The Prince and the Serpent

The Delta Swamps

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.