There were sentry posts on both sides of the gate. Several Konoha Ninja wearing green vests were on duty. Two of them were standing at the front, seemingly in charge of reception and registration.
The one on the left is a middle-aged man with a kind face, a buzz cut, and dark skin. He looks like he's been away from home for a long time, and his eyes are very steady.
The one on the right is younger, wearing round-framed glasses, with his hair neatly combed. He is looking down at the scroll in his hand, appearing meticulous.
Seeing a sizable Sunagakure caravan and several Sunagakure ninjas wearing Forehead Protector approaching, the middle-aged ninja with the buzz cut nudged his bespectacled companion beside him. "Hey, Aoki, a group's coming. From Sunagakure."
The bespectacled ninja called Aoki raised his head, adjusted his glasses, and calmly and carefully swept his gaze over the Reppu, Liefeng, then over Shira and the others behind him, as well as the caravan that was clearly injured and in a low mood.
He closed the scroll, stepped forward, and gave a standard, but not overly enthusiastic, smile, "Welcome to Konohagakure. Please state your purpose and show your relevant documents; we need to register you."
Reppu stepped forward, took out the mission certificate and clearance document issued by Sunagakure from his pocket, and handed them over, his voice calm. " Sunagakure Genin squad, led by Chunin Reppu, escorting the ' Ship of the Desert ' caravan to Konoha for trade. This is the document. En route, they were attacked by bandits, resulting in casualties and partial loss of goods, but they have been safely delivered."
The middle-aged ninja with the buzz cut also came over. When he heard "attacked," his gaze lingered for a moment on the bandaged wounded in the caravan and the battle marks left on the members of the Reppu Squad. He especially glanced at the dark luster of the sword on Shira's back, and a "I knew it" expression appeared on his face. He clicked his tongue.
"Looks like the road is treacherous. You've had a tough time. This is Nakamura, and this is Aoki. We're on duty today. The caravan is quite large and carrying a lot of goods, so according to protocol, we have to ask a few more questions. Please bear with us."
He spoke directly and without airs, but the meaning behind his words was very clear.
"I understand. It's only right." Reppu nodded.
Aoki quickly checked the documents, nodded, and handed them back to Reppu: "The documents are valid. Please have the caravan leader and the captain of the guard come with me here for a detailed registration, including a list of personnel, a list of goods, details of the losses, and a basic report of the attack."
"Other personnel, please wait in the designated area and do not move around unnecessarily."
After saying that, he pointed to an area next to the gate, shaded by a wooden shed and simply marked out with a low rope, where several carts belonging to local villagers were already parked.
"Of course." Reppu nodded, gesturing for the caravan leader to follow him. He then turned back to Shira and the others and whispered, "Wait here, keep an eye on the goods, and don't leave this area."
Following instructions, Shira, Asuka, and Sada Sasori led the rest of the caravan to the open space. The porters unloaded the pack animals, let them rest, and then collapsed onto the ground, finally able to breathe a sigh of relief.
But his eyes still lingered with curiosity and awe as he surveyed the nearby Konoha Gate, observing the neatly dressed, briskly moving Konoha Ninja inside.
Completely different from the desolate and tense atmosphere at the entrance to Sunagakure, this place, while also heavily guarded, has a more orderly, or rather, more "normal" atmosphere.
Shira leaned against the trunk of a roadside tree, watching quietly. This was Konoha. It was larger and more vibrant than she had imagined. There was a sense of peace in the air.
He saw Konoha ninjas, villagers, and even children coming and going through the gate, most of them looking calm and composed. A few genin who looked like they had just finished training ran Genin, covered in sweat, laughing and joking with each other, full of energy.
Thinking of Rock Lee from the village, Shira's heart skipped a beat. He subconsciously touched the hilt of the sword on his back, then looked down at his clothes, which were covered in dust, torn, and bloodstains.
Looking like this, going to meet that legendary figure who was said to have achieved godlike status for ten minutes and whose title lasted for seven hundred episodes seems a bit too pathetic.
However, being able to stand here is itself like crossing some invisible boundary.
As he was thinking, he heard the voice of the Konoha Ninja with the buzz cut named Nakamura beside him. He was talking quietly to a comrade who had just changed shifts. His voice wasn't loud, but a few words drifted over on the wind:
"They came from Sunagakure. They were robbed on the way, and it looked like they fought pretty hard. Those Genin weren't very old, especially that short guy with the sword on his back. He's small, but he's killed people. He doesn't seem scared out of his wits. Kids from that place are usually pretty tough."
His companion gave a vague reply, seemingly uninterested in the affairs of other villages.
Nakamura didn't say anything more and turned to attend to other things. Their conversation was very ordinary, like a casual chat while on duty, without any special meaning.
But the natural expression of the understanding that "the environment in Sunagakure is harsh and children mature early" left Shira with a somewhat indescribable feeling.
It seems that in other people's eyes, the Sunagakure are born to look like this—weathered and tough.
Hmm, speaking of which, shouldn't the Konoha gatekeepers be Kotetsu Hagane and Izumo Kamizuki, those two best buddies? Oh right, I think they only became Konoha gatekeepers after Tsunade...