Will You Want to Look at the Starry Sky After Insomnia?

"Pfft!" Tsunade had just raised her teacup and hadn't even swallowed yet, spat out the entire cup of sake. "What did you say?"

Naruto stared at the clear wine stains on Tsunade's lips and solemnly repeated himself.

"To become the patriarch of the Uzumaki Clan."

"You're the only one in the entire family, right?" Tsunade pulled out a tissue to wipe her mouth, her expression turning stern. "Are you kidding me?"

Naruto remained calm and offered an explanation.

"I have consulted the Konohagakure Chronicle and found that the Uzumaki Clan has a very deep connection with Konohagakure. After verifying this information multiple times, I have confirmed that I am a descendant of the Uzumaki Clan."

"As for the previous Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, it was..."

"Ahem." Teuchi Naruto, stood up and said somewhat nervously, "Since you want to be the clan leader, then be the clan leader. It's just a nominal position anyway."

"I'll have Shizune help you submit the paperwork later, it's not too much trouble. Although your idea is very bold, it may not succeed, so let's go through the procedures first."

"Ah! Procedural justice is still necessary!" Naruto groaned.

"What are you saying? You don't want to threaten them, so this is the only way." Tsunade pressed her teacup on the table, frowning slightly. "Maybe things will change after Jiraiya comes back."

Tsunade spoke vaguely, and seemed somewhat nervous when she mentioned the previous Jinchuriki. Naruto took it all in, but didn't ask any further questions.

"Oh well."

He didn't continue to pester Tsunade; the number of pressing matters had surged. Becoming the Uzumaki Clan Leader was merely a concept; he'd let Tsunade know for now.

Naruto didn't care whether this thing would work or not; even if it didn't, it would still annoy the higher-ups.

He could come up with a whole bunch of methods like this. Even if it was a waste of the higher-ups' time, as long as one didn't pass, he was determined to try them one by one, just to make things difficult for the higher-ups.

Leave the Hokage Building.

Seeing that it was still early, and having asked around but still unable to find Sakura, Naruto simply went home and lay down.

Nine-Tails has been going out more often lately, like a cat that's always sneaking around. If Naruto didn't know it didn't have any eggs, Naruto might even think Nine-Tails was just being too forward.

Naruto didn't wake up until nightfall, his stomach growling with hunger.

He wasn't a particularly self-disciplined person to begin with, and with no one supervising him, his lifestyle wasn't exactly good. He wandered around the open balcony and realized that Nine-Tails hadn't returned yet.

"Damn it, could Kurama really have run off with a female dog?" Naruto muttered.

The balcony was completely silent, the distance was pitch black, and a sultry summer night breeze was blowing gently.

Naruto stood there in a daze for a while, then thought of the unfinished mission in the Land of Snow, and couldn't help but feel melancholy. The invisible Flying Thunder God was like a thorn in his heart, something he could never forget.

If it weren't for that accident, we probably would have already obtained the Stealth Flying Thunder God Technique. But some things happened in between, Kazahana Koyuki also left.

Once the objective leaves, the questline comes to a standstill.

After a moment of blankness, he suddenly snapped out of it.

Jiraiya be returning to the village soon, and once he does, he'll likely begin preparations to eradicate the Akatsuki Organization. Tsunade wants him to learn Senjutsu first.

However, Senjutsu Naruto felt a slight aversion to the old Toad of Mount Myōboku, despite his Sage Mode abilities. He also saw the aura of the chosen one.

If we actually meet, I don't know if I'll be able to tell if the otherworldly soul within me is real. I don't know about other things, but Asura's Chakra has probably disappeared.

After all, although the system was a bit lousy, its permissions seemed to be higher than those of this world, like a key from another world that pierced through Asura's vital point.

We'll have to wait and see how things go after Jiraiya returns. If there's really no other way, we'll just have to bite the bullet and go to Mount Myōboku to meet the old Toad.

As the night deepened, Naruto lowered his eyes for a moment, then turned, locked the door, and left.

The Hokage Building was brightly lit.

In the document room, the quiet scratching of pens echoed through the office.

A sudden knocking sound rang out on the door.

Sakura looked up from the pile of documents, her eyes showing a hint of fatigue, but it quickly disappeared.

"Please come in."

The door opened.

The voices could be heard before the person even entered.

"I couldn't find you during the day. Were you working overtime here?" Naruto leaned against the door, looking at Sakura with amusement.

"Don't you get bored working overtime all day? You don't have any time for yourself at all."

"Bored?" Black Sakura raised her eyes slightly, put down her pen, and asked seriously, "If you weren't working overtime, what would a normal person be doing at this time?"

"Who knows? A normal person would probably be working the night shift too." Naruto said as he walked toward her, moths hovering around the overhead light. "If it were me, I'd probably be lying down asleep already."

He noticed that Sakura had uttered the word "normal," and his eyelids twitched slightly, but he still forced himself to remain calm.

"Lying down to sleep?" Sakura murmured repeatedly, "But I can't fall asleep. I've slept long enough, and I can't fall asleep when I want to close my eyes."

The desk is located on one side of the wall, and the ceiling light is also poorly positioned. It's not hung in the exact center of the office, but rather to the left of the wall. As a result, the desk is also crammed into a corner.

"Isn't there anything you particularly want to do?" Naruto stood in front of her, blocking the light, and looked down at her as he asked.

"Yes, kill her." Sakura raised her eyes, looking up at Naruto. "Would you feel sorry for her?"

Naruto understood that "she" likely referred to Pink Sakura. Did the Second Personality want to kill the Main Personality? Well, that wasn't impossible.

He didn't want to hide anymore; he wanted to find out what had happened.

"No," he said without changing his expression.

"Really?" Sakura's eyes narrowed into slits. "So I'm really going to do it? You'll never see that familiar her again."

"It doesn't matter." Naruto's heart skipped a beat; he was nervous.

It's not because I'm indecisive, but because this is a difficult choice to make. But since they are familiar people, it's impossible not to have any emotional fluctuations.

"I was just kidding." A smile suddenly appeared on her face. "I can't touch her, and she doesn't even know I exist. To her, it's probably just like she took a nap."

"Isn't it ironic? I haven't slept for a whole year, and my mind is perfectly clear."

Naruto showed no surprise in his eyes, simply gazing at her calmly. He turned to the side, revealing half of Sakura's body in the light.

"Insomnia? That's quite serious." Naruto reached for the table and placed his hand on the documents. "I'd like to know something."

"Her?" Sakura's smile remained unchanged.

"No." Naruto shook his head. "I sleep very well. I spend most of the day lying in bed sleeping, so I'm sorry I can't empathize with you."

His hand, which was resting on the desktop documents, slowly crawled forward inch by inch, like a slowly growing green tree, his well-defined fingers gradually moving towards the other end.

"But I wonder what people think about when they have insomnia? Do they get up to go downstairs to eat, or do they want to go for a walk? Do they go to see the stars in the summer? Do they go out to see the snow on a winter night?"

"I don't know, I... I've never done that before." Sakura was somewhat surprised, her hands clenched.

She originally thought Naruto would ask some old-fashioned questions, such as what's wrong with you? Why would you think that way? No matter who it is, they are all equally important to me.

She never expected him to ask that question, so she began to think carefully.

"My parents are asleep. Sometimes I stand in the kitchen for a while, and sometimes I look through old photo albums. Most of the time, I close my eyes like a normal person."

"Let's do something a little different every now and then." Naruto raised his hand in an invitation, his gaze indifferent, as if he were talking about something very ordinary.

"Let's go out for a walk and look at the stars."