Hero Saves the Damsel (Please Vote! Please Keep Reading!)

After Rogge left, Hiruzen Sarutobi sat in his office, lost in thought.

"The assassination target was actually Rogge!"

"Looks like some people in the village can no longer hold themselves back."

Hiruzen Sarutobi narrowed his eyes, a sharp glint flashing across his face.

"Although Rogge killing Uchiha Shimizu was covered up, his outstanding performance in taking first place in the clan ranking tournament was indeed enough to make ninja from other villages come and assassinate him."

"But why did that assassin deliberately disguise himself as Kushina? Could someone have already guessed that Kushina is the next generation's Nine-Tails jinchuriki?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi's brows furrowed tightly.

Mito Uzumaki was the First Hokage's wife and Konoha's first Nine-Tails jinchuriki. She was now nearing the end of her life.

Kushina Uzumaki had come to Konoha Hidden Village as the next Nine-Tails jinchuriki, but aside from Konoha's higher-ups, ordinary ninja knew nothing about it.

However, that did not guarantee that spies from other ninja villages could not figure it out. After all, they only needed to make certain deductions based on Kushina's apparent identity as a member of the Uzumaki Clan.

As everyone knew, members of the Uzumaki Clan were exceptionally suited to becoming jinchuriki of the Tailed Beasts!

Rogge walked home.

His steps were somewhat heavy, his mind filled with countless thoughts.

Recently, one incident after another had come crashing down on him, and the Second Shinobi World War was drawing near.

Rogge could not help recalling his fierce battle with Matsuda Shinya. That assassination attempt had made him realize that he had become a target of other ninja villages.

And Leaf Village itself did not seem peaceful either. Underneath the surface, the various factions were stirring.

Thinking of this, concern for Kushina rose in Rogge's heart.

Kushina held a special place in his heart. Her kindness, optimism, and strength all made Rogge fond of her.

During such turbulent times, Rogge feared that Kushina might encounter danger.

After all, she was too weak.

So, he decided to visit Kushina and make sure she was safe.

With concern in his heart, Rogge arrived at Kushina's residence.

He stood at the door and knocked gently, but there was no response from inside.

A trace of unease rose in Rogge's heart. He knocked again, but still received no answer.

He hesitated for a moment, then slowly pushed open the door.

The room was silent. Sunlight streamed through the window and spilled across the floor, but Kushina was nowhere to be seen.

Rogge's heartbeat involuntarily sped up as a sense of dread instantly surged through him.

In the original manga, Kushina had once been kidnapped by three Hidden Cloud Village chunin, and Minato Namikaze had rescued her.

But with Rogge's appearance, Kushina and Minato Namikaze were only casual acquaintances.

The original plot had already been changed by Rogge!

Thinking of this, Rogge hurried into the house and searched it carefully.

The room was neat and clean, with no signs of a struggle, but Kushina truly was not home.

Rogge frowned, his heart full of confusion.

Where could Kushina have gone?

He tried hard to recall the places Kushina usually visited. Had she gone to the training grounds?

Or perhaps she had gone to visit a friend?

Rogge decided to check the training grounds first.

He left Kushina's residence and headed toward the training grounds.

Upon arriving, Rogge searched everywhere for Kushina, but did not see her.

He went to several other places Kushina often visited, but still could not find her.

Helplessly, he walked while pondering where Kushina might have gone, his worry growing stronger by the moment.

Could Kushina have been called away on a mission by Leaf Village?

But if it were a mission, Kushina should have informed him beforehand.

Or had she run into some trouble and been taken hostage?

The more Rogge thought about it, the more uneasy he became.

By evening, the afterglow of the setting sun spread across the land, dyeing the entire world in a golden radiance.

As Rogge passed through a forest, he unexpectedly sensed Kushina's presence with Observation Haki.

Joy rose in his heart. He immediately stopped, focused his mind, and carefully felt for Kushina's presence.

Kushina's presence was weak, yet distinct.

Rogge could feel her fear and unease, making his heart clench at once.

He looked in the direction of that presence and saw several figures moving faintly among the depths of the trees.

Rogge's gaze turned sharp. He quietly approached, wanting to see what was going on.

As he drew closer, Rogge could sense Kushina's presence more clearly. At the same time, he detected three other unfamiliar and powerful presences beside her.

And they were heading away from Konoha Hidden Village.

Rogge immediately sensed that something was wrong and concluded that Kushina had been kidnapped.

His fury instantly ignited, filling his heart with rage.

"Damn it, you dare lay a hand on my woman!"

Rogge stopped and hid behind a tree, observing their movements.

The three unfamiliar figures were all tall men. They wore the ninja attire of Hidden Cloud Village, their faces cold and expressionless.

