Chapter 262: Clouds Gather, Winds Rise (Part 3)
Minato escorted Prince Shohei into the Land of Hot Water. The combination of a nobleman and foreign ninja attracted quite a bit of attention. Fortunately, they stuck to the main roads, and aside from repeated questioning at various checkpoints, they encountered no trouble.
Halfway through, Minato sent a Shadow Clone to investigate the address he received via Communication Snail, while his main body stayed at his post. It wasn't until the next morning that Minato suddenly jolted with realization—the clone had dispelled, returning its memories.
His secretive behavior sparked Tsume Inuzuka's curiosity, but after getting no answers, she gave up.
Two days later, the convoy approached the border between the Land of Hot Water and the Land of Lightning. The situation here was different. There were many villagers and commoners migrating along the main road. Although they didn't look panic-stricken, the scene was chaotic with ox carts, donkeys, and large bundles.
For the famously wealthy Land of Lightning to have such migration during peacetime was extremely strange.
Another strange thing was that starting from the border checkpoint, two main roads extended deep into the Land of Lightning. One was a hardened cement road wide enough for four carriages; the other was a two-lane dirt road full of potholes.
Tsume wondered, "The good road should lead to the capital, right? As expected, the Land of Lightning is rich."
Minato took out a map to confirm, but someone nearby spoke up.
"Are you Konoha ninja? Rare to meet fellow countrymen from the Land of Fire here. You guessed wrong. That broken dirt road is the one leading to the capital."
They turned to see a traveling merchant sitting in front of the post station.
Prince Shohei was resting, and the ninja were scouting ahead. Since ninja valued intelligence most, meeting a fellow countryman in a foreign land was a perfect opportunity. Minato, with his charismatic personality, naturally went up to chat.
"It's our first time in the Land of Lightning. Boss, could you tell us more?"
Being called "Boss" made the peddler blush, but it opened his chatterbox.
"I run the route between the Land of Fire and Land of Lightning all year round. Originally, both roads were two-lane dirt tracks. One passed by Kumogakure, the other went further to the capital. Back when the Land of Lightning was rich, both roads were well-maintained—honestly, better than in the Land of Fire. Carriages ran smoothly, and people like me saved a few pairs of shoes."
Minato listened intently.
"In the early years, more people went to the capital than to the Cloud Village. Later, the Cloud became more powerful. Especially after their expansion, the village became even more prosperous than the capital, and the number of travelers surged. The Cloud ninja are strange; they started caring about road building. That used to be the Daimyo's job; I've never heard of a ninja village building roads. I don't know how they did it, but in half a month, they turned the road into what it is now—wide, clean, and made of cement. Truly rich and imposing."
Minato was surprised. "Half a month?"
According to the map, the distance to the Cloud Village was significant.
"Yeah. I went back to restock and didn't see it personally, but my peers said a huge group of ninja used ninjutsu to build the road. The speed was unheard of—hundreds of meters done in a blink. People following behind found they couldn't even walk as fast as the road was being built."
Using ninjutsu to build roads? A thought flashed through Minato's mind, but he couldn't quite grasp it.
Tsume asked, "Then why is the other road so broken? Didn't you say the Land of Lightning maintained them well?"
"That was before. For the past few months, the new Thunder Daimyo has been... well, a bit touched in the head."
Peddlers were known for their loose lips and boldness. Being from the Land of Fire, he had no taboos about speaking ill of the Thunder Daimyo.
Interestingly, the few Land of Lightning locals nearby just glanced over but didn't say anything.
"Since he took office, he's been causing trouble every day. It's said that batches of officials and nobles in the capital have died. People elsewhere aren't safe either; many are taking the opportunity to hoard wealth or commit crimes. Local nobles in remote areas have intensified their exploitation. Many of these migrating people were forced out of their homes by local officials and couldn't survive, so they're moving. Actually, more are heading toward the Cloud Village area. The only stable region in the entire Land of Lightning right now is around Kumogakure. Everywhere else has problems."
"Most of the people who used to maintain the roads ran away, so the road became like this. You're escorting a noble... you aren't going to the capital, are you? I heard from peers coming back from that direction that the Cloud Village has taken control of the capital. It seems the situation is stabilizing, and that crazy Daimyo can't cause trouble for now."
After chatting for a while and buying the merchant a pot of sake, Minato bid farewell. Prince Shohei finished resting, and the group set off again.
Naturally, they took the potholed narrow road. Passing by some exhausted migrants, Minato paid close attention. These people still had some belongings, but leaving their homes made them look desolate.
Moreover, when they looked at the obvious noble convoy, their eyes held an indescribable resentment, which made Minato thoughtful.
Tsume sighed. "I didn't expect such things to happen even with the Cloud being so strong."
Hizashi Hyuga said, "No matter how strong the Cloud is, they can only manage their own village. The affairs of ordinary people are naturally managed by the Daimyo's government. It has been this way since ancient times. Honestly, some remote areas in the Land of Fire aren't doing well either."
Leaving aside the bumpy road causing Prince Shohei to vomit twice, Hizashi and Tsume repeatedly sensed Cloud ninja monitoring the convoy from a distance.
It seemed the rule that Daimyo convoys were exempt from ninja surveillance was completely invalid here.
Shohei became even more reclusive, refusing to leave the carriage unless absolutely necessary.
Until they reached the capital.
Land of Lightning Capital, South Gate.
The group finally arrived at their destination. From the outside, the capital looked as grand and imposing as the Fire Capital, but perhaps due to psychological effects, it felt oppressive.
Two squads of ninja stood under the gate, replacing the samurai to inspect traffic—a rare sight.
"Get out of the carriage for inspection. Report how many people in the convoy possess chakra."
Just as Minato prepared to cooperate, the Prince Shohei who had been turtling the whole way suddenly grew a spine.
Without even lifting the curtain, a voice rang out from the carriage, firm and resonant.
"The convoy of the Fire Daimyo does not dismount, nor is it inspected upon entry. Does Kumogakure not know the rules?"
The surrounding Cloud ninja cast cold gazes, quickly surrounding the convoy.
Minato froze on the spot.
"Who is in charge here?! Call him out to see me! Immediately!"
Did Prince Shohei vomit until he became delirious, or did he take the wrong medicine?
Kumogakure, Research Base.
"Wait, is the liquid color inside getting lighter? Is the nutrient level insufficient?"
"Impossible. I just changed the nutrient solution for Dana-sama last night. It should last at least three days. Is it a lighting issue?"
Medical ninja gathered around the giant transparent tank.
"We still need to check. Take a sample for analysis."
Half an hour later, someone returned with the results. "It really is insufficient nutrients... We need to replace it immediately. Thankfully we caught it in time; otherwise, it would be disastrous for Dana-sama's recovery."
"It seems the chakra reaction in Dana-sama's back is intensifying, increasing nutrient consumption."
"This needs to be reported. We should redesign the supply plan for Dana-sama."
The entire research base bustled again. Researchers dropped their current work to prioritize checking Yotsuki Dana. The liquid in the tank was promptly replaced.
When the lab director received the measurement data, he froze.
"He grew taller? Seven days ago, he was 198cm. Now he's 213cm (approx. 7ft)?"
The director murmured blankly, "Growing that fast... nutrient deficiency... actually makes sense."
Inside the tank with the fresh nutrient solution, Yotsuki Dana, wearing the breathing mask with closed eyes, twitched his pinky finger slightly.
Faint lightning flickered on his back.