'Have a meal together? I don't have any money'
Seeing the woman's dilemma, Asahi pretended to be nonchalant and said, "How about this? We'll take a bit of your time and invite you to join us for a meal, consider it as compensation. What do you say?"
Upon hearing this, the woman was naturally thrilled. Even though she knew Asahi was essentially offering her charity, she couldn't resist his words. When the host himself framed it as compensation, it made her feel less humble about accepting.
"Thank you so much, sir! Thank you so much!"
With that, the woman unconsciously knelt down again, which left Asahi quite bewildered. Fortunately, he reacted quickly this time and prevented her from kneeling.
As an individual from Earth, he truly wasn't accustomed to people kneeling so readily.
"Alright, let's proceed. You lead the way and take us to the finest inn in town."
With Asahi's support, the woman's face turned slightly red, and she promptly replied, "Yes, sir, please follow me."
Asahi gave her a curious glance, not comprehending why she was blushing. Nevertheless, he didn't pay it much attention and followed the directions she provided as the group headed to the inn.
"Innkeeper, reserve three rooms for us, and please prepare some additional food."
"Of course, sir, please follow me."
Gurgle!
As they gazed at the table brimming with delectable dishes, both the woman and her son couldn't help but salivate.
They hadn't partaken in a proper meal for a long time, especially not a "feast" like this one!
Asahi watched the reserved pair and said with a smile, "Don't be shy, go ahead and eat. After we finish, you can guide us to purchase provisions."
The young boy remained a bit reticent, not daring to utter a word. He timidly looked at Asahi and his disciples, while his mother also hesitated to commence her meal.
Konan, noticing the shy little boy, took the initiative to serve some food for him. "Please, feel free to eat. No need to be bashful."
Perhaps because girls had the upper hand, the timid little boy managed to express a "Thank you, sister" to Konan.
This brought a radiant smile to Konan's face, and even Yahiko insisted that the young boy address him as "brother," which slightly startled the child.
Watching Yahiko and Konan playfully bicker, Asahi couldn't help but smile. They could turn even the smallest things into a playful game, showcasing their liveliness.
Asahi shook his head in amusement, not minding their antics, and focused on his meal.
Yahiko and Konan didn't play around for long, and soon everyone was quietly enjoying their food.
The woman ate delicately, as if afraid she wouldn't taste the flavors properly. Yet, she ate quickly, almost as if she had never eaten her fill before.
This contradiction displayed by the woman felt natural and didn't draw much attention.
Furthermore, while eating, she occasionally fed her child, skillfully multitasking. Her eating speed, under the dual tasks, left even the self-proclaimed food lover, Asahi's disciples, feeling inferior.
After satisfying their appetites and procuring the necessary supplies guided by the woman, the four of them returned to the inn.
Everyone had their own lives to lead, and Asahi and his disciples couldn't devote all their energy to helping the woman and her child. Their future depended on their own choices.
Upon returning to the inn, Yahiko and Konan immediately began clamoring to go to the hot springs. However, they soon learned that this inn didn't have hot springs, and in fact, there were no hot spring inns in the entire Land of Rain.
This disappointment weighed heavily on Yahiko and Konan, and they couldn't stop expressing their frustration.
Honestly, Asahi was also quite disappointed. He hadn't had the chance to soak in a hot spring for a long time. Moreover, the hot springs in the shinobi world seemed to be naturally occurring, and he wondered what it would be like to experience them.
Reluctantly, to appease Yahiko and Konan, Asahi had to agree to take them shopping.
Asahi couldn't help but reflect on how he seemed to lack any authority as a teacher. He remembered being afraid of his own teachers when he was young, hardly daring to speak to them. Why was it that now that he was a teacher himself, his students weren't afraid of him?
However, he didn't resist this situation. It felt rather pleasant and heartwarming.
Walking through the city streets, even though there were few pedestrians, some shops had reopened.
Perhaps because the war atmosphere had diminished recently, ordinary people were slowly returning to their normal lives.
Apart from a few stationed shinobi, there was little indication of war in the city.
Asahi appreciated the contrast and was content. He didn't want the tense atmosphere he had experienced every day.
Strolling through the city, Yahiko and Konan occasionally exclaimed in amazement.
Despite the market not being at its best due to the war, there were still some curious and peculiar items for sale.
Moreover, during this period when these items were rarely sold, the shopkeepers, usually bored, had produced quite a variety, resulting in an increasing number of handicraft-type products.
There were numerous peculiar and unique items, which excited the already childlike spirits of Yahiko, Konan, and Nagato.
Asahi silently followed behind his three disciples, finding the situation far from boring but rather quite fascinating.
With nothing else to do, the four of them roamed the streets.
All three disciples bought masks, and Konan even picked out a fox-faced mask for Asahi. At first, Asahi had no intention of wearing one, but he couldn't resist Konan's pleading, teary-eyed gaze, so he gave in.
Reluctantly donning the fox-faced mask, he had to admit it looked quite cool and added a touch of mystery.
This earned praise from Yahiko, Konan, and Nagato, who all eagerly put on their own masks.
Thus, four masked individuals strolled down the road, chatting and laughing, completely out of sync with their surroundings.
Passersby occasionally glanced their way but didn't dare to say much.
While the four of them leisurely wandered, Asahi's keen senses picked up on something amiss.
Normally, in the Land of Rain's geographical environment, there were hardly any birds flying in the sky.
However, in just a short while, Asahi noticed that several birds had flown overhead from various directions. This was highly unusual.
Could something be about to happen? Asahi looked up at the sky, silently pondering.
Yahiko and the others noticed Asahi's pause and turned to see him gazing up at the sky, wondering what was on his mind.
Konan asked in confusion, "Sensei, what's wrong? Is there something amiss?"
Asahi nodded, but he didn't elaborate much.
Mimicking Asahi's actions, Yahiko also looked up at the sky but didn't sense anything unusual.
It was Nagato who suddenly exclaimed, "Something's wrong with the birds in the sky!"
His sudden outburst caught Konan and Yahiko's attention, and they both looked up at the sky, trying to discern what might be amiss.
Konan asked, "What's wrong, Nagato? Do you see something unusual?"
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