After Naruto saw Gaara put away Kunai, he handed over a scroll.
"This is the key to unlocking the seal."
"When you have the ability to completely suppress Shukaku's will to hate, you can use it to unlock the seal I reinforced."
"But before that, chat more with Shukaku."
"It hasn't been treated well for hundreds of years, so it's normal for it to have a bad temper."
"You can try to think of it as a partner rather than a prisoner."
"Become a partner with a Tailed Beast?"
Gaara repeated this sentence in a low voice.
Sealing Space
Nine-Tails slowly opened his eyes.
"Friend... partner?"
Nine-Tails whispered, "What kind of person are you, Naruto Uzumaki."
At this moment, Sasuke woke up.
He stood up and rubbed the back of his neck, and it took him a few seconds to calm down.
Then I saw Naruto and Gaara sitting next to each other and chatting.
"Naruto What is going on?"
"Knock me out and sit here talking to this guy?"
"Aren't we chasing him?"
Naruto said hello to Sasuke: "Sasuke, you're awake."
"It's all over, relax."
"The war is over, and now there is a temporary post-war ceasefire."
"What?"
Sasuke's expression changed from confusion to irritation.
But he couldn't see any trace of joking in Naruto's eyes.
After pressing the button on the back of his neck which was still numb, Sasuke didn't ask any more questions. He just wanted Naruto to give him an explanation later.
Soon Kankuro and Temari also woke up.
The moment they woke up, they instinctively put on a defensive posture.
Gaara raised his hand to signal the two of them to relax.
"Not the enemy now."
As he spoke, he stood between the two of them and Naruto. This action made Kankuro Temari's heart skip a beat at the same time.
Gaara Is this blocking for others?
"You guys take Gaara back."
"When you go back, you will know the truth. Who is the real enemy and who took advantage of you."
"What truth?"
Temari asked with a frown.
As the eldest sister in the Sunagakure trio, she habitually confirms the accuracy of an information before leaving.
Naruto did not answer.
Gaara glanced at Naruto, then turned and left.
Kankuro and Temari looked at each other. Although they were full of doubts, they finally chose to follow Gaara.
The figures of the three people quickly disappeared into the woods.
After the three people left, Sasuke immediately stepped forward.
He stared into Naruto's eyes and said impatiently, "Naruto, what is all this going on?"
"What happened when I was unconscious?"
"Who is that golden light?"
"Sasuke..."
Naruto interrupted Sasuke's inquiry. He knew what Sasuke was going to ask, and he also knew what Sasuke had already guessed, but now was not the time to talk.
"The war is over. My mission is to take you back safely."
"If you have any questions, let's talk about it when we get back."
"Cut..."
Sasuke snorted coldly when he heard this, "Crane tail, you'd better explain clearly when you get back."
Sasuke put his hands back into the pockets of his shorts and followed Naruto in the direction of Konoha.
When the two returned to Konoha, what greeted them was not the cheers of the villagers celebrating their victory, but the air that was so heavy that it solidified.
The next day
Hokage Building In the square
The air was filled with the smell of sandalwood and burnt wood, and Konoha Ninja lined up in a long silent queue in the square, everyone wearing black mourning clothes.
Naruto saw Iruka in the crowd. Iruka's eyes were red as if he had just woken up from a nightmare.
I also saw Konohamaru in the front row of the crowd, Naruto.
Konohamaru stood in front of his portrait of Hiruzen Sarutobi, biting his lip, clenching his two small hands into fists, and his shoulders were shaking violently.
Next to him stood Moegi and Udon. The two little ones were also holding Konohamaru's sleeves.
Naruto walked through the crowd to Konohamaru, reached out and gently pressed on the top of Konohamaru's head.
Konohamaru felt the warmth from his hand, and after holding back the tears all morning, he finally couldn't hold back the tears anymore.
He threw himself into Naruto's arms and cried loudly, and his cries echoed throughout the square.
Naruto's hand was gently placed on the back of Konohamaru's head without any unnecessary words.
After the funeral, Konoha quickly got over his grief and began the reconstruction work.
other side
Sunagakure's leader Jōnin Baki stood in front of the temporary camp and didn't sleep a wink all night.
Because Kazekage didn't come back!
There was a temporary contact map spread out in front of him, which marked all the assembly locations of Sunagakure troops around Konoha.
He sent people to check every route, from the supply depot to the backup retreat point, as well as the hidden cave where the assembly was scheduled, and even several safe transit points provided by Orochimaru to Sunagakure before the war started.
But there is no trace of Fourth Kazekage.
Baki didn't panic at first.
Lord Kazekage always acted cautiously and took several direct guards ANBU and Kage Level with him. Even if the formation was broken up by Konoha's counterattack, contact would be temporarily lost at most.
But as time went by, all possible places were searched, and all ANBUs who could be contacted were contacted. Their Kazekages seemed to have evaporated out of thin air on the battlefield.
Until the sunset, Baki finally took two Jōnin to conduct the final round of search along the meeting route provided by Orochimaru before the war.
They found the body of Fourth Kazekage behind a sandy area about ten kilometers away from the border between Fire Country and Wind Country.
When Baki saw Kazekage's rotting body, he put his hands on the ground, his fingers dug deeply into the sand, and his whole shoulders were shaking violently.
"Orochimaru that bastard!"
Baki's voice is hoarse.
It is absolutely impossible for Fourth Kazekage to be killed by Konoha in the raid. The degree of decomposition of his body indicates that he died at least a week ago, and a week ago Sunagakure's troops had not yet stepped out of Wind Country's country.
This means that Fourth Kazekage did not die on the battlefield at all, but was assassinated by Orochimaru before leading the troops and was then impersonated.
Orochimaru used Kazekage's skin to deceive the entire Sunagakure.
And Sunagakure foolishly followed the murderer of his own Kazekage and sent his troops out to be used as cannon fodder in a conspiracy.
Baki stood up, carefully put away Kazekage's body, and then ordered the two Jōnin behind him:
"Immediately gather all remaining troops and withdraw to the temporary camp. No one is allowed to step out of the camp before receiving the next order."
That night Baki walked into the door of Konoha alone, without any guards or weapons, holding the Sunagakure negotiation documents in both hands.
When Konoha was stopped by ANBU at the door, Baki said calmly, "Sunagakure Jōnin Baki, on behalf of Sunagakure, requested emergency armistice negotiations with Konoha High Command."
"Please tell your village that Elder Council and Fourth Kazekage were assassinated by Orochimaru a week ago."
"Sunagakure's attack on Konoha is a scam controlled by Orochimaru."
News quickly spread to Konoha Council of Elders, Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura were dealing with the mess of post-war reconstruction in Hokage Office.
The two fell silent after listening to ANBU's report.