After the defeat of Doto, Team 7 and I spent four days in the newly thawed Land of Spring resting, recovering, and completing the rest of our mission.
During the first two days we watched as the film crew wrapped up the final shots of the movie against the breathtaking, blooming valleys. On the third day, we attended Koyuki's official inauguration as the new Daimyo of Spring country.
This brief rest period was just the thing needed before we headed back to Konoha to get back on track of things. Well, for my team anyways. Because while they were taking it easy, I was busy grinding.
Using a [Shadow Clone] as a decoy to cover my presence, I had spent the majority of the four days sneaking off to various areas in the Land of Spring to complete the newly spawned Gates in the area.
One particular highlight was when I finally used the [B-Rank Gate Key]. The moment I activated the key, I was transported out of the blooming spring and into a freezing arctic tundra. The dungeon was crawling with minor ice-creatures, but the boss was the real prize: a massive Armored Polar Bear coated in thick, constantly regenerating glacial armor.
I had summoned my Giant Red Tiger—who, with his ability to create a heat-based AoE, was a natural counter to the creatures in the dungeon—to keep the beast distracted long enough for me to charge up my newly acquired [Rasengan]. I didn't even need a shadow clone to form it.
When I slammed it into the bear's side, the results were devastating. The catastrophic, grinding rotation completely shredded the impenetrable ice armor and pulverized its ribs in a single, deafening impact, allowing my Red Tiger to leap in and finish the job.
[SHADOW EXTRACTION AVAILABLE: Armored Polar Bear (Elite Grade)]
[EXTRACT NOW?]: Y/N
Naturally, I added the beast to my expanding army. But that wasn't the best part. After the beast's defeat I was given an interesting new skill from Monarch's Loot Box upon completion of the Gate. A skill dubbed [Shadow Share] that had major implications for the future.
Between that boss fight and continuously clearing the other Gates that popped up over the last four days, my level quickly rose from 167 to 174.
And now, here I was leaning back against a wooden pillar outside the inauguration hall, pulling up my status screen to review my passive gains. The "auto-farmer" feature has had my soldiers working overtime. While I was focused on Doto and the main quest, my soldiers had been quietly clearing E-Rank Gates back in the Land of Fire. Over the course of the eight-day mission, they had accumulated a passive sum of 240,000 Ryo—a nice bit of pocket change on top of my new 100-million fortune.
Even better, they had grinded out enough XP to push my [INT] stat to 330, triggering the milestone reward for the [Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu].
Lastly, I checked my inventory to review the Daily Monarch's Loot Boxes I had accumulated over the eight days.
In one box I got a [High-Grade Chakra Pill] that restored 50% Chakra. In another I got a [Monarch's Whetstone] which was a high-end enhancement material that sharpened and permanently upgraded the durability and damage of any blade.
Two very solid items—especially the whetstone, as some of my blades were getting dull.
Two boxes netted me [10,000 Ryo] and [Ninja World Cotton Fabric x5], something I was going to have fun with. And two other boxes gave me a [Minor Stat Potion] that gave me +2 stat points to my [DEX]; I drank that immediately.And a [Tonkotsu Broth of Power] aramen broth that rapidly restored chakra.
SomethingTeuchi was gonna love for the amount of customers that it was gonna bring him.
The final two boxes were the ones that piqued my interest the most. In one box was a [Spectral Lotus Petal] 1/3 of the ingredients for theSoul Purge Elixirfor getting rid of Anko's Curse Mark. And a [Torn Map of the Eddy] which was additional intel for the Adamantine Chains quest I received after slaying my Giant Red Tiger.The map showed a submerged Uzushio Catacomb off the coast. The entrance only revealed itself when the sun hit the ocean horizon at a specific time during sunset.
It's pretty convoluted, but getting these chains are just as important to me as getting a Rinnegan. There are just too many benefits to having them.
I dismissed the screens as the courtyard began to clear. It was our final day in the Land of Spring. Before we boarded the ship, I had one last piece of business to take care of.
I found Koyuki in the inner chamber of the inauguration building. When I walked in, she looked up and smiled—a real, genuine smile. We talked for a few minutes about her plans for the future. Listening to her, it was obvious how deep her willingness to protect her people went. She was ready to lead this nation into a new era.
"You've got the heart for it," I told her, hands behind my head. "But a true ruler needs a loyal shadow to watch their back."
I didn't wait for her to ask what I meant. The room's atmosphere suddenly dropped as the shadows in the corners of the room suddenly elongated as I let my Shadow Army briefly make their chilling presence known, their glowing blue eyes peering out from the darkness.
Koyuki gasped, taking a step backwards, but she didn't run or scream.
"How would you feel about Sandayū and his men watching over you and your nation from the shadows?" I asked her directly.
She paused momentarily at the abrupt question.
"How?" she let out softly. "Is... is that even possible?"
"With me, anything is," I replied, extending my hand towards her. "This ability I'm about to show you requires absolute truth and trust between us or it won't work. Can you give me that?"
