Fiercely berated as trash by Miki Yūya, Sakura and Sasuke wore ashen faces, monstrous flames of rage surging within their chests.
To be fair, put anyone in that position-being pointed at and berated as ninja trash by an ordinary villager-and no one could endure it.
Yet the problem was that earlier, that group of outside horsemen had ignored Konoha's rules, riding roughshod and charging into pedestrians while crushing villagers in broad daylight; they were in the wrong first, and the ironclad proof was undeniable.
No matter how angry the kids were, they could only swallow their pride and take the blame, utterly unable to refute it.
Since they could not snap back at Miki Yūya, they could only go settle accounts with the real culprits.
"Let's go! After them!"
Sasuke gave a cold shout, his eyes radiating chilliness, and Chakra vaguely agitated all around his body.
Without a second word, Sakura immediately followed.
Their figures flashed, rapidly giving chase in the direction kicked up by the horses' hooves, pushing their speed to the maximum and catching up to Kazahana Koyuki's entourage in a mere few dozen seconds.
Ahead, more than a dozen mounted guards were galloping wildly, completely disregarding the rules inside Konoha, charging recklessly all the way.
"Stop right there!!"
With a sharp cry, Sakura leapt into the air, her fists carrying formidable momentum as she smashed heavily into a bodyguard.
With a loud boom, that man was knocked straight off his horse.
Dust flew everywhere!
The expressions of those bodyguards and guards shifted drastically, and they hastily reined in their horses, still intending to use their numbers to block Sakura.
Yet the next second, Sasuke appeared as well.
A cold gleam flashed, and a hand-blade cleanly sliced through the air, moving so fast that only afterimages remained.
Bang, bang, bang!
A succession of dull thuds rose and fell.
The dozen or so fully armed, elite bodyguards did not even have the chance to strike before they were instantly knocked flat to the ground, tumbling head over heels and flying everywhere, wailing in pain all over the floor and completely losing the ability to fight back.
It took Sasuke and Sakura only a tiny fraction of time to cleanly and overwhelmingly end the battle.
Right at that moment, two figures hurried over.
They were none other than the panting agent Sandayu and Kakashi, who stood by Sandayu's side.
The moment Sandayu saw his own guards lying flat all over the ground, his expression shifted drastically, and he hurriedly stepped forward to question them:
"Hey, Kakashi, you Konoha ninja! What is the meaning of this?!
Why attack our people for no reason?!"
Sasuke wore a paralyzed poker face, his tone devoid of the slightest ripple, every single word staunch and firm:
"Your people rode wildly and charged wantonly inside Konoha, crushing civilians of our village."
"You violated the rules first, so stopping you is only right."
Sakura immediately nodded in agreement, righteous and stern:
"We didn't know beforehand; we had no idea who you were.
But your people truly did wrong, riding horses and crashing into people in the village without a shred of discipline."
Upon hearing this, Kakashi's lazy gaze instantly vanished, his brows furrowing tightly. He turned his head to look at the awkward-looking Sandayu, and the atmosphere instantly turned heavy.
"Were the trampled villagers sent to the hospital for treatment?"
Sasuke and Sakura exchanged a glance and fell into slight silence.
"...No."
Sandayu reacted instantly, realizing it must have been Kazahana Koyuki's fault again, and hurriedly offered a flattering apology:
"It was our oversight! We were in the wrong!"
"We will take full responsibility for all medical expenses and compensation for the injured villagers, down to the very last coin!"
Sakura subconsciously opened her mouth to add:
"Actually, it shouldn't be anything major. That guy Miki Yūya has thick skin and a tough hide; even if he gets trampled by a dozen horses, at most he'll just scrape off a bit of skin, hardly a serious injury."
Slap!
The moment he heard that name, Kakashi's face turned completely pitch-black in an instant.
The trace of laziness he had still carried instantly transformed into extreme solemnity, a headache, and even a hint of despair.
Standing to the side, Sandayu was completely clueless, having no inkling what kind of terrifying heavyweight Miki Yūya was.
Hearing that there were no serious injuries, he instantly let out a long breath of relief, looking relaxed:
"As long as they're fine, as long as they're fine!"
"Even if they aren't injured, the etiquette cannot be lacking, and we will still pay the compensation! Let's make a big issue small, and a small issue nothing!"
