Pursuing Asuma

Konoha, Training Ground 34.

When Sasuke Uchiha and Sakura Haruno saw that their new teammate was Sand Ninja, their Gaara immediately turned serious.

Sakura Haruno, in particular, clearly showed hostility. After all, she had gotten used to Naruto, and the sudden change of partners naturally made her uncomfortable.

Personally, Naruto Uzumaki's status as the son of the Fourth Hokage greatly satisfied her vanity, leading her to act like a subservient sycophant.

"Lord Yoru said that Naruto Uzumaki will soon be training with Lord Jiraiya, and he wants me to join Team 7."

This was the first time the usually aloof Gaara had spoken such a long string of words to someone, though his eyes remained fixed on Sasuke Uchiha.

Upon hearing Sasuke Uchiha's lips curled into a smug smile, and he extended his palm, saying, "Welcome."

"Sasuke!" Sakura Haruno was shocked. How could the once proud Sasuke be so friendly to this Sand Ninja?

"Thank you." As the two shook hands, Gaara unusually uttered a word of thanks.

Although Sasuke Uchiha is somewhat arrogant, he still admires Gaara, who is also a strong fighter, especially since he has spent a lot of time talking to him in Prison recently.

Over the course of more than a month, the two became quite familiar with each other and established a foundation for friendship.

"Sasuke."

Just then, a passionate shout pierced the sky, instantly bringing a smile to Sakura Haruno's face. There, she saw the Naruto Uzumaki running over, waving excitedly.

"We've finally found you."

Naruto Uzumaki, panting heavily, looked at Sasuke Sakura Haruno with excitement, completely ignoring Gaara beside him.

"Sasuke, Sakura, quick, let's go help Shikamaru, Chōji get back to Teacher Asuma!"

Naruto Uzumaki showed no embarrassment at asking for help, speaking excitedly as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

"Naruto, you better explain yourself!"

In front of Naruto Uzumaki, Sakura Haruno let out a furious roar, venting her emotions.

When Naruto Uzumaki was with Sakura, he had a big, carefree smile on his face, completely unaware of how much of a sycophant he was being.

"Sakura, it's like this, Teacher Asuma..."

After Naruto Uzumaki finished explaining, Gaara remained coldly silent. Although he was bloodthirsty, he wasn't stupid. Jinchuriki who could leave the village at will was violating the rules, and his identity was far too sensitive.

Leaving the village could easily be mistaken for defection.

After hearing Sasuke Uchiha snorted coldly, "Naruto, you need to understand, although Sarutobi Asuma wasn't listed as Rogue Ninja, he has still been classified as an extremely dangerous individual."

Moreover! Sasuke Uchiha sneered inwardly. He knew all too well what would become of the Sarutobi Clan; Teacher Yoru had personally shown him the plan.

It was cruel, but that's what ninjas are all about! But when he learned what the planner was originally like, he was shocked! It was the Uchiha Clan Massacre Plan.

So how could he possibly feel sorry for his enemy's family?

"Sasuke, how could you do this!"

At this moment, Naruto Uzumaki stared wide-eyed at Sasuke Uchiha, as if he were seeing his comrade for the first time.

"We're comrades. Shikamaru, Choji, and Teacher Asuma Chōji all our comrades."

However, before Naruto Uzumaki could finish speaking, Sasuke Uchiha his Teuchi.

"Naruto, you need to understand one thing: the grudges between Nara, Yamanaka, Akimichi, and the Sarutobi Clan and our Uchiha, and also! Sarutobi Asuma is not my teacher."

The cold, direct refusal shocked Naruto Uzumaki. "Sasuke, we're all from the same village, we should understand each other! How could you say that!"

Sasuke Uchiha sneered angrily, "I don't have the magnanimity of Naruto Uzumaki. You can even forgive the deaths of your parents."

"Sasuke! What do you mean?!" Naruto Uzumaki stared at Sasuke in shock.

Sasuke, not to be outdone, coldly stated, "The Third Hiruzen Sarutobi, clearly possessed the Forbidden Technique to seal the Nine-Tails, yet on the Nine-Tails Night, he watched the Fourth Hokage and his wife sacrifice themselves—literally!"

After the Chunin Ninja Exams, many rumors emerged, such as that the Third Hokage possessed the Forbidden Technique used by the Fourth Hokage to seal the Nine-Tails, but on the Nine-Tails Night' death, he watched helplessly as the Fourth Hokage and his wife used this Forbidden Technique, resulting in their mutual destruction.

Ultimately, the Fourth Hokage died in battle, and the Third Hokage returned to power.

"Sasuke, how could you say that!"

Naruto Uzumaki rarely showed anger, and Sakura Haruno hurriedly shouted, "Naruto! Stop! Stop it! Don't fight!"

