It was another three days before Sarada and Mitsuki agreed that Boruto was strong enough to travel again. Boruto was exasperated with their constant insistence that he rest. He felt fine but he complied in order to keep the peace. Mitsuki continued to stay by his side and Sarada assisted Grandma with preparing his daily food and medicines. Boruto hated feeling like an invalid but he tolerated it, reassuring himself that it was only temporary.

At the end of the third day, he stood at the polished dinner table with Mitsuki and Sarada. The map was unrolled in front of them and they were discussing which key they should pursue next.

"It looks like the key in the Delta Swamps is closest." Sarada observed.

"Yeah, it does look that way."Boruto agreed, "We will have to be very careful traveling there." He wasn't thrilled about having to go there. He had heard many a tale about the Swamps. Supposedly, they were infested with everything from quicksand to ghosts. The only positive thing going forward was that the Swamps were not poisonous. At least, not so overtly.

As unhappy as he was about it, it didn't make sense to go anywhere else. The other two keys were either on the exact other side of the kingdom in the Estredan Mountains or far to the North in the Range of Fire. Their next destination was the Delta Swamps, whether he liked it or not.

They left at dawn the following day. They thanked Grandma and Grandpa profusely for their help and Boruto promised them a large reward for their trouble but they refused.

"Knowing that we helped our dear Prince is all the reward we need. We were able to repay King Naruto for all he has done for us." Grandma assured him proudly. Boruto had smiled and thanked her again but he would be damned if he didn't repay them properly for saving his life. Before he left, he placed most of the gold from his coin purse on the bed he had recovered in. They would be sure to find it after he was gone. It wasn't much now but he vowed he would speak to his father when he returned home and find a proper way to reward Grandma and Grandpa.

Compared to the Wastes, walking through the Neva Hills was enjoyable. The sun was pleasant instead of oppressive and the green landscape was both beautiful and bountiful. The fields were green and the trees were full. At night, the air was warm and fireflies dotted the landscape. It reminded Boruto of when he and Mitsuki were traveling together, just the two of them. Those days felt so long ago but it had been only a little over three weeks.

The people they met were friendly if not a little curious. They lived close enough to the Wastes to know a basilisk when they saw one, so they made use of Boruto's illusion spell to avoid trouble a few times. The spell was draining but he never complained of his fatigue. For Mitsuki, nothing was too much.

After the events of the last couple of weeks, Boruto was feeling more protective of Mitsuki. They hadn't spoken about the night where they had almost kissed but they were more open with their affections for each other since then. Mitsuki walked with an aura of happiness everywhere he went and Boruto had taken to holding his hand at every opportunity. Sarada continued to tease him about it but less so than usual. There were even times when she watched them with a smile.

After four days, the landscape began to change. The tall, green grasses became patchy. The trees become thicker and their color was changing from warm brown to cool grey. The air was also becoming steadily thicker.

On the fifth day, they found themselves on the edge of a shallow lake filled with black water. Various water plants dotted its dark surface and trees stood like spiky sticks with long grey trails of moss cascading from their mostly bare branches. What looked like partially submerged logs made the perfectly still water look rough in places.

The sunlight here was dim, both from being hidden by the trees and from the milky white sky. The air was thick from humidity, stagnant and smelled heavily of water, mud and plants. Dark brown mud tinged with green made up the shore of the vast wetland. The trees became more dense further into the swamp and a light fog crawled across the water's surface.

The heat was heavy and sweat flowed freely from every part of their bodies. Boruto felt he could hardly breath for the humidity. The air itself felt like a thick, wet blanket that he couldn't take off. It was making him miss the dry of the Wastes.

They picked their way carefully through the wetlands, doing their best not to venture too close to the water's edge. The stinking mud was thick and soft. Boruto feared he would lose a boot or worse if he sank into it too far.

The landscape was dotted with wetlands and shallow lakes that all looked alike and slowed their progress significantly. They had to navigate carefully and were forced to double back more than once. As the sun set, they faced a serious problem. They couldn't find anywhere dry enough to set up a camp. It was after dark by the time they found a patch of grass that was more damp than wet. There was more than enough fuel for a fire, but it was all sopping and refused to burn. In the end, Sarada caved and conjured a fire to stave off the damp and the cold. The night was a miserable one; damp, cool and infested with mosquitoes and other bugs.

Boruto shivered beneath his blankets. The warm fire helped but it wasn't able to keep the cold and damp completely at bay. Mitsuki sat beside him in his usual place, standing guard. His face was much more serious than usual tonight and his eyes never left the edge of the standing water close by. Boruto thought he sensed movement in the water and only once, he thought he saw a pair of glowing orbs reflecting the fire light before slipping back beneath the surface. Even with Mitsuki beside him, Boruto did not sleep well.

"Boruto." Mitsuki speaking his name and shaking his shoulder roused him from his uneasy rest. He was still cold and is body felt stiff as he stretched, knocking the heavy dew from his blanket. He blinked his bleary eyes and looked around. The light was weak, heavily filtered by thick fog. Across the blackened fire pit, Sarada was stirring as well.

"Mitsuki? What is it? What's wrong?" Boruto asked as he shook his head clear.

"We need to start moving." Was all he said. Boruto yawned and nodded. He stood and prepared to move on without complaint.