Just as his voice trailed off, Kakashi spoke up gloomily, his tone full of exhaustion and helplessness:
"Mr. Sandayu... if they were ordinary villagers, throwing money at the problem would indeed settle it."
"But the one you hit was Miki Yūya."
"This matter is simply impossible to brush off as minor."
Sandayu froze on the spot, his face full of bewilderment:
"??? Just an ordinary villager, how hard could it be to resolve? Isn't giving money enough?"
Sakura's mouth twitched wildly, her face speechless.
Sasuke looked on coldly and spoke indomitably, accurately popularizing the net worth of the village's number one bully:
"An ordinary villager?"
"Throughout the whole of Konoha, not a single ordinary villager dares compare with him in terms of being troublesome."
"He doesn't even put the current Hokage, Lady Tsunade, in his eyes."
"The Third Hokage's grandson, Konohamaru, was chased and beaten all over the village by him."
Sakura appropriately supplemented.
"Throughout Konoha, whether they are Genin, Chunin, or high-ranking ninja, no one is willing to provoke him."
"That guy has a petty mind and holds a fierce grudge."
"As long as you get on his bad side, he will relentlessly retaliate to the very end without end."
After listening to this whole speech, the relaxed expression on Sandayu's face completely vanished, turning instantly pale as cold sweat broke out directly.
He panicked on the spot:
"This is bad! Then Princess Koyuki! Will Yukie be in danger?!"
Kakashi massaged his temples, comforting him with extreme mental fatigue:
"Rest assured, Naruto has already chased after Kazahana Koyuki, so nothing will happen for the time being."
Sandayu let out a massive sigh of relief, repeatedly exclaiming with emotion:
"Good thing Konoha ninja are here to escort us! I never expected Konoha villagers to be so troublesome!"
As a result, Kakashi delivered a direct knife-thrust in the next second, every word piercing the heart:
"You don't need to be too at ease."
"Naruto can't protect her."
"Miki Yūya also seems to loathe Naruto quite a bit."
"In the end, the high probability is that Naruto and Kazahana Koyuki will get beaten up together, though Naruto should get beaten first, so we still have some time."
Kakashi was helpless as well; that guy Miki Yūya was someone who even dared to make a move against Orochimaru, belonging to the type who exacted vengeance for every grievance.
Hearing this, Sakura nodded fiercely, casting a look of utter disgust toward Sandayu.
"We villagers are troublesome, but we wouldn't recklessly ride horses and crash into people in the village, ambushing passersby."
"You lot were in the wrong from the very beginning."
Sasuke also looked on with cold detachment, his expression icy, clearly extremely displeased by Sandayu's remark just now that "Konoha villagers are troublesome."
On the other side.
Naruto ran wildly all the way, chasing several miles along the riverbank until he finally caught up to Kazahana Koyuki, who was advancing alone on horseback.
The setting sun cast its light over the young woman's stunning kimono, creating breathtaking and ethereal lighting.
Naruto was stunned on the spot.
So the Princess Gale who sat high above and saved the world in the movies was actually a real person!
Instantly, he grew so excited that he was at a loss, his face flushed with fanaticism as he stammered for a long time before managing to squeeze out the words:
"P-Princess Gale!!"
"I-I super-duper like you!!"
"I've watched the movies you starred in so many times! They're so awesome!!"
"In the future, I'll definitely become a great hero who saves everyone, just like you!!"
Having finished his excitement, he remembered his main business, scratching his head as he spoke honestly:
"Um... just a moment ago, you rode your horse and crashed into, and stepped on, my friend..."
"Could you, could you please apologize to him?"
Kazahana Koyuki reined in her horse, lowering her head to look at the innocent-looking Naruto before her, whose eyes were filled with adoration.
There was not the slightest trace of warmth in the depths of her gaze, only thick numbness and mockery.
Yet another brainless, fanboy idiot who took movie roles for real.
Too lazy to waste breath, she let out a faint, scoffing laugh, couldn't be bothered to pay him any mind, and directly turned her horse around to gallop wildly once more.
Before Naruto could react, a horse's hoof grazed right past his calf, viciously tripping him!
Thud!
Naruto was tripped flat to the ground, and the horse's hoof took the opportunity to stamp heavily twice right across the top of his foot!
