54 Arrival at Kumogakure

There were several reasons why Kumogakure was my first stop, instead of Iwagakure.

The Raikage has a particular interest in the Byakugan, among other things, so I believed he would be immensely interested when I practically offered it in bulk. My question was whether he would be able to afford it, but I can always accept other things like chakra metal to exchange for money in a more discreet manner.

Perhaps I can avoid the Hinata kidnapping incident, where Neji's father lost his life due to Hiruzen's cowardice.

I also had an interest in seeing the people of the area because characters like Samui and Mabui gave me great... reasons to be curious. Purely academic interest, of course, as they are very loyal to their village, and there's no possibility of recruiting them.

We covered a good portion of the journey quickly, and only when we were near the village did we disembark and join a passing caravan for a fee. Since I intend to do business on behalf of the village, I can't just sneak into the Raikage's office, however easy that might be. I have to enter openly, go to the building on foot, make an appointment with the secretary, and cross my fingers that they won't make me wait for a month or heads will roll.

The entrance to the village was bumpy, not because they made things difficult for us, but because the state of the roads wasn't too good.

Seriously, don't the people in this world understand how inefficient it is to rely on dirt roads full of potholes? From what I've gathered so far, they only clear away debris that might block the routes occasionally and do no maintenance whatsoever.

However, it seems that bridges matter a lot to them.

The bridge mission where Kakashi killed Rin, Naruto's bridge mission, the bridge mission where they encounter Kabuto, and so on.

Bridges are a constant!

After entering the village, I must say it's a complete contrast to Kirigakure and Konoha.

The village is located in a range of high mountains, and some of them are literally covered in clouds, so it's not hard to see why it's called that. We can even see the Raikage's office from here; it's the enormous structure at the highest point of the village.

"I thought it would be colder," Pakura commented, standing beside me under the effect of the transformation technique and dressed in Seimeigakure's uniform and headband.

Sure, any Jonin can notice the disguise, but if they have a problem with it, I'll send them to sleep for a while.

"I thought so too, but it seems the weather is better than expected," I replied.

Perhaps that's why so many Kumogakure ninjas go sleeveless in their uniforms; it's not just because they want to show off their toned arms.

"Let's first find a hotel," I said as I looked around and started searching.

"Eh?" Pakura looked at me with wide eyes.

Yes, I can see she's having some wayward thoughts.

Come on, it's not that complicated. I've seen how she reacts to me, then there's Ameyuri's territorial action, and later comes Pakura's invitation. They've probably talked about it already, and Pakura got the green light. It's just that, ultimately, Pakura needs to muster the courage and take the first step. For my part, I think I've made it clear that I'm not against the idea.

"We don't know when we'll get an appointment to see the Raikage, so it's better to have a place to stay," I clarified.

"Oh, of course..." She seems to understand that she's overthinking things and nods while catching up with me.

I'm drawing quite a bit of attention. It's not just my height; I stand out like a white spot on a candy-colored road, and Pakura also attracts some glances due to the village's peculiar uniform.

"This place looks good."

We didn't have to walk too far to find a nice-looking place, carved directly into the mountain's rock.

"What if you go and arrange the appointment with the Raikage while I book a place?" Pakura suddenly suggested, a question out of nowhere.

Well, this doesn't seem suspicious at all.

"Sure, shall we meet at the restaurant we saw on the corner?" I asked, recalling the menu they displayed. "They seem to have some interesting local specialties."

"Eh?" Pakura looked at me puzzled before becoming nervous "But I didn't bring anything to wear!

"Is it really necessary?" I rubbed my neck with my hand, tilting my head slightly to one side. "It doesn't seem like the kind of restaurant for picky eaters, and I think you look pretty right now."

I can see steam coming out of her ears after receiving an unexpected compliment. She mumbled something incomprehensible before nodding and entering to secure a place.

"Hmm, I guess I can't be as direct with her as I am with Ameyuri," I seriously reflected, realizing that each person is a different world. "Both of them have an endearing shy side, but Pakura can get a bit overwhelmed if I push too much at once. It's better to take it slow with her and let her get comfortable before trying to advance one step at a time."

Fortunately, it's not difficult to enter the Raikage's grand building. Given the number of people coming to submit missions and other matters, there were several people attending to counters for various purposes. I asked one of the guards there which one I should go to for my purpose, and in less than five minutes, a charming young lady was listening to my request.

I think her name is Ran, and I would swear she appeared in the series at some point, but I'm not entirely sure.

"So, if I understand correctly, your village wishes to present three specialties to establish trade between our villages," Ran summarized. "May I ask what kind of products they are?"

"It's not a problem to show them, but I don't think it's appropriate to do it here, and I'm sure having some discretion would be preferable," we were at the reception, and I wasn't going to take anything out in front of so many people.

There are too many greedy individuals.

"I understand," Ran nodded, realizing that it could be a delicate matter. "In that case, please follow me," she pointed to a side door that was probably a separate room for verifying these kinds of matters.

After placing a sign indicating that she would be away for a few minutes, she led me into the room, and indeed, I saw hidden isolation seals on the floor. Not very well hidden if I can find them, to be honest, although maybe they're deliberately shown.

I know she'll ask me to take out the items, so I retrieved a scroll and handed it to her, indicating that everything was inside. She opened it on the table and released its contents, showing a jar with two white eyes floating in green liquid, a red apple with orange spots and even smaller yellow spots on it, and some cloud-like furniture.

"Byakugan?!" Ran's eyes widened, and she was glad she came here, even though she didn't recognize the two additional items; she didn't dare to be negligent. "Do you want to sell this pair of eyes?"

"A pair?" I gave her a disdainful look. "How am I supposed to do long-term business if I only have one pair?"

Ran flinched at the implied meaning of those words.

Perhaps I have two or three more pairs?

"I will immediately convey your intention to the Raikage. Where can we locate you?" I gave her the name of the hotel, and after asking her to pack everything back into the scroll, I took it and left while the guards curiously watched Ran rushing upstairs to the Raikage's office.

In less than three seconds, we could hear the Raikage's yell from the outside.

"Nani?!"