Chapter 342: The Land of Ice and Snow

“Rin, Rin, quick, look! Such a big ice block!” Obito, bored on the ship, looked around and suddenly spotted a huge iceberg in the distance.

Rin Nohara looked in the direction Obito pointed, and a massive floating iceberg, reflecting light under the sun, came into view. Rin Nohara’s eyes sparkled; this was indeed a sight she couldn’t see in the Land of Fire.

“What’s this? You’ll see how common ice and snow are once you reach Land of Snow,” Asama Santaifu said with a smile.

Land of Snow had little else but an abundance of ice and snow, with the nation perpetually covered in them.

“This month, it should have already snowed quite a lot.”

“Isn’t it only September? Will there be snow at this time?” Obito looked at Asama Santaifu in confusion.

“Yes, otherwise, why would it be called Land of Snow?” Asama Santaifu’s words carried a hint of helplessness.

While a world of silver-white was beautiful, if it snowed like this constantly, it wasn’t a good thing.

Normally, people prayed to the rain god for rain and to the god of wealth for riches, but in Land of Snow, they prayed to the snow god to make it snow less.

As they drew closer, Muzuki’s Byakugan could already see the country covered in ice and snow.

Muzuki had used his Byakugan frequently along the way, feeling that the special environment of the sea required extra caution, as once the ship was destroyed, the ocean itself would become a danger.

Of course, for a Ninja of Muzuki’s rank, it wasn’t too bad. He had brought enough food in his scrolls, so even without a ship, he could run back to shore by stepping on water, and if he got tired, he could even create an ice block with Ice Release to rest.

Upon entering the vicinity of Land of Snow, it was indeed snowing heavily, just as Asama Santaifu had said. Obito’s figure flickered on the ship, using his palm to catch the snow. Rin Nohara exhaled warm air, looking up at the falling snow. Kakashi focused his gaze, observing the surroundings.

Muzuki also extended his hand, feeling the falling snowflakes and the slight chill they brought as they melted.

Actually, Muzuki quite liked snow and enjoyed playing in it. The joy of snowball fights with his childhood companions was one of the best memories of his entire childhood.

Although he liked snow, Muzuki hated the cold, so for a time, he was extremely conflicted, wanting it to snow but not wanting winter to arrive.

Transmigrating to the Naruto world, however, solved this problem for Muzuki, because with Muzuki’s current physical strength, he wouldn’t feel cold even without clothes in winter.

“Welcome to Land of Snow,” Asama Santaifu said to Muzuki and the others with a sense of ceremony upon their arrival.

“It’s true! So much snow!” Obito exclaimed with curiosity, picking up a handful of snow from the ground.

Although it was called Land of Snow, Obito truly hadn’t expected a country to be covered in ice and snow before coming, after all, the Land of Fire wasn’t entirely volcanoes.

“Kakashi, take this!” Seeing Kakashi’s back to him, Obito decisively kneaded the snow in his hand into a ball and threw it at Kakashi.

Although Obito was ambushing him, the sharp Kakashi still detected the incoming snowball and immediately dodged it by sidestepping. However, what he didn’t expect was that Obito had already anticipated this; after throwing the first snowball, he immediately grabbed two more handfuls of snow, using two snowballs to predict Kakashi’s two dodging positions.

Feeling it would be difficult to dodge, Kakashi simply stopped dodging. He grabbed a few handfuls of snow on the spot and threw them using Ninjutsu throwing techniques, with one snowball accurately hitting Obito’s face.

Pfft, Rin Nohara couldn’t help but laugh out loud, looking at Obito’s snow-covered face.

“Damn you, Kakashi!” Obito roared inwardly, entering Total Concentration Breathing mode to throw more snowballs faster.

Kakashi also used the extreme speed of Thunder Breathing to dodge and then counterattack.

The intensity of their snowball fight made Asama Santaifu break out in a cold sweat, as he realized he couldn’t even keep up with the movements of two nine-year-olds in a snowball fight.

“This is what a Ninja is,” Asama Santaifu sighed inwardly. He had undergone some samurai training, but he couldn’t even beat Ninja children.

Smack! Smack!

Two transparent gusts of energy accurately hit Kakashi and Obito on their foreheads.

“If you want to play in the snow, you can play to your heart’s content after the mission. Let’s do the mission first,” Muzuki said, retracting his hand.

After speaking, Muzuki showed an apologetic expression to Asama Santaifu.

“That’s alright. The Princess is still in Fuka Castle, so she doesn’t really need protection right now,” Asama Santaifu said with a smile.

Fuka Castle was the royal palace of Land of Snow, and in Asama Santaifu’s mind, it was the safest place in Land of Snow.

“Since it’s a guard mission, we should at least know who we’re protecting,” Muzuki suggested that Asama Santaifu take them to see the Princess first.

