I Have Many Reasons to Stay in Konoha

"Depart immediately! This time we need to rush to the west of the Forest of Death!"

"Damn it, what's going on with the Barrier Team? Can't they handle this properly? In less than half a day, there have been dozens of reports of abnormal chakra activity, and the locations are spread across almost the entire Forest of Death!"

"Could they be mistaken? We just came back from the north, and there wasn't a soul in sight besides dead beasts. The team in the south just went there too!"

"Yeah, not to mention this thick fog, it's also raining heavily."

In a dense forest, three Anbu members wearing masks and carrying ninja swords stood on tree trunks, looking at a map. After a few complaints, they immediately rushed off in one direction.

"Naruto, the Barrier Team has likely located you again, and the Anbu must have set out after you." Minato Namikaze's voice echoed from within the Sealed Space.

"It's fine, I'll change direction later. I'm completely confident in how to imbue chakra into ninja tools. By the way, Father, didn't you say Konoha's Barrier Team monitors the village twenty-four hours a day? How did the Forest of Death outside the village get included in the sensory barrier?" Naruto's voice sounded from under a towering tree. The tree's roots intertwined to form a hollow, and two long-dead wolf corpses lay sprawled outside the entrance, blood pooling on the ground.

Naruto stood inside the tree hollow, wearing a mask, and his hair was black. He leaned against the side wall of the hollow, his gaze focused on a dagger in his hand. A faint, flickering light-blue chakra pulsed erratically around the dagger. He was contemplating issues related to chakra nature.

"Awooo~"

Several low wolf growls interrupted Naruto's concentration.

"Killed a couple of blind fools on a whim, I didn't expect you to be so vengeful." Naruto spoke as he walked out of the tree hollow, tilting his head to survey the weather.

In the heavily fog-laden forest, dense lines of rain poured down relentlessly. Even the lush trees couldn't block it, and the water seeped through, washing the emerald green leaves to a vibrant sheen. The pitted ground beneath the trees had already been soaked by the falling rain, forming puddles of various sizes.

His gaze shifted, and soon he heard rustling sounds from the opposite side. Naruto then saw pairs of green eyes staring at him with hatred. The ferocious-looking wolves, as if directed by someone, quickly formed a circle around Naruto and the tree.

"Heh, looks like I've attracted a wolf pack. Perfect for some practice and experiments." Naruto surveyed the surroundings and found that there were over fifty wolves surrounding him. He smiled slightly and formed hand seals.

"Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

Bang!

Naruto clones, matching the number of wolves, quickly appeared on the scene. The wolves surrounding Naruto instantly scattered. They didn't understand why so many enemies had suddenly appeared, but they reacted quickly, growling warnings while crouching and digging at the ground, slowly retreating. They sensed danger and seemed to be planning a strategic withdrawal.

Naruto smiled slightly and issued a command to his shadow clones.

"Go."

A group of shadow clones immediately responded and charged into the wolf pack.

"One, two, three... hmm~ lost eleven shadow clones, a total of fifty-two wild wolves, but all the markings are done." Naruto's main body stood in place, silently counting. Once he confirmed that all the wolves in the pack had been marked by his shadow clones, he formed hand seals and dispelled all the clones.

Simultaneously, the light-blue chakra wrapped around the dagger in his hand rapidly condensed into a half-meter-long short sword, visible to the naked eye. With a flash in his eyes, Naruto's figure vanished from his spot without any warning.

The distant wolves, having lost their opponents, their glowing green eyes flickered with human-like thought. Just as they were about to make a move, they saw a flash of black light.

"Wuu~ wuu~"

Blood splattered, and they felt a pain in their bodies. They only managed to let out a faint whimper before everything went black.

Swish!

Naruto's figure landed on the trunk of a large tree. The ground was littered with dense dismembered limbs. He frowned and his consciousness immediately shifted to the Sealed Space.

"Father, have you thought of any solution to the problem of shadow clones only being able to teleport once with the Flying Thunder God Technique?"

