After completing the two marks, Morkel's face turned slightly pale.
Bidding farewell to the two masters, Morkel turned to his companions.
Before he could speak, Ya puffed out his chest and declared confidently, "In the past, Morkel, you protected us and the village. Now it's our turn to protect you!"
Neji nodded, adding, "Don't worry, we've been honing our skills over the years..."
"Well, someone who has lived for thirty to fifty years should be able to catch up with you!"
Everyone burst into laughter at Neji's remark.
Xiao Li chuckled, "Neji, you don't usually joke, but today you actually made one."
Neji responded seriously, "I'm serious."
Xiao Li was momentarily speechless, pondering whether thirty to fifty years was a long or short time to catch up with Morkel.
After some light-hearted conversation, Morkel disappeared with Naruto, and the crowd at the village entrance gradually dispersed.
---
At a secluded pier in the Land of Thunder, Morkel and Naruto arrived at the Raikage's office.
The Raikage had arranged for Darui to lead them to this hidden ferry.
Darui explained, "To prevent the Akatsuki from discovering your whereabouts, the Raikage-sama arranged for you to depart from this small pier."
Naruto asked curiously, "Are you coming with us?"
Darui shook his head. "Do you see the small boat ahead? Once you're on board, someone will take you there. Lord Raikage has arranged everything."
"Where's Killer Bee? Isn't he coming with us?" Morkel inquired.
Darui smiled, "Lord Killer Bee left yesterday."
"Alright, it's time for you two to go. Have a safe trip."
After bidding farewell to Darui, Morkel and Naruto walked towards the indicated boat.
"There are so many ships here; this must be the secret base of the Raikage Village, right?" Naruto remarked casually.
Morkel looked around and shook his head. "It doesn't seem like that. It looks more like an ordinary small fishing village."
As they spoke, they boarded the boat.
As Darui had mentioned, an old boatman was waiting for them.
After exchanging glances, the boatman started the boat.
With the roar of the motor, the boat cut through the waves and moved forward slowly.
After sailing a short distance, Morkel noticed another small boat returning on the sea not far away.
Pointing at the boat, Morkel asked the boatman, "There seems to be no fish on the boat. Why are they returning?"
The boatman explained, "An unknown monster has appeared in the sea near the village recently. From the looks of them, they must have encountered it and retreated early."
Naruto was curious, "Monster? What does it look like? I've never heard of it before. Why did it suddenly appear?"
The boatman looked embarrassed. "It's not that sudden. The monster has been wandering in this sea for nearly twenty years. I only saw it once from a distance. All I know is that it has a huge fin on its back and a mouth as sharp as a sword."
As they conversed, the returning fishing boat approached.
A black-haired young man stepped out and warned, "Don't go forward. That creature is right ahead."
After saying that, he muttered to himself, "Damn it, one day I'll cut that thing into pieces!"
The boatman thanked him repeatedly, then turned to Morkel and Naruto apologetically.
"My lords, you've heard him. I'll change direction and go around the sea ahead."
Morkel waved his hand. "No need to go around. Just go straight. We're ninjas. Since we've met you, let's help you."
The boatman hesitated. "But..."
Morkel insisted, "It's okay. Just go over there."
The boatman, following the Raikage's specific instructions, was cautious.
Although Morkel offered to help, the old boatman insisted, "Forget it. With you two on board, we can't take risks. Let's go around."
Seeing the old man's stubbornness, Naruto said, "Why are you so..."
Before he could finish, Morkel pointed forward. "Look there."
Naruto looked in the direction Morkel pointed and saw a huge fish fin!
The fin above the water was over a meter high, indicating the massive size of the creature underwater.
The boatman panicked upon seeing it.
"Hold on tight, my lords! I'm going to speed up!"
Before he finished speaking, the boatman suddenly turned the bow of the boat, intending to speed up and escape.
Unfortunately, the boat's speed was no match for the fish in the water.
After just one turn, the giant fin had already passed the stern of the boat.
With a loud splash, a huge fish monster broke out of the water, rushing straight towards the boat!
Morkel examined the creature carefully and found it matched the boatman's description.
The mouth resembled a sword, giving it an evil appearance.
"It should be a swordfish, but it looks a bit unusual..." Morkel muttered.
