"Naruto Uzumaki is Konoha's hero!
"He defeated the enemy and brought everyone back to life!"
Shihōin Naraku gave Naruto Uzumaki a shove, pushing him into the very center of the crowd.
"No..."
Naruto waved his hands awkwardly, still wanting to explain, but the wildly enthusiastic crowd immediately surrounded him.
Admiration, worship, envy-the emotions were endless. A scene Naruto had never dared imagine had actually become reality.
Perhaps everyone was also making up for how they had wronged Naruto in the past. After all, many people knew exactly what kind of life he had lived before.
"Naruto!"
"Naruto!"
"Naruto!"
Cheers rang through the skies as the enthusiastic villagers repeatedly tossed the unprepared Naruto Uzumaki into the air.
The mood grew cheerful and exuberant, and the suffering Nagato had brought upon Konoha seemed to recede all at once.
This was exactly what Konoha needed right now!
Shihōin Naraku stood a short distance away without joining in, his arms folded across his chest as he watched Naruto get tossed high into the air again and again.
"Naraku!"
Kakashi Hatake appeared beside Naraku, looking travel-worn, with Shikaku Nara following close behind.
Naraku turned to look at them. "You two look a little worse for wear."
Judging by what Naraku had sensed when he returned to the village, Shikaku Nara had probably died in Nagato's ultimate attack, while Kakashi had been rather unlucky.
When Super Shinra Tensei struck, he had actually managed to evade it.
Who could have known that just as Kakashi thought the attack was over and prepared to emerge to help Jiraiya fight Nagato, the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path would appear!
That was right. Kakashi had died in some unknown, wide-ranging AOE caused by the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path.
Before he could even react, the Demonic Statue of