To conserve his chakra, Shanks made a calculated decision—he reduced the range of his Observation Haki from a wide 1000 ters to a focused 100 ters. That range would still be more than sufficient for him to detect any incoming threat or ambush in ti to react.
The journey would last through the night, and Shanks knew that keeping his Observation Haki active the entire ti was necessary. With danger potentially lurking in every shadow, constant vigilance was not a luxury—it was survival. But at the sa ti, he had to be mindful of his chakra reserves. If a serious fight broke out, he needed to be at full strength, not drained from prolonged sensing.
Inside the carriages, the passengers were evenly distributed. Aside from the drivers, each carriage held three children and two won, maintaining a balanced weight and ensuring everyone had enough space to rest. The group moved steadily through the darkened roads, the quiet creak of wheels and the rhythmic clop of hooves the only sounds breaking the silence of the night.
In the front carriage, with Shanks holding the reins, Miki looked over at him and asked quietly, "Where are we going? I an… what's our destination?"
Shanks glanced at her, then turned his eyes back to the road ahead. "I have a perfect place in mind," he said. "Sowhere we can stay hidden—sowhere we can grow stronger in secret, until we're ready to face the world again."
He paused a mont before continuing. "It's a valley between two hills, just a few miles from the border between the Land of Fire and the Land of Tea. It's not far from Tonika Village. I passed through there once, years ago, when I was just starting out. I was returning from a mission with my father. It's a secluded place—dense with trees, and scattered with natural caves. The terrain makes it easy to defend and perfect for staying out of sight. We can use those caves as temporary shelters until we build sothing better."
Miki nodded, thoughtful. "Yes… a place like that would be perfect for us. Remote, quiet, and defensible. A good place to begin again."
Everyone else in the carriage had quietly listened to Shanks' explanation, and they all agreed with his decision. In their hearts, they had already accepted him as their leader. His strength, clarity, and calm command had earned their trust—and none of them intended to disobey. They would follow his instructions wholeheartedly, wherever this path led them.
The journey through the night continued steadily. Every three to four hours, they stopped to let the horses rest. During these breaks, which lasted about half an hour, everyone would climb down, stretch their legs, and share quiet conversations beneath the stars. It was during these monts that the passengers from Shanks' carriage shared what he had told them about their destination. The plan, once known only to a few, now spread quietly among the rest of the clan, bringing a sense of calm and hope to the group.
Finally, after a long night of travel, the first rays of sunlight crested the horizon. The golden light spilled over the land, and a soft beam fell across Shanks' face. Behind him, in the carriages, the others slept soundly, having found rare peace during the night.
And peace, it seed, had favored them for once. Throughout the journey, Shanks had sensed no pursuit—no chakra signatures lurking in the shadows, no sign of ambush or tracking ninja. The night had passed without conflict, and as dawn broke, so too did a quiet sense of relief. They were safe. For now.
The horses had begun to slow, their movents growing sluggish after a full night of travel. Shanks noticed imdiately. Their labored breathing and weary steps told him they were reaching their limit.
He gently pulled on the reins and murmured to the lead horse, guiding the first carriage off the main path. They've done enough for now, he thought. And truthfully, traveling by night was safer for them anyway—less chance of being spotted, less risk of drawing attention. In a way, the timing worked in their favor.
Shanks steered the carriage into a dense patch of trees lining the road. He led them about a hundred ters into the forest, far enough to stay hidden but close enough to the road for an easy return when the journey resud. The other carriages followed his lead, the wheels crunching softly over leaves and twigs as they moved deeper into the woods.
Once they ca to a halt, people began climbing down from the carriages, stretching their stiff limbs and breathing in the earthy morning air. Shanks stepped down from the driver's seat, landing with a quiet thud. He took a mont to scan the area before doing so quick ntal math.
We've co about twenty-five miles from the port town, he calculated, glancing up at the sky as sunlight filtered through the canopy. From what he rembered, the distance to Tonika Village was roughly two hundred miles. At their current pace—accounting for rest, caution, and terrain—they could likely make it there in ten days.
If luck held, and nothing got in their way.
Shanks was well aware that their pace was slow—painfully so, by a shinobi's standards. But there was little he could do. It was the cost of traveling with carriages, and with a group that included won and children, speed couldn't take priority over safety and stability.
At one point during the journey, as he guided the carriage along the winding road, a thought had crossed his mind: Why not capture a few powerful beasts to pull the carriages? It wasn't impossible. He had the strength and the skill to defeat one, and soone like Erza could potentially form a summoning contract with it. But the idea, though tempting, was ultimately impractical.
For one, he only had one arm—forming a summoning contract was out of the question for him. And even if soone else ford the contract, that alone wouldn't guarantee obedience. Summoning was only half the battle; taming the beast required rigorous training, discipline, and control. Without that, there was no telling how the creatures would behave. They could turn unpredictable—or worse, dangerous. With children in their group, Shanks couldn't take that risk.
So, he had set the idea aside. Their current thod might be slow, but it was steady and safe. In tis like these, that mattered more than speed.
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