Main Quest Begins

The researcher turned around upon hearing the noise behind him.

"Lord Danzo." Seeing who had arrived, the other party hurriedly bowed.

"I have brought you what you wanted, though the situation is a bit unexpected." Danzo did not waste words and directly produced the item in his hand.

The other party took it, looking at the object with some confusion, not quite understanding what Danzo meant by giving him this.

A look of doubt was cast toward Danzo.

"This is the blood of the jinchuriki, Naruto Uzumaki." Danzo did not mince words and stated the answer directly.

"Lord Danzo, are you certain this is blood?" The researcher clearly found it hard to believe, his arm trembling slightly.

The substance inside rolled back and forth; it looked nothing like blood.

Danzo did not know how to explain it, so he simply told the man to study it first.

Back on Naruto's side, after he brought the hunted wild boar into the village, everyone cheered and offered praise.

In the end, the village chief invited everyone to stay for a meal, but Naruto and his team refused directly.

The four of them returned to the village.

The reward for this mission was higher than the previous ones, making one realize that to make money, one had to leave the village.

"Rest for two days. I have a mission tomorrow, so you all train on your own. Gather at the Hokage Building in two days." Before the three who had just split the reward could leave, Kakashi spoke up.

As an elite jonin, he had his own missions to attend to.

Should have been like this long ago; those trash missions were annoying as hell, the Second Pillar thought to himself.

"Alright, then we'll train on our own." Naruto nodded helplessly; it didn't matter to him either way.

Hinata stood behind Naruto, nodding slightly without saying a word.

Kakashi vanished using the Body Flicker Technique.

In the Hyuga compound, early in the morning, Hinata was already practicing the Gentle Fist against a wooden stake in the courtyard.

I must keep up with Naruto's pace. Having finally been placed on the same team as Naruto, Hinata cherished the opportunity.

In a window far away, Hyuga Hiashi stood there, his brow furrowed.

"What is wrong with Hinata?" Hiashi asked softly.

"Reporting to you, my lord..." A person behind him whispered the situation from yesterday to Hiashi.

Hiashi frowned. He should have been happy that Hinata had started working hard, but if this was all for the sake of a boy, could a father really be pleased?

Especially now, as Hinata's small hands had already been beaten until they were wounded. Crimson blood stained the wooden stake.

Hiashi's hands could not help but tighten around the railing.

His inner thoughts were fully reflected on his face, and the person behind him retreated silently.

Sigh! I shouldn't have agreed to it.

Hiashi felt some regret for agreeing to the Third Hokage's conditions.

Looking calm on the surface, he stood there, though no one knew how long he had been watching.

As for Hinata, she was still practicing with all her might.

On Naruto's side, he found it somewhat unexpected not to see little Hinata come over.

He walked onto the street and found a random place to buy something to eat. Perhaps it was because Danzo had been much quieter lately; although the looks people on the street gave him were still as detestable as ever, no one voiced their thoughts aloud.

After buying his food, he left the street and went to his usual spot to continue training.

His Shadow Clones began to train, while his original body began to think.

Human imagination is always more important than raw strength.

I need to liberate the Nine-Tails as soon as possible. I wonder how long until the Chunin Exams? Naruto no longer knew the exact date of the Chunin Exams, but he did know the timeline following the mission in the Land of Waves.

When the time comes, I can devour the One-Tail, Shukaku. The One-Tail's abilities seemed quite numerous: sealing, Wind Release, and Magnet Release. If one spoke solely of combat power, the One-Tail was actually quite decent; it was just that its chakra was a bit low, making it appear weak.

Thinking of the Tailed Beasts' abilities, Naruto couldn't help but think of the others. Every Tailed Beast had unique powers, and these abilities were quite good. Naruto had his eye on them, and if he absorbed the chakra of all the Tailed Beasts, it was possible he could obtain the power of the Sage of Six Paths.

The Akatsuki would begin capturing the Tailed Beasts in three years; he had to find a way to devour their chakra before then.

Shadow Clones are still not enough. If only I could use Wood Clones. I remember the Second Tsuchikage seemed capable of splitting himself; that was a true clone. I wonder if I can get my hands on that. Especially when thinking of the Second Tsuchikage's division technique—that was truly splitting into two people. Such an ability was perfect for him.

He had to find a way to obtain that secret technique.

He closed his eyes and began to ponder, trying to awaken his own Wood Release.

Naruto began to research Wood Release—or rather, his Shadow Clones began the research, starting with the fusion of water and earth.

Naruto himself began searching for the Asura chakra within his body to see if he could find any information regarding Wood Release from it.

He did not know how much time had passed, but Naruto finally found that trace of special chakra in his mind.

It is only chakra, with no soul. After sensing it, Naruto couldn't help but frown. Were Asura and Indra truly dead?

This question was what Naruto was most curious about.

In the original story, the Sage of Six Paths existed as a soul, and he was in the Pure Land.

If Madara Uchiha could be resurrected, why couldn't the Sage of Six Paths?

"Are you running away?" The Ninja World seemed to have many enemies; the Otsutsuki, the Evil God, and demons like Moryo were all coveting the Ninja World.

Therefore, no one knew whether the Sage of Six Paths was good or evil.

Staring at this peculiar chakra, Naruto couldn't help but begin to hesitate.

If he were to devour it, he wondered if the Sage of Six Paths would notice.

To the Sage of Six Paths, neither Naruto nor Hashirama were his sons; what truly concerned him was the chakra before him.

He didn't know how long he hesitated, but Naruto still hadn't fully devoured this wisp of chakra, unsure of what the consequences might be.

Two days passed by in a flash.

The three of them gathered at the Hokage Building once again.

This time, the three of them did not pick up missions on the first floor.

"Kakashi-sensei, what are we doing here?" Although Naruto knew it was likely that mission, he couldn't help but ask.

"We're going to find the Hokage-sama to take on a more difficult mission." By the time he finished speaking, the group had already arrived outside the Hokage's office.

The eyes of all three lit up, especially Hinata's; as a member of the main branch, she was not allowed to leave the ninja village unless necessary.

"Third Hokage-sama." Kakashi greeted him.

"Third Hokage-sama." Hinata and the others greeted him.

"Hokage-gramps." Naruto greeted him.

"Hmm, you've arrived. There is a mission here suitable for you that needs to be completed." The Third said, picking up a mission scroll and beginning to introduce it to them.

Naruto wasn't listening; from the moment he walked in, he had noticed a peculiar old man holding a sake bottle, looking quite drunk.

The old man secretly sized up the group upon their arrival. When he saw Naruto and the others, a flash of disappointment crossed his eyes, but when he saw Kakashi, a hint of joy appeared—he clearly recognized Kakashi.

"Hokage-sama, sending a few brats, is this reliable? I've heard there are many bandits in the Land of Fire; do they have the strength to protect me?"