Chapter 7:
Naruto woke up stiff and sore, he had not slept well. The feeling of being overly exposed kept him on edge and awake most of the evening. The sun had fully risen in the sky but he was struggling to prepare himself for the day. Finally changing into a new set of clothes and catching a few bites to eat, he set out. It was a very short distance to the border into the Land of Rivers. The country was neutral territory as far as he understood, but to be on the safe side he decided he would forgo any of the villages within. He would traverse through the area, crossing many small rivers as he came across them. He intended to skirt the borders of the Land of Rain while in River country. The Land of Rain was a dangerous place, but he hoped that skirting its border would allow for some of the vegetation to be harty. He wanted to heavily restock on some forageable edibles before he reached the border into the Land of Wind, which he would reach by the end of the day. He came across the first small river almost immediately. He used it to refill his canteen and dampen a cloth to give himself a quick wipe down.
He continued traveling west, crossing over a few more rivers. The vegetation did luckily become more plentiful, he was able to collect quite a bit of food but still far less than he hoped. He knew the Land of Wind would be an almost barren wasteland of sand and heat but he was hopeful that he could stick close to the bordering lands and find more food along the way. He reached the border a few short hours later, the landscape changing almost dramatically. The desert was vast, nothing but rolling hills and sand. Looking to the north, the land was a bit more green skirting the Land of Rain. He started heading in that direction, aware of the heat of the sand at his back. There was no marked road or path which was a bit of a relief. He wanted to keep as low a profile as possible. He got as close to, what he assumed was, the border into the Land of Rain as he felt safe then started heading west again. It was already starting to get late in the day, thanks to his slow start this morning. He started keeping an eye out for anything that could be suitable shelter for the evening. A few miles more and he came across a small oasis. The area was green and surrounded by trees, a small basin of water in the middle. It was still a fairly exposed area but it looked like heaven amongst all the sand. Naruto decided this would be camp for the night, it was still sort of early but he doubted he would find anything better. Setting down his gear and stripping off his clothes, he immediately took advantage of the pool of water, leisurely bathing in it. The water was somehow slightly cool and wonderfully refreshing. After a nice long soak he begrudgingly got out of the water as darkness started to fall. He set about making dinner and setting up his bedroll. He was too tired to bother collecting tinder to make a fire so he ate a simple meal of dried meat and bread. He sprawled out onto his bedroll and examined the night sky above him. Thousands of stars were twinkling above him, his eyes grew heavy as the previous night's lack of sleep caught up to him. He rolled over and fell quickly to sleep.
As soon as there was enough light in the sky to see his surroundings, Kakashi was up and directing his ninken. "I want you to spread out and find his trail leading away from here. I assume he will continue heading west but I want you to find out for sure before we take off. We will be traveling the same as yesterday, with very few breaks and as quickly as possible." Pakkun came back with the rest of the pack a few minutes later as Kakashi finished packing up camp. His assumption was correct, west was the scent trails pathing. They quickly set out, reaching a lake about an hour into their journey. The trail's direction tracked north along the lake then back west once rounding it. The trail was still fairly strong so they continued to travel at a blistering pace.
A few short hours later they were on the outskirts of Hacho Village. It was still fairly early in the day with many hours of daylight remaining. Kakashi had his ninken break up once more to find the pathing Naruto took away from the village. He assumed he would have already left and wanted to make up as much distance as possible before night fell. Pakkun came back a few moments later, Naruto had indeed gone into the village but had backtracked and appeared to have settled for the night in a rock outcropping near the village. Kakashi and his pack headed in that direction, he gave the site a quick once over. It didn't look like the most comfortable place to rest for the night but there wasn't really much else in the area. His heart ached for Naruto, he could imagine the young man trying to sleep here in the wide open. Pakkun scouted the area and confirmed his scent continued to track west, toward the border of the Land of Rivers.
Taking a quick break to rehydrate and eat, Kakashi and his dogs quickly set out in that direction. In what felt like no time at all, they reached the border into the Land of Rivers, quickly crossing numerous rivers in the area. The ninken diligently brought their noses to the ground after every crossing, ensuring they were still on the right path. The journey through the Land of Rivers was quick and uneventful, it seemed Naruto had taken a fairly straight path. Kakashi and the ninken arrived at the border into the Land of Wind a short time later. It had been a long time since Kakashi had been here, he had forgotten how quickly the temperature rose once you reached the border. The afternoon sun was starting to set to the west, hazy heat lines dancing across the horizon. Pakkun informed Kakashi that Naruto's path started to head north. A sliver of fear drove its way down his spine. North? Kakashi prayed that Naruto hadn't entered the Land of Rain. The area was so dangerous, countless wanted, bingo book ninja making the war torn area their homes. He set back out with the dogs in the direction of the trail, praying he wouldn't have to cross the border to find Naruto. A short time later and the ninken had slowed their pace, it seemed the trail had diverted back in a westerly direction. Thank Kami. Naruto had been smart, another proud smile found its way to his lips. He assumed the young man stuck close to the border to try and beat some of the heat of the unrelenting desert. Night was starting to close in quickly, but now reassured that Naurto hadn't crossed into Rain territory, Kakashi quickly set up camp in a pretty open area. There wasn't much in the way of cover in this desolate land but he had his ninken to keep an eye out while he slept. He hunkered down for the night, gazing up at the stars. He was worried for Naruto, the desert is so barren and unforgiving and he was all alone. He prayed he had found a safe place to camp for the evening. He closed his eyes and tried to clear his thoughts so he could get some sleep. Little did he know Naruto was only a few short miles away, sleeping soundly under the same stars.
Kakashi once again beat the dawn and prepared a quick meal for himself and his ninken. He hastily packed up camp and slid back on his ANBU mask. He was hopeful today would be the day they finally caught up to Naruto.