"He only did what he thought was the right thing."
Naruto responded to Kurama's comment within his mind, and with a splash!, fell into the river again. But soon after, he climbed back onto the bank and resumed practicing.
Across the river, Sasuke stood silently, deep in thought, his expression heavy. He couldn't understand why Naruto was going to such lengths to put on this act.
In Sasuke's view, Naruto had already mastered the mysterious teleportation jutsu he used so freely. On top of that, he possessed an eerie kind of intel-gathering ability. Even if Konoha posed a threat to him, Naruto could easily vanish without a trace.
That thought left Sasuke frustrated. Ever since teams were assigned, he'd been trying to figure out how to deal with the situation. Only after returning home from the chakra nature test did it hit him: Naruto had probably known all along that they'd be placed on the same team — and that likely extended to everything happening now and even what was to come.
The more Sasuke thought about it, the more conflicted he felt. Naruto was cloaked in layers of mystery. He still couldn't figure out why Naruto helped him in the first place.
At one point, Sasuke had suspected Naruto was after his Sharingan. Why else would he constantly urge him to evolve it to the three-tomoe form? That made Sasuke stay constantly on guard. To test how valuable his eyes were to Naruto, he'd once challenged him to a serious hand-to-hand match during their mission in the Land of Waves.
The result?
He was nearly slammed into the ground like a wooden post. Sasuke was certain: if he hadn't used a substitution technique, he would've died right then and there.
After that, he couldn't be sure he was that important to Naruto at all. Maybe Naruto had predicted his intentions using that bizarre ability of his and had only pretended to be serious. But Sasuke no longer dared to test him.
He only had one life.
Even though he had learned Izanagi, the Uchiha clan's forbidden jutsu that could rewrite fate itself, using it required sacrificing an eye. And even with that, Sasuke wasn't confident he could defeat Naruto. Plus, the technique required at least a three-tomoe Sharingan.
Worse still — even if he turned on Naruto in the future, he couldn't use it. After all, Naruto was the one who gave him that technique. His trump card had already been exposed. Using it now would only lead to a worse defeat.
What frustrated Sasuke most was that none of this made sense.
Naruto clearly harbored hostility toward Konoha… but he never actively picked a fight. What happened with Kogai was different — Konoha had brought that upon themselves.
Naruto felt like someone just waiting for something.
"…No, that's not right!"
Sasuke's eyes widened. He suddenly realized: it wasn't that Naruto had never acted against Konoha — it was just that he had never seen it himself.
And that strange feeling earlier… it was real. Naruto was definitely waiting for something — something he had learned about, something inevitable, something crucial.
Otherwise, he wouldn't be wasting time like this.
"Sasuke-kun~ What are you thinking about? You look so serious!"
Sakura suddenly popped up beside him, concern written on her face.
"You're standing too close."
Sasuke gave her a cold look and stepped several feet away.
But when he looked up again, he saw Naruto standing calmly on the surface of the river, gazing at him with a mocking smile.
Sasuke's expression shifted. He knew that look well — Naruto had just read all his thoughts.
That Night
Naruto sat by his window, eyes calm as a still lake. But mentally, he was already inside the Mirror World.
"So, what do you all think of the Earth Spider Clan's forbidden technique?"
In the massive floating window before him, the Third Hokage was seen signing an agreement with Yakushi, the leader of the Earth Spider Clan.
Kurama yawned wide. "It's powerful, sure. But I don't buy that old man can keep absorbing natural energy endlessly. You said you were interested in natural energy before — is this the technique you had in mind?"
Matatabi tilted her head. "What would you use a forbidden technique like that for? Blow up Konoha?"
"Doubt it," Isobu rumbled. "If Naruto wanted to do that, he wouldn't need to go to all this trouble."
"You're all thinking too much," Naruto smiled. "I'm just intrigued by how they harness natural energy. Kurama, do you remember the three great sage lands my father once mentioned — including Mount Myōboku?"
"Hmph."
Kurama's eyes darkened. "Of course I remember. Your father even summoned those damn toads to fight me. So you're looking into Sage Arts?"
"Sage Arts?!" Matatabi and Isobu exclaimed in unison, instantly recalling the Sage of Six Paths.
Naruto turned to Kurama. "You're familiar with the power of Sage Mode, aren't you?"
Kurama's pupils contracted. "Yeah… the Sage of Six Paths used it. And so did Hashirama Senju — he figured it out on his own."
Naruto looked away. After a moment, he asked calmly, "Since you were once with the Sage, do you know the secret to mastering Sage Mode?"
