Woodland appeared again as they continued down the trail they had left in search of shelter. Their map had turned into shreds in the rainstorm. Naruto led the way with Kurama telling him the right directions from time to time. Kimimaro wondered why Naruto would pause for a moment then confidently choose one of the forked paths when there were no road signs. It felt as if he was listening for an answer. Tayuya stayed silent for most of the day, looking like she had a ton of questions but gave up on asking them.
Finally when the sun started to cast warm hues across the sky, they got out of the woods and saw a river. Canals could be seen branching out from it. Several households and shops spread along the waterways.
"We're in the Land of Rivers," said Kurama. "Unless you brats can swim for hours, you'll need to rent a boat."
They walked along the river. Boats that carried eight to ten people passed by them.
"It seems that in order to navigate through the Land of Rivers, we need to travel by boat," Kimimaro noted. They saw four people standing by a dock, but no boats were tied to the pier. Naruto went straight to them, and the other two followed.
"Are you waiting for a boat to come, ma'am?" Naruto asked a woman.
"Yes," she nodded.
"How much does a ride cost?"
"3000 Ryo for two hours."
"How much money do we have?" asked Kimimaro. "I only have 70 Ryo."
"I have 100 Ryo," said Naruto.
"20. I'm broke as shit," Tayuya said, holding her hands up.
"Ha! If you try to get on the boat with that little money, the driver will throw you kids straight into the river," a man said sneeringly.
They left the dock in dismay. Tayuya said, "We don't have money for food, let alone a boat."
"Yeah, we ate the last bit of the food in our bags," said Naruto.
"Do we have anything that can make money for us?" Kimimaro asked. The three fell silent.
They looked around the little shops and market stalls. Some sold groceries, others sold shoes and clothes, and still others sold boating accessories like ropes and clamps. Tayuya stopped by a shop selling sundry goods for passengers on the boats. She entered the shop and picked up a flute from a pile of towels, serving trays and waterproof card decks. It had been a while since she last played the flute. Bittersweet memories began to surface.
"Tayuya?" Kimimaro asked.
"Well, I can play the flute," Tayuya shrugged. "And hope people will pay for it."
"Wow, you can play the flute?" Naruto was amazed that a grumpy girl like Tayuya would know how to play an instrument, not to mention being confident in her skills.
"Unlike you, uncultured shrimp," Tayuya jeered. She went to the counter and showed the shop owner the flute. "I will pay 100 Ryo and you will let me buy this flute," she said undiplomatically.
The shop owner snatched the flute away from her. "Why would I? Did you not see the price tag? If you don't have 350 Ryo, get out of my shop."
"We can't afford that much, but we really need it to make money. We will pay you back when we've earned 250 Ryo," Naruto explained. "Please, sir."
The owner looked at the three kids in ragged clothes. They must be migrants from the Land of Rain, and he had seen plenty of them over the years, some of whom even tried to steal stuff from his shop. He didn't feel the need to pity them. "That's your problem, and I have no reason to believe in you brats. Now shoo!" he said.
The three children left the shop sulkily, with Tayuya closing the door with a slam, followed by a muffled shout from the shop owner.
"Damn that old fucker,he has no pity," Tayuya said, walking and kicking a pebble out of her way.
Naruto sighed, "I guess we have to think of other ways to make money."
Kimimaro thought for a moment. Maybe now is the time to use his ability. If he doesn't, they would all starve. "I have a plan, but I have to do this alone. Wait here until I come back," he told the other two and started running back towards the shop, leaving them in confusion.
"What's pale-face gonna do?" Tayuya muttered, hands on hips.
"I don't know, but we have to trust Kimimaro, he's good with people," said Naruto.
Kimimaro closed the door behind him.
"Hey, I said you won't convince me," the shop owner frowned and said.
Kimimaro turned off the lights and summoned a bone sword from his shoulder. He jumped onto the counter and grabbed the owner by the collar. "You are to give us all the money you have in here, and that flute behind you," he ordered, sword tip touching the side of the man's head. The man gulped and slowly put all the money and the flute into a gunny sack.
"And if you try to chase us or call for help, this sword is going straight through your skull the next time you see it," Kimimaro warned and slung the gunny sack onto his back.
"Do you hear me?"
"Yes," said the man in a small voice.
Kimimaro jumped back and fled the shop. He ran back to Naruto and Tayuya and put on a smile. "The shop owner gave us money and the flute!" he said, showing them the sack.
"How did you get him to do this?" Tayuya asked in surprise.
"I told him my story and he pitied me," Kimimaro said, hand on his neck.
"Wow, this is great!" Naruto shouted when he saw how much money there was inside. "We have money to buy food and clothes and boat tickets!"
Tayuya examined the flute in her hand, then looked up at Kimimaro suspiciously. "His story? Pale-face sure likes some privacy, huh?" she thought.
Kimimaro felt her suspicious stare and said, "Alright, let's go shopping!"
The three set out to fill themselves