Here's @riojiyo131, your trusted writer.
You can now get early access up to Chapter 145 of Re: Naruto Uzumaki on my Patreon.
It is also available up to Chapter 10 of Marvel: Star Wars System, which already has 9 chapters published. Each chapter averages around 5,000 words.
patreon.com/riojiyo131
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The first 5 chapters of Marvel: Star Wars System are now available, completely free on my Patreon!
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"In Reika's defense, she's waiting for Lady Tsunade to have time to operate on her," said Hinata gently.
"Operate on her…?" Naruto looked at her, confused, alternating his gaze between Reika and Hinata.
"My teacher Izuna and my father told me about the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan. I asked the Fifth Hokage to transplant Itachi's eyes into me," Reika explained, her tone calm but direct.
"Seems she doesn't trust my Medical Ninjutsu enough to ask me instead..." Sakura muttered from the side, in a complaining tone.
Naruto let out a sigh of relief upon hearing Reika, completely ignoring Sakura. He was glad Fugaku hadn't been so irresponsible as to not tell his daughter about that.
With the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan, Reika would be able to keep using her Mangekyō techniques without risking her vision gradually deteriorating.
"The only reason we haven't done the operation yet is because that old busty hag is buried under tons of paperwork..." Reika muttered, crossing her arms in frustration.
Naruto decided to ignore the nickname Reika had used for Tsunade. Instead, he turned his attention to the direction the attack had come from.
There, in the distance, he could see Gitai, along with Setsuna and Shizuku, from the Four-Man Band.
"These idiots..." Naruto muttered, bringing a hand to his forehead.
He had given them a way out, a chance to survive and never show up near him again… and they had wasted it.
"And from the looks of it, you guys like dragons..."
Naruto saw Gitai and Shizuku forming two dragons, one made of intense flames and the other of swirling water.
Upon seeing the giant fire dragon forming in the distance, Naruto smiled with amusement and turned to Reika.
"Reika... make that dragon explode in the sky."
She looked at him with a raised eyebrow, puzzled, but didn't ask for explanations.
"As you wish."
Neji stepped closer, frowning with distrust.
"What are you planning now?"
Naruto simply winked at him, crossing his arms with a confident smile.
"Why do you care? Stay out of the way and don't be a nuisance." was Naruto's curt response to Neji.
Neji's frown deepened instantly.
"I'm the Jōnin in charge of this mission. Don't act on your own unless I order it." he replied firmly.
His words were directed at both Naruto and Reika… though she didn't even bother to listen.
"Ignore my cousin, Reika. Do what Naruto asks you." said Hinata calmly, without a second of hesitation.
Neji sighed, annoyed, seeing Hinata backing Naruto without question.
She was also one of the two Jōnin leading the group.
"Cousin Neji, if Naruto has a plan, you should trust him. He'd never put our lives at risk."
Naruto clicked his tongue and smiled sideways as he observed the enemy group.
"We don't know what these guys are capable of. They could be stronger than they seem." Neji insisted.
Naruto pointed to himself with his thumb, not erasing the smile from his face.
"That doesn't matter… because I'm here."
...
From a distance, Reika stepped forward, pulling several shuriken from her pouch. Without wasting time, she threw them with precision at Gitai, aiming at his blind spots to force a reaction.
The projectiles whistled through the air.
But Gitai didn't even bother dodging. He extended his arm and, with a single swat, deflected all the shuriken as if they were mere insects. His movements were clumsy but incredibly strong. An arrogant sneer formed on his face as his veins bulged beneath his skin.
"Tch. Was that an attempt to provoke me?" Gitai scoffed.
Naruto, watching from the side, frowned.
The Strengthening Recipe: Chakra Injection, Yomi's sinister experiment, not only increased their chakra and destructive power, but physically altered their bodies, like a twisted version of Orochimaru's Cursed Seal of Heaven.
Gitai squinted at Reika's defiant stance. His mouth curled into a cocky grin, fully confident in his superiority.
"I'll take care of that brat first," he said casually, without taking his eyes off her.
He turned slightly to Shizuku, who was watching with a relaxed expression. "Don't worry about me. If the others try anything, you handle it."
Shizuku shrugged indifferently, running a hand through her hair. "Do what you want. Just don't mess it up, Gitai. That'd be embarrassing."
Gitai laughed. "She won't last ten seconds."
The enormous fire dragon he had already formed roared fiercely and shot straight at Reika, its flaming jaws open as if to devour her whole.
Naruto observed the scene with a slight smile and crossed arms. Then he spoke calmly.
"Reika. Now."
