The confrontation between Naruto and Obito had already ended. Obito had no real choice in the matter. Everything had started because of Rin, and now it would end because of her.
Resurrection was far more tempting than creating a new world.
Though Naruto had hoped Obito would cautiously refuse, as it would give him another opportunity to torment him. For example: What, you don't really care about Rin, do you? No wonder she seemed to prefer Kakashi, who actually grieved for her. Stop pretending, you trash.
With the matter settled, Obito's plan to capture the Kyubi had been thoroughly disrupted by Naruto. Meanwhile, Sasuke was still on his way, moving at top speed to reach the scene.
Even though the night had ended with more of a whimper than a bang, Naruto realized that whether it was him, Obito, Black Zetsu, or the Otsutsuki, they all seemed to be moving towards a bigger stage.
Forces that had once been scattered across the Shinobi World were now converging, with the Kyubi as the center, fighting for dominance over the Shinobi World.
Now, it all came down to who had the strongest will, the hardest fists, and the most power.
Standing atop a distant power line, Naruto gazed down at the scene unfolding at the village entrance. The Yamanaka and Hyuga parents were reuniting with their daughters.
With both girls' parents present, Naruto didn't dare approach.
He could only watch from afar, so the details of the scene was unclear.
This incident was just a small episode in the grand scheme of things. Though it had been tense, it wasn't a major event.
Still, it seemed that once you were tied to the Kyubi, you couldn't escape being at the center of the storm.
"However, this is not completely without any benefits. At least the situation seems to have taken a turn for the better." Naruto muttered to himself while standing on a high place.
"As they say, the bigger the waves, the more valuable the fish. Opportunity and misfortune often go hand in hand."
Without this incident, in a peaceful Shinobi World, neither the Yamanaka nor the Hyuga Clans would have accepted his… complicated relationships.
But with chaos on the horizon, who could afford to be picky?
Naruto had no intention of playing the savior, and Sasuke probably didn't have that intention either. With the Otsutsuki entering the fray, the Shinobi World was bound to descend into chaos.
Although Obito is hypocritical and delusional, he is right about one thing: As long as Shinobi exist in this world, war would never truly end.
Where there were people, there would be conflict. And where there was conflict, there would be strife. On a small scale, it was village skirmishes. On a larger scale, it was all-out war.
Shinobi do have a way to maintain peace. They can just become a second Hashirama Senju and enforce the peace. Even if wars returned a hundred years later, so what? Another Senju Hashirama would rise.
The tides of history ebbed and flowed. Periods of division were followed by unity, and unity eventually gave way to division.
Without a strong-willed savior to step forward, the Fourth Shinobi World War was inevitable. After all, Black Zetsu was like a weed… impossible to eradicate completely. Eventually, he would succeed in reviving Otsutsuki Kaguya.
Keep chasing Black Zetsu? That was too reckless. As the ancients said, it's better to redirect than to block.
Black Zetsu was everywhere if he wanted to be. He had been lurking for centuries, showing no signs of aging, which spoke volumes about his patience.
Was Naruto supposed to live in constant fear, hiding his relationships and protecting those he cared about in secret? That was impossible. If Black Zetsu wanted to revive Kaguya, he would just let him.
If he wanted the Kyubi, he could have it.
As long as the women he cared about remained unharmed, Naruto didn't care what Black Zetsu did. He would wait for the right moment to strike.
A good blade only showed its edge at the critical moment.
For now, he had given Obito a slap and then a sweet treat, so the bastard was unlikely to provoke him again.
…
As dawn broke, the sky brightened.
Seeing Ino and Hinata being taken away by their parents from afar, Naruto decided to head home and get some sleep. He was too lazy to report to Kakashi or anything like that, because someone would come to find him anyway.
Following his memory, he returned to his familiar home and cleared all the flyers and pamphlets from his door. As the sun shone diagonally into the corridor, Naruto took out the key from the sealed space.
With a practiced twist, the lock clicked open, and he stepped inside. The house was just as he had left it, without a speck of dust in sight.
Either Kurama had cleaned up, or someone else had. But forget about Kurama? That guy was probably passed out drunk on some rooftop.
Naruto didn't care about that much. He headed straight to the bathroom for a shower, dried off, and then collapsed into bed wearing nothing but his boxers. He turned on the air conditioner, covered himself with a quilt and fell asleep.
When he woke up, it was already dusk. He dragged himself out of bed, yawning and scratching his head as he shuffled to the door in his slippers.
The living room was bathed in the warm glow of the setting sun, the orange light spilling across the walls. It was as if someone had forced the sunset into the room, painting everything in a soft, golden hue.
The curtains fluttered as a figure stepped in from the balcony, moving with grace.
Yugao, clad in the standard Konoha's Jonin Flak Jacket, with her purple hair tied into a bun, entered without her usual mask. Her fair skin and delicate red lips stood out in the warm light.
Perhaps the vest was too tight, as it accentuated the curve of her chest, like an inverted bowl.
Naruto glanced at the person who came, and was too lazy to change his clothes. With just boxers on his body, he yawned and walked into the kitchen to pour himself a glass of water. Leaning against the counter, he looked at Yugao and asked, "They sent you to interrogate me? Yugao-sama?"
Hearing the teasing tone, Yugao didn't react. She knew Naruto well enough, he probably just felt it was annoying.
"I don't have a choice. It's my job, so please cooperate." Yugao shook her head, leaned over to find a cup from the living room, and went to make tea for herself.
"You've been using that excuse for years. Can't you come up with something new?" Naruto was speechless. He raised his glass to drink water, and glanced at the widow not far away.
He always feels that today's Yugao is weird, something is wrong.
'Could it be that Zetsu is pretending to be her? So scary, I'm not interested in aliens.'
'However, Black Zetsu shouldn't come to harass me so soon… unless he was feeling particularly bold.'
"No." Yugao finished making tea and said slowly, "You are no longer the same as before. If I send a greenhorn Anbu here, you will probably just brush them off."
"Isn't it just a mission report?" Naruto put down his glass, walked to the couch and lay down directly. Looking at the ceiling, he said, "What does Kakashi want to know?"
"Is this an invasion targeting you?" Yugao sat upright on the sofa, blowing tea with her red lips, "The Anbu didn't notice anything at all."