Naruto's strength would erupt periodically.
The current Naruto gave Kurama the feeling of facing the Sage of Six Paths.
Moreover, it felt like the Sage of Six Paths in his prime… and Naruto's strength was growing stronger every single day.
It was as if something deep within him had been awakened, and the power of Six Paths was slowly emerging.
What terrified Kurama even more was that he didn't even know how Naruto had learned it.
But Kurama didn't ask too many questions.
He had already figured out how to get along with Naruto.
Don't ask what shouldn't be asked. Don't know what shouldn't be known. Be honest, don't cause trouble, and mutual benefit was enough.
In Kurama's understanding, the maximum lifespan of humans was no more than a hundred years.
As long as Naruto was alive, Kurama was happy to follow his commands.
Spending a mere hundred years in exchange for invincible strength was more than worth it.
For Naruto, he gained Kurama's assistance throughout his life.
For Kurama, the harvest was just as enormous.
And even if Naruto knew about this way of thinking, so what?
Kurama knew Naruto well—he was someone who didn't care about trivial matters, and he definitely wouldn't concern himself with things that happened after his death.
Kurama absorbed the Chakra of Son Gokū and Kokuō.
After that, Naruto planned to leave Iwagakure.
After several days of getting along, although Kurotsuchi felt that Naruto was a good person, she clearly placed the Village above romance.
So she directly rejected Naruto's so-called invitation.
She didn't even bother to make up an excuse.
That was simply her personality, and she knew Naruto wasn't interested in excuses—he only wanted to know her true thoughts.
When Naruto left Iwagakure, he gained quite a lot.
Although he had a bit less money, he obtained Iwagakure's goodwill, mastered Dust Release, and acquired the Chakra of two Tailed Beasts.
"What should I do next? Should I go straight back to Konoha and pick up Yakumo Kurama?"
Standing on a massive rock outside Iwagakure, Naruto muttered to himself as he planned his route.
Since he was already collecting Tailed Beast Chakra, why not gather them all at once?
Coincidentally, the Land of Earth wasn't far from the Land of Wind, lying just to the south.
Moreover, Naruto had a good relationship with Sunagakure.
Gaara was also deeply grateful to him.
Although Naruto had sealed Shukaku because of Temari, Gaara gained a stable seal, could finally sleep peacefully, and his temperament had improved significantly.
Naruto never demanded gratitude for any of that.
This time, borrowing a bit of Chakra—Naruto believed the success rate would be quite high.
However, since it was already late, Naruto decided to find a place to rest first.
"Hm… I'll go spend some time with Kurenai."
After all, they had just confessed their feelings, and the two were deeply in love.
Naruto wandered around, behaving like a scumbag who went drinking and didn't go home.
Although Naruto knew he was acting like a scumbag, he still had some sense of dignity—he didn't want to upgrade himself to a "bastard."
The next day.
The sun slowly rose, and the sunlight was no longer as scorching as at noon.
Inside a certain house, Naruto finally woke up.
Kurenai Yuhi had already left, most likely to lead her newly assigned genin team.
After washing up and tidying his clothes, Naruto used Flying Thunder God to leave Konoha.
A few minutes later, he appeared inside Sunagakure.
But Naruto quickly sensed that something was off.
Sunagakure was in an extremely tense state.
Many ninja were jumping across rooftops, rushing back and forth between buildings.
To Naruto's surprise, every single one of them was carrying two large buckets of water.
Where did all this water even come from?
Naruto was puzzled.
Sunagakure was notoriously short on water.
Although there were Water Release ninja, compared to resource-rich villages, their water supply was barely sufficient.
There were only a few hot springs in the entire village.
Yet now, ninja everywhere were carrying water buckets and rushing out.
Curious, Naruto went straight to the Kazekage's office and met Rasa.
Because of Naruto's interference, Rasa hadn't died at Orochimaru's hands.
In the original timeline, Rasa wasn't a good man—after all, he had conspired with Orochimaru to launch the Konoha Crush.
Now, however, he was mobilizing the entire village, making the place extremely lively.
Could it be that he knew about the situation in the Hidden Cloud Village and planned to stir up trouble now that his ties with Konoha were weaker?
That didn't make sense—if they were going to cause trouble, why would everyone be carrying water buckets?
At the moment, Rasa was extremely busy, directing several ninja at once.
When he saw Naruto enter, Rasa smiled and said, "Temari is at the village entrance."
Seeing how busy he was, Naruto didn't ask further.
At the village entrance, Naruto spotted Temari standing among the crowd.
"The water supply in Eastern District B is sufficient. Move the rest to District C."
"You—if you're tired, switch out with someone else!"
"What? You're asking why the Water Release ninja haven't arrived yet?"
"How many Water Release ninja do you think we even have?"
"…!"
Temari was dressed the same as ever, her hair tied into four large buns, speaking and acting decisively like a capable leader.
Naruto walked over, noticed the fine sweat on her face, and handed her a handkerchief.
Temari grabbed it, roughly wiped her face, then casually tossed it back.
"Alright, if you've got time to flatter me, you might as well carry a few buckets of water. I already have someone in mind—even if he's a bastard."
Naruto: "…"
Temari lowered her head to continue reading the documents in her hand.
But when Naruto didn't move, she frowned and looked up.
Only then did she realize who was standing in front of her.
"Huh? Naruto?!" Temari sounded surprised, then immediately asked suspiciously, "What are you doing here?"
Naruto shot back, "Can't I come see you if I've got nothing to do?"
Temari chuckled. "Of course you can, but you know the wedding is still years away. Coming now is pointless."
"In your eyes, am I really that perverted?" Naruto asked helplessly.
Temari smiled. "I didn't say that. You're the one who thought it."
Naruto: "…"
After not seeing her for a few days, she had become much more playful.
Naruto found it interesting—but he was even more curious about what was going on.
So he asked, "What exactly are you all doing?"
Temari casually handed him the documents.
"The Wood Release you left outside the village turned into a forest."
"But the land is still sand, and the trees are showing signs of dehydration, so we're transporting soil and water to preserve it."
Naruto was genuinely surprised.
He hadn't expected the forest he casually created during training to be taken so seriously by Sunagakure.
Everyone was working enthusiastically—it was clear they genuinely wanted to change the village's environment.
According to Temari's report, the Wood Release forest surrounding the village had been divided into sixteen zones—four each to the east, west, south, and north—and watering and soil transport were being carried out based on priority.
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