Minato Namikaze shook his head upon hearing Naruto's question. "I don't know. I discovered this problem when I was practicing the Flying Thunder God Technique during my lifetime."

"Logically, shadow clones should be able to use all the ninjutsu that the main body can use. I also researched this issue for a long time. After the main body makes the Flying Thunder God mark, the shadow clone can initially sense and teleport to it, but the shadow clone is unable to perform the Flying Thunder God teleportation again, no matter what."

"This problem is something that even the Second Hokage, who developed the Flying Thunder God Technique, couldn't figure out."

"Furthermore, the Shadow Clone Jutsu was also developed by the Second Hokage. He initially intended to combine it with the Flying Thunder God Technique to achieve its ultimate potential, but unfortunately, he couldn't achieve it in the end."

Naruto nodded with some regret upon hearing this. It seemed the problem of shadow clones only being able to use the Flying Thunder God Technique once couldn't be solved. He recalled that in the anime, Naruto's shadow clones could gather Sage Mode, and Madara Uchiha could summon Susanoo with Wood Style clones. Why couldn't shadow clones break through this barrier when it came to the Flying Thunder God Technique?

He had been staying in the Forest of Death for almost two months. Starting from the afternoon of the Third Hokage's departure from the village, Hayate Gekko had only been monitoring one of his clones. With his father's full guidance, he had successfully mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique in the first month. Of course, the good news didn't stop there. During this time, in the Mirrored World, besides receiving rewards for various ninjutsu, he had finally obtained chakra of other natures again.

Naruto now possessed wind, fire, and water chakra natures in addition to his yang nature. He obtained the water nature from the data puppet belonging to Kamizuki Izumo.

Over the remaining month, he would thoroughly digest the ninjutsu and training experience gained from the puppet data, integrating it into his own strength. Simultaneously, he continued to research chakra nature transformation.

He could now successfully infuse chakra into ninja tools and form it.

Just as Naruto finished this thought, three chakra signatures appeared at the edge of his sensory range.

"They're much faster this time. It's about time to head back; my shadow clone should be home soon."

As soon as he spoke, Naruto, who had been standing on a tree branch, vanished.

Swish!

When he reappeared, Naruto was already in his second-floor bedroom.

"Naruto, when do you plan to leave Konoha?"

Minato Namikaze suddenly asked this question.

Sensing his clone and Hayate Gekko were on their way back to the small building, Naruto entered the Sealed Space once more.

"Why do you think I'll definitely leave Konoha, Father?"

Minato Namikaze's gaze dimmed as he replied, "I don't know. I just suddenly had this feeling. You've mastered the Flying Thunder God now, and truly, no one can control you anymore."

"Father, I can tell you that I won't be leaving Konoha for a very long time," Naruto replied, looking intently at Minato Namikaze.

Minato Namikaze blinked in surprise. "Why?"

Kurama, lying nearby, lifted an eyelid. He felt Naruto's gaze fall upon him.

"There are many reasons," Naruto said, walking up to Kurama's mouth. "The first reason I must stay is that I need to wait for Jiraiya to return to Konoha."

"Because only by retrieving the sealing key from him can the seal be opened."

Looking at Kurama's massive body, Minato Namikaze's expression grew serious. "What about the other reasons?"

Naruto turned his head and gave him a slight smile. "Father, Konoha is the best cover for my current identity. While it might not be absolutely safe, staying in Konoha is definitely the least troublesome option."

"If I were to leave Konoha, I'd be listed as a rogue ninja. Furthermore, I'm a Jinchuriki, making me a huge target. The moment people in the Ninja World hear that Konoha's Nine-Tails Jinchuriki has run off, everyone in the entire Ninja World will come after me. Although they might not be able to catch me, it would certainly cause a lot of trouble."

"Also, my Mirrored World still needs to collect more data."

"There are also many things I want to obtain in Konoha."

"I have too many reasons to stay in Konoha, and you wouldn't understand them. So, I won't leave Konoha unless it's absolutely necessary."