Naruto: Passerby and Returnee

Chapter 387 A Choice Based on One's Heart

"Hey, aren't you humans incredibly bored? All you do all day is scribble those gibberish symbols." A particularly noisy voice rang in my mind again. What was the reason this time?

He'd been quite busy lately, working non-stop. His only free time was when he went to see the Daimyo of the Land of Wind. The head of Dongfeng invited him to visit the new commercial street Dongfeng had invested in, ostensibly to learn about new business models, but really more like to showcase their strength. Being able to secure shops in a prime location in a gambling city—only a very powerful businessman could achieve that. He remembered that street had many things he could only see in Konoha, like…those soft, melt-in-your-mouth desserts.

As for why he remembers it so clearly, it's because...

"You see the same few places every day, you're tired of it all. Can't you go out for a walk and eat something a decent person should eat?"

What constitutes food that people should eat?

"Of course, I want the soft and sweet kind. I'd get tired of eating jerky all day long!"

See, that's the reason. His seal with Shukaku is very special. Naruto simply added some functions to the original seal, ensuring that Shukaku couldn't escape at will, and also allowing him to block out Shukaku's noise when he wanted to. But in reality, their bond is still quite deep, so deep that they can share sight and taste. He had never known this before, until that day, when he ate a small cake that the shopkeeper highly recommended.

Shukaku was acting like a spoiled child, insisting that he eat the biggest one in the shop, but he really... couldn't handle such sweet little things.

“There’s no place in Sunagakure that sells that kind of thing,” Gaara bluntly stated the reality.

"Ah!! You can even solve the problem of opening a school, but you can't even solve the problem of a small snack!"

Gaara, who was reviewing documents, suddenly pressed his temple. No matter how many times, Shukaku's extremely high decibels were an unbearable burden, and yet this guy just loved to yell like that!

"I've told you not to call me that. How many times do I have to lock you up before you remember?"

"You brat, stop threatening me! If it weren't for that traitorous fox..."

Shukaku's voice trailed off as Gaara couldn't stand him any longer. The conference had been going on for too long, and there were still so many documents piled up. He couldn't finish today's, and tomorrow's would only be more. He didn't have time to coax a child like this. If all else failed... he'd try feeding him some yokan (sweet bean jelly) later... Why would a tailed beast like that kind of thing?

While Gaara was busy with his arduous work as Kazekage, his capable assistant also encountered a guy he didn't want to see.

"I never thought we'd be working together again." The man's expression was as nasty as ever, showing no friendliness towards his companion even as he recalled the past. "Lord Scorpion will be here soon. Do you need any help, Captain of Defense?"

Yura replied coldly, "What, are you afraid that Lord Sasori will find out you're useless?"

The man's expression changed immediately. "You've only managed to curry favor with that brat, what's there to show off? Or are you unwilling to relinquish your current status and no longer wish to serve Lord Scorpion?"

"I will never forget Lord Sasori's life-saving grace." Yura did not reveal his inner wavering, and said indifferently, "But you, you useless old-fashioned fellow, should not have come to me in the first place. Do you want to let people see through your scheme now and expose Lord Sasori's plan?"

"You!" Touched on a sore spot again, the person dared not retaliate due to Scorpion's reputation and could only grit his teeth and leave.

After a brief probe, Yura knew that the guy was an unstable element. He couldn't possibly harm Lord Sasori, but taking him down would be effortless. However, he should focus all his energy on the upcoming Sasori; he'd leave this guy to his friend.

Yura quickly packed his things and rushed to his post, meticulously checking every arrangement, which made everyone a little nervous, and everyone was on high alert. But this harmony ended when two figures appeared in the desert. Through his binoculars, Yura saw clearly the black robes with red clouds on them, and his hopes plummeted.

Just recently, he had received intelligence from Konoha. An organization called "Akatsuki" was coveting the tailed beasts of various countries, and one of its jinchūriki had already been killed. The most distinctive feature of "Akatsuki" was... that bright red cloud.

He probably doesn't need to ask anymore. Regardless of whether Sasori will let Sunagakure go, Akatsuki will never let Gaara go!

What to do? What to do? The debt of saving his life versus the debt of giving him a second chance... how should he choose?

"Captain Yura, an unidentified person is approaching! Should we take action?"

This sound awakened Yura's confused mind. He took a deep breath, the dry air causing a slight pain in his lungs. At this moment, he had made his choice.

"Issue the highest level alert! A powerful enemy is attacking! The enemy is 'Akatsuki'! Notify ranged units to come to our aid immediately."

I'm sorry, Lord Sasori. Thank you for saving me from dire straits, but Lord Gaara not only gave me a new life, but will also bring new life to Sunagakure. Forgive me... I cannot stand by and watch his life be threatened. Regardless of the outcome of this raid, I will return this life to you when Lord Gaara is completely safe.

A piercing alarm blared throughout Sunagakure, and all the ninjas who could still move responded swiftly. Some rushed to the gate according to the emergency plan to provide immediate assistance, while others headed towards the Kazekage's location, ready to be dispatched at any time.

Such a commotion almost inevitably alerted the common people. Countless eyes peered out of doors and windows, and onto the streets, tense and curious about what was about to happen. Sand Village, a barren land, had never experienced a surprise attack since its founding.

"They only sounded the alarm when everyone was almost at the door; that's too slow."

"It's as if Konoha is any better."

"Konoha will at least set up outposts along the route."

“When faced with an opponent like ‘Akatsuki,’ the outpost has no chance to make a sound.”

The verbal sparring between the two bigwigs put immense pressure on everyone else in the room, especially the head of the Dongfeng branch, who was sitting in the main seat. He had been on tenterhooks, and only when he heard the alarm did he finally find a chance to jump up. After all, it was those two who had come to the rescue from headquarters. Neither of them wanted to sit in that seat, so they simply pushed him, a lowly soldier, into it.

“Now that Sunagakure has at least responded, our task should be much easier. We just need to ensure that Akatsuki cannot infiltrate Sunagakure.” Tobirama had no intention of continuing the commotion and quickly focused on the task at hand.

While they couldn't intervene in this inevitable battle, they could at least ensure that Sunagakure wouldn't become the Kazekage's weakness. As for whether Akatsuki could defeat the Kazekage at full power, that wasn't their concern.