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Led by Shunfeng, the master and disciple never took a conventional path. This dog was fearless; it wanted to test everything it saw.
At this moment, Naruto and Jiraiya were gnawing on bear paws. The bear had been killed by Shunfeng. It was bitten by Shunfeng in its sleep, it got angry, and then it died.
While enjoying the bear paw, Naruto received a message from Sasuke.
"What's up?" Naruto, still gnawing on the bear paw, replied.
"Arrived in the Land of Rice Fields."
"And then?"
"Got something to ask you."
Wiping his mouth, Naruto asked, "Spit it out."
"What do you think of me?"
To say that Sasuke felt no emotion about going to Orochimaru was impossible, he just didn't show it.
I consider you a brother.
But considering Sasuke's "if you're my brother, come cut me down" attribute, Naruto abandoned that thought.
After a moment of thought, he said, "I have a grand plan. Once the plan succeeds, I will be at odds with the entire world."
"By then, I hope someone can help me block attacks from behind."
"No one else can keep up with my pace, only you can. So, do you understand?"
Naruto's plan indeed involved being at odds with the world in the end, but he didn't specify which world. He aimed to fight the Otsutsuki world. With everyone trying to snatch his fox demon, Naruto couldn't rest until he utterly destroyed them. Completing this plan required strength and a pathfinder. Whether it was Kaguya or Momoshiki, as long as she (or he) held the oil lamp and walked to the Otsutsuki clan's ancestral land, things would be easy. Even without an ancestral land, if the pathfinder could locate the Otsutsuki clan members, it would work. Don't want to lead the way? Just beat them until they do.
My fox demon, what trouble has she caused you? Just drinking cola and watching anime, and everyone wants to snatch her away.
"Mm." Sasuke said calmly.
After chatting for a while, Naruto returned to continue gnawing on the bear paw with Jiraiya.
"Why did it take so long?" Jiraiya thought something had happened to him.
"I guided him a bit."
Jiraiya fell silent. Compared to Uchiha Itachi, this child in front of him seemed more like Sasuke's older brother, and a very doting one at that. Jiraiya thought this because he didn't understand Itachi. If he did, he'd realize that that was true brotherly affection; even if killed by his brother, he still loved him.
Naruto continued to follow the dog, while Sasuke arrived at the agreed meeting point with Orochimaru.
On a square arena underground stood a man holding a massive shuriken in each hand. The man's eyes were closed, but when Sasuke arrived, they opened.
"You are... the Uchiha brat?"
That ping-pong paddle-like family crest made him hard to mistake.
"Who are you? Where's Orochimaru?" Sasuke frowned.
"Ugh!!" The man twitched violently, his eyes losing focus.
"Welcome, Uchiha Sasuke."
"Where's Orochimaru?"
"I am currently relaying Lord Orochimaru's words."
"Hiding, afraid to come out?"
"Heh heh, Sasuke, let's not dwell on that. You and I both understand. Since you've come, I will keep my promise and give you power, but you must acquire this power yourself."
"Tell me, how do I acquire it?" Sasuke asked.
The man pulled open a small door, revealing someone Sasuke recognized. The girl he had saved casually in the Chunin Exams when he went to the bathroom.
"This little girl has the same ability as Naruto—healing injuries and restoring chakra. Her name is Karin, and she's from the Uzumaki clan."
[Naruto's clansman?] Sasuke wondered.
The one I casually saved back then?
"Now you can come and claim your power. This body's owner is named Troy, and his ability is Magnet Release. He will be your opponent."
"This is what you meant by 'how'?" Sasuke asked.
"You only grow stronger by constantly challenging the strong. And here, I have countless strong individuals waiting for you to challenge. A word of caution: this room is filled with large quantities of iron objects, and also, he won't die, so make sure you don't die." As for where the strong individuals came from, just send Kabuto to dig up graves and use Edo Tensei. Orochimaru not only prevented Kabuto from opening his own skull, but he also made Kabuto dig up graves.
Karin, waking from unconsciousness, opened her eyes and exclaimed in surprise, "You've come to save me again?" She had been picked up and abducted by Orochimaru not long after being saved the last time and leaving Konoha.
"No." The cool young man's expression remained unchanged.
...
A few days later, Naruto, still running while dragging iron, received a message. It was a note written by Sasuke using an oil lamp.
