279Rinnegan not activatedAI Model: gemini-2.5-flashChapter 279: Unactivated Rinnegan
Naruto had heard many rumors, but he never expected to be the subject of his own rumor.
The most outrageous part was that the exposé about him was published by himself in the newspaper he founded.
He was stunned by this maneuver himself.
When it comes to having fun, the Shadow Cloneknows best.
Naruto quickly skimmed the newspaper, and dark lines couldn't help but appear on his forehead.
The content wasn't extensive, only four points.
The first point was "bullying men and oppressing women," claiming that when he was five, he had designs on the Hyuga Clan's eldest daughter and frequently bullied his teammate, Uchiha Sasuke.
The second point was "betraying master and destroying ancestors," alleging that he forced Kakashi to marry Hana Rin, and intentionally cleared out Konoha's entertainment venues to make things difficult for Jiraiya.
The third point was "coercive buying and selling," stating that in his cooperation with Konoha Villageand Hidden Mist Village, he contributed nothing yet took the largest share of the profits.
The fourth point was "violating ancient customs," claiming he founded the White Lotus Sect, supported En Yui, heavily suppressed the nobility, distributed land, and vigorously developed infrastructure, completely trampling on the systems left by their ancestors.
At the end of the article, the phrase, 'I have never seen such a shameless person!' was used as the closing statement.
The entire piece was written with righteous indignation, pointing fingers from the moral high ground, and portraying the Ninja Allied Forces as a righteous army.
It had the distinct flavor of Naruto picking up a keyboard and criticizing the world back in the day.
But when the target of the condemnation became himself, it was a bit hard to bear.
"You really had a crush on my sister when you were five?"
Hanabi asked with a look of curiosity.
But she was immediately glared at by Hinata.
"I was just asking!"
Facing her older sister's deadly stare, she shrunk her head back.
Because she knew she could joke about anything except Naruto.
Although Hanabi was saddened by her low status in the family hierarchy, she made the best choice.
In the blink of an eye, she was gone.
"Hanabi didn't mean any harm."
Hinata withdrew her gaze and reassured him, "Don't worry, no one in Konoha would believe the nonsense in the newspaper."
"I'm fine."
Naruto shook his head.
It's just a war of public opinion.
He was very familiar with it, and these points weren't exactly slander; they were just phrased negatively.
Once the war is won, he can turn the tables at any time.
Seeing this, Hinata carefully observed his expression and secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Based on her understanding of Naruto, he probably wasn't taking it too seriously.
"I'm heading to the Hokage Building."
Naruto ruffled Hinata's head and turned to leave.
When he reached Tsunade's office, just as he was about to knock, he heard voices from inside.
It wasn't anything restricted, but rather Jiraiyadiscussing today's newspaper.
"I told you! That little brat Naruto's plan to 'rectify' Konoha's indecent entertainment venues wasn't about increasing the population; it was aimed at me!"
Jiraiya looked indignant and aggrieved, as if he had suffered a great injustice.
"Naruto isn't that petty."
Tsunade shook her head, clearly unconvinced by his performance.
Although their relationship had improved, if she had to choose who was more trustworthy in her heart.
She would choose Naruto.
"He is that petty!"
Jiraiya patted his chest, insisting that when it came to understanding, he knew Naruto best. "You've just been fooled by his appearance! Look, this newspaper is his own. Would it lie?"
With a creak, the door opened.
"Who is it?"
Jiraiya turned and saw Naruto, his expression instantly changing. He exclaimed angrily, "I was just telling Tsunade how hateful the Akatsuki Organization is, always spreading rumors!"
...
Tsunade pressed her hand to her forehead, speechless.
"You'd be perfect for performing Sichuan Opera."
Naruto couldn't help but retort, "You don't even need to learn face-changing."
He suddenly remembered that a certain Hokagemobile game actually featured a Sichuan Opera Jiraiya.
Jiraiya gave an awkward laugh, knowing Narutohad heard what he said earlier, but being thick-skinned, he quickly changed the subject.
"What is Sichuan Opera?"
"A type of drama."
Naruto explained casually.
The Ninja World also had drama, so he didn't need to elaborate.
"Oh."
Jiraiya felt guilty and didn't pursue the topic further.
Although he didn't know what Sichuan Opera was, he understood the term "Face-Changing."
"Ahem, do I need to step forward and explain this matter?"
He said, touching his conscience, "To explain to the people of the Ninja World that you have not betrayed your master or destroyed your ancestors."
Naruto glanced at him. As expected of a Ninja with the Face-Changing skill.
There was no hint of reluctance visible.
"Jiraiya is right."
Tsunade continued, "Although you might not care, there will definitely be an impact. On the eve of war, nothing can be underestimated."
Although she didn't know the exact date, the continuous actions of the Akatsuki Organizationproved that war was imminent.
