You dared touch my woman, and you call yourselves leaders?

The golden light shattered into countless stardust.

Inside the council chamber, the six elderly advisors remained in the same position, pulling out Kunai).

But no one moved.

Because the blond boy was standing right in the middle of them, one hand in his pocket, the other around Temari's waist—not in a supporting gesture, but in an embrace.

Temari buried her face in his shoulder, her blond hair loose, her body still bearing the dust and bloodstains left from two days and two nights of running.

But her shoulders stopped shaking.

Naruto's gaze slowly swept across the entire arena.

Six old men.

Two Anbu.

An old woman using a cane.

He memorized the expression on every face.

Shock.

Fear.

Feeling lost.

There are also -- doubts.

"You... Naruto Uzumaki?!"

Baki was the first to speak.

The chief of staff of Hidden Sand, in his early forties, was the youngest among this group of old guys.

His voice trembled Kunai in his hand, its tip pointing towards Naruto, but his wrist was shaking.

"How did you—appear here in an instant? It's at least a three-day journey from Hidden Leaf to Hidden Sand..."

Naruto didn't look at him.

He lowered his head, his thumb wiping the dried tear tracks on Temari's cheek.

Does it still hurt?

The sound was very soft.

So softly that only the person in her arms could hear it.

Temari shook her head.

She lifted her face, and the boy's silhouette was reflected in her red and swollen eyes.

Then she turned around, leaned her back against Naruto's chest, and faced the six old men she had run to for two days and two nights, but none of them were willing to help her.

She lifted her chin.

The Desert Princess's pride has returned.

"Naruto-kun is here to save Gaara."

The sound wasn't loud.

But everyone in the council chamber could hear it clearly.

Baki's pupils contracted.

He glanced at Temari's posture as she leaned against Naruto, then at the hand Naruto had around Temari's waist.

That's not the attitude of an ally.

That is--

"Snort."

A cold snort came from the corner.

Chiyo stepped out of the shadows, leaning on her cane.

Her face was covered with wrinkles, and her cloudy old eyes held no fear, only an arrogance etched into her bones, a trait that had been tempered by Third Kazekage generations of change.

"Hidden Leaf brat."

Her voice was hoarse and shrill, and she tapped her cane twice on the ground.

Don't be so arrogant.

The atmosphere in the council chamber changed.

The old men seemed to have found their pillar of support, and their hands holding the Kunai stopped trembling.

Chiyo is the pillar of strength in Hidden Sand.

The fact that she spoke meant that Hidden Sand hadn't completely lost its backbone.

"The ones who kidnapped the Kazekage were Deidara and Sasori of the Red Sands Akatsuki."

Chiyo Chiyo's eyes turned cold. "Those two are S-rank missing-nin. You, a mere twelve-year-old brat, going alone? Are you planning to die?"

She paused, then tapped her cane again.

"Let Hidden Sand handle this themselves--"

"Bang!!"

The final sound of this word hasn't faded yet.

Naruto's foot had already landed.

It wasn't kicking.

It's kicking the table.

The round conference table in the center of the council chamber, three meters in diameter, is made of solid wood and weighs several hundred kilograms. It is piled with battle reports, maps, and tea sets.

The table broke in the middle.

It wasn't overturned.

It was crushed by a single foot stomping down from above.

The sawdust exploded.

Teaware splashed.

The map was swept up onto the ceiling by the blast wave.

The two halves of the table were smashed into the walls on either side, embedding themselves half a foot deep.

As the sound of shattering still echoed, Naruto released his Chakra.

It wasn't murderous intent.

It is pure—the pressure of life.

The immense power of Naruto's Perfect Uzumaki Sage Body surged forth like an invisible flood, instantly filling every inch of the council hall.

Chiyo Chiyo's cane cracked with a "crack".

Her knees bent.

It's not kneeling.

They couldn't hold on any longer.

My breathing stopped abruptly for a moment, and it felt as if an invisible giant hand was squeezing my chest, forcibly squeezing the air out of my lungs.

In her more than seventy years as a ninja, she had only experienced something similar when facing the First Kazekage.

