No matter how resourceful Shikamaru might become in the future, he was still a rookie now. The same went for Ino. The equipment in her backpack was prepared by her mother. Why was the magnesium rod placed in the left pocket of the backpack? Why was the Fuma Shuriken stored in a separate compartment? Why were two Kunai placed in the ninja waist pouch while four were kept in the backpack? They had learned these things in class, but this was their first time applying them in practice.
Ino and Shikamaru were like kids on their first spring outing, chattering away as they carefully examined the contents of their backpacks. They even took Choji's bag and inspected it from all angles, connecting theory with practice and using their classroom knowledge to understand the actual situation before them. For a moment, they felt they had gained a lot.
"Did we forget to bring anything?" Ino double-checked. "I've prepared food for three days."
Shikamaru scratched his head. "I've got about three days' worth too, but..."
They both glanced at the chubby Choji sitting under the tree shade. With this foodie around, their meager supplies would definitely not be enough.
"Three days' worth of food is plenty. Carrying too much will increase your load and affect your mobility. You need to be good at searching and finding enough food in the wild," a somewhat aged voice spoke up behind them.
Ino turned around sharply, unaware of when the person had entered her sensory range.
The old man was indeed very old, his face covered with age spots, his hair and eyebrows completely white. He wore tattered shorts and a brown sleeveless vest.
What caught Ino's attention the most was the large pot the old man carried on his back. "Grandpa Kosuke!" Choji was the most cheerful. His grandfather, Akimichi Torifu, had been comrades-in-arms with Kosuke, making him the closest among the Ino-Shika-Cho trio to the old man.
"Hello, Grandpa Kosuke."
"Hello, Grandpa Kosuke."
Ino and Shikamaru each greeted the old man. At seventy years old, it was only natural for them, at twelve, to call him "Grandpa."
In the distance, Kamizuki Izumo and Hagane Kotetsu, who were registering incoming travelers, knew the old man's true identity and didn't treat him as an ordinary Low Ninja. They nodded slightly in his direction as a form of greeting.
The old man waved his hand, smiling kindly. "Good, good, you're all good kids."
He paused for a moment. "I just finished a patrol mission, so I kept you waiting."
Choji and Shikamaru both said they didn't mind.
Only Ino secretly complained. Konoha really was something, making this old man work until he was seventy and still patrolling the front lines. Couldn't they assign him a less demanding position? It was true that old man Kosuke sought death on the battlefield, but couldn't they at least show some consideration? What would the younger generation of ninjas think when they saw this white-haired old man still patrolling at seventy? Would they think Konoha was great? More likely, they'd think this village had no future.
Old man Kosuke's back was slightly hunched. "Your parents asked me to teach you some things over the next week. Since you're all ready, let's get going."
Without further delay, the Ino-Shika-Cho trio had entrusted the old man to teach them for a week, and they couldn't afford to waste any time.
The chubby Choji knew this was a rare opportunity and became unusually serious, while Shikamaru also set aside his usual laziness. The three of them, each carrying their own backpacks, registered their identities with Kamizuki Izumo, noted their departure time, and signed their names before stepping out of the gates of Konoha Village.
After walking about ten meters, Ino turned back. In her view, she could clearly see the village gate, the main road, and the distant Hokage Rock.
This was the first time she had left Konoha Village since her transmigration over four months ago.
While she hadn't felt it much in the village, now that she was stepping out, an indescribable sense of fear crept into her heart.
Her gaze involuntarily fell on a puddle by the roadside. Could the Demon Brothers, who had been killed countless times by her transmigrator predecessor, be hiding there? Of course, the Demon Brothers weren't present. Old Man Gen, noticing her tension, smiled and asked, "First time leaving the village?" Ino nodded.
Shikamaru and Choji, standing beside her, were visibly proud. Shikamaru looked up at the sky and said, "We've been out before."
What's there to boast about? Ino was speechless.
The four of them needed to enhance their knowledge of survival in the wild, so they soon left the main road and turned onto a smaller path.
They adopted the ninja running posture, with their arms naturally behind them and their center of gravity lowered. Concentrating their chakra in the soles of their feet, they swiftly moved through the forest.
As they got farther from the village, Old Man Gen guided them with a question: "When we're in unfamiliar territory or enemy-controlled zones, what formation should we adopt?"
Choji, the chubby one, looked utterly confused. Formation? Really? Ino and Shikamaru exchanged glances. Both knew the answer, and after a silent exchange, Ino signaled Shikamaru to respond.
"We should advance in a single-file formation," Shikamaru said.
Old Man Gen nodded, signaling him to continue.
Shikamaru thought for a moment. "Well, in our team, Ino, with her sensory abilities, should take the lead and be responsible for scouting. Choji should follow closely, ready to provide immediate support to Ino. If we encounter enemies, Choji should charge forward, allowing Ino to retreat to a safe position to use her ninja techniques. Old Man Gen should stay in the middle, supporting both of them, while I'll take the rear."
The old man neither agreed nor disagreed, and the four of them proceeded in a single-file formation as Shikamaru had arranged, weaving through the forest.
Ino couldn't help but feel a sense of "when there are no great generals, even Liao Hua becomes the vanguard." Seriously, was she now considered a sensory ninja?
For Old Man Gen, this mission was nothing more than taking the kids out for a patrol—there was no real difficulty involved.
The Ino-Shika-Cho trio had already combed through their activity area twice, so there was virtually no danger.
Ino led the way, with Choji close behind, Old Man Gen in the middle, and Shikamaru bringing up the rear. They moved through the forest in this formation, and by evening, the only danger they encountered was a wild boar.
Seeing the boar, Ino didn't retreat but instead charged forward. In a single leap, she covered more than ten meters, and with a flick of her wrist, a kunai appeared in her hand.
She gauged the boar's charging direction, gripped the kunai in a reverse hold, and as they passed each other, she slashed hard across the boar's cheek. Before the blood could fully gush out, she drove the kunai into the boar's left eye and twisted it clockwise.
The wild boar howled in pain. Ino felt that the kunai was a bit short, and the boar's skull was longer than expected. Unless she thrust her entire hand in, the kunai couldn't penetrate the boar's brain. She sidestepped to the side and waved to the back, signaling, "Choji, it's your turn."
"Watch this, Human Bullet Tank!!" Choji let out a strange cry. First, he mixed the chakra in his body with his fat, undergoing a Yang Release transformation. His body rapidly expanded, eventually turning into a massive meatball. Relying on high-speed rotation and his weight, he collided fiercely with the wild boar.
The poor boar, completely unaware of what was happening, had all its bones broken by the meatball that fell from the sky. After a couple of mournful cries, it breathed its last.