest, Kazuhiko Uchiha suddenly opened his eyes from meditation, sensing that danger was approaching.
After dispelling the two shadow clones that were training, Kazuhiko Uchiha immediately leaped into a tree and warily surveyed the caravan's surroundings. He found nothing unusual, however, and could only suppress his unease. Quietly, he opened the first two gates of the Eight Gates Released Formation, preparing for any danger that might arise.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Just as the caravan was about to leave the dense forest, a dark mass of shuriken and kunai came raining toward it. A band of more than a dozen Rogue Ninja appeared seemingly out of nowhere and surrounded the caravan.
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