The Pearl of Sunagakure Gives Her Heart, Konoha Crush Plan Brought Forward
Sasuke's Sharingan reflected Naruto's back as he stood with his hands in his pockets. His lips moved, but he said nothing.
The white ice blade slowly dissipated, and the icy blue eyes withdrew from their killing intent, replaced by a soft light that was almost obsessive.
Hinata clenched her fists, her nails digging into her palms. She looked at the figure bathed in the golden light of the setting sun, her eyes reddening, and she bit her lower lip—not out of resentment, but because something much hotter was burning in her chest.
Karin covered her mouth, squatted on the ground, and tears streamed down her face.
Naruto didn't look at anyone.
He walked straight to Gaara lying on the ground. Temari instinctively Temari up, but Naruto simply kicked Gaara's ribs with his toe to check if he was alive or dead.
Gaara let out a weak groan; he was still alive.
Naruto turned his head and looked at Temari.
Temari stood before the gates of Hidden Leaf Castle, with the gazes of hundreds of Konoha Ninja behind her and an iron wall of Root and Anbu in front of her. As the princess of Hidden Sand, she felt an unprecedented sense of despair and isolation during the highest level of martial law imposed on the enemy country.
Then she saw those blue eyes.
Those eyes held no victor's arrogance, no ruthlessness towards the enemy, only something she had never seen in anyone else's eyes before—
Have you seen enough?
The string that Temari was holding together snapped completely.
The Iron Fan slipped from his hand and crashed to the ground with a thud, kicking up a cloud of dust.
She threw herself into Naruto's arms without a care, burying her face in his blood-stained chest, her shoulders trembling violently. Her nails dug into the back of Naruto's clothes until her knuckles turned white.
"Thank you..."
His voice trembled so much it was almost inaudible.
"Thank you for getting him back... Thank you for stopping him..."
She took a breath, her voice becoming even more fragmented.
Thank you for being alive.
Years of pent-up worry, fear, and despair for his younger brother poured out at this moment. Tears soaked Naruto's tattered clothes, the warm touch seeping through the fabric.
Naruto wrapped one arm around her waist and casually patted her back with the other. The gesture wasn't gentle, but it carried an undeniable sense of stability.
No need for thanks.
His voice regained its familiar roguish tone, as if nothing had happened.
"Do you remember what we said in our bet?"
Temari suddenly looked up, her swollen eyes still wet with tears, and she hadn't quite reacted yet.
Naruto lowered his head and leaned close to her ear, his voice low and steady, yet carrying an undeniable domineering authority.
"After this fight, you'll be mine."
He paused.
"Let me make this clear from the start: there's no such thing as returning a woman, boss."
Temari's cheeks were burning even redder than when she had been crying. The sound that came out of her throat was as soft as a mosquito's buzz, yet she enunciated each word very clearly.
"Um."
One word.
At the gates of Hidden Leaf Castle, under the gaze of hundreds of eyes, and surrounded by Root forces, the Hidden Sand princess surrendered herself to the blood-soaked man.
Naruto made no attempt to hide it, wrapping his large arm around Temari's supple waist, a possessive and playful smile playing on his lips, publicly asserting his dominance.
The system's mechanical voice exploded in Naruto's mind.
[Ding! The affection progress bar has finally reached 90, triggering a key milestone - the bond between Temari is officially formed!]
[Target 'Temari' is completely won over! Congratulations, host, for reaping the jewel of Sunagakure!]
[Bond critical hit rewards are being generated...]
[Reward 1: Temari and the implicit loyalty network behind her will be permanently bound.]
[Reward 2: Wind Release Bloodline Resonance Sense.]
Naruto couldn't find fault with this reward. Hidden Sand was one of the Five Great Nations, Temari was the Kazekage's daughter; this loyalty was more valuable than a bunch of Kekkei Genkai.
Not far away, Karin clutched the hem of her clothes, her eyes dimming as she watched Naruto's Temari around Temari's waist. Her red hair was blown across her face by the wind, obscuring her expression. She quickly lowered her head, her fingers clenching even tighter. After a while, she secretly looked up again, staring at Naruto's profile, her ears burning red.