Asama Santaifu thought Muzuki made a lot of sense, so he led Muzuki and the others to Fuka Castle.

“A living Princess, I wonder what she’ll be like,” Obito recalled the descriptions of Princesses in novels and began to feel excited.

The snow scenery of Land of Snow amazed Obito, but upon reaching Fuka Castle, Obito felt Land of Snow became ordinary again; he had seen many palace buildings like this.

“Asama, are these the Konoha Ninja who took on the mission?” a serious-looking man in black called out to Asama Santaifu and asked.

“Yes, Lord Dotō,” Asama Santaifu immediately bowed and replied upon seeing Fūka Dotō.

Fūka Dotō was not only the younger brother of Land of Snow’s Daimyo but also a high-ranking official of Land of Snow, making him, arguably, the second most important person in Land of Snow.

“Please don’t let their young age deceive you. They are all Chunin with considerable strength, and Muzuki is a reliable Konoha Jonin,” Asama Santaifu added, worried that Fūka Dotō might underestimate Muzuki’s team due to Obito and the others’ youth.

“Mm,” Fūka Dotō nodded indifferently and left, seemingly not very interested in Muzuki and the others.

Muzuki glanced at the departing Fūka Dotō and gave this movie BOSS an appraisal.

“Name: Fūka Dotō”

“Chakra: 10500”

“Skills: Water Release Chakra Nature Transformation (Mastery: 200/15000), Water Release: Black Dragon Blizzard (Mastery)…”

As a future BOSS, Fūka Dotō’s stats were quite ordinary, not much better than a regular Jonin.

It’s worth noting that in the system’s recognition, all of Fūka Dotō’s Ninjutsu were Water Release, not Ice Release.

Muzuki wasn’t too surprised by this. The Ninjutsu of Land of Snow could be copied by Kakashi’s Sharingan, so it certainly wasn’t a Bloodline Limit; at most, it was a Snow Secret Jutsu that could only be used in Land of Snow.

Muzuki believed that the visual effect of their Ninjutsu appearing as Ice Release was likely related to the environment of Land of Snow and the Land of Snow people’s research into Water Release Nature Transformation.

“Lord Dotō is the Daimyo’s younger brother and also a key official in maintaining the country’s operation,” Asama Santaifu briefly introduced Fūka Dotō to Muzuki and the others.

“Speaking of which, Lord Dotō is also half a Ninja. When he was young, he went to Snow Ninja Village to learn Ninjutsu to strengthen his body, and I heard he learned quite well. If he didn’t have to handle state affairs, he might have become a formidable Ninja.”

Muzuki showed a thoughtful expression, believing this might be related to Fūka Dotō’s coup. With the military power of a Ninja and his royal identity, it was normal for ambition to swell.

Obito wasn’t interested in Asama Santaifu’s story about Fūka Dotō. He just wanted to meet the Princess quickly, then fast-forward to saving the Princess and becoming a hero.

Finally, Muzuki and the others were led to a well-lit hall to wait.

Tap-tap.

When Obito heard footsteps, his face instantly lit up with excitement, but what greeted his eyes was not the beautiful young girl he imagined, nor was it even a girl. The first person to enter Obito’s sight was a very kind-looking middle-aged man with glasses.

The second person Obito saw was a small girl in a purple kimono, very young, looking at most five or six years old. Then there were the guards. Obito looked left and right but couldn’t find anyone who looked like a Princess among them.

“Kakashi, Princesses are usually girls, right?” Obito asked Kakashi in confusion.

Kakashi:…

He couldn’t believe this was a question a person could ask. What else could a Princess be if not a girl?

“Lord Sōsetsu!” Asama Santaifu knelt on one knee, respectfully bowing to Fūka Sōsetsu.

Muzuki and the others stood silently, observing everything. Ninja had their own rules and did not need to bow deeply to these nobles.

“Please rise quickly, it’s not a formal occasion anyway,” Fūka Sōsetsu said with a kind smile.

Fuka Kazehana held her father’s hand, looking at Muzuki and these strangers with curiosity.

“Hello, Lord Sōsetsu, I am Hayate Mugetsu,” Muzuki said, greeting them with a brief introduction.

Fūka Sōsetsu smiled and nodded, then said to Fuka Kazehana: “Kazehana, quickly say hello to your older brothers and sisters. They’ll be here to play with you until the Snow God Festival.”

“Hello, Brother Hayate,” Fuka Kazehana obediently greeted Muzuki, her two large eyes sparkling.

Although it was their first meeting, Fuka Kazehana felt that Muzuki was a good person.

“She’s the Princess? No way!” Obito said incredulously, looking at Fuka Kazehana’s chubby little face.

This wasn’t quite the Princess he had imagined; she was just an ordinary little kid.

