Naruto: Passerby and Returnee

Chapter 293 Infiltrating

"The ninja's arrival was quite sudden. We were completely unprepared and have been extremely negligent."

The captain had met ninjas from the five great nations before and was quite adept at polite conversation. He knew that a ninja's strength couldn't be judged by their appearance, so he had to be extra careful when dealing with them.

This project was originally contracted out by the five major powers, and they send someone to audit the accounts every year. Even if the relations between the major powers are not good, some cooperation is still carried out by default. Although it's not audit time yet this year, it is indeed time for the Land of Fire to send someone. Who knows if this person will finish their mission and then check the accounts?

This is all so sudden! We haven't prepared many things on our side! There was no mention of ninjas coming!

"It was clearly me who suddenly came and disturbed your work. Don't worry about it, just continue as usual. I was just here to take a look." The blond ninja, who barely reached the captain's chest, was unpretentious, but he didn't lose out in terms of presence either. He was indeed very approachable, but the confidence and composure that arose naturally shouldn't belong to an ordinary young man.

"I've long heard of the Wavebreaker Fleet's bravery and fearlessness, their ability to easily conquer the most dangerous routes and safeguard the logistics of Ghost Lantern City. Meeting them today, I can see that the captain is quite in line with my expectations."

The captain was a little stunned to be praised by a ninja for the first time. This ninja seemed to be completely different from the ones he had met before. He no longer felt the frustration and caution he had when facing ninjas, and his curiosity was immediately piqued.

"What kind of imagination?"

"Tall, strong, looks like he could lift a bull." The blond boy gave him a thumbs up, his face full of genuine smiles.

The captain was genuinely embarrassed, and also felt a bit smug from being praised by an unexpected group. He immediately waved his hand and ordered the kitchen to buy a cow to add to the meal.

Naruto genuinely wanted to praise the captain. He had seen too many people and too many things; a single glance was enough to tell what kind of person he was. The crew members were all robust and healthy, with ruddy complexions, working without a trace of complaint. It was clear they ate well and did a reasonable amount of work, with no instances of wages being disproportionate to their labor. The layout of the dock and the ship itself, especially the dormitories, was also impressive. Even with his super-sensory abilities, those areas were remarkably clean, bearing many traces left by the crew members. If basic needs like food and work consumed all of people's lives, they wouldn't have time to develop personal hobbies.

Most importantly, there was absolutely no suspicious setup here, no conditions whatsoever for kidnapping! Sasuke is safe here!

In conclusion, he quickly deduced that the captain was a decent person. In this world rife with exploitation, bosses like him are extremely rare. He deserves praise for doing a good job—that's valuable leadership experience!

"These are the supplies for this trip. Due to the sheer quantity and the inability to recruit new crew members, we have to have the crew carry them up slowly. It'll be a bit slow, but don't worry." Having gained favor, the captain still couldn't check the accounts. He decisively chose to distract the ninjas with the most conspicuous and easily noticed items in the dock. The cargo still being moved couldn't have any issues on the on-site inventory list; these items could withstand scrutiny.

Naruto pretended to rummage through a few unsealed boxes, and all he saw were things like flour and potatoes that could be stored for a long time.

"So, is this all the people on the island eat to survive?" Naruto asked the question, but he already knew the answer. This prison had been operating since his time; the Five Great Nations were already using Hozuki Castle to detain ninja criminals, and every year there was always a document regarding the approval of supplies for Hozuki Castle. He remembered that the castle lord back then was named Mujang, a rather weathered-looking middle-aged man. The current castle lord, though also middle-aged, had a neatly trimmed beard and looked like a capable and efficient person.

Hozuki Castle seems to have had an incident, right? Back then, the Raikage's spy discovered the secret of the "Box of Elysium," and taking advantage of the Allied Forces' assembly, he pulled in the Land of Earth to deal with the incident. Then, the box was sunk and sealed in the sea, and the current castle lord, Muu, sacrificed himself in the incident. The castle lord was replaced by another person who inherited the "Heavenly Prison" secret technique.

Sigh... He really should have studied ninja history properly back then; he can't recall any details of such a big event!

"That's right. The departure window for that route is relatively fixed, so we prepared these supplies that can be stored for a long time in advance. Other supplies with shorter shelf lives will be replenished a few days before departure."

Do you have vegetables and fruits?

"These are things that even the Frost Kingdom itself has difficulty sourcing, so of course there aren't many. Prisoners, as long as they're alive, that's fine. If they're too well-fed, they're more likely to cause trouble."

"Oh? Do things often happen at Hozuki Castle?"

"Not really. You should know about the 'Heavenly Prison,' right? Ninjas marked with the Heavenly Prison can't escape no matter how much they struggle. At most, they'll just smash some things and cause us some trouble." The captain said this with a hint of disdain. "Look, this is the result of the last disturbance. We're already struggling to carry our own food and water, and now we have to tie ourselves to these not-so-easy-to-secure pieces of wood, all because someone caused trouble and smashed the tables and chairs in the mess hall."

Naruto was a little amused and exasperated. "Are all these logs and planks meant to be used to make tables and chairs? Is there a carpenter over there?"

"Ha, of course whoever smashed it should make it. Even if it turns into a rocking table, you still have to use it yourself!"

The crew members around Naruto laughed along with him, but one short guy stood out from the crowd and remained indifferent.

"Speaking of which, is it difficult to find workers here? I remember the wages were quite high."

Upon hearing this, the captain sighed, "At least we could hire some porters before, but this year, with that case being investigated and things escalating, I don't know which heartless person insisted on pinning the missing person label on us. Now, we can't hire anyone at all. The only one we managed to hire was introduced by a foreign friend."

When talking about this newcomer, the captain suddenly remembered that among the large group of men under his command, there was actually one who was the same age as Naruto. How could he miss this great opportunity to get closer to him?

"Rishu, come here." The captain pulled over the boy who was watching the melons on the side, and while winking at the boy from Naruto's blind spot, he said in a friendly manner, "You're the only one around here who's about the same age as the ninja. You must be feeling really bored, right? Young people should make more friends of the same age. Come and get to know this sir."

Sasuke was speechless. He couldn't understand how Naruto managed to maintain his expression. It was already a huge effort for him to keep a cold face. Acting was definitely not his forte.

It was Naruto who finally broke the deadlock. He stretched out his hand and said, "Hello, Risuke. I'm Uzumaki Naruto. Just call me Naruto."

Do they even need to know each other?

Sasuke forced a twisted smile and said, "Hello, Naruto... sir. Please... take care of me."