Upon seeing the Hongshi, Orochimaru decided to back down and forcibly ended the duel, taking Sasuke away. Sasuke was heartbroken...
Kakashi struggled to stand up, but Orochimaru's poison was too potent, rendering him unable to move. He could only watch helplessly as Naruto's life slowly slipped away.
"Whoosh whoosh whoosh."
At this moment, Hongshi and the others finally figured out how to land and hovered down over the Valley of the End.
"Red, Hongshi! Quick, save Naruto!"
Hongshi then spotted Naruto on the crimson lake. " Naruto, don't kick the bucket! Don't panic, the medical genius is here!"
The appearance of the Hongshi changed the original plot, and the scene was now completely beyond his comprehension, so... he didn't care at all.
Hongshi used Water Glide to quickly reach Naruto's side, finding his heartbeat almost gone and him on the verge of death. Without hesitation, he immediately used a healing Ninjutsu: "Sage Art: Super - Creation Rebirth ".
The more severe the injury, the more Chakra is required to heal Ninjutsu. Naruto currently has five fatal penetrating wounds. Because the Black Lightning had initially caused incurable damage, the Nine-Tails 'Chakra could not heal him properly, and he was only barely clinging to life.
The Nine-Tails, sealed within. "Boss, let me explain!"
Hongshi: "I know."
Naruto was currently teetering on the brink of death, and he almost saw his father again.
On the white cocoon of light, the Chakra in Hongshi's hands continued to increase. He was unusually serious at this moment, and a bead of sweat rolled down his forehead. It wasn't because he didn't have enough Chakra, but because he was controlling the amount of Chakra, afraid that using too much at once would cause him to explode, which would be embarrassing.
Just as the Hongshi was treating Naruto, Sakura and her group caught up and jumped to Hanabi Hyuga's side, looking at Kakashi leaning against the stone. " Kakashi-sensei, how are you? Where's Naruto? Where's Sasuke?"
Kakashi struggled to raise his finger, pointing at the Hongshi: " Naruto's in bad shape. Sasuke... we couldn't get him back."
" Naruto!" Sakura saw that Hongshi was healing Naruto, and using a healing technique she had never seen before.
As the Hongshi's Chakra surged, the lake's once calm surface began to ripple again. No one dared to approach; instead, they stood still and watched quietly.
Sakura hurriedly asked Kakashi, " Kakashi-sensei, what's going on? Naruto can't be that weak, can he?"
Kakashi sighed, " Sasuke has fallen into the cold darkness, transformed into the Avenger, and gained immense power from Orochimaru. It wasn't that Naruto was no match for him, but rather that Orochimaru intervened at the last moment."
Upon hearing that Gekko Hayate Orochimaru, " Orochimaru is one of the legendary Sannin! Naruto is in grave danger!"
Sakura looked at Hongshi, who was focused on healing, and murmured, "It's alright, I believe in Hongshi-kun."
Kakashi then seemed to remember something and pointed in another direction. "Over there... over there."
He was referring to Suigetsu. Everyone looked over but couldn't find him. They assumed he had seen Orochimaru leave and had run away as well.
Ten minutes later, Hongshi finally pulled Naruto back from the brink of death. The cocoon of light cracked open, and everything returned to calm.
Naruto slowly opened his eyes and saw Hongshi's face. "Is it dark yet? Why are there two moons?"
Hongshi: "(°ー°), if you keep saying that, I might not save you."
"Ah! It's Hongshi-kun! You don't seem so dark anymore, let's hurry and catch up with Sasuke!"
Hongshi: "Why are you still chasing the ball? It's already far away."
Sakura rushed over. " Naruto! Are you... are you alright?"
Naruto looked at Sakura, his eyes darting away. " Sakura-chan, I'm sorry... I couldn't keep Sasuke here. I'm too weak."
Sakura smiled instead and gave Naruto a hug, "It's okay, Naruto, there will be other opportunities."
Naruto pushed Sakura aside, looked directly into her eyes, his gaze resolute. " Sakura-chan, I promise, I will bring Sasuke back!"
Hongshi: "Oh! The promise of a warrior!"
Naruto suddenly remembered something, turned around, and bowed deeply to Hongshi: " Hongshi-kun! Please teach me to become stronger!"
Hongshi was stunned for a moment, then chuckled, "Gurarara, you crave the power to easily defeat Sasuke? Fine, from now on, you will bear my name..."
Sakura: "Shut up!"
Hongshi: "Okay Naruto."
The Lord God: "You've changed way too fast."
Gekko Hayate looked at Kakashi and asked, " Kakashi, are you alright?"
Kakashi: "Do I look like I'm alright to you?"
" Hongshi! Come quick! Kakashi's dying!"
From an inconspicuous patch of grass in the distance, Zetsu emerged. He had witnessed the entire battle. "Hey, hey, that bald, muscular black man, is that the Hongshi Itachi and Kisame were talking about? He looks pretty strong."
"I sensed an incredibly terrifying Chakra emanating from him."
"Then shall we go back and report to the leader?"
"No, now that Konoha is going to attack Otogakure, we should add fuel to the fire and make them fight even harder. That's what the leader wants to see too."
"Oh, Black Zetsu, you're always so cunning. But hey, this way we can get a lot of fun. Let's play some more then."