And so, Naruto Uzumaki grabbed Sasuke Uchiha the collar, while Sasuke stared at Naruto with growing indifference; the Yakumi between the two was palpable.

"As expected, how could someone who has never had parents understand the feeling of having something and then losing it? In your heart, Third Hokage are just your kind family."

Sasuke Uchiha continued speaking coldly.

"Even when your so-called allies, Nara, Yamanaka, Akimichi, joined forces with the Sarutobi Clan to drive out our Uchiha Clan and divide our resources, why didn't you stand up for them?"

"Now that something's happened, Teacher Yoru has generously let Asuma go, and you still want to take him back? What are you up to?"

"Sarutobi Asuma, what do you want to do when you come back? Have you thought about the consequences?!"

Enraged, Sasuke Uchiha shoved Naruto Uzumaki aside, yelling, "You simple-minded idiot! What did Sarutobi Asuma do? What has the Sarutobi Clan done? Think about the consequences!"

"Since you're so dense, I'll tell you what the consequences will be!"

Looking down at Naruto Uzumaki, Naruto Uzumaki was sitting on the ground glaring angrily at him, Sasuke Uchiha's eyes were filled with disappointment. It was ridiculous that he considered such an idiot a comrade.

"Let me start by talking about what Sarutobi Asuma did. He personally wiped out the Sarutobi Clan. No matter what his reasons were, can anyone still believe in someone like that? Can he be forgiven? As for Shikamaru and Chōji, did they really just want to get back their teacher?"

"I'm telling you, they want to ask Asuma directly why he betrayed their family, causing them immense losses and the deaths of countless relatives in the war."

"And what has the Sarutobi Clan done! The Third Hokage plotted to ambush and kill the Fourth Kazekage. Now the Sand Ninja is practically family with us. What do you mean by bringing Asuma back? Are you trying to plunge the village into internal strife? If Sarutobi Asuma clashes with the Sand Ninja, tell me! How are you going to resolve this?!"

Facing the relentless pressure from Sasuke Uchiha, Naruto Uzumaki roared angrily, "Sasuke! I absolutely cannot forgive your selfish thoughts! Just for your so-called possibility, you want us to abandon our comrades and teachers?"

"No matter what Teacher Asuma did, he is still our teacher, and the war is over! I believe that as long as the Sand Ninja and we understand each other, we will all be one family."

Naruto Uzumaki, who is completely unyielding and only cares about mutual understanding, never considering the feelings of others, shouted loudly.

Meanwhile, Gaara remained silent as an observer. He had little affection for his so-called Fourth Kazekage father; in fact, his hatred outweighed any feelings. However, he feared that his sister and brother would seek revenge once they found out.

"Sasuke, you're being too selfish. I believe in Shikamaru and Chōji."

At that moment, Naruto roared, and his body instantly turned into a cloud of white smoke.

"Naruto!" Sakura exclaimed, while Sasuke Uchiha scoffed, "Idiot! He actually used Shadow Clone to beg someone to help his so-called comrades! Shikamaru is using him and he doesn't even realize it."

"Sasuke, Naruto must have asked his other comrades for help as well."

When Sakura is in her element, her mind works quite well. She immediately realized that Naruto Uzumaki must have other Shadow Clone searching for acquaintances he knew.

"Sasuke, let's intercept them at the Konoha Main Gate. We can't let our comrades get dragged down with us."

Sakura Haruno does have a brain. Naruto Uzumaki can act recklessly because his father is the Fourth Hokage, but they can't.

Once you get involved in this matter and help, you'll face the hatred of the Sand Ninja in the future.

"Snort!"

Sasuke snorted coldly; though he didn't say anything, his actions spoke volumes.

However, before leaving, Sasuke Uchiha said something to Gaara.

"We'll intercept them first, you go and tell Teacher Yoru."

Sasuke Uchiha, without getting caught up in endless hatred, was still quite clever. What seemed like an ordinary matter turned into a task for Gaara to gain his trust and favor.

Konoha, Naruto Uzumaki, in his hot-blooded and carefree manner, asked his familiar classmates for help without considering the consequences of his actions.

Even Inuzuka Kiba turned green upon hearing this; he had no desire to get involved in the matter.

After all, Sarutobi Asuma's identity was too sensitive, as it involved politics and the Sand Ninja.

Within the Land of Fire, lush green trees provide ample shade.

Four figures moved swiftly through the woods. Naruto Uzumaki suddenly froze, his smile becoming somewhat stiff.

This scene naturally did not escape Shikamaru Nara's eyes, but he pretended not to know anything and continued running.

"Everyone remember this: Teacher Asuma's emotions are definitely extremely unstable, so absolutely do not mention the Sarutobi Clan."

Shikamaru Nara is indeed intelligent, but he also has feelings, especially for his teacher Sarutobi Asuma.

