Chapter 30 – Departure
At last, the day of departure arrived.
Nan made his way to the front gates of Konoha, just as previously agreed. When he arrived, he found that Anko and Hayate had already gotten there ahead of him.
This was Nan's first time leaving the village, and the first time he saw the Konoha gates in person. Compared to the anime, the gates looked much newer—understandable, considering the story was set more than a decade earlier.
What left Nan speechless was spotting the two gatekeepers: Izumo Kamizuki and Kotetsu Hagane.
"These two are already on gate duty even at this point in time?" Nan thought, slightly amused.
Since Orochimaru hadn't arrived yet, Nan struck up a conversation with his teammates.
He quickly noticed that the two seemed a bit on edge.
Given that they'd just graduated and were about to head into a war zone, their nervousness wasn't surprising.
Nan approached and asked gently,
"You two nervous? There's really no need to be."
"Our squad leader, Lord Orochimaru, is a legendary shinobi. As long as he's with us, I'm sure we'll be just fine.
Look at me—I'm not nervous at all."
Hearing Nan speak with such confidence, Anko and Hayate visibly relaxed.
What they didn't know was that Nan was only trying to reassure them.
The battlefield was unpredictable. Anything could happen.
Even someone as powerful as Orochimaru couldn't guarantee everyone's safety.
Take his former student Nawaki, for example—
He was ambushed and killed before Orochimaru could even react.
Nan did have confidence in Anko and Hayate—at least based on the original timeline.
Anko was supposed to live all the way into the Boruto era.
Hayate survived until the early part of Naruto, where he was eventually killed by Baki, a jōnin of the Hidden Sand.
But that was in the original series.
Now, with Nan's presence altering the timeline, he wasn't so sure if Anko and Hayate would still survive.
Still, Nan's words helped ease their nerves.
Hayate, being a guy, wasn't too bad. But Anko had clearly been more tense.
Because of her trust in Orochimaru, and Nan's calm demeanor, she finally relaxed and gave Nan a grateful smile.
"Thanks for the encouragement, Nan. I really do feel better now.
And besides, you're amazing—if anything really dangerous happens, you'll protect us too, right?"
Nan smiled confidently.
"Of course! If it comes to that, I'll risk my life to protect you both!"
He declared it with complete certainty.
…Although, in his heart, he quietly added:
"Within the limits of what I can handle, that is…"
"If we run into some crazy strong enemy I can't deal with, well...
you two might be on your own.
I'm not planning to sacrifice myself for anyone else."
Still, Anko and Hayate were genuinely moved by Nan's words.
To them, Nan wasn't just a prodigious genius; he was also a loyal and dependable comrade.
Listening to their praise, Nan almost couldn't hold back a smug grin.
"They really think I'm that good?"
"Well, that's the idea—make them trust me more.
It'll make things easier down the line… especially for the plans I can't speak of yet."
The three continued chatting for a while—talking about their future dreams, ambitions, and what they hoped to accomplish as shinobi.
Not long after, Orochimaru arrived.
"Since everyone's here… let's move out," Orochimaru ordered coldly.
Without wasting any time, the four of them set off—heading straight for the Wind Country front lines.
Orochimaru had traveled back to Konoha alone, but now that he was returning with three others, the risks had changed.
He turned to Nan, Anko, and Hayate with a stern warning.
"Don't let your guard down."
"We may not have reached the battlefield yet, but my presence alone makes us a target.
It's possible the Wind Country has already learned of my movements and may have dispatched a squad to assassinate me."
Orochimaru had already taken this possibility into account when he returned to the village earlier.
That's why he hadn't brought any subordinates or guards—moving alone reduced the risk of detection.
And even if he had been discovered, escaping solo would've been far easier.
But now, with three fresh genin in tow, things were different.
If they were ambushed by a Hidden Sand team, he might not be able to protect them all.
He looked especially seriously at Anko and Hayate—the two weaker ones.
They would be in serious danger if a fight broke out.
"The enemy's main focus will be me," he said,
"so Nan won't be under as much pressure.
If possible, Nan, help Anko and Hayate if things get dicey."
Hearing that, Anko and Hayate began to tense up again.