Kosuke found some fish and mushrooms and simmered a pot of fragrant, rich soup. "Alright, alright, after a battle, a bowl of soup is a great way to recover!"
Kakashi and the others had been chasing each other for two days straight, and they were starving, having only eaten Military Rations Pill. They were so Old, Young, Disabled, and Disabled Team that they immediately took the food and began to eat it.
Naruto: "Gurgle gurgle, ah! Kosuke, your cooking is really amazing!"
Kai and Rock Lee: "Oh! We haven't eaten for two days, this is the freshness of youth!"
Kakashi: " Kosuke, this is no ordinary skill!"
Seeing everyone enjoying their meal, Kosuke burst into laughter. "Haha, Genin for so many years, you should at least know a few cooking skills!"
Gekko Hayate looked at Hanabi Hyuga, and said, " Hanabi -sama chased after them with us for two days. What a tenacious character she has."
Hongshi put down the grilled fish he was holding. " Hanabi is asleep, so keep your voice down!"
Gekko Hayate with some worry, "Speaking of which, the Konoha's punitive expeditionary force should be here soon. Sigh, more war."
Kakashi remained silent upon hearing about the war.
Hongshi: "Let's fight then, who's afraid of who? Besides, they're Orochimaru's subordinates. By the way, Uncle Kosuke, you must have experienced war before, right?"
Kosuke recalled his own time, "I was Genin since the time of the Lord First, and I've been through many wars."
It was a rare opportunity for everyone to hear Kosuke recount his past.
Looking at the silent crowd, Kosuke sighed, " The Lord First went through countless battles to establish Konoha. I was too young then to do much, I only heard about it. Then the Second fought several more battles to establish the system of Konoha. I was Genin at the time, but..."
Sakura became interested too. "What happened next?"
Kosuke sighed, looking at the boiling soup in the pot. "Alas, because I was too eager to make a name for myself, I made the wrong decision, got myself into a dangerous situation, and caused the deaths of two of my comrades. I was reprimanded by the Second, and from that moment on, I vowed to only Genin."
Sakura shuddered as she recalled Tobirama's stern manner when training Neji: " The Second is truly terrifying."
Kosuke laughed instead, "Hahaha, although the Second is serious, he is also a very gentle person. After learning of my decision, he personally taught me Ninjutsu and Taijutsu, giving me the skills to survive in war. Young man, the cruelty of war cannot be imagined without experiencing it firsthand. I have seen prosperous villages turn into ruins overnight, and children who were laughing and playing just a second ago turned into charred remains in an instant."
Gekko Hayate, who had also participated in the war, resonated with this sentiment. "Yes, Kosuke, if we can be patient, we shouldn't start a war, otherwise both sides will suffer losses."
Kosuke: " Hayate, back then I didn't know the meaning of these wars either, but after the Second's unfortunate death, I participated in several wars during the Lord Third's era, and that's when I learned the meaning—it's the Will of Fire."
" The Will of Fire?"
Kosuke gazed at the raging flames. "That's right, the Will of Fire. If the Lord First established the village, and the Second established Konoha's system, then the Lord Third awakened the Will of Fire within us, and the Lord Fourth carried forward and protected that Will of Fire. A great ninja village must have magnanimity, but it must also have its bottom line. Blindly yielding and tolerating will only allow other countries to infiltrate or even devour it. This time, Konoha's campaign against the Sound Ninja is twofold: first, revenge, and second, to deter other countries. In this way, even if some leaves are burned, the light and heat will be passed on to the next generation."
Hongshi: "Why don't you just say you're protective of your own?"
Kakashi seemed to recall the wars he had experienced, "Trees that grow in war, though strong, also suffer greatly. Losing friends and family is commonplace."
After chatting for a while, everyone fell into a deep sleep, leaving only Naruto and Hongshi on night watch.
After receiving treatment from the Hongshi, Naruto sat on a rock by the lake, looking refreshed and chatting.
Hongshi: " Naruto-kun, do you really want to become stronger?"
Naruto chuckled, "Of course! Once I get stronger, I'm definitely going to snatch Sasuke back from Orochimaru!"
Hongshi placed his hand on the Cursed Seal on the back of Naruto's neck. "Then you don't need this."
The Preta Path ability was activated, completely absorbing Orochimaru's Cursed Seal.
Naruto felt the chilling Chakra within him vanish instantly. "Haha, this is my true state! That Cursed Seal was too cold."
Hongshi laughed and said, "Your talent is actually very high, but you lack proper guidance. Do you know the Flying Thunder God Technique?"
" Flying Thunder God? I feel like I've heard of that somewhere before."
Hongshi nodded. " The Flying Thunder God Technique and the Rasengan are both signature techniques of the Fourth Hokage. I think you should learn this technique."
"Yeah?"
"That's right. And the Rasengan is just an unfinished Ninjutsu, yet it has such great power. If it were perfected, Chidori 'Sasuke would be blown to smithereens in no time."
Naruto stood up. "Please, you absolutely must teach me this Ninjutsu!"
Hongshi coughed twice. "Ahem, you'll have to figure this out yourself. I don't know how either, hahaha. How embarrassing."
Naruto: "(°ー°) You can't even talk nonsense."