Bringing Home a Stunning Maid, the Hyuga Clan Comes at Him with Blades!

On the way back, Team 7's atmosphere could no longer be described as merely "strange." It was more like an abyss with a calm surface and violent undercurrents below.

There was one more person in the group.

A stunning girl so beautiful she seemed otherworldly, making Sakura Haruno question her own looks for the first time—Haku.

She had changed into a pale blue kimono Naruto had "casually" taken from Gato's treasury. The blood and smoke had been washed away, and her waterfall-like hair draped softly down her back.

The face once hidden beneath a mask carried the unease and apprehension of someone newly entering the world. Only when her gaze fell upon Naruto did a peace called "belonging" appear in her eyes.

She followed closely at Naruto's side, always half a step behind. It was both the instinct of a tool and the dependence of someone reborn.

That gentle, watery demeanor of placing him above all else made Sakura's teeth itch with jealousy. She could only scream wildly in her heart, Vixen! A scheming little bitch who only knows how to please men with her face and obedience!

Sasuke, meanwhile, wore a dark expression the entire way, as silent as a block of ice.

Yet the storm within him was a hundred times more terrifying than Sakura's girlish jealousy.

He no longer looked at the sickeningly sweet atmosphere between those two.

His One-Tomoe Sharingan spun at an imperceptibly high frequency beneath the cover of his sleeve, frantically replaying and analyzing every detail of the battle in Wave Country.

Despair?

Resentment?

Sasuke sneered inwardly. Those are the emotions of the weak.

After witnessing Naruto's world-destroying power, the initial shock and helplessness had long been replaced by a colder, more obsessive flame—[Analysis] and [Exploitation].

The explosive power of the Eight Gates, Monster Strength-level chakra control, an unknown ocular technique, and now a Kekkei Genkai follower capable of instantly casting Ice Release... Sasuke's nails dug deeply into his palm, but the pain only made his mind clearer.

Naruto Uzumaki, you yourself are a moving treasure trove—the fastest path for me to reach "that man"!

The path of revenge had never changed.

What had changed was his understanding of how to achieve it.

The Uchiha glory, Fire Release, and Shurikenjutsu he had once relied on were nothing more than children's toys before the power Naruto had displayed.

But that did not mean giving up. It meant—[Seizing]!

Naruto was no longer the "dead last" he needed to surpass. He was a [Hidden Treasury of Power] that Sasuke had to thoroughly analyze, learn from, and even devour!

Sasuke silently adjusted his breathing, suppressing that morbid desire beneath a cold mask.

From this day onward, he was no longer Naruto's companion fighting at his side. He was the most patient and hungriest hunter lurking beside him.

Just then, the long-absent system notification suddenly sounded in Naruto's mind.

[Ding! Detected that the host is about to return to Konoha. Mission area changed.]

[Limited-Time Bond Mission (Tenten) remaining time: 12 hours. Reminder: prolonged lack of interaction carries a risk of natural affection decay.]

Tch, I nearly forgot.

Naruto raised an eyebrow, already planning to make a round of "purchases" at the ninja tool shop after returning, while getting rid of that piece of "scrap metal," the Kubikiribōchō.

At last, Konoha's gates came into view in the distance.

The eternal gatekeeper duo, Kotetsu Hagane and Izumo Kamizuki, were leaning against the gate and yawning.

"Hey, look! Kakashi's team is back!"

Kotetsu's sharp eyes spotted that distinctive silver hair first.

"Oh, this C-rank mission took quite a whi—" Izumo lazily raised his head, but his yawn caught in his throat the next second.

His gaze passed over Kakashi, Sasuke, and Sakura, locking firmly onto the figure beside Naruto.

"Gulp."

Oh, dear heavens!

Was that a fairy descending from the sky?!

Just as the two men stared with heart-shaped eyes and their minds began staging all sorts of inappropriate fantasies, icy killing intent pierced the backs of their heads like steel needles!

Both of them jolted and instantly sobered up!

The source of that killing intent was Naruto Uzumaki, who had his hands in his pockets and had not even turned his head!

But this time, they feared more than just his killing intent.

As veteran gatekeepers, their professional instincts overcame their hormones.

"Wait!"

Kotetsu abruptly straightened and blocked the group, his expression serious. "Kakashi-senpai, welcome back from your mission. But according to regulations, this unfamiliar person without a forehead protector cannot enter the village!"

Izumo also dropped his playful grin, one hand already resting on the ninja tool pouch at his waist as he watched Haku warily. "We need to verify her identity and report it. Please cooperate."

Naruto frowned and clicked his tongue impatiently. "She's mine. What's the problem?"

"Those are the rules, Naruto!"

Kotetsu refused to yield. "This concerns the village's safety. Anyone—ah!"