He raised his right hand, and his five fingers instantly turned into wooden vines, entangling the huge swordfish that had leaped out of the water.
This fish monster was challenging for ordinary fishermen but was a piece of cake for Morkel's Wood Style.
In a flash, Morkel subdued the big fish.
The boatman's eyes widened in astonishment.
"Is this how a ninja operates?! It's amazing!"
Morkel didn't respond to the boatman but looked at the fish monster controlled by Wood Style in mid-air, narrowing his eyes.
He shouted, "Naruto, come and see. This fish seems to be a Summoning beast."
Naruto approached, scratching his head. "How did you know?"
Morkel explained, "Didn't you see the Summoning mark on its body?"
Naruto was puzzled. "What?"
Seeing Naruto's confusion, Morkel didn't elaborate further. He analyzed, "This big fish should be a Summoning beast of a certain ninja. Then the ninja died, and for some reason, it didn't return to its original place, so it stayed here..."
"Based on the time it appeared, it should have been during the Third Ninja World War..."
At this moment, the boatman interrupted, trembling, "Sir, why don't we deal with this fish first?"
Morkel responded, tightening the vines, instantly shredding the fish monster into pieces.
The boatman was filled with gratitude. "Sir, you are truly the one we've been looking for! Without you, we don't know how long we would have suffered from this monster!"
Morkel waved his hand. "It's a small matter."
Then he whispered, "It's just a Summoning beast left over from the Ninja World War, and it caused chaos in this sea area for decades..."
Naruto sighed, "Yes, I hope the day when there is no more war in the world will come soon."
The boatman added, "If the world could be unified, countries would disappear from war!"
---
Late at night, the small boat floated quietly.
The sound of waves seemed endless, accompanied by the gentle rocking of the boat.
Morkel gave up sleeping, got up from the cabin, and walked onto the deck.
On the deck, Naruto was also awake, leaning on the bow, lost in thought.
Naruto was always straightforward and honest, sharing any unhappiness with Morkel and rarely feeling sad alone.
Seeing Naruto like this, Morkel couldn't help but feel curious.
He quietly walked behind Naruto and gently patted his shoulder. "Hey, what are you thinking about?"
Naruto recognized Morkel's voice and, without turning his head, said, "Morkel, war is too cruel. Do you think our friends will die on the battlefield like the master who summoned the fish monster?"
Morkel nodded. "It's very likely. War is always accompanied by sacrifice."
Naruto sighed, "But they died for us."
Morkel found it difficult to respond. Although it made some sense, it wasn't entirely correct.
"Rather than saying it's for you and me, it's more about doing it for the peace of the entire ninja world," Morkel responded.
Naruto nodded, acknowledging Morkel's statement.
The night wind brought a chill, and even Morkel felt a bit cold.
"Go back to sleep and don't think too much."
Morkel then took out a fishing rod from the sealed scroll.
Naruto looked helpless. "You told me to go to sleep, but you started fishing?"
Morkel spread his hands. "I can't sleep. I'm finding something to do to kill time."
Naruto: "Give me one too..."
Thus, the two sat side by side at the bow, occasionally swinging their fishing rods.
When Naruto felt sleepy, the sky was already slightly bright.
He yawned and looked at the small bucket behind him, which contained only a few small fish.
Then he turned to look at Morkel's bucket.
Morkel's bucket was full of colorful fish of various sizes, and there was even a half-man-tall crab lying next to it!
Naruto thought: We fished together; how come you caught so much?
"What's going on with this crab?" Naruto asked, confused.
Morkel explained, "We caught some fish and can steam them today!"
After a while, the sky remained gray.
Morkel put away his fishing rod and looked up at the dark clouds in the sky. "A storm is coming."
As soon as the words fell, the rain poured down, and the wind blew hard on the sea!
The boat pitched violently in the rough sea. The captain said in panic, "We clearly asked a weather expert before we went out to sea. Why did the wind suddenly pick up? It looks like it won't stop for a while. I'm afraid you two will be late for your destination."
Naruto consoled him, "The weather at sea is unpredictable. Long live understanding."
As soon as Naruto finished his words, Morkel discovered a huge wave several tens of meters high appeared in front of him!
---
Half a day later, Morkel and others appeared