Naruto put away the kunai that sealed Danzo's soul. He then picked up the Ichiraku Ramen bowl and chopsticks from the ground and used the Flying Thunder God Technique to leave the scene.
From beginning to end, the Root members who had detected Danzo's location never arrived.
They were extremely loyal to Danzo, yet for some reason, they did not come.
Only after Naruto left did those Root ninja rush over from afar to retrieve the body.
But by then, the corpse was no longer recognizable.
Ichiraku Ramen.
"Sorry, I'm late."
Naruto returned and said to the somewhat haggard Teuchi, "I just went to take care of some old business."
"I'll go find Ayame-nee right now."
"Naruto, what are you planning to—" Teuchi was about to ask when he realized Naruto had disappeared again.
If it weren't for the empty bowl on the table, he would have thought Naruto had never been there.
"Sigh…"
Teuchi felt a little lost.
He wasn't a ninja, so he didn't know how strong Naruto was, nor did he know that Naruto possessed powerful sensory techniques.
Teuchi was very grateful that Naruto wanted to help.
But for something like this, he truly hoped to resolve it through a duel—using the methods of a chef ninja.
However… Naruto wasn't a chef ninja.
And to Naruto, regardless of who you are, once you commit kidnapping, you must follow his rules.
Whether you're a chef ninja or not is secondary.
The important thing is the heinous nature of the crime.
These chef ninja weren't completely foolish.
The person they kidnapped was hidden in a secluded area of Konoha.
Going any farther would have made escape impossible.
Because Konoha was heavily guarded, and although these chef ninja were also shinobi, they were far weaker than combat-oriented ninja.
They simply didn't have the strength to take Ayame out of Konoha.
Naruto quickly found them in a secluded forest.
They were hiding inside a hollow tree.
Ayame was tied to a chair, but her hands were free.
Clearly, she hadn't been mistreated.
On the contrary—
She was being forced to taste the dishes the chef ninja had made.
At that moment, Ayame's expression was extremely awkward as she repeatedly said,
"I-I'm sorry, I'm already full…"
"Mm… this one actually isn't bad either. My evaluation isn't low, but I'm really full! What? The other dish? Uh… I don't know?"
"I don't know how it compares to my father's…"
"I already said I'm full—waaah~!"
From the shadows, Naruto sighed and stepped out openly.
The moment he entered the tree hollow, he was discovered.
"Stop! Stop right there!"
A short, rather comical-looking man in plain clothes rushed out from the side.
Holding a cleaver, he pointed it at Naruto and shouted, "Who are you?! Don't come any closer! Otherwise, don't blame us for being rude!"
Naruto glanced at him, ignored him completely, and walked straight toward Ayame.
Because they were chef ninja—and had no intention of harming her—Naruto easily untied the ropes.
Feeling the restraints loosen, Ayame immediately lit up with joy.
She turned around, puffed out her chubby cheeks, and cried tearfully,
"It's that scumbag little Naruto! Waaah—waaah—waaah! I knew you'd come save your big sister!"
"What?!" Naruto froze, feeling flustered. "Ayame-nee, how can you call me a scumbag?"
"Although… I am a scumbag…"
Ayame was too excited to hear anything he said.
She tried to stand up, but immediately sat back down—she had eaten too much.
"It's over! I'm too fat to walk!" Ayame wailed in despair.
Naruto patted her shoulder calmly. "Don't worry, Ayame-nee. I believe you can still lose weight successfully."
Ayame looked at him unwillingly. "Little Naruto, tell me honestly… am I really ugly right now?"
"Uh…"
Naruto looked at her carefully.
Because he found her earlier than in the original story, Ayame wasn't extremely obese yet.
Although Naruto didn't exactly possess refined aesthetic taste—
Still… no matter how he tried to rationalize it, he couldn't lie.
Naruto nodded seriously. "Yes. You're indeed very ugly."
Ayame lowered her head, her face flushed with embarrassment.
"Naruto… you really don't know how to comfort people."
No girl wants to gain weight.
Especially when she's forced to gain it.
If she had done it herself, she might've accepted it.
But being force-fed?
Ayame felt completely wronged.
Still, Naruto was right.
She could lose weight again.
Seeing Naruto and Ayame chatting as if no one else existed, the chef ninja finally snapped.
They rushed over and surrounded the two of them.
Naruto calmly glanced at the strange-looking middle-aged men around him.
His expression turned cold.
"Even if you're not combat ninja," Naruto said calmly, "you're not ignorant enough to not know what a Jinchūriki is, right?"
Jinchūriki?!
The chef ninja froze.
They had noticed Naruto's blond hair earlier but hadn't paid attention.
Now that they looked closely—
The person who came to rescue Ayame was actually a Jinchūriki.
Panic spread instantly.
In their minds, although they had kidnapped someone, they hadn't hurt her.
Even if the Hokage found out, the punishment shouldn't have been too severe.
But the one who came…
Naruto Uzumaki.
The Fourth Hokage's son.
And notoriously lawless.
The chef ninja began retreating, some even kneeling and begging for mercy.
Naruto rubbed his forehead helplessly.
"If you wanted the recipe, you could've discussed it with Teuchi and made a deal."
"Direct kidnapping? Even I wouldn't be that rude."
Knowing they couldn't defeat Naruto, the chef ninja quickly agreed with everything he said.
As the saying goes—don't strike a smiling face.
The real problem was how to deal with them now.
After thinking for a moment, Naruto said,
"Go turn yourselves in."
"After you're released, negotiate with Teuchi through legitimate means."
Seeing how reasonable Naruto was, the chef ninja—who had already prepared themselves mentally—immediately agreed.
They weren't even real ninja.
Disobeying Naruto would mean death.
Anyone with a functioning brain knew what choice to make.
As for whether they would resort to violence again in the future—
Naruto could only say: don't even think about it.
He would take precautions.
"Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
Naruto formed seals, creating a shadow clone.
He then looked at the chef ninja and said coldly,
"My shadow clone will supervise you."
"If you disobey… he'll kill you."
The chef ninja gasped in fear and immediately sprinted toward Konoha Prison.
They were terrified that if they ran too slowly, the prison would somehow fill up—
And Naruto's shadow clone would kill them instead.
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