Naruto: Naruto's Uchiha girlfriend is too arrogant

Chapter 101 Epilogue

The excruciating pain and intense dizziness from her severe injuries surged up like a tidal wave, engulfing her remaining consciousness. She felt her life force draining away, quietly awaiting the anticipated final blow from the tailed beast, the one that would end everything.

Of course, losing consciousness at this moment is only due to the severity of the injuries and falling into a coma; it is far from being truly dead.

After confirming that Itachi Uchiha had completely lost consciousness and passed out, the crimson chakra cloak that had enveloped Naruto and exuded a terrifying aura began to slowly dissipate like the receding tide.

The boiling energy gradually subsided and receded, eventually disappearing completely back into Naruto's body, revealing the blond boy's true form below.

Naruto let out a long sigh of relief and plopped down on the ground. Although this time the tailed beast transformation was voluntarily achieved by Kurama, there was no crazy erosion from those negative emotions.

However, such intense manipulation of a massive amount of chakra, far exceeding his own capacity, still put some strain on his body.

Whew... I'm exhausted. But, based on Kurama's awkward statement just now... these are the powers it's "currently" willing to lend me? In other words, without going berserk, the trump card that "Naruto Uzumaki" can reliably control is the power of these four tails?

This discovery made his blue eyes light up slightly. It was undoubtedly a huge boost to his combat power, and the source was completely "legitimate."

Hmm... I'll have to find a chance to let the third-generation elder know about this. Let's see if we can use this to squeeze a little more cultivation resources out of him...

After resting for a while and regaining some strength, Naruto stood up again. His gaze fell on Itachi Uchiha, who was still unconscious due to severe injuries.

The girl's pale face still bore traces of blood, her eyes were tightly closed, and the two prominent tear troughs added to her vulnerability.

Tsk... Putting aside her extreme and twisted personality and thought process, just looking at her face... aside from her prominent tear troughs, she's actually quite pretty. Of course, she's still far inferior to her sister.

He shook his head slightly, dismissing these irrelevant thoughts. Naruto knew exactly what he needed to do next.

That's all I can do. Next, I need to take Zuoyue to the hospital as soon as possible.

He formed hand seals, creating a shadow clone that remained in place to guard the unconscious Itachi. Then, this newly created shadow clone formed hand seals again.

Bang!

With a soft sound, the shadow clone disintegrated on its own, turning into a wisp of white smoke and disappearing. The memories it carried—the precise location of the place and Itachi Uchiha's unconscious state—instantly traversed the distance and were simultaneously transmitted to the mind of the shadow clone known as Menma.

Alright, the message has been delivered. Now, how to deal with this filial daughter is the problem that Shisui should be troubled by. My mission... is temporarily over.

With that thought in mind, Naruto didn't linger any longer and turned around to run back to the Uchiha clan's territory in Konoha.

He ran towards the still-sleeping Satsuki. He carefully bent down, carried the girl on his back, and after making sure she was safe, quickly headed towards Konoha Hospital.

------

Inside Konoha Village, panic and chaos had completely engulfed the village. The Nine-Tails' chakra, so palpable and oppressive in the distance, filled with a violent and destructive aura, was like a nightmare returning, igniting the deepest fears buried in the hearts of the villagers.

Under the command of the ninjas, panicked civilians, along with their families, hurriedly migrated to various underground shelters.

The ninjas responsible for maintaining order had cold sweat beading on their foreheads. While trying their best to calm the people, they nervously kept glancing towards the direction outside the village from which the terrifying pressure was coming from. They gripped their kunai tightly, ready to fight at any moment in the worst-case scenario.

However, at this critical juncture when the highest leader was urgently needed to take charge and stabilize the people's hearts, the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, who was the pillar of Konoha, was completely unable to fulfill his duties.

It wasn't that he didn't want to, but that he—couldn't.

He was currently in the Hokage's office, but the situation was quite the opposite. He wasn't sitting in the Hokage's chair, but standing silently to the side.

He could never have imagined that so many deals and conspiracies had been quietly taking place in Konoha right under his nose, without his knowledge.

Danzo Shimura… his longtime friend actually made a secret deal with Itachi Uchiha to exterminate his clan! Itachi Uchiha would personally slaughter his own family… and this horrific massacre eventually attracted the attention of the man before them—Menma, the leader of the [Jin] organization.

At this moment, the man wearing the eerie fox mask was sitting comfortably in his rightful Hokage seat, with a relaxed demeanor.

