Naruto: Two opponents versus Naruto, Konoha panics!

"Seriously, it's happening again."

"This is troublesome...we're leaving now."

Shikamaru waved his hand, stopping Ino from continuing.

Choji didn't seem to care much.

Asuma touched his nose somewhat awkwardly, then subconsciously took out a cigarette.

"The mission failed... I'm so sorry, teacher. How about I treat you to barbecue?"

"Barbecue?" Choji's ears twitched, and without a word, he ran off.

Shikamaru couldn't stop him and could only turn back helplessly, saying, "Next time, Asuma-sensei. We have some things to do, so we'll be going now."

Asuma opened his mouth, but ultimately managed a smile.

He's been quite restless lately.

Although C-rank missions don't involve ninjas, they are mostly escort missions, which are quite tedious, and failure is normal.

Thus, Class 10 has returned.

[Not only them, but other ninja teams have also been returning one after another.]

It seems something big is brewing.

【. . . . . . 】

【"Darling~"

As soon as the door opened, a beautiful figure rushed into Naruto's arms.

Naruto paused for a moment, then slightly shifted his body to the side.

Everyone's here.

Ino, of course, felt no embarrassment.

【"meal!"】

Not to be outdone, Choji rushed in second.

Then a burst of laughter and curses came from behind.

"This is troublesome... Ino, try to control yourself a little, everyone's still here."

"Hmm... let's not talk about it anymore."

Shikamaru put his hands in his pockets and shook his head.

Ino wouldn't listen to that.

[Like a pendant, it clung to Naruto.]

[Within the sealed space.]

Kushina's complexion improved considerably.

She's been watching Naruto's daily life these past few days.

[Well...of course, it's impossible to watch it all.]

The big fox was initially smiling.

【until......】

[Every time Naruto blocks my senses.]

Kushina was starting to get frustrated.

The big fox is the one who suffers, of course.

[The kind of escape you can't even run away from.]

[Kuroko... no, Kotaro saw that Kushina had 'recovered' quite a bit.]

A smile gradually crept onto his lips.

However, that smile no longer held its former gentleness; it carried a hint of coldness.

"That's about it."

The large fox glanced at Kushina and silently took a few steps back.

[To prevent Kushina from suddenly attacking.]

"Naruto, get them out of here right now."

As it spoke, the large fox stretched out its paw and gently poked Naruto's shadow clone with its long nails.

"Later."

"Let's wait until they've completely settled down."

Naruto wasn't in a hurry; the most important thing now was to stabilize them.

【...】

The days that followed became much more uneventful.

A major event has occurred in Konoha.

Nobody knows what happened.

All that is known is that many Konoha ninja have been recalled.

On the surface, all is calm; beneath, turbulent currents surge.

The Land of Waves is welcoming wave after wave of ninjas.

Under Izumi Uchiha's leadership, Gato's shipping company continued as usual.

Zabuza and Haku seemed to have vanished from the face of the earth.

However, to the surprise of many...

[A wanted poster was suddenly withdrawn in Kirigakure, the Hidden Mist Village of the Land of Water.]

The bounty on Zabuza Momochi, the S-rank rogue ninja, has been removed.

Within the Land of Waves, the ninjas of Kirigakure (Hidden Mist Village) seemed to have vanished overnight.

[A single hair can affect the whole situation.]

The events in the Land of Waves were like a small pebble thrown into the recently calm waters of the ninja world.

The center of the ripples was naturally the leaf.

Many eyes began to turn towards Konoha.

【...】

Tobirama Senju: "It seems that Naruto, who already has black-rimmed glasses, can't hold back any longer."

Orochimaru: "What a coincidence. I have a feeling that my appearance will make Naruto change his plans."

Orochimaru: "But... I might get a beating."

Orochimaru: "Naruto with black frames won't give Sarutobi-sensei a dignified exit."

Ino Yamanaka: "Does it even deserve it?!"

The Hokage's office, which was originally quiet, is now seeing more and more people coming and going.

Hiruzen Sarutobi hasn't slept for three days.

Outside the Root organization's base, ANBU ninjas occasionally passed by.

[So busy, so busy that Hiruzen Sarutobi is completely disoriented.]

[I need to handle all sorts of things, big and small.]

[Both domestically and internationally, there are many.]

The incident in the Land of Waves nearly ignited war.

Hiruzen Sarutobi offered various apologies and compensations.

The Root organization even teetered on the brink of riots several times, almost causing Hiruzen Sarutobi to break ties with his close friend Danzo Shimura.

In the end, I held back.

The changes are obvious, but everyone's life goes on as usual.

Nothing more.

[Sarutobi vomited out a lot of things, and the Root organization also vomited out a lot of things and gave them to Hiruzen Sarutobi.]

This barely managed to stabilize the situation.

Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes were bloodshot.

The only thing that could offer him some comfort was the situation of Class 7.

"Let's hold on for a few more years... Once Naruto grows up, we won't have to do this anymore."

Hiruzen Sarutobi steals a moment of leisure from his busy schedule.

He took a drag of his pipe, looked at Konoha Village, and his expression was serious.

"Asuma... Hmph, if only Shinnosuke were still here."

This time, Hiruzen Sarutobi was truly utterly disappointed.

Nothing can be accomplished.

The only thing that could make him happy was Naruto.

Hiruzen Sarutobi was also helpless about this.

[After taking a few puffs of his cigarette, he suddenly felt that instead of relying on Asuma, he should focus more on maintaining his health to pave the way for Konohamaru's future.]

"Since things have come to this, let's just take it one step at a time."

After that, the Hokage's office fell into a long silence.

"Naruto... he'll be done soon, in four years at most. After that, he can relax."

After a long while, Hiruzen Sarutobi turned around and glanced at the photo of the Fourth Hokage.

"Perhaps we could consider having Naruto temporarily take over as the Fifth Hokage."

"Let Konohamaru learn from the sidelines... while I continue to control everything from behind the scenes."

"No... I'm still a little tired. Let's keep pushing Asuma. We've prepared so much; it would be a shame to give up."

Hiruzen Sarutobi shook his head and put down the smoke bomb.

After a short break, they returned to work.

That endless stream of documents was really giving him a headache.

Fortunately, Kirigakure recently withdrew, otherwise things would have been even busier.

Although the Sarutobi clan vomited a considerable amount, causing even Hiruzen Sarutobi to feel a pang of pain.

But if we can nip the budding flames of war in the bud, it will all be worthwhile.

"The ninja world... isn't just about fighting and killing."

"This Konoha still can't do without me~"

Hiruzen Sarutobi twitched the corner of his mouth, looking much more energetic.

On the other side.

On the turbulent sea.

Zabuza stood at the bow of the ship, gazing at the ruins ahead.

Every trace left behind speaks volumes about the tragic events that unfolded that night.

That patch of dark wreckage... that color only comes from being infused with blood.

【call--】

The sea breeze blows.

A beautiful figure appeared behind Zabuza.

[He simply stood quietly beside Zabuza.]

[Bai has already changed into women's clothing.]