If it weren't for the existence of the Tianming Organization, she might just give up.
One against nineteen.
What the hell are we fighting?
No way!
No matter how strong Konoha is, it can't defeat the entire Ninja World.
"In the face of absolute strength, schemes and tricks are insignificant."
Naruto shook his head and said, "There's no need to waste time."
He still wanted to wait and see if he could trigger an achievement.
Tsunade couldn't help but look at him with increased respect.
This brat really didn't seem fifteen; he seemed fifty.
Facing such a massive smear campaign, he was completely unfazed.
It actually reminded her of Danzo.
"Since you didn't come for this matter, then what did you come for?"
Tsunade realized the crucial point and asked.
"I received intel that the Akatsuki Organization will attack Konoha in one week."
"What?!"
Tsunade sprang to her feet.
Jiraiya did the same.
Although they had anticipated it, its actual arrival was still shocking.
And one week was far too urgent.
Nothing was ready yet.
Naruto waited a few seconds for their emotions to settle, then said, "I have an idea regarding this battle."
"What idea?"
Tsunade sat down again and asked calmly.
"Thanks to Karen's extensive maneuvering, the Akatsuki Organization has an alliance of nineteen nations."
Naruto analyzed calmly, "All in all, there are seventy to eighty thousand Ninja, far exceeding Konoha's numbers. Although the Tianming Organization is confident, we cannot guarantee that Konoha will not suffer losses."
Hearing seventy to eighty thousand, Tsunade and Jiraiya's expressions turned grim.
They were indeed prepared for war, but purely based on numbers, even a victory would be a pyrrhic one.
"So you have a plan?"
Tsunade couldn't help but ask.
"The seventy thousand Ninja Allied Forces are almost entirely the elite of nineteen nations, especially the Four Great Villages."
Naruto smiled and said, "Although Konoha has always relied on its elite, there's no need for needless sacrifice. So, my idea is to strike at their homelands while they are all out attacking us."
"You mean...?"
Tsunade was stunned for a moment, but her eyes lit up.
If it were anyone else, it would naturally be impossible.
To strike at their homelands means sending their own Ninja into the core regions of nineteen nations.
With such a massive operation, the Four Great Villages would definitely notice.
But Naruto has the Flying Thunder God Technique.
He could execute this terrifying operation completely silently.
"This is the Empty Fort Strategy."
The corner of Naruto's mouth curved slightly upward.
Speaking of which, his inspiration came from the declaration written by Uzumaki Menma.
Yes, the last sentence.
I have never seen such a shameless person.
Zhuge Kongming said it.
So, there's nothing wrong with him borrowing the Empty Fort Strategy.
"Brilliant!"
Jiraiya couldn't help but clap his hands and say, "You really have a lot of clever tricks, kid."
He could already imagine the scene of seventy thousand Ninja Allied Forces surrounding Konoha, only to find no one there.
Shocking and bewildered.
If their intelligence agencies were competent, they might receive news that their backdoors had been breached in time.
As for Konoha, it wouldn't matter even if it was destroyed.
Anyway, they have money now, so as long as the people are safe, it's fine.
Tsunade took a deep breath and said, "We'll do as you say, but you must understand that the key to victory doesn't lie with Konoha, but with your Tianming."
"Exactly."
Jiraiya agreed, "If the Tianming Organization loses, whatever Konoha does will be meaningless. So, are you confident you can defeat Nagato?"
"No big problem."
Naruto answered concisely and forcefully.
At this moment, he couldn't show weakness.
Tsunade and Jiraiya, as Konoha's high-ranking officials, had embarked on a path of confronting the entire world because of the Tianming Organization.
Overall, they were still quite worried.
Although they trusted Naruto, seventy thousand was simply too many.
They had never fought such a "rich" battle.
Well, the enemy was the rich one.
Even during previous Great Ninja Wars, Konohahad the glorious record of fighting on three fronts.
But that was already quite difficult.
Moreover, the Three Great Villages they encountered then were not united.
The nature of this conflict was completely different.
Hearing such a calm answer, the burden in Tsunade and Jiraiya's hearts lessened slightly.
Coupled with the Empty Fort Strategy proposed by Naruto, Konoha stood to gain immensely.
Thinking about the possibility of unifying the Ninja World, even though they didn't harbor such ambitions, they still felt a little excited.
Especially Tsunade.
She felt a sense of restoring the Senju glory.
"For the next week, we will need you to handle the deployment."
Naruto spoke.
Although he said Konoha's destruction wouldn't matter, the prerequisite was that it be an empty shell, leaving nothing of value behind.
This would require Tsunade and Jiraiya to work hard for a few days.
First, transfer the assets, then set up the Teleportation Arrays.
Personnel transfer should only happen after the seventy thousand strong army arrives.
Otherwise, it would attract the attention of the Akatsuki Organization.
