Mizukage's Pokémon Ninja Scroll

Chapter 42 Takumi Ninja Village

On this unchanging sea, four days passed in the blink of an eye.

Aside from a minor mishap on the first day when we boarded the ship, nothing else of note happened.

During this time, Tachibana Kenkawa encountered the four members of the Minato class several more times.

Although the Land of Water and the Land of Fire have not yet gone to war, they are, after all, two different ninja villages, and their ninjas have not communicated with each other.

However, because the old man Shimotsuki has been frequently accompanied and protected recently, his relationship with Kanagawa Tachibana has become increasingly familiar.

It's unclear whether he genuinely believed in Tachibana's future or if Zabuza's clear desire to become one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist meant he had no interest in the old man.

In short, Shimotsuki Ichiro never gave up on promoting his custom ninja sword service to Kenkawa Tachibana.

In the end, Tachibana Kenkawa could only helplessly say that she would consider it when she had more money in the future.

"We've finally arrived!"

As soon as she stepped off the ship, Mei Terumi stretched out a big yawn, probably because she had been cooped up on the ship for the past few days.

Zabuza, who was standing to the side, did not speak, but nodded in agreement.

Jianchuan Ju looked around but didn't see any members of the Minato Squad. He didn't know if they had already disembarked or hadn't come out of the cabin.

An untimely system notification interrupted Jianchuan Ju's wandering thoughts.

[Ding! New country map unlocked for the first time, achievement "I came! I saw! I"]

"The system's achievements are getting more and more outrageous."

"Teacher Qing, shall we go straight to Takumi Village?"

Mei Terumi asked Ao a question that seemed to have a hidden meaning.

"Yes, shall we go there now? Is that alright, Mr. Shimotsuki?"

Seeing that Qingdu had made his decision, he even pretended to ask Old Man Shuangyue a question.

Jianchuan Ju secretly rolled her eyes in her mind.

"It's alright, you can arrange the itinerary. I will stay in Takumi Village for a while under the guise of exchange and learning."

It seems that Yagura and Shimotsuki Ichiro had indeed spoken to each other beforehand; their cooperation is nothing like that of a client who paid for the job.

However, it did make the investigation much easier for everyone.

"Exchange and learning? So, old man, your skills are indeed inferior to those of the craftsmen from Takumi-nin Village?"

"You brat, communicate! Don't you even know what communication means?!"

Zabuza's words broke Shimotsuki Ichiro's defenses, making him want to grab a hammer and hit him a couple of times.

However, the group didn't chat for long. Perhaps because the dock was designed to facilitate trade for Takumi Ninja Village, and it wasn't too far away, the group arrived at Takumi Ninja Village after only a few steps.

"Shouldn't Takumi-nin Village have a lot of large-scale trade? Why would they set up the village in the mountains?"

"The history of Takumi Ninja Village is very ancient; it must have been here a long time ago. Before the major ninja villages were established, this place was just a gathering place for craftsmen. At that time, the trade was mostly small-scale sales of high-quality weapons, so there were no requirements for the surrounding environment."

As they talked, the group walked into Takumi Village. Perhaps because the war was approaching and weapons were selling well, Takumi Village was bustling with activity, with merchants dressed in various costumes coming and going on the streets.

After settling into a hotel, the group headed straight to the Takumi Ninja Village office building in the center of the village.

As soon as Jianchuan Ju stepped into the building, she saw a group of people coming out in front of her, and her pupils suddenly contracted.

It was Minato Namikaze and his three companions. Although it was highly likely that their destination in the Land of Craftsmen was also the Village of Craftsmen, it was unexpected that they would meet again here.

"Minato-sensei, the letter has been delivered. Can we stay in the Land of Craftsmen for two days before going back?"

"Obito, shut up!"

"Kakashi, you!"

This time, Tachibana deliberately avoided lingering her gaze on the other person, simply listening to their banter before following the others into the building.

