The fall of the Fire Temple, with its entire mountain gate collapsing, caused quite a stir in the Land of Fire.
In Konohagakure, the incident continued to escalate, especially with Chiriku's arrival, sparking even more discussions.
"That person was looking for the Nine-Tails' Chakra?"
In the Hokage's office, Hiruzen Sarutobi's expression was grave.
"And even members of the Akatsuki were involved, only to be easily defeated by him?"
"Yes, Lord Hokage," Chiriku replied, nodding helplessly.
"That person is incredibly strong. I didn't even have the chance to make a move before being defeated."
"Chiriku, isn't that a bit exaggerated?"
Asuma, unable to believe his old friend, questioned him. He was well aware of Chiriku's strength.
"You didn't even have a chance to fight? How is that possible?"
"There's nothing impossible about it," Hiruzen interrupted his son, his voice heavy with seriousness.
"From what we know, the Akatsuki members involved were Kisame Hoshigaki, Obito Uchiha, and Itachi Uchiha."
"Kisame aside for now, Itachi Uchiha wiped out the entire Uchiha clan, and Obito Uchiha killed the Fourth Hokage and his wife, unleashing the Nine-Tails upon the village.
"Both of them possess the Mangekyō Sharingan. For these two to be so easily defeated, even left near death, that individual..."
Hiruzen rubbed his temples, feeling an intense headache.
A scheming and dangerous organization like the Akatsuki was already troublesome enough.
Now, there was an immensely powerful figure who could utterly crush even the likes of Itachi and Obito. How could he possibly feel at ease?
"What on earth is happening to the shinobi world?"
Though deeply troubled, Hiruzen forced himself to remain calm. He turned to Jiraiya.
"Jiraiya, you must keep a close watch on Naruto. I fear that person won't stop at just Chakra, so..."
"I understand. I'll keep an eye on him," Jiraiya replied, his face equally solemn.
"But I plan to head to Mount Myōboku for a while. The shinobi world has been changing too rapidly lately, and I hope to gain some insight."
Jiraiya had encountered Obito and the others numerous times in the past, including Kisame, whom he had fought several times.
He had a good grasp of their strength. But for them to be reduced to such a state by a mysterious figure... it left him deeply puzzled.
Not to mention, there was still the issue of Nagato, which further troubled him. He felt it necessary to seek advice at Mount Myōboku.
"By the way, are we certain about that person's name?"
"Yes, his name is Ōtsutsuki Minamoto-shiki."
At a training ground by the river in Konohagakure, the shadow clone of the much-discussed "Ōtsutsuki Minamoto-shiki" was with Naruto.
"Hey, Minamoto, did you hear? Something big happened."
Naruto and Sasuke were sprawled on the ground, panting heavily. Despite his exhaustion, Naruto's face was full of curiosity as he whispered.
"I heard some place got attacked, and a lot of people died. A bunch of monks have come to the village now."
"Is that so? I heard not many people died," Kitagawa Minamoto's shadow clone raised an eyebrow before replying with a smile.
"You seem full of energy. Both of you, get up and keep going."
"Hey, come on! We just finished a round of training. You can't be serious!"
Naruto's face turned pale, and even Sasuke couldn't hold back his frustration.
"You're doing this on purpose! And what about Pervy Sage? He's the one who's supposed to be training us!"
"Tch, Pervy Sage is in a meeting. He asked me to watch over you for now. Do you think I wanted to come here?"
Minamoto's shadow clone snorted and shook his head. Truthfully, he had no interest in being here—after all, he was just a shadow clone!
But with the incident at the Fire Temple and even Chiriku coming to the village, there was no way Jiraiya could take a proper break.
"If it weren't for Pervy Sage begging me, I wouldn't bother with you little brats."
Though he spoke dismissively, the shadow clone's thoughts were on his original body.
"It seems my original caused quite a stir this time, even leveling an entire mountain. He probably ran into the Akatsuki."
Considering his own experiences, it wasn't surprising. After all, he was searching for an artifact that even Orochimaru had sought desperately, which ultimately became Itachi Uchiha's trump card.
Running into the Akatsuki wasn't unexpected. And judging by his continued existence, it was clear his "main account" had successfully crushed them.
"I wonder how things are going now."
As Minamoto's shadow clone pondered, he suddenly felt his Chakra destabilize.
"What's happening? Is something wrong with the original?"
Though separated, the shadow clone was still composed of Chakra. If something happened to the original, it would inevitably affect the clone.
Naruto had experienced a similar situation when the Nine-Tails' Chakra disrupted all his shadow clones.
"If the battle's over, it's either the Nine-Tails' Chakra or those artifacts causing this."
Minamoto's shadow clone quickly deduced the possibilities. But without a direct connection to the original, he couldn't confirm what was happening.
"Minamoto, what are you thinking about?"
Naruto's curious voice interrupted his thoughts.
"Why'd you suddenly go quiet?"
"Idiot!"
Sasuke, annoyed, wished he could strangle Naruto. Minamoto clearly wasn't like Jiraiya—this guy trained them ruthlessly.
And he had the audacity to claim it was based on his own training regimen!
Even Sasuke, as diligent as he was, couldn't be happy about being pushed to the limit by someone who was clearly messing with them.
"Nothing much. I was just thinking about this whole situation. It doesn't feel simple at all."
Minamoto's shadow clone shook his head, dismissing the thought. He then smirked at the two boys.
"Have you rested enough? Get ready for the next round of training!"
"You've got to be kidding me!"
Sasuke facepalmed, while Naruto's eyes widened in disbelief. He pointed at Minamoto and shouted.
"What about you? Why don't you train with us?"
"Me?" Minamoto stroked his chin thoughtfully.
"I'm a Chūnin. You two haven't even graduated from the academy. Besides, I'm here to guide you. Why should I train with you?"
"..."
"Are you trying to rebel against the heavens or something?"
"..."
"Now, start running ten laps around Konohagakure on your hands! No stopping until you're done. Move it!"
"Ahhh! Damn it, Kitagawa Minamoto, you will regret this!"
"I'm the instructor here, not you."
Watching the reluctant but obedient Naruto and Sasuke follow his instructions, Minamoto's shadow clone nodded in satisfaction.
However, he soon stroked his chin again, pondering.
"My Chakra has stabilized. I wonder how the original is doing now. Maybe he's already reaping the rewards?"
While the higher-ups in Konohagakure were troubled by "Ōtsutsuki Minamoto-shiki," the original Minamoto was deep within a cave near the Fire Temple.
Breaking through a stone door, he slowly made his way downward.
After resting for a few days, he felt fully recovered and ready to act.
"It's been long enough. Chiriku should have reached Konohagakure by now. I need to speed things up and prepare to return."
He couldn't help but feel a twinge of regret. If it weren't for running into the Akatsuki, he might have had time to head to the Land of Wind and claim the remaining Dragon Vein energy.
"But this is good enough. I've located an artifact, and once I claim it and absorb the Nine-Tails' Chakra, this trip will have been worthwhile."
With these thoughts, he continued deeper into the cave.
(End of Chapter)
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