I chewed on a dry leaf and rolled my eyes at the ANBU girl.
"I already wrote my resignation letter and left it on the Naruto's desk. I'm not lying."
The ANBU girl was just about to speak when the ground beneath our feet suddenly jolted.
Rumble.
A thunderous, earthshaking roar came from the woods northwest of Small Town.
The sound was so deep that my ankles went numb from the vibration.
Black smoke suddenly billowed across the clear sky in the distance.
"Lord Sen! Look over there! Explosive Tags are going off!"
The ANBU girl pointed northwest, her face draining of color.
I spat out the shredded leaf and gave an irritated snort.
"Great. Can't even get a decent sleep first thing in the morning. They just have to make me lose my shit."
A strange roar rode the wind, deep and heavy, carrying a thick stench of decay.
That was the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path.
Apparently, Nagato had let loose his last-resort hunk of iron before making his escape.
"Sen! We've got trouble! Nagato summoned that stone monster!"
Tsunade's hurried voice drifted over Small Town through a voice-amplifying ninjutsu.
"That thing's going to destroy the village completely! Get over here and help!"
I sighed and casually rolled my neck.
Crack, crack.
"Lady, what happened to that mountain-smashing strength of yours? You can't even break apart a stone statue?"
I shouted back as I slipped both hands into my pockets again.
Despite my complaints, I knew the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path was beyond her.
That thing was enormous and tough as nails. If it went berserk, it could trample everything for miles into mud.
"Well, looks like I won't be getting any of Old Man's booze."
I drew a deep breath. The morning sun shone