In the forests of the Land of Fire, a merchant with two attendants led some cattle. Beside them was a samurai with a solemn expression, his sharp eyes constantly scanning the surroundings.
But Sakura Haruno, riding on the back of a cow, had her thoughts already drifting thousands of miles away to Red Shoal Island. In the end, Master Tsunade had sent two ninja to accompany her.
Now, there was no way for her to ditch Ryuichi and the others to proceed alone. Officially, she had accepted the commission, and with the two ninja present, it really wouldn't be right to abandon the clients, even though Ryuichi and his companion wouldn't likely complain.
So much for that. The journey time had suddenly increased significantly. If calculated by a ninja's travel speed, they could have arrived in a few days. But now, they had to dutifully follow the merchant caravan; it would take at least ten days to half a month to reach Red Shoal Island.
One of the two ninja wasn't a complete stranger – Konoha's sole Wood Style user. The other she didn't recognize, but his attire involuntarily reminded Sakura of someone else she knew rather well.
"Hey, Captain, this mission is going to take quite a while. We should at least get acquainted," Sakura said, riding backward on one of the cows and addressing the one whose attire seemed familiar.
The ninja nodded. "I know you, Sakura Haruno, disciple of the Fifth Hokage."
Then, the ninja fell silent. Sakura had been waiting for him to introduce himself, but when nothing more came, she blurted out, "It's not enough that you know me; I don't know you! Say, are you from the Aburame clan?"
Same sunglasses, same jacket. If it weren't for the large gourd he carried on his back, Sakura would have almost mistaken him for a grown-up Shino.
"Yes," the ninja replied succinctly. Then, as if sensing this brevity wasn't conducive to the mission, he added, "Aburame Muta."
"Hello, my name is Yamato," Tenzo couldn't help but interject.
During the last encirclement operation, the kill order the Third Hokage had secretly given him to force his hand had been terminated. Afterward, Tenzo had been dismissed from ANBU by the Third and handed over to Tsunade for reassignment.
The Third understood the difficulty Tsunade faced in taking over the village's administration; it would inevitably be a gradual process. What Tsunade lacked most now were reliable personnel. Superficially, she could command anyone, but having been Hokage for a lifetime, the Third knew that some missions weren't suited for regular, active-duty ninja.
And Tenzo was not only a steadfast individual aligned with the Third Hokage's faction but had also served in ANBU, possessed considerable skill, and wielded Wood Style. He was perfect for assisting Tsunade. Whether helping her establish her own ANBU or controlling Tailed Beasts, he could enhance Tsunade's prestige within the village.
Yamato was the codename given to him by the Third after he was 'expelled' into the light.
"I know you," Sakura said, looking at the uninvited Yamato. During the enemy invasion when she was a child, which had caused Naruto to go berserk, he was the person she had seen before losing consciousness. That was the first time she had witnessed Wood Style.
"You know me?" Yamato was somewhat surprised. He had just been kicked out of ANBU; how could she possibly know him?
"Mhm, I saw you when I was little," Sakura replied.
"When you were little?" Yamato was taken aback again. He wasn't entirely unfamiliar with this pink-haired kunoichi, but he had only learned about her due to recent events. Where could he have possibly seen her when she was a child?
"Never mind..." Seeing Yamato didn't remember, she couldn't be bothered to elaborate. He probably wouldn't connect the little girl from back then with who she was now.
Watching the merchant ambling unhurriedly ahead, Sakura sighed in resignation. Even at their fastest pace, it would likely take a week to arrive.
Seeing Aburame Muta and Yamato calmly following the group, Sakura flipped herself off the cow's back and sidled up to Captain Muta. "Um, ahem, what exactly is your mission?"
"What?" Muta paused, hearing her question.
"I mean, Lady Tsunade must have given you another assignment as well, right?" Sakura asked tentatively.
"You're overthinking it. Lady Tsunade didn't give us any other assignments." Aburame Muta seemed to understand what she was getting at and added, "The mission Lord Hokage gave me is to escort the merchant caravan safely to Red Shoal Island."
