Traveling to Sunagakure wasn't fast or easy.
While Naruto, Gai, and the others reached there in only three days, that was no indication of just how far away it was.
The rchant who underwent this trip ti and ti again, normally took at least a week, or even two, just to get from one village to the next.
It was just that shinobi traveling at full speed could cross a ridiculous distance in a single day of high-speed travel.
So, if one went at full speed for three days, going in a straight line, it was indeed possible to get there quickly. But in a ti of war? Yeah, that just wasn't possible.
To move around now, you either had to follow the roads, or follow special paths through the forests.
Anything else was dangerous, not that those still didn't co with risks, plenty of enemies sneaking about, a mont of carelessness, and you would find a kunai in your back.
It was important to keep to formation and a steady pace.
For my team, I had Koji running in front with Kuro. He was in charge of leading the direction, keeping us on route. His sense of sll was invaluable, and his instincts were even sharper.
Haruto stayed in the center, ready to raise a wall or a barrier at a mont's notice. His sturdy presence felt like carrying a small fortress with us.
Arata took up the rear, his sharp eyes and keen awareness watching our backs. The faint crackle of chakra around his fingertips was a reminder that he was always prepared to take a shot.
And ? I was in the middle, my Byakugan active, sweeping the area for threats. The constant use was draining, but we couldn't afford to be caught off guard.
But, it wasn't just running and jumping from tree to tree all day. No, while there was a lot of that, we moved slowly, checking for traps. Thankfully, it wasn't too difficult; most could be tracked with my Byakugan, or Koji and Kuro's nose.
No, we also needed to rest, to keep in our peak states the entire ti, so plenty of small breaks, resting for a mont, refilling water in safe streams, or eating a bit of food, like a piece of jerky.
By the ti the sky started to darken, my legs ached from the steady pace. I didn't let it show, of course. This wasn't the ti to admit fatigue.
Koji found a small, sheltered glade, surrounded by thick trees and the soft murmur of a nearby stream. It wasn't perfect, but it was hidden and defensible.
I gave a small nod. "This will do."
Koji dropped his pack with a grunt, stretching his arms overhead. "Finally. Thought my legs were gonna fall off."
I gave him a flat look. "We've barely covered a third of the distance. You better get used to it."
He shot a cocky grin. "I'll be fine. Just not used to moving so slow. Feels weird."
Haruto didn't comnt. He set down his own pack and imdiately began securing the periter, placing small, faintly glowing tags on the surrounding trees.
Arata dropped his pack next to mine, his eyes scanning the trees. "I'll take first watch," he muttered, as if it was an obvious decision.
I raised a brow. "Koji and Kuro will join you first. I'll take the second shift with Haruto."
Arata looked like he wanted to argue but wisely kept his mouth shut.
I couldn't bla him for being on edge. We were still technically in Fire Country, but the closer we got to the border, the riskier things would beco.
A mistake now could an never reaching the mission area.
However, given that we were still within the safe zone, we could allow ourselves a few luxuries, such as a fire.
It crackled softly, its warm glow stretching long shadows across the ground. I leaned against a smooth boulder, my eyes half-lidded as I kept my senses stretched out.
Koji busied himself brushing Kuro's fur, murmuring softly to the ninken. Haruto had his back to a tree, eyes closed but clearly still awake.
Arata, anwhile, was off to the side, fiddling with his equipnt, carefully cleaning and inspecting his kunai.
This was hardly the first ti I was out on a mission, but always with other mbers of my clan, here… The silence was suffocating.
So, I took the chance to think about the war. This wasn't the first; it was the third of its kind, and I had watched the other two from start to finish.
And they all pretty much went on the sa way.
It was all about land, and the nations that happened to own that land.
It wasn't really about the big nations, while everyone wanted a bite of the land of fire, it just wasn't happening. It was more about control, control of the other smaller nations.
The one controlling them has the right to collect taxes and their mission share.
Though it wasn't as much control as it was protection, it was just a few words away from being a vassal state. Control of those nations was the key.
The fighting between Sunagakure and Konohagakure was all about the land of rivers, the small nation separating the two nations of Fire and Wind.
The last war left it in control of the land of Fire, and Konoha got to take its share of missions, it got protection fees, and much more; it was a great money-making business.
Suna wanted it, because River had plenty of water, tons of it, and they desperately wanted control of that water, as well as the food they could get for cheap should the control it.
Right now, it was Konoha that decided the prices, and they were high, very high. Honestly, I also wouldn't be able to resit going to war if I were charged those prices for things as vital as food and water.
It was greed that forced Suna into this, well, that and the sudden disappearance of their Kazekage.
But there was more to it than just resources. Nations weren't just fighting for land or profit. This war, like the ones before it, was also about pride and fear.
Pride, because no shinobi village wanted to be seen as weak or incapable of defending its interests. Fear, because the balance of power was always precarious. A single defeat, a single lost territory, and a nation could find itself vulnerable to more than just economic hardship.
Losing a small country like the Land of Rivers might seem minor, but it could create a domino effect. It wasn't just about the loss of water or trade routes, it was about influence, about control, about the ability to project power over neighboring territories.
And in this world, power was everything.
