"Mr. Kakashi, what exactly did you do?"
Sakura's forehead was covered with deep lines of frustration. How many ninjutsu techniques had Kakashi used to create this much destruction?
Chapter 41 - Strong Resentment from Sasuke [Part 1] [First Update]
"I told you your bodies can time-reverse so you don't need to fear injuries, but didn't I also mention that time reversal would heavily affect your spirit?!"
Looking at Kakashi and Guy sitting back-to-back, Sakura wore an expression of helplessness—one had blasted open the Seventh Gate of the Eight Gates, nearly destroying himself in the process, while the other had frantically used ninjutsu non-stop, continuous time reversals nearly crushing his mind.
"Well, it was my first time not worrying about chakra at all—it was just a little hard to control myself!"
Kakashi smiled with his eyes narrowing. Although his head felt extremely uncomfortable, his mood was surprisingly good.
"My Youth Is Complete!"
Guy gave Sakura a thumbs-up. Training in the Eight Gates wasn't easy, especially gaining practical experience. Opening the Eight Gates harmed one's own body, so normally when Guy trained, he only confirmed he could activate them—studying ultimate arts by opening these gates had never been done before. But today, with time reversal, he truly experienced the power of the Seventh Gate without worrying about physical injuries. The only downside was the damage to his spirit, leaving him completely drained.
As the only two who were completely unharmed, Sakura and Shisui had no choice but to take care of the two severely weakened "patients" all the way back to Konoha.
At Konoha Village's main gate, Kakashi and Guy leaned on each other, slowly shuffling forward. Though both of their legs were weak and shaky, they stubbornly refused to ride into the village on the Demonic Weapon.
"Sakura!"
Just as she stepped through the gate, Sakura heard a voice filled with unexpected delight calling her name.
"Naruto? Why are you here?"
Standing at the entrance of Konoha's main gate was Naruto, clearly overjoyed.
"Uh...I just happened to be passing by..."
Naruto muttered, scratching his head with that silly grin on his face.
"Don't tell me you come here every day waiting for us?" Sakura could roughly guess what was going on, seeing the two guards at the gate showing no surprise at Naruto's arrival.
"Not really! I just check in during the morning and evening when I have free time!"
Naruto beamed with that unmistakable grin of his. "The rest of the time I work over at Ichiraku's ramen stand. Since I had no idea when you'd be back, I figured I'd stop by and see if I got lucky!"
"You're such a dork!"
Sakura sighed helplessly, yet her heart warmed. It was genuinely wonderful knowing there was someone who always thought of her whenever she was away.
"Hey, Sakura, quickly go let your friends know you're safe. I'll handle the mission report to Lord Hokage myself!"
Kakashi looked at Naruto, his eyes briefly showing a complicated emotion before he leaned close to Sakura's ear with an enthusiastic gossip look on his face, whispering, "You should definitely respond in time to the devoted feelings of a sincere young guy! Don't miss your chance at love!"
"Uncle Kakashi, what are you barging in for when you've been hopelessly single forever?" Sakura rolled her eyes at Kakashi. "Someone like you who stays home all day without interacting with others and only reads R-rated novels—you should focus on settling your own lifelong matters first or you might end up alone forever!"
"Hoplessly Single Guy"
Kakashi looked awkward. He was barely out of adolescence—how did he end up labeled as hopelessly single? Besides, back when he was in the Ninja Academy, he used to be extremely popular. A mere finger wave from him would draw swarms of female admirers. How could he possibly remain unwed?
"Waving around inappropriate novels all day long and having dogs as summoning beasts on top of that—you're doomed to loneliness, no need to explain further!"
Sakura and Naruto walked together toward Ichiraku Ramen Shop while behind them, Kakashi appeared gravely wounded emotionally. A cold wind blew past, making Kakashi's lonely figure even more pathetic.
"Senior Kakashi, I'll go back first!" Shisui said goodbye to Kakashi and turned to leave too, leaving behind a somewhat dejected Kakashi and a puzzled Guy.
"Guy, there are many girls in Konoha who like me, right?" Kakashi quietly asked. After all, for someone just coming of age, being called doomed to be single felt quite harsh.
"Well...there should be some, I suppose!" Guy replied uncertainly. He never really paid attention to these kinds of things before. But judging by Kakashi's previous popularity, there must have been plenty of secret admirers.
"There 'should' be..." Kakashi's aura of grievance deepened further. Could it be that during the few years he spent in Anbu, nobody remembered him anymore? Although wait, wasn't that wrong? He distinctly recalled that the last time he visited Ichiraku Ramen Shop, the owner's daughter got so excited and started chatting with him—though he hadn't bothered responding much at the time.
As he drifted into more daydreams, Kakashi began walking side by side with Guy toward Hokage Tower, both moving unsteadily like elderly men. Their walk naturally caught plenty of curious glances.
Inside the Hokage Office, after listening to Kakashi's report, The Third took a puff from his pipe, revealing a faint wry smile.
"So...Danzo has already begun targeting our own people within Konoha?"
Kakashi didn't answer—the final decision rested entirely with The Third.
"Kakashi, you may rest now. As for Danzo, I will demand accountability from him!"
As the smoke swirled, the wrinkles on The Third's forehead seemed to deepen.
At Ichiraku Ramen Shop, Ino and her friends happily gathered around Sakura, bombarding her with questions. Since another branch of the ramen shop had opened in Konoha, diverting a portion of their customers, business at the original shop had slowed down significantly. With Mr. Ichiraku hiring several new servers, Ino and the others found themselves rather free these days.
Sasuke didn't say a word during the conversation, just sat there with his head down, radiating bitterness.
"My brother was actually taken by that weird woman! My brother was actually taken by that weird woman!"
<><><><><><><><>
Thank you for reading! Your support will keep me updating!
~ Every 50 Powerstones = **4 Bonus Chapters** this weekend!
<><><><><><><><>
Want to read the subsequent content in advance?
Please follow my Patreon:patreon/Tansnovel
Tans Novel - The Fastest-Updating Naruto Fanfiction Account
Read 100+ chapters in advance, with at least 3 new chapters updated every day! More free chapters! 20+ Naruto fanfictions!
Just three steps:
1. Download and open the "Patreon" app
2. Search for "Tans Novel"
3. Click on the collection and enjoy to your heart's content
<><><><><><><><>