Hinata bit her lower lip, her nails digging crescent-shaped bloody marks into her palm. A morbid possessiveness flashed in her Byakugan, and a coldness that didn't belong to a gentle maid swept across her icy blue pupils.
An undercurrent of chaos was quietly brewing at the gates of Hidden Leaf Castle.
Kankuro was in a semi-conscious state, slowly regained consciousness.
He struggled to sit up, rubbing his head which was still spinning from being hit. The first thing he saw was his sister holding the man that Gaara had thrown away like a rag doll a few minutes earlier.
He froze on the spot.
He opened his mouth, but forgot to even call for help.
Temari then realized her outburst, abruptly breaking free from Naruto's embrace, her neck and ears turning bright red, and turned to lash out at Kankuro.
"What are you looking at! Hurry up and carry Gaara on your back!"
Kankuro: "..."
He silently got up, dragged his battered body onto Gaara's back, and didn't utter a word. Only one thought occupied his mind: This man is not to be trifled with. Absolutely not to be trifled with.
Naruto glanced at the Anbu and Root who were still in a daze in the distance, a nonchalant smile playing on his lips, and turned to Temari.
"You should go back to the Hidden Sand delegation's place and stay there first."
He raised his hand and Temari a stray strand of hair from Temari's cheek, the gesture casual yet carrying a certain natural intimacy.
"I'll come find you after things are settled here."
Temari blushed and hummed in agreement. She picked up the Iron Fan from the ground, and dragged Kankuro and Gaara on her back toward the Hidden Sand delegation's Earth Flow. After taking a few steps, she looked back again.
Naruto had already turned around, facing the densely packed Root and Anbu on the city wall, his hands in his pockets, his shadow stretched extremely long by the setting sun.
Hokage Building.
The head of the Anbu intelligence unit knelt in the center of the office, his voice still trembling.
"... Sixth Gate levels of Taijutsu damage remained at the scene; the valley floor was melted by the high temperature and then reformed into a glassy state... The fully-formed One-Tail Shukaku has been completely defeated... The executor Naruto Uzumaki."
Behind the desk, Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu sat side by side.
Mitokado Homura's pipe slipped from his fingers, hit the table with a crisp sound, and rolled to the ground.
Utatane Koharu's fingers gripped the armrest tightly, her knuckles turning white.
"Single-handedly... suppressing a fully-formed Tailed Beast?" Mitokado Homura's voice was as dry as sandpaper.
"Yes. And he's still alive." The intelligence captain swallowed hard. "Unlike the First Hokage, who overexerted himself. When he returned to the village, although he was covered in blood, he... stood very steadily."
The office fell into a deathly silence.
The death of the Third Hokage Hokage, Orochimaru's invasion, and Root's seizure of power amidst the chaos—all the upheavals experienced by Konoha High Command on this one day were overshadowed by a single piece of intelligence.
Their Anbu surveillance network, A-level alert system, and all the Emperor Techniques used to control Jinchūriki, which they had spent over a decade building, became a complete joke in front of a thirteen-year-old Genin.
"... Notify all Jonin," Utatane Koharu closed her eyes, her voice utterly exhausted, "To cancel all coercive measures against Naruto Uzumaki."
The edge of Hidden Leaf, a dark cave.
Kabuto Yakushi compiled the intelligence gathered by the Anbu messengers along the way into a brief report and presented it to Orochimaru.
Orochimaru leaned against the stone wall, clutching the charred wound on his neck that had never healed, and remained silent for a long time after listening.
There was no anger in the snake's eyes.
There was no fear.
There is only one thing more dangerous than either of these—a thorough, chillingly calm reassessment.
"To directly seize that body is already a pipe dream." The voice was hoarse, carrying the chilling quality unique to snakes. "I won't do anything that leads to my death."
"The Konoha Crush Plan— " Kabuto pushed up his glasses.
Orochimaru's lips curled into a smile.
"In advance."
He paused.
"Use all resources to investigate the weaknesses of 'Primordial Yang Life Energy.' That thing... always has imperfections."
Kabuto accepted the order, turned, and disappeared into the secret passage. His fingers formed a hidden seal in his sleeve—the communication code for the Otogakure's secret agents.
All the backup pieces for the Konoha Crush Plan have been activated.
The bloody countdown has officially begun.