The three of them, draped in raincoats, crossed the border and stepped into the Land of Rain.
The na was no exaggeration.
Kitahara Kaede rembered that the Land of Rain suffered from constant precipitation, but experiencing it firsthand was another matter entirely. Their raincoats snapped and fluttered in the wind.
They pushed forward along a dirt road that had been plowed raw by artillery fire. The trees on either side were stripped bare—not by the arrival of autumn, but by Fire Style jutsu. Charred trunks stood in rows, stabbing up from the muddy earth like blackened stakes.
After walking for about two kiloters, they ca across the remains of the first village. Most of the houses had collapsed. There was a scent in the air—not the sll of scorched earth, but sothing else.
Kaede recognized it. It was the scent unique to a battlefield.
Beside the ruins, three bodies lay sprawled in the mud and water. They weren't shinobi; they were civilians. An adult man, an adult woman, and a small child sandwiched between them. The man's arm was still locked in place, frozen in a final attempt to shield the child's head.
The rain diluted the blood, washing it into the hollows of the ground to form a pale pink stream.
Tsunade's pace faltered for a heartbeat. She didn't say a word, but she kept walking.
A bit further down the road, two children were crouching in the center of the path. The older one, perhaps five or six, had hair that clung to their face in matted clumps. The younger one, three or four years old, was curled tightly in the older child's arms, staring blankly ahead with hollow eyes.
Jiraiya stopped in his tracks.
He fished a half-portion of compressed army rations from his gear, crouched down, and offered it to them. The older child recoiled violently, clutching the younger one tight, eyes wide with sheer terror.
Jiraiya placed the rations on the ground, stood up, and took a few steps back.
It took a long while before the older child tentatively reached out, grabbed the food, and stuffed it into the younger one's mouth.
Jiraiya opened his mouth to speak, but no words ca out.
Tsunade never stopped walking, but Kaede noticed her hands were clenched into tight fists.
Later, they passed through another settlent that had been burned to a white ash. There were no survivors—only scorched earth and scattered debris. A charred stuffed animal lay skewed against the base of a broken wall.
Tsunade didn't speak again after that. Kaede didn't try to force a conversation either.
As dusk fell, the three of them turned into a mountain hollow. The rock walls on either side blocked most of the wind and rain, making it a barely acceptable place to camp for the night.
"We stay here tonight."
Kaede dropped his pack, his hands blurring through signs to ignite a pile of dry twigs in the corner. The humidity was oppressive; the fla struggled for a mont before finally stabilizing.
The heat slowly spread, turning the rainwater on their clothes into a layer of white mist. Jiraiya wrung out his raincoat and draped it over a stone, scanning the surrounding terrain.
"I'll go scout the periter," he said before vanishing into the curtain of rain.
Only two people remained in the hollow.
Tsunade sat against the rock wall, knees pulled to her chest and her chin resting on her arms. The firelight flickered across her profile, obscuring the expression in her eyes.
"I hate the rain," she said suddenly, her voice soft. "It just keeps falling... and falling... until you can't see anything clearly."
Kaede sat down beside her, their shoulders nearly touching.
"Then we'll live sowhere it doesn't rain in the future."
Tsunade turned her head to look at him. The heaviness in her gaze lifted slightly.
"Where? The Land of Wind? That place is nothing but sand; you can't even get your hair clean. Whoever wants to go there can go."
"Not the Land of Wind."
"Then where?"
Kaede didn't answer.
Tsunade waited a few seconds, and when no answer ca, she gave his shoulder a shove. "I asked you a question."
"I'll tell you once I've decided."
"That again," Tsunade huffed, her tone softening. She rested her chin back on her arms and gazed out at the rain. "Kaede."
"Yeah."
"After this war is over... will you really take to see the ocean?"
"I don't forget the things I've promised."
Tsunade didn't respond. Silence fell between them for a while. Then, she leaned her body toward him. Shoulder to shoulder, through their damp clothes, he could feel her body heat.
Kaede didn't move.
The campfire popped, sending a spark arching into the air before it vanished. Tsunade's breathing gradually beca rhythmic and steady. Leaning against him, she had fallen asleep.
Kaede looked down at her. The furrow in her brow, which had been tight since they saw the bodies and orphans earlier that day, had finally smoothed out. A stray lock of hair clung to her cheek, trembling slightly with her breath.
He reached up and brushed the hair away. His fingertips touched her skin; she was warm. The movent was light, almost absent-minded. Once finished, he withdrew his hand.
Kaede stared into the fire.
The Land of Rain. Hanzo.
Once this battle was over, it would be ti for the simulation to end. The conclusion had been set the mont he started.
But he had stayed here for twenty years.
From teaching a three-year-old girl how to roll dice in a pavilion, to entering the academy together, graduating together, and heading to the battlefield together...
Twenty years.
Kaede looked down at the head resting on his shoulder. He stopped himself from thinking further.
Through the sound of the rain, footsteps returned from the distance. Jiraiya erged from the downpour, shaking the water from his hair and stomping the mud off his boots. As he entered the hollow and saw the two of them leaning against each other, his pace hitched for a second.
Then he continued inside, finding a dry rock on the other side of the fire to sit on.
"No one around. We're safe," he whispered, speaking toward the fire.
Kaede nodded.
Jiraiya leaned against the stone wall with his arms crossed, his gaze drifting toward Tsunade. He pulled his eyes away and remained quiet for a long ti. Eventually, he lay down and rolled over, turning his back to them with his arms pillowed behind his head.
Mumbling drifted over from the wall.
"...Fine, fine..."
"...When I get back, I'm writing this part into the book... 'The bastard who stole everyone's goddess'..."
"...Hehe, I've already got the title figured out..."
"...Sleepy... going to sleep..."
A few seconds later, snoring erupted. Kaede couldn't tell if he was actually asleep or just pretending.
The fire popped another spark. It flashed for an instant, then died.
When dawn broke, Jiraiya was the first to wake. He stared at the two people leaning on each other for several seconds. Then, he stood up silently and walked out of the hollow.
The sound of him letting out a loud, booming yawn echoed through the rain.
Tsunade was jolted awake. Dazed, she looked up and realized she was leaning on Kaede's shoulder. She froze for a second, her face flushing deep red. She snapped away instantly, pretending as if nothing had happened.
"Let's move," she said, grabbing her raincoat and striding outward.
Kaede stood up and followed.
Outside the hollow, the gray sky stretched on without an end. The three of them set off once more. Jiraiya led the way, Tsunade walked in the middle, and Kaede brought up the rear.
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