Chapter 30
It was the first time he saw such a city, well, at least in this life. The towns he'd been to before couldn't be compared to this sight. Although there weren't any buildings that reached the sky, there were mansions, towers, and castles almost at every corner.
"What should we do?" Yahiko asked, as he couldn't decide which way to go first.
"Mifune said he will find us tomorrow, so we probably should find a place to stay for the night," Nagato said matter-of-factly, setting the priorities first before anything else.
"Though I can't believe we were treated so coldly," Konan sulked. "How can they just throw us away the moment we finished our mission?"
"Well, Mifune did say that shinobi aren't very liked in this country, and especially in this city, so it isn't surprising." Yahiko wasn't bothered by it at all, as he had been treated like that his whole life, in his previous life, that is. "At least Mifune paid us a hefty sum. So, let's go all out today. Get the best services we can buy."
It had been a long time since they could just relax. Traveling through the Land of Fire and the Land of Iron left Yahiko completely exhausted. He needed something special to replenish his energy. And now they had more than enough money to do just that.
First, they got the best room in the best inn they could find. It had been some time since they slept on beds. And it was the first time for them to sleep on such soft ones. So comfortable and warm that once Yahiko lay down, he thought that maybe he should forget about everything else and go to sleep.
But once they put down their stuff, Konan and Nagato dragged Yahiko away from the bed full of fluffiness. They wanted to explore the city while they could, since who knew how long they would be able to stay there.
While normal people wouldn't even notice that they were shinobi, Yahiko saw that every passing samurai seemed to know who they were and was keeping their eyes on them. Distrust and coldness were perfectly portrayed in those eyes.
If Mifune couldn't convince the others to let them stay, they would have no choice but to leave. But all that was for tomorrow's selves to worry about. Today, they wanted to taste things they had never seen and see things they had never heard of.
Of course, the first stop was a candy shop. There were more variations of candy than he probably could count. Even he, with the mind of a full-fledged adult, couldn't stop salivating at the display of it all. But soon after seeing the price of some of them, Yahiko knew the money they had might not be as much as he had expected.
"Ah, to hell with it," But Yahiko never cared about money that much. "Let's get one each. We will only regret it if we don't try them all."
After getting bags of various candies, they looked for a nice place to eat dinner. As much as they were kids, they weren't stupid enough to miss out on real meals. And they were sick of everything they had been eating while traveling.
"Ramen?"
"Ramen." Both Konan and Nagato agreed with Yahiko.
It wasn't difficult to find a nice place to eat. Though they probably could have found a fancier place, once they caught a whiff of what was in this little restaurant, they couldn't control themselves. It had been far too long since they had something this good.
Not only was the food warm, but it was also fresh and soft. It melted away the hardness that had settled with them on their travels. They completely ignored the eyes that followed them and enjoyed the atmosphere and the food around them.
After eating, they went to buy clothes for themselves, as the ones they had were way too worn out. Then Nagato needed books. And in the end, they ended up with bags full of things and were more exhausted than ever before.
Finally returning to their room, they just lay down on the beds; they didn't even talk, just stared at the ceiling in silence. It sure had been worrisome the past few days. But in the end, it all ended up fine. They reached their destination, even if it wasn't everything they expected it to be.
Yahiko truly didn't expect to meet the people he did on this little journey. Though he managed to learn his place in the world. Although they were strong, they were not on the level of the monsters they met. And for Yahiko to achieve his dreams, he would need to surpass them all.
And the only place he could start doing this was here. No other country, especially one with a hidden village, would allow them to stay. Even here, everyone was watching them, but at least they were honest about their intentions.
"Can't sleep?" It wasn't only Yahiko who was kept awake, as Nagato and Konan both kept their eyes open.
"It is hard to do so when they are all around us."
It probably wasn't Mifune's idea, as the men outside their room were quite amateurish. They couldn't even keep their breathing steady and silent. But it was still hard to trust them not to try anything once they lowered their guard.
Even if it was quite a low chance that they would try anything, there was still that little possibility they couldn't ignore. So, it seemed like they had a long night ahead, even without worrying about what news Mifune would bring them.
Rather than just stay silently staring at the ceiling, Yahiko started to think about his first mission. He didn't think that he made any mistakes, and there wasn't much he could have done better. But a thought kept nagging him.
Why did he accept such a mission so easily? Sure, Mifune promised refuge for them, but should Yahiko have trusted him so easily? He could have lied as well, and since Yahiko didn't truly grasp what enemies they would face, it could have ended badly.
This time, the shinobi they faced didn't expect them and underestimated them since they were still children in their eyes. Would they do it next time? Sure, Yahiko was confident he could defeat them either way, but would he be able to do it so easily again?
One mistake, that was all it would take. If he got injured, lost a bit too much blood, or was poisoned, would he be able to handle being surrounded and facing superior numbers? He couldn't rely on surprise, as fewer and fewer people would continue to underestimate them as time goes by.
