Naruto: Nara's skill set is incredibly sneaky.

Rope Tree only felt a gust of wind blow by.

Tsunade was already standing in front of her.

"Shikatoki is alright? How did Grandma Mito know? Where is Shikatoki now? Did he go back to Konoha?!"

Faced with Tsunade's barrage of deadly questions, Nawaki stood frozen in place.

Without him.

He doesn't know!

Grandma Mito didn't tell him any of that!

Looking at the innocent-looking Nawaki, Tsunade knew she wouldn't get any information out of him, so she quickly returned to the Senju clan's territory.

Mito Uzumaki was already waiting in the courtyard.

"You're back!"

"Grandma Mito, Shikatoki..."

Tsunade was about to ask a question when Mito interrupted her.

"I don't know the specifics. Just now, Akane came to me and said that she felt the same way she did in the Land of Demons last time, which indirectly proves that Shikatoki is still alive. Akane is currently unconscious because she absorbed that energy."

Tsunade breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this.

"It's good that the brat is alright!"

"Are you relieved now? You told me you'd need to think about it, but now you've come up with a shrine maiden from the Land of Demons, haven't you?!" Mito teased.

Tsunade chuckled awkwardly, "Akane's great, we're best friends!"

"Whatever makes you happy."

"Then I'll go take a gamble!" After confirming that there were no major problems with the deer, Tsunade suddenly started missing the casino; it had been so long since she'd been there!

Mito was speechless.

"Your bad habit was taught to you by Hashirama! You shouldn't have let him play with you in the first place! Your luck is just like his—you're both terrible at the game and love to play! You've lost all the money you've earned!"

"Hehe! Shika and I make a lot of money from our missions. The old man still owes us a lot of money for missions! And I'm just having some fun. I'm off!" Tsunade knew she couldn't say any more.

Otherwise, it's the parenting style.

She fled as quickly as if she were escaping.

Mito could only smile helplessly.

-

Time flies.

Six months later, inside the cave of the dragon vein.

Lu Shi slowly opened his eyes, feeling the powerful natural energy within his body.

"Even though all my chakra has been converted into natural energy, why can't I maintain Sage Mode permanently?"

That's right, Lu Shi relied on the immense energy of the dragon vein to continuously cleanse his body.

Successfully converted all chakra into natural energy.

He had originally envisioned that the Sage Mode should be in a permanent state by now, but he found that he still needed to activate it himself.

"Is there another explanation?"

Shikashi scratched his head. "Never mind, I don't even know how much time has passed. Let's go back to Konoha first!"

When Lu Shi stood up, he felt that his pants were too short and his shirt was too small.

Emerging from the cave beneath the dragon vein, Loulan had returned to peace, and a new king had ascended the throne.

He went to a clothing store and bought a set of clothes.

Looking at myself in the mirror, I've grown quite a bit taller, and the childishness on my face has gradually faded. "No wonder it's me! I've become even more handsome!"

After admiring himself for a while, Shikatoki embarked on his journey back to Konoha.

The journey went smoothly.

Arrive at the gates of Konoha, register, and enter.

As is customary, I went to the Hokage Building to report on my duties.

As soon as I reached the door, I saw a familiar figure.

Danzo Shimura!

Without the slightest hesitation, Lu Shi made the choice almost instinctively.

Sage Mode activated, unleashing monstrous strength.

Danzo, with his years of battlefield experience, sensed something was wrong, but he was no match for Shikatoki now.

He had just turned his head to dodge.

Lu Shi's fist was already imprinted on his chest.

Danzo was sent flying backward and crashed to the ground, breaking several of his ribs.

Lu Shi stopped there, since there was no direct evidence, and if he killed him, he wouldn't be in the right.

But Lu Shi is not one to suffer a loss. I don't care if it's your order from the future or not, I'll throw a punch first to vent my anger.

The incident happened suddenly.

By the time the Anbu and Root units reacted, Danzo had already been taken down.

The ANBU quickly arrived at Shika's side.

"Lord Deer Toki," the owl bowed respectfully.

Root then came to Danzo's side to heal him.

Hiruzen Sarutobi also came out of the Hokage Building after hearing the noise.

"You are... Shikatoki, right?" Hiruzen Sarutobi asked uncertainly. "You've really grown up."

"Lord Hokage, it's been a long time!" Shikatoki greeted him with a smile.

The two began exchanging pleasantries.

Having recovered slightly, Danzo couldn't help but roar, "Hiruzen! Nara Shikatoki attacked Konoha's advisor without provocation! This is tantamount to betraying the village!"

