"I've seen you teaching and training others all this time, but I didn't expect you to be so useless at a critical moment!"
Naruto was watching the battle below when a mocking voice came from behind him.
It turned out that Princess Koyuki Kazahana and the film crew had escaped back to the ship.
Seeing other ninjas fighting while Naruto just stood on deck watching, Koyuki grew dissatisfied.
Before Naruto could respond, Jiraiya—who was also fishing not far away—spoke up first.
Jiraiya chuckled and said, "Even if the enemy attacks, someone still has to stay behind to protect the client."
Naruto shook his head slightly, finding Koyuki's attitude unpleasant.
But he didn't care too much.
After all, he planned to settle down in the Land of Snow eventually, and he would inevitably have to deal with Koyuki again.
Naruto could tolerate her for now.
But if Koyuki ever crossed the line, he'd have no choice but to become the next Doto Kazahana.
Of course, that would be a different kind of "takeover."
If Doto conquered the Land of Snow, Koyuki and her followers might still have had a chance to reclaim it later.
But if Naruto did it… that would be permanent.
Naruto stopped thinking about it and looked back down at the battle.
At this point, the fight was nearly over.
Karin rushed down in her Nine Tails Chakra Mode, her speed enhanced by the Body Flicker Technique.
None of the Snow Ninja's weapons or jutsu could even touch her.
All she had to do was close in, strike with her kunai, and another enemy would fall.
It was a one-sided massacre.
After all, Kakashi and Sasuke were not ordinary opponents.
And with Karin in Nine Tails Mode, their side was overwhelmingly strong.
The only weak link was Sakura.
As for the enemy?
They were all just small fry—no one of importance.
Puff!
Karin drove her kunai straight into the last enemy's chest.
A spray of blood burst out as the Snow Ninja stared at her in horror before collapsing.
Karin's Nine Tails Mode faded soon after.
Right now, she could only maintain it for a few minutes—but that was more than enough for most fights.
Sasuke stared at her, genuinely surprised by her performance.
He couldn't figure it out.
He had been training relentlessly… yet the girl who'd once been powerless during the Chūnin Exams had surpassed him in such a short time?
Was she a genius?
Or had she simply outworked him?
Just as he was lost in thought, the crew's ship suddenly came under attack.
The Snow Ninjas below had only been decoys—fodder meant to distract them.
A shadow streaked across the sky, diving straight toward Princess Koyuki.
"Hahaha~ You actually brought Konoha ninjas as your guards?"
A mocking voice rang out. "But too bad—they've already been lured away! Come with us, Princess Koyuki!"
It was Fubuki Kakuyoku, one of Doto Kazahana's elite subordinates.
The moment Jiraiya spotted her, he immediately formed a Rasengan in his hand and rushed forward.
But two other of Doto's men appeared from the ship's side, attacking him from both directions.
"That white-haired old man—don't get in our way!"
Jiraiya turned toward the voice and saw a massive man in heavy armor—Fuyukuma Hail—charging at him with metal gauntlets.
Not knowing the enemy's full power, Jiraiya didn't dare to take the hit head-on.
His Rasengan clashed against the armored man's punch.
Boom!
Fuyukuma's expression twisted in pain as the Rasengan's power blasted him backward, sending him crashing through the ship's railing and into the sea.
"Oh… so he's just another small fry," Jiraiya muttered.
Another Snow Ninja, shocked by how quickly his comrade was taken down, hurriedly formed hand seals.
"Ice Release: White Whale!" he shouted.
A massive narwhal made of ice erupted from the sea, slamming into the ship's side.
Jiraiya stepped back slightly to brace himself from the impact.
Meanwhile, the fat man who had just been knocked into the sea looked up in confusion.
"???"
At that moment, Fubuki Kakuyoku swooped down, snatched up Princess Koyuki—who was paralyzed with fear—and took off into the sky.
Seeing her succeed, another of Doto's henchmen, Rouga Nadare, sneered at Jiraiya.
"Haha! I don't know how strong you are, old man, but our mission's already complete. You can't fly, can you?"
After mocking him, Rouga turned to retreat.
But Jiraiya was not someone to trifle with.
Had Rouga fled immediately, he might have escaped.
But the moment he paused to gloat—it was already too late.
Jiraiya dashed forward in an instant, Rasengan spinning in his palm.
Boom!
The jutsu slammed into Rouga's face with crushing force.
His skull caved in instantly, and his body collapsed lifelessly to the ground.
Being killed instantly by one of the Sannin was hardly surprising.
Even if Rouga Nadare was considered strong, he was at best on Kakashi's level.
Against Jiraiya, he never stood a chance.
Meanwhile, Fubuki Kakuyoku had already flown far off with Princess Koyuki in her arms.
Jiraiya looked up at the sky with a troubled sigh.
"This is a pain. Naruto, can't you fly?"
"Huh? How'd you know I can fly?" Naruto asked curiously.
Did Konoha really keep files on him now?
Jiraiya smirked. "You've shown off plenty of times. It's not exactly a secret."
Naruto sighed helplessly. "Guess I should've kept a lower profile."
He glanced up at Fubuki, who was rising higher into the air, then bent his knees slightly.
In the next second—his figure vanished.
Fubuki froze midair as Naruto appeared right in front of her.
"What?!"
She hadn't even realized her two teammates had already been defeated—and now, Naruto had suddenly appeared in her path.
No one had ever managed to stop her before.
After all, she could fly!
Naruto raised his hand casually—then slapped her across the face.
Boom!
Fubuki's vision went dark. Her body slammed into the deck, unconscious.
Before she passed out, her final thought was: "What… just happened? Was I… hit?"
By then, Kakashi and the others had realized something was wrong and hurried back to the ship.
As they arrived, they saw Naruto descending slowly from the sky—holding Princess Koyuki by the collar like a helpless chick.
Koyuki, who had just been carried into the air and nearly abducted, was trembling all over.
She didn't even comprehend what had happened until Naruto gently set her down.
Still shaking, she hugged herself and whispered, "Th-thank you…"
Then, without another word, she bolted to her cabin and hid under her blankets.
Naruto blinked. "Huh. So she can say thank you."
Kakashi looked at Rouga's corpse and frowned slightly—it did look familiar.
Then he glanced at the unconscious Fubuki lying nearby.
"We should be able to get some information out of this one," Kakashi said, turning to Sakura. "Sakura, take off her armor and tie her up."
Sakura nodded and moved to restrain Fubuki.
Meanwhile, Sasuke looked at Naruto and asked directly, "Naruto, what was that golden light around your body just now?"
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