He needed to get stronger. But there was little he could do alone. He continued training as Jiraiya taught them, but he needed more, something else. He could learn and create ninjutsu on his own. But there were still many things he had to learn about fighting, especially if he wanted to keep to his foolish ideal of not killing anyone.
…
Maybe he was more tired than he thought, or the inn's bed was more comfortable than he expected, as at some point he managed to fall asleep. In the morning, he felt refreshed, though he felt that his body was more fatigued than he had thought.
But he was too hungry to think anymore, and once Nagato and Konan were ready, they left to eat. Nothing beats eating something fresh and warm while sitting comfortably without fearing that they might be attacked at any second and have to move in a hurry.
Yahiko didn't even complain about how unevenly the pancakes were cooked, or that he could have done a better job, or that they weren't worth the price. Well, it was hard to say anything when his mouth was filled with overly sweet, syrup-covered pancakes.
Their breakfast was interrupted by Mifune; they weren't even surprised that he found them, since there were plenty of eyes watching them. But at least it seemed that none of them were Mifune's subordinates, as he looked displeased with the situation they were in.
He looked a lot better. Yahiko wouldn't have even thought that he had been severely injured just a couple of days ago. After resting and cleaning himself up, he looked far different in a good way, like he truly was of high status.
"Sorry about them," Mifune apologized first. "Many people with any kind of power don't like that there are shinobi in their city."
"Should we be concerned about it, and your promise?" Nagato asked, seeing where it might go.
"They are only petty people with petty power," Mifune replied. "I have prepared one of my properties for you to stay in. You saved my life; this is the least I can do. But I don't think you will be able to go anywhere, at least not without someone following you. Please understand."
"What does that even mean? Are you suggesting that we should just stay at your home and do nothing?"
"There isn't much else you can do; nobody will want to hire you for any work. Though I could recommend you to some trading companies that are always in need of escorts."
It didn't sound that bad. A peaceful and secure life, working from time to time to pay bills or buy something. But a gilded cage was still a cage. This wasn't what he wanted, nor did it seem like Konan or Nagato wanted to accept it either.
"I think we will have to go our separate ways here, then," Yahiko said.
"Are you looking for something specific? I just don't feel like I repaid you enough for all you have done. So, I want to help you in any way I can."
"I would appreciate it if you could introduce me to a good sword instructor." It would be a pity not to learn the basics of the sword before leaving.
Though it looked like Konan and Nagato weren't that interested in it. They all wanted to grow, but they all saw different paths to do so. The way Nagato made sure to hide his eyes all the time, Yahiko could tell what he wanted. And Konan, too, seemed to have thought of a way to improve.
"If you want to learn the sword, I know the best teacher you can find," Mifune replied. "Though I am hesitant to recommend you to him."
"Who is he?"
"My own teacher, and the traitor of the Land of Iron."
…
Outside the capital of the Land of Iron, there was an isolated place that no one could even stumble upon. It was called the Grave of Swords. And only one man resided there, imprisoned for the rest of his life. At least that's what Mifune said.
He didn't come with them, so they were alone as they walked along the abandoned road. It sure could be called the Grave of Swords, as everywhere his eyes wandered, he could see discarded swords stabbed into the ground.
It was a graveyard where tens of thousands of samurai were laid to rest. In the middle of the graveyard was a temple. Just as the graveyard had long since been abandoned, so had this temple. It was rundown and looked like a strong gust of wind would topple it over.
"Are you sure about this, Nagato?" Before entering the temple to meet the man Mifune told him about, they all stopped.
"I have powers I can't even begin to understand," Nagato said. "It is time I try to learn more about them."
"And you, Konan?"
"I don't think I will get anything good out of this," she replied. "I have my own path I want to follow."
"Then, good luck to you two."
"Thank you." Nagato nodded and was the first to leave them.
"Don't push yourself too much." Konan gave Nagato and Yahiko a hug before leaving, too.
It seemed it wasn't just him who had been thinking all night. Yahiko didn't even try to stop them, because if they thought it was best for them, Yahiko couldn't say anything about it. And they were strong enough to protect themselves, so he didn't need to worry about them.
This was his path, and his alone; he never intended to drag anyone into it. So, after watching their retreating backs, Yahiko turned to the temple where the man he was looking for waited for him.
There were no gates. The walls could barely be called walls. But between the entrance and the main building was a vast space. And before the doors to the temple sat a lone old man, with a sword on his lap, looking at Yahiko with closed eyes.
"I came to see you, Master Isshin," Yahiko greeted the man before stepping onto the temple grounds.
Before his foot could touch the ground, he jumped back. He felt a faint flicker of wind before his face, and his body moved on its own. He looked forward, trying to understand what happened, only to find a strand of his orange hair falling to the ground where he had been a moment ago.
A.N. As always, thanks for reading and supporting me, so I can continue writing without any concerns, and if you want more, up to seven more chapters, you can support me on pa treon. com \ ironwolf852.