Naruto: Passerby and Returnee

Chapter 89 The Approaching Shadow

Dangoya is a famous confectionery shop in Konoha. The owner is an elderly woman who is particularly kind and nostalgic. Even though she can no longer work and now supervises her apprentices in making desserts, you can still taste the same flavors as more than ten years ago.

"Hello, I'd like one order of three-color meatballs."

"Okay, please wait a moment."

The apprentice tending the shop gave the two customers a rather strange look. It was quite unusual to see customers dressed in long black robes and straw hats, completely covered up in the sweltering heat. But this was Konoha, a place where ordinary people and ninjas lived together, and ninjas made up a significant portion of the population. If they were ninjas, then their quirks wouldn't be so odd, would they?

The apprentice muttered to himself as he served dumplings to the strange customers at the table. The moment he turned his head, a clear bell rang, and his head began to spin. He took a few steps back to the counter and slumped down.

Ah... another uneventful day.

"Hey~ You two... you seem to get along really well~" Kakashi, leaning against the outside of the store, closed the book in his hand and greeted two colleagues who had also come to patronize the store, his tone full of teasing.

Asuma didn't react much, but Kurenai shifted her gaze uncomfortably; the happiness of being in love couldn't be completely hidden.

"No, I just came to buy meatballs for Hongdou."

Red's tone was full of awkwardness, unable to find an excuse. In contrast, Asuma was much more natural, even taking the initiative, "You are the one who asked, 'What are you doing here alone?'"

"It's nothing, I'm just buying offerings." Kakashi could say this with a smile all along, but his only visible eye secretly glanced into the shop, where the red cloud in the shadows was particularly striking.

"Are the offerings meant to be made to Obito?"

"Obito?"

Well, that's how it is.

The three of them were old friends, and they immediately understood the subtle hint. They wanted to continue their conversation, but their attention was focused on the small shop where two incredibly dangerous individuals were seated.

The three Jonin entered the shop together, ordered what they needed, and sat down at a table next to the two strange men who hadn't removed their straw hats while in the shop. They silently waited for the shopkeeper to pack their food, and then waited for one of the men in black robes to slowly finish eating the three-colored dumplings, before leaving the shop one after the other.

"You two aren't ninjas from this village, are you?"

On a secluded, deserted riverbank, the two sides finally faced off.

"Mr. Kakashi, Mr. Asuma, Ms. Kurenai, it's been a long time." Despite the strong hostility, the other party's reply was humble and polite, and their voice sounded very young.

There are very few ninjas who have defected from Konoha, and there is only one such young rogue ninja.

Uchiha Itachi.

"You two, you've been traveling over ten kilometers in the middle of the night? Why didn't you wake me up!" Sasuke, who woke up according to his biological clock, opened his eyes and noticed something was wrong with the ceiling. He immediately jumped up and looked out the window. Then he learned from Naruto that they had not only changed hotels, but also changed towns.

“You’ve trained until you’re exhausted, of course you should rest properly…” Naruto said matter-of-factly, but after saying that, he closed his eyes and entered a sleep mode that couldn’t be woken up.

So, he'd rather work harder himself because he didn't want to see Naruto like that!

"Sasuke, you're awake just in time. I'm going out to gather intelligence. I'm leaving Naruto in your care." Jiraiya, whom Sasuke considered anything but reliable, tossed out these words and left. Does sleeping really need to be taken care of? Such precious training time is going to be wasted like this!

Although Sasuke was angry, he still obediently sat down next to Naruto. The house wasn't suitable for practicing new techniques, so he could only refine his chakra, but Naruto's unruly sleeping posture kept interrupting his meditation. This ordinary inn only had two beds and a set of tables and chairs; he really didn't want to touch the other bed, which reeked of alcohol, nor did he want to sit on the floor. Sasuke looked at Naruto sprawled out, then at the crumpled blanket, and suddenly had a brilliant idea: he wrapped Naruto up in the blanket like a cocoon.

Hmph, we can't keep moving around like this!

The body's slumber did not mean the soul's slumber. Naruto was actually awake; his body simply didn't allow him to open his eyes. Jiraiya's presence was one of the few places Naruto felt safe in, so he wasn't too concerned about his surroundings and was dealing with another problem.

"Your hair has grown a little longer, which confirms that the soul pressure you unintentionally emitted is stronger than before." Kurama circled around Naruto, observing him. He had never seen anything like this before. "Normally, the soul can only grow slowly. I've never seen anything like this before."

Naruto lowered his head, seemingly lost in thought, and after a long while said, "Now is not the time to explore this question. If things continue like this, will I even be able to grow into an adult?"

"Definitely!" Kurama answered loudly, his nine tails swishing wildly. "It's just that his soul is too strong! I refuse to believe we can't find a way!"

"Don't get excited, Kurama, you're driving me crazy!" For some reason, Naruto isn't actually afraid of death. Maybe it's because... he's died once before, and the experience was alright? After all, he can go back to the past in the blink of an eye.

Kurama was so agitated that he paced back and forth, but when he saw the tiny crack at the edge of space, he forced himself to calm down and restrain the chakra that was flowing everywhere.

“Naruto, tell them,” Kurama said seriously. “Activating Hui’s power is much better than you figuring it out on your own.”

Naruto's answer was, of course, "No. If I talk about the future, I'll only die faster."

"Then we need to find information related to the soul first! Didn't Tobirama do a lot of research? He could even create the Impure World Reincarnation, so there's no reason why he couldn't suppress the soul!"

"...I'll find a reason to look at his research report, but Uncle Tobirama is very perceptive..."

"Naruto! Your life is the most important thing!"

Naruto was surprised to hear Kurama say this. He was both happy and sad, and said softly, "Kurama, I'm glad you said that. In fact, everyone's life is the same, and no one's life is more important. But for the ultimate goal of 'keeping the world going,' my personal life is insignificant."

"Perhaps this isn't a bad thing? I can feel my chakra has increased quite a bit. The relationship between the soul and chakra is indeed very subtle..."

"Naruto." Kurama rarely spoke to Naruto in such a serious and fierce tone. "Your life is very important to some beings. If you dare to die on your own, I will transform into a true natural disaster and destroy this world."

When Naruto met Kurama's blood-red, murderous eyes, he didn't feel any pressure; he knew Kurama was just being stubborn.

He had already died, so he knew that the world would continue to turn even without him, and the reborn Nine Lamas did not wallow in loss.