Chapter 22: The Mission Begins
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In the jungle atop a lofty mountain in the Land of Fire, four figures—one large and three small—bounded from branch to branch across the great trees.
There was no doubt that only ninja could travel in such a manner.
This standard ninja squad was none other than Kawaki Qingyu and his three companions. At present, they were on their way from the Land of Fire to the Land of Wind.
They could have taken the main roads to reach the Land of Wind, but that would have required a considerable detour and wasted far too much time. Worse still, enemy ninja might have detected their movements in advance. Thus, the standard ninja method of traveling in a straight line—crossing mountains when they encountered them and walking across water whenever necessary—was the correct choice for carrying out a mission.
Of course, C-rank escort missions were an exception.
As they traveled, their leader, Jonin Shinku Yūhi, explained the details of their mission to Kawaki Qingyu and the other two.
“Although the mission to retrieve the spy is only C-rank, we’ll need to remain stationed along the border of the Land of Wind for a long time afterward, so we must be extremely cautious. Also, to prevent any information from leaking, we cannot show ourselves in any town within the Land of Fire.
“This journey will be somewhat arduous. Once we reach the Land of Rivers, conditions should improve considerably. When we arrive, be sure to remember your identities. Under no circumstances are you to do anything beyond what those identities permit…”
Perhaps because this was their first mission in another country, Shinku Yūhi had spent the entire journey reminding his three disciples of one matter after another.
The Land of Rivers he spoke of was the buffer zone between the Land of Fire and the Land of Wind. At the beginning of the First Great Ninja War, the country seemed to have possessed a small hidden village of its own, but somehow it later vanished during the war between the Hidden Leaf and the Hidden Sand.
After that, the Land of Rivers descended into chaos. Bandits and rogue ninja became exceptionally common.
Fortunately, during the Second Great Ninja War, the Rain Shadow Village in the neighboring Land of Rain drew away most of the fighting. Unlike during the First War, the Land of Rivers was not turned into a battlefield, giving the small country a chance to recover.
Even so, its interior had been infiltrated so thoroughly by the Hidden Leaf and the Hidden Sand that it was riddled with holes. The main reason it still existed was that both villages greatly needed a buffer zone. The nobles of the country would often issue missions to the Hidden Leaf and the Hidden Sand to eliminate bandits and rogue ninja.
In short, the Land of Rivers was a place where all sorts of people mingled—a chaotic mess. Yet for that very reason, it was an ideal place for ninja to conceal their identities.
Even the appearance of an unfamiliar rogue ninja in a small border town would not attract much attention. Such things were simply too common, and even if anyone wanted to interfere, there were too many to deal with.
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Shinku Yūhi gave the three of them a detailed account of the situation and disorder within the Land of Rivers.
By the time Kawaki Qingyu and the other two had gained a general impression of the country, dusk had arrived.
After traveling at full speed for an entire day, the four of them had nearly reached the border of the Land of Fire from the Hidden Leaf. Their speed was more than ten times that of ordinary people. Even with chakra supporting them, however, Kawaki Qingyu and the other two were already suffering from aching limbs, and most of their strength had been spent.
When they stopped to rest, the physically weakest of them, Kurenai Yūhi, completely abandoned all concern for appearances and collapsed directly onto the ground, unwilling to get up again.
Naturally, she had only dared to act so boldly after confirming that the surrounding area was safe.
Kurenai Yūhi was already lying limp on the ground. Kawaki Qingyu and Asuma Sarutobi had not reached quite that point, but they were exhausted enough that they did not wish to move either. Each leaned against a tree while recovering his strength.
Watching the three of them from the side, Shinku Yūhi said nothing. In his heart, however, he was already grading the three youngsters.
Traveling without pause had indeed been a burden for these three youths, who had graduated from the ninja academy only a year earlier. But that was precisely why Shinku Yūhi had done it deliberately.
He had observed their performance throughout the journey.
First was Asuma Sarutobi. Even while traveling, the boy had never forgotten to remain alert to the dangers around him. Although he had occasionally let his guard slip toward the end, his performance could still be considered quite good.
Then there was his daughter, Kurenai Yūhi. Because he had personally trained her from childhood, she had surpassed ordinary ninja of her age at an early stage. Yet when compared with someone of Kawaki Qingyu’s extraordinary talent, or with a prodigy like Asuma Sarutobi, who had never lacked resources or instruction, she was still somewhat inferior.
Kurenai’s talents, like his own, were focused largely on genjutsu. And because she was a girl, her physical stamina was naturally inferior to that of the other two. The fact that she had gritted her teeth and endured until now—and had remembered to check the surrounding area for danger before lying down—was enough. Yes, she could be considered to have passed.
As for Kawaki Qingyu, he had truly exceeded all of Shinku Yūhi’s expectations.
Throughout the journey, Shinku Yūhi had paid the greatest attention to Kawaki Qingyu. He had no choice, after all. The boy was now completely blind.
At first, Shinku Yūhi had thought of taking special care of him. But as Kawaki Qingyu’s performance repeatedly surpassed the limits of what Shinku Yūhi considered possible, the jonin could not help developing the urge to test him.
Who could have imagined that this test would bring him such a tremendous surprise?
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A few days earlier, Shinku Yūhi had heard his daughter say that Kawaki Qingyu’s performance in battle was already comparable to that of an ordinary ninja. At the time, he had assumed she was exaggerating.
Now, however, it was clear that she had not exaggerated at all. If anything, she had been too conservative.
After they left the Hidden Leaf, the squad accelerated several times without warning, yet Kawaki Qingyu kept up steadily each time, never disrupting his rhythm. The only explanation Shinku Yūhi could think of was sensory ninjutsu.
Later, when they crossed several great mountains, Kawaki Qingyu remained close behind Kurenai Yūhi and Asuma Sarutobi. Whenever he lifted his foot, he stepped only on the branches they had already crossed.
Shinku Yūhi knew perfectly well that sensory ninjutsu could detect only living creatures possessing chakra. Yet Kawaki Qingyu could even distinguish the tree branches within the jungle.
It seemed that Kawaki Qingyu had been telling the truth. Even after losing his eyes, he could still rely on his other senses to perceive the surrounding environment with perfect clarity.
Such talent was truly…
Shinku Yūhi tried to find a word that could describe Kawaki Qingyu. But after turning the matter over in his mind, he felt that perhaps only one word would suffice:
Miracle.
Indeed, in the world of the shinobi, the ability to lose both eyes and still continue carrying out missions like an ordinary ninja could only be described as a miracle.
And there was only one such miracle—and it stood before him.
After resting for a while and eating some food, Shinku Yūhi immediately decided that the four members of the squad would spend half the night resting there.
Before long, they would leave the Land of Fire behind completely. Once they entered the Land of Rivers, unexpected situations could arise at any moment. It was therefore essential to keep the other three members of the squad in peak fighting condition.
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