thefictionvixens Chapter 30 Worries
Chapter 30 Worries
"Absurd! How dare you, a coward, overturn the ironclad order of the ninja world!"
The Raikage's roar was like a thunderclap. His Lightning Release armor suddenly exploded, and the ground beneath his feet cracked like a spiderweb due to the leakage of chakra.
At the same time, the Third Hokage's voice rang out. "Masked man, you said you wanted to stop the war?"
"But isn't your action right now tantamount to starting a war? Do you realize that your remarks just now are tantamount to making an enemy of the entire world!"
The pockmarked fox mask tilted slightly, seemingly in a cold laugh. "I said—I will become 'war itself'."
His black robe fluttered in the surging chakra, and the jet-black spiral wheel in his hand spun in his palm, radiating a suffocating sense of oppression.
"You're right, this is my war against the entire world."
The Third Hokage frowned deeply, and suddenly raised his voice. "Wait! Your space-time ninjutsu—is it the Flying Thunder God Technique?! Where are you from—"
But before he could finish speaking, Menma had already taken action.
The spiral wheel, which had been charging up for a long time, was suddenly thrown backward, and the pitch-black energy ball cut through the sky and fell straight down into the distant forest.
At the moment of the explosion, the world fell silent.
"boom--!!"
Immediately afterwards, blinding white light engulfed their vision, and a shockwave spread out in a ring, instantly turning towering trees into dust. A blazing fireball expanded and rose, dyeing half the sky crimson. A blast of wind swept in, causing everyone's robes to flutter wildly, and even the Third Hokage and the Raikage had to raise their hands to shield themselves from the oncoming heatwave.
As the light faded, traces of a natural disaster appeared in the distant forest. The forest within a hundred meters was destroyed, replaced by a charred crater nearly a hundred meters in diameter. The soil around the crater was still emitting wisps of smoke, and the air was filled with a pungent, acrid smell of burning.
"To be an enemy of the world?"
Menma's voice was eerily calm, as if the devastating attack just moments before was nothing more than a casual gesture. "If such words came from an ordinary ninja, they'd be considered a madman. But if the person speaking—"
The gaze from beneath the fox mask swept over the Third Hokage and Raikage, whose expressions had drastically changed. "Possessing the power to turn such 'boast' into reality?"
The expressions of the two "Kage" turned completely grim. The man before them, who called himself "Menma," was no bluff. When a person's power is strong enough to threaten the entire ninja world's order single-handedly, "being an enemy of the world" is no longer just empty talk, but a chilling reality.
"Come on, I don't want to hurt the innocent."
Mianma's voice was exceptionally clear amidst the aftershocks of the explosion. He raised his hand and pointed to the still-burning forest ruins in the distance.
"My only target is that fool blinded by ambition—the Raikage. I'll be waiting for you there."
The next moment, his figure vanished from the spot without warning, as if erased by an eraser.
The Raikage's muscles were taut like steel. His breathing was heavy and hot. This power... this long-cherished wish... he must be destroyed here!
Without the slightest hesitation, Raikage's figure suddenly transformed into a streak of blue-white lightning, the ground beneath his feet collapsing into a crater the instant the explosion occurred. His speed was so great that he even left an afterimage in the air, leaving only scorched lightning marks and flying dust in his wake.
After Minato Namikaze's death, the true value of being the fastest ninja in the world was revealed at this moment.
"Lord Raikage!" Hi and Darui took a step forward almost simultaneously, trying to catch up, however...
"roar--!!"
The Nine-Faced Beast roared, its body blocking their path. Darui's lips twitched, his lazy expression replaced by a solemn one. He once again drew his ninja sword from his back.
"Looks like this won't work..." he muttered to himself, his gaze sweeping over the menacing summoned beasts. "It seems their mission is simply to block us here..."
Xi activated his sensory ninjutsu to its fullest extent, his fingers rapidly forming hand seals, cold sweat trickling down his back. "Chakra reflexes...each one is stronger than mine!"
Meanwhile, the Third Hokage turned his gaze from the direction the Raikage had left. "All Anbu, listen up! Defeat these summoning beasts, and then—support the Raikage!"
"Whoosh—!"
The ANBU of Konoha surged forth like a black tide, their eyes beneath masks cold and focused. A blur of kunai flashed as Kakashi silently appeared at the forefront of the group, his Sharingan slowly rotating, locking onto his target.
Battle is imminent.
