After hearing what Sarah said, Sarai couldn't help but lower his head. His whole mood dimmed, and he began drawing circles on the ground with his finger.
"Really?"
"But… my father and brother were taken away."
Masako gently placed her hand on Sarai's head, trying to comfort the poor child. She softly added to his words:
"I heard they were forced to build weapons of war somewhere in this country…"
"We really don't have any other choice but to directly ask you, Lady Sarah, to release our family."
Even Naruto, who was usually bright and optimistic, found himself unable to smile in this moment. He could feel that something was deeply wrong.
"This is exactly what the Fourth Hokage warned me about... and what the masked guy said too…"
But Sarah refused to admit her mistake. Instead, she seemed lost in the beautiful illusion before her. She pointed toward the bustling crowd in the square and insisted:
"If that's true, then why are so many of my people welcoming me with such warmth?"
Sarai looked up at the princess, who was still lost in her dreamlike fantasy. He frowned, his big front teeth showing as his brows twisted together.
"Where is the welcome you're talking about?"
"What are you saying!?"
"Look! Aren't there so many people cheering for me, right before my eyes?"
Uchiha Hikaru, who had been silent on the side, stepped forward and pointed to the air above the crowd.
"Hey. You, can you see those lines?"
"Huh? Let me take a closer look."
Naruto stepped up and focused his gaze. In the light, he barely made out several thread-like lines above the crowd.
"…These are…"
He immediately drew the chakra blade from his waist, channeled chakra into it, and hurled it into the air.
The blade spun through the sky and then returned to Naruto's hand.
Suddenly, several figures at the back of the crowd collapsed, slamming into the ground with strange, hollow thuds.
Bang! Bang!
Naruto dashed forward, picked up one of the bodies, then turned to look at Hikaru.
Hikaru nodded slightly and gestured for him to come back.
Naruto threw the "villager" to the ground.
Clang!
"See for yourself—this is clearly a puppet. Its exterior's just made to resemble human skin."
"No wonder I felt something was off, even though it looked normal…"
Only after seeing it with her own eyes did Sarah begin to feel her world crumbling.
Could Minister Mukade, the man who had been with her since she was a child… really be the traitor? The monster everyone warned her about?
No. She couldn't believe that!
Sarah pointed at the rest of the large crowd ahead, still clinging to her hopes.
"That's impossible! There are so many of them—how could they all be fake?"
"They're just puppets—filler, created on purpose by Mukade to make you feel at ease," Naruto replied, frowning.
Hearing that, Sarah shook her head in denial.
But Naruto crouched down again and poured chakra into the puppet's chest, trying to trace the flow back through its chakra lines.
Boom!
"Ahh! Brother Hikaru, what are you doing!? I was focusing my chakra!"
Hikaru rolled his eyes.
"Idiot. You cut all the chakra threads on the puppet. How are you supposed to trace it now?"
"Ah~"
"Step aside. I'll do it."
Hikaru raised his right hand. A thin, two-finger-wide blade slid out from his palm.
Suddenly, it was as if countless thunderbirds sang at once—crackling sounds filled the air. Electric arcs flickered, and a long lightning blade stretched outward in a brilliant arc of bluish-white light.
"Brother Hikaru!"
"Your jutsu—it's just like Sasuke's Chidori Sharp Spear!"
With a flick of his wrist, the lightning blade swept across the sky above the square. In the next instant, the crowd collapsed like dominoes, row by row.
Sarah stood in stunned silence.
There were no people. No welcoming crowd.
Just an army of puppet subjects… all playing along with the illusion she had been living in.
A puppet princess in a puppet kingdom.
"Sarah," Hikaru said quietly. "Do you see now?"
"These people—your people—aren't real. They're controlled by the chakra flowing through the Dragon Vein pipes above."
"This entire illusion of 'Rōran' was built using the Dragon Vein's power."
"And tragically… your people have become the price of this false prosperity."
Suddenly, the square filled with music. Instruments began playing a dignified, solemn tune. The doors above the square's platform opened—and another "Sarah" appeared.
She looked identical to the real Sarah. If you didn't know better, you'd think they were twins.
But her movements were stiff, her eyes lifeless and tinted with a chaotic purple hue.
Sarah stumbled forward a few steps, staring in disbelief at her puppet double. Her entire reality shattered.
Her dream became a nightmare.
"…What… what is this…"
Hikaru didn't answer. He stood still, watching the scene with cold detachment.
"That bastard Baizu is planning to turn you into a puppet too," he finally said.
Masako bowed her head in silence. This wasn't just Sarah's tragedy—it was the fall of all of Rōran. She had suspected this all along… but witnessing it made her tear up nonetheless.
Even little Sarai had a grave look on his face.
He knew now—this place was no longer his home.
Sarah's mind couldn't handle the collision of her memories and the truth before her. She kept shaking her head, her expression hollow, as if refusing to accept the nightmare playing out.
"You're lying… this can't be true…"
"Mukade would never do something like this!"
She dashed into the fallen crowd, running through the collapsed puppets.
"Hey! Sarah, wait!" Naruto called, chasing after her.
"Sarah, where are you going!?"
But the massive puppets still stood tall in the square, blocking Naruto's view. He couldn't see where she'd gone.
After a moment of searching, he gave up and returned to Hikaru.
"Brother Hikaru, I can't find her… I'll leave it to you."
He scratched the back of his head, looking helpless.
Hikaru shook his head. If not for Ashura's chakra within Naruto, constantly keeping his heart bright, he would've been swallowed by darkness a long time ago.
Only Naruto… only Naruto could still accept a princess like that ｡･ﾟ･(つд`ﾟ)･ﾟ･｡
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Bonus Chapter at 150 Power Stone
Second Bonus Chapter - 300 Power Stones
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