Nan quickly jumped in with a smile, trying to lighten the mood.
"Come on—didn't Orochimaru-sensei make it back safely all on his own last time?
There's no guarantee we'll run into an ambush."
"He's just warning us to stay alert, that's all."
Nan knew perfectly well—Orochimaru wasn't just trying to scare them with empty words.
If the Hidden Sand Village found out that Orochimaru had left Konoha with only three freshly graduated genin in tow,
they definitely wouldn't pass up such a golden opportunity to launch an ambush.
Of course, Orochimaru was far from weak.
Pulling off a successful ambush on someone of his caliber wouldn't be easy.
And then there was Nan—someone whose strength rivaled even the jōnin class.
Even if an ambush was laid, the enemy's attention would be focused almost entirely on Orochimaru.
No one would pay any mind to a "harmless" rookie fresh out of the academy.
"If anyone dares to ambush us…"
"I'll be sure to give them a surprise they won't forget."
Still, Nan wasn't in a hurry to expose his true strength to the Sand.
If the Hidden Sand discovered how powerful he really was, his time on the Wind Country front lines would be anything but peaceful.
Nan's original plan had been to position himself as a medical ninja—just someone tagging along, staying under the radar.
He hoped to quietly blend into the chaos of war, while keeping an eye out for potential targets suitable for his Formless Reincarnation technique.
That forbidden dōjutsu of his could only be used once every few years.
And with the story nearing its final act, every use was precious—each one could be the last.
He'd spent the last six months inside the village, where everyone was technically an ally.
There was no chance of using that kind of technique there.
The battlefield, however—that was a different story.
That was where real opportunities would emerge.
If he drew too much attention too soon, it would only restrict his future actions.
So for now, Nan could only hope their journey to the front lines would remain uneventful.
---
As luck would have it, the Hidden Sand didn't seem to have intercepted any intel about Orochimaru's movements.
Their journey was smooth—no ambushes, no enemy squads.
Instead, they ran into a few scattered low-level bandits.
In times of war, ordinary civilians often suffered the most.
Some rogue ninja took advantage of the chaos, abandoning their loyalties to become thieves and raiders.
With the great nations too busy fighting each other to maintain order, lawlessness was rampant.
Most of these vagabond ninjas barely knew a few jutsu and lacked any real training.
They weren't even on par with a low-ranking genin from one of the major villages.
Their only targets were helpless civilians—
Which was why they were incredibly unfortunate to have crossed paths with Orochimaru's squad.
Orochimaru didn't even lift a finger.
He told Nan, Anko, and Hayate to handle them—
treating it as a chance to get some practical battle experience before facing real enemies.
Nan felt absolutely no pressure dealing with these kinds of opponents.
In fact, he didn't even bother using ninjutsu or genjutsu.
Just taijutsu alone was more than enough to wipe the floor with them.
But rather than showing off, he deliberately stepped back and let Anko and Hayate take the lead.
He wanted to give them a chance to grow.
---
It was their first real battle.
At first, Anko and Hayate were clearly nervous.
They made a few clumsy mistakes and left themselves open, almost getting injured—
—but Nan was always watching closely and intervened just in time to keep them safe.
Before long, they began to settle into the rhythm of battle.
Against these third-rate opponents, they no longer needed Nan's help at all.
Orochimaru observed their progress with clear satisfaction.
Truth be told, he had originally intended for this encounter to test Nan.
He'd been concerned—Nan might be a genius, but this was still his first time leaving the village, his first real fight.
Orochimaru had expected hesitation, or at least a hint of inexperience.
Instead, Nan was fast, ruthless, and decisive.
He didn't hesitate for even a second when taking down enemies.
He handled himself like a veteran.
What's more, Nan seemed to be consciously helping his teammates improve.
He supported them, guided them, and gave them room to grow.
Orochimaru found himself quietly astonished.
"This boy… he's only six years old."
"But in so many ways, he's already beyond his peers—and even some adults."
"He just keeps surprising me."
---
With no major incidents along the way, the group of four finally arrived at their destination:
the Konoha military outpost on the front lines of the Wind Country.
They had made it safely to the battlefield.