Chapter 289: Result
"G-Gaara!"
Within Konoha Village's prison, the atmosphere was heavy. Though the true culprit was Orochimaru, the undeniable fact remained that the Hidden Sand Village had cooperated in launching this attack.
After Naruto rescued Temari and Kankuro from the snake venom and healed them, they'd been sent here for temporary custody. Given their current status, if not for their earlier near-death state, Konoha absolutely wouldn't have provided hospital bed treatment. Fortunately, both were basically fine now.
When the Konoha ninja opened the cell door, Temari immediately rushed forward in panic. She carefully examined her brother, discovering that though his eyes were red and swollen, his face still carried undried tear tracks, and his voice sounded somewhat choked, he bore no obvious wounds. Her suspended heart finally settled as she released a long breath.
Standing behind her, Kankuro's face showed not only the same worry as Temari, but even more shock and disbelief.
This is Gaara? Gaara... can actually cry? This brother before him who seemed vulnerable yet no longer cold formed a tremendous contrast with the Shura who only knew slaughter in his memories, leaving him somewhat dazed.
"Thank you so much! Thank you... truly thank you for bringing Gaara back..." Temari bowed deeply toward Naruto, her tone filled with sincere gratitude. Just as the words reached her mouth, she momentarily didn't know how to address this powerful yet young blonde youth, her phrasing seeming somewhat constrained.
"It's... it's fine..." Naruto waved his hand, working hard to squeeze out a smile on his face, but this smile appeared somewhat stiff and unnatural.
This wasn't because of Temari's thanks, but because just moments ago, that cold and clear notification tone had rung in his mind, along with the heart-shaking content that followed.
[Ding! Congratulations, Host: Bond with canonical character "Gaara" has risen to level 100! (Relationship has undergone fundamental transformation!)]
[Current Relationship: Absolute Symbiosis.]
[Relationship Description: The other party has placed your existence at the very top of their life's meaning and value hierarchy. Your will shall become his highest principle of action, your existence his only anchor for perceiving and understanding the world. This emotion has transcended ordinary dependence or trust, deepening into an inseparable absolute symbiotic state.]
[Points Rewarded: 4600!]
[Note: Family member maximum level is 7, cannot undergo qualitative transformation!]
Naruto didn't know—he'd merely wanted to pull Gaara from that twisted worldview, let him see other possibilities, let him know he was worth cherishing... Why had it turned out this way? This description made Naruto's heart feel a bit uneasy.
Once some necessary post-battle cleanup and preliminary interrogation work finished, the Sand captives would most likely be released and repatriated to the Land of Wind.
After all, maintaining surface alliance relationships between major ninja villages involved complex political considerations... Naruto shook his head, deciding not to think deeper about these headache-inducing matters.
At the end of the day, it's all Orochimaru's fault... Naruto attributed his chaotic thoughts to the culprit.
However, before everything completely settled, Naruto himself had several urgent matters to handle. First, he had to clearly explain to the Third Hokage and Jiraiya about that "final testament" regarding his lineage that Orochimaru had thrown out before being sealed.
Second, he urgently wanted to confirm his friends' safety. Though with powerhouses like Kakashi and Might Guy present, the possibility of his companions meeting with mishap was extremely low, without seeing for himself, he truly couldn't feel at ease.
Especially Satsuki... A trace of peculiar concern rose in Naruto's heart. They'd only been separated a few hours—why did it feel like he hadn't seen her in so long...
He felt somewhat confused by this overly intense worry, feeling this kind of thinking was a bit dangerous.
"Naruto-sama!"
A somewhat urgent voice interrupted his thoughts. He saw a Konoha ninja jog to his front, respectfully reporting.
"The Hokage has notified us—if you've finished your business, please immediately head to the Hokage Building. The Hokage has important matters to discuss with you."
"...Huh? Me?" Naruto didn't react immediately. "...I understand."
He felt extremely unfamiliar and awkward with the address "sama." He turned his head, watching this chunin obviously older than himself bow his head respectfully, understanding in his heart.
Looks like... the power displayed on the battlefield earlier has already completely changed some people's attitudes toward me. Being treated with such formal courtesy within Konoha Village was a first for him.
Naruto finally nodded toward Temari in acknowledgment, preparing to turn and leave. However, his sleeve was suddenly gently tugged from behind. He turned his head, meeting Gaara's eyes that seemed able to speak—clearly written with unease and a plea of "don't go."
"Gaara!"
Seeing this, Temari hurriedly stepped forward, somewhat embarrassedly pulling her brother's hand from Naruto's sleeve, then immediately casting an apologetic look toward Naruto. But just as she raised her head, she saw Gaara's other hand stubbornly, quietly grasping Naruto's hem again...
"...Um," Naruto looked at Gaara's eyes like a small animal fearing abandonment and softened, lowering his voice to explain. "I'm just going to handle some matters. I'll be back very soon, I promise. Don't worry—I'm right here in Konoha, not going far."
Hearing his promise, only then did Gaara slowly release his hand. However, his main reason for letting go was sensing he seemed to be causing Naruto trouble, which made him feel somewhat uneasy.
Finally, under Temari and Kankuro's shocked gazes as though meeting their brother for the first time, Naruto left the prison.
Walking along the road returning to Konoha's main streets, since the attack had ended, Naruto decided to first return home and put down the things he was carrying.
Returning to his small apartment, he retrieved from his storage scroll that Pokémon egg painted with strange green circular patterns, carefully placing it back into the specially-made heating incubator on his bedside table.
Wonder if keeping it in the storage scroll all this time counts as "carrying it with me"... Naruto muttered inwardly, but anyway so many years had passed—forget signs of hatching, there hadn't been even a peep.
Today counted as a special case. Under the chaotic state of the village being attacked by ninja, he hadn't dared leave such an important egg alone at home. Now that battle had ended and crisis was resolved, naturally he should liberate it from the storage scroll.
He extended his hand, gently stroking this massive and warm eggshell, releasing a slight sigh. This would be his future summoning beast partner...
After all, whenever Naruto now used Mount Myoboku's Summoning Jutsu, he'd summon the Great Toad Sage, making Jiraiya completely afraid to let Naruto touch Mount Myoboku's contract anymore.
Imagine—in the future Satsuki standing on a blue snake's head, Sakura on a slug, he'd need to find some decent summoning beast to stand on too... Of course, the deeper reason was Naruto's inner deep longing to interact with those pure and beautiful creatures from that utopia.
Though so many years had passed with this egg remaining completely silent, merely as an egg, Naruto had already invested deep affection in it.
"Alright, I'm going..."
Naruto gently patted the eggshell, bidding farewell as usual, preparing to turn and leave.
Then—
"Crack."
An extremely faint yet abnormally clear crisp sound came from behind him without warning.