"Learn from the Konoha ninja who fought Hanzo today." Yahiko said firmly to Haruki and Nagato.
"Konoha ninja…"
Nagato was startled. Subconsciously, he recalled the Konoha ninja who had killed his parents.
Nagato immediately shook his head, looking at Yahiko with fear. "No! Konoha ninjas will kill us."
"No, they won't!" Yahiko denied with a burst of courage.
"They have the strength to fight Hanzo, their power must be terrifyingly great."
Even now, the recent battlefield was still replaying in Yahiko's mind.
"I hate Hanzo."
Yahiko frowned at the thought of Hanzo, his eyes revealing deep disgust.
"He is the one who turned Amegakure into such a battlefield."
"In any case, I want to become the student of a strong person."
Yahiko turned firmly, looking towards the direction of the previous mountain hollow. He was clearly determined, regardless of anything. He was no longer listening to anyone's advice.
"I'm going to chase those people." Yahiko looked at the direction they had left, his eyes gleaming with light.
Seeing Yahiko's resolute attitude, Nagato said nothing and remained silent. Haruki patted Nagato's shoulder comfortingly.
Konan asked worriedly, "Even if we catch up to the Konoha ninjas, what if they get killed?"
"Then we'll go find the person who killed them." Yahiko continued.
"In any case, I've made up my mind." Yahiko clenched his fist.
Yahiko looked at Haruki beside him and asked, "Haruki, what do you think? Are you content to live like this your whole life?"
Haruki: "…"
Was he already trying to appeal to his values?
Haruki shook his head as Yahiko wished. Of course, he wasn't content. He wanted to sleep in a big bed, live in a big house, and eat big meals. And have powerful strength. Powerful enough that there would never be any threat.
Seeing Haruki's reaction, Yahiko's face lit up with joy. It seemed Haruki thought the same as him.
"Then let's go find the Konoha ninjas." Yahiko said excitedly.
Haruki nodded. Finding one more person would earn a little more affection value.
For Rika to grow up healthy, he was willing to travel over mountains and rivers to find Jiraiya.
He would even go find Hanzo. Let alone Jiraiya and the others.
Without sufficiently strong power, it was safer to find Jiraiya than Hanzo.
Although Nagato and Konan were worried about the dangers of the journey, they still unhesitatingly chose to follow behind Yahiko and Haruki.
They searched for traces of the Konoha Sannin. But when they reached the mountain hollow where the battle had taken place, there was no one left.
The light in Yahiko's eyes suddenly dimmed. He lowered his head somewhat dejectedly, pressing his lips together tightly.
Nagato and Konan both looked at Yahiko worriedly.
Haruki knew that Nagato and the others would inevitably encounter Jiraiya and the others, so he reached out and patted Yahiko's shoulder, comforting him, "Let's find a place to rest tonight, and then look for them tomorrow. Amegakure is only so big, we'll definitely find them."
The undisguised disappointment on Yahiko's face faded slightly, and he regained a little energy.
When Yahiko turned and saw the fatigue on Haruki, Nagato, and Konan's faces, he nodded guiltily. "Okay."
They continued to walk deeper into the mountain hollow. There was a higher possibility of finding a cave for them to spend the night here.
After walking for an unknown distance, they saw an entrance to a cave ahead.
"We can spend the night in that cave tonight." Konan pointed to the nearby cave, a surprised smile on her face.
Haruki looked up at the night sky, it was deeply dark, and they indeed couldn't continue, otherwise, they would easily encounter wild beasts.
Haruki and the others walked towards the cave. The cave before them was larger and deeper than all the caves they had stayed in before.
After entering, no light could be seen at all. It was almost completely dark.
Yahiko's fire-starting skills were great. In a short while, white smoke rose from the wood under his hand, and the flame grew larger and larger, gradually illuminating their pupils. A warm bonfire rose.
Haruki and the others sat around the fire, gnawing on bread. The firelight reddened their faces.
At the same time.
Dozens of meters away, on the other side of the cave.
Jiraiya and the two others leaned against the stone wall.
Jiraiya was eating the biscuits in his hand.
Tsunade was healing him.
Orochimaru stood by, watching them, and said, "The situation should be stable for a while."
Tsunade gritted her teeth, her face showing humiliation. "I don't want the title that guy gave us at all."
Jiraiya's lips curved slightly, and he said indifferently, "Regardless of whether this title is humiliating or not, at least it can pause the war for a period."
Tsunade glared at Jiraiya.
Although they hadn't defeated Hanzo, they had at least shown Konoha's power, allowing Konoha time to breathe.
Suddenly, Orochimaru's gaze sharply shot into the darkness ahead. A kunai slid from his sleeve to his palm.
The undisguised footsteps in the darkness made alertness appear in the eyes of Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Orochimaru.
A small figure gradually emerged from the darkness, revealing himself to Jiraiya and the others.
Haruki looked at the Sannin before him and sighed, fate was destined to push Nagato and the others before Jiraiya.
Soon after entering the cave, Haruki and the others heard voices. Haruki had Yahiko and the others hide in the shadows, and he came alone to check the situation.
The reason he dared to do this was because he knew there was an eighty percent chance that the people here were Jiraiya and the others.
Seeing it was a child, Jiraiya's tense face softened.
Haruki slowly walked towards Jiraiya and the others.
Tsunade frowned, just about to sharply warn him not to come closer, when she was choked by the bread that appeared before her.
Haruki handed her the bread in his hand. Tsunade was startled, her gaze fixed on the bread in the child's hand.
A hint of surprise flashed in Jiraiya's eyes.
Tsunade didn't take it, so Haruki kept holding out the bread. Until the bread in his hand was taken by another hand.
Jiraiya took the bread, and quickly took a bite. The bread was dry and hard, but he knew that for this child, it was probably rare dry rations.
"Jiraiya!" Tsunade frowned, looking at Jiraiya with some reproach.
What if the bread was poisoned?
Tsunade kept a close eye, constantly observing Jiraiya's condition.
Seeing that Jiraiya had eaten half the bread without any adverse reactions, she subtly breathed a sigh of relief, her peripheral vision falling on the child.
Jiraiya handed the biscuits from his embrace to Haruki.
Haruki took them and shouted behind him, "Yahiko, Nagato, Konan, you can come out now, they won't hurt us."
Tsunade and Jiraiya wouldn't, but Orochimaru was hard to say.
Orochimaru's logical thinking should be the same as the ninja Haruki encountered when he first transmigrated.
Believing that killing them was ending their suffering.
However, with Jiraiya and Tsunade present, Orochimaru wouldn't kill them.
Hearing Haruki's words, Yahiko and the others immediately ran out, standing beside Haruki, looking at the biscuits in his hand.
Compared to dry bread, sandwiched biscuits were more to a child's taste.
Haruki divided the biscuits among them, each took a piece and chewed it in small bites.
Pairs of big eyes curiously stared at Jiraiya and the others.
"They're all still children." Jiraiya looked at them gently.
"Don't let your guard down." Orochimaru reminded Jiraiya.
"Even little mice are part of Amegakure." Orochimaru's emotionless gaze fell on Haruki and the others.
"Where are your parents?"
Jiraiya looked at Haruki and the others, not seeing any adults, and asked curiously.
"They were killed by ninjas in this war."
Yahiko stopped chewing. He stared intently at Jiraiya and the two others, his calm reply sounding incredibly sharp.
Jiraiya and Tsunade were silent for a moment.