Belonging

This scene was truly stimulating. To be fair, this was the first time Uchiha Gen had seen a severed human head at such close range.

Noticing someone watching him, Kakuzu turned his head toward Uchiha Gen. Finding him masked, he frowned slightly and checked his bounty list, but found no one matching his description. Having collected his money, he felt a bit disappointed and prepared to leave, casually accepting the target Uchiha Gen had just been eyeing—it was nearby and convenient, after all.

Uchiha Gen didn't say much about this; he could just pick another one. However, upon looking again, he realized that all the nearby, high-bounty targets had already been claimed by Kakuzu.

What remained were targets that were far away, paid poorly, and were experts at hiding.

"..."

Uchiha Gen pondered life for a moment and made a decision: why do missions when you can just rob someone? Once Kakuzu finished his tasks, wouldn't it be better to just rob him?

Hmm—the Akatsuki shouldn't be short on funds, right? After all, compared to the 600 billion Explosive Tags in the future, this should be a drop in the bucket. Decision made.

At the Konoha training ground, the entirety of Team 7 was present. Because of Naruto, and considering they were practically kin, Karin had been entrusted to Kakashi's care, so she was there watching the duel between Sasuke and Naruto.

This sparring match had been initiated by Sasuke, and Naruto, without much thought, had happily agreed. At the training ground, Naruto rubbed his nose and chuckled, looking as if victory were already in his grasp. "Sasuke, whoever loses has to treat everyone to barbecue! No backing out!" The reason it wasn't ramen was that everyone wanted a change of pace; after some protesting, they had successfully switched to barbecue.

"Hmph, don't get cocky, loser. It's not decided yet who will win!" Sasuke flashed a confident smile, a far cry from the "don't touch me" vibe he'd had in recent days.

Sakura immediately became infatuated, hearts appearing in her eyes. "Sasuke is so cool~"

Karin nodded in agreement, her cheeks flushing slightly, though not as exaggeratedly as Sakura's.

Seeing this, Naruto curled his lip, imagining himself kicking Sasuke away in his mind, with Sakura praising his coolness and Karin looking at him with admiration. His mood instantly improved, and he set his stance, ready to show off in front of Sakura.

However, imagination is beautiful, but reality is harsh. Two minutes later, Naruto was quickly kicked flying by Sasuke...

Just as Naruto was about to charge back in, he was stopped by Kakashi. "That's enough, Naruto. Sasuke already held back just now; if this were a real battlefield, you would be dead."

"But, but..." After "butting" for a long time, Naruto couldn't come up with a reason. Just yesterday, he had won against Sasuke once; how could Sasuke have become this strong overnight?

Sasuke, looking cool as ever, extended his hand in the "Seal of Reconciliation" gesture that followed a battle.

With his cheeks puffed out and under Kakashi's guidance, Naruto reluctantly performed the "Seal of Reconciliation." Sakura, meanwhile, looked as if she had expected Sasuke to be the strongest all along.

Naruto clenched his fists, feeling aggrieved: Damn it, I clearly won against Sasuke once before, but Sakura wasn't there to see it. At the thought of this, Naruto was instantly shrouded in a halo of gloom.

Kakashi asked Sasuke, "If I'm not mistaken, your Sharingan just awakened the Three-Tomoe, is that right?"

Sasuke nodded.

"Did something happen?"

"Nothing. I guess it just happened naturally."

Kakashi: "..."

Karin looked at Sasuke's red eyes, which were somewhat similar to her own, and suddenly felt curious. She raised her hand and asked, "Kakashi-sensei, is the Three-Tomoe very strong?"

"Ah, you could say that. However, the Three-Tomoe usually awakens after experiencing some significant trauma. As for strength, let's put it this way: with the Three-Tomoe and Sasuke's current level, if he practices a bit more, he will soon reach the level of a Jonin."

"!" Naruto was shocked. "Kakashi-sensei, are you serious? A Jonin?!"

"Yes." That was why Kakashi felt Sasuke must have encountered something, but since Sasuke wouldn't say, there was nothing he could do.

Karin stared blankly at Sasuke upon hearing this. So strong. A Jonin at this age—is this the genius of the Uchiha clan?

"Naruto~ remember what you said?" Sakura asked with a smile.

"..." Naruto resignedly fished out his frog wallet. Barbecue was incredibly expensive, and thinking about how flat it would be afterward made his heart bleed.

Seeing Naruto's pained expression, Karin thought for a moment and said earnestly, "How about I help Naruto pay? My treat today!"

Naruto jumped up in a panic. "That won't do! A bet is a bet. I have money, take it." With that, he shoved the wallet into Kakashi's hand. Karin had suffered enough in Kusagakure; as her big brother, how could he let her pay?

However, the next moment, Kakashi counted the money in the wallet and dealt a ruthless blow. "There are five of us here, and there's only a little over 2,000 ryo in this wallet. If we're eating barbecue, we'd each only get one piece."

"Kakashi-sensei, it's fine. I'll pay for the extra part. Reikawa-nii left me 100,000 ryo for living expenses, so there's no need to worry at all." Having accepted them over these past few days, Karin was happy to have a chance to help, hoping it would help her integrate into this group quickly.

"..." Naruto wanted to say no, but that was just too rich!! Coupled with the blow of his recent defeat, he looked even more dejected.

Seeing this, Karin couldn't help but laugh. "It's not for free. Just pay me back when you have money."

Hearing this, Naruto's spirits lifted. "Don't worry, I'll definitely pay you back."

Watching Naruto, Karin's gaze softened. He's really like a little sun. It seems like no matter what happens, he can stay so positive. Coming to Konoha felt like a dream; she had truly escaped her nightmare. At this thought, she subconsciously hid her hand behind her back.

Because she had been paying attention, Sakura keenly noticed her movement. She wanted to say something, but held her tongue. Wait a little longer. If things go well tomorrow, I can start helping Karin treat the bite marks on her body.

Previously, Uzumaki Reikawa had wanted to ask Tsunade to help remove the bite marks, but when they first returned, Karin had fallen asleep from exhaustion. Later, because she was a bit shy, it had been delayed again and again until now.

By the time they finished the barbecue and dispersed, Karin still seemed a bit reluctant to leave, while Sasuke called Naruto aside. He felt it was better to tell Naruto and let him make his own decision.

After walking a distance with Sasuke, Naruto rubbed his round belly and said in a good mood, "Sasuke, this should be far enough, right? What's up?"

Sasuke said in a calm tone, "Naruto, I think I know who your parents are..."