Chapter 275 Long-Awaited Reunion
"Yes, there is." Kakashi nodded, looking at Neji who had come to his door. "But it's rather troublesome, and I don't know when I'll be able to contact him."
"Then please pass on a message to him," Neji said. "If he doesn't return this time, then he can forget about ever setting foot on the Hyuga clan's territory again."
"Alright." Kakashi nodded. "I'll let him know what happened here as soon as possible, and have him come to support you and Sasuke."
"Then I'll leave it to you." Neji bowed solemnly.
...
Mount Myōboku, in the Sage Mode training pool, Naruto, sitting cross-legged on a stone slab, suddenly opened his eyes. A layer of red eyeshadow shimmering with golden light slowly appeared around his eyes.
"Success!" At the training pool, Fukasaku's face immediately lit up with joy.
Naruto leaped from the stone slab and appeared before the group. Jiraiya looked Naruto up and down, then nodded in satisfaction: "Not bad, you're in perfect Toad Sage Mode right after training."
"Do you think everyone's like you?" Shima, the Sage, jumped up and tapped Jiraiya on the head with her cane. "After all these years, your Sage Mode is still half-baked."
"Big sister! Give me some face in front of the kid." Jiraiya said, clutching the spot where he'd been hit.
"Lord Jiraiya, there's an urgent message from Konoha." At that moment, a communication frog rushed to the training pond and told Jiraiya.
"An urgent message from Konoha? For me?" Jiraiya asked.
"No, it's for Lord Naruto." The communication frog handed Naruto a scroll. "It's a letter from Kakashi, the captain of the Konoha Police Force."
"Kakashi-nii-san is looking for me?" Naruto took the scroll, scratching his head in confusion, but his expression changed drastically after opening it.
"Has something happened in the village?" Jiraiya's face also turned serious upon seeing Naruto's expression.
"Yes, someone attacked the village and kidnapped Hinata." Naruto's expression turned completely cold. Although he was rather oblivious to matters of the heart, over the years he had been able to sense the difference between Hinata and others. Now that Hinata had been kidnapped and Neji had sent him a message requesting help, he had to go back no matter what.
"Grandpa Jiraiya, I'm going back to the village. You and Gaara shouldn't wander around these few days. If possible, bring him to Mount Myōboku for a couple of days as well," Naruto said.
After saying that, Naruto formed the hand seals for releasing the Reverse Summoning.
"Hey! Naruto, wait a minute!" Jiraiya tried to chase after him, but Naruto had already vanished.
After dispelling the reverse summoning, Jiraiya returned to the camp where he and Gaara had camped. However, when he returned, Naruto was nowhere to be seen, only a large amount of chakra had been released in his wake.
"Gaara, where's Naruto?" Jiraiya asked, looking at Gaara who was tending the campfire.
"He said he had urgent business and left," Gaara said.
"Couldn't you have stopped him a little?" Jiraiya said.
"How could I stop him? He ran away as soon as he appeared," Gaara said innocently, spreading his hands.
"Never mind, that kid's strength is probably far beyond mine now. We probably wouldn't be of much help anyway," Jiraiya shook his head helplessly, then said to Gaara, "You'll come with me to Mount Myōboku for a few days to wait for him to return."
"Alright." Gaara nodded.
…
In just one night, six meteorites fell from the sky, and Uchiha Touko's Susanoo appeared over Konoha six times. The residents of Konoha went from initial panic to sticking their heads out of their windows to watch the commotion, and finally to becoming accustomed to it.
Some of the earliest residents of Konoha, who had undergone the Three Pure Ones' education but remained incorrigible, secretly spread the wild theory that these meteorites were divine punishment sent down by the heavens because Uchiha Touko's tyranny had angered the heavens.
However, before this rumor could take hold in the village, these troublemakers were taken away by the guards for re-education by the Three Pure Ones.
As for Uchiha Touko, after dealing with another meteorite that fell from the sky at seven o'clock in the morning, he looked in the direction where the moon had disappeared, squinting and deep in thought. According to the intelligence he had sent back from various border regions that night, it seemed that Otsutsuki Toneri was targeting Konoha, as no other place in the ninja world had been attacked by meteorites.
Therefore, Uchiha Touko couldn't help but suspect that the other party might be colluding with some schemers hiding in the shadows.
"Touko, should we declare martial law during the day?" Kakashi asked after Touko returned to the Hokage's office.
"Martial law," Touko replied. "But this time, let's be gentle. Have the village ninjas distribute essential supplies to every resident staying at home. As for the supplies, I'll have Gato's trading company prepare them."
"Yes," Kakashi nodded.
Meanwhile, at the Scientific Ninja Tool Research Institute, Tenten stared intently at the screen, searching for the signal from Hinata's life support device.
"Deputy Director! Signal received!" A loud shout suddenly rang out in the research institute. A genin carrying a portable screen ran towards Tenten. "The enemy seems to have a special way to block the signals emitted by the life detectors, but just now, our detection device received a signal from the southern part of the Land of Rice Fields, but it disappeared quickly."
"Mark the location on the map!" Tenten, who hadn't slept all night, hurriedly said with dark circles under her eyes.
Soon, a location was marked on the electronic map in front of everyone.
"Is this it?" Neji asked, his eyes narrowed.
"Sorry, Neji, this is the only area we can narrow down for now." Tenten rubbed her eyes wearily and said.
"It's okay, leave the rest to me." Neji patted Tenten's head and forced a smile.
"Take this with you." Tenten took out a scroll from a drawer and then pulled out a grenade-like object. "This was recently developed by the research institute from the armor of the artificial human corpse that the Hokage brought back. It can create a force field that dissipates chakra for one second. But be very careful when you use it; its range is 15 meters. Be careful not to come into contact with the force field."