------
In the distance, atop a towering rooftop somewhere in Konoha, a small, blond figure gazed helplessly at the dust-filled battlefield. Three-year-old Naruto Uzumaki couldn't help but sigh and rub his forehead.
So, is my inner self... really this chuunibyou (delusional/absurd)?
Naruto's eyes were filled with speechlessness. That's right—the "Menma" who was confronting the Raikage and the Third Hokage was a shadow clone who had used the [Vortex Menma Experience Card]. As for the one standing here, that was his real body.
What do you mean by "becoming war itself"... what do you mean by "being an enemy of the whole world"...?
Naruto rubbed his hair, recalling his impassioned declaration, and nearly dug a hole in the floor with his toes. So embarrassing! While the dialogue was certainly impactful, thinking back on it now was incredibly awkward.
My real purpose isn't that lofty!
His plan was actually quite simple. The first step was to create a villainous persona to make it easier to recruit powerful but politically divided rogue ninjas in the future, such as...
Deidara, who constantly shouts "Art is an explosion".
Kakuzu is only interested in money.
Zabuza, who failed to assassinate the Mizukage but was instead idolized by the Hidden Mist ninjas, was a hero among them.
The second step involves orchestrating a crisis, making "Menma" a feared threat to all nations, while he himself rises as a "Konoha genius," becoming a "guardian" against this threat. This way—he can legitimately acquire more training resources, max out his system points, and consolidate combat power at crucial moments.
The third step is to deal with future threats. Although we don't know how strong the so-called Otsutsuki aliens are, if Earthlings fight amongst themselves all day long, wouldn't they be doomed when a real external enemy comes?
Civil war... let's avoid it if we can.
"Naruto!"
A hurried shout suddenly rang in his ears, startling Naruto so much that he almost slipped off the roof. He hurriedly turned his head and saw a familiar figure—long black hair slightly disheveled from running, cheeks flushed from exercise, and chest heaving violently, clearly having run all the way here.
"Satsuki...Satsuki?"
Naruto's eyes widened, completely unprepared to see her here. What was Uchiha Sasuke doing here? Shouldn't she be in the shelter with the other villagers?
Before he could react, Zuo Yue had already rushed forward and grabbed his ear hard with her fingers.
"Wait! Ouch! Ouch! What are you doing?"
Naruto struggled in pain, but froze instantly when he looked up and met Sasuke's eyes—those proud, dark eyes were now filled with lingering fear, the corners of his eyes were slightly red, and his eyelashes were still damp.
"What do you think?!" Satsuki's voice trembled noticeably. "The village has been invaded! Everyone's gone to the shelter! Do you know how dangerous it is outside?!"
Naruto opened his mouth, but the words he wanted to say suddenly caught in his throat. He then realized that Satsuki had come out specifically to find him.
What just happened?
Just now, when the alarm sounded, Sazuki hurriedly evacuated with the women and children of the Uchiha clan. Fugaku led the Uchiha ninjas to evacuate the civilians. Itachi was on a mission outside and not in the village. Excluding the Nine-Tails' rampage when he had no memory, this was Sazuki's first experience of an invasion.
As the chaos in the shelter subsided, the first thing Zuo Yue did was look around for the blond figure. Upon discovering Naruto was missing, she anxiously questioned the ninja in charge of the evacuation, only to receive a cold response.
"That fox spirit brat? Does anyone know where he is?"
For some reason, nobody cares whether he lives or dies.
This realization gripped Zuoyue's heart like an invisible hand. Before she could even explain to her mother, she ran out of the shelter and ran through the almost deserted village, just to make sure he was safe.
That white light that just illuminated the entire sky…
Recalling the earth-shattering explosion, Zuo Yue's fingers tightened involuntarily. Even her father and sister couldn't have performed such a powerful ninjutsu, right? No… was it even possible for a human to do that? If it had landed in the village…
"Satsuki...you're crying?" Naruto asked softly.
"I wasn't crying!" Zuo Yue abruptly turned her face away. "Never mind that! Let's go! You big idiot! If that ninjutsu had exploded in the village, you would have died!"
Without a word, she grabbed Naruto's hand with surprising force. Naruto could feel the cold sweat on her palm and its slight trembling.
She's afraid... because of me?
A complex emotion, unlike anything he had ever felt before, spread through his chest, a bittersweet feeling. He let Zuo Yue pull him along towards the shelter.