This time, he knew the consequences of chasing after them, but what did the Ino-Shika-Cho Clans have left now?

Chunin Ninja Exams, the Sand Ninja stormed in, directly confronting their clan's territory. Immediately afterward, a barrier was set up, and all the Sand Ninja's elite troops began fighting within their clan's territory.

Therefore, their clans themselves were filled with hatred towards the Sand Ninja, so the Ino-Shika-Cho Clans didn't care about this.

Shikamaru's feelings towards Sarutobi Asuma were also filled with complex emotions. He knew there was no going back, but he wanted to know the whole truth. So many of his family members had died, and he wanted to know everything.

He was also willful and selfish once.

In the original story, Shikamaru's act of avenging Asuma was, frankly, a selfish one. At the time, the Fifth Hokage, Tsunade, explicitly forbade it due to its extreme danger. Even revenge requires planning.

Team 10 set off under the cover of night, which was essentially acting on their own initiative. If Tsunade Kakashi n't stepped forward and offered to join them, Tsunade would never have agreed.

Naruto Uzumaki didn't manage to pull the last person along.

Meanwhile, inside the Konoha Hokage Building office...

Tsunade, Pakura, and Mei Terumi Chunin frowned as they looked at the group of Chunin who had come to report.

Shino Aburame, Inuzuka Kiba, Rock Lee, Neji, Tenten, and Sasuke, among others.

"Hokage, Mizukage, and Kazekage, Team 10 has discovered Sarutobi Asuma's whereabouts..."

Upon hearing the report, Mei Terumi turned her head away, pretending not to have heard it; she wasn't going to get involved in this troublesome matter.

Pakura and Tsunade exchanged a glance, both feeling rather troubled; Asuma's identity was somewhat sensitive.

"So that means Shikamaru Nara, Choji Akimichi Yamanaka Fire, and Naruto Uzumaki from Team 10 went, right?"

At this moment, Tsunade crossed her arms, revealing her rose-red nails, and her beautiful face looked solemnly at the report from the people in front of her.

Then, Tsunade turned to look at Pakura and said in a deep voice, "According to intelligence, Sarutobi Asuma has been hiding in the Land of Fire since escaping Konoha, but he has been secretly in contact with a mysterious organization."

"This organization must be Akatsuki! The organization of the mysterious man who possesses the Mangekyo and the Wood Release Kekkei Genkai mask."

Tsunade's words directly revealed the dangerous nature of this mission. Pakura frowned upon hearing this, as she knew the inside story of the massacre of her clan.

Sarutobi Asuma did all this in order to preserve some of the Sarutobi Clan's bloodline in the village. This time, besides Konohamaru, several other families also stayed behind.

"This time, there's a high chance a mysterious person will come. You must know that this person is the culprit who caused the Nine-Tails disaster, a threat level S."

After exchanging glances, Tsunade finally said in a deep voice, "I have decided to order the six Jonin currently in the village— Hatake Kakashi, Uchiha Itachi, Might Guy, Zabuza Momochi, Yūhi Kurenai, Baki —to Jōnin forces and retrieve Naruto Uzumaki."

"Hokage-sama!"

At that moment, Sasuke Uchiha spoke, clearly indicating that they also wanted to join in. Seeing this, Tsunade forehead and waved her hand, saying, "This operation will be led by Kakashi. You will all follow Kakashi's orders."

"Yes!"

At this moment, the newly Chunin revealed determined smiles; perhaps their strong will made them unwilling to run away.

Even if they encounter opponents from a completely different dimension, they can still join in, and even if they are no match for them, they don't want to go back to how things were before.

Moreover, this time their classmates were also present, and some of them wanted to rescue their classmates.

Watching the departing group, Tsunade frowned, while Pakura beside her murmured, "The Akatsuki Organization!"

"That's right. Asuma mentioned before that the Akatsuki Organization contacted him."

Tsunade nodded, Mei Terumi the mysterious masked man. "There might be a fierce battle ahead."

"But will Sarutobi Asuma really be let go?"

Just then, Uchiha Yoru appeared, looking at the three Fifth Generation and casually laughing, "Just a small fry. Besides, Sarutobi Asuma joining Akatsuki Organization will also benefit the peace and stability of the village."

With the Sunagakure of the Land of Wind now under our control, if we were to ask who the Sand Ninja hates the most, Hiruzen Sarutobi would definitely be at the top of the list.

But now the Sarutobi Clan is all gone, leaving only a few kittens, and since they're in a village, they can only suppress their hatred.

At this time, Sarutobi Asuma, who had become Rogue Ninja in the Shinobi World, became extremely important. He was the son of the Third Hokage, the son who caused the death of their Fourth Kazekage and so many other people, and who had joined a terrorist organization.

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