Chapter 325: Gray Wolf Clone No. 4
As he walked down a street in the village, Sasuke suddenly turned and ran toward the sparsely populated outskirts of the Hidden Leaf Village.
The outskirts of the Hidden Leaf Village.
Just as Sasuke arrived at the village's edge, his figure vanished in an instant.
Two shinobi appeared at the spot where he had disappeared, scanning the area.
"Strange... where did he go...?"
"You two—who are you, and why are you following me?"
Sasuke suddenly appeared behind them, revealing his Rinnegan as he drew his Kusanagi Sword and pressed it against one of their necks. If combat broke out, he could instantly take down at least one enemy.
Under the control of the Rinnegan, the two men were completely paralyzed.
"W-We're shinobi from the Hidden Leaf Village..."
"We were following you because we need Lord Sasuke's help with something."
"..."
Sasuke said nothing, simply listening as the two recounted their reasons for tailing him in full detail.
"The Ninja Act? That decision lies with Naruto, the Hokage."
Sasuke sheathed his sword. By the time the two regained control of their bodies and turned around, Sasuke was already gone without a trace.
Hokage's Office.
"Naruto, lately there's been nonstop talk around the village about the Ninja Act. A lot of shinobi are so distracted by it that they can't even focus on their work. This whole thing must have been leaked by the feudal lord."
Shikamaru spoke with certainty.
After all, only Naruto and the Land of Fire's feudal lord had knowledge of the Ninja Act beforehand. Since it clearly didn't come from Naruto's side, the only possibility left was the feudal lord's camp.
"Shikamaru, there's no point dwelling on that now—we need to make a decision quickly."
"What's your stance on it, Naruto?"
"I…"
Naruto hesitated. He was willing to relinquish some of the village's non-essential rights in exchange for economic benefits for the villagers—but the crux of the matter was the demand to hand over detailed intel on the village's shinobi.
If that intel were leaked, the enemy could formulate targeted strategies against the Hidden Leaf Village with precision.
"You're willing, aren't you, Naruto?"
Seeing his hesitation, Shikamaru spoke up.
"Yeah, Shikamaru…"
Naruto sighed and nodded.
Just then, the door to the Hokage's Office swung open. Sasuke walked in.
"Sasuke, you're back."
Seeing him return, Naruto was momentarily at a loss for words.
"I've heard everything—about Sarada, and the Ninja Act..." Sasuke walked up to Naruto's desk as he spoke. "Without a doubt, these two matters can be addressed together."
"You mean... it's all part of a plot by the feudal lord of the Land of Fire?"
Shikamaru had considered that possibility himself but had dismissed it quickly. After all, the feudal lord had no reason to go that far—especially considering that in modern times, his relationship with the Hokage was quite close. Their sons were even best friends.
"There's no way the feudal lord would do something like this," Naruto said, unconvinced.
"Maybe the feudal lord is being controlled."
"If he were, the shinobi in his retinue would've noticed," Shikamaru argued.
"Ever since S.H.I.E.L.D., Hydra, and the Mutant Beasts emerged, the ninja world has seen increasingly bizarre phenomena. It's entirely possible there are methods of mind control we can't detect."
"A plot from the enemy…"
Naruto murmured, deep in thought.
"Still, even if we told the villagers something like that, they probably wouldn't believe us," said Shikamaru. "Besides, it's all just speculation. If we accuse the feudal lord of being controlled without solid proof… we'd likely face backlash from the daimyō of the Land of Earth and the Land of Lightning as well. And don't forget, defeating the Mutant Beasts requires the help of bloodlines from all nations' daimyō."
The only reason Shikamaru didn't mention the Water and Wind daimyōs was because they had already been eliminated by the Mutant Beasts.
"We have no choice but to agree. The village needs financial aid from the Land of Fire," Naruto said. Then he turned back to Sasuke. "Sorry to trouble you again, Sasuke. I need you to investigate whether the feudal lord is in contact with other factions—or if he really has been placed under some kind of control."
"Understood."
Having just returned, Sasuke made no complaints and simply nodded.
Within the Land of Water.
The once-bustling port nation now lay eerily quiet, devoid of any signs of life.
"Mitsuki…"
In the capital of the Land of Water, Boruto stood before Mitsuki, who had taken the form of a slumbering dragon.
"I didn't expect the Hokage's son to come here alone."
"Who's there?!"
As he turned, Boruto dodged a series of wooden stakes falling from the sky. Activating his Tailed Beast Cloak, two chakra arms from the Nine-Tails caught the stakes and flung them back. Only then did he get a good look at the assailant.
"Gray Wolf? Orochimaru?!"
"Wood Release really is a handy ability."
Gray Wolf Clone No. 4 looked at Boruto as he spoke. Just as he finished, his arm suddenly extended to strike.
"Perfect timing!"
Boruto's Nine-Tails chakra arm grabbed the stretched-out limb and yanked Gray Wolf Clone No. 4 into the air. At the same time, Boruto's real hands began forming seals.
"Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
A shadow clone appeared behind the real Boruto, then began channeling Wind Release: Gale Palm. The clone launched the real Boruto forward by pushing him with the accelerated gust.
"Rasengan!"
Each of Boruto's hands formed a Rasengan. Since Gray Wolf Clone No. 4 was still restrained by the chakra arm, he couldn't dodge.
He took the Rasengan head-on—only to turn into a wooden log.
"What?!"
[Clap clap clap—]
The sound of clapping echoed from the ground. Boruto landed and quickly leapt back, distancing himself from Gray Wolf Clone No. 4.
"Substitution Jutsu?"
"To be this strong at your age... as expected of Naruto's son. Hmph, guess I'll have to show you what I'm really capable of. Wood Release: Multi Wood Clone Jutsu!" Gray Wolf Clone No. 4 looked at Boruto and said, "I'm not done yet."
Gray Wolf Clone No. 4 and all of his clones' eyes turned into Sharingan.
Every single one of them summoned a black Susanoo.
Over a hundred Susanoo surrounded Boruto.
"This is bad…"
Boruto looked around and instinctively took a step back.
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