She nodded and gave me her absolute focus.
[SKILL ACTIVATED: Shadow Share]
A hovering, ethereal contract materialized seemingly out of nowhere, surprising her.
"This is a contract of sorts. With it I can lend you the shadows that appeared before you as your own personal immortal guardians."
Which is really selling it really short, I thought. The [Shadow Share] lets me form a non-lethal contract with anyone, allowing me to share my soldiers with them as long as there is no malice or deception within the negotiation period. It's essentially a win-win if the person's intentions are in the right place.
"And what do you get in return?" she asked. "If you have this kind of ability then there's surely something you want. And why not use those shadows before?!"
"I had used them, well tried too at least," I answered truthfully. "This ability is very rare, so I'm refrained from using it openly. Not even my team knows about them."
"Which makes you showing them to me a bigger deal than you're making it out to be," she replied. "Which makes me go back to my earlier question, what do you get in return?"
"Ah, see you're fitting in perfectly in your role as the new leader," I grinned. "And I want assurance."
"Assurance?" she repeated, raising a brow. "Assurance of what? With this ability what would you need assurance of?"
"Assurance that you'll lead this nation well," I began, her eyes widening. "That you'll never give in if a person like Doto arrives again. And that you'll continue to push forward, even through the bleakest of times."
She looked at me with tears welling in her eyes.
"If you think you can do that then step forward and shake my hand," I stated.
Koyuki didn't hesitate. She stepped forward and firmly shook my hand, sealing the non-lethal contract.
The shadow at her feet expanded. Sandayū and his fallen samurai rose from the darkness. Though their bodies were pitch-black and wreathed in blue ethereal smoke, Sandayū immediately dropped to one knee before her. He retained all of his protective warmth, his personality, and his absolute loyalty to her.
Koyuki covered her mouth, breaking down into overwhelming tears of joy and closure as she placed a hand on her loyal retainer's shadowy shoulder.
[NOTICE: Connection Established]
"I'll leave you to catch up," I said, turning toward the door. But before I exited, I pulled a high-capacity storage scroll from my inventory and tossed it onto her desk. "Oh, by the way. There's 90 million Ryo in there. For nation-building and infrastructure or whatever."
It hit the desk with a heavy thud that sounded like the foundation of a new city being laid. I walked out of the chamber before her brain could even process what I said, leaving her absolutely floored.
The journey back to Konoha took two days, traveling first by boat across the unfrozen sea and then by foot through the dense forests of the mainland.
It was a relatively quiet trip. During the travel time, my soldiers continued their relentless grind in the background, clearing enough low-rank Gates to net me an additional 14 Stat Points. That brought my unspent total to 100 SP. My final two daily Monarch's Loot Boxes for the trip contained a [Stamina Recovery Potion] and a [Demon Wind Shuriken (High-Grade)]—good, practical items, but nothing overly impressive.
The real shift, however, was in the dynamic of Team 7.
The air between us had changed again. Sakura was walking on even more eggshells around me, instead of flat out terror, she kept a cautious distance from me. Sasuke, on the other hand, was brooding with a dark intensity. His pride had been completely fractured by the massive power gap between us; he sat there and realized that I hadn't even needed to use a single jutsu to dismantle an A-Rank threat. And Kakashi just kept his lone eye forward, remaining silent, but wary and calculating.
When we finally passed through the massive gates of Konoha, I immediately noticed some changes.
The village was buzzing with an electric, almost frantic energy. Massive construction projects were underway everywhere I looked. New buildings were being built in or being heavily expanded upon. Massive wooden grandstands were being erected, and new infrastructural quarters were being built from the ground up. I realized it was because the exams were almost here—but the sheer scale of the preparations signified that this year's event was going to be a massive, international spectacle. Far grander than anything shown in the canon timeline.
We headed straight to the Hokage Tower.
In the office, Kakashi delivered his debriefing to Hiruzen. I kept my face perfectly neutral as Hiruzen read over the highly redacted written report. Kakashi had completely covered for my insane physical feats, smoothly writing off Doto Kazahana's brutal defeat as "a combined Team 7 ambush utilizing extreme environmental hazards and structural collapses."
"Excellent work," Hiruzen nodded, setting the scroll down and taking a slow drag from his pipe. He looked up at us, his eyes lingering on me for a fraction of a second longer than the others. "Team 7, you're dismissed for another brief intermission. Naruto, remain behind for a moment if you would."
Kakashi glanced at me, but didn't protest. He led Sasuke and Sakura out of the room. As they walked out, Sasuke's hands were clenched so tight his knuckles were turning white. While Sakura had an apprehensive look attached to her face before the door clicking shut behind them.
The moment we were alone, Hiruzen dropped the grandfatherly act. He let out a long sigh and pulled a separate, ornate scroll from a drawer in his desk. It bore the official wax seal of the Daimyo of the Land of Spring.
