"Huff… Huff… I can't… I can't go on… We need to rest… Just for a little bit…"
A small figure was dragging along an even smaller one, dashing through the dense forest. Their speed gradually slowed until they finally came to a stop.
Haruto Saito was gasping for air as he let go of Minato Namikaze. Taking a few steps forward, he suddenly collapsed onto the grassy slope, leaning against a large rock. He was utterly exhausted, his chest rising and falling violently as if he could barely breathe.
Minato's face was pale, his small body trembling—not from exhaustion, but from the cold. He hadn't used much energy at all; Haruto had been carrying him the entire way. The hours of relentless running had exposed him to the freezing night air, leaving his limbs stiff and numb.
"We… need to rest first…" Haruto finally caught his breath enough to speak.
Minato was too cold to even respond.
Before long, a campfire was burning in the middle of the forest.
The bright flames pushed back the darkness, bringing much-needed warmth. Minato sat close to the fire, stretching out his hands. His pale complexion gradually faded, replaced by a healthier, reddish glow.
"We'll rest here for a while. Hopefully, it doesn't rain." Haruto sat beside the fire, leaning against a rock as he glanced up at the sky. Then he turned toward Minato. "Are you hungry? I brought some food. We can roast it."
Minato shook his head, frowning slightly. "Haruto-sama, I have school in the morning… Will I make it back in time?"
"No chance. But don't worry—skipping one day of school won't kill you," Haruto said with a chuckle before sighing. "I miscalculated. I didn't think the trip would be this long."
In reality, Haruto hadn't miscalculated the distance—he had miscalculated his own speed. If he had traveled alone, reaching the destination before dawn wouldn't have been a problem. But dragging Minato along had significantly slowed him down. Minato wasn't particularly heavy, but the faster Haruto ran, the greater the strain on his body. As a result, he was now completely drained, both physically and in terms of chakra.
He could have used a low-grade chakra recovery card to replenish himself—since physical energy and chakra could be converted between each other—but wasting such a card just to reach the destination a few hours earlier wasn't worth it.
The wind howled, and the fire crackled, its flames flickering wildly.
Minato's face, illuminated by the firelight, was full of worry. And as time passed, that worry only deepened.
"If you're sleepy, just go to sleep. I'll wake you up when it's time," Haruto said.
Minato remained silent.
"What's wrong?" Haruto asked, sensing something was off.
"Haruto-sama," Minato finally spoke after a pause, looking uneasy. "Why exactly did you bring me here?"
"For treasure hunting, of course. I already told you—it's in that direction," Haruto pointed toward the northwest. Seeing Minato's skeptical expression, he laughed. "You're not doubting me, are you? Do you think I kidnapped you or something?"
Minato remained silent, sitting there like a closed-off jar.
"Relax, I'm not a bad guy. You'll understand once we get there," Haruto reassured him with a grin. "My predictions are usually pretty accurate, you know."
"Haruto-sama, do you realize something?" Minato began.
"What?" Haruto asked curiously.
"You're really weird! We've only known each other for two days, yet you dragged me out here on some treasure hunt. I didn't even have a choice! We barely know each other, and yet you insist I graduate early. You say all these cryptic things I don't understand…" Minato was completely blunt, then pointed at his own head and asked seriously, "Haruto-sama, be honest… have you suffered some kind of head trauma?"
Haruto's face twitched. His eyebrows twitched. He squinted at Minato and said, "Are you saying I have a screw loose?"
"Yeah." Minato nodded. He actually nodded!
"You brat! Does your family talk like this all the time? Do you know people can get beaten up for saying things like that?"
"Oh."
"Oh?! Oh, my ass!" Haruto lunged forward and smacked Minato on the back of the head. Minato nearly fell face-first into the fire, but luckily, Haruto grabbed his collar just in time.
"Listen up, kid! Don't you ever think I have a screw loose! I'm perfectly normal!" Haruto warned sternly.
Minato immediately scooted away, shifting around the fire to the other side, distancing himself from Haruto.
Haruto's face twitched again. This little brat!
Despite his anxiety, Minato couldn't fight off his exhaustion. Before long, he was lying on the grass beside the fire, fast asleep. Haruto, on the other hand, remained awake. Leaning against the stone, he sat cross-legged and entered a meditative state, focusing all his energy on recovery.
Time passed.
The full moon hung high in the sky, casting a silver glow over the landscape. The forest was quiet except for the occasional crackling of burning wood. The fire provided warmth, keeping the cold at bay. Haruto sat still beside the flames, motionless like a statue, his breathing slow and steady.
"It's about time. Get up, kid. We're moving," Haruto opened his eyes and said.
"Hmm? What?" Minato groggily sat up, rubbing his eyes. He had barely slept for two hours.
"Let's go!" Haruto leaped up, grabbed Minato by the collar, and took off running again. Their speed increased gradually until they disappeared into the darkness of the forest.
A powerful guiding signal pulled Haruto forward.
They sprinted relentlessly.
Gradually, the eastern sky began to brighten.
A low-lying mountain lay hidden within the dense forest. The surrounding trees stood over a hundred meters tall, while the highest peak of this mountain barely reached seventy meters. Covered in low-lying vegetation, the entire shape of the mountain resembled a giant turtle shell resting in the middle of the forest.
Haruto, still dragging Minato, ran all the way to the base of the mountain without stopping. He then sprinted up the rocky slopes, only slowing down when they reached the peak.
This was the place!
"We… We made it?" Minato panted, his face pale, lips trembling as he shivered.
"Yeah, we made it," Haruto nodded, finally releasing Minato and frowning slightly as he walked forward.
Something was odd.
Although the guiding signal was strongest here, it wasn't concentrated in one specific spot. Instead, it was scattered, almost as if it was floating. Haruto moved around, trying to pinpoint the exact location of the treasure, but there was a strange sense of uncertainty about it.
Could the treasure be inside the mountain?
And not just a single treasure, but a large-scale hoard! That would explain why the signal felt spread out.
Haruto pondered this possibility.
"This place is… Meiji Mountain?" Minato suddenly asked, glancing around at their surroundings.