Naruto: Passerby and Returnee

Chapter 311 is all trouble

"Are you alright?" Although Naruto sensed something was off when the boy was acting like a loving father and son, and even flew away with the boy when he opened his mouth to spit out feathers, he couldn't help but ask the question out of concern.

"This level of fighting can't hurt me?" Sasuke retorted defiantly. He knew very well that if Naruto hadn't come, this monster might not have been able to be dealt with today. In terms of chakra, he really couldn't compare to Naruto. That guy started with a massive area-of-effect attack, chakra consumption was simply not a concern. He probably wouldn't catch up in terms of chakra in this lifetime; he could only hone his skills more.

The fire in the distance burned brighter and brighter, and the presence of the boy and the middle-aged man gradually faded away. Naruto, who would never normally stand idly by, simply watched them from afar. The teenager still had a burning passion, but the middle-aged man in his forties or fifties respected the other's choice.

By now, Naruto had figured out what was inside the boy named Wugou. Wasn't it dark energy similar to that of a demon? It was just that the perception was quite different, which was why he hadn't realized it immediately. Wugou's soul had been completely corrupted. Invisible black threads extended from the box, tightly binding the soul that only had a faint glimmer of light left. Wugou couldn't be himself for much longer, which was why the box had acted so decisively.

Naruto was unaware of the conflict between the father and son and felt he had no right to interfere. However, their swift and decisive act of taking each other down left those who had to clean up the mess in a difficult situation.

"...That uncle, is he the city lord?" Naruto still held a sliver of hope and asked the question.

"Probably." Sasuke, who was so confused about the battle that he couldn't be sure, couldn't be sure, but since the other party had just used a rather beautiful Heavenly Prison Technique, it was probably Wuwei.

In the brief moment between their conversation, a cheer, the last thing Naruto wanted to hear, erupted from the city, which was in complete chaos due to panic.

"The Heavenly Prison has been opened! Wuwei is dead!"

Looking at the still considerable number of criminals, Naruto was devastated. Although Hozuki Castle was an isolated island at sea, although the surrounding reefs and undercurrents were incredibly chaotic, and although it was separated from the mainland by a distance that ordinary ninjas could never cross by water... it was useless to reason with the criminals; they would only rush towards "freedom" without stopping.

Is it too late to go to Konoha to get reinforcements?

"It seems we can't rely on the prison guards. Are there any other prisons nearby?"

"A person who looks very much like Wuwei appeared."

"...There was indeed a similar chakra reaction at the bottom of the cliff. Were they preparing to board a ship and escape? Wait, how come even the Seven-Tails is here? Their chakra is so faint, I didn't even notice it immediately!" His excessive focus on the battle meant he almost missed Fu and Chongming. Now things were even more complicated. There really was a ship at the bottom of the cliff, and another was sailing this way, expected to arrive soon. If these criminals rushed down... the consequences would be unimaginable.

"Sasuke..."

Naruto was about to tell Sasuke to go down and guard the ship, since the ship that was about to arrive was the one carrying Sasuke, but Sasuke misunderstood and interrupted him, saying, "You're supposed to stop those guys who escaped from prison, right?"

...How should I put it? Typical Uchiha style. It's rare to see Sasuke so enthusiastic; this is an opportunity he'll probably never encounter again in his life. He might as well go all out and fight.

"Yes, let's go!"

This is too reckless! They just rushed straight into the ground! What if there's something even more troublesome down there?!

That's a shadow clone.

"Dare you say that if shadow clones couldn't solve the problem, you wouldn't have acted yourself?"

We cannot assume that something didn't happen.

"Besides, Uncle Hashirama, don't you ever do anything reckless? I saw your Wood Release with my own eyes, and Master definitely saw it too. What excuse do you expect me to use to get away with this?"

"...There are too many people in the square, and so many children. If I don't buy you time, there will be many casualties."

So let's stop arguing and get me a reasonable excuse!

While Sasuke and Naruto battled hundreds of criminals, the battle in the Land of Frost was drawing to a close. Yoru's guard finally arrived at the gates of Rumble Castle at dawn. With such a major incident occurring in the city, naturally no one opened the gates for them. But this didn't stop Naruto; he remotely severed the locks and bolts on the gates, and with a gust of wind, the heavy wooden doors were pushed open, and he and his men rushed inside.

Ye Ming arrived with official documents from the king, giving him a legitimate reason to take over the city's military power. Normally, they might not even be able to enter the city smoothly, but this was a critical moment. On the day of the Buddha Mother's ceremony, all the important figures were present; they had narrowly escaped death from the rampaging tree roots and were still in shock. Moreover, with that horrifying mass of grayish-white tree roots lying there, upon hearing that someone was going to take over this mess, they didn't care whether they could get their power back; they handed over their military seals almost without hesitation.

The next step is to figure out how to clean up the ruins, how to appease the public, and... how to give that lump of stuff a plausible identity.

"Do you know what these things are?" Ye Ming's first reaction to this world full of strange and supernatural beings was to ask the ninjas.

Jiraiya was still bewildered, and Naruto couldn't say anything; they both shook their heads in unison.

"You don't know either?"

“Ninjas don’t know everything. Besides, Wood Release is a very sensitive bloodline limit in the ninja world. To date, only the First Hokage has naturally awakened this technique; no one else has ever used it.” Yoruichi was having a headache, while Jiraiya was completely absorbed in his mental whirlwind. The only technique that can cultivate tree seeds is Wood Release—it’s Wood Release! Those old fogies spent decades trying to master it, and in the end, they only managed to cultivate a super-weakened version of Wood Release as a successor. This shows just how difficult it is to master this ability.

If there really were someone in the ninja world who could use Wood Release to this extent at will... wouldn't that be like the First Hokage returning? The status of a ninja god is incredibly prestigious!

“These tree species originate from deep underground, and we can’t even be sure where they extend to.” Naruto quickly changed the subject away from Wood Release and tried his best to steer the conversation toward mysterious creatures.

"Huh? You mean it's still underground!" Ye Ming grasped the key point.

“It’s not underground here anymore.” Naruto recalled the process of the clone’s suicidal attack and said, “I severed its roots that extended into the city, and then it retracted, as agile as a snake.”

"It is no longer within my perception range and should not pose a threat to the city in the short term."