Chapter 37: Chapter 37: Minato: I've Grown Up, No One Can Trick Me Anymore
Note: If you are interested, you can read up to chapter 100 at patreon.com/Emik01.
Unfortunately, they weren't so lucky—they ran into Sakumo Hatake, a truly formidable opponent, which cost them their lives. This event also planted the seeds of hatred that would later lead to Sasori's dark transformation and betrayal.
Why did Sasori target the Third Kazekage? Besides the fact that the Third Kazekage was the most suitable candidate to be turned into a puppet, it was also because the war was initiated by him. Sasori's parents were sent to the Land of Fire during this time. With Hatake Sakumo having committed suicide, Sasori could only take out his anger on the Third Kazekage.
Looking across the Five Great Nations, the position of Kazekage has always been the most pitiful and the most tragic in terms of death. The First and Second Kazekages had it relatively easier, but the Third was killed by his own village's ninja. The Fourth was killed by Orochimaru, and the Fifth died miserably after having his tailed beast extracted. It was only thanks to Chiyo's life-for-life technique that Gaara was revived.
When it comes to tragedy, even the Mizukage of the Land of Water can't compete with the Kazekage.
There's a chance the Sand Village's forces could invade the Land of Fire at any time, yet at this critical moment, the Third Hokage assigns them the mission of escorting some officials from the daimyo's court to go sightseeing in the Land of Rivers. Seriously, what is this, if not a joke?
Uchiha Mikoto thought for a moment and said, "The Land of Rivers doesn't seem to be caught up in the war."
It isn't right now, but who knows what'll happen later? If the war between Konoha and the Land of Wind escalates, small countries like the Land of Rivers will only become battlegrounds.
Takuya didn't really know when the Sand Village launched their surprise attack on Konoha. After all, the information available on the First and Second Shinobi Wars was pretty limited.
The Second Shinobi War began with the conflict between Konoha and the Hidden Rain Village. Later, the Sand Village launched a surprise attack on the Land of Fire, forcing Konoha to retaliate. After Konoha and the Hidden Rain Village made peace, ending their war, the Hidden Rain Village then declared war on the Sand and Hidden Stone Villages. Konoha's forces shifted their focus and invaded the Land of Wind. The Hidden Cloud Village took advantage of the chaos to launch an attack on the Land of Earth.
All sides were fighting intensely—that was the course of the Second Shinobi War. But Takuya wasn't exactly clear on the timeline.
The war between Konoha and the Hidden Rain Village hadn't lasted too long; maybe the Sand Village hadn't yet launched their surprise attack on the Land of Fire.
"I'm probably just overthinking it. Let's get ready. The officials are set to leave tomorrow." Takuya put away the scroll and called up to Minato, who was sitting on the roof: "Minato, after you're done eating, wash the lunchbox. We're meeting at the village gate at seven tomorrow morning."
Got it. Minato signaled an OK with his hand before hopping down from the roof.
The three then went their separate ways to prepare what they'd need for the journey.
Takuya made a special trip to buy two brand-new mission scrolls, stuffing them with various spices and such.
"Other travelers get a standard-issue storage space, so why didn't I? Looks like I didn't open my cheats wide enough."
Takuya felt a little disappointed that the game's inventory didn't carry over.
The night passed without incident.
The next day, when a massive convoy appeared before them, Minato's eyes widened, and Uchiha Mikoto was equally shocked.
Even Takuya, who thought he was prepared, couldn't help but blurt out, "Holy crap!"
They had expected a simple family trip, but who could have imagined the convoy would be this bloated?
If a battle broke out along the way, there's no way the team could protect all these people.
"Takuya, what should we do? Should we request another team to join us for the escort?" Minato was a bit flustered.
They had completed escort missions before, but never on this scale. This was no ordinary trip. Even if they were bringing their whole family, it wouldn't be this excessive.
"No need." Takuya sighed and said with some frustration, "In a pinch, just focus on protecting the key people. We don't need to worry about their servants and guards."
Watching the convoy busy loading various goods onto the wagons, Minato broke out in a cold sweat. "I hope everything goes smoothly."
With such a bloated convoy, the pace would definitely be slow. If anything unexpected happened, who knows how chaotic it would get. This wasn't something a three-man team could easily manage. But since it was a mission assigned by the Third Hokage, they couldn't refuse even if they wanted to.
The convoy had gathered by seven in the morning, but it wasn't until close to noon that they finally set off from Konoha towards the Land of Rivers.
"Honored guests, my master has arranged a carriage for the three of you. The journey to the Land of Rivers is long, so traveling by carriage would be more comfortable."
As they set off, the accompanying steward approached the trio.
Minato instinctively declined, "Thanks, but we won't need the carriage. If we get tired, we'll just rest on one of the supply wagons. The carriage isn't necessary."
With the offer declined, the steward had no choice but to report back.
As the convoy of over a hundred people busied themselves loading goods onto the wagons, Takuya couldn't help but feel anxious on their behalf.
Is this a vacation or a house move?
No wonder Konoha's ninjas would run away at the mention of this kind of escort mission—everyone wanted to avoid it. Anyone would get frustrated following such a slow-moving convoy, barely faster than a turtle.
It was close to noon when the convoy finally set out. But barely two hours after leaving Konoha, they stopped again. The officials were hungry and wanted to prepare lunch.
Seeing the convoy of over a hundred people start bustling again, with a few officials leisurely sipping tea in the shade, Minato couldn't hold it in anymore: "Takuya, at this rate, when will we ever reach the Land of Rivers?"
"Who knows," Takuya replied, chewing on a piece of grass as he leaned against a tree.
He was tempted to find someone and ask when these officials would stop dawdling.
The truth was, this escort mission wasn't going to end easily. It might even drag on for over a month.
"Why don't you go urge them on?" Takuya suggested, jumping down from the tree and slinging his arm over Minato's shoulder to drag him aside.
"No way, you go if you want. I'm not in a hurry." Minato shook his head like a rattle, determined not to be tricked. He'd rather take it slow than stir up trouble.
While they didn't need to be overly polite to these people, angering them wouldn't do any good either. After all, they were officials from the daimyo's court, and offending them was as good as offending the daimyo himself.
Even if the daimyo of Konoha was just a figurehead.
"Sigh, Minato, you've grown up." Takuya sighed dramatically.
The Minato who used to scratch his head and smile shyly was gone; the current Minato was as sharp as a tack.
Is this what happens when you get tricked too many times and finally wise up?
"Get lost!" Minato snapped, flaring up at Takuya's words.
"Hahaha," Takuya laughed, giving him a playful shove. "Now go hunt something. Don't you want grilled meat later?"
Since they didn't touch the food provided by their employers, the three had to fend for themselves.
I knew it, you just wanted to trick me, Minato grumbled as he leaped into the woods. Soon, he returned with two rabbits in hand.
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