Kakashi covered his face in exasperation. Right off the bat, he was offending their protection target.

Muzuki rubbed Obito’s head; Kenji was still hard to teach.

Fuka Kazehana puffed out her cheeks after hearing Obito’s words, making her already round face look even rounder.

“Hahaha, I told you, Kazehana, you should learn more etiquette. See, others don’t even think you’re a Princess!” Fūka Sōsetsu laughed loudly at his daughter.

“Oh, Father!” Fuka Kazehana didn’t expect her father to not only not defend her but also mock her. She immediately let go of his hand and turned her face away, indicating she was angry.

“I misspoke. Kazehana is the cutest Princess in the world,” Fūka Sōsetsu immediately coaxed her.

Hearing her father praise her cuteness, Fuka Kazehana’s mood brightened again, and she took Fūka Sōsetsu’s hand.

However, Fūka Sōsetsu was, after all, the Daimyo and couldn’t be idle during the day. He soon left due to affairs, leaving only Muzuki’s team, the Princess, Asama Santaifu, and a group of guards in the hall.

“You rude fellow, remember this: I am Fuka Kazehana, the Princess of Land of Snow, and the only Princess,” Fuka Kazehana said seriously to Obito.

Obito nodded reluctantly, thinking he had been tricked. This mission would be better suited for ten years later.

“I’m not ‘that guy’ either. I’m Uchiha Obito, the only Uchiha Obito in the world,” Obito said, mimicking Fuka Kazehana’s speaking style.

“Hmph, that’s not necessarily true. The name Obito doesn’t sound special at all,” Fuka Kazehana denied Obito’s uniqueness.

“Hello, adorable Princess Kazehana, I’m Rin Nohara,” Rin Nohara said with a gentle smile, greeting the Princess.

Rin Nohara knew how to deal with children like this; complimenting them would easily win them over.

“Hello, Sister Rin, you’re cute too!” Fuka Kazehana, praised, immediately smiled.

“Kakashi Hatake. I will be responsible for your safety from now on,” Kakashi said indifferently.

To him, whether the Princess was big or small didn’t matter. Being young was even better, because if she was young, she wouldn’t be allowed outside, and staying in Fuka Castle would significantly reduce the guarding pressure.

“Mm-hmm, Brother Kakashi looks very reliable,” Fuka Kazehana thought Kakashi’s hair looked good.

“It’s just being called ‘Brother’ by a little apple. It’s no big deal,” Obito muttered, a little upset seeing Kakashi receive treatment he didn’t.

“Fuka Kazehana isn’t a Princess, just a little kid,” Obito could only frantically hypnotize himself, thinking it would make him feel better.

…

“Hayate Mugetsu, defeated Iwagakure’s Explosion Release Ninja Gari in the Konoha and Iwagakure war, played a role in the battle against a Jinchuriki…” Fūka Dotō put down Muzuki’s intelligence report, his brows deeply furrowed.

Fūka Sōsetsu’s sudden hiring of Konoha Ninja made Fūka Dotō extremely uneasy, as he was plotting a coup. So, as soon as he learned about Muzuki and the others, he immediately sent people to gather information.

This investigation instantly startled Fūka Dotō. Ordinary people might not know what these achievements represented, but Fūka Dotō, who was familiar with Ninja, understood very well, especially the part about fighting a Jinchuriki.

Jinchuriki were the ultimate weapons of the Five Great Ninja Villages, and anyone who could play a role in battles of that caliber undoubtedly possessed immense strength.

Fūka Dotō even believed that if Snow Ninja Village had two Jinchuriki, it could also become one of the Five Great Ninja Villages.

“It was so secretive, how did they find out? Could there be a problem on Snow Ninja Village’s side?” Fūka Dotō pondered where he had exposed a flaw.

He was certain that Fūka Sōsetsu had discovered something, otherwise, there was no reason not to support their own country’s Ninja Village, and the Ninja they hired were too strong. Fuka Kazehana didn’t need such powerful Ninja for protection; it was just a Matsuri.

“I must investigate thoroughly,” Fūka Dotō decided to find the mole first.

Although the material showed Muzuki was strong, Fūka Dotō didn’t feel he had lost, because no matter how strong Muzuki was, he was only one person, while Fūka Dotō had the entire Snow Ninja Village.

Even if there was a mole in Snow Ninja Village, Fūka Dotō believed it was only a few Snow Ninja, because Fūka Sōsetsu had already cut Snow Ninja Village’s budget, while Fūka Dotō had clearly stated that he would vigorously develop the military once he took power. Any Snow Ninja with a normal brain would know who to support.

PS: My head was spinning while writing today, so I only wrote 4k.

To motivate myself, I’m making a self-imposed rule: if I don’t write 10,000 words tomorrow, I’ll send a 50-yuan red envelope in the reader group. I’m going all out!