"I received a formal alliance treaty from Princess Koyuki this morning," Hiruzen said, his sharp eyes locking onto mine. "It is an incredibly generous and comprehensive treaty. Favorable to the Leaf in almost every conceivable metric."
He leaned forward, lacing his fingers together. "Kakashi's report paints a picture of teamwork, environmental luck, and standard shinobi tactics. But I get the feeling he was stretching it quite a bit. Were your... unique abilities seen?"
"Not by my team," I replied smoothly, keeping my posture relaxed. "The Princess did catch a glimpse when we defeated Doto."
"Makes sense," Hiruzen muttered, puffing on his pipe in deep contemplation. "Especially when factoring in the speed at which this treaty was drafted. But based on how much personal gratitude was filled into the letter, I don't think we need to worry much about her saying anything. However, one thing remains... why haven't you told your team of your abilities?"
Tch, here it is, I thought, rolling my eyes internally. It's gonna be the whole trust in your team, Will of Fire jargon.
"There was a lot going on at one time, so I thought the best thing to do was to continue to keep in on the down low. For now at least. I'll unveil it to them after the Exams, for sure," I said smoothly.
Yea, right. They're gonna have to force it outta me.
"That's good to hear, but actions like those have ripples," Hiruzen warned, his tone grave. "Especially when it comes to shifting the landscape of another entire nation—even a minor one—draws eyes. And right now, we are entering a period where we cannot afford to look vulnerable, nor do we want to look unpredictably dangerous."
He stood up, walking over to the large window overlooking the bustling, under-construction village. "The Chunin Exams begin in a month and a half. Because of the changes to the likes of the Land of Wave and now the Land of Spring, this year will not be a standard internal affair between two of the Five Great Nations like originally planned. And some of the RSVPs have been highly surprising."
I raised an eyebrow. "Surprising how?"
"The other Three Great Nations—Kumo, Iwa, and Kiri—along with several minor ones, have asked to participate," Hiruzen said, his brow furrowing as he looked out over the village. "With Kiri being the most interesting participant."
Kiri? I thought, genuinely surprised. In the canon they kept out of international affairs for a while to rebuild themselves from the fall out of the civil war they had for several decades. Konoha liberating Wave and Snow must have been something they just couldn't ignore, huh?
Then I placed a hand to my chin in deep contemplation. Even with the surprise attendance of Kiri, along with Kumo and Iwa, Ame is the one I have to be most cautious about. In the canon, teams from Ame were sent, but they were fodder; most couldn't even get past the written portion. However, with what has happened now, they're definitely going to push the pace to gather as much intel on me as possible. Meaning, Itachi and Kisame may come earlier than I'd like them to. So, I'm gonna have to push the pace as well.
"You're going to have a massive target on your back, Naruto," Hiruzen warned softly, breaking me out of my musings and turning back to face me. "You need to be prepared."
I grinned, my blood pumping at the thought of the upcoming events. What am I truly worried about? I have an ever expanding Shadow Army, I'm absurdly wealthy, I have the Rasengan now—which I'm for sure gonna spam—and my stats already rival an elite Jonin.
"Eh, you've got nothing much to worry about, Old Man. I'll be ready." I said, holding out my right hand.
[SKILL ACTIVATED: Rasengan]
A yellow, swirling a sphere of pure, high-density chakra that looked like a swirling miniature storm appeared in my palm.
Hiruzen's pipe dropped from his mouth, clattering loudly onto his wooden desk. He stared at the technique, his eyes wide, looking as if he were seeing a ghost.
"That's…" he whispered, his voice thick with a sudden, heavy emotion. "The Fourth's…"
"Yeah, I looked into it and figured it out," I said, letting the sphere dissipate into the air with a soft hiss. "Rotation, power, containment. It's a lot harder than it looks. But, absolutely worth it."
Hiruzen slowly went to retrieve his fallen pipe, his aged hands trembling ever so slightly.
"You... figured it out," Hiruzen repeated, the shock still evident in his gravelly voice. He took a deep breath, the heavy burden of leadership returning to his shoulders, but mingled with a profound sense of awe. "The Fourth spent three years developing that technique. And you simply... figured it out."
I simply shrugged my shoulders. "Like I said, Old Man. You've got nothing to worry about. I'll be ready."
Hiruzen shook his head as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing, then cleared his throat. "Very well. Continue on with your progress, and come see Dr. Honaka tomorrow for a diagnostics checkup; it seems you need it more than we thought. The Chunin Exams will test you in ways you cannot anticipate."
"I'm counting on it," I replied, turning and giving him a lazy wave over my shoulder as I headed for the door.
As I walked out of the Hokage Tower and stepped back into the bustling streets of Konoha, my vision was suddenly flooded with a massive, brilliant golden light.
[WORLD EVENT TRIGGERED: The Chunin Selection Exams]
[MAIN QUEST UPDATED: Prove your strength to the world.]
Whatever they got planned, I'm gonna dominate, I thought, looking into my newly gained SP. You best believe that.