Chinya and the others were waiting outside as Uzumaki Miyuki and Naruto Uzumaki came out from the room.
Uzumaki Sōnagi asked Kakashi, "Kakashi-sensei, how's Neji-niisan doing in Konoha?"
Kakashi smiled and replied, "Neji is doing quite well in Konoha. He's steadily working on the things he wants to accomplish, and has already started seeing results."
Sōnagi went on, "That's great to hear. But then, Kakashi-sensei… what about you? If Naruto decides not to return to our village and stays here in Konoha… when are *you* going back? You haven't taught me even a single day yet!"
Kakashi felt a bit embarrassed too—truthfully, it was indeed excessive for a student to have never actually been taught by his teacher.
But mainly, there just hadn't been an opportunity to teach!
Scratching his head, Kakashi said, "If Naruto chooses to stay in Konoha, I probably won't be leaving anytime soon either. If I suddenly left, it would cause problems for Naruto first of all. Besides, with Chinya-sensei around, there's no need for me to teach you, right? After all, Chinya-sensei's abilities and teaching skills are far superior to mine."
Pouting unhappily, Sōnagi muttered, "I think Father's strength and teaching ability aren't that great!"
Everyone, including Kimimaro Kaguya and Jugo Tenbin, looked at Uzumaki Sōnagi in shock.
One of the greatest ninja in the entire Shinobi World—complaining about their strength? Come on, you're kidding, right?!
And Kakashi himself was trained by Chinya—how could anyone question *his* teaching ability?
Whether it was Kimimaro, Jugo, Kidomaru, or anyone else, they'd all give anything just for the chance to receive direct training from Chinya.
Sōnagi really was taking his blessings for granted.
Chinya's expression turned sour. He flicked Sōnagi lightly on the forehead. "Didn't realize I meant *that* little to you!"
Holding his head, Sōnagi stuck out his tongue at Chinya.
Chinya ignored him. Anyway, he'd decided later to have a serious talk with Kushina Uzumaki about how to properly educate this brat.
At that moment, Uzumaki Miyuki and Naruto Uzumaki walked out of the room.
Naruto had his arm around Miyuki's, and both appeared very happy.
Inside the room, Miyuki and Naruto had talked about each other's experiences over these past years.
They stuck to the happy stuff, keeping the rough times to themselves—like old friends often do.
And now Naruto finally understood—the scarf Chinya had given him years ago was actually hand-knitted by Miyuki herself.
It explained that quiet warmth he felt deep inside the first time he saw that scarf—it wasn't just fabric; it was love.
Smiling, Chinya asked, "Finished talking?"
Uzumaki Miyuki and Naruto nodded simultaneously.
Naruto gave a respectful bow. "Thank you so much, Uncle Chinya… for everything you've done for my mom and me."
Ruffling Naruto's hair, Chinya replied, "Your mother is not only a dear friend but also a comrade. There's no need to thank me."
Sōnagi blurted out excitedly, "C'mon, Naruto—come back with us! Once we're back in Otogakure, join the Sound Ninja Seven! We'll be the Sound Ninja Eight—the team's finally complete with you!"
Naruto Uzumaki looked up at Miyuki Uzumaki, who smiled and gave a supportive nod toward his decision.
Taking a deep breath, Naruto said, "Sorry Sōnagi, I can't go to Otogakure with you for now."
"Why not?" Sōnagi asked, confused. "You've finally met Aunt Miyuki. Don't you want to stay with her every day? And why would you stick around in that dump called Konoha?"
Naruto replied, "Because there are things I want to do. Also, as a jinchuriki, leaving Konoha would definitely cause trouble for all of you."
"So what? What's there to worry about? My dad's got our backs! He's super powerful!"
Unable to hold back any longer, Uzumaki Chinya gave Sōnagi another tap on the head. "So just because I'm backing you up, does that mean I'm the only one being praised for being strong?"
Unfazed by the blow, Sōnagi continued holding his head with both hands. "Besides my dad, there's Daiki-niisan, Orochimaru-ojiisan, Raiga-ojiisan, and Pakura-nee... Seriously, there's zero reason to stress about this!"
Kakashi gave Chinya a slightly awkward look. "I get calling Orochimaru 'Uncle' since he looks pretty young, but why call Raiga 'Uncle' and Pakura 'Sister'? It doesn't seem consistent."
Chinya shrugged. "How come you don't even get this, Kakashi? Girls should always be addressed as younger as possible."
"What about Daiki then? Why is he called 'Brother'?"
"Well, Daiki looks way younger than Raiga. Plus, Raiga's already taking care of kids, so calling him 'Uncle' isn't wrong either."
Kakashi didn't know what to say. The only thought in his mind was that Raiga Kurosuki was somewhat unlucky—his appearance did seem a bit older, and he naturally carried an intimidating aura.
Shaking his head, Naruto said, "That's not the point, Sōnagi. I know you guys will help me and protect me, but... I don't want to be protected. I want to become the one protecting others. So I can't stay in this safe little bubble. I need to face everything myself and grow stronger step by step toward my goal.
"Staying stuck in this comfort zone won't make me stronger. Whenever I hit a rough patch, my first instinct will always be asking for your help instead of solving it myself. At the same time, like I just said, there are things I really want to do in Konoha!"
Naruto's words hit Sōnagi like a cold shower—he froze in place, genuinely touched.
Truth was, he'd always been living under a protective umbrella—his biggest struggle so far was getting caught between Chinya and Kushina's tag-team discipline.
And just like Naruto pointed out, whenever anything went sideways, his gut reaction was never "how do I fix this?" but "where can I get backup from Chinya or someone else?"
Sōnagi fell silent.
Chinya glanced at Sōnagi.
Putting strength aside, right now Naruto had clearly walked far ahead of Sōnagi.
What Naruto had just said seemed to push Sōnagi into deep reflection.
That was good enough.
Chinya turned to Naruto and said, "Naruto, since you've already made your choice and it seems Miyuki agrees too, then just keep going forward according to your plan."
"If things get too rough for you to handle on your own, don't try to shoulder everything by yourself. Don't be afraid to ask for help when you need it. Got it?"
Naruto Uzumaki nodded and replied, "I understand, Uncle Chinya."
Then Chinya turned to Kakashi and said, "Kakashi, after returning to Konoha, use Konoha's intelligence network to investigate three people."
Kakashi asked, "Which three people?"
"The first is a member of the Akatsuki Organization named Jigen. The other two are unknown individuals—one an adult and one a child. Both wear spiral-patterned masks."
Chinya wore a serious expression. That's why he planned to have Kakashi look into them using Konoha's resources.
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