"Wow! It's huge!"
"Naruto, you're going to fall out of the window!" Katara felt like she was taking care of a child, having to grab Naruto by his jacket to prevent him from falling out of the railway window taking them to Ba Sing Se.
"I had never seen such a huge city," Sokka remarked with interest, finding it one of the best places they had visited so far.
"I'm glad you guys enjoy it," grumbled Toph, as always uninterested in coming to a city like this. "I hope this is 'In and out', I don't like big cities with all their rules and walls... I feel suffocated."
"Come on Toph! Don't be boring, we have a whole city to explore and find Appa," said Naruto happily, returning to sit next to the blind bandit.
The two had to sit closer as the seat was occupied by a huge, fat guy, who strangely had a radish stuck in his jaw.
"I hope so," Aang added, hoping that somewhere within the city's walls, they would find his bison.
"This is my stop." Suki took her backpack when their transport stopped shortly before passing the main wall of the city. "I agreed to meet my girls here and see what else we can help with. See you guys later."
"Goodbye," they bid farewell to their friend as the Avatar team continued on their way.
It didn't take them long to reach the station.
"Now what? Let's go to the castle and just knock on the door," Naruto suggested, spotting the largest building in the city in the distance, where the Earth Kingdom king surely lived.
"I don't think it's that easy. It's never easy with our luck," Sokka sighed with resignation, and the teenagers agreed. It was never easy for them to do what should be simple.
"We can knock on the door and say that we're a nice traveling circus. I'll be the beast tamer, Toph will be the security, Aang and Katara will be the juggler couple, and Sokka will be the one to clean up after the animals."
The Avatar team was used to Naruto's strange plans, which often involved role-playing and deception.
"Why do all your plans involve role-playing and lying? And why do I have to be the one to clean up the filth?! I want to be the beast tamer!"
"If we're going to act, at least I want a better role," Sokka complained.
"Well, too bad. I'll be the tamer," Naruto insisted, already thinking about where to get everything they needed to infiltrate the castle.
"You want to be the beast tamer when you're dominated by this little monster!" Sokka accused dramatically, pointing at Toph, who just raised an eyebrow and removed wax from her ear with her index finger.
"Toph doesn't dominate me!" obviously Naruto would deny something like that, no one could control the great Uzumaki Naruto
"Sorcerer I saw you kiss her forehead less than an hour ago! Just because she asked you!" Sokka accused.
"I don't think 'asked' is the word," Katara murmured, sensing Toph's persistence in getting Naruto to comply.
"I don't do everything she says... do I?" Naruto appealed to Aang, who merely shrugged.
"I think she may be taking advantage of your kindness a little."
"Is that so?" Naruto leveled a serious gaze at Toph, who remained silent throughout, tacitly agreeing with their assessment. "I won't let you take advantage of me anymore, Toph."
"Is that right?"
"Yes."
Toph saw it as a playful challenge, a diversion from her boredom. "I don't believe you. You're too nice and gullible. I bet if I sprained my ankle, you'd carry me until I could walk."
"I wouldn't."
"No?"
"No."
"Toph, you're acting childish," Katara scolded, observing Toph's defiant stance on the floor.
"I think I hurt my ankle. Can you carry me, little girl?"
Toph's acting skills wouldn't win any awards. Naruto saw through her ploy, refusing to yield to her manipulation.
"You'd really let a blind girl try to walk with a sprained ankle? You're a terrible person!"
Naruto felt the judgmental stares of onlookers at the station, misinterpreting his refusal to help a 'poor blind girl.'
With arms crossed and a determined glare, Naruto stood his ground, resolved not to give in to Toph's demands.
5 minutes later:
"Not even a word."
Naruto avoided Sokka's smirk, especially when Toph was now riding piggyback, a mischievous grin plastered on her face.
"You are a simp."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"I don't know, but it sounds fitting for you." Toph tumbled onto the ground upon release, "It was worth a shot." Naruto continued walking, leading the group toward the king's castle.
Before they could depart the station, an unfamiliar figure intercepted their path.
"Hello! I'm Joo Dee."
"Ahhh!" Sokka's unexpected startle garnered attention, "Um, who are you?"
"I'm Joo Dee, your tour guide for Ba Sing Se," the stranger introduced herself, sporting a perpetual smile.
"Does the king know we're here?" Katara inquired.
"Of course! We're aware of all our visitors."
The teens exchanged skeptical glances, with Naruto noting a figure atop a nearby roof, seemingly observing them.
Were they being watched?
Despite Toph's obliviousness, someone was monitoring them.
"We need to speak to the King! We have vital information that could turn the tide in this war," Sokka insisted, though Joo Dee's demeanor remained unchanged, her unwavering smile growing increasingly unsettling.
"Please follow me. I'll guide you," she said.
Team Avatar had little choice but to comply.
[ If you want to read advance Chapters then go to Pat reon and support me there.
PAT REON I'D:- Alzero ]