"As for the other equipment, I maintained it last night. The distance is too far this time, so I can't provide direct support. So, be careful," Tenten said.
"Okay." Neji nodded, a hint of tenderness appearing on his face. "Originally, I planned to have my uncle go to your house to propose marriage in the next few days, but this happened suddenly. But don't worry, wait until I..."
Before Neji could finish, Tenten's expression changed instantly. She covered Neji's mouth with her hand, then pouted and said, "Just shut up! Don't make such promises!"
"Okay, okay." Neji shook his head helplessly. "I won't say anything more."
"Anyway, bring Hinata back as soon as possible," Tenten said slowly, looking at Neji.
...
Fully armed, Neji, after obtaining the map, went to the Hokage Building to greet Uchiha Touko, then went to the village entrance, where Sasuke was already waiting.
Sasuke, his eyes blindfolded, with Zidian at his waist, exuded a strange aura, as if some powerful force was being nurtured.
"Are you... alright?" Neji asked hesitantly, looking at Sasuke's blindfolded eyes.
"I'm fine, I'll recover soon," Sasuke replied. "Let's go, don't waste time."
After walking a short distance towards the edge of the village, Neji suddenly stopped and said loudly, "Since you're here, show yourself. Hiding is pointless."
The next instant, a blond figure jumped down from a nearby tree.
"Neji, Sasuke, long time no see," Naruto said, forcing an awkward smile as he approached them.
"Hmph, what are you doing back here?" Sasuke was initially pleased to sense Naruto's presence, but then his face hardened as he said, "Aren't you afraid we'll capture you and take you back to the village, you rogue ninja?"
"I rushed to the village as soon as I received Neji's message, and I made it in time," Naruto replied.
"What kind of help did you ask him for? Our Konoha hasn't fallen so low that we need a rogue ninja to help us," Sasuke said, turning to Neji.
"Hey! That's going too far! I've been running around all night!" Naruto's face showed displeasure at Sasuke's attitude.
"Hmph!"
"Hmph!"
The two of them snorted almost simultaneously.
"Alright, alright, stop arguing!" Neji quickly stepped in as peacemaker, seeing the two about to start fighting after almost a year apart. "Give me some face, let's rescue Hinata and Hanabi first, okay?"
"Okay." Sasuke nodded, then continued, "After this is over, I'll break this guy's legs and drag him back to the village."
"Hmph, so arrogant, have you forgotten how you lost to me last time?" Naruto retorted immediately.
"Eh." Neji rubbed his temples, his head throbbing. If it weren't for the fact that this rescue operation for Hinata and Hanabi truly required Naruto's strength, he really wouldn't want to drag him back to the village. "Anyway, our Team 7 has been temporarily reassembled this time."
The two still gave Neji, the leader of Team 7, some face, and remained silent as they headed towards their destination.
During a break, Naruto nudged Neji and asked, "What's wrong with this guy's eyes?"
"I don't know either, but he says it's fine, so it probably is," Neji said. "If you're really curious, why don't you ask him yourself?"
"I don't want to talk to this guy," Naruto pouted. "
But you don't seem to be doing very well out there," Neji said, pointing to Naruto's unkempt hair and tattered coat.
"It's alright," Naruto waved his hand. "It's still roughing it out; it's nothing like living in the village."
"Why don't you go back to the village after this is over?" Neji suggested.
Meanwhile, Sasuke was secretly eavesdropping nearby.
"No," Naruto shook his head. "I haven't finished what I need to do, but if the war starts, I'll be back immediately."
"Hmph, Neji, what are you talking to him about? We comrades are nothing to him," Sasuke said menacingly.
"Damn it! What did you say! Do you want to fight?" Naruto immediately stood up and roared.
"Fine, let's fight! I only stopped you last time because I didn't want to hurt you! Do you really think you're my match?" Sasuke retorted without backing down.
"Shut up, both of you!" Neji couldn't hold back any longer and yelled.
"Hmph!"
"Hmph!"
The rest time passed unpleasantly, and the three continued their journey, quickly arriving at the location marked on the map where Hinata's life monitor signal had last appeared by evening.
"Is this the place?" Naruto looked around. "It looks quite ordinary."
"There are unusual chakra fluctuations deep in that cave." Neji activated his Byakugan at this moment, scouting the surroundings and quickly made a discovery.
"Let's go then." Naruto nodded, but the next moment, his expression changed drastically, and he shouted, "Watch out! Enemy attack!"
Naruto almost instantly entered Kurama Mode, and giant chakra hands reached out from behind him, grabbing Neji and Sasuke on the left and right, before leaping high into the air.
Just then, from the depths of the cave where Neji had mentioned the unusual chakra fluctuations, a massive beam of chakra blasted towards the location where the three had been standing.
The next instant, mounds of earth began to rise around them, transforming into human figures.
"Puppets?" Neji immediately recognized the figures formed from the earth and exclaimed in surprise, "Puppets supported solely by flowing chakra? They don't even have the necessary chakra transmission lines inside? No wonder the Byakugan couldn't detect them earlier."
"You want to outnumber them? I'm not afraid!" Naruto shouted, using the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique. Countless Naruto figures, covered in golden chakra aura, descended from the sky, each entangling the puppets that had appeared out of nowhere.
"Lightning Release: Immovable King!" Sasuke, now safely lured by Naruto, began rapidly forming hand seals. Though temporarily blind, bolts of lightning descended from the sky, precisely targeting each puppet entangled by Naruto's shadow clones, blasting them one by one into dust and debris.
However, Neji, observing the battlefield from above, noticed that each time the two eliminated a puppet, the scattered dirt quickly coalesced into a new one, seemingly endless.
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(End of Chapter)