Her voice carried a hint of sadness, but she quickly pulled herself together. "He always looked after me and ensured my safety. I've always hoped to go on missions with him again."
"My Love Guide defines this as—hero worship," Sai interrupted, ignoring the death glare from Maki.
"Ever since Naruto-senpai left Root, Miss Maki has had feelings for him. When we found Naruto-senpai in Amegakure, she was practically glued to his side."
"That's not hero worship!" Maki shot back, struggling to control her emotions. "Well, yes, he really is my hero. But I just want to repay everything he did for me. He did so much for me without ever expecting anything in return. Protecting me came naturally to him. I've never even had the chance to prove I can handle things on my own."
Sai turned to look at her and asked with a smile:
"Which part of what you just said doesn't sound like hero worship?"
Seeing Maki's hand inching toward a kunai, Tamako quickly cut in:
"Enough, Sai," she said, her tone calm. "If Miss Maki says it's not hero worship, then it isn't."
Maki gave her a grateful smile, only to hear Tamako continue:
"It's obvious—she has a crush on Naruto-sama." At these words, Maki's face turned bright red, all the way to her ears, leaving her speechless.
Sai pulled out his small notebook and began scribbling while muttering:
"Women usually aren't good at expressing their feelings. Take Naruto-senpai, for example—he's been kind to many women—even my own teammates. Note to self: if a woman ever catches my interest in the future, I need to make the first move because odds are, she won't say anything herself." Sai closed the notebook and put it back into his pouch. "Fascinating," he muttered.
******
Naruto stared at the waterfall and fountain, where a thick, oil-like liquid constantly flowed out. Jiraiya, Gamakichi, and the two elder frogs were preparing to explain the training to him. Fukasaku spoke first:
"Naruto, this will be your training ground. To learn Sage Mode, you must learn how to balance your body's physical energy and spiritual energy with natural energy."
After listening to the explanation, Naruto blinked and asked:
"Okay… So what exactly should I do?"
Jiraiya clapped a hand on Naruto's shoulder:
"You have to stay perfectly still."
Naruto's eye twitched, frowning deeply:
"I already know how! I once stayed completely still for days while using my Sexy Jutsu. Moving even slightly would expose me."
Jiraiya grabbed Naruto's cheeks and stretched them playfully:
"Really? My point is, you have to be completely motionless—like a stone statue. You can't even flinch. If you can't do that… Hmm, maybe I shouldn't say."
Fukasaku interjected, feeling it important Naruto understood the consequences:
"If you cannot master staying perfectly motionless and controlling natural chakra, you'll absorb too much natural energy. You'll turn into a frog—and then into stone."
"So what, I only get one shot? Either I nail this technique or turn into a stone frog statue? That's brutal."
Gamakichi stepped closer:
"No way, Naruto big brother! If the elders sense you're about to transform, they'll pull you out before it's too late. You've got nothing to worry about."
Fukasaku hopped onto Naruto's shoulder and pointed at the pool:
"That oil will help you feel natural energy, until eventually you can draw it in yourself. Jiraiya will be here the whole time to back you up."
Jiraiya nodded, giving him an encouraging smile.
"After all, it was my idea. I know you'll pick it up fast, kid."
"What've I really got to lose?" Naruto shrugged, actually pausing for thought. "Sure, I could end up as a stone statue, but at worst I die alone and the Akatsuki never get the Nine-Tails."
## Land of Wind
In a cool cavern, Itachi began unwrapping the bandages from his eyes. They had stopped here to escape the desert's scorching heat.
"Itachi, the time is nearly upon us. Our goal is finally within reach."
The shark-faced man watched his partner with interest:
"But the One-Tail's jinchuriki is still kilometers deeper in the desert. We only paused here so your eyes could recover after the transplant. There's no way we'd catch him outside his village."
Itachi finished removing the wrappings, closed his eyes, and made his way toward the exit of their hideout.
"I know, Kisame. I mean our goal, not Madara's. Let's go."
A predator's smirk curled Itachi's lips as he slipped out behind him.
"Fine then, I see. You're leading the way, Itachi-san."
******
Following Naruto's first diplomatic mission, Danzo, Fu, and Torune crossed the desert, closely following their bandage-wrapped leader.
"Fu, Torune," Danzo suddenly said.
"Danzo-sama," both responded simultaneously.
"I want the two of you prepared for conflict," Danzo warned them ahead of time. As they looked around, there was nothing to be seen. "Not here… but soon. Not too soon."
Fu narrowed his eyes, scanning the desert expanse.
"Do you suspect Sunagakure will betray us? Do you think their ninja are hiding here, waiting to strike?"
Danzo gave a slow shake of his head.
"No. Naruto-kun has done well building relations between our villages. The Kazekage won't allow his ninja to attack Konoha diplomats. That's not the danger I foresee."
Meanwhile, Torune felt puzzled. If it wasn't shinobi from their own country, who else would dare attack them? He couldn't fathom who'd be pursuing them now.
"Danzo-sama, who do you believe would attack us?"
"I don't know," Danzo replied, the ominous weight pressing around him. "But I am certain this is at least a threat worth watching for. We should speed up our journey to Sunagakure."
## Hokage Tower ##
Tsunade sat in her office, thinking about the message Naruto's clone had delivered to her a few days ago.
According to reports from Naruto's team, Madara Uchiha was still alive and was the true mastermind behind Akatsuki—not Pain. Pain had merely been a figurehead, while Madara Uchiha orchestrated everything from the shadows.
Now more than ever, the villages needed to unite against this threat.
It caught Tsunade off guard that Kirigakure wanted to finalize negotiations so quickly, especially considering Tsunade had replaced Naruto with Danzō.
Iwagakure remained a problem because Onoki refused to budge on village alliances, but eventually, pressure would force his hand. He wouldn't want his nation to be the only one without a tailed beast.
Takigakure and Kirigakure had also lost their tailed beasts—the Three-Tails had been extracted from Yagura, the former Mizukage, and the Six-Tails had already been captured. And yet both villages still wished to join the alliance.
"But we're overlooking something," Tsunade muttered to herself, tapping her fingers on the desk before sighing, "If only someone had the foresight of Professor Sarutobi... But that's easy to say in hindsight."
She glanced over at Shizune, who was fast asleep on the couch along the wall. "Do you think I'd handle things any better?" she half-jokingly asked, receiving no response. "Hey, maybe the Fourth could've... especially when it came to the Uchiha clan."
Shizune hopped off the couch and trailed after Tsunade.
"Mm…" Tsunade replied, "I guess I'll go do some training... or maybe actually head to the hospital and do some real work. Things won't stay quiet for long, so I'd better be ready for anything."
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