You Can't Stop Me

"Sorry to keep you waiting." Teuchi's voice pulled Naruto out of his memories.

The fragrant aroma of ramen made Naruto's mouth water.

"I'm digging in," he said, then began wolfing it down.

Meanwhile, after Naruto left,

Sasuke spent another half hour electrocuting the tree before finally stopping.

His Chakra reserves ultimately couldn't compare to Naruto's, that monster who seemingly had no idea what Chakra exhaustion was.

"It's about time I went home," Sasuke muttered.

With both his stamina and Chakra nearly depleted, he briefly packed up his things and headed home at an unhurried pace.

He would go home, get some proper rest, and train again tomorrow.

Although Sasuke wasn't moving quickly, the training ground wasn't far from the Uchiha Clan Grounds.

Before long, Sasuke arrived at the entrance to the clan grounds.

"The clan grounds are a little quiet today."

Sasuke found it strange, but he didn't think much of it.

After all, this was the Uchiha Clan Grounds, guarded by numerous powerful people. Nothing could possibly happen here. Maybe there was some kind of gathering at the Shrine?

The clan members had been gathering frequently over the past year or two.

This time was probably the same.

Sasuke continued toward home. He was already starving. Although he had eaten earlier, he decided to have a late-night snack before bed to replenish his strength.

But Sasuke failed to notice that a figure was silently watching him from the utility pole behind him.

"Thanks for the meal."

After finishing his ramen, Naruto drank the remaining broth in one gulp and spoke with satisfaction.

"Naruto, something's wrong. I sense an evil presence. It feels very much like the force that controlled me nearly eight years ago. The intensity of that Pupil Power is exactly the same, and many other Sharingan powers are flaring up as well."

Naruto had just paid and stepped out of Ichiraku Ramen when Kurama's grave voice sounded in his ear.

As Naruto sank a sliver of his consciousness into the Sealing Space, he found that Kurama had even stopped watching television. He was staring in a certain direction, his expression extremely solemn.

"That direction is the Uchiha Clan Grounds!"

Naruto's face changed drastically as he followed Kurama's gaze.

That direction was close to Naruto's usual training ground, and a little farther to the side lay the Uchiha Clan Grounds.

Naruto had heard Kurama say that eight years ago, he attacked Konoha because a mysterious Masked Man had controlled him with a Mangekyō Sharingan. That man possessed extremely powerful strength.

That confirmed enemy had now appeared in Konoha again, at the Uchiha Clan Grounds.

"The Uchiha are in danger. I hope Sasuke hasn't gone back yet."

Without hesitation, Naruto pushed the Chakra he used to control airflow to its limit. An extraordinary gale wrapped around him, propelling him toward his training ground at a speed beyond his limits.

He was moving so fast that his feet had left the ground, entering a state of low-altitude flight.

Because his control was too crude, sand and stones flew everywhere along the way, while roaring winds howled all around him.

"Naruto, if you don't find Sasuke at the training ground, I don't recommend going to the Uchiha Clan Grounds. I told you before that the Sharingan's power restrains me.

With my power, you may not be able to save your friend. You could even get yourself trapped in this. I don't want you to die."

Kurama watched Naruto's actions and earnestly tried to persuade him.

To Kurama, Naruto was the only human he had acknowledged since the Sage of Six Paths died a thousand years ago. He hoped Naruto could keep him company a while longer instead of dying so young.

If Kurama died, he could still revive. But if Naruto died, he would truly be dead.

"You also said that the Eight Trigrams Sealing in my body protects you. The seal makes it harder for the Sharingan to control you. You were so easily controlled before because the seal inside the previous Jinchuriki had weakened.

My strength isn't weak anymore, especially with the power you gave me.

To forcefully control both of us at once with Genjutsu, he would need at least the Pupil Power of an Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan. That Masked Man's Pupil Power shouldn't be that strong.

Don't worry. If the situation gets dangerous, I'll prioritize protecting myself. Then you can activate my Golden Body and put me in Kurama Chakra Mode. I'll bombard him from afar with Tailed Beast Balls."

Although Naruto was worried about Sasuke's safety, he had not lost his reason.

Hearing Naruto say that, Kurama relaxed considerably.

"I should learn a new sensing ability. Your Evil Intent Sensing is useful, Kurama, but it isn't comprehensive enough. If you could see into the distance like the Byakugan, I wouldn't have to come all the way to the training ground to confirm whether Sasuke was here."

As he hurried onward, Naruto discovered one of his weaknesses and began thinking of how to make up for it.

A moment later, Naruto arrived at his usual training spot.

As expected, Sasuke was nowhere to be seen.

Just as he was about to leave and head toward the Uchiha Clan Grounds, the sound of air splitting rang out around him.

Whoosh.

More than a dozen masked Anbu ninja appeared around Naruto, completely surrounding him.

"Something unusual has happened. The entire village is under emergency lockdown. Go home immediately, and do not wander around before dawn." One Anbu who appeared to be a squad captain stepped forward and coldly issued Naruto an order.

Because of the special circumstances, the number of Anbu assigned to follow Naruto today in case of accidents had reached four squads.

They had originally seen Naruto finish his daily training and eat a bowl of ramen at Ichiraku Ramen before preparing to go home, and they had breathed a sigh of relief that nothing unexpected had happened.

Then, in the blink of an eye, Naruto flew away on a raging wind.

Fortunately, those Anbu reacted quickly. They notified their comrades stationed near the Uchiha Clan Grounds to intercept Naruto and prevent the Jinchuriki from approaching the Uchiha Clan Grounds, where an unpredictable incident might occur.

"Have you seen my friend, Sasuke Uchiha?" Naruto asked.

"He went home. He's safe now," the Anbu said without hesitation, blatantly lying.

Sasuke had indeed gone home. As for whether he was safe, that was another matter.

Whoosh.

A series of air-splitting sounds rang out again. Taking advantage of the brief exchange, the four Anbu squads that had been following Naruto caught up as well.

In an instant, a total of thirty-two Anbu surrounded Naruto so tightly that not even water could pass through.

"I'm going to find Sasuke. Don't try to stop me. You can't," Naruto said, unwilling to waste time with them as he turned to leave.

"Take him down," the squad captain ordered.

At once, two Anbu lunged at Naruto while more began preparing restraining ninjutsu.

"I told you, you can't stop me."

The next moment, Naruto vanished from everyone's sight.