Naruto: Passerby and Returnee

Chapter 55 Foreign Aid Arrives

Sasuke finally kicked the door open. He was straightforward and couldn't wait a second; after all, the Uchiha name was already high-profile enough, breaking a genjutsu was a piece of cake. The six of them were immediately surrounded by six familiar faces as they entered the classroom, a large group greeting them enthusiastically, as if this wasn't an exam hall. A certain undercover agent stepped forward to spoil their fun, only to be beaten up by a low-ranking Sound ninja who didn't know his identity. This time, Naruto watched the whole thing, without feeling a single ounce of useless pity.

Kabuto Yakushi is a troublesome character, both in the past and the future. Naruto doesn't know much about his past, but in the future, Naruto personally sent him to an orphanage. While nominally the director, it was essentially a form of house arrest; he couldn't leave the building, and the children he cared for would be moved away when they reached school age. Naruto visited him a few times; the man, with his inhuman body, was as gentle as a different person when telling stories to the children. Human nature is so complex; he could be the initiator of the Fourth Shinobi World War, sacrificing a hundred people to summon the Impure World Reincarnation, or he could be the beloved director of an orphanage.

So, how exactly did Itachi manage to transform himself into such a completely different person? Is the Sharingan's genjutsu really that amazing?

If you can't empathize, you can't truly save someone. At best, he can only force people to stay in their place. It would be better to let them make their own choices.

The minor friction subsided, and the examinees, urged by the examiners, returned to their seats and received their first exam papers. Naruto scanned through them from beginning to end, confirming that all the questions were beyond the syllabus—the school hadn't covered this at all! No wonder he couldn't answer a single one before… After a moment's thought, Naruto decided to give it a try, after all, he needed to become a Chunin in this exam, and who knew if the written portion even counted towards his score?

This isn't just Naruto's personal goal; it's also part of Hui's phased plan. Becoming Hokage via the traditional route is undoubtedly the fastest. He was stuck in power for so many years before finally taking the position because the elders used his resume to obstruct him. They can't control a Hokage who's too powerful, which is why they vehemently opposed him until the will of the people became unstoppable, at which point they finally relented. Therefore, if he follows the proper path, becoming a Chunin and then a Jonin, the excuses the elders can find will be far fewer.

Soon, Naruto realized he had overestimated himself. He'd be lucky to get even a third of it right, so he'd better just copy it honestly... Luckily, he was a perfect score when it came to intelligence gathering!

As Naruto wrote furiously, several important chakra points entered Konoha.

"Lord Kinrin, Senju and Naruto report. We have successfully entered Konoha. Lord Jiraiya is expected to arrive in five hours."

[Received. Well done, Lang. Your next task is to assist Uchiha Hui in capturing Sunagakure's Baki and extracting information. She will explain the specifics to you.]

Yes, sir.

"Hui and Lang have arrived in Konoha. You two discuss the rendezvous point yourselves. I have other matters to attend to."

"Yes, Lord Jinlun."

[With the Waves ~ Do you know about Dango House?]

[...a dessert shop.]

I'm right here, come over quickly!

[Those resurrected through the Impure World Reincarnation cannot eat.]

What's wrong with reminiscing about the past? Just come over here.

At the doorway.

Please refrain from engaging in pointless chat. I'm busy, not offline.

"…I apologize, Lord Jinlun."

As the central communication hub, it gets incredibly noisy when things get busy. A while ago, during the fight with Iwagakure, they'd even give a few real-time updates in the middle of the night. These days, aside from emergency intelligence reports, there's been no other sound, which Naruto finds rather strange. But as strange as it is, listening to what sounds like live updates from couples in love is truly unbearable. When he was resurrected using Edo Tensei, he did consider that the dead couldn't kill each other, and that they might achieve genuine reconciliation under a common goal. However, he never expected that over the years, the Senju and Uchiha clans would be so predominantly paired up. Besides those already married, the young singles have all found partners from other clans. It feels like after their resurrection, these two clans could merge…

"Shouldn't you be paying more attention to Orochimaru?" Kurama yawned and tapped the cell door with his tail. "When is this damn thing finally leaving? This feeling of my chakra not flowing smoothly is so annoying."

Naruto stroked the giant fox's chin and said, "Just bear with it a little longer, Kurama. The perverted sage is almost here. I'll go find him after the two exams. Kurama, you should act good and let him report to the higher-ups that I might be the perfect Jinchūriki."

“…Troublesome.” Kurama switched sides, his thick fur completely covering Naruto, and then he used his chin to deliver a crushing blow.

Naruto struggled to peek out, saying, "Can you please change your habit of wanting to bury me whenever you're shy?"

"I'm not shy! And what about Orochimaru? Don't try to change the subject."

"You'll most likely run into this during the exam. Just deal with it as it comes."

"...That guy's chakra is about the same as yours right now, he's not an opponent you can just crush."

"I'm not some idiot who only relies on chakra!" Naruto said, patting his orange fur in annoyance. "Why don't you guess how many Flying Thunder God Marks I've set up in the forest?"

Kurama was silent for a moment, then said, "Is it alright to let Orochimaru know about this?"

"This is just for insurance." Naruto, finally free, stretched his neck slightly. "I'm going to show him the bloodline limits of all attributes and our power. Maybe it will be even more coveted by him than the Sharingan."

"Go all out except for Flying Thunder God Technique?" Kurama grinned, unconsciously sitting up straight. "I'm kind of looking forward to it."

At that moment, Orochimaru, still crouching outside the examination hall in his disguised state, felt a sudden chill run down his spine. He looked around warily but found nothing unusual, dismissing the feeling of being watched as his own imagination. Little did he know, he was being watched by two demons.

The torture department's "sadists" still came up with the tenth question, but this time Naruto sat very calmly, not intending to say a word. The danger of this exam was still too high; if he couldn't even withstand the psychological pressure of the written test, he might lose his life entering the Forest of Death. He discovered how many people died after that exam when he reviewed the files; it was far more brutal than previous ones. So, he sat quietly watching the examiners' performance, from Ibiki Morino to Anko Mitarashi, mainly enjoying the spectacle.

However, it's been a long time since I've seen Teacher Hongdou with this size... It feels a bit strange.