Chapter 50: Namikaze Minato
"Captain, a large group of Konoha shinobi are heading our way! Should we run?" Kael asked Watanabe Musashi urgently. He was already preparing to call the Wind Eagle, which was following them stealthily, ready to make a quick escape. As for their client, the fat merchant, Kael didn't give him a second thought. In his experience, when shinobi from different villages met in the wild, blades were usually drawn.
But Watanabe Musashi's calm voice quickly reassured him. "No need." Seeing Kael's confusion, he patiently explained, "The Hidden Hot Water is considered a neutral village. We've never participated in the conflicts between the major nations. We have no quarrel with Konoha, and our relationship... is actually quite decent."
Kael saw Watanabe blush slightly as he said the last part and couldn't help but twitch his lips. However, the tension in his heart slowly eased.
Soon, the Konoha shinobi arrived and surrounded the caravan. Their primary focus, however, was on the four individuals wearing Hidden Hot Water forehead protectors.
"Honorable Konoha shinobi!" the fat merchant, Mr. Kawabe, exclaimed, bowing repeatedly with an obsequious smile. "I'm just a humble merchant from the Land of Hot Water, not some spy! Why, just last year, I visited your esteemed village to deliver some of our nation's specialty tea!" He was clearly terrified, swallowing nervously, but the thought of the valuable cargo behind him—nearly half his fortune—forced him to speak up.
Seeing his groveling, servile display, Kael's eyes narrowed involuntarily.
Just then, a middle-aged shinobi with an imposing aura stepped forward from the Konoha ranks. He had slightly dark skin and incredibly sharp eyes. Though he appeared to be casually inspecting the caravan's goods, Kael could feel his attention fixed entirely on the four of them. Any sudden move would surely invite a swift and brutal attack.
The middle-aged shinobi glanced at the long line of wagons, a barely perceptible smirk touching his lips. He shot a contemptuous look at Mr. Kawabe, then waved his hand dismissively. "Search them!"
"Yes, sir!"
The Konoha shinobi swarmed the wagons, their eyes glinting with undisguised greed.
CRASH!
BANG!
The sounds of crates being overturned and fragile goods shattering echoed through the caravan.
Mr. Kawabe turned deathly pale. "Sir! Sir!" he stammered. "These are valuable teas, you mustn't..."
"Hm? What did you say? Mustn't what?" the dark-skinned shinobi asked coolly, glancing at him. The sheer coldness in his eyes made Kawabe swallow his protest, his legs beginning to tremble. He knew he was dealing with someone ruthless.
"Sir, sir! A small token, please accept it!" Gritting his teeth, Kawabe pulled out a thick wad of bills and discreetly tried to press it into the shinobi's hand.
The middle-aged shinobi glanced down, and a look of satisfaction appeared on his cold face. He gave Kawabe an approving, slightly mocking look. "You learn quickly," he sneered, then casually rolled his neck. "Let them pass!"
The Konoha shinobi reluctantly withdrew, many of them stuffing stolen goods into their pockets.
Just then, a young shinobi who had been watching the scene with cold disapproval finally spoke up.
"Commander! The village stationed us here to guard against spies from other nations! This is a critical time. Ordering a search of their cargo is justifiable! But your men handled the goods carelessly, stole from them, and you even accepted a bribe from a foreign merchant! As the commander responsible for defending the Land of Fire's border against the Hidden Cloud, don't you think your actions completely violate the Shinobi Code and betray the trust the village and Lord Hokage placed in you?!"
The young shinobi grew more agitated as he spoke, his voice finally rising in an angry accusation.
The surrounding Konoha shinobi looked at each other awkwardly. Some lowered their heads in shame, while others looked indifferent, even sneering at the young accuser. Idiot.
A dangerous glint flashed in the middle-aged commander's eyes. He took a deep breath and turned to face the young shinobi. "Namikaze Minato! Don't think that just because you're the village's rising star, I wouldn't dare touch you! I am the commander of this border patrol, currently on active duty. Even if I killed you right here, right now, your sensei, Lord Jiraiya himself, couldn't do anything about it! Do you understand me?"
He let out a derisive snort. "Why do you think everyone wants this commander position? Who would do this job if there weren't any perks? You're just a naive brat who knows nothing, and now you dare to lecture me? Do you need to teach me, Sarutobi Tsubasa, how to do my job?"
Namikaze Minato stood frozen, speechless for a long moment. He wasn't intimidated by Commander Sarutobi's threat. In terms of strength, he was confident he was Tsubasa's equal, and in terms of status, he had nothing to fear. He was the village's youngest genius Jonin, a disciple of one of the legendary Sannin. Even if Tsubasa was an elder of the Sarutobi clan, Minato wasn't afraid.
But seeing the way the other Konoha shinobi looked at him, as if he were some kind of freak, nearly broke him.
He murmured to himself, "Where leaves dance, flames burn... So, those burning leaves, the shinobi who died one after another in the great wars... did they die just to fuel your greed? Have you all forgotten Konoha's Will of Fire?"
The other Konoha shinobi had already departed, happily carrying their spoils. Only Namikaze Minato remained, standing alone, his face etched with profound confusion. At that moment, all he wanted was for someone, anyone, to understand him, to tell him that speaking out against Sarutobi Tsubasa... was the right thing to do.
"It's really Namikaze Minato!"
Kael stared, astonished. Seeing the unmistakable bright yellow hair and the handsome face that rivaled his own confirmed the young shinobi's identity.
"You've heard of him too?" Watanabe Toneri asked curiously.
"Yeah," Kael nodded.
"That guy is incredibly strong! He's the genius of Konoha's new generation, far more terrifying than self-proclaimed 'geniuses' like us," Toneri admitted, his expression darkening slightly.
Kael didn't try to comfort him because it was true. Compared to Toneri and Tanabe, who were Chunin in their early twenties, Minato, a Jonin in his late teens, was a true prodigy.
He looks about my age... and he's already a Jonin? Kael felt a surge of awe but couldn't resist walking closer to the blond figure.
The stories of protagonists were often cliché, but truly interesting souls were rare. Seeing someone who had only existed in the background of the original story in person was an irresistible pull for Kael.
After all, this was Namikaze Minato.