Naruto: Passerby and Returnee

Chapter 63 A Fair and Upright Reunion

"Can you explain why you're still here?"

On the first night after the preliminaries ended, Team 7 had a meal together and then went home to sleep. Naruto didn't even get a second into bed before rushing off to the next match. This time, he landed at an inn in Konoha, and his target was Hashirama's Flying Thunder God Mark. He actually knew during the tournament that besides Fugaku, the other two hadn't left; in fact, they'd brought Izuna with them!

Konoha is practically a no-go zone for Naruto, given that both his families hail from there. If anyone he knows is still alive, it would be a disaster. The fact that they sent a Senju and an Uchiha was a necessity; Naruto himself has exams to take and isn't skilled in torture. He can't possibly watch every corner of Konoha 24/7, so someone has to help. But the First and Second Hokage… their heads are still hanging on the Hokage Rock! If their disguises aren't meticulous enough, the scene is unimaginable…

Naruto understood their homesickness; they would come here for a few days every year, staying from night until dawn before leaving. But! This wasn't a reason for them to come for a short stay when Konoha's martial law was at its strictest! The brawl they fought after all three of them mobilized last time was still fresh in his mind!

Hashirama glanced around for a moment, then looked sincerely at Naruto and said with great emotion, "When I was here, the examination system hadn't been fully established yet. I was just curious about what the Chunin Exams are like now, wasn't I? This is the best opportunity to observe the new generation, and I don't want to miss it."

"You mean you want to stay for another month?!" Naruto almost lost his easygoing image. Regardless of whether Uncle Hashirama was a highly respected elder, if he dared to nod, he would definitely have to learn his Wood Release technique.

"Huh? No, I... the third round, which is supposed to be publicly announced, won't start for another month?" Hashirama asked, confused, not understanding the current rules of the ninja world. This wasn't their fault; it was mainly because Hikaru had to deal with too much information every day, primarily from ordinary people. The ninja world was currently stable, and he rarely paid attention to anything other than major events, let alone knew about the current Chunin Exam system.

Naruto suppressed the throbbing veins on his forehead and made the final concession.

You can come to the match a month from now, but don't come in with this face and a fake identity! Come with a "legal" identity!

Although the older generation was willful, they were also mindful of the bigger picture. They managed to go back temporarily the next day, but Naruto had a feeling they were going to pull off something big later...

The young couple sent to help finally got to work, and Maki left the examination hall, beginning his activities throughout Konoha. To lower Konoha's guard, this high-ranking Sunagakure official went without any protection, naturally falling prey to the combined forces of the Senju and Uchiha. This man certainly knew a lot, but not enough. Although the plan was taking shape, the specific implementation methods and personnel deployment details needed to be refined after assessing Konoha's defenses, so Maki was quite busy this month.

"The Konoha Crush Plan... Ha." Tobirama sneered. Although Konoha had suffered considerable damage, it was a large and powerful village that could withstand much destruction. There was no way that Sunagakure and a small Otogakure could truly destroy Konoha.

Izuna: 〖I suggest we continue tracking him, see who he's been in contact with, and maybe even uncover the spies planted in Konoha.〗

"…Alas, war exists in every era." Hashirama sighed deeply.

"Didn't the Sand Village notice anything amiss?" Naruto couldn't understand it. How could their leader be switched without anyone noticing?

"It can only be said that Sunagakure harbored malicious intentions all along, and Orochimaru merely gave them a push." ​​Tobirama's tone was icy. Politics is the dirtiest thing; it's all about self-interest. What good is Konoha being an ally to a ninja village like Sunagakure, nestled in a barren desert? Resources are the only true currency.

The investigation in Konoha should not stop; I will also investigate the situation in Sunagakure and Otogakure in my own way.

Brother? You wouldn't...?

Haha, don't worry about it, Tobirama. I just planted a few more trees.

Goodness, I must find out how far the first generation's "tree planting" project has progressed another day.

With Hui's affairs settled, Naruto was finally able to relax and go see Kakashi-sensei. This time, Kakashi was surprisingly punctual. They first took Sakura to Kurenai-sensei's place, then turned and went into a tavern.

A white-haired man, sipping his drink, was leering at the hot woman at the next table; his behavior was undeniably indecent. This wasn't the first time Naruto had seen his master Jiraiya, otherwise he wouldn't have been able to remain calm. It was great to see the lively, lecherous sage again, but… perhaps he shouldn't set a bad example for the children…

Naruto, beaming, plopped down in Jiraiya's line of sight, blocking his view of the beautiful woman.

"What are you looking at?"

"..." Jiraiya, whose good time had been interrupted, should have been angry, but Naruto's appearance was so similar to the boy in his memory that he couldn't help but feel a little dazed. And... that same smile... he had a feeling that the brat was about to run to Tsunade to complain any second now...

Because he had a sweetheart early on, Minato, who had a great respect for women, was the biggest obstacle on his research journey!

"Kids don't understand yet, but when they get older, you'll... hehe."

Jiraiya's low, mischievous chuckle displeased another child, and Sasuke plopped down between the two, staring at him with great vigilance and repulsion.

"..." Are all kids these days so individualistic?

Faced with Jiraiya's inscrutable gaze, Kakashi could only offer a helpless smile. "Naruto, Sasuke, this is one of the Legendary Sannin, known as the Toad Sage, Lord Jiraiya. Please greet him politely."

"Huh?" Sasuke looked the strange man up and down with suspicion, feeling that something was off about him. "Are you sure?"

"Oh~ This must be the Uchiha kid." Jiraiya had long heard that Naruto and Sasuke had a very good relationship and were almost inseparable, so he deliberately said, "It's okay if you don't believe me, anyway, I'm not going to be teaching you."

Sasuke's eyes widened. He looked at Kakashi, then at Naruto, and immediately understood what was going on. He instinctively blocked Naruto's path, preventing him from getting closer.

"Don't lead Naruto astray."

Not only Jiraiya found it amusing, but Naruto's smile widened even more. However, he held back his laughter and patted Sasuke's shoulder, saying, "It's alright, Sasuke. Even if you don't believe in the Perverted Sage, you should at least believe in Kakashi-sensei."

Look, Minato's kid is so polite, he's already calling out "the immortal"...?

"Who's the lecherous immortal? It's the toad immortal!"

"Huh? You were staring at that pretty lady over there with a lewd look the moment you came in."

The beautiful woman who had been singled out turned around, her fists clenched in anger. So, they still didn't get to eat; the lecherous immortal had caused them both to be kicked out.