I was broadcast live while taking the Chunin Exam!

Kushina stood to the side, making sarcastic remarks.

"The significance of puppetry lies in its power!" Centipede said. "So..."

"Konoha ninjas, come and see your own weakness and ugliness!"

"Strength is beauty!"

"Power is strength!"

"That's what the puppeteer, Centipede, said."

There were combat puppets around him that he had replaced, and these puppets were also unique. At Centipede's summons, they flew directly toward him, and then all their bodies actually merged together.

The centipede's body instantly grew to a hundred times its original size.

Kitahara Kaede stared at Centipede, and he sensed a hint of fear in the heart of the young queen beside him.

She must only just now realize how terrifying something is lurking around her, and she's still completely unaware of it.

as well as……

She clenched her fist, her fingertips seemingly about to pierce her palm, indicating that she was absolutely certain that Centipede had killed her mother.

“Then I’ll leave this to you,” Kitahara Kaede said. “Next, I’ll take Sara to retrieve the young men who were captured by Centipede.”

"no problem."

"Leave it to me!"

The Minato father and son nodded.

The young Minato was instructed by Kitahara Kaede beforehand, while Naruto was simply following orders.

He's not very bright, so he's suited for this kind of job where you're given a task and then do it.

and.

Kitahara Kaede specially brought him back here, and he even met his father whom he had never met before. For him, this was already enough happiness.

"but……"

Minato handed over a chakra blade bearing the Konoha symbol.

"If you encounter puppets on the road, you can directly use the chakra blade to cut the chakra connecting them."

"That way they can't move."

Minato said.

This is what they learned after they came here and observed.

·······

"So……"

Kitahara Kaede then left the grand hall, along with a group of women and children.

These people were deliberately placed in a corner and made to listen to the conversation.

This also made it clear to them that Sarah had indeed been deceived.

Now is the time for everyone to save their families.

The group headed together to the heart of the palace... the dragon vein guarded by the Queen.

"Speaking of which, what is the origin of the dragon vein in your royal family?" Kitahara Kaede inquired.

They are now riding down in an elevator powered by the dragon vein.

The location of the dragon vein is very low down.

And it's located right in the very center of the palace.

· ···Request flowers··· ······

Thanks to Minato and Naruto holding back the centipede, the palace's facilities were mostly still in good condition.

This might raise some questions.

Because Sara's daughter, whom you meet 20 years later, will tell you that Loulan has perished.

So... if the buildings hadn't suffered so many problems because of the fighting, how could the city of Loulan have disappeared so quickly?

"Regarding the dragon vein..."

"I didn't get much information about it from my mother."

"All I know is that this is something our clan has always protected. Many generations have passed since my mother."

. ....... 0

"And the existence of the dragon vein has allowed our Loulan to prosper continuously."

"But six years ago, Loulan experienced a food crisis due to an even more severe drought."

"Although we arranged for people to trade with the outside world and bring in a lot of food, we managed to get through this crisis."

"But it was also after that An Lushan went here that he advised his mother on the combination of puppetry and dragon veins."

"It can free the people from hardship, and then use puppets to perform many operations and infrastructure projects..."

"And then we'll stop Loulan from being attacked by drought... and then..."

"I never expected things to turn out this way..."

Sarah's tone was somewhat downcast.

In other words, both the former queen and the current Sarah have good intentions.

Put the people first.

Even if it means using or sacrificing the dragon vein, that's acceptable.

Only those who are like this are true kings.

Of course, for Kitahara Kaede, it's not that caring about one's people makes one a true king. Kings are selfish and want to protect the interests of their own clan.

Just like... Naruto.

It's all about family and the world.

Chapter 198 Naruto: Only the Fourth Hokage knows the Rasengan! Part 1! (Please auto-play and subscribe to the full chapter)

The new queen must be the daughter of the previous queen, and the next Hokage must be either a disciple of the current Hokage or his own child.

Both Kumogakure and Konoha are very realistic examples.

So what about Sarah? And who is her true ruler?

Since she made this stance... why worry about not having anyone to follow her?

Just like it is now.

Naruto was brought in to meet Minato, but due to the timeline, his memories of this place needed to be erased to avoid affecting the future.

However... the only thing that needs to be erased is Minato's and the others' memories, so as long as Naruto remembers... then when we get to Edo Tensei Minato, everything will be fine.

Minato Namikaze and Naruto will always work together for Konoha.

As for the arrival of the Otsutsuki mentioned by Black Zetsu, there is no need to issue any orders; these people will spontaneously be the first to greet them.

That's all I know...

"What are you thinking about?" Sarah asked.

She was earnestly sharing the information she knew, but noticed that Kitahara Kaede was somewhat distracted.

"fine!"

Kitahara Kaede said.

By this time, the group had already arrived at the dragon vein.

The dragon vein has a dedicated area that spans the entire Loulan region.

However, the core location is the center of the royal palace.

The Queen's bloodline possesses the ability to enter the core and... sever the dragon vein.

This is probably why Centipede kept deceiving Sarah.

"An Lushan has asked you to bring him here many times, hasn't he?" Kitahara Kaede said.

"...Hmm...Now that I think about it, it must be because he couldn't get in here..."

"What he wants is the core of the dragon vein..."

“He wants to devour the dragon vein, doesn’t he…” Sarah’s expression was somewhat annoyed.

It's not just about how hateful the centipede is, but also about how stupid we are.

Not only was Mom murdered by Centipede, but she also opened the barrier for Centipede... It's really... hopeless.

"Maybe so."

Kitahara Kaede said.

They had already reached the center of the dragon vein.

An altar has also been set up at the core of the dragon vein.

Sarah stood outside the barrier, which emitted a green beam of light that quickly landed on her, and then the barrier opened automatically.

“This is the dragon vein…” Sarah said.

"Then……"

Sarah wanted to move forward, but Kitahara Kaede grabbed her wrist.

"how?"

Sarah turned around.

"The ground doesn't feel right," Kitahara Kaede said.

"That's not quite right..."

"Well……"

"So hot..."

"Why……"

Sarah also noticed that the ground was incredibly hot.

There is a long passage leading from here to the altar, but Kitahara Kaede stood still.

Suddenly he crouched down and punched down.

"boom--"

The ground collapsed, revealing scalding hot magma beneath it.

It seems that if we're not careful, it could explode at any moment.

If Sarah had walked over there, the ground might have shattered and she might have fallen down as well.

"Why did it turn out like this..."

"It wasn't like this before..."

Sara was pulled back by Kitahara Kaede, and then she felt a lingering fear.

“It seems I’ve found the reason why your Loulan Kingdom is doomed,” Beiyuan Feng said.

“…” Sarah. “Are you serious? Loulan won’t exist in 20 years?”

She had been told before that Kitahara Kaede came from the future… but at the time, because of the centipede incident and her mother's situation, she hadn't fully taken it to heart.

The current situation is that Baizu, whom I believe in, is a fraudster, and my mother, whom I believe in, was also killed by Baizu. I myself am being treated as a puppet by my people.

So... everything worked.

She should trust Kitahara Kaede.

But what I've learned now is that my country will be gone in the future.

"..."