The smallest crack in the armor of a great nation could be the beginning of its fall.
It was all both complex and so very simple; war was baked into the system, the great villages needed war, for without it, how could they prove that they were needed?
It was foolish. Why do you need to prove sothing like that? The Hokage could crush the Daimyō with ease, yet the system they had built up made shinobi believe they needed soone above them, soone to give them missions, and then pay them.
But the system was impossible to change; it had to be unmade… which wasn't easy. Those who saw the truth… didn't live long.
It wasn't easy to change a system, which is why I didn't try doing any of that thankless work. Change the way the Hyūga Clan worked? No thanks.
Better to just wait until I was back at full power and remake the world entirely.
I was just about to close my eyes when a sharp, high-pitched squeal echoed through the trees. Instantly, all four of us tensed, my Byakugan flaring as I scanned the surroundings, my heart already preparing for the rush of combat.
But instead of the sharp clinking of steel or the crackle of enemy chakra, I saw it – a small, panicked boar, no larger than a housecat, darting through the underbrush, its eyes wide and wild as it crashed through the undergrowth and disappeared into the darkness.
For a mont, no one moved, the tension still thrumming in the air like a tightly pulled bowstring.
Then Koji let out a sharp, barking laugh, his shoulders relaxing as he leaned back against his pack. "Damn, that little guy scared the hell out of ."
Haruto grunted, his deep voice rumbling like distant thunder. "Jumping at shadows already?"
Arata exhaled, the tension lting from his shoulders as he sheathed his kunai. "Better a false alarm than a real one."
I felt my own pulse slowly returning to normal, my sharp, pale eyes still sweeping the trees out of habit. "Keep your guard up," I murmured, letting myself sink back against the cool, rough bark behind . "Next ti, it might not be a boar."
The next morning brought with it the first true test of my patience.
Nature's call.
A necessity as unavoidable as it was inconvenient, especially out here in the wilderness, surrounded by three n who weren't exactly the discreet, polite types.
Yeah, a nightmare. Normally when on missions, I had the joy of having another woman on my team, why was that important? Because you never went out alone, ever.
So, if one of the girls had to go, the other would keep watch over them.
Yet here, I didn't have that.
So, I had to get creative.
I cleared my throat, catching Koji's attention. "Koji, mind if I borrow Kuro for a bit?"
Koji arched a brow, then quickly put two and two together, a grin spreading across his face. "Ah, of course. Kuro, go with Yuki."
The ninken's ears perked up, and he padded over to , his dark eyes sharp and alert.
"Co on, Kuro. Let's go."
I led the large black ninken a short distance away. Not so far that the other would be able to hear if sothing had happened, but still far enough that I had just a tiny bit of privacy.
I briefly used my Byakugan to make sure the coast was clear before looking down at Kuro. "Alright, boy, I need you to stay on guard, okay? Anyone cos near us, anyone at all, and you start barking, okay?"
Kuro let out a soft, rumbling huff, his dark eyes sharp and alert, his ears swiveling as he imdiately began scanning the area. I had to admit, having him close made feel a bit safer.
It wasn't optimal at all, but it was what I had to deal with, so I might as well get used to it. After all, until the mission was done, Kuro and I would be doing this a lot.
My outfit was ant to be practical, a far cry from what I would normally wear, but at least it made it easy to undress; no need to worry about a full robe getting in the way.
Slowly, I undid my belt, then pulled down my combat shorts, exposing the soft, white, tender cheeks to the world. Thankfully, it was only Kuro who was there to watch, and he was still a bit too dog to really care about such things.
A few minutes and a minor earth style ninjutsu later, my pants were back on, and Kuro got a pat on the head. "Good boy, keeping safe like that, now co, we have a lot of ground to cover today."
I made my way back to the camp with Kuro at my side, the ninken's silent, steady presence a welco comfort. As we broke through the tree line, Koji glanced up from his pack, a knowing smirk on his lips. He didn't say anything, just gave a nod as he reached over to scratch Kuro behind the ears.
"Thanks, Koji," I said, settling back onto my pack and tightening the straps. "Ready to head out?"
Koji gave a sharp nod, his expression shifting back to sothing more serious. "Yeah. Everyone's ready."
Haruto rose from his seat against the tree, rolling his shoulders as if testing the weight of his gear. Arata simply gave a silent nod, his sharp eyes already scanning the trees around us.
I took a deep breath, feeling the cool morning air fill my lungs. "Alright then, let's move."
We set out once more, the sound of our footsteps muffled by the thick, damp undergrowth, the morning fog still clinging to the ground like a ghostly shroud.
I am hardly the first to have questioned what the fuck the Daimyō does, I an, how do they stay in power?
Countless fics have touched this, be it through special machines that negate chakra, through massive armies of samurai, or other ans. Here, it is mostly just a system.
We saw how that system ca to be, and now everyone benefits off of it, so people do see how broken it is, but few can overco it, Hanzo of Rain did, Nagato did, even Orochimaru did with the Land of Rice.
So people see the problem, but few have the ability to change it.
And, I do want to be a bit more realistic than the ani, crossing nations in one day of walking at normal speed(wave arc)? Yeah, that just isn't right.
Being a ninja isn't all rainbows and sunshine.
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