BSNW 053 Journey Starts
Itachi woke up to find Jun and Kakashi lying down beside him on the ground. Sun was setting by then , dying the sky in a fierce shade of reddish-orange. Itachi took a deep breath to relax when he finally realized he was in the real world and not a Genjutsu. He lied back for a while before muttering "They really are a powerful Genjutsu user tribe, the Kuramas. Their prowess can match the strongest of the Uchiha legends."
"You don't know the half of it." Kakashi whispered "There are rumors that the Kurama Heir are chosen for their special bloodlines. But Yakumo has surpassed all her predecessors in talent. Her bloodline is the strongest ever seen in her tribe. Not just that, the scariest thing is, her power enables her to make her illusions to reality under certain circumstances."
"That's why she is assigned on the team with me ." Jun explained "My Genjutsu immunity is a perfect counter for her. Hokage wants me to keep an eye on her while giving her a chance to be a real Shinobi. Are you okay Itachi?"
"Hmm .. ya .. fine mostly. Her Genjutsu was so real that I lost myself in it almost , and maybe would have completely forgot myself if something didn't awake within me." Itachi replied.
"I'll say" Jun exclaimed "The Flames were really terrifying."
"Itachi you should talk about it to Fugaku sama before we leave tomorrow. I have a feeling he would have a lot to tell you about it." Kakashi told him.
"Sure , but I have to meet someone else before that . I will be leaving first guys , will meet you tomorrow early morning at 6 at the gate as planned." Itachi said as he disappeared with a Flicker.
"Oh ya , that reminds me" Jun exclaimed and took out a scroll and showed it Kakashi. "Itachi and I found it in Training ground for storing Mutated Chakra Beasts when we were testing Jutsu. The thing is, while I am sure its a speed enhancing Jutsu, with Flying Thunder God being in my arsenal I don't need it. I would like it if you could look through it and teach to the others if they are suited for it . I am sure it could be a trump card."
"Alright, I will see to it" Kakashi said as he ran his eyes on its title "Inaba Rabbit Jutsu …."
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The Next day at six p.m. 5 people were assembled outside in travel gear, along with a horde of people who came to see them off. Kakashi looked at the audience with his eyes twitching. Jun could barely stop himself from laughing at Kakashi's expression.
"I can understand why Nara-San is here with family, I will even make allowance for Fugaku-sama for being here for Itachi, But why are you here Hiashi-sama?" Kakashi as in a forced calm voice.
"Well Naruto brought Hinata to see off Jun along with his friends and I just got worried ." Hiashi said , calm as ever while shooting a glare to Fugaku who responded in the same.
Kakashi sighed while clutching his head with one hand. Then he glared at Naruto who responded with his ever present wide grin, Hinata by his side gave a small shy smile. Sasuke , Sakura , Ino , Choji and Shikamaru had surrounded Jun and were barraging him with questions, increasing the already present chaos.
Finally an hour later everything calmed down as the audience left and Kakashi's team left the village with well wishes of their audience.
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They travelled with moderate speed as that was the most Yakumo could handle. Her stamina would be at max comparable to a freshly graduated Genin. While they travelled , Jun accelerated to come beside Itachi so that they could talk.
"So where did you go yesterday ?"
"Ahem .. umm .. as I said yesterday, I had to meet someone about something. Anyway , leaving that aside , where are we going now?" Itachi changed
"Hmmm… anyway . We will be going to the Land of Hot Springs first . According to the notes Master Hinoki left us, one of the guardians of the 'Mirrors Of Hope' as they are called was an expert from the 'Hidden Hot Springs Village' initialy and is theorized to have a safe spot there which would definitely be our first bet to find the Second Mirror."
"Second ? .. This is the first mirror we have been tasked to find isn't it?" Yakumo asked while joining in their conversation.
"No , the first mirror is the one that Master Hinoki had in his possession and gave it to us. I forgot to mention that he was one of the five guardians of the mirrors. So we just need to find the supposed place. According to Master, his friend used to call it ' The Sulfurous Valley' ."
"So we need to first figure out where is this place and then find wherever the Mirror is hidden. No problem at all!" Yakumo said sarcastically.
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They travelled for a week and a half before finally reaching the Land of Hot Springs. Though it was a bit difficult for Kurama, she didn't let off and kept pushing her limits so as to not be a burden on the rest of the group. After a half day of journey, they reached their first settlement in the Land of Hot Springs, a small village called the Bamboo Village because of most of its housing being made from Bamboo.