"Minato-sensei, weren't we going straight back to the village? What are we doing here?"
The Swamp Zone.
A barren stretch of damp land filled with a nauseating stench.
Team 7 and Liumu had taken a detour here. As they surveyed the seemingly impassable scene before them, a trace of certainty shone in their expressions.
Mountains, forests-the Land of Grass was now covered with informants from every village.
The Kirigakure ninja who had bypassed Konoha's defensive line and appeared in the dense forest earlier had probably passed through this place that every village considered impassable.
The swamp gas was highly poisonous, though sinking into the mud posed no threat to ninja.
But the poisonous gas could corrode anyone's body.
Moreover, to skirt Konoha's defensive line, they would have to travel through the swamp for at least three days.
On top of that, the time they would have to spend lying low to guard against informants who might appear at any moment would certainly make the journey even longer.
"I heard from that Chunin from the Hyuga Clan earlier that there was a thunderstorm here before we entered the Land of Grass."
"A thunderstorm?!"
Liumu felt somewhat disappointed at that.
After all, the swamp was loose, insubstantial soil. Ordinary heavy objects would be swallowed up in a very short time, leaving no trace.
If the Kirigakure ninja really had reached the dense forest through here, then no matter how careful they had been, there was no way they could have left absolutely no traces.
But...
The force of the thunderstorm would have washed away those already scant traces, bringing unforeseen trouble to Team 7.
"Whatever the case, we still need to take a look."
Unwilling to give up, Minato told Kakashi and the others beside him, "Wait here and be careful. I'll