"Ouch, ouch, ouch!!"
Naruto winced in pain, tears practically welling up in his eyes.
By the time he scrambled up in a panic, Kazahana Koyuki was already long gone in the distance.
Unwilling to give up, Naruto gritted his teeth and chased and ran all the way, running from dusk until nightfall before he finally caught up to Kazahana Koyuki, who was drinking and drowning her sorrows inside a secluded little bar.
Inside the bar, the lighting was dim and the aroma of alcohol drifted thick in the air.
Kazahana Koyuki sat alone at the bar counter, already half-drunk, her cheeks flushed crimson and her gaze hazy, still holding a bottle of wine in her hand with an air that was lazy yet carried a hint of melancholy.
"Um... big sister, are, are you drunk?"
When Kazahana Koyuki saw that Naruto had chased after her, a trace of mockery flashed across her eyes.
"Hehe, brat!! I've seen plenty of people like you."
"Coming to ask for my autograph in all sorts of ways, and especially fond of the roles I play, acting like complete fools."
"People like you, people like you are absolute idiots..."
Naruto cautiously edged forward, just wanting to open his mouth to speak.
Creeak-!
The old wooden door of the bar was violently kicked open by someone!
A thunderous crash exploded through the entire place!
The bar owner's eyes bulged, and he was just about to pull out the folding chair he kept hidden beneath the counter when he caught sight of the figure at the doorway, prompting the bar owner to silently squat back down.
At the entrance, a figure covered all over in dust and dirt, with clothes stained in mud and messy hair, yet wearing a ferocious grin, stepped inside.
It was none other than Miki Yūya, who refused to shake him off and had rushed over burning with a belly full of fire!
His gaze locked dead onto Kazahana Koyuki, who was drunk before the bar counter, and he grinned as he laughed out loud.
"Hahaha, finally found you!!"
"I've seen plenty of people like you, too."
"With just a tiny bit of fame, acting in a couple of lousy films, you treat yourselves like some big shots."
"In reality, peel away the outer skin, and on the inside you're just good-for-nothing trash."
"Flow-actresses like you who fake being profound and melancholic-I've already dealt with fifty-six of them in my lifetime."
[Ding! Conqueror's Haki +6]
Beside them, Naruto was dumbfounded on the spot, his brain directly short-circuiting.
Dealt with fifty-six of them?!
Without waiting for Naruto to snap back to his senses, Miki Yūya strode directly past the dazed Naruto, shoving him aside as he marched forward in long strides.
Beneath the dim lighting, Miki Yūya grinned ferociously, reaching out a hand to precisely snatch the wine bottle right out of Kazahana Koyuki's grasp.
Now!
He needed to settle the grand total of today's horse-hoof crushing account with this Snow Princess properly!
At that moment, Kazahana Koyuki's vision was hazy with alcohol. Looking at the daring youth before her, far from being angry, she instead let out a light laugh carrying a trace of playful teasing:
"Oh? Quite interesting."
"This way of chatting up someone is a first for me, so I suppose I'll grant you a bit of face, little mister!"
She assumed the other party was trying to strike up a conversation to get close and win her attention.
Yet the next second!
Bang-!!
A heaven-shaking, crisp smash!
Carrying a fierce gale, the wine bottle smashed straight and heavy right into the dead center of Kazahana Koyuki's forehead!
The wine bottle shattered instantly, liquor splashed in all directions, and glass fragments flew everywhere!
Kazahana Koyuki's pupils shrank violently, her brain turning completely blank in an instant!
In less than two seconds, everything went pitch-black before her eyes, her body listing softly to the side as she passed out cold on the spot!
Standing behind her, Naruto's mouth hung open wide enough to stuff an egg; he was completely dumbstruck, unable to move a single muscle.
Miki Yūya brushed the glass fragments off his hands and looked down at Kazahana Koyuki, who had collapsed and lost consciousness.
"Acting? Keep acting why don't you?"
"With an attitude like yours, you still dare to pretend to be tragic and melancholic in a pub?"
"Do you really think you're Shanks with the red hair, drinking gloomy drinks while acting cool with a severed arm?"
"Who the hell are you putting on an act for! Still granting me some face!!"
[Ding! Armament Haki +3]
Before you continue