It was strangely eerie.
Not long after 'Fishcake' disembarked, the sky cleared up again.
The small boat carrying Naruto and Karin gradually stabilized.
However, after the earlier storm, their course had already drifted far off track.
By the time Naruto and Karin woke up the next day and spotted land, they only realized they had gone the wrong way after hearing the locals greet them with, 'Welcome to the Land of Hot Water'.
This is the wrong direction. The Land of Whirlpools is even further south.
The Land of Hot Water is a country located on an island northeast of the Land of Fire, and was a nation with little notable presence.
Currently, its only official armed force was Yugakure.
But after its national power declined and it was influenced by pacifist ideologies, Yugakure had shifted from a 'combat-focused Ninja Village' to a 'tourist destination'.
Coupled with the Daimyo further cutting military funding, the country's defensive capabilities had dwindled significantly.
However, they weren't too worried.
After all, since shedding its fangs, this nation had gradually distanced itself from war. The conflicts between the great Ninja Villages rarely affected them, so they simply focused on developing their tourism industry.
Their hot springs were considered the finest in the entire Ninja World, attracting many Ninjas from different countries for vacations.
This was evident when Naruto and Karin, shortly after arriving on the island, were enthusiastically led by a friendly guide to experience all sorts of novel services.
Of course, with the presence of Karin, a minor, the guide wisely avoided introducing certain… more adult-oriented entertainment options.
By evening, the guide had already clocked out, and Naruto and Karin, who are now dressed in yukata, strolled casually down the street.
From the back, they didn't look like siblings… more like father and daughter?
Whether it was the hot springs or the local cuisine, everything was a first-time experience for Karin.
Unconsciously, her smile grew brighter.
As for Naruto?
Well, they were already here.
So he felt they might as well take a day or two to rest before setting off again.
The Land of Whirlpools is right there and it wasn't going anywhere.
As for the mastermind behind the Nine-Tails Rampage that Minato had mentioned...
To be honest, aside from knowing the culprit had a Sharingan, Naruto had no other leads.
He couldn't even confirm whether the person was a surviving member of the Uchiha Clan.
After all, that old bastard Danzo had transplanted plenty of Sharingan, so who was to say others hadn't done the same?
'Maybe... Uchiha Itachi would know something?'
Silently jotting down Itachi's name in his mental notebook, Naruto led Karin, who had just finished exploring an entire street, into the inn they had booked.
…Of course, they booked two separate rooms.
Though the technological level in the Ninja World was noticeably lower than in the One Piece World, the service industry was just as impressive.
At the very least, the inn Naruto had chosen had excellent service, and each room came with a small private hot spring bath.
After spending a day and night at sea and wandering the streets of the Land of Hot Water, what could be more relaxing than soaking in a hot spring?
As the hot spring water rose past his chest, Naruto nearly dozed off from sheer comfort.
"Ah…!"
At this moment, Karin's scream suddenly came from the other side of the wall.
"What's wrong, Karin?"
Naruto was gentlemanly enough not to immediately use his Observation Haki to peek at the girl bathing.
Of course, if she didn't respond, he'd vault over the wall in an instant.
"No...it's okay... Naruto-san, I just sprained my ankle..."
Karin's voice came from the other side, at least it didn't sound like anything serious.
Naruto thought for a moment and dialed down the precision limit of his Observation Haki perception.
After confirming that the adjacent room only had Karin inside and that she wasn't being held hostage by anyone, he finally relaxed.
"Alright, be careful then. Don't slip when you get into the hot spring."
Next door, Karin gazed at the steaming bath with a melancholic expression, then sighed deeply as she glanced at the clothes she had just changed out of.
'It looked like I wouldn't be able to enjoy the hot spring today.'
It seemed the young girl had indeed entered adolescence, carrying worries that the rough-and-tumble man next door couldn't quite relate to.
"Naruto-san, I need to go out and buy something. Please go ahead and enjoy the bath."
The supplies they had prepared earlier didn't include certain necessities, so Karin had no choice but to make a trip outside.
If the Ninja World already had vending machines, then products of that area certainly existed as well.
This could only be blamed on Naruto, who had spent most of his years traveling alone, lacking experience in journeying with women.
"Oh, sure. Be careful out there."
On the other side, Karin quickly dressed again and left the inn.
The inn wasn't particularly close to the night market, as it was designed to minimize noise disturbance for its guests.
The shopping trip itself went smoothly, but as Karin made her way back, she sensed something amiss.
Though she hadn't fully mastered the Mind's Eye of the Kagura, Karin's innate sensitivity to Chakra and malicious intent had significantly improved.
Because of this, she could now clearly detect several hidden presences lurking in the shadows, their Chakra sources radiating waves of hostility.
'More bounty hunters?'
This was Karin's first thought.
In truth, even before setting sail, she and Naruto had already faced numerous assassination attempts.
While many of them were as incompetent as the first few they'd encountered, there had indeed been a handful of genuinely skilled individuals.
At least when facing them, Karin, who had just been taught by Naruto for a few days, stood no chance at all.
But Karin remembered every word Naruto had told her.
'If you encounter a threat you can't handle, immediately make a commotion. Not only will it make the enemy hesitate, but it'll also signal your allies.'
'Though the inn was still quite far from here.'
Karin maintained her composure but gradually slowed her pace.
The hostile presences in the darkness seemed to notice this as well and began creeping closer.
Karin observed this development, her nerves tightening.
Though Naruto had been teaching her self-defense techniques over the past few days, this was her first time facing danger alone.
As she walked slowly, she discreetly slipped her hand into her ninja tool pouch, using the wide sleeves of her yukata to mask the movement.
Then, once the figures closed in to a certain range, she suddenly whipped out its contents and flung them outward.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Several kunai shot through the air.
However, due to lack of training, Karin's aim was poor, and the kunai barely embedded themselves into the ground in front of the enemies.
"Move now! She's spotted us! Don't let the sacrifice escape!"
The leader, who was initially startled by Karin's sudden action, broke into a vicious grin when he saw how ineffective her attack was.
'Such a pure girl… She is perfect for offering to the Jashin!'
But before they could act further, a faint hiss sounded beneath their feet.
When they looked down, they saw the explosive tags tied to the ends of the kunai.