"No," the three Tailed Beasts replied together.
"…That's a shame."
Naruto shook his head, then returned his gaze to the floating screen. "I was hoping one of you would know how it's trained. Looks like I'll have to study the Earth Spider Clan's forbidden technique first."
Kurama narrowed his eyes. "Aren't you just waiting for Jiraiya? You could go to Mount Myōboku and learn the proper method."
Isobu opened his mouth to speak, but Matatabi lightly tapped him with her tail, and he instantly fell silent.
Naruto waved the screen away and said coldly, "I don't trust them."
Matatabi and Isobu's eyes lit up, and Kurama burst into laughter. "Good! Even the Sage didn't trust those toads!"
After laughing, Kurama asked, "So… when are you planning to get that forbidden technique from the Earth Spider Clan?"
Naruto's eyes gleamed. He turned to the window and said, "Nice moon tonight. Let's go now. Kakashi took a garbage-picking mission for tomorrow morning. Besides, Mount Katsuragi isn't far."
The Next Day
"Kakashi-sensei is so unfair! He's relaxing under a tree while we have to clean trash from the river!"
Sakura grumbled quietly while angrily stuffing litter into her net.
Sasuke, however, looked unbothered. He calmly finished his section and looked to the side — only to see Naruto already sitting by the riverbank.
"…Something feels off."
Just as that thought crossed his mind, Naruto suddenly stood, picked up another net, and started helping Sakura. Helpless, Sasuke followed as well.
But the feeling of unease never left him.
Meanwhile – Mount Katsuragi
High above the ground, Naruto soared through the air in a chakra armor suit, scanning the massive cylindrical fortress from above.
"…Weird. No barrier, no chakra signatures."
Sensing something was wrong, he descended quickly. Soon, he found several empty residences atop the fortress.
"Looks like they left recently. The place is clean. Definitely not evacuated due to danger."
He searched every house and scouted the perimeter but found no clues. Then, spreading his wings, he flew toward the Hidden Village at the mountain's base.
A Few Minutes Later
"You said two months ago, a white-haired man with a headband that had the kanji for 'oil' came asking for directions to the fortress?"
"Yeah," the tea shop lady replied. "He even said he'd write me into his novel."
Naruto chuckled and handed her a few bills. "Did he come back afterward?"
The woman's eyes lit up as she carefully tucked away the cash. Then she poured him a cup of tea. "No, he never returned. Looked like a traveler. Once he got what he wanted, he disappeared."
"I see~" Naruto accepted the tea with a smile. "Nice tea. If he really writes you into his novel, you might become famous."
She laughed. "You're funny, dear."
A little while later, Naruto left. Once inside the forest, he vanished with a flicker.
Whoosh!
Next, he appeared inside Konoha's Forest of Death. After confirming the status of his shadow clones and home, he removed his disguise and used Flying Thunder God to teleport back to his bedroom.
Sitting in his chair, he began to think.
Mount Myōboku… What's Your Game?
There was no doubt — the man who visited the village was Jiraiya. That explained why the fortress had been emptied.
That old toad must have foreseen that Naruto would come for the Earth Spider Clan's forbidden jutsu — and had Jiraiya snatch them away first.
But why not act in secret?
Jiraiya had done the same in the Land of Demons and the Land of Hot Springs. Naruto couldn't figure out what Mount Myōboku was really up to.
If they intended to oppose him, that would be arrogant.
But it didn't seem like they were hostile either. If they were truly out to stop him, that old toad would've told Jiraiya everything about Naruto's secrets — what he'd done, and what he was planning.
Yet Jiraiya clearly didn't know. Otherwise, he'd already be back in Konoha trying to confront him.
Even back in the Land of Hot Springs — when Naruto rescued Matatabi — it was only because Jiraiya lured Deidara away that Naruto could act without exposing intel.
That incident alone suggested the old toad had helped him — indirectly.
"Land of Demons… Land of Hot Springs… Earth Spider Clan…"
Naruto kept sorting through these events in his mind. Only the last two had any real connection to him. He'd never planned to go to the Land of Demons.
But who's to say he wouldn't in the future? That old toad could see the future, after all.
What frustrated Naruto most was how powerless he was against him. Not only was the key to Kurama's seal in the toad's possession, but even information always reached him too late.
Things had become… strangely complex.
Mount Myōboku was sending a clear message:
"I know what you're trying to do — and you know that I know."
The old toad was warning him through action:
"I can help you — or I can stop you."
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