Meanwhile, he, the true Hokage, could only stand aside like a servant. The cup of hot tea that he had just personally brewed for the other man to maintain appearances of politeness remained untouched by Menma.

It wasn't that she was afraid of being poisoned, but rather that Menma didn't want to take off her mask.

From the other party's bland narration, he learned that Danzo's ambition and actions had thoroughly enraged Menma, and that his old friend, who had gone astray, was probably in grave danger and his fate was sealed.

Rationally, Danzo knew that all of this was his own fault, but decades of ties and shared experiences still brought an indescribable sense of sorrow and grief to the old man's heart.

However, at this moment, Hiruzen Sarutobi didn't even have the energy to grieve for his old friend's passing.

Just now, the terrifying, earth-shaking explosions that rang out one after another outside Konoha, and the torrent of chakra filled with violence and destruction that could be clearly sensed even from such a distance.

Although the Third Hokage wasn't a professional sensory ninja, he would never mistake the chakra that had once brought pain to Konoha.

That's the Nine-Tails' chakra! And... this level of ferocity... could it be going berserk?!

Combining the truth about the Uchiha clan massacre that Menma had just told him with Itachi's extreme actions, a terrifying hypothesis instantly formed in the Third Hokage's mind.

Did Itachi...do something to Naruto while provoking Sasuke?! Did she completely enrage Kurama?! Did she go too far?!

The thought of the potentially out-of-control scene made the Third Hokage's heart leap into his throat, and he was overwhelmed by anxiety and worry! He wished he could immediately use the Body Flicker Technique to get to the scene as fast as possible and risk his life to prevent another possible "Nine-Tails' rampage"!

However, the moment he took the slightest step, a gaze filled with undisguised warning froze him in place.

can not go!

A cruel choice between two options weighed heavily on the mind of the third generation.

If he didn't stop it... and allowed the Nine-Tails to go completely berserk, given the current state of Konoha, it could very well be utterly destroyed! He couldn't stand by and watch such a tragedy happen again.

But if I insist on going... and in doing so angers the unfathomable and capricious leader of the [Jin] organization, he is fully capable of razing Konoha to the ground before the Nine-Tails can cause any damage! The outcome will be the same: destruction!

Going will lead to destruction, and not going will also lead to destruction!

The immense pressure weighed on the Third Hokage's shoulders, making his already aging body appear even more hunched.

He could only puff hard on the pipe in his hand, the thick smoke swirling around his wrinkled face, but unable to dispel the deep gloom.

In his heart, there was only one silent prayer after another, all his hopes placed on his grand-disciple's child—begging Naruto not to be consumed by the power.

until now.

Click.

The door to the Hokage's office, which was strictly forbidden to be opened, was pushed open from the outside.

Under the Third Hokage's watchful gaze, two figures entered through the door—the one in the lead, in terms of attire, height, and the iconic, eerie fox mask on his face, was exactly the same as Menma, who was currently sitting in the Hokage's seat!

Behind this newly appeared "Menma" was another figure wearing a fox mask whose face could not be seen.

Menma, sitting in the Hokage's seat, seemed completely unsurprised and slowly stood up.

"Have you gotten what you need?" Menma asked from her seat.

Menma, who had just entered, nodded. "Yes, found it. I can only say that it truly lives up to its reputation as the cell of the 'God of Ninjas'... Even though it has been gone for many years, its remaining vitality and energy are still terrifyingly astonishing. It was indeed hidden quite well, and it took some effort, but I still found it."

"Menma" in the seat seemed satisfied with the answer, nodding slightly. "Then my task is complete. Now it's up to you. Oh, and don't forget to pick up that 'filial daughter'."

As soon as he finished speaking, under Hiruzen Sarutobi's astonished gaze, the figure of "Menma," who had been sitting in the Hokage's seat, vanished without a trace with a soft "pop" as he turned into a cloud of white smoke.

Shadow clones...

The third generation suddenly turned their gaze to "Menma," who had just arrived at the door.

So, is this... the true form of the leader of the [Jin] organization?

However, Menma at the door seemed to have lost patience to continue the conversation. He casually raised his hand, took out a scroll from his sleeve, and flicked his wrist, tossing it toward Hiruzen Sarutobi.

The third generation instinctively caught the reel.

"Take a good look, Third Hokage." Menma's voice came through the mask. "To be honest, the 'surprise' left by your old friend is far more than I imagined. Because Danzo died rather suddenly, it seems that his subordinates did not receive orders to destroy the evidence."

He raised his finger and pointed to the scroll in the third generation's hand.

"This is only a small part; the rest... you'll have to go to his lair yourself to confirm."