"You have clansmen."
Naruto, delighted by the message, treated Shunfeng and Ginger Fishcake to a meal of tiger meat soup.
It seems Sasuke met Karin. That's great! I finally don't have to worry about breaking my son's legs in the future.
He had no idea what his future daughter-in-law would turn out like.
A few more days passed, and Naruto received another message.
"He's never there."
Naruto knew 'he' referred to Orochimaru. If Orochimaru wasn't there, what had Sasuke been playing? A solo game?
"Dead people revived."
Now Naruto understood. Orochimaru... he... she... it... never mind, just 'they'. Orochimaru was playing a remote control game, huh? Pretty slick.
Orochimaru had investigated Naruto's abilities after the Chunin Exams and knew he could teleport, just not the mechanism behind it. Furthermore, Sasuke wasn't truly defecting; Orochimaru knew there was something fishy about the situation. But no matter what the specifics were, the ultimate goal was either to steal information or for Sasuke and Naruto to team up against him. So Orochimaru allowed Sasuke to stay voluntarily, then used Edo Tensei to contact Sasuke.
If you don't even know where I am, how can you deal with me?
"Pervert Sage, what's that Jutsu Orochimaru used to revive and control the First Hokage called?"
"Edo Tensei! Did Sasuke meet Orochimaru?"
"No, Sasuke said he never saw Orochimaru, only dead people. I suspect Orochimaru has been controlling dead people to contact him."
Jiraiya looked up at the sky and said, "Never showing his true self, delivering a fatal blow in one move. He hasn't changed at all after all these years."
"Pervert Sage, why do I hear a hint of relief in your tone?"
"Mind your own business!!" Jiraiya roared, "Mind your dog! He took us from the beach to the desert, look how pathetic he looks in this heat!"
"Isn't it still not far from the sea!"
All the way, the dog ran ahead joyfully, and Naruto followed, dragging his precious bricks. They carved paths through mountains and filled in rivers, literally dragging a path from the Land of Waves to the Land of Wind. There was originally no road in the world, but once Naruto walked over it, it became a road. It's just that this road was all wavy, occasionally with a dozen circles drawn along it.
About twenty miles ahead of Naruto, Gaara, Temari, and Kankuro were traveling through the desert. Gaara's expression was no longer as cold as before. After the Sand and Leaf villages negotiated and he was exchanged back, he had remained silent. He wanted to understand what Naruto had told him, but he didn't. A child who had never seen his mother in his life could not instantly grasp the true meaning of mother's love.
So... Gaara endured the pain in his abdomen and sat outside the Sand Village's obstetrics and gynecology department for three days and three nights. Everyone truly respected him; no one hit him for three days and three nights. Or perhaps, no one could hit him.
Listening to the heartbreaking cries from the delivery room inside, Gaara touched his aching abdomen and recalled Naruto's words that day: 'Your mother's birth of you hurt more than this.' He observed the smile on every mother's face as they emerged, holding their babies. When he heard a mother, who took care of her child during the day and worked odd jobs at night, say she'd rather work two jobs at night than not be able to raise her child, Gaara understood mother's love.
After that, he continuously observed every mother's attitude towards their children in the village. Some mothers from less affluent families, who chose to work at night grinding puppet parts for their children's growth, deeply moved him. He had an epiphany! He decided to do something for these mothers.
So, when Gaara was subtly informed by a doctor that he might be unable to have children after the age of thirty due to delaying treatment, he stated that these were minor matters. At most, he would adopt one in the future. The love between a man and a woman was a small love; his ambition was a great love. To sacrifice small love for great love, he no longer planned to marry.
Finally, during a high-level meeting, Gaara said, "To ensure that the mothers of the Sand Village all have a blissful and happy family, I wish to run for Kazekage. Who supports this? Who opposes?"
"I oppose..."
"Bang."
A massive sand fist struck him in the stomach, knocking him to the ground, leaving him speechless from the pain.
"Do you understand mother's love now?"
Gaara's voice echoed in his ear. The others remained silent. Only a highly respected elder said, "We don't object, but your qualifications might not be enough."
So, Gaara had been frantically completing missions recently. However, Gaara also had his troubles. Shukaku had been dormant, and without Shukaku's burden, he had more energy to pursue what he wanted. But he could feel it. Shukaku... was about to wake up.
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