"My head hurts. Damn Nagasawa, this should be considered an injury during work, right? I'll have to ask additional money." Tsunade said angrily to Nagasawa when they set out again in the morning.
She wasn't short on money, but she couldn't outdrink Nagasawa even though Nagasawa drank half a bottle for each cup she drank.
Since she couldn't beat him in drinking or fighting, she had no choice but to take all of Nagasawa's money.
"Alright, then I'll add another five hundred thousand Ryo." Nagasawa scratched his head helplessly.
It seemed that the cooperation with Golden Organization had to continue. Otherwise, let alone training others with money, he couldn't even afford to raise Tsunade.
'Just treat it as the expense for Shikkotsu Forest's Sage Mode.' Nagasawa consoled himself.
Nagasawa felt much better. If Sage Mode could be bought with money, a few million would be a robbery in daylight.
The three of them continued to go west. The further Nagasawa went, the less frequent he encountered a village, and eventually they did not see anyone.
"We have already reached the border." Tsunade said to Nagasawa.
"I don't think the environment here is too bad. Are we going to the Barren Land?" Nagasawa looked around and asked.
Although the scenery here was not as good as the Land of Bird or Land of Fire, it was not barren. There were still many trees.
"I don't know about this, but according to the information, this place was a barren land a long time ago. It was much worse than Land of Wind's desert. You will soon know why this place is called a barren land."
Because of some special missions, Tsunade had been to such places, which certainly left quite an impression on Tsunade, who was born in Land of Fire.
They pressed onward. The surrounding scenery changed from trees to grass, and then the grass became a desert. Then, other than the dry ground and sand, there was nothing else.
Nagasawa was not an ordinary person. His eyesight was very good, and he could see very far ahead with a glance, yet he saw nothing but sand.
"Summoning Technique!" Tsunade summoned a small slug and then said to Nagasawa, "I have never gone to Shikkotsu Forest through this method. It is very easy to get lost here. We have no choice but to rely on the Slug Sage's part to guide us."
Nagasawa nodded. He sensed the land beneath his feet and frowned.
It seemed that the barren land was also a desert. How was it any different from Land of Wind? What was the big deal?
However, Nagasawa knew the seriousness of the problem here. Although Land of Wind was comprised of mostly desert, it also had a large oasis. Most of Lan of Wind's residents lived in the oasis.
And even if it was a desert, crops could grow there. If it were properly managed, it could be cultivated.
However, the barren land under his feet was almost dead. Nothing could grow on this land, and it was not something that could be solved by a proper management.
This made Nagasawa upset. This was all Otsutsuki Clan's fault. They were the ones who reduced his good planet to this state.
If he was strong enough in the future, he would go to Otsutsuki Clan's planet and plant the divine tree there to give them the taste of their own medicine.
'Hadn't it been for the divine tree, this place could be as fertile as Land of Fire.'
Nagasawa thought to himself.
Perhaps because the environment was too terrible, no one was saying a word. The atmosphere between them was completely bad. All they were thinking was getting to the destination as fast as possible.
During the break, they had to set up a tent on the spot because the sandstorm was too strong.
As for where the tent came from, it was clearly because they had sealed a tent in a scroll in preparation beforehand.
"You shouldn't force yourself, Shizune. I'll carry you." Nagasawa suggested inside the tent.
Although Shizune was trying her best to keep going, she was reaching her limit.
"Alright, I'll have to trouble you." Shizune embarrassedly said.
"What are you embarrassed about? Just let him carry you. He's the one who wants to come here. Moreover, this place is really too boring. It's better to finish our business as soon as possible." Tsunade also advised.
Shizune did not say anything, but the look on her face made it clear that she was very conflicted.
On one hand, she blamed herself for being too weak and dragging Tsunade and Nagasawa down. On the other hand, she was a little shy because she rarely had any experience with men.
"Actually, there is another way. I can give you a Flying Thunder God Kunai. We'll go ahead, and then I use Flying Thunder God Technique later to pick her up." Nagasawa suggested after thinking for a moment.
He came up with this idea because he noticed that Shizune was a little shy.
"Wouldn't it be very dangerous leaving Shizune alone in this place?" Tsunade frowned slightly.
This was a barren land, and danger certainly lurked around.
"Then I'll have to trouble Lord Nagasawa to carry me." Shizune bowed to Nagasawa with a red face.
She was a person who knew the severity of the situation. Although she was a little shy, Nagasawa's business was more important.
Moreover, Shizune believed that Nagasawa would not do anything to her. He didn't even do anything to the drunk Tsunade, and she did not think that she was more attractive than Tsunade.
Although they had only known each other for a year, Shizune trusted Nagasawa very much and even admired him a little. She felt that Nagasawa was a very reliable person.
"No problem." Nagasawa agreed.
After resting, the three of them resealed the tent back into the scroll and pressed onward.
Because Shizune was carried by Nagasawa this time, Tsunade and Nagasawa could go even faster.
After a long journey, five days later, they finally arrived at Shikkotsu Forest's location.
In the barren desert, a forest with a large number of sturdy and thick trees was particularly eye-catching.
They then walked into the forest, and then searched for the entrance to Shikkotsu Forest by following the Slug Sage's clone.
They delved deeper until they finally found a torii gate. The Slug Sage's clone suddenly emitted white light, and the torii gate seemed to resonate as it also emitted white light.
They then walked into the torii gate that was shrouded in white light, and the scenery in front of them suddenly changed.
"Welcome to Shikkotsu Forest." A slug that was as tall as a mountain easily greeted them in a friendly manner.
"So big." Shizune's eyes widened as he looked at the Slug Sage in disbelief.