It was a good day for travelling. The climate wasn't too warm, and the cool breeze brought a refreshing, energetic atmosphere to the group.
Sukuna watched his chatty friends and realised he might have missed having company whenever he went out of the village. Of course, the nature of his "escapades" wasn't something he could share with anyone. This only reinforced his decision to let Karin accompany him from now on.
Karin was talking nonstop with Sakura, while Naruto babbled about whatever came to his mind, speaking just for the sake of speaking. Meanwhile, both Kakashi and Sasuke kept a calm vigilance around them.
Sukuna found himself to be the odd one out. Strangely enough, he wasn't used to maintaining constant alertness when he travelled outside the village for bounty missions or when he simply wished to see the shinobi world.
Perhaps because of Kamui, he had grown too relaxed about getting ambushed. That was possible—but the constant vigilance of both Sasuke and Kakashi almost bothered him, to the point that he began to feel as if they would be attacked at any moment.
"Kamui has spoiled me," he muttered to himself, finding the journey boring after just a few hours into the mission. For him, bounty hunts were always full of action. He would teleport to the bounty market, take the assignment from the "Bounty Uncle," and while the man prepared the paperwork, Sukuna would leisurely count the few remaining hairs on the old man's increasingly bald head.
He was sure that in just a few more years, that field would be completely barren—no yield at all.
Once the bounty was in hand, the action began. Most of the time, he had to track the targets, which was annoying but bearable. At least Kamui shortened the travel time entirely. Within a few hours, he could complete the mission and return home.
Here, however, they were still walking—and would continue doing so for another two or three days.
"So boring," he grumbled.
"Why do you even need guards to go home, old man? Is someone after you or something?" Sukuna turned to the drunkard, desperate for some form of entertainment.
Tazuna, startled, shook his head quickly like he'd been caught red-handed. His intoxicated state only made his exaggerated reaction more amusing.
"There are many bandits in this area! Is it strange for a super bridge builder like me to be on guard?" Tazuna huffed, taking a big gulp from his cheap bottle of alcohol.
Kakashi and the others didn't treat the exchange as idle talk—they listened closely.
"Really? Then that means, as long as it's not a bandit, we can just leave you to your fate, right?" Sukuna smirked slightly. His eyes were hidden behind his glasses, but the grin in them was still evident.
Tazuna froze for a second, feeling as though the brat had seen right through him. Still, he didn't lose his composure. He just grumbled something under his breath and shrugged it off.
Seeing the old man ignore him, Sukuna thought about pushing further—but decided to let it go. He'd rather not act like he knew too much.
Surprisingly, even after hours of walking, there was no hidden puddle of water or any ninja waiting beneath it.
He knew the story wouldn't play out exactly as it did in the anime, and he was already starting to see the changes.
"Kakashi-sensei, how long are we gonna just walk like this? Aren't any enemy ninja coming after us? Or maybe a monster?"
The novelty of leaving the village for the first time had worn off, and boredom set in.
Naruto was the first to voice his complaint.
"Fortunately for us, Naruto—no, there are no monsters or enemy ninja coming after us," Kakashi replied lazily, eyes still glued to his orange book, completely unbothered by his Genin losing their enthusiasm.
"Tch, boring," Naruto pouted.
Sukuna sighed at the slow pace of their travel and tuned everything out, keeping only one part of his mind alert for potential ambushes.
Just like their masked sensei, he pulled out a book from his bag to pass the time.
"What are you reading?" Sakura noticed and, half out of curiosity and half out of disbelief that her brother was reading voluntarily, peeked over his shoulder.
"Tale of a Gutsy Ninja," she read aloud, squinting at him suspiciously.
"I know I'm handsome, Sakura, but hold on to your raging hormones—we're siblings," Sukuna said offhandedly, eyes still on the book.
"Tch, you're the one with raging hormones, you bastard." Clicking her tongue, she turned away and went back to gossiping with Karin.
The two girls had grown really close over time. Since Karin was almost always around Sukuna, Sakura had naturally become good friends with her as well.
"Huff, why is he always so annoying?" she muttered to Karin, dissatisfied.
Naruto, seeing the book in Sukuna's hands, made sure to keep at least five meters of distance between them. He'd been forced to read for most of his Academy life—that was already more than enough.
"Never again," he swore to himself.
Sasuke wasn't interested either, and Karin was too busy chatting with Sakura.
Only Kakashi noticed the book in Sukuna's hands—and recognized the familiar signature of his beloved author on the cover.
He didn't even know Jiraiya-sama wrote normal books as well. Who would've thought?
The journey continued in familiar silence and harmony. No "Demon Brothers" jumped out of suspiciously fake puddles this time.
For once, Sukuna even began to think that maybe—just maybe—this mission wouldn't unfold like it had in the anime. Maybe Gato hadn't sent anyone after Tazuna yet.
It was possible, right?
Unfortunately for them, that wasn't the case.
...
A/N : A smaller chapter since I was running out of time today, but I'll make it up with a bigger chapter when I get time. Promise.
xxx
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