Ryuu stood near the massive main gates feeling the unfamiliar weight of a fully packed travel pack settling on his young shoulders.
Beside him, Kenta shifted nervously from foot to foot, his eyes wide with barely contained excitement, while Izumi Uchiha stood silently, her posture alert, her gaze already scanning the road leading out of the village with practiced vigilance.
Kasumi wasn't here, she had simply given him a tight, brief hug at their apartment door, her eyes filled with unspoken warnings and anxieties, before murmuring, "Be careful."
Genma Shiranui appeared exactly at 0600, materializing seemingly from the shadows near the gatehouse with his usual casual lean, senbon already in place. He carried a standard Jonin travel pack, looking utterly unfazed by the early hour or the prospect of the journey ahead. "Alright, Team Twelve," he drawled, his eyes sweeping over them, checking their gear, their readiness. "Everyone present and accounted for. Miracles happen."
He jerked his head towards the gate, where the Chunin guards gave him a respectful nod. "Our client and his convoy are waiting just beyond the outer perimeter. Merchant named Hiroshi Yamada. Deals in textiles, spices, general goods. Standard escort procedure: we maintain formation around the primary wagon, rotate lookout positions, stay alert for any signs of trouble. Questions?"
Kenta practically vibrated. "Sensei! What kind of bandits do you think we'll face? Are they strong?"
Genma sighed dramatically. "Miyamoto, it's a C-Rank, not the Fourth Shinobi World War. We're expecting low-level threats at most. Disorganized bandits, maybe some desperate ronin looking for an easy score, maybe not even that. Anything significantly tougher, and I handle it. Your job," he fixed Kenta with a stern look, "is to protect the client, follow my orders, and not get yourselves killed by doing something stupidly heroic. Clear?"
"Y-Yes, Sensei!" Kenta stammered, deflating slightly but still looking determined.
"Izumi, you take point visuals initially. Rooftops and high ground where available once we clear the immediate village vicinity. Ryuu, you stick closer to the wagon, focus sensory – auditory and chakra signatures within a fifty-meter radius initially, report any anomalies immediately. Kenta, you flank opposite Ryuu, act as close protection for the wagon itself. I'll take the rear or move as needed. Standard diamond formation when applicable on open ground. Rotate positions every two hours. Understood?"
"Hai!" Izumi and Kenta responded crisply. Ryuu simply nodded, already extending his senses, getting a feel for the pre-dawn quiet, the signatures of the gate guards, the birds beginning to stir in the nearby trees.
They passed through the gates just as the first rays of sun began to paint the eastern sky orange. A short distance down the main road, a small convoy waited: one sturdy merchant wagon pulled by two oxen, piled high with canvas-covered goods, and three nervous-looking civilian drivers huddled near a small campfire. Standing beside the wagon, looking impatient, was a portly man in merchant robes – Hiroshi Yamada. He beamed with relief as Genma and his team approached.
"Ah, Konoha shinobi! Excellent, excellent!" Yamada greeted them effusively, rubbing his hands together. "Genma-san, good to see you again. Ready for a smooth trip to Tanzaku Quai?"
"Always ready, Yamada-san," Genma replied easily, though his eyes briefly scanned the merchant and his drivers with professional assessment. "My team is prepped. Team Twelve – Miyamoto, Uchiha, Yuki." He indicated each Genin briefly. Yamada offered them a quick, slightly dismissive nod, clearly more interested in the Jonin leading them.
"Good, good. Let's get moving then, shall we? Daylight's wasting!" Yamada clapped his hands, urging his drivers to extinguish the fire and prepare the oxen.
The first few hours of the journey were uneventful, almost boringly so after the initial excitement. They moved at the steady, plodding pace of the oxen-drawn wagon along the well-maintained road leading south-east from Konoha.
The sun climbed higher, burning off the morning chill, forcing Ryuu to pull his wide-brimmed hat lower, grateful for the long sleeves and bandages that covered his body.
Genma set a rotating watch schedule. Izumi darted ahead, leaping silently between treetops or running along ridges flanking the road, her Sharingan likely scanning the path ahead. Kenta walked diligently beside the wagon, his hand never far from his kunai pouch, trying to look imposing.
Ryuu walked slightly behind the wagon, focusing his senses outwards, listening to the rhythmic creak of the wagon wheels, the heavy breathing of the oxen, the chatter of the drivers, the wind in the trees, trying to isolate anything unusual.
Genma drifted seemingly at random, sometimes at the rear, sometimes scouting ahead briefly, sometimes simply lounging atop the wagon's canvas cover, chewing his senbon, appearing relaxed but Ryuu could feel the Jonin's chakra constantly alert, passively scanning a much wider radius than Ryuu himself could manage.
Ryuu found the sensory task demanding in this new environment.
Unlike the village, where signatures were dense but somewhat predictable, the wilderness held countless natural fluctuations – animal movements, shifting wind patterns, hidden water sources – that could mimic potential threats.
He had to constantly filter, analyze, cross-reference what he felt with what he saw and heard, trying to build a coherent picture of their immediate surroundings. Kasumi's training had been invaluable, but this was the real thing, sustained over hours, requiring constant vigilance.
During his first 'off-watch' rotation, walking beside Kenta near the wagon while Izumi took the rear and Genma scouted ahead, Kenta struck up a conversation, his earlier excitement replaced by the slight boredom of the road.
"Man, this is kinda... slow, huh?" Kenta commented, kicking absently at a loose stone on the road. "Thought C-Ranks would be more... I dunno, exciting?"
