Time flew by amidst the intensive training and soon, five days had passed.
On the morning of the fifth day, Naruto recalled all the Shadow Clones for that day.
The memories of three hundred portions of Fire Release nature transformation training flooded into his mind simultaneously, and under the integration of Absolute Control, they were quickly archived and organized.
Naruto opened his palm, and a ball of scorching Fire Chakra appeared in his palm.
Fire Release nature transformation, complete.
During these five days, Kurama Mode had also been fully mastered through repeated practical drills. Now he could instantly activate Kurama Mode in any state.
The switching between Swift Release, Flying Thunder God Technique, and Kurama Mode had also been honed to the point where it required no thought at all.
Next, as long as he learned Sage Mode and then used it superimposed with Kurama Mode to successfully enter Sage-Kurama Mode, his strength would undergo a qualitative leap.
Walking to the edge of the island, he locked his mind onto the Flying Thunder God Mark in the bathroom of the Konoha apartment.
Swish!
The next moment, he appeared in his apartment's bathroom.
Outside the bathroom, the sound of Karin in the kitchen drifted in.
Naruto pushed open the bathroom door and exchanged a look with the Shadow Clone in the living room. The Shadow Clone nodded at him and then dissipated into a puff of white smoke.
...
Today was the day Tsunade would take office as the Fifth Hokage.
For thia occasion, Naruto put on a black jumpsuit and a white windbreaker, then headed out with Karin.
Karin had specifically changed into the light-colored casual clothes she had bought for today. She followed alongside Naruto, curiously observing every sight on the streets of Konoha, wanting to ask about everything she encountered.
By the time the two arrived in front of the Hokage Building, the entire plaza was already packed with people.
The villagers of Konoha had gathered from all directions, crowding the plaza in front of the Hokage Building until it was impassable.
Everyone's gaze was fixed on the balcony on the top floor of the Hokage Building. That was where the newly appointed Hokage would deliver her inauguration speech to the entire village during the ceremony.
All the active Jonin of Konoha, the heads of the major clans, and the twelve rookies were all present.
By now, Kakashi and Sasuke had been discharged from the hospital.
Kakashi stood at the edge of the Jonin group in a lazy posture, his gaze sweeping over Naruto's figure.
Sasuke stood in the crowd with his hands in his pockets, expressionless. But when he saw Naruto arrive, the corners of his lips dipped slightly.
When Sakura saw Naruto from afar, along with the red-haired girl following by his side, her mind couldn't help but recall what Ino had told her earlier about Naruto living with a red-haired girl.
She had originally thought Ino was exaggerating, but now that she saw the red-haired girl following Naruto with her own eyes, she realized that what Ino said was actually true.
Before Sakura could process this information, the other rookies nearby also noticed Karin by Naruto's side.
Shikamaru said to Choji beside him, "Naruto not only brought back a Hokage from his trip, but also a girlfriend? Girlfriends or whatever are such a drag."
Choji replied, "That red-haired girl is from the Uzumaki clan, right? Her Chakra levels should be as high as Naruto's. Does she also eat a lot?"
Ino said, "You boys only know how to focus on that. The point is, what exactly is the relationship between that girl and Naruto?"
Hinata's gaze paused on Naruto before landing on Karin beside him.
Karin was tilting her head to talk to Naruto, and Naruto was listening with his head slightly lowered.
Hinata watched this scene for a few seconds, then lowered her head to look at the tips of her shoes.
Kiba, standing next to her, saw this scene and opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but ultimately kept his mouth shut.
Naruto walked toward Shikamaru and the others, and raised his hand to greet them. "Everyone's here. Kakashi-sensei, Sasuke, you didn't even give a heads-up that you were discharged."
"I just finished the discharge paperwork this morning. The aftereffects of the genjutsu haven't completely faded, but I can still handle the amount of activity required to watch the Hokage inauguration ceremony."
"But Naruto, I heard from Jiraiya-sama that you put in quite a lot of effort on the way to find Tsunade-sama." Kakashi squinted his eyes, his tone lazy.
"It was alright, mostly Pervy Sage's credit. I just tagged along for the trip." Naruto replied.
Sasuke watched Naruto, his mind repeatedly replaying the words Itachi said to him before leaving Konoha.
Then he realized that Naruto happened to be looking at him and their gazes met in the air.
Naruto nodded at Sasuke, and Sasuke paused before giving a slight nod in response.
He remembered what Naruto had said to him at the Uchiha Compound. Some things didn't need to be said in front of so many people.
Just then, the door to the balcony on the top floor of the Hokage Building was pushed open.
Tsunade walked out, with Jiraiya following behind her.
When she looked down and saw the villagers in the plaza looking up at her with expectant eyes, the corners of her lips curved slightly.
"From today on, I will officially take office as the Fifth Hokage of Konoha."
"I don't like saying things that are too complicated. Just one sentence: this village, I've got it covered."
"Long live Tsunade-sama!"
"Long live the Hokage-sama!"
In an instant, the entire Konoha erupted in deafening cheers.
Everyone who had lost loved ones in the war, everyone who had been silently rebuilding their homes after Hiruzen's death, found a reason to feel at peace at this moment.
Konoha finally had a Hokage again!
***
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