Starting with rogue ninjas, building the insect kingdom.

Chapter 287 The Wrong Time for the Encounter

The ancient kingdom of Loulan is located deep in the desert west of the Land of Rivers. To travel from Konoha, one must cross the border of the Land of Rain and then traverse most of the desert region of the Land of Wind.

Even with a Jonin like Minato Namikaze leading the team, it took them three whole days to finally step into that sea of ​​death, swirling yellow sand.

The midday sun hung overhead, like a scorching iron ball, baking the endless sea of ​​sand until it was scalding hot.

The air twisted and distorted in the heatwave, and the distant sand dunes seemed to be kneaded by an invisible hand, their outlines blurred and eerie.

As far as the eye can see, there is nothing but yellow sand, not even a single camel thorn can be found.

"Achoo—!"

Sarutobi Asuma sneezed loudly, and before he could even rub his nose, a gust of wind carrying fine sand rushed towards him, filling his mouth directly.

"Ptooey! Ptooey, ptooey, ptooey!"

He bent over and spat forcefully, feeling sand between his teeth; the rough texture made his face scrunch up.

"What kind of place is this!" Asuma wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, his face full of disgust.

"The air is so dry it's like my throat is on fire, and the sandstorm is so fierce. Every step I take is a mouthful of sand. I don't think the enemy even needs to lift a finger; this damned desert could bury me alive!"

Uchiha Shouze remained silent, turning up his collar as if to appear aloof.

Kurenai silently pulled the scarf around her neck up higher to cover her mouth and nose.

"Minato-sensei, how much longer do we have to walk?"

Asma dragged his feet listlessly: "I feel like the soles of my feet are being scalded by the sand."

Minato Namikaze stopped, smiled helplessly, and pointed ahead.

"We'll be there soon."

Asma looked in the direction he was pointing and saw a dark outline faintly visible on the distant horizon, like a scar on the earth.

"That's Loulan?" Asma squinted. "It looks—"

Before he could finish speaking, a sharp whooshing sound suddenly came from behind him.

A figure swept past the four at incredible speed, the gust of wind it created lifting Asuma's clothes, and then—

"Bang!"

Asma was knocked forward and fell headfirst into the scorching sand.

"Ouch—it's so hot!"

He scrambled to his feet from the sand, his face, hair, and collar covered in sand, looking like a gopher that had just been dug out of the ground.

"Hey! You—"

Asuma turned around angrily, only to find that the person had no intention of stopping, not even glancing back. His figure left a blurry afterimage in the heatwave as he ran further and further away, until in the blink of an eye he shrank into a small black dot in the distance.

"Hey! What kind of person is that! He hit someone and didn't even apologize!"

Asma stomped his feet in anger, scattering sand everywhere.

He waved his fist at the departing figure, yelling, "Don't you have any manners?! Hey—!"

Minato Namikaze ignored his disciple's complaints, his gaze fixed on the departing figure, his blue eyes slightly narrowed.

That person was very fast; they were no ordinary traveler.

More importantly, Minato sensed a familiar aura emanating from him—a familiar yet strange aura, seemingly resembling the aura of a Myoboku Sage Technique, yet completely different.

Moreover, he was heading towards Loulan, which was exactly the same direction they were going.

"Minato-sensei?" Kurenai noticed her teacher's unusual behavior and asked in a low voice, "Is there something wrong with that person?"

"It's not certain yet." Minato withdrew his gaze and smiled, "However, he is indeed very suspicious. Alone in this deep desert, and moving so fast..."

He didn't finish his sentence, but all three disciples understood what he meant.

"Let's follow them and see."

Shuimen slung his bag back over his shoulder and started walking forward: "Anyway, we're going to Loulan, so it's on the way."

"But teacher, that guy bumped into me and ran away!" Asuma was still indignant. "He should at least apologize!"

"We'll talk when you catch up with him." Uchiha Mamoru rarely spoke, his voice cold yet laced with sarcasm.

"you--!"

"Alright." Minato interrupted their bickering with a smile, looked up at the already high sun, and said to Asuma, "If you don't hurry up, you'll turn into roast suckling pig."

The four of them set off again, heading towards the dark silhouette in the distance.

The figure that knocked down Asma had already disappeared into the heatwave, leaving no trace.

"Why did it take you so long to get back?" The voice of the man in black inside the castle was accusatory.

"Sorry, there's been a slight problem!" the young man apologized sincerely. "I've already seen Minato Namikaze and the others. We need to hurry and get out of here."

After hearing this, the man in black looked at him with surprise, because in his memory, Minato Namikaze was supposed to arrive tomorrow. He deliberately left an extra day to allow for unforeseen circumstances.

"Why did it suddenly come earlier? Could it be that our arrival has brought about some changes?"

"Don't think about it too much, just leave quickly," the young man urged. "By the way, have you completed your mission?"

"Things went fairly smoothly. I've destroyed that summoning beast, so there shouldn't be a second one."

In fact, that's not all. To prevent Uchiha Hikaru, one of the Four Heavenly Kings under the Demon King, from emerging, he also went to strengthen the seal.

"But we can't leave right now!" The black man looked up at the sky. "The sun is too bright. I need to use my eyes to specify the return journey, which must be done in the dark of night when the moonlight is strongest."

"How could this happen?" The young man frowned, and Xinrong blamed himself for returning so late.

"We can only take it one step at a time, but it's best if we don't run into people from the past."

"Of course I know that."

The two entered the castle palace one after the other, and shortly after they entered, Minato Namikaze and his group also arrived outside the castle.

"Is this Loulan? It's such a small place, called a country, but it's just a small town with a few thousand people." Sarutobi Asuma stood at the door with his hands on his hips, looking around.

At this moment, the Loulan Queen, having received the news, led her people out to greet them. "Your Excellency Namikaze Minato, thank you for your arrival. You must be tired from your journey. We have prepared hot water and food. Please accept our hospitality."

Minato Namikaze was quite surprised to see the Queen come to greet him. Even Asuma Sarutobi, who was standing next to him, stopped making a ruckus and followed quietly behind.

The reason is simple: the Queen is too beautiful. The current Queen is only sixteen years old and in the prime of her youth.

Sarutobi Asuma stared intently as Kurenai Yuhi walked past his feet without turning her head.