It was perfectly clear that there was no point in stopping for a bite to eat at the tavern — the "friendly" locals were sure to add something to the food that wasn't in the recipe, so I quickly finished my inspection without even using Henge, returning to the ship twenty minutes later.
But that didn't mean I didn't send a couple of shadow clones to scout out the situation in the country. Even if they couldn't cross the water to the main island where Kirigakure was located, a few towns would be enough to get a general idea.
Unfortunately, the monks of the Great Water Temple live in isolation on a small island, so it was impossible to rely on the kanpeki ningyo for reconnaissance—only novices who have completed their training and received the blessing of the abbot are allowed to leave the island.
Given the hostile attitude, it is not surprising that I did not sense a single chakra user in the settlement other than those who arrived on our ship, although in Ho no Kuni, there was at least one observer in every coastal or border town — often genin chunin, whose sole task is to send a message to Konoha if anything unusual happened.
This is in addition to the standard patrols and outposts located in strategically important places, but there is nothing like that here. Is only the main island important to Kiri? However, these were just idle thoughts, which I dismissed and returned to the activity that occupied all my free time — meditation.
The next morning, the ship sailed out of the port without any problems, and we continued on our way, heading for the continent on the opposite side of the Kanzo Sea. Unlike most of the route, the last stretch turned out to be the most difficult, although we were only three days away from our destination.
A strong storm not only knocked the ship off course, but also battered it badly, tearing some of the sails and forcing all the shinobi to use their suiton ninjutsu to the fullest to prevent the ten-meter waves from destroying us. Actually, I was forced to help too.
When the storm finally passed after more than a day, the crew was so exhausted that some sailors fell right onto the wet deck and fell asleep there. There was no question of trying to continue without rest or repairs. Unfortunately, as a result of the raging elements, the ship was carried far off course, and two days later, when the captain deemed it possible to continue sailing, we found ourselves not far from land. Iero identified it as the southwestern part of Mitsu no Kuni.
Actually, I didn't care where I went ashore, but spending several more days waiting for the ship to return to its previous course was pointless, so I simply waved goodbye to the shinobi, jumped overboard, and rushed toward the shore that was barely visible on the horizon.
Even though I was moving much faster through the water on my own, it was impossible to abandon my transport because of the recent storms — if I had been caught in the open sea without any protection, even with all my strength, there was a good chance I would have drowned.
Once I was in the country of Honey, I didn't linger, but asked the locals for directions to the road to Numa no Kuni, where the client who had hired the team of jonin lived. Fortunately, the country was crisscrossed by a network of decent roads, and the main road I was directed to led in the right direction.
Not counting short stops to rest and eat, it took me almost a day to reach the border and cross it, finding myself in the country of Swamps. But as soon as I visited the first settlement — a small town whose name I didn't even try to remember — I felt an atmosphere of tension hanging in the air.
Careful questioning under Henge and spying through clones allowed me to learn that something was going on in the neighboring Oni no Kuni and that the local daimyo was gathering troops, as the ninja of his hidden village had been unable to deal with the enemies on their own, losing a fifth of the detachment sent before retreating.
Rumors were circulating about an indestructible army and a clan of shinobi from the Land of Demons who were to blame, but no one could say for sure. Not that I believed it, but the main suspects in the disappearance of my client and his guards had just been identified. Until evidence to the contrary was found, of course.
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