"Hinata?"
"Why are you here too?"
Haruno Sakura noticed Hinata's presence and asked.
Hinata looked at Sakura's confident expression, feeling a bit guilty. She lowered her head and said softly,
"I... I just heard that you were looking for Naruto-kun, so I thought I could help."
So the three of them began searching for Naruto.
First, they went to Naruto's house but couldn't find him there.
In the end, Hinata used her Byakugan and located Naruto somewhere inside the Forest of Death.
…
The three entered the Forest of Death and soon found Naruto.
Because of Naruto's previous battle with Shukaku in the forest, a large section had turned into an endless wasteland—making it quite easy to spot.
When Naruto saw the three of them coming together, he immediately sensed that something was wrong.
He gently held Hinata's soft little hand and looked at Sakura.
"What's going on? You even asked Hinata to come help. Did something happen?"
Sakura angrily explained everything that had happened earlier.
After hearing it all, Naruto frowned deeply.
At that moment, he couldn't help but admire how cunning these politicians were.
Sarutobi Hiruzen publicly revealed his identity,
trying to use the villagers' guilt to bind him emotionally to Konoha.
Meanwhile, Rasa's "forced marriage" announcement concealed Sunagakure's collapse plan while strengthening ties with the Leaf.
Two old foxes!
Sakura saw Naruto's unhappy expression and asked,
"So Naruto, what are we going to do now?"
Naruto thought for a moment before finally deciding,
"For now, I'll keep practicing basic ninjutsu. After some time, I'll leave the village."
"Huh?" Sakura was stunned.
"Naruto, you… you're leaving Konoha?"
Naruto nodded calmly.
"Yeah, there's no other choice. Maybe I'm just not the type to fit in here."
"Before, no one cared about me, and I still lived just fine."
After all, Konoha is the most prosperous ninja village in the world.
"But now that my identity's been revealed by that old monkey, and everyone suddenly wants to act close to me… I just can't adapt to that."
Hearing Naruto's words, Sakura pressed her lips together as if she had made up her mind about something.
But Naruto gently patted her shoulder and said,
"Sakura-chan, you should stay."
Sakura fell silent, standing before Naruto without saying a word.
Naruto understood what she wanted to say even without her speaking.
He warned her softly,
"Sakura-chan, you're different from me. You have to think about how others feel before deciding anything."
"Besides, staying in Konoha will be better for your growth."
Though she clearly wanted to follow Naruto, Sakura nodded obediently.
Still, she couldn't help but ask curiously,
"What do you mean by 'better for my growth'?"
Naruto smiled mysteriously.
"Sakura, if you meet a very… big girl in the village, you must become her disciple."
"Big?" Sakura blinked and subconsciously glanced down at her toes—
Ah no, she could even see her whole feet—
Wait, that's not right either.
Pa!
Naruto lightly smacked Sakura on the head.
"That's not what I meant. It's just a physical trait!"
"Oh…" Sakura rubbed her head in frustration.
"Stop hitting me, or I'll just get even dumber."
Ino chuckled beside her.
"Don't be discouraged, Sakura. Realizing that you're stupid is already a great start."
Sakura immediately exploded.
"Ino-pig! What did you say?! Come here and—"
"Oh… forget it, I can't beat you anyway."
Naruto took the chance to say,
"That's exactly what I meant. If you succeed in becoming that woman's disciple, you'll definitely be able to beat Ino one day."
Sakura's eyes lit up.
"Really? I can actually beat Ino?"
Naruto nodded confidently.
"Of course! But first, you need to complete the apprenticeship successfully."
"I'll tell you the secret to doing that right now…"
"…"
"Got it?"
Sakura nodded seriously.
"Okay, I remember!"
…
After sending the three girls off, Naruto continued studying ninjutsu.
In a short amount of time, several trees had grown around him—
but compared to the ones created by the First Hokage, these were still far inferior.
When night fell, Naruto finally left the Forest of Death.
He originally planned to grab a quick bite, go home, rest, and continue training afterward.
But the moment he appeared, he was surrounded by a crowd of villagers asking endless questions.
Naruto forced a smile, waving his hands.
"Don't ask me so many things, I don't even know if what the Third Hokage said is true!"
"I just want to eat right now. Please, everyone, give me some space. Thank you… thank you very much."
But the villagers wouldn't let him go.
"Little Naruto, it was our fault before. Please forgive us!"
"Yeah, we were just misled!"
"Damn that guy who spread the rumors! If I ever catch him, I'll teach him a lesson!"
"What's that? You said his name is Shimura Danzō?"
"Got it! If I see that old man, I'll make him pay for you!"
"I never realized little Naruto was so handsome~"
"That's right! Have you eaten yet, Naruto? Come to my house for dinner—don't be shy!"
"Yeah, yeah, my wife's cooking is amazing! And my daughter's pretty cute too—"
"What? You're not coming? Going to a restaurant instead?"
"Naruto, those restaurants just pile on ingredients for flavor. Totally unhealthy!"
"Wait, Naruto! Where are you going?"
"Ah… this kid's still so shy."
Naruto managed to squeeze through the crowd, but just as he took two steps forward—another group of villagers surrounded him again.
He took a deep breath, silently moving up his plan to leave Konoha even sooner.
Just then, a sharp voice shouted from outside the crowd:
"Hey! You lot in front—move aside! Anyone still standing there after three seconds will deal with the consequences!"
The villagers turned around in annoyance.
They saw a female ninja holding a giant fan glaring at them fiercely.
Before anyone could respond, the woman shouted,
"Three seconds are up! Wind Style: Wind Scythe Jutsu!!!"
Ninjutsu?!
A fierce gust of wind whipped through the crowd.
The ordinary villagers, unable to withstand the pressure, gasped for breath and stumbled around helplessly.
Fortunately, it was only a low-level wind jutsu meant to scatter them—not strong enough to hurt anyone.
"Run! She's serious!"
"Damn it, where did this crazy woman come from?!"
"Go call a ninja!"
Temari snorted coldly.
"I am the ninja, idiots!"
Villagers: "…"
"Run!"
In moments, the crowd scattered in every direction.
Only Temari and Naruto were left standing there.
Temari folded her fan and rested it against the ground with a metallic clang.
Naruto followed her gaze—his eyes landing on her pale calves—
Temari asked coldly,
"You're obviously strong, and you hate being bothered by those people. So why didn't you fight back?"
Naruto replied quietly,
"Because I'm afraid of killing someone."
Temari: "…"
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