Invitation

"Hmm~"

Temari exhaled, feeling exhausted from traveling for over half a month and constantly wasting energy protecting an ordinary person.

Thankfully, it was almost over.

After encountering that group of Land of Rivers Ninja, the war zone became increasingly quiet and desolate. Often, there were no signs of life for dozens of kilometers, and all the houses were either empty or destroyed.

In the two towns they encountered, there seemed to be survivors who had been lucky enough to avoid death but lacked the means to escape.

They all quickly hid upon discovering them, and more than half were emaciated children, making it Orochimaru's happy hunting ground.

Approaching the Capital, the situation didn't improve much. People were becoming scarcer, as the saying goes, 'Bandits comb, soldiers rake,' and ordinary people probably couldn't survive in a heated war zone.

Along the way, they also encountered a group of unidentified ninja scavenging for supplies. There was no communication, just a fight upon meeting, and they were all crushed into a bloody mist by the sand.

In short, after nearly a month of turmoil, they finally saw the Capital in the distance.

However, now that the Land of Rivers was destroyed, it was uncertain whether the new country would keep the Capital here.

"Your Highness," the Samurai driving the carriage said, noticing the Daimyo's Son coming out, and quickly tried to slow down.

"It's fine." The Daimyo's Son looked much thinner, and his originally fair skin had taken on a healthy, sun-kissed tan. He held onto the carriage, which the Samurai had rebuilt, and gazed at the Capital in the distance with a complex expression.

"Lin Ke Jonin, your mission ends once you deliver me there, right?"

"Yes," Lin Ke replied from the top of the carriage. "Once we deliver you to the Capital, everything that happens next is none of our concern."

The Daimyo's Son smiled, then said helplessly, "If I were willing to pay—"

"How much money can you offer?" Lin Ke, noticing the faint gazes around them, began sensing the nearby Chakra. "If we're to believe those ninja from before, we might be facing a new country and the New Daimyo of that country. I have no problem taking money for services, but the village..."

Thirteen Chakra signatures were detected, and there were likely more, but without Chakra being actively channeled, it was impossible to determine the exact situation.

"I see," the Daimyo's Son nodded, sighing. "I understand."

In truth, he had regretted setting out again. He had impulsively rushed over, and it would be a great loss if he died.

He had wanted to turn back midway, but faced with the respectful gazes of the three Samurai guarding him, he gritted his teeth and persevered, thinking that since Konoha might use him to interfere in the country's politics, they would definitely protect his safety.

Moreover, he had learned from the familiar middle-aged ninja that his entire family had been assassinated by Konoha ninja. Even if he fled the Land of Rivers with the hundreds of thousands of Ryo he had...

Money was important, but not that important.

Lin Ke didn't have time to worry about the Daimyo's Son's conflicted feelings. He remained vigilant, knowing that even if the ninja and Samurai of small countries were terrible, he had to be careful of being worn down in their territory.

The armies of the Naruto World were completely different from the ancient Japanese armies of Earth. Here, it was common to see soldiers fighting to the death, with strangely high morale.

Most ninja and Samurai had a concept of valuing life lightly, neither fearing killing nor thinking much of death.

Moreover, the battlefield was different from ordinary ninja battles. When multiple ninja released a Ninjutsu simultaneously, the power would increase exponentially. If they couldn't release a Ninjutsu of the same scale for defense, the consequences would be dire.

It should be known that the Ninjutsu released by ninja together could have a visual impact even in the great melee of the Fourth Shinobi World War in the later stages of the manga.

What's more, there were things like Exploding Tags that could easily bridge the gap. With his physical abilities, being hit by an Exploding Tag at close range would cause significant injuries, and he didn't want to test how much damage his Clone Jutsu could negate.

Not only him, but even his three subordinates tensed up after noticing the increasing number of people nearby.

As the group arrived at the Capital gate, a group of people came out to greet them. The old man at the head knelt in front of the carriage upon seeing them. "Your Highness."

The Daimyo's Son clearly recognized him and jumped off the carriage—

This guy couldn't even get off the carriage without stepping on someone or being helped at the beginning.

The two spoke quietly for a while, and the old man burst into tears on the spot, looking full of guilt and sorrow. He patted the old man's back and comforted him with a few words.

Before long, the Daimyo's Son walked over, his expression somewhat relieved. "The Land of Rivers has indeed fallen. The Rebels and the New Daimyo have decided to rename the country the Land of Valleys."

"The New Daimyo wants to invite everyone to the Celebration in three days..."

At this point, having returned to the Capital, he didn't have to worry about dying. In order to quickly unify the country, the Rebels had accepted many of the Land of Rivers Daimyo's former retainers. As the last descendant of the previous lord, they would never openly let him die in the Capital.

It seemed that those ninja from before were the only means the New Daimyo could use.

So, no matter how much he struggled, a strong military was still essential. Even if the Rebels unified this small country, they still couldn't resolve the hidden dangers, and they couldn't do anything about a Special Jonin that Konoha Village casually sent.

Did they really dare to openly offend the Land of Fire? Probably not.

"Forget about participating in the Celebration." Lin Ke declined the invitation, then said to his three subordinates, "We'll rest for one night, and tomorrow we'll prepare to return."

It wasn't that he didn't want to leave immediately today, but after traveling continuously for so long, they needed to rest properly. Otherwise, they might be in danger if they encountered Orochimaru on the way back.

The Daimyo's Son didn't insist. He seemed to know that his restoration was hopeless, and his expression was much more relaxed.

The group followed the carriage into the city.

The interior of the Capital was much more normal. Apart from the slightly oppressive atmosphere due to the occasional groups of Samurai passing through, it was generally a normal city, with telephone poles along the streets, paved asphalt roads, crowds of people walking along the streets, and the occasional shops and vending machines.

Everything was operating normally. You couldn't tell that the place had just experienced a war. The residents were living normal lives, and the Rebels hadn't committed any crimes.

Overall, apart from the somewhat chaotic city layout, the difference from Konoha Village wasn't too great.

After all, the Land of Rivers was very rich in resources, and the country had money, but unfortunately, it wasn't a good thing for a small country to have money.

Lin Ke and his group quickly parted ways with the Daimyo's Son. Under the surveillance of ninjas in the shadows, they casually found a restaurant to eat a meal. The Land of Rivers produced a lot of rice, and the taste was quite good.

After eating, they stayed at a nearby hotel to rest and prepare to return to the village tomorrow.

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