The woman who suddenly appeared

Naruto Uzumaki stood frozen in place, staring blankly at the two-hundred-meter-tall giant summoned by Kanami.

Seeing Naruto's terrified expression, Kanami raised his hand and released the Wood Human Technique.

It's obvious that Naruto Uzumaki's will to fight has been destroyed; he no longer has any desire to compete.

"Hey, Naruto? Haven't you recovered yet?"

Kanami waved at Naruto Uzumaki.

Naruto Uzumaki didn't react for a long time, but finally his eyes moved.

"You... I... I'm not playing anymore!"

Naruto Uzumaki shouted and lay back down.

At this moment, Naruto no longer possessed the confidence he had when he first activated Sage Mode; he had completely merged with his previous normal self.

"The sky is so white, the clouds are so blue..."

Looking at the bright sky, he felt much better.

Seeing that Naruto had canceled Sage Mode, Kanami also immediately exited Sage Mode.

I was hoping to have a match with them, but we didn't even exchange a single move.

When Kanami saw Naruto lying on the ground, he didn't leave immediately, but instead sat down next to him.

"..."

After a long while, Naruto Uzumaki suddenly turned his head and looked at Kanami: "Kanami, why are you so strong?"

He couldn't understand it at all. They were both in Sage Mode, so why was the other able to pilot a Gundam?

He can only enhance his ninjutsu, taijutsu, and genjutsu; he doesn't have any corresponding special techniques.

"Of course, it's due to my own perseverance..."

"Stop, you'd better not say anymore. Saying that will only hurt me more."

Naruto Uzumaki gestured for Kanami to stop talking.

He felt he had tried his best, but he still couldn't catch up to even a hair on Kanami's head.

He had already suffered a great blow today, and he would rather Kanami say that he was a genius, which was why he was so strong.

This way he'd feel a little better, at least he was working harder than Kanami.

But Kanami's claim that she achieved her current success through perseverance and hard work only made her more frustrated. She couldn't match the other person's strength, and she couldn't even match their effort!

Kanami changed the subject abruptly. "Actually, if I could, I wouldn't want to become stronger. I'm not a particularly hardworking person, but sometimes, you can't afford not to try."

Why do you say that?

Naruto rolled over and asked curiously.

"Tell me, if the sun were to fall, what would you do to survive?"

"The sun... fell down?"

Naruto murmured softly.

After pondering for a long time, he crossed his arms behind his head, grinned, and said, "I don't know. I feel like I can't go on living. I'll just have to fall down and see what happens."

"Yeah, we'll see what happens when it falls."

Kanami paused for a moment, stood up, and dusted himself off. "I saw the sun about to set. To survive, I have no choice but to try."

"What?!" Naruto sat bolt upright. "The sun is going to fall down?!"

"Really?!"

"..."

??

Where are they??

Naruto Uzumaki looked around and realized that Kanami was no longer by his side.

The sun is setting...

Kanami was probably just joking, right?

He scratched his head, then lay back down.

Looking at the sky, he gradually closed his eyes.

Meanwhile, Kanami had already used the Flying Thunder God Technique to return to his home.

"You're back? Wash your hands and eat."

Hinata Hyuga had already cooked the meal inside the house.

"Okay." Kanami nodded and went to wash up.

Several tens of minutes later, Kanami and Hinata finished their meal.

Kanami looked at Hinata and said, "Hinata, I have something to tell you."

"You say."

Hinata cleared the table of dishes.

"Akatsuki and Cloud Village have joined forces."

"They've joined forces?"

Hinata countered with a question.

"Right."

Kanami simply told Hinata everything Tsunade had said.

Hinata nodded thoughtfully upon hearing this. "Their cooperation doesn't seem to pose much of a threat to our village, otherwise they wouldn't have attacked Mist Village."

Kanami nodded. "It's precisely because of their matter that I need to go out."

"Going out? You're going to find Xiao?"

Hinata glanced sideways, a worried look appearing on her face.

"You just killed their members in Takigakure; it's dangerous to go looking for them now."

"I know I'm not going to see Xiao this time, but this trip is related to them, and I wanted to let you know so you wouldn't worry."

Kanami responded.

"Could you tell me what you're going there to do?"

"Go to Sound Village to find Orochimaru."

Kanami told Hinata the purpose of his trip.

"Looking for Orochimaru??"

Hinata was puzzled.

What is the connection between the Akatsuki Organization's cooperation with Iwagakure and Orochimaru?

Kanami: "As long as Akatsuki still wants to collect the Tailed Beast, they will definitely choose to attack our village, since our village currently possesses three Tailed Beast."

"It was inevitable no matter what."

"However, judging from the current situation, they don't have a completely certain victory in their attack against us, and they might even be annihilated by us if they make a wrong move."

"Orochimaru, a former member of Akatsuki Organization, has always been researching many Forbidden Jutsu and is at odds with Konoha, so it's very likely that we'll seek cooperation with Orochimaru."

"Oh, I see." Hinata nodded, somewhat understanding.

"Go if you want, but be careful."

Hinata didn't ask to go along this time. Kanami had basically single-handedly defeated opponents like Otsutsuki Toneri. There were very few people in the Shinobi World who could threaten Kanami.

She has nothing to worry about anymore.

And she didn't want to appear as if she was always trying to control Kanami.

"Okay, I'll be fine."

After Kanami finished speaking, he instantly disappeared from the spot.

They reappeared after leaving Konoha Village.

Who is it?!

The two people who were slacking off at the village entrance, Mizuki Izumo and Kotetsu Hagane, sensed someone appearing in front of them and immediately asked warily.

They recognized Kanami instantly when they saw the red hair.

"Oh, it's you. It's alright then. You don't need to register, please feel free. Let's continue playing, Izumo."

Kotetsu Hagane called out to Mizuki Izumo beside him.

The two were playing cards in a house at the Village Entrance.

Thanks.

Kanami didn't disturb them. After thanking them, he continued to use the Flying Thunder God Technique.

Swish swish swish--

Several beams of light flashed, and within minutes Kanami appeared at the border of the Land of Fire.

After teleporting all the way to the furthest Flying Thunder God Formula, Kanami used the Body Flicker Technique to begin his journey towards Sound Village.

With the current amount of Chakra to Kanami, there's absolutely no need to worry about saving it. He can use it thousands of times a day without any problem, and that's for long-distance teleportation.

Therefore, the journey that usually takes two or three days was completed in just half a day, and he arrived at Sound Village in no time.

Upon entering the village, before he could even locate Orochimaru's Secret Base according to his memory, someone jumped out.

"Who are you? Who gave you permission to come to Sound Village?"

As soon as he finished speaking, a woman with a neatly tied hairstyle blocked Kanami's path.

Kanami recognized the woman in front of him at a glance. "It's you? Orochimaru couldn't wait for Sasuke, so he brought you back?"