"Most shinobi work isn't exciting, Kenta-san," Ryuu replied quietly, his eyes scanning the treeline. "It's vigilance. Patience. Preparation." He was parroting sentiments he'd heard Genma and Kasumi express.
"Yeah, I guess," Kenta sighed. "Still, kinda hoped we'd at least see some bandits, you know? Test our skills." He glanced at Ryuu. "You sense anything weird out there?"
Ryuu focused for a moment, extending his range slightly. "Animal signatures mostly. Birds, small mammals. Nothing hostile within immediate range."
"Huh. Okay." Kenta seemed slightly disappointed. He fell silent for a while, watching the passing scenery.
However he didn't stay down for long, he soon began talking again.
He launched into a story about a disastrous fishing trip he'd taken with his father on the Nakano River, involving tangled lines, a capsized boat ,and an angry swarm of river bees. It was a simple, rambling story..
Ryuu listened quietly, offering occasional nods or brief responses, finding Kenta's earnest, slightly goofy nature a low-stress contrast to the constant calculations required around Kenjiro or the reserved politeness of Izumi. A simple camaraderie was forming, born of shared boredom and proximity.
When Izumi rotated back to flank the wagon, she looked focused, professional. "Area clear for the next two kilometers, minimal animal activity," she reported crisply to Ryuu and Kenta. "Genma-sensei is scouting the ridge ahead."
She acknowledged Kenta with a nod, then glanced at Ryuu. "How are your reserves holding up, Yuki-san? Sustained sensory work can be draining." There was genuine professional concern in her voice, perhaps mixed with a touch of Uchiha assessment of his capabilities.
"Manageable, Uchiha-san," Ryuu replied truthfully. The passive scanning wasn't overly taxing yet, but maintaining peak focus for hours on end was tiring. "Just background noise mostly."
Izumi nodded again, accepting his answer. She didn't pry further into his abilities, adhering perhaps to Genma's secrecy order or simply maintaining professional boundaries.
Her presence beside the wagon felt different from Kenta's easygoing chatter. She moved with quiet efficiency, her eyes constantly scanning, her body language radiating alertness. Ryuu found himself subtly matching her vigilance, his own senses sharpening in response to her professional demeanor.
They stopped for a brief midday meal – simple rations of hardtack, dried fruit, and water – eaten quickly beside the road while Genma maintained watch from a high branch. The merchant Yamada and his drivers kept to themselves, clearly intimidated by the shinobi escort, speaking only when necessary.
The afternoon passed much like the morning. The road wound through increasingly dense forests, the trees larger here, casting deeper shadows. The terrain became slightly hillier, requiring more effort from the oxen and slowing their pace. Ryuu continued his sensory duties, noting the shift in ambient chakra signatures. He reported nothing alarming, just subtle environmental shifts, which Genma acknowledged with brief nods or hand signals from his various observation points.
As dusk began to settle, Genma called a halt in a small, defensible clearing just off the main road, screened by thick underbrush. "We make camp here for the night," he announced. "Yamada-san, keep your drivers close to the wagon. Team Twelve, standard perimeter security."
He quickly assigned duties. Izumi took the first watch, finding a high vantage point in a nearby tree, her Sharingan likely piercing the gathering gloom. Kenta was tasked with helping the drivers secure the oxen and setting up a simple, low-burning campfire for warmth and cooking minimal rations. Ryuu was assigned perimeter sweeps with Genma.
"Stay alert, Yuki," Genma murmured as they moved silently through the trees encircling the camp, checking for tracks, hidden observers, or potential ambush points. "Nightfall is when the real vermin crawl out."
Genma moved with incredible stealth, seeming to glide over the forest floor without disturbing a single leaf. Ryuu focused on keeping up, matching his pace, extending his senses into the darkness. He felt the nocturnal life of the forest stirring – owls, bats, small predators beginning their hunts.
He felt the steady rhythm of his teammates' chakra back at the camp, the nervous energy of the civilians near the wagon. Nothing felt overtly hostile yet, but the darkness itself felt pregnant with possibility.
Genma paused near a game trail intersecting their path. He knelt, examining faint markings in the damp earth, barely visible in the fading light.
"Tracks," he whispered. "Multiple individuals. Recent. Heading south, same direction as us." He looked up, his eyes sharp in the gloom. "Not animals. Boots. Shoddy ones, maybe ronin or bandits. Could be unrelated... or they could be shadowing the convoy, waiting for nightfall or a better opportunity."
Ryuu focused his senses, trying to pick up lingering chakra signatures near the tracks. Faint. Muddled. Nothing clearly shinobi-level, but definitely human, and definitely recent. "Signatures are weak, Sensei. Faded. Hard to read intent."
Genma nodded grimly. "Means they're either weak, smart enough to suppress, or long gone. We assume the worst." He straightened up. "Double the watch rotations tonight. No one gets complacent. Inform Izumi when she comes off watch."
They completed their sweep without finding any other immediate signs of trouble, but the discovery of the tracks cast a pall over the camp. The atmosphere grew tense. Kenta nervously sharpened his kunai by the low fire.
Izumi returned from her watch looking even more focused, reporting no visual contacts but acknowledging the unsettling feeling in the woods. Ryuu took his turn on watch with Kenta, circling the perimeter slowly, senses strained, every rustle of leaves, every snap of a twig setting his nerves on edge.
Later, huddled in his bedroll near the dying embers of the fire, sleep refused to come. He listened to the night sounds, Kasumi's warnings echoing in his mind. Trust your instincts.
Assume everything wants to kill you.
It was a horrible thing to think about, but it was a reality he had to accept.
Only after roughly an hour of tossing and turning did he finally fall asleep.