The border of the Water Country.
"Ah, when can we go back to the village? It's been almost three months, it's our turn now."
A short Mist Village Chunin looked at the coast not far away and complained to his companions.
"Come on, you know what time it is now. Forget about going back to the village. We might be sent to fight Konoha soon. Be content."
This Chunin was as tall and thin as a bamboo pole. He patted his companion's shoulder in comfort.
"Indeed, I heard that Lord Yagura suffered a great loss when he led his troops to fight against Konoha a few days ago, and his ninja sword was even stolen by the enemy."
"Well, we're just chatting to kill time. What's going on on the front lines has nothing to do with us."
The short Mist Ninja nodded in agreement and was about to say something when they heard a rustling sound coming from the grass not far away. The two of them became alert instantly.
"Who! Come out!"
The tall and thin Mist Ninja took out a kunai from his arms and shouted at the bushes.
"Quack!"
With a frog croak, a toad jumped out of the grass and jumped towards the two of them.
"Asshole, it turns out to be a toad!"
The two men were immediately furious. The short Mist Ninja stepped forward and kicked the toad. With a wail, the toad successfully turned into a meteor and flew inland.
"Okay, let's go. It's time to go back and eat."
The two figures gradually walked away, leaving only the sound of waves hitting the beach not far away.
In the jungle not far away, the toad that was kicked away by two people climbed up from the ground unharmed. When it saw that there was no one around, it slowly opened its mouth.
"Hiss, these two guys don't know how to care for small animals at all. I'm dizzy."
A slimy figure crawled out of the toad's mouth, looking around and complaining a few words. It was Ren who had sneaked into the Water Kingdom.
"Sorry, thank you for your hard work. Go back and rest."
Ren lowered his head and greeted the little toad somewhat embarrassedly. Then the little toad disappeared in the white mist in front of his confused gaze and returned to Myoboku Mountain.
"It seems..."
Ren listened to the sound of waves coming from not far away and the humid environment around her, and the corners of her mouth rose slightly.
Lurking, success!
"Let me see... the target town is over here."
Ren pulled out a map from her bosom. With the Hidden Mist Village as its center, it included all the surrounding towns and villages, large and small. In less than a moment, Ren found her first destination on the map.
"Okay, then... let's get started!"
Ren put the map away, figured out the direction, and then rushed forward.
After about half a day, he arrived at a small town. This was Imagawa Town, the town with the largest population and the most prosperous economy near the Kirigakure Village.
The streets are full of bustling crowds, and the wide avenues are lined with various shops, with hawking sounds heard everywhere.
"Delicious and tasty octopus balls, come and try them everyone! Little guest, would you like some?"
At this time, Ren had already changed into civilian clothes and was standing in front of the snack stand, watching with interest.
Since the Land of Water is rich in aquatic resources, its snacks are also unique. Ren bought a portion of octopus balls and ate while chatting with the boss.
"Boss, I want to ask you something. Do you know where the Fujiwara team is? I..."
Before Ren could finish, the boss spoke enthusiastically.
"Oh, I thought it was something else. The Fujiwara caravan is one of the largest commercial caravans in Imagawa Town. I heard they just brought back a batch of goods from Yunokuni to sell. They've been staying at the largest hotel in town for the past two days, but it looks like they'll be leaving soon. If you want to find them, you can go there. By the way..."
"Ahem, thank you, boss. I wish you a prosperous business."
Ren watched the boss, who was becoming increasingly engaged in conversation, quickly leave. He felt a bit amused as he left. This boss was such a chatterbox, if Ren hadn't interrupted him, he'd have kept her talking all day. But thanks to Ren, he had a pretty good understanding of the Fujiwara team's situation. It saved him a lot of trouble.
As Ren asked around, they soon arrived at the largest hotel in Imagawa Town, a three-story building. After walking in, Ren noticed that the area wasn't crowded, suggesting that her decision to come in the afternoon had been a good one.
"Hello, are you checking in?"
The receptionist at the front desk was a young man who was sitting in a chair in a daze. When he saw Ren, he immediately stood up and gave a standard smile.
"Oh, I'm here to see a friend. He's the head of the Fujiwara Chamber of Commerce. Please help me check it out. Thank you."
"Sir, we won't reveal our customers casually..."
After hearing this, the young man immediately rejected Ren in a righteous and stern manner, but before he could finish, a silver note appeared on the counter in front of him.
The former kept looking around and when he saw that no one was paying attention to him, he quickly grabbed the banknote and put it in his pocket, then spoke seriously.
"Since you're here to visit a friend, let me check it out for you."
After listening to this, the young man quickly took out a booklet from under the counter and began to read it. It didn't take long for him to get the result.
"306, this matter..."
"Don't worry, I really am his friend."
Before the young man finished speaking, Ren said with a smile.
"Okay, the stairs are over there, please."
After a while, Ren arrived at the third floor, then stopped in front of a door and raised his hand to knock on the wooden door.
"Come on, come on, who is it?"
A male voice echoed from the room, and soon the wooden door opened. A man with a large belly walked out, his eyes narrowed as he looked up and down at the uninvited guest.
"Who are you?"
Ren coughed lightly twice, took out something from his arms with his right hand and flashed it in front of the other person. Seeing the latter's expression change slightly, Ren said softly.
"I need a lot of Toriko VIP bath rolls. Boss, do you have any?"
The other person's expression immediately became enthusiastic, and he turned sideways to greet Ren.
"Yes, of course. Please come in, and we'll discuss it in detail."
When Ren entered the room, the latter immediately closed the door. Looking at the luxurious guest room in front of him, which was nearly 100 square meters, Ren couldn't help but sigh.
"Wow, business is so profitable."
"Haha, you're too kind. Let's talk about cooperation."
Seeing the latter's cautious expression, Ren couldn't help laughing, and then scratched his head casually.
"Don't be so careful, President Fujiwara. There are only four ninjas in this building. Apart from the receptionist on the first floor and the one in the rightmost guest room on the second floor, the rest are you and me."