"Leave it to us."
Tsunade said with a smile, "Compared to death, this small effort is nothing."
Naruto said goodbye and left.
With one week remaining, he planned to increase his strength.
As the saying goes, sharpening the spear before battle is better than nothing.
He currently had 5 Regular Draws and 1 Targeted Draw.
If he was lucky, a significant increase in strength was possible.
But he wasn't in a hurry yet.
He waited two more days.
In the Land of Earth, an unprecedented concert for one hundred thousand people was underway.
Konan stood on the stage.
Wearing a mask.
But she was very flustered inside.
Because Deva Path Pain and the other Akatsuki Organization members were all watching from below.
And the most ridiculous part was that this was only the first show.
Because Uzumaki Menma had come up with another terrible idea.
He claimed that marching seventy thousand Ninjawas too conspicuous, so they should disguise themselves as concertgoers instead.
Konan really wanted to ask him, what difference does that make? Did he think Uzumaki Narutowould be too stupid to notice?
But Nagato actually agreed to this method.
She was too speechless to complain, nearly shouting at Uzumaki Menma, "If you talk such a good game, why don't you sing it yourself!"
The singing began.
Although Naruto didn't hear it, he knew the result.
[Congratulations, host, for achieving the Active Achievement: World's Number One Idol.]
[The host will receive one Targeted Draw, one Regular Draw, ten attribute points, one Special Buff, and three destiny stones.]
[Special Buff: Want another shot? I won't leave any suspense. Targeted Draw gains one additional selection opportunity.]
[Note: This Buff is only effective once.]
Naruto stared thoughtfully at the last two lines of text.
Konan's Active Achievement was practically guaranteed, so there was nothing surprising about it.
However, this Special Buff pleasantly surprised him.
If he understood correctly, it meant that if the first Targeted Draw wasn't satisfactory, he could try again.
In other words, it was equivalent to having two Targeted Draws, but only being able to claim one reward.
Including the draw he already had, that made three total attempts.
This meant Naruto had a high chance of drawing what he wanted.
[Please specify the keyword for the draw, host.]
"Rinnegan."
Naruto said tentatively.
He had originally planned to wait for his Dōjutsu Power to reach one hundred percent to see if a mutation would occur, but time was short, so he decided to draw now.
[The keyword is too specific. It is recommended to set it as 'Eyes'.]
"Just as I thought."
Naruto shook his head and said, "Eyes."
The scope of 'Eyes' wasn't huge, but it wasn't small either.
However, considering that the cards from Targeted Draws were usually quite good.
Naruto decided to continue trying.
Even getting the Eternal Mangekyo Sharinganwould be acceptable.
[Keyword detected. Drawing... Congratulations, host, you have received an item card.]
[item card: Wicked Lord Shingan.]
[Description: Permanent Special item card, originating from *Love, Chunibyo & Other Delusions*, breaking the boundary between reality and illusion, pulling enemies into an Alternate World for banishment.]
[Note: The Wicked Lord Shingan is the strongest!]
"Hey, System, what's with this note?"
Naruto couldn't help but complain.
Complaining aside, the effect looked pretty good, except that it was too similar to Kakashi's Kamui.
[A Special Buff has been detected on the host. Would you like to use it?]
[If you continue, the Wicked Lord Shingan will disappear, and a new reward will be drawn.]
Naruto thought for a moment and said, "Use it."
Mainly because he already had Kakashi, there was no need for a similar skill.
[Keyword detected. Drawing... Congratulations, host, you have received an item card.]
[item card: Eye of Ordo.]
[Description: Permanent Special item card, originating from *Black Butler*, randomly summoning a Demon to form a contract, ensuring the Demon's absolute obedience.]
"Well, well. Jumping from the Eye Card Pool to the Demon Card Pool, huh?"
Naruto didn't know what to say.
There are many Demons; if he randomly got a powerful one, it would definitely be a huge gain.
But if he got a weak one, it would be pointless.
"Continue drawing."
Naruto used his last Targeted Draw, still focusing on eyes.
[Keyword detected. Drawing... Congratulations, host, you have received an item card.]
[item card: Rinnegan (Unactivated).]
[Description: Permanent Special item card, the most exalted Dōjutsu Power known as the "Eye that controls life and death," originating from the Ultimate Dōjutsu of the God Tree's Chakra Fruit.]
[Note: Due to the host lacking Indra's Body or cells, it cannot be activated temporarily.]
Naruto couldn't help but be stunned.
Does this mean I have to go find Sasuke?
In ancient times, the Buddha cut off his flesh to feed an eagle; now, Sasuke cuts off his flesh to feed... Ashura?
"It looks like Sasuke will have to make a little sacrifice."
Naruto rubbed his chin. "How should I bring this up? I can't just say, 'Sasuke, lend me your body for a bit,' can I?"