Naruto: Set a goal, conquer the universe.

Page 75

Of all things, food is the most important. If people aren't even fed enough, how can they work?

"Hinata, no need to rush, you can go over after you've eaten your fill." Naruto said to Hinata, and then helped her brush away any stray hairs to prevent them from getting wet with the soup.

"Mmm." Hinata nodded, but she still ate her ramen much faster without saying a word.

“After all, he’s the Hokage. It’s not surprising that he knows we’re back.” Sasuke saw that Naruto wasn’t in a hurry, so he wasn’t either. He took another sip of tea and said.

After Hinata finished her fiftieth bowl of ramen, she wiped her mouth with a tissue, and Naruto poured her a cup of tea.

Hinata rubbed her eyes, took the tea, and took a sip.

"Are your eyes itchy again?" Naruto frowned slightly. Hinata's eyes started to itch when she was training in Sage Mode at Mount Myōboku.

After she had fully mastered the magic, the frequency of her itching increased.

Naruto checked her over, but found nothing wrong.

Sasuke also looked at Hinata, his brows furrowing slightly. Hinata was also one of his good friends.

“I’m going to see Granny Tsunade anyway, so she can give you a thorough check-up using the equipment at Konoha Hospital. After all, medical ninjutsu isn’t a cure-all,” Naruto said.

"Okay," Hinata replied with a smile.

Hokage's office.

Tsunade's expression was solemn as she flipped through the intelligence report, which had been crumpled up by her hands.

"Grandma, we're here!" Naruto pushed open the office door with great enthusiasm and entered the office with Sasuke and Hinata.

"What's wrong? Why does Grandma look so bitter and resentful? Let your Shadow Guard, Lord Naruto Uzumaki, help you solve your troubles!" Naruto said, patting his chest as he saw Tsunade's expression.

Hearing Naruto's words, Shizune couldn't help but chuckle. With Naruto around, the atmosphere was always lively.

Upon hearing Naruto's words, Tsunade's worried expression eased. She beckoned to Naruto, handed him the intelligence report, and said, "Information has arrived; the Akatsuki has begun collecting the Tailed Beasts!"

Naruto took the crumpled intelligence report and began to read it, raising an eyebrow: "Gaara has been captured?"

"It's not just Gaara, take a look at these too!" Tsunade pointed to the other intelligence reports on the table, indicating that Naruto and the others should check them themselves.

These are all intelligence reports urgently sent back by Konoha's intelligence agents stationed outside the village.

After learning of the Akatsuki's existence, the Third Hokage specifically instructed intelligence personnel stationed abroad to strengthen their monitoring of Jinchuriki in various countries and to report back to Konoha immediately if anything happened.

"The Two-Tails Jinchuriki, Yugito! The Five-Tails Jinchuriki, Han! The Seven-Tails Jinchuriki, Fu! They've all been captured by the Akatsuki?" Naruto exclaimed, his eyes wide.

Sasuke and Hinata's expressions turned serious when they heard this. It wasn't because those Jinchuriki had been captured—they had nothing to do with them, so they didn't care whether they were captured or not—but because of Naruto. He was also a Jinchuriki and a target of the Akatsuki.

"Yes, because of the information Itachi exposed, the Third Hokage revealed information about the Akatsuki organization to other countries, making them more vigilant."

At this point, Tsunade revealed a cold smile: "His intentions were good, but unfortunately, other countries simply don't value his intelligence."

"On the contrary, it forced the Akatsuki to carry out their operation ahead of schedule!"

Chapter 2: The Jinchūriki of Various Countries are Captured

The countries did indeed receive intelligence from the Third Hokage.

The Fourth Raikage, A, stood in front of the huge floor-to-ceiling window of the Raikage's office. His massive body resembled an iron tower, and his brows were filled with impatience and contempt.

The intelligence report, which symbolized the Third Hokage's well-intentioned warning, lay crumpled in the corner of the large desk behind him, clearly having been carelessly tossed aside with considerable force by its owner.

"Hmph!" A heavy snort escaped Ai's nostrils, echoing in the empty office. "That old man, Hiruzen Sarutobi, has been in the Hokage position for so long that even his courage has been dulled to the point of being as sharp as a needle! He's produced such alarming intelligence."

He turned around abruptly, strode towards his desk, and slammed his thick hand heavily on the surface, making the documents next to him jump.

The document, titled "Third Hokage Information," stood out starkly.

His secretary, Mabui, holding the documents, calmly reminded him, "This is information from the Third Hokage, so it shouldn't be false. Raikage-sama, we should also strengthen the protection of Jinchuriki."

"Hmph, I think it's just that old man Hiruzen Sarutobi who has lost his nerve. What is that old guy afraid of? Has he been scared out of his wits by those few cowardly rats?"

