Chapter 524: Hidden Mist Situation
Chapter 524: Hidden Mist Situation
Seeing Tsunade stammering and unable to provide a coherent explanation, Naruto couldn’t be bothered to argue with her any further.
Being serious with this somewhat unreliable Senior was simply a waste of time and energy.
"Forget it, just sleep here."
Naruto waved his hand, his tone tinged with helplessness, "I’m going to check the situation in Hidden Mist first."
"Hey, hey, you’re leaving again just after coming back?"
Tsunade was somewhat surprised and sat upright on the bed.
"You’re not even going to take a break?"
Naruto didn’t answer, simply closing his eyes and beginning to concentrate his perception.
His Chakra spread out like invisible ripples, carefully searching for the Flying Thunder God Mark in the direction of the Hidden Mist Village in the east.
He had previously left an exclusive mark on Shino Aburame’s shoulder. More importantly, his improved Flying Thunder God Mark was a spiral pattern, and many Konoha Ninja uniform vests already had the Uzumaki Clan crest embroidered on the back.
Naruto had cleverly integrated his Flying Thunder God Mark into it, which meant that as long as he found a large group of Konoha Ninja bearing this special mark, he could accurately locate the main force attacking the Hidden Mist Village.
"Yeah, I’ll let you have the room for the night."
Naruto opened his eyes, his gaze seemingly piercing through the walls as he looked toward the distant east.
"I have to go and completely resolve the situation in Hidden Mist first."
Hearing this, Tsunade petulantly patted the bed she was sitting on, "Then why did you wake me up just now? Just to tell me you’re leaving?"
She felt that the beating she’d received was a bit unjust.
Naruto glanced at her, the corners of his mouth curling into a teasing arc, "I wanted to sleep just now, but when I saw an old lady lying on my bed, I suddenly didn’t want to anymore."
"Who are you calling an old lady?"
Tsunade was instantly enraged, her golden hair almost standing on end, and she smashed a fist toward Naruto’s face.
Although this punch didn’t use her super strength, it was extremely fast and carried a whistling sound.
Naruto, however, just casually raised his right hand, fingers spread, and steadily caught the angry blow.
Fist and palm collided, emitting a muffled sound, but Naruto’s arm remained motionless; he didn’t even sway, looking completely nonchalant.
Tsunade was shocked, and her drunkenness completely vanished.
Even though she had held back some of her strength just now and hadn’t used her full power, this wasn’t something just anyone could catch so easily.
This kid Naruto’s strength seemed to have improved significantly since they last met, and this feeling of handling it with such ease...
After teasing Tsunade a couple of times and seeing her frustrated and surprised expression, Naruto’s mood, which had been somewhat irritable due to his train of thought being interrupted, felt a bit better.
Come to think of it, the one in Hidden Leaf Village who gave him the biggest headache was probably this "tough nut" Tsunade. For others, even old schemers like Danzo, there were clear ways to deal with them. Only with Tsunade, he couldn’t hit her, couldn’t scold her, and still had to figure out how not to clean up her messes.
"Alright, you rest for now, get some energy, so you can go extort your cousin tomorrow."
Naruto let go, his tone returning to calm.
By this time, through the Flying Thunder God Mark, he had clearly perceived the mark on Shino, who was far away in the Hidden Mist Village.
As well as the large amount of Konoha Ninja Chakra gathered in that area bearing the Uzumaki mark.
He didn’t delay any longer and immediately performed the Flying Thunder God Technique.
A dazzling golden light flashed by, and Tsunade instinctively narrowed her eyes.
The light flashed and vanished; Naruto’s figure was gone from the room, leaving only the faint, lingering Chakra fluctuations in the air and the slightly messy bedding on the bed as proof that everything that had just happened wasn’t a hallucination.
Tsunade sat on the bed, rubbing her still-aching wrist and touching her back where she had been struck by the ruler, muttering softly, "Brat, you run as fast as the Fourth Hokage."
She lay back down, but her sleepiness was gone. She stared at the ceiling, wondering what she was thinking about.
When the golden light flashed again, Naruto was already in a completely different environment.
After a slight gasp, he quickly looked around.
This appeared to be a plaza somewhere inside the Hidden Mist Village, with bonfires burning fiercely, illuminating the surroundings.
The air was filled with the aroma of roasted meat, the smell of alcohol, and a clamor mixed with fatigue, relaxation, and a certain subtle suppression.
It looked like a victory banquet was being held, or rather, a "pacification banquet" by the victors for the surrendered.
Shino Aburame sat alone in the shadows of a corner far from the bonfire, wearing his high-collared coat and sunglasses as always, so quiet he was almost one with the darkness.
Beside the bonfire, a group of Hidden Mist Village Ninja were singing and dancing.
But their dance moves were hardly graceful, even somewhat stiff and forced, and their singing was dry.
Why was this?
Because many Konoha Ninja were sitting and standing around. Although they were also drinking and eating meat, their gazes would sweep over the performing Hidden Mist Ninja from time to time, their eyes filled with scrutiny and a faint sense of intimidation.
The Hidden Mist Village had already surrendered to Hidden Leaf Village. These Hidden Mist Ninja "voluntarily" performing songs and dances to please the victors was both a gesture of submission and a helpless way to survive.
Sitting at the head of the banquet was Uchiha Sasuke.
He leaned back in his chair, one hand supporting his chin, while the other hand casually swirled the wine glass in his grip. His handsome face was expressionless, appearing somewhat bored, even a little impatient.
Clearly, he wasn’t interested in this kind of scene.
This time, in the conquest of the Hidden Mist Village, his Perfect Susanoo had played a crucial role, serving as the deciding factor. Now, sitting here, he was more of a symbol and a deterrent.
Sitting below him were Kakashi and the surrendered Mei Terumi.
Naruto’s appearance didn’t cause much of a commotion. Only a few nearby Konoha Ninja looked over alertly, and upon realizing it was the Hokage-sama, they immediately bowed respectfully and then whispered the news to their companions.
Naruto didn’t alert too many people; he sat down next to Shino.
"How is it, Shino,"
Naruto gently nudged Shino with his shoulder, his gaze fixed on those stiff dancers by the bonfire, his tone carrying a hint of teasing, "Is the dance good?"
"Naruto?"
Having his name called, Shino’s first reaction was that Naruto had arrived.
He turned his head; the expression on his face behind the sunglasses was unreadable, but his tone was relaxed.
"It really is you."
"It’s alright," Shino looked at the dancers following Naruto’s gaze, his voice flat and calm, "But I can’t really appreciate this kind of dance."
As he said this, he casually picked up a small pebble from beside his feet, rolled it between his fingertips, and then seemingly tossed it randomly toward a dark, empty corner in the distance.
The pebble traced a parabolic arc, disappeared into the night, and made a faint sound upon landing.
This action seemed boring, but those familiar with Shino knew that this was a habit of his for observing the environment.
Naruto smiled and didn’t comment further on the dance.
His gaze swept across the entire banquet venue, finally landing on the aloof figure in the seat of honor. He then looked at the Konoha Ninja around him who appeared relaxed but were actually still vigilant, as well as the Hidden Mist captives forcing smiles.
Victory in war is not always accompanied by pure joy; more often, it is this complex and heavy atmosphere.
"How is the situation?"
Naruto restrained his smile and asked in a low voice, his tone becoming serious. This was the true purpose of his trip.
"As you can see, Hidden Leaf Village has achieved total victory."
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