NABC Chapter 64 Support
Chapter 64 Support
Seeing Tsunade leave, Naruto breathed a sigh of relief, patted his chest, and looked at the deep pit with broken stones next to him. He subconsciously swallowed. Granny Tsunade's anger was really scary, but after this incident, some of Naruto's little thoughts that had not yet sprouted were nipped in the bud.
Just as Tsunade found Jiraiya in a fit of anger, she discovered that he was talking to an ANBU member with a serious expression.
Tsunade wasn't sure if he was faking it, but she suppressed her anger and frowned as she asked, "What's wrong?"
Upon seeing Tsunade, the ANBU member quickly bowed to her, approached her, handed her two secret letters along with the scrolls, and then withdrew.
Unfolding the letters, Tsunade slowly read through the messages. The first letter contained good news: Gaara had successfully disappeared from Akatsuki's sight, and the people sent to meet him had successfully retrieved him. Gaara was currently being held at the old Root site, awaiting further instructions.
But the second one was news of Reikawa Uzumaki's capture...
As she read on, Tsunade's expression changed from relaxed at first to increasingly serious, and she clenched the note tightly in her hand.
Taking a deep breath, I told myself to stay calm and looked at the last scroll. Was this the Third Kazekage? I never imagined that the Third Kazekage would mysteriously disappear like this.
After seeing the contents of the note with Tsunade, Jiraiya was somewhat surprised. He hadn't expected that Reikawa Uzumaki had actually managed to bring out the One-Tailed Beast, and that the blame had been firmly placed on Genjiro's head.
After reading it, Jiraiya's expression gradually turned serious as he asked Tsunade, "What do you plan to do?"
Few people knew about this mission, but Uzumaki Reikawa was captured by the Akatsuki shortly after being dispatched, and the woman who arrived later seemed to have come specifically to find him. This makes one wonder if someone within Konoha leaked the information.
Tsunade didn't answer for the time being, lost in thought. Suddenly, she stared at the 3500 million ryo Konoha owed to Genjutsu. For Konoha, this number was neither too much nor too little... but something about this number felt strange.
Putting those questions aside for now, Tsunade suddenly spoke up, "Perhaps we can try to contact Genjutsu. As it stands, compared to Akatsuki, Genjutsu hasn't shown any threat yet. They're also an organization that accepts employees, so maybe they know more about some things than we do."
Jiraiya nodded in agreement. Bringing these two organizations together would be a good opportunity to probe their strengths. However, if they were to do this, what amount of money would be enough to get the Genjuro members involved? Would Konoha cover all the expenses?
Tsunade had obviously thought of this as well. "First, we need to inform Iwagakure. Onoki's apprentice has joined Akatsuki, and there has to be an explanation for what happened. Moreover, two extremely powerful organizations have inexplicably appeared. One is full of rogue ninja from various villages, and the other is full of various bloodline limits. This is not just a matter for Konoha, but for the entire ninja world."
Jiraiya pondered Genjutsu's intentions, muttering, "Hmm, at least for now, Genjutsu doesn't seem to have any designs on the Tailed Beasts. Their goals must be different; perhaps they can cooperate. Is there any news from Hiashi Hyuga?"
Tsunade shook her head.
"I see..."
Speaking of this, Tsunade, thinking of Reikawa Uzumaki's situation, said to Jiraiya, "Time is of the essence. Shiki Aburame should have some news about Akatsuki, but we don't know when we'll get a reply about Gen Utsuki. The longer it drags on, the worse the situation might become. Can you go to provide support this time?"
Jiraiya frowned slightly upon hearing this. "That's fine, but what about Naruto? I was originally planning to let him try to learn Sage Mode, since he was making good progress."
Tsunade was taken aback by his words, somewhat surprised. "So fast?"
"Well, after Kurama stopped causing trouble, Naruto, as the Fourth Hokage's son, is quite talented. Moreover, he has been training using Shadow Clones recently. To be honest, apart from lacking practical experience, Naruto's progress has reached a terrifying level."
"..." Tsunade pondered for a moment after hearing this, then suddenly said, "Then bring Naruto along too. Since you said he lacks practical experience, then let's treat this as training for him. But theoretical knowledge alone is not enough."
Seeing Jiraiya hesitate, Tsunade knew what he wanted to say and frowned, saying, "We can't let Naruto stay hidden in Konoha forever just because of Akatsuki. He'll never grow that way and will suffer a great loss someday. However, to ensure the safety of the Jinchuriki, I'll arrange for Kakashi and others to go with you on this support mission."
"I understand." Jiraiya replied in a deep voice. Actually, he had brought it up for this reason, but he didn't expect Tsunade to bring it up herself.
Looking up at Tsunade's composed demeanor, he suddenly felt a surge of emotion. Since more and more pressure had been placed on Tsunade, she had changed a lot, or rather, she was becoming more and more like a Hokage. On the contrary, he himself was hesitant and indecisive, which was unlike him.
"Oh, right, there's one more thing," Tsunade suddenly said, as if she had just remembered something.
"Huh?!" Jiraiya was stunned. At the same time, a white fist suddenly enlarged in front of him. Jiraiya was sent flying in the same parabolic arc as Naruto and fell to the ground, twitching slightly. At the same time, he secretly felt miserable, thinking that he had managed to get away with it this time.
Just as he sat up, rubbing his face, he suddenly saw Tsunade approaching. Thinking that Tsunade hadn't finished venting her anger, Jiraiya instinctively shrank back as if resigned to his fate. But after a while, he didn't experience the pain he had imagined.
Tsunade approached, her eyes lowered, and whispered, "Be careful."
Jiraiya was taken aback for a moment, then burst into laughter. "Don't worry, I'm the Toad Sage Jiraiya!"
……
Halfway there, Uchiha Gen's body was wrapped in paper, leaving only his head exposed, and a layer of explosive clay was pasted on the outside... This familiar feeling was happening to him again.
"Where are you taking me?"
Quiet and silent, with only the sounds of people hurrying on their way.
"...Okay, let me put it another way. Could you please help me remove the hair from my face?" Because his hair was too long and he had just been in a fight, most of it was hanging down in front of him, flying in the air.
Upon hearing this, Deidara glanced at Uchiha Gen. Since the giant bird was carrying him, he hadn't paid much attention to this issue. When he noticed it, his lips twitched slightly. He wanted to laugh but also wanted to pretend to be serious, so he coughed twice.
Suddenly, a somewhat hoarse voice said, "Do you want me to cut it for you?" Sasori looked at Uchiha Gen with Hiruko's somewhat resentful eyes.
"...No thanks, I'm afraid you'll cut my hair off."
"Never mind then."
"..." In the end, Xiaonan twisted a piece of paper into a hair tie and tied it up for him.
Feeling his vision suddenly clear, Uchiha Gen thanked Konan.
Seeing this harmonious scene, Deidara couldn't help but ask, "So, are you going to join Akatsuki or not?"
"Um... to be honest, I'm still not really interested." Uchiha Gen said, seemingly very straightforwardly, but he instantly sensed the air around him thicken. "Alright, I'll join."
The atmosphere instantly became 'harmonious' again...