He irritably threw the newsletter back onto the table, letting it slide to the floor, his tone becoming even more agitated and disdainful:

"A mere, insignificant organization that doesn't even dare to reveal its name makes him act like it's a major threat? It's laughable!" He stretched out his thick finger, pointing to the iconic towering peaks and sturdy fortresses of Kumogakure outside the window. "This is the Land of Lightning! This is Kumogakure! Not his Konoha!"

"We are the strongest ninja village! Yugito is just one step away from becoming the perfect Jinchuriki, and he's a brother I can rely on much more than that kid!"

"The way those three generations of old men were so cautious and paranoid was a joke to me! Excessive caution is cowardice!"

"After the Fourth Hokage died, Konoha was no longer the Konoha it once was!"

"In my opinion, if that little bug named 'Xiao' really dares to set foot on my territory and attack Yugito or Bi!"

He clenched his fists so tightly that his knuckles cracked, and it was as if lightning flashed through the air.

"I guarantee they won't leave alive, not even a speck of dust! Hiruzen Sarutobi's useless reminders, besides disturbing people's minds and wasting my time reading this nonsense, what good are they? It's just senile meddling!"

The Hidden Cloud Village completely disregarded the Third Hokage's intelligence.

Onoki also saw the information sent by the Third Hokage.

Huang Tu said to Onoki, "Father, regarding the information sent by the Third Hokage, should we bring back Oshi and then strengthen our manpower to protect Han's safety?"

After sitting in his chair and pondering for a while, Onoki said, "Hmph, Hiruzen Sarutobi may not have had any good intentions in sending this intelligence. Is he trying to threaten our Land of Earth with a mercenary organization?"

He knew about the Akatsuki organization even before the Third Hokage, and had even hired them to do some dirty work. They did a great job, but the fees weren't cheap.

"That's a joke. They're probably just trying to get us to focus our attention on the Jinchūriki, thus neglecting other aspects and giving them more opportunities to exploit us!"

"That stubborn kid, Old Purple, already had a bad relationship with the village. The fact that he hasn't become a rogue ninja is already a sign of his old friendship. There's no need to bother him."

"Han himself is quite strong, and he can also use the power of the Five-Tails. If he really unleashes his power, even I would have to spend some time and effort to capture him alive. If the Akatsuki had that kind of strength, they wouldn't be mercenaries."

"Ignore them! In fact, we need to strengthen the village's defenses to prevent Konoha spies from carrying out any sabotage!"

"Yes!" Huang Tu nodded and stepped back to give the orders.

The Land of Earth suspects the Third Hokage's true intentions in sending this information.

The Land of Wind has just elected Gaara as the Fifth Kazekage. Apart from him, there is really no other person in the village who can unleash Kage-level combat power. Chiyo doesn't count; she no longer cares about the affairs of the Sand Village.

After receiving information from Konoha, Sunagakure could only strengthen the village's defenses and keep Gaara in the village, intending to use the entire village's resources to protect Gaara's safety.

But it doesn't seem to have any effect.

There was absolutely no news from Kirigakure, which seemed to still be under the bloody rule of the Fourth Mizukage and did not communicate with the outside world.

As for the other small ninja villages with tailed beasts, such as Takigakure.

They also lacked the strength to protect Fu's safety. To put it bluntly, Fu, who could unleash the power of a tailed beast, was already the strongest force in Takigakure.

She should be the one protecting the village, not the other way around.

In a situation where major powers do not value human jinchūriki and small countries are unable to protect them.

The Akatsuki organization's capture of the Tailed Beasts is progressing very smoothly.

They worked in pairs, simultaneously capturing the jinchūriki from various countries.

When the news of the Jinchuriki's capture reached Onoki and A.

Yukito and Han have been captured by the Akatsuki organization.

It was only then that they realized the power of the Akatsuki organization.

But it's too late!

"What exactly is the purpose of this Akatsuki organization? Why do they want to capture so many tailed beasts?" Sasuke asked, frowning.

"I don't know, but with so many tailed beasts collected by them, the power they wield is terrifying. They definitely have ill intentions," Tsunade said, resting her chin on her hands.

"In fact, the information that has been sent back so far only concerns the Jinchuriki who are located in various countries. There are still some Jinchuriki who are wandering in the ninja world. We don't know if those Jinchuriki have been captured by the Akatsuki yet," Tsunade reminded them solemnly.

"Who are they?" Hinata asked curiously.

"According to intelligence, the Four-Tails Jinchuriki, Rōshi, became a wandering monk and is now living a nomadic life. The Six-Tails Jinchuriki should have also left Kirigakure and his whereabouts are unknown."