Reika took a deep breath and activated her Mangekyō Sharingan. In an instant, a burst of purple chakra spread around her, and the ribcage of her Susanoo emerged from her body.
The dragon struck the Susanoo head-on.
BOOOOM!
Naruto narrowed his eyes as he saw Reika's Susanoo appear once more, blocking the attack.
Even so, Naruto smiled with satisfaction.
The heat generated by the impact was so violent that the atmosphere itself began to react. In seconds, dark, thick clouds began forming overhead.
Hinata observed with her Byakugan, surprised.
"The sky is changing… A storm is forming due to the sudden increase in temperature."
Thunder began to rumble in the distance. The air grew dense, charged with static energy.
Reika dispelled the Susanoo's ribcage, and the smoke from the attack cleared. She didn't have a single scratch.
Seeing the sky now filled with dense storm clouds and energy, a smile appeared on Naruto's face.
Taking advantage of the storm's nature, he raised a hand to the sky, beginning to manipulate the lightning gathered in the atmosphere. The electric energy responded to his will, accumulating into a gigantic shape.
Above the forest, a colossal lightning Kirin began to swirl slowly in the sky, its radiant body illuminating everything in a blinding white light.
"Tiger → Rat → Horse → Monkey → Dog → Dragon → Ram..."
Naruto performed the hand seals at an impressive speed, without losing his confident smile.
"Behold the culmination of lightning nature..." he murmured in a low, almost reverent voice.
The Kirin roared with fury, making everything around it tremble.
"KIRIN!!" Naruto shouted, dropping his arm.
Both enemies froze, their faces contorted in shock. The Kirin dropped from the heavens in a fraction of a second, moving so fast that neither of them could even think of dodging.
The Kirin moved at the speed of lightning—140,000 km per second.
They didn't even have time to think about dodging.
The impact was devastating.
In an instant, the forest was annihilated. Shizuku's water dragon evaporated without a trace, and both she and Gitai vanished in the scorching bolt.
Everything was reduced to ashes.
And in the middle of that destruction, unharmed and calm, stood Naruto with the others. The attack hadn't touched them by even a millimeter, thanks to Naruto's meticulous Chakra control.
Observing the smoldering remains, Naruto took a deep breath.
"Good thing I was training the whole trip..." he thought, grateful to himself. "Without that level of control, I never would've been able to use Kirin so precisely."
Naruto turned to Hinata with a slightly furrowed brow.
"One left. His name is Setsuna. Find him."
Hinata nodded without a word. The veins around her eyes bulged instantly as she activated her Byakugan. She observed silently for a few seconds until she fixed her gaze on a distant point.
"He's fleeing at high speed... He's about 7 kilometers away, but soon he'll be out of my field of vision."
Naruto nodded and looked at Reika.
She already knew what he was asking. She gave a small nod… and disappeared.
Naruto crossed his arms, relaxed.
"I love teamwork. I don't have to do everything myself like usual..."
Of course, he could have handled it all himself… but teamwork was fun.
Although, naturally, his "team" didn't exactly include Neji, Lee, or Sakura this time.
Meanwhile, Shion, still on Sakura's back, couldn't take her eyes off Naruto.
She had met powerful ninjas before… but this was something else.
She was impressed. Fascinated, even.
Neji, however, had a hardened expression of displeasure.
"You can't keep launching attacks of that magnitude without considering the consequences. You've reduced this place to ashes, just like during the Chūnin Exams."
Naruto rolled his eyes in annoyance.
"You're still on about that? It was your fault. You made me mad. Besides, I controlled the damage. If I'd released the full power of that attack that day… Trust me, even I don't want to imagine the result."
And it was true. If he had used the Rasenringu at full power… or worse, the Dai Rasenringu… a large part of the village might have vanished.
The power of both techniques rivaled that of a Bijūdama.
"Just… try to restrain yourself next time." Neji insisted, crossing his arms.
Naruto sighed and turned to Hinata, his expression theatrically exhausted. Without warning, he let his head fall against her chest.
"Neji keeps picking on me... comfort me..."
It was clearly a joke, and Hinata knew it. But still, she smiled shyly, hugging him softly and caressing his back in circles.
Neji clicked his tongue, turning to Rock Lee, visibly annoyed.
"Go with Reika. I don't think she needs help, but just in case. We'll wait here until you return."
"Understood!" Lee replied energetically.
Before leaving, he looked at Naruto and gave him one of his bright smiles, raising a thumbs-up in approval.
Naruto, still with his head resting on Hinata's chest, lazily raised his thumb without bothering to look.
But despite his apparent laziness, the smile on his face said it all.