(A.N: Woohoo! 300 chapters! I ’t believe how far we’ve e, and it’s all possible because of your support. Thank you, everyone! ^~^)

  ***

  "Looks like we have to go hunting now," Kaida said, notig the bear looking at his now much smaller portioedly.

  "Guah," the bear nodded his head vigorously.

  "Okay, the your portion first, and then we’ll go see what we find," Kaida said while eating his portion. "Kabuto, you give this to the others as well?" he tinued.

  The jonin wereing with them; they were busy guarding the perimeters. There was no way Jiraiya and Shisui would let their guard down, especially while eating and sleeping—the most vulnerable times of the day.

  "Sure," Kabuto replied.

  After finishing their food, Kaida and the bear stood up, ready to head toward the jungle.

  Smack

  “Ohat was that for?” Kaida asked, rubbing his head.

  "Here we are, w about our safety even when we’re together, and you want to go alone in the forest at night? How did you even pass the academy exam with that brain of yours?" Shisui asked.

  "I… I was going to ask you to apany us," Kaida said.

  "And when were you going to do that?"

  "Just now. Brother, let’s go." Kaida gave Shisui a cheeky smile.

  "You’re really taking everything too lightly. ’t he just eat jerky until we reach Konoha? There, he could eat anything he wants," Shisui said.

  ‘Why wouldn’t I take it lightly? Both you and Jiraiya-sensei are here—Jiraiya-sensei, who could go against Pain, and you, who had a run-on-sight order. If someone wants to attack us, a full battalion would have to mobilize, and even then, we could easily escape. I’m not worried at all, brother,’ Kaida thought, though he found Shisui’s logic reasonable. However...

  "Guah," the bear roared and looked at Shisui with beady eyes, almost on the verge of tears.

  "… Fine, but we’ll just searear our surroundings. If we ’t find anything oskirts, we’ll e back. I’ll accept no objes to that," Shisui said.

  "You’re the best, brother," Kaida said.

  Shisui uood what Kaida was thinking. There was no real dao them, but it didn’t hurt to be a little cautious.

  …

  After an hour, Kaida and Shisui came back, sitting on the bear's back.

  "You guys didn’t find anything?" Kabuto asked. Sihey’d been gone a while, it seemed uhey hadn’t found anything. Kaida just smiled and eled chakra into the ste seal. Suddenly, two deer and a moose appeared in front of Kabuto and Itachi.

  "You guys really went all out, huh?" Itachi said.

  "Yeah, since everyone’s going to eat, we had to get a little more."

  …

  Eating and talking, the journey tinued. As they shared food, the gap between guards and ninja grew smaller to the point they started eating and even drinking together, sharing some of their crazy experiences.

  During this time, Kaida and the group once again saw how poverty was draining the lives of civilians. They tried to fort themselves by helping these people as much as possible, though they k was just a temporary fix. After a while, things would return to how they were. But looking away was difficult, especially for Kaida and Kabuto, who were still sheltered pared to Itachi, who had seen much worse in war; in parison, these pces weren’t as bad.

  …

  After twelve days of tinuous travel, they finally reached the Fire Capital.

  "Sorry, you ’t bring that bear ihe captain of the gate guard squad said.

  "We’re with the Daimyo as well, and he’s pletely docile. He won’t hurt a fly as long as everyone leaves him alone."

  "That’s the problem, sir. There are too many nobles in the Fire Capital, and those guys… don’t know much restraint. We don’t want any invenience for them or for you guys, so please leave him outside. I promise we’ll take good care of him," the guard captain said.

  At his words, Kaida suddenly remembered some of the cliché plots from ese novels he’d read in his previous life, which often portrayed how aristocrats behaved when they had too much power.

  "Fine, I’ll stay with him here. You guys go ahead," Kaida said.

  "I’m staying too," Kabuto said.

  "Me too. There’s nothing to do inside anyway," Itachi said.

  "I’m sorry," the guard captain said.

  "There’s no need for that," Kaida said, smiling.

  "Fine, do some expl. We’ll e out as soon as the formalities are over," Shisui said, following the caravan inside.

  While they waited, Kaida and the group roamed the outskirts of the Fire Capital, where mostly the lower css, servants, and others lived. Even though their ditions were still better than other vilges they had passed, the differen living standards between the aristocrats and those oskirts was like day and night.

  Yet, there ea the area, evident in how the children pyed outside instead of w for food.

  Seeing a big bear, the children’s curiosity got the best of them, and they peeked at it from time to time.

  "He’s friendly. Do you want to py with him?" Kaida asked loudly. Hearing that, the children looked at each other before running toward the furry giant.

  After an hour, Jiraiya, Shisui, and the eight joniurned, having pleted all the formalities, only to find a crowd of children surrounding the bear and the three in.

  "What are you guys doing?" Jiraiya asked.

  "More magis?" one of the kids asked.

  "Yeah, go ask them to perform some triow," Kabuto said, visibly exhausted—more so than when he fought in the in exam.

  "We’re sorry; we would have loved to py with you guys, but we have to go back," Shisui said, seeing their expet gazes.

  "Him too?" asked one of the boys sitting on the bear.

  "Yeah."

  "Nooooooo!" came the collective shout from the children.

  "It’s the Daimyo’s order," Jiraiya said, not wanting to deal with it any longer. Like magic, the children all went away, albeit relutly. This just showed how much power the Daimyo had, especially in the Fire try.

  "You guys really fall into weird situations, huh?" Jiraiya said.

  "We didn’t know they would multiply faster than rabbits," Kaida said, dusting off his clothes.

  "Fine. We’re already te. Let’s go," Jiraiya said, as everyoarted heading back to their vilge.