Day by day, time passed, and Konoha's encirclement seemed to have loosened somewhat as well.
Over the past few days, several of Sunagakure's camps had launched coordinated surprise attacks, and Konoha had quickly made defensive adjustments. A few clashes had broken out—each side taking wins and losses in turn.
Due to the numerous battles that had erupted between the two sides recently, the medical camp had become much busier. Nonō had also been very busy these past two days. After working hard all day, she sat back down in her seat, feeling somewhat tired.
Glancing casually at the calendar on the desk, Nonō's eyes flickered. The 3rd was only a few days away now; it was time to start planning for the rendezvous.
As she was pondering this, the bell outside the door rang, signaling the end of her shift.
Stretching lazily, Nonō glanced at the calendar one last time, then got up and walked out of the medical camp. She had been busy all day and wanted nothing more than a good rest.
Just as she was thinking about how to get permission to travel to Fumotsu Town, someone outside the tent called out to her.
"Nayū, you must be tired after a whole day of work. Want to take a walk and stretch your legs a little?"
The moment she heard the voice, Nonō already knew who it was. Looking up, she saw—sure enough—it was that guy Tarō. She sighed inwardly. To be honest, she didn't want to make use of this overly naive young man.
But for the sake of the mission, for the sake of reaching Fumotsu Town smoothly, she agreed to his invitation.
Hearing her agree, Tarō was overjoyed. The whole way, he was scratching his head, trying to come up with new and interesting topics and wondering if he should find a way to hold Nonō Yakushi's hand.
Just as his thoughts ran wild, Nonō spoke first:
"Um, Tarō-kun, there's something I'd like your help with."
Tarō froze, then his face broke into a broad smile. Puffing out his chest, he said proudly:
"Just tell me. As long as it's something I can do, I'll make sure it gets done!"
Nonō hesitated before saying:
"I need a permit to leave the camp. Could you get one for me?"
Tarō's smile stiffened. His voice tightened as he asked:
"Nayū, why would you want to leave camp now? It's not exactly safe outside…"
As he spoke, his eyes fixed on Nonō's. Although he liked her, that didn't mean he had completely lost his mind. Wanting to leave the camp at a time like this… could it be…?
With that thought, a trace of seriousness appeared in his expression.
But Nonō met his scrutiny calmly, her face composed, her eyes serene yet carrying a natural, gentle softness.
It only took a moment of eye contact before Tarō's suspicion dissolved into nothing. How could someone with such pure eyes possibly be a spy? I'm overthinking things. .
Just then, Nonō continued:
"It's not like I'm going anywhere nearby. The place I want to go is Fumotsu Town. I heard it's one of the few trading hubs in the Land of Rain…"
At this point, her face flushed slightly, and in a voice as faint as a mosquito she added:
"Supplies are tight in the village, and even fewer make it to the front lines. Especially for us girls, things like clothing and other necessities… it's been ages since anything new arrived. I was hoping I might find a chance to buy some."
Tarō blinked. Instinctively, his eyes darted toward a certain part of her figure—only to meet her shy yet faintly reproachful gaze. His face burned red, and in that instant he fully believed her explanation.
What she said wasn't wrong, after all. The village's economy was already poor, and supplies at the front were stripped down to bare essentials. Women's needs were often overlooked—even his own cousin had complained to him about that very thing.
After confirming that Nonō had no improper intentions, Tarō nodded, his smile returning as he said:
"Don't worry, leave it to me. I'll get you the permit to go out and return tomorrow. But remember—this permit is only valid for 24 hours. If you leave in the morning, you must be back by the same time the next morning. Otherwise, you'll be in trouble."
——
The next morning, sure enough, Tarō handed Nonō the permit to leave camp. Nonō, of course, expressed heartfelt gratitude, which made Tarō so excited he could hardly contain himself.
On the morning of the third, Nonō had already arranged for leave and was simply waiting for this day to arrive. She didn't go out early on purpose—instead, she chose to slip out around noon, when crowds were coming and going.
She even exited through the back gate of Sunagakure's main camp. And since her permit was genuine rather than forged, she encountered no problems along the way.
Even after leaving camp, she didn't let down her guard. Outwardly, she appeared to be simply traveling, but in reality she was constantly monitoring the movement behind her.
As expected, the moment she left camp, two Anbu began tailing her. Only after confirming she was traveling in the exact opposite direction of Konoha's camp did they quietly fall back.
Once she was sure they were gone, Nonō finally let out a breath of relief. She no longer dawdled—accelerating at full speed toward Fumotsu Town.
Nonō's pace was swift. By evening of that very day, she had already reached Fumotsu Town. She didn't rush to find her contact. Instead, just as she had told Tarō, she calmly went about buying a large number of women's supplies.
Her cautious personality revealed itself perfectly in moments like this.
Not until eight o'clock, when all the shops in Fumotsu Town had closed, did she return to her inn. There, after changing her outfit, she silently slipped out through the window.
Leaping to the rooftop, Nonō scanned the surroundings. Seeing no signs of pursuit, she carefully made her way to the outskirts of town.
There, only a single man was waiting. Seeing him, Nonō swallowed hard, her voice trembling slightly as she gave the code phrase of a Konoha spy:
"A quiet place is no place to hide."
Under her tense gaze, the man—his back to her—answered with the first half of the counterphrase:
"An enemy's commotion is the best time to infiltrate."
Hearing the correct response, Nonō finally relaxed completely. She bowed respectfully:
"Root trainee spy, Nonō, reporting to you."
The man froze for a moment at the name. Then he turned, his eyes sweeping over her as he asked:
"What did you say your name was?"
At the same time, Nonō was carefully studying her "contact." When she caught sight of his face, she too was shocked. Stammering, she blurted out:
"You are… Hoshiyomi-sama?"
Of course she recognized him. She had once been a Konoha shinobi herself—how could she not know the name and features of Gekko Hoshiyomi? Even during her time as a spy in Sunagakure, she had often heard his deeds mentioned. Seeing him now, there was no mistaking him.
On the other side, Hoshiyomi was also examining Nonō. He hadn't expected that, by sheer chance, his casual move would reel in a character from the "original story" who actually had a proper name and presence.