"No need. Like I said, just live well."
With those words, Anyo drifted away.
As Itachi followed Kisame toward the Small Town, he suddenly stopped and looked up at the sky. All at once, the colors of the world seemed to have changed considerably. With an unfamiliar ease in his expression, he said slowly, "Let's go."
Clearly unaware of what Itachi had been through in his mind, Kisame asked in confusion, "Where? Aren't we going to capture the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki?"
"Kakashi couldn't possibly know anything about the Akatsuki. Jiraiya suddenly returned to Konoha this time and personally took Naruto with him. Presumably, he was prepared long ago. Acting now would only put Konoha on its guard." Itachi casually came up with a reason.
Kisame found that reasonable and agreed to abandon the plan. The two left the Small Town together.
Tanzaku Town was not an ordinary street, but a bustling area much like a market town. A great many gambling houses were gathered there, its economy flourished, and crowds came and went constantly.
At that moment, a young woman gathering medicinal herbs on the outskirts of the town suddenly spotted Naruto training in the woods. He was holding a solid ball and pouring Chakra into it, but no matter how hard he tried, the ball never burst.
The young woman put on a rabbit mask and approached curiously. "Excuse me, are you a Ninja?"
"Huh?" Interrupted in his training, Naruto looked at the young woman who had suddenly appeared, pointed at the Forehead Protector on his head, and said proudly, "Of course! I'm a Konoha Ninja."
The young woman asked cautiously, "Then could you spar with me?"
"Spar? What do you mean?" Naruto looked utterly confused.
Slightly embarrassed, the young woman said, "Well, I've seen lots of Ninja, and I