Chapter 197: Paralysis Grass
Masahiko led the three children out of the Hokage Building. They didn't return to pack; they had long been prepared, so they headed straight for the Konoha main gate.
"Are you happy now? I originally wanted you to take a combat mission, but it's turned into a training trip," Masahiko said with a smile.
Although he said that, in his heart, he was thinking about how he might need to increase the difficulty for them again.
Kushina saw right through him. "I hope no accidents happen this time."
She grit her teeth as she emphasized the word "accidents."
Masahiko smiled and pretended not to hear.
At the Konoha gate, the group ran into Jiraiya, who looked fully packed and ready to go.
"What's up? Going out to gather material, Great Writer?"
Jiraiya nodded. "Are you... taking them on a mission?"
"Yeah. Before you finish and publish your novel, don't forget to let me know. As a senior writer, I can give you some pointers."
Jiraiya pursed his lips, clearly not trusting Masahiko's level of expertise, but eventually nodded and didn't refuse.
After a few simple words, Masahiko took the three young team members and took flight. The destination was too far; if they walked and took a boat, it would probably take more than half a month.
Although they would miss out on some of the fun of the journey, looking at the markings on the map Hiruzen gave him, Masahiko felt the island itself would be more interesting.
Just like that, Masahiko took the three of them across mountains and seas... In just half a day, they arrived at their destination: Benisu Island (Crimson State Island) in the south.
Although the ocean in the Naruto world wasn't huge, there were indeed many small islands. During their flight, the four of them passed several uninhabited islands.
"The two shipping routes from the Land of Whirlpools don't have many islands," Masahiko muttered, looking north.
Since they flew in with great fanfare, the ninjas gathering herbs on the island naturally noticed them. At that moment, four people approached rapidly.
"Who are you?" Upon getting close, the four looked vigilant because neither Masahiko nor the three squad members were wearing ninja forehead protectors.
The attire of these four was quite "fresh and refined." Not only did they wear forehead protectors with the character "Merchant" (商), but they also carried four baskets full of herbs on their backs. Surprisingly, each of them also had a... skateboard hanging from their bodies?
"A small country is a small country; they don't even recognize the dignified Masahiko Uzumaki." Masahiko sighed and signaled Kushina to step forward and negotiate.
"We come from Konoha Village and want to gather some herbs on the island." Kushina never had stage fright, whereas Masahiko's two disciples were a bit lacking in that department.
The four exchanged glances. The leader took the basket off his back. "What herbs do you need?"
As he spoke, he also took down the "skateboard" from his back. When he flipped it over, Masahiko took a look—it was actually an abacus.
"No wonder their forehead protectors have the character 'Merchant' on them. This is too..." Masahiko suddenly paused. The back of this abacus was flat, and the front was full of small rollers (beads). So...
The leader was waiting for a reply when his vision blurred, and the abacus was already in Masahiko's hands.
Masahiko placed the abacus flat on the ground and stepped on it. Sure enough, it could slide.
"What are you doing!" The four Merchant Ninjas looked vigilant and pulled kunai from their pockets.
"Nothing, I don't want to buy medicine anymore. How much for this skateboard?"
"..."
In the end, the money Hiruzen gave for medicine was used to buy four skateboards; Masahiko and the three kids each got one.
The four Merchant Ninjas looked at them as if they were fools. Masahiko didn't care. Hiruzen didn't give much money anyway, and he hadn't planned to just buy medicine and leave. There seemed to be several interesting places on the island he wanted to check out.
Looking at the four people opposite him, he said, "We're out of money. It shouldn't be a problem if we gather some herbs ourselves later, right?"
"Out of money..." The merchant ninjas didn't know how to feel. Clearly, they didn't have much money, yet they bought four useless abacuses.
"Please help yourselves, but please do not pull the herbs out by the roots."
Masahiko nodded. "I know. 'If you cut the grass without removing the roots, it grows again with the spring breeze,' right?"
A cold wind blew past, and the four Merchant Ninjas turned and left. Judging by how their abacus was taken without any reaction just now, Masahiko was obviously a very strong ninja. Moreover, looking back at it, his brain didn't seem quite right... Such people were not to be messed with.
As the four walked away, Masahiko looked back at his three team members, who were all staring blankly at the skateboards.
"What are you dazing off for?" Masahiko skated left, then skated right. "Step on the skateboards and follow me to gather herbs."
The two disciples were very obedient and stepped onto the skateboards. Kushina expressed that she never wanted to come out on a mission with Masahiko again...
However, the small arm couldn't twist the thick thigh. The four of them stepped on the skateboards and embarked on a "joyful" herb-gathering journey.
Actually, it wasn't joyful at all. Except for Konan, no one in the team knew how to identify herbs. Masahiko adopted the method of tasting with his mouth, and Nagato followed suit.
As a result, within half an hour, Nagato got a stomachache twice... He didn't have Masahiko's constitution.
Kushina naturally wouldn't be that naive. She stuck close to Konan, trying hard to learn how to identify herbs.
Masahiko ate too many herbs, and his expression became strange. Not because he was poisoned, but because...
Pharmacy LV1 (0/100)
"It's not 'Herb Identification'? If it's Pharmacy, am I going to steal the Akimichi clan's Soldier Pill business?" Masahiko shook his head and decided to put this skill aside for now.
While gathering herbs, the four moved deeper into the island and arrived at a cliff.
Just as Masahiko wanted to fly the three children over, he discovered a wooden bridge not far away.
"Built by those herb-gathering ninjas?"
Masahiko took a few steps onto the wooden bridge.
"Sensei, be careful!" Konan's shout came, making Masahiko freeze.
He looked left and right but saw no danger. Masahiko's face darkened. "Konan, you've actually learned to be naughty too..."
"It's not that, Sensei. What is wrapped around the ropes on the bridge should be Paralysis Grass."
"Paralysis Grass?" Masahiko was stunned. He had indeed heard of this thing; it was said to be able to paralyze the bodies of most ninjas.
Masahiko touched the rope with his right hand, and sure enough, a slight numbness was transmitted.
"Can it even affect me slightly?" Masahiko frowned, then suddenly had an idea.
"You three, put down the skateboards. Let's have a special training session."
The three had a bad premonition. Sure enough, Masahiko continued, "Try to use chakra to protect yourselves from the influence of the Paralysis Grass and cross this wooden bridge."
Saying that, Masahiko glanced down. "I won't help you. Although there is water below, I don't think anyone wants to fall in."
The three children initially refused, but how could they out-stubborn Masahiko? One by one, they stepped onto the bridge.
Although they didn't touch it directly, their bodies still stiffened. Fortunately, they had covered their bodies with a layer of chakra as protection beforehand, allowing them to walk step by stilted step toward the opposite bank.
Masahiko narrowed his eyes. "This Paralysis Grass looks like good stuff..."
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