After dinner and a bit of rest, Nawaki quickly bounced back to his usual carefree self.
Not only was he no longer down, but he even offered ideas and advice to help Takuya and Minato.
Though he was back to normal, Nawaki still felt a bit uncomfortable with the situation.
Luckily, he knew well enough that going along would likely only be a distraction for Takuya and Minato.
Though it irked him, Nawaki was the type who’d recover in no time.
Takuya always appreciated this about him.
He’d much rather Nawaki have an outburst and get it out of his system than stew in silence like some others.
If he ever had a teammate like that, Takuya would probably feel like smacking them.
"Safety is what matters," Jiraiya reminded Takuya and Minato sternly, patting them on the shoulder.
"Even if the mission fails, make sure you both come back safe."
"Teacher, we’ll return in one piece," Minato promised, though his assurance didn’t seem to ease Jiraiya’s worry.
Takuya shot him a look. "Oh, come on. It’s just a trip to the Mist Village, not some perilous dragon’s den. Look at you, acting like we’re doomed. What, you’re hoping something goes wrong for us?"
Jiraiya stared, dumbfounded.
Was that really what he meant?
"Teacher, we’re heading out. We’ll talk after the mission," Minato said, holding back a laugh as he ushered Takuya away.
You two brats better come back here and explain yourselves!!!
Jiraiya, now thoroughly exasperated, watched as Takuya and Minato took off to the deserted island where they’d all previously rested.
As they landed, Takuya brushed himself off, grumbling, "I had no idea Jiraiya was such a worrywart. How did I not notice this before?"
Minato chuckled wryly.
"Teacher’s just concerned for our safety, especially since we’re sneaking into the Mist Village."
It was way riskier than causing chaos from a distance; they were heading straight into the heart of the Mist Village!
"Relax. You stay here and rest, recover your chakra. Once I’m inside the Mist Village, I’ll signal you."
"If you managed to sneak into the Cloud Village, the Mist Village should be nothing."
To be fair, the Mist Village was harder to infiltrate than the Cloud Village.
With the Cloud Village, you could walk right in; the Mist Village wasn’t as welcoming.
Especially during wartime, their security would be tight, and they wouldn’t let outsiders in easily.
But so what if it was hard to infiltrate? The Mist and Cloud Villages didn’t pose the same level of threat.
It’s no exaggeration to say the Third Raikage alone made the Cloud Village significantly more dangerous.
If the Third Raikage could do that, the Third Mizukage certainly couldn’t.
He was a decrepit old man, practically in his grave.
And as someone who couldn’t act freely, he’d risk exposure with any sudden moves.
Takuya was almost hoping the Third Mizukage would try something, just to let the Mist Village see what kind of leader they really had.
"Be careful and signal me when you’re in," Minato reminded him, clutching a specially crafted kunai.
With it, Takuya only needed to channel his chakra for Minato to sense him and instantly teleport to his side.
To Minato, with Takuya’s little companion now asleep, his strength must have taken a dip.
A solo infiltration of the Mist Village was a risky mission.
"Don’t worry. Even if I end up sweeping through the entire Mist Village, I’ll be fine."
Before he finished speaking, Takuya had already disappeared.
Minato’s mouth twitched; he couldn’t help but flip off the direction Takuya had gone.
Oh, yeah right! Sure, you’ll just ‘sweep through the Mist Village.’ If that were possible, why would we even bother with all this?
Why bother with a war at all? We could just waltz through the Mist Village!
"Nothing but a barren wasteland."
Walking on water as if it were solid ground, Takuya moved steadily toward the Mist Village, concealing his presence completely.
A thick fog covered the sea near the Mist Village, making it hard to spot anyone approaching unless they got too close.
If anyone else attempted this, they’d probably be exhausted before they even reached the Mist Village.
But Takuya had no worries.
If nothing else, he had chakra for days and wasn’t concerned about running out.
Come to think of it, Takuya had to admire the people of the Land of Water.
Their islands might be plentiful, but most were rocky and unsuited for farming.
Yet somehow, they built up a hidden village and sustained it — no easy feat.
This was tougher than growing crops in the sandy dunes of the Sand Village.
Sure, the Land of Wind was mostly desert, but at least it had oases for agriculture. But the Land of Water?
Perpetually shrouded in mist, with very little arable land, making agriculture there was a real challenge.
Most crops probably wouldn’t survive in such an environment.
It’s similar to the Land of Rain, where even rice can drown; conditions like these can be brutal.
No wonder the other villages always want a piece of the Land of Fire — it’s in prime territory.
It’s just a shame the Land of Fire is stuck with officials who only know how to waste resources, letting its economy fall behind even mountainous countries like the Land of Lightning. Ridiculous.
"Useless, all of them. Absolute deadweight."
Takuya skipped across the island chains, moving toward the Mist Village.
Meanwhile, Hōzuki Soen, dispatched by Yagura, was still searching for their trail.
The countless islands made it hard to search systematically, and he hadn’t found any sign of them.
With no other option, Hōzuki Soen could only go from island to island, searching every single one.
What drove him crazy was that two whole days had passed, and he hadn’t seen even a trace of the enemy.
The thought of Yagura mocking him for failing this mission, maybe even pinning him down on a bench, made Hōzuki Soen feel murderous.
"Damn it, where are these fools hiding?!"
On the command ship, Yagura glanced at the intel that had been sent back, a faint smirk playing at the corners of his mouth.
While Hōzuki Soen frantically searched for the enemy, Yagura suspected they’d already withdrawn.
After two days with no sightings, it seemed like the most logical explanation.
Even if they hadn’t left, all those islands would make any search near impossible.
Go on, keep searching; I hope you never find them.
Even though wartime should unite everyone against foreign threats, Yagura wouldn’t mind if Hōzuki Soen got stuck in the back lines, far away from him.
"Any updates from the Seven Ninja Swordsmen?"
"Sir, they’ve successfully infiltrated the Land of Fire and are preparing to cut off Konoha’s supply lines."
"I hope they complete their mission smoothly."
The Seven Ninja Swordsmen, along with members of the Hōzuki clan and their allies, had been sent out, lowering the army’s overall strength.
Yet Yagura was willing to take a slight hit in strength if it meant keeping certain people from causing him trouble.
If they wanted to act out, it’d be better if they didn’t come back at all.