No.

It's heavier than that.

The six advisory board members were in an even worse situation.

The three of them collapsed to the ground.

The two fell and knocked over chairs.

The one closest to Naruto had his forehead instantly soaked with cold sweat.

Baki knelt on one knee, the Kunai in his hand falling to the ground with a crisp metallic sound.

Naruto stood amidst the shattered remains of the table, looking down at Chiyo.

There was no warmth in those blue eyes.

"Shut up, old woman."

The sound wasn't loud.

But every word seemed to be squeezed out from between his teeth.

"You have no right to speak here."

Chiyo Chiyo's lips moved.

What do you want to say?

But it felt like there was a stone stuck in my throat, and I couldn't utter a single syllable.

Naruto took a step forward.

Just one step.

Chiyo took a half step back.

This is the first time in seventy years that she has stepped back.

"You bunch of useless trash."

Naruto raised his index finger and pointed it at Chiyo Chiyo's face.

It was less than ten centimeters from the tip of her nose.

"You can't even protect your own Kazekage. Your brother was arrested and you're having a meeting. Your brother is dying and you're shirking responsibility. My woman ran for two days and two nights to beg you, and you're discussing 'diplomatic procedures'?"

He said the last four words with a smile.

But nobody found it funny.

"Now—" Naruto withdrew his fingers and put them in his pocket, "You guys shut up and just watch."

He turned around.

The pressure subsided.

Like the receding tide.

Everyone in the council chamber gasped for breath at the same time.

Someone is coughing.

Someone gagged.

Chiyo leaned on her cracked cane, her cloudy eyes fixed on the boy's retreating figure, her lips trembling, but in the end, she said nothing.

Because she saw it.

The moment Naruto turned to Temari, his entire demeanor changed.

The curve of her lips softened.

The coldness in his eyes dissipated.

He reached out and Temari the stray hairs that had fallen across his forehead behind his ear.

The movement was as light as touching a flower.

"Direction."

There is only one word.

Temari's eyes are red.

She raised her hand and pointed northwest.

"The direction of the Land of Rivers... the last location tracked by the Anbu is in the Red Sand Canyon, where the Land of Wind and the Land of Rivers meet."

"How far?"

"Full speed... about six hours."

Naruto smiled.

He lowered his head and gently touched Temari's forehead with his own.

"Wait for me to come back."

Temari clenched her fists.

She opened her mouth, as if to say "Be careful."

But when he saw Naruto's unwavering, almost nonchalant, blue eyes, he swallowed the words back.

Right.

This man doesn't need the word "careful".

Naruto released Temari and turned to walk towards the shattered window of the council chamber.

The broken glass crunched beneath his feet.

"Oh, right."

He stopped.

He didn't look back.

"Kankuro's poison."

Temari's body jolted.

"I'll kill that puppeteer and bring back the antidote."

As soon as he finished speaking, golden light exploded from his body.

It's not Flying Thunder God.

It's pure speed.

Eight Gates, Fourth Gate, Gate of Pain – Open.

The green Chakra aura intertwined with the golden Yang Release light, enveloping Naruto's figure like a dazzling meteor.

He burst out of the shattered window, leaving a golden-green trail of light across the night sky above Sunagakure.

Three seconds later, the light trail disappeared below the northwest horizon.

The council chamber was completely silent.

Temari stood there, looking up at the fading light outside the window.

The wind rushed in through the broken window, blowing her blonde hair.

The corners of her mouth curved into a smile.

Chiyo finally straightened up.

She looked out the window, then glanced at the expression on Temari's face.

There was a long silence.

"... that brat."

Her voice was very soft, as if she were talking to herself.

He said "my woman"?

Temari did not answer.

But the tips of her ears turned red.

Red Sand Canyon.

Three hundred kilometers away.

Deidara, riding on a clay bird with the unconscious Gaara tucked in his arms, was enjoying the last darkness before dawn.

"Art is --"

He didn't finish his sentence.

Because on the southern horizon, a golden-green meteor is growing larger at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Filled with murderous intent.