Kushina was trapped between them, her hands bound, her eyes filled with fear.

Once Rogge realized Kushina had been kidnapped, his gaze instantly became incomparably sharp.

Without hesitation, he rushed out, moving as swiftly as lightning.

Using the Body Flicker Technique at extreme speed, Rogge appeared before the three Hidden Cloud Village ninja almost instantly.

The three ninja only saw a blur before their eyes. Before they could react, Rogge had already launched his attack.

Rogge's fist carried tremendous power as it blasted toward one of the ninja like a cannonball.

The ninja's eyes widened in terror as he tried to dodge, but Rogge was simply too fast.

The fist slammed brutally into his face, and the powerful impact knocked him unconscious on the spot.

Next, Rogge spun into a side kick aimed at another ninja.

That ninja hurriedly raised his arms to block, but how could he possibly withstand Rogge's strength?

With one kick, the ninja flew away like a kite with its string cut, crashing heavily onto the ground and losing consciousness as well.

Seeing this, the last ninja was terrified. Just as he turned to flee, Rogge appeared behind him in an instant and struck the back of his neck with a hand chop. The ninja went limp and collapsed.

Rogge instantly appeared beside Kushina, his eyes filled with concern.

Kushina looked at Rogge, who had suddenly appeared before her, tears of joy glimmering in her eyes.

"Rogge..." Kushina's voice trembled slightly.

Rogge quickly untied the ropes around Kushina's hands and pulled her tightly into his embrace.

"Don't be afraid. As long as I'm here, no one can hurt you." Rogge's voice was gentle.

In Rogge's arms, Kushina felt an unprecedented sense of security.

Her body trembled slightly as the fear in her heart gradually faded.

"Rogge, I was so scared." Kushina's voice was choked with tears.

Rogge gently stroked her hair and comforted her. "It's all right now. It's over. I won't let anyone hurt you again."

Rogge released Kushina and looked coldly at the three unconscious Hidden Cloud Village ninja on the ground.

He knew this kidnapping was no coincidence.

The fact that Hidden Cloud Village had dared to make a move against Kushina at such a time meant there had to be a deeper plot behind it.

After pondering briefly, Rogge decided to take Kushina back to Leaf Village first and report the matter to Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi.

He picked Kushina up again and used the Body Flicker Technique, racing toward Leaf Village.

Along the way, Kushina nestled tightly in Rogge's arms, her heart filled with emotion.

"Rogge, you have to stay with me forever," Kushina said softly.

Rogge looked at her tenderly. "Don't worry. I'll always be by your side."

After returning to Leaf Village, Rogge took Kushina straight to the Hokage's Office.

When Hiruzen Sarutobi saw Rogge and Kushina's condition, he had already roughly guessed what had happened.

"What happened?" Hiruzen Sarutobi asked.

Rogge recounted the entire incident in detail.

After listening, Hiruzen Sarutobi's brows furrowed tightly.

He knew that Hidden Cloud Village's actions might signal the early outbreak of the Second Shinobi World War.

"This matter is very serious. We must strengthen the village's defenses," Hiruzen Sarutobi said.

Rogge nodded. "Lord Hokage, I think we should investigate Hidden Cloud Village's actions and find out their objective. At the same time, we need to strengthen Kushina's protection. She may be Hidden Cloud Village's next target."

Hiruzen Sarutobi agreed.

He immediately arranged for ANBU members to investigate Hidden Cloud Village's actions while also strengthening the measures protecting Kushina.

"Godfather, I'll send the three captured ninja from the other village to ANBU shortly and hand them over to Captain Tiger."

"Good!"

"Then, Godfather, I'll take Kushina home first."

"Go."

"Farewell."

Rogge left the Hokage's Office with Kushina.

They walked together through the streets of Leaf Village.

"Rogge, thank you," Kushina said.

Rogge looked at Kushina and smiled. "No need to thank me. You're the most important person to me, and I'll always protect you."

After safely escorting Kushina home, Rogge used the Flying Thunder God Technique to return to the site where he had saved the damsel. He found that the three enemies were still lying where they had fallen, unconscious.

A cold glint flashed across Rogge's face. He walked over and used the Flying Thunder God Technique to bring the three enemies back to Konoha Hidden Village's ANBU base.

"Captain, these are the Hidden Cloud Village ninja who kidnapped Kushina." Rogge handed the three captives directly to his immediate superior, the ANBU squad captain Tiger, for personal interrogation.

Tiger looked at the three unconscious Hidden Cloud Village ninja and was astonished by Rogge's strength.

After all, capturing enemies alive was always more difficult than simply killing them!

"Leave it to me. I'll pry their mouths open." Tiger nodded and quickly took the three ninja to the interrogation room to begin questioning them.