Danzo Shimura immediately started by making a big accusation.

Hiruzen Sarutobi glanced speechlessly at Danzo, then looked at Shikatoki, "Shikatoki! Why did you attack Danzo as soon as you came back?"

"Lord Hokage, you know me. I am a person who will not offend others unless they offend me."

"During the attack in the Land of Fire, I discovered that one of them had the technique of eradicating tongue calamities on his tongue. I didn't kill him with one punch because of you."

Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzo Shimura were both stunned.

Hiruzen Sarutobi looked at Danzo. He had repeatedly asked Danzo whether Shikatoki had done anything other than selling information.

Danzo patted his chest and assured everyone that he really hadn't done anything!

"Nara Shikatoki! This is a frame-up! What evidence do you have?" Danzo shouted anxiously.

Hiruzen Sarutobi looked at the deer.

The deer remained completely unfazed.

As he slid his hand through the air, a sealing technique belonging to the "Tongue Curse Eradication Technique" slowly appeared.

"This ninjutsu should be considered a secret technique of Root, right? I've never seen it in the sealing techniques of the Uzumaki clan. I saw it on that person's tongue this time and imitated it slightly. Lord Danzo, please take a look and see if it's correct."

Danzo looked at the complete technique for eradicating the root of tongue-related calamities.

He was completely dumbfounded.

He developed this technique independently, and it's unlikely that anyone else would use it.

But the deer version is a true replica.

"Advisor Danzo, what else do you have to say?" Shiki said with a playful smile, using his Tongue of Destruction Technique.

"No, it's really not the root!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi's face darkened.

Her voice was filled with barely suppressed anger, "Danzo! You're still lying to me even now?!"

"Looks like you haven't learned your lesson at all. From today onwards, the department's funding is halved!"

Shikatoki almost burst out laughing when he heard about Hiruzen Sarutobi's punishment.

Isn't this just something that looks important but is actually glossed over?

That's why Lu Han punched her the first thing they did when they met; at least that punch felt good, right?!

Danzo was so frustrated!

If he actually makes a move, then so be it.

The problem is that he really didn't do anything, and he doesn't want to take the blame for this!

Why does Nara Shikatoki possess the art of severing all tongue-related troubles?!

Could there be a mole within the organization?

Thinking of the traitor, Danzo suddenly realized that he had used the Tongue Curse Extermination Technique on everyone in Root, so there was no way there could be a traitor!

And so we got stuck in a vicious cycle!

"Ahem." Hiruzen Sarutobi looked at Shikatoki gently. "Alright, Shikatoki, you've had a long journey. You completed the mission with the Daimyo very well, and the Daimyo praised you highly. Also, while you were missing, Tsunade and your family were worried sick. Go back and let them know you're safe!"

"Alright, Hokage-sama, I'll be going now."

After leaving, Shikatoki headed straight for the Nara clan.

"Deer Time!"

As soon as he stepped inside, Nara Shikaomi saw him and exclaimed excitedly, "You're finally back! If it weren't for Lady Mito informing us that you were alright, the entire Nara clan would have gone mad!"

Isn't that insane?!

So many years have passed.

It's so rare to find such a strong person.

Lu Shi chuckled, "Uncle, I'm incredibly lucky. By the way, where's Lu Jiu?"

"That brat's team took on a B-rank escort mission and hasn't been in the village lately," Nara Shikaomi explained.

Then Nara Shikaomi gently reminded him.

"You'd better go and check on the Senju clan. Lady Mito is not well and is currently finalizing the transfer of the Nine-Tails."

The deer's pupils contracted.

"What?!"

The deer disappeared without hesitation.

As soon as he approached the Thousand Hands Clan's territory, Lu Shi immediately covered his eyes with his soul power.

He looked at Mito Uzumaki, who was sunbathing in the yard.

Mito's soul has reached its limit and she could die at any moment.

Although she had anticipated this situation, Lu Shi still felt somewhat unable to accept it when faced with the reality.

Unlike Tobirama Senju's death.

At that time, he didn't have much affection for Tobirama Senju; at most, he felt grateful for his mentorship.

It's just a little sad.

Mito Uzumaki had been teaching him properly for several years and had always been very good to him.

"It's Xiaolu Shi back. Why are you hiding so far away? Come in."

Mito Uzumaki's voice slowly rang out.

Lu Shi took a deep breath, forced a smile, and walked into the yard. "Grandma Mito, I've come to see you."