Leaving the bustling Cursed Seal Center, the surroundings became quiet once more.
Except for the footsteps of Naruto, Sai, and Shin, there was no other sound.
Suddenly.
Naruto's footsteps stopped.
"It must have been hard for you to endure until now."
Naruto's calm voice echoed in the empty corridor, carrying no trace of emotion, yet it made the hearts of the two behind him tighten suddenly.
He slowly turned around.
"Ever since we first met, you have harbored killing intent toward me."
"Now, there are only the three of us here—"
Naruto spread his hands, seemingly completely defenseless.
"You can make your move."
The air instantly froze.
Sai and Shin's pupils contracted sharply.
Their bodies instantly entered a combat-ready state, their hands resting on their ninja tool pouches.
But they did not draw their weapons.
"Whether we make a move or not... depends on your answer."
The fake smile on Sai's face faded, replaced by seriousness and... a touch of confusion.
Naruto just looked at the two of them indifferently.
Just now, if the two had actually dared to draw their weapons, that instant would have been their end.
But Naruto could feel that besides killing intent, there was also an indescribably complex emotion in their hearts.
This piqued Naruto's curiosity.
This was the sole reason he was temporarily allowing them to breathe a few more breaths of air.
"What do you want to ask?"
Naruto asked calmly.
Sai looked at the youth before him.
It was he who had personally destroyed Root, killed Danzo, and left Konoha in a state of near-collapse.
"Lord Danzo is dead, and Root is gone."
"We, who had our emotions erased from childhood and were raised as tools, have suddenly lost our user."
A trace of confusion flashed in his eyes.
"You destroyed our home and invalidated our past."
"So, to you, what is Root?"
"And what are we, a group of tools with no names and no emotions, to you?"
This was the greatest struggle for him and Shin.
Was it to avenge their former master?
Or to find a new meaning in life?
Sai did not have a clear answer in his heart.
Naruto looked at them and fell silent for a moment.
Then, he let out a soft chuckle, his laughter carrying a hint of amusement.
"Root, huh—"
Naruto pushed up his glasses and said somewhat nonchalantly, "To be honest, I don't dislike Root."
Sai and Shin froze.
"Underneath the light, there must be shadows."
"In a bright and beautiful village, someone always has to handle the filth."
"As tools for maintaining order, Root's existence is logical, even necessary."
Naruto paused, then suddenly changed the subject.
"However, Root had one fatal flaw, and it was this flaw that led to its destruction."
"What flaw?" Sai asked subconsciously.
They desperately wanted to hear how the man who had single-handedly destroyed Root evaluated the root cause of its demise.
"That is... Root's leader was Danzo."
"Narrow-minded, short-sighted, and smugly clinging to the leftovers of the old era."
"But none of those are the main point."
"His biggest problem was... he was too stupid."
"?"
"!"
Sai's eyes widened, his mind going blank for a moment.
In that instant, thousands of thoughts had flashed through his mind.
He thought Naruto might criticize various aspects of Root, perhaps its system, or its reason for existence.
Or perhaps Naruto would offer some grand reason, like doing it for justice, peace, or something noble.
But he never expected that Naruto was simply making a personal attack.
"The most foolish thing he did was crossing me."
"Because he crossed me, he had to die."
Naruto spoke as if stating a simple truth.
The strong make the rules, and the weak obey them.
Danzo lost, so he was a fool.
That was Naruto's logic.
It was just that Sai and Shin were clearly caught off guard by this answer.
Naruto looked at the two of them, his gaze gradually turning indifferent.
An invisible, terrifying spiritual pressure erupted from his body without warning.
Conqueror's Haki.
The pressure in the air felt almost tangible.
This was not a metaphor, but the most genuine feeling in the hearts of the two former Root members.
The suffocating pressure made it almost impossible for Sai and Shin to breathe.
In front of Naruto, Danzo's sinister and cold aura actually seemed somewhat cute in comparison.
"What, are you two going to follow in his footsteps as well?"
Naruto looked down at the shivering duo under his Haki and extended his hand.
"Your former master was a fool, and he is dead."
"I can give you a chance."
Naruto's voice was completely calm, yet it seemed to carry a certain magic.
"Kneel, and swear allegiance to me."
"I will grant you a new meaning."
It was a simple sentence, yet it plunged the two into deep thought.
However, while Naruto seemed to be giving them a choice...
In reality, if even one of them dared to say "no" or show the slightest trace of killing intent, both of them would die.
He was here to claim masterless tools, not to needlessly leave behind a potential threat.
"Three—"
Naruto silently counted down in his mind.
"Two—"
Whether it was coincidence or luck.
Sai and Shin exchanged a look, seeing the same resolution in each other's eyes.
The two simultaneously withdrew their hands from their weapons.
Thud.
The two Root youths dropped to one knee in unison, bowing their heads.
"We will become your blades and tools."
"Lord Naruto."
Naruto sensed their hearts, withdrew the chakra he had been secretly gathering, and turned to walk deeper inside.
"Follow me."
In the Raikage's office in Kumogakure, the Land of Lightning.
Bang!
With a loud bang, the heavy solid wood desk was smashed to pieces by a thick arm.
"Bastard!"
The Fourth Raikage, Ay, roared like an enraged lion.
"Konoha has weakened to this extent, yet they still dare to reject our demands?"
"Big brother, big brother, calm down, yo-yo."
Beside him, Killer Bee rapped as he advised.
"Though Konoha is a soft persimmon now, easy to squeeze~"
"But that Tsuchikage old man is no pushover, he'll stab us in the back, ya fool, ya bastard~"
Already angry, Ay grew even more furious upon seeing Killer Bee's carefree attitude.
"That old fossil Onoki—"
The Raikage gritted his teeth, kicked away the shattered wood on the ground, and sat back down in his chair, his chest heaving violently.
This was the reason why Kumogakure had been hesitating to launch an all-out war against Konoha.
Although Konoha's strength was declining day by day, a starved camel is still bigger than a horse.
More importantly, Iwagakure was watching greedily from the sidelines.
If Kumogakure and Konoha fought to a standstill, Onoki would definitely send them both to their graves.
This delicate triangular balance made the Raikage feel incredibly frustrated.
As for Kirigakure and Sunagakure, they were completely beneath his notice.
"Are we just supposed to watch?" the Raikage fumed.
Just then, the office door was pushed open.
An intelligence ninja from Kumogakure walked in with a grim expression, not even caring about etiquette.
"R-Raikage-sama!"
"Something has happened!"
"What's the panic!"
"Has the sky fallen!"
The Raikage glared at him.
"It's... intelligence from the Land of Snow has returned."
The intelligence ninja swallowed hard and reported in a trembling voice.
"The elite squad we sent to investigate—"
"They've been completely wiped out!"
"And... they couldn't even bring back the bodies!"
"What!?"
The Raikage stood up abruptly, the floor beneath his feet instantly shattering.
"Those were candidates for my personal guard!"
"Every single one of them was an elite among elites!"
"Who did it?"
"That Northern Border Mutual Aid Association, or whatever it is, in the Land of Snow?"
"The intelligence is unclear... The last message sent back contained only two words—"
The intelligence ninja said tremblingly.
"'Monster.'"
"!"
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250 POWER STONE = BONUS CHAPTER
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