"So, based on the worst-case scenario, the Akatsuki have already captured the jinchūriki of the One-Tailed, Two-Tailed, Four-Tailed, Five-Tailed, Six-Tailed, and Seven-Tailed—six jinchūriki in total?" Naruto said, waving the intelligence report in his hand.

"Yes, that's it!" Tsunade's face darkened. "Their actions were too swift, as if they had already gathered information on all the Jinchuriki, catching the major powers off guard."

Hinata and Sasuke also realized the seriousness of the situation.

"The Akatsuki!" Naruto muttered to himself, then suddenly asked, "Where did the Perverted Sage go?"

He was worried that Jiraiya was being too reckless, so he went to Amegakure alone to find Nagato.

"He went to Kirigakure to check on the Three-Tails, since Kirigakure hasn't sent back any information yet!" Tsunade said.

"Should we go and meet up with the perverted sage?" Naruto asked Tsunade.

"Although Kirigakure is one of the five great villages, with Jiraiya's strength, as long as he is careful enough, it is not a big problem."

"Right now, the most important thing is to get Gaara back from the Akatsuki!"

Chapter 3: Setting Out to Rescue

"Take it back? Wasn't it already captured by the Akatsuki?" Naruto looked at Tsunade in confusion.

"Idiot, look at the date!" Sasuke reminded him.

Naruto then noticed the date written in the corner.

"This... when was it again?" Naruto scratched his head. He was training at Mount Myōboku and had no idea what time it was in the ninja world.

“Naruto, this is information from a day ago!” Shizune said.

“That’s right. This intelligence was sent by Sand Village overnight, requesting Konoha to send reinforcements. They simply don’t have any high-level combat power left to save Gaara,” Tsunade said in a deep voice.

The Sand Village of the Land of Wind is currently at its lowest point in history in terms of combat strength.

Even their own fengying (chieftain) was brazenly barged into the village and kidnapped.

Moreover, they lack the ability to retrieve the Kazekage and can only seek help from Konoha.

"If you hurry, you might be able to rescue Gaara from the Akatsuki. So, are you willing to accept this mission?" Tsunade said to Naruto.

"Although you are now my shadow guards, I will not force you to do anything."

Sasuke and Hinata looked at Naruto; if Naruto agreed, they would go with him.

Naruto clenched his fists, recalling Gaara's lonely appearance. This guy was quite similar to him in the past.

Although this guy deceived his own feelings, it seems like it's worth it to save someone similar to himself.

Furthermore, Gaara has become the Kazekage, so he should be able to help Gaara complete his plan to unify the land. If Gaara can lead the entire Land of Wind to assist his plan, at least the number of innocent casualties can be reduced.

His plan for unification was imperative, and even the Sage of Six Paths couldn't stop him.

However, it would be even better if casualties could be reduced during this process.

However, to say that he would abandon the revolution because of casualties is absolutely impossible for him.

Revolution inevitably involves bloodshed and sacrifice, and he had the determination and will to do so.

“Okay, I accept this mission and will rescue Gaara!” Naruto nodded solemnly to Tsunade.

Tsunade smiled slightly, clapped her hands, and the door opened again. Kakashi walked in with one hand in his pocket.

"Lady Tsunade." Kakashi bowed to Tsunade first, then looked at Naruto and the others, his eyes crinkling with a smile. "Naruto, Sasuke, Hinata, it's been a long time."

"Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto and Hinata's eyes widened slightly, while Sasuke raised an eyebrow, surprised that Kakashi would appear here.

"Yes, the ninja leading this team is Kakashi. Although Team 7 has disbanded, I think your teamwork is still the best."

“Naruto, although you guys are very strong, you are still young and lack experience. I would feel much more at ease if Kakashi led the team,” Tsunade said, her arms crossed.

"Furthermore, Kakashi's summoning jutsu will be of great help to you in tracking down members of the Akatsuki. Let's not delay, let's set off now!" Tsunade waved her hand and gave the order.

The figures of the group quickly disappeared from the spot.

Looking at the spot where Naruto and the others disappeared, Tsunade's expression was solemn, her hands crossed and her chin resting on them.

The emergence of the Akatsuki organization could be a huge shift in the landscape of the ninja world, and Naruto's plan might actually come to fruition!

Kakashi is registering to leave the village.

Naruto looked at Hinata and said, "Hinata, why don't you stay here and let Granny Tsunade check your eyes first?"

Hinata shook her head and said, "I can feel that there is nothing wrong with my eyes, they just itch from time to time. Let's finish this mission first, since tracking will be easier with my Byakugan."

Naruto remained silent.

Hinata raised her left hand as if swearing an oath and said, "If I really feel there's something wrong with my eyes, I'll tell you right away, Naruto. Please let me go with you."