"Er..." Sakura didn't believe him one bit. She decided to be blunt. "Didn't Lady Tsunade secretly order you to follow me, or protect me?"
If it were any other mission, Sakura wouldn't have bothered asking such a direct question. Teammates given different orders for the same mission wouldn't discuss them, no matter how close they were. But these two were clearly here because of her; she could figure that out even if they didn't say anything.
So, she might as well lay it all out, then try to negotiate with them to leave the caravan and head to Red Shoal Island first. At this snail's pace, it would take forever to get there.
Aburame Muta turned his head to look at Sakura. It was impossible to discern his expression beneath the dark sunglasses. He simply said, "The mission I received is to escort the merchant caravan. I have no orders to protect you."
Sakura was mortified. Her earlier words had indeed sounded a bit presumptuous. However, her thick skin, more resilient than a city wall, didn't even flush. She continued confidently, "Well then, I'll go on ahead to scout the situation. There's no problem with that, right?"
"Alright," Aburame Muta said after a moment's hesitation.
Sakura's heart leaped with joy. Finally, she could go on ahead! This captain had been appointed by Master Tsunade, and although Sakura didn't particularly care about his captaincy, she still needed his permission to leave the group. She didn't want to cause any more trouble for her master.
Sakura quickly informed Ryuichi and the middle-aged merchant, then hurried off in the direction of Red Shoal Island. The scenery within her line of sight receded rapidly, and the feel of the wind rushing past her cheeks due to her speed gradually eased her earlier frustration.
Watching her figure vanish in the blink of an eye, Aburame Muta said to Yamato, "I can handle things here."
"Mhm," Yamato acknowledged, and with a flicker, his figure also disappeared from the caravan.
Sakura could abandon the caravan and proceed alone, but Tsunade couldn't afford to do so. Even though it was a cover, it was still a legitimate commission, tied to Konoha's reputation. Reputation, though intangible, was the reason the village received numerous requests. Even a pretext couldn't be treated lightly, as it was the foundation of the village's development.
Therefore, Tsunade had indeed only ordered Muta to escort the caravan. However, if Sakura left the group, Yamato was to follow her. An ordinary merchant caravan, escorted by a Tokubetsu Jonin, and not targeted by other ninja – that should be more than sufficient.
Meanwhile, Sakura had been running for some time when she suddenly frowned and stopped. She turned to look at a tree. "Yamato-senpai, come on out. I know you're there."
After a moment, she continued to stare intently at the tree. As if realizing he could no longer hide, a human silhouette slowly emerged from the tree, gradually taking on Yamato's appearance.
"How did you find me?" Yamato asked, rubbing his nose awkwardly. He was quite confident in his techniques, especially in this kind of environment. He hadn't expected this medical-nin to see through him so easily, and without a hint of doubt.
Yamato had witnessed everything that had happened to Sakura on the day of the encirclement. He had thought the village would pay close attention to the incident, but unexpectedly, the village acted as if nothing had occurred. Neither the Third nor the Fifth Hokage had offered any explanation.
After returning to the village, she showed no signs of abnormality, which gave Yamato a very surreal feeling. However, a gag order had been issued, and none of the ninja who returned that day had mentioned the extraordinary events that had transpired around her.
Now, seeing that Sakura had spotted him instantly, an unsettling feeling crept over him, as if he were being watched by something. Logically, having come from Root, his mental fortitude should be strong, yet at this moment, he felt an inexplicable sense of fear.
Sakura stared at Yamato for a moment, then sighed in resignation. "Since you've followed me this far, let's go together."
So, Captain Muta hadn't been lying after all. He was just escorting the caravan; Yamato was the one with the secret mission. Oh well, she thought, if he's going to follow, he's going to follow. At least it's a sign of Master's concern.
Assigning two Jonin-level ninja to a C-rank mission... Heh heh, Sakura mused, Master is probably going to get an earful from Shizune-neechan.