Before he could finish, both gatekeepers suddenly stiffened, cold sweat breaking out across their foreheads.

To their horror, four ANBU wearing animal masks had appeared behind them, on the rooftops, and in the treetops at some unknown moment, like ghosts. Their icy chakra locked onto everyone present.

One of them, a cat-faced ANBU who appeared to be the leader, used the Body Flicker Technique to appear before Kakashi. His voice was utterly emotionless. "Kakashi Hatake, the Third Hokage requires you to immediately report all abnormal circumstances surrounding the Wave Country mission. As for this one... the Yuki Clan orphan will be placed in our temporary custody pending the Hokage's interrogation and judgment."

"The Yuki Clan?!"

Kakashi's heart shook. So that was it!

He glanced at Naruto's dark expression, then at Haku, who instinctively hid behind Naruto and trembled slightly after being locked down by the ANBU's chakra. His head immediately began to ache.

He hurriedly tried to mediate. "Please wait! She is a key figure in this mission and has already severed ties with the missing-nin Zabuza Momochi. I, Kakashi Hatake, personally guarantee that she bears no hostility toward Konoha. I will take her to see the Hokage myself!"

"We cannot enter your guarantee into the records."

The cat-faced ANBU refused coldly. "Our mission is to follow procedure."

As the atmosphere reached a stalemate, Naruto's impatient killing intent began to rise again.

Sasuke watched coldly from the side, his Sharingan rapidly analyzing the ANBU's positions and chakra flow as he assessed Konoha's defensive system.

In the end, Kakashi sighed and pulled an orange-covered adult novel from his pocket, waving it weakly. "All right, all right. I'll go see the Hokage first. Naruto, take Haku back to your apartment. Until I receive the Hokage's written order, both of you will remain under twenty-four-hour surveillance and may not leave the village. Understood? This is the greatest authority I can secure for you as a jonin!"

The cat-faced ANBU looked at Kakashi, fell silent for a moment, then nodded. "Accepted. Target Naruto Uzumaki: alert level raised to A-rank. Target Yuki Haku: classified as an S-rank surveillance target. Surveillance begins immediately."

As soon as he spoke, the four ANBU figures melted into the shadows once more and vanished as though they had never appeared.

But everyone knew that countless eyes were already watching from the darkness.

Kakashi wiped at nonexistent sweat, then vanished with the Body Flicker Technique, hurrying toward the Hokage's Office as if fleeing for his life.

If he did not report in soon, he feared the Third Hokage would jump straight out of his crystal ball and start chopping people.

Sakura and Sasuke also wisely found excuses to slip away.

Before leaving, Sasuke gave Naruto and Haku behind him a deep look. His gaze was as complex as an abyss.

Only Naruto and Haku remained.

"Come on. I'll take you home."

Ignoring the covertly watching gazes, Naruto took Haku's slightly cool hand. The gesture was domineering, yet carried an unquestionable tenderness.

The apartment was as filthy and messy as ever.

Haku stared at the scene before her and paused slightly, but the pity in her eyes only deepened.

She said nothing. She merely rolled up her sleeves and began cleaning skillfully, as though she wanted to use this method to find her first foothold in this unfamiliar world.

Leaning against the doorframe, Naruto pulled out the bank card he had acquired from Gato by "robbing the rich to help the poor" and shoved it into Haku's hand. He declared grandly, "Tomorrow, I'll pay for the biggest villa in the best part of the village! This place will be our home from now on!"

"Home..."

Haku clutched the heavy card, and tears blurred her vision once more.

But this time, they were tears of happiness.

However, just as Naruto basked in the satisfaction of keeping a beauty in a golden house—

At the other end of Konoha, within the Hyuga Estate.

A Hyuga Branch Family ninja assigned to monitor Naruto's team was using the Byakugan to "livestream" everything that had just happened at the village gate and in the apartment to the clan head, Hyuga Hiashi.

When he saw the stunning girl Naruto had taken by the hand and brought into his home, Hiashi's expression was not yet particularly unpleasant. He merely felt that the "Demon Fox brat had no sense of propriety."

But when he saw Naruto casually kick aside an instant noodle cup, then lounge against the doorframe without a care in the world while that breathtakingly beautiful girl cleaned his room like an obedient wife...

Some alarm deeply rooted in his bloodline and traditions, called "a proper match," instantly began blaring!

"Hinata..." Hiashi thought of his disappointing daughter, who spent every day with "Naruto-kun" on her lips.

A nameless fury, mixed with the humiliation of a prestigious clan head whose authority had been challenged, erupted at once!

"Someone!"

Hiashi slammed his palm onto the table, his voice ice-cold.

"Gather the clan's guard squad!"

"Come with me to that Demon Fox's home!"

"I want to see what kind of vixen dares to clean up the home of the son-in-law my Hyuga Clan has already chosen—"