By the stream, two huskies and the ninja dog Pakkun lay sprawled on the ground.
Their fur was clumped and soaked, their bodies slumped as they panted heavily, tongues hanging out, eyes filled with exhaustion and lingering terror.
It was obvious they had just survived a desperate, life-or-death escape over a long distance.
Kakashi Hatake lay flat on his back nearby, completely still.
His face was pale as paper, his lips cracked and dry, devoid of any trace of color.
Sasori's deadly poison was raging freely inside his body.
By now, it had spread up to his waist, turning healthy skin into a horrifying dark blue-black hue.
The sight alone was enough to make one's heart clench.
His eyes were tightly shut, his brow furrowed.
He was trapped in a deep, hazy state between consciousness and unconsciousness.
In his daze, Kakashi vaguely sensed familiar figures moving around him.
Gathering what little strength he had left, he forced open his lead-heavy eyelids.
Through blurred vision, he barely made out his student, Uchiha Yujin, standing nearby, along with the other members of Team Seven.
Kurama Yakumo's delicate face was filled with worry.
Her eyes were red at the rims, her body trembling slightly as tears pooled, threatening to fall at any moment.
Neji Hyuga was no less distressed.
Through his Byakugan, the tension and unease in his heart were clearly visible, his gaze filled with anxiety.
At the side, Kurama Yuzuki fumbled frantically through her pack.
Sweat rolled down her forehead as she finally pulled out a crumpled map.
Seeing this, Uchiha Yujin rushed forward in a single stride and snatched the map away.
His long fingers moved rapidly across it as his brows knitted together, carefully weighing every detail.
He muttered under his breath, "We're on the border of the Land of Rain, adjacent to the Land of Grass, the Land of Birds, and the Land of Wind…"
Rainwater slid down his hair and dripped onto the map, soaking a small area.
He stared at it intensely, his mind working at full speed.
"There's no time to return to Konoha," Uchiha Yujin said as he looked up at everyone, his gaze firm yet tinged with helplessness.
"The distance is too far. Kakashi-sensei won't last that long."
"We need to find a medical ninja nearby," he continued.
"And they must be highly skilled. Otherwise, there's no chance of curing Sasori's poison."
As he spoke, he lowered his head again and lightly tapped several marked locations on the map.
Kurama Yuzuki, the Chunin of the Kurama clan, frowned deeply and asked with concern, "If we move at full speed, can't we still make it back to Konoha in time?"
Uchiha Yujin quickly drew two lines on the map, his voice urgent.
"Our rough position is here."
"If we head back to the village, it will take several days at minimum, and we'd still need to give the medical ninja time to prepare an antidote."
"By then, Kakashi-sensei would already be dead from the poison."
"Even if a god descended, he wouldn't be able to save him."
Uchiha Yujin turned his head and glanced at the unconscious Kakashi.
Looking at his teacher's bloodless face, a sharp pain stabbed into his chest.
"Too hard…"
That single sigh seemed to carry immense weight.
It lingered in the damp air by the stream, as everyone clearly understood one thing.
Kakashi-sensei's life was hanging by a single thread.
Kurama Yuzuki's expression grew heavy as she thought for a moment.
"The Land of Rain's relationship with us is… complicated," she said slowly.
"They're not outright enemies."
"If we conceal the matter involving the Rain ninjas, and are willing to pay a price, perhaps we can still find medical help?"
"Absolutely not," Uchiha Yujin replied without hesitation.
"Listen to me. We cannot go anywhere near the Land of Rain."
If he weren't someone who knew the original story, the team might truly have searched blindly nearby for a medical ninja to treat Kakashi.
But Uchiha Yujin understood all too well how dangerous the Land of Rain truly was.
He could not allow the team to walk straight into a death trap.
That endless rainfall was not natural weather at all.
It was Nagato's Rain Tiger at Will Technique.
This was an enormous, wide-area sensory ninjutsu.
Its coverage was so vast that it rivaled even Enel's Mantra.
The moment Jiraiya stepped into the rain of the Hidden Rain Village, Nagato detected his presence.
The sheer absurdity of this technique far surpassed even Konoha's sensory barrier system.
Uchiha Yujin raised his hand and wiped the rain from his face.
Even though the rain could be explained as normal seasonal weather, he still stared at the sky with deep unease, his heart filled with caution.
Suddenly, an idea struck him.
He quickly turned to Kurama Yakumo and shouted, "Yakumo, take out your drawing board and draw a picture of a clear sky!"
Kurama Yakumo reacted instantly.
She pulled out her sketchpad without hesitation, and the brush in her hand seemed to carry a strange power as it moved smoothly and effortlessly across the surface.
Under the miraculous effect of the Kurama clan's kekkei genkai, the gloomy sky seemed to be pushed aside by an invisible hand.
In the blink of an eye, the dark clouds vanished, sunlight poured down, and the sky became vast and cloudless.
Hyuga Neji widened his eyes in shock.
He stared at the sudden change in the weather, completely stunned and unable to react for a moment.
Seeing the sky clear up, a spark of hope ignited in Uchiha Yujin's heart.
Deciding to make one final attempt, he said to Kurama Yakumo, "Yakumo, try again. Use your genjutsu to restore Kakashi-sensei's body."
Kurama Yakumo took a deep breath.
She focused all her concentration and began to move her brush once more, carefully drawing on the board.
As the brush painted a healthy flush of color onto Kakashi's face, Kakashi suddenly sucked in a sharp breath of air.
But less than two seconds later, his body went limp again, and he lost consciousness.
Kurama Yakumo suddenly clutched her aching forehead.
Her face was pale with exhaustion as she spoke weakly, "My genjutsu can't alter this level of reality right now."
Uchiha Yujin spoke gently to comfort her.
"It's okay. You've already done amazingly well."
With no other choice, he shifted his gaze back to the map, determination shining in his eyes.
After careful thought, he made a bold decision.
"Move out. We're heading to the Land of Grass — Tenchi Bridge."
****
Support me on my ko-fi account and read upto 20 early chapters,
https://ko-fi.com/aayume