Naruto finished handling Nagato's affairs and left the subsequent sealing and on-site cleanup to Shadow Clone. The main body quickly used Flying Thunder God to return to the Festival area.
However, when his figure quietly emerged, the three women were not seen.
On the contrary, it startled Parents who was Sakura nearby.
With eagerness on their faces, they stood on tiptoe to look at the crowd from time to time. When they saw Naruto suddenly appearing, they were startled at first, and then they seemed to have grasped a life-saving straw.
"Lord Hokage!"
The two of them spoke almost at the same time, with an unconcealable eagerness in their respectful tone.
They walked forward quickly, Kizashi Haruno rubbed his hands nervously and stared at Naruto:
"Did you see Sakura just now?"
"Sakura?"
Naruto frowned slightly and shook his head.
"No, I just finished handling official business and didn't see her."
He quickly recalled it in his mind.
Since the last time he went with Sakura because of Kurama Yakumo's matter, he did see Sakura for a few days.
But this is normal in Ninja's life, everyone has busy tasks and schedules.
"What, what happened?"
Naruto narrowed his eyes and sounded serious. Looking at Sakura Parents's anxious look, he realized that things might not be simple.
"I remember that Medical Department currently implements the 'day and night shift' system. Is she on the day shift or the night shift?"
"She is on the day shift today, and her shift will be over in the afternoon."
Mebuki Haruno took over, his face full of self-blame and annoyance, his voice choked with sobs,
"It's all my fault. I said something to her just now because of a trivial matter... I may have said something harsh."
After hearing this sentence, Naruto was too lazy to listen any more.
Based on the experience summarized from several examples that Naruto knew in his previous life.
Generally speaking, the so-called "said a few words" often means a few words that are by no means an understatement. It may be a long speech filled with emotions, old scores, or even Personal Attack.
The word "exaggerated" almost means "exerted severe pressure, carried out emotional kidnapping or PUA-style belittling, and made the child worthless".
However, in the plot, both Sakura and Parents seem to be quite nice to her. Of course, Sakura also feels that Parents is too strict, so it is not impossible for this kind of thing to happen.
He waved his hand to indicate that he understood.
"Okay, I will help you find it. Just do whatever you need to do and don't affect others."
After dealing with Parents that took Sakura, Naruto directly opened Mind's Eye of the Kagura.
Just find someone at Konoha, it's easy and relaxing.
Find someone quickly and go on dates.
But time is almost up. After finding Sakura, you should go directly to Hokage Rock to see Fireworks.
Sixth Hokage on Hokage Rock.
The moonlight was mostly blocked by the rock statue itself, and the light here was even dimmer than below.
Naruto The first thing he saw was the figure curled up in the center of the rock statue's forehead.
Sakura Haruno was facing away from the direction he came from, sitting on the cold Rock, his hands tightly hugging his bent knees, and his whole body shrank into a ball.
Her short pink hair, which was always full of energy, was now a little messy, her head was buried deeply in her arms, and her shoulders were trembling uncontrollably and slightly in the night wind.
Even from a distance, Naruto could clearly feel the uncomfortable aura of depression, grievance, and even self-doubt emanating from her that was so strong that it was almost impossible to get rid of it.
He quietly replaced the Mangekyō Sharingan in his eyes with his own, and then wiped the blood from his face.
She seemed to be integrated with this aloof Rock, immersed in a sad world where she was the only one.
"Hey, you're sitting on my head."
Hearing his voice, Sakura's arms holding his knees seemed to stiffen, and the shaking of his shoulders stopped.
She slowly raised her head buried in her arms, turned her head sideways, and glanced at him with her slightly red and swollen eyes still stained with tears.
Under the moonlight and the dim light of Festival in the distance, the tear marks on her face were clearly visible, the tip of her nose was red, and her lips were pursed tightly. She tried hard to maintain calm, but her fragile and stubborn look made people feel more distressed than crying directly.
"Ah... it's Naruto."
She twitched the corners of her mouth and tried to force out a smile, but it turned out to be uglier than crying, and her voice was a little hoarse and dry from crying before.
"How did you find this place? Festival Don't you need to accompany Ino and the others?"
The traces of force and the deep fatigue and sadness in his eyes could not be concealed at all.
Naruto looked at her like this and did not answer her questions about "how to find" and "who to accompany". Those were not important.
He just looked at her quietly, Blue Eyes's eyes looked particularly deep in the night, and then asked:
"Tell me, what's going on? Your parents are going crazy looking for you."
"Let me tell you first, I won't comfort people."
He tilted his head slightly and looked at the lights of Festival in the distance. He seemed a little unaccustomed to dealing with such a scene that required delicate emotional comfort.
"Don't expect me to say anything nice to comfort you for a while."
"Getting vaccinated" in advance is to avoid Sakura's expectations being disappointed, and it is also a way of being honest about his communication style.
Hearing Naruto's "straight man" opening remarks and subsequent "disclaimer", Sakura was stunned for a moment, and then the corners of his mouth curved in a bitter arc.
She took a deep breath, and the cold night air rushed into her lungs, making her chaotic mind slightly clearer.
She raised her hand and wiped away the remaining tears on her face vigorously, even somewhat roughly, with the back of her hand. Her movements were as stubborn as pique, as if she wanted to wipe away all the weaknesses.
"It's okay."
Sakura's voice is more stable than before, but it is still nasal and hoarse.
She did not look at Naruto, but looked at the lights of thousands of houses at Konoha below her feet. There was the village she protected, her home, and the source of pressure that made her feel suffocated at the moment.
"It just... feels like they control me too much."
She whispered, her tone full of exhaustion and an indescribable feeling of powerlessness.
"From working to becoming Ninja, it seems that I can never do well enough. I know they care about me, but...
The kind of 'suggestions', 'reminders', and 'worries' that are always there, and sometimes like tonight.
The excessive reminders and accusations really made me breathless.
Mother would ask me to sweep the floor when I was sweeping the floor, and when I was about to wash the dishes, she would ask me to wash the dishes. Even though I was already doing it, she still liked to say it."
She paused and her voice became softer, with a hint of self-mockery:
"Sometimes..."
Sakura finally turned his head and looked at Naruto sitting next to him.
Under the moonlight, his side face had clear lines, and his eyes were still looking calmly into the distance, as if he was listening carefully.
Looking at him, who seemed to be able to find a way out no matter what he encountered and who was always full of energy, a thought that had been buried in his heart for a long time emerged involuntarily, and he whispered it out:
"Sometimes, I really envy you, Naruto."
"You seem... always so optimistic."
There was undisguised envy in her voice.
"No matter how difficult or bad things are, you always seem to find a reason to persevere and face it with a smile.
Faced with doubts, faced with pressure, faced with those eyes that want to pull you down... you never seem to be really crushed."
"How did you do it?"
She finally asked this question that may have been lingering in her mind for a long time. Her green eyes looked at Naruto steadily, full of confusion, exploration, and a desire to seek resonance or guidance that perhaps she was not even aware of.