Again, the day was hot and misty and the sky was milky white. Boruto hated it. It dispersed the light but it did nothing to save them from the heat. All it did do was bring down his spirits and make it almost impossible to tell the time. Although he was careful to stay out of the water, it didn't matter. It wasn't long before he was soaked through completely with his own sweat. His feet simultaneously swelled and swam within his boots, making it even harder to walk. He was so miserable, he had almost lost the will to swat the mosquitoes that relentlessly attacked his exposed skin.

"How much further is it to Dorchas? We should have arrived by now." Boruto whined as he halfheartedly swatted yet another bug on his neck.

"All that backtracking we had to do cost us time, Boruto." Sarada replied, not bothering to hide her irritation. "We should be there before sundown."

"I hope so. I can't take another night out here. I want to find an Inn." Sarada nodded her agreement with an air of finality. She looked too exhausted to speak and Boruto couldn't blame her. He glanced back at Mitsuki to see how he was doing. The Serpent Prince was just as sweaty and filthy as he and Sarada but he displayed no signs of fatigue. He was standing straight and his eyes were continually scanning the water and trees around them. The serious look on his face unnerved Boruto even more than his silence. It was almost like he was waiting for something.

They walked for hours in silence. Boruto was beginning to feel like he had gone insane. The silence was as stifling as the air and it was never-ending. The path looked the same around every bend, like an endless road to nowhere. At one point, he wondered if he had died in the night and had gone to hell, damned to wonder this hot mucky road to nowhere for all eternity. The sun was finally setting and as darkness fell, there was still no end in sight.

Just as they were beginning to consider spending another night in the swamp, a single orange light appeared in the distance. It flickered weakly, but it provided the hope Boruto had been waiting for. He picked up the pace, hurrying towards it. When he was almost on tip of it, he slowed his pace as the strangest scene he had ever laid eyes on materialized out of the darkness.

The orange light glowed from a tall, old, black iron lamp. It stood on the edge of an enormous black lake. Its surface was perfectly still, like a black piece of glass offering a perfect reflection of the ominous lamp. To the left of the lamp and in the water was a small, white boat. It was floating stationary in the water but it was not tethered. A weather-beaten sign stood to the right of the lamp and simply read 'Dorchas' but there was no city in sight.

Boruto came to a halt, Sarada held back, and Mitsuki slid in front of Boruto, holding out a arm to block his way. Someone was in the boat. He was standing with his back turned to them at the stern. He wore a heavy, black floor-length trench coat that hid everything except his sheer size. His head appeared to be bowed and his arms were up and together, as if grasping the top of a pole or staff. Despite his size, the boat remained stationary. It didn't cause so much as a tiny ripple in the smooth water. He stood perfectly still, as if he had not noticed their approach.

Boruto hesitated, wondering if he should call out to the boatman or not. He looked to Mitsuki, who was still standing in front of him with an arm blocking his way. His golden eyes were focused on the boatman and his face was unreadable. For a full minute, no one moved. Then, the boatman's coat rippled in the stagnant air as if disturbed by a non-existent breeze.

"Now, young ones. Don't try an old man's patience." A gruff voice said to them, "Do you wish to go to Dorchas, or not?" The man turned his head to the left. His hood still hid most of his face but parts of his pasty pale skin and his pure white mustache and full beard were just visible. He also held a long, black pole in his pale skeletal hands. Mitsuki still looked reluctant but Boruto decided to try his luck.

"Um, yes. Is it far?" He asked.

"No, it is not far." The old man turned to face them properly. He stood straight even though he appeared to be very old. His face was long and thin underneath the pale mustache and beard. His cheekbones were prominent but the skin around them was gaunt and sunken. His features above his cheekbones were still hidden in the shadow cast by his hood but his eyes shone with their own light like grey stars. Boruto instantly regretted his decision but he also knew that it was too late to turn and leave.

"H-how much is it... to cross?" Boruto asked, unable to keep his voice from shaking. The man stared at him then smiled a wide, exposing his crooked brown teeth.

"For the three of you, a gold coin should suffice." The price was high but Boruto didn't argue. He had started this, he was going to see it through. He pushed past Mitsuki and approached the boatman while pulling a single coin from his coin purse. Sarada remained where she was but Mitsuki followed. His body was so close, he was almost a hindrance to Boruto's movement. The old man's face looked hungry as he took a step forward on the boat and reached one of his large hands out towards Boruto. As cautiously as he dared without offending the boatman, Boruto placed his coin in the bony palm.

"Ahh." The boatman breathed through his teeth in satisfaction as his spidery fingers closed around the gold, just brushing Boruto's fingertips as he did. Boruto tried not to cringe at the clammy feel of the man's fingers and maintained eye contact as the man brought the gold to his teeth. He bit and pulled the coin, then smiled unsettlingly again.

"Climb aboard and I will take you to Dorchas." He said simply as he returned to the stern of the tiny vessel and waited. Boruto glanced back at Mitsuki and Sarada in turn. Mitsuki nodded while Sarada gave him a look of mortification. Boruto shrugged back at her and moved to get into the boat before the boatman could grow irritated again.

Mitsuki boarded the boat first then helped Boruto before placing himself closest to the boatman and pulling Boruto down next to him at the bow. Boruto, in turn, held out a hand for Sarada. She took it reluctantly then settled herself opposite he and Mitsuki. She continually threw him animated looks that screamed things like 'what have you done?' and 'how can you be so stupid?'. He tried to ignore her and focus instead on Mitsuki, who was holding onto his hand again. His presence provided him with much needed comfort.

Once they were settled, the boat turned away from the shore and glided silently into the darkness.