Qing noticed that Jianchuan Ju's expression was unusual and asked him about it.

"That Konoha squad, they came from the Land of Craftsmen on the same ship as us, right?"

"Um."

Tachibana Kanakawa was clearly still in a daze, and only nodded subconsciously.

"The blond one leading the group should be Minato Namikaze, a Jonin from Konoha. He's said to be very strong. The white-haired boy is also mentioned in the information; he's the son of Sakumo Hatake, the White Fang of Konoha, a genius who became a Chunin at the age of six," Ao casually introduced to his disciples. This information was all recorded in the Ninja Notebook.

Jianchuan Ju already knew what his captain was saying, but he didn't understand why Qing would say these things at this time.

"Captain Ao, who's stronger, you or Minato Namikaze?"

Ao didn't mind Zabuza asking such a question, and just pondered for a moment before replying.

"It's not clear right now, but I wasn't a Jonin at his age."

Minato Namikaze is not yet 20 years old, which is 5 or 6 years younger than Ao, who only became a Jonin two years ago.

I wonder if Minato Namikaze has mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique yet. If he has, it's probably not a matter of strength, but rather how many seconds Ao-sensei can last. Tachibana Kanagawa thought to herself.

"Tch, it'd better his mission not conflict with ours, otherwise, hmph."

Zabuza, who hadn't yet suffered a severe beating, was clearly somewhat unaware of his own strength.

"You'd better hope not. The village is currently in a wait-and-see mode. If we get involved in the war between the Wind and Fire Kingdoms prematurely, how do you think the village will deal with you?"

the other side.

"Minato-sensei, that guy with the frog summoning beast seems to have been watching us ever since we got on the ship."

Kakashi pulled down his mask and whispered to Minato Namikaze.

"It's probably just a coincidence; let's try to avoid conflict."

After saying that, Minato Namikaze placed his hand on Kakashi's white hair and rubbed it.

"Hey, Minato-sensei, Kakashi, why are you two stopped?"

Obito Uchiha turned around, somewhat bewildered, and looked at the two who had suddenly stopped, asking them a question.

Jianchuan Ju and his group entered the office building. According to what Qing had told the disciples, they thought they would have a direct conversation with the leader of the Craftsman Kingdom, but they were unexpectedly led by the staff to an ordinary office on the second floor.

Before entering, Tachibana Kenkawa quietly tugged at Shimotsuki Ichiro's sleeve and asked in a low voice.

"Old man, you must have come here to trade before, right? Doesn't the leader of Takumi Ninja Village ever show up?"

"How could that be? Even though it wasn't an official transaction, it's still a large ninja tool shop within the village. How could Takumi-nin Village dare to underestimate the Five Great Nations?"

Jianchuan Ju entered the office with doubts and saw a middle-aged woman with green hair getting up to greet everyone.

"I am very sorry, everyone from Kirigakure. Our leader has been unwell these days and is unable to receive distinguished guests. I am Ayagi, currently in charge of foreign trade for Takumi-nin Village. Nice to meet you."

Seeing that the other party was sincere, the others naturally didn't say much, but simply handed over the right to speak to Shimotsuki Ichiro and stood aside to act as security personnel.

Fortunately, it was just a discussion about the intention to place new orders, and it didn't last very long.

Even so, the group was getting a little bored waiting on the side, and Zabuza even started yawning.

At first, Tachibana Kenkawa listened attentively to what the two were saying, but later realized that there was nothing useful to say, so she simply started to daydream as well.

After Caique and Shimotsuki Ichiro stood up and left, the group simply continued to perform their protective duties diligently.

According to Qing's plan, the first few days would be spent conducting a covert investigation. If no results were found, then they would go to the door to test the waters. Therefore, everyone was not in a great hurry for the covert mission.

However, to their surprise, after they returned to the inn, Shimotsuki Ichiro called them back.

"That Caique gave me a quote that's wrong."

"Um?"

(End of this chapter)