Chapter 126: Grandpa Third, Are You Sick?
Konoha under the moonlight; all sounds were hushed.
Snip~ Snip~
Naruto stood quietly by the window, using scissors to trim the vines sprouting from a flowerpot.
Then he picked up a nearby watering can, and clear water poured down from it.
The white rose swayed with the flowing water, appearing even purer and more crystal-clear against the backdrop of the night.
It was just that the thorns on the vines and flower branches added a touch of bewitching allure.
Tending to flowers and pets allowed Naruto to cultivate his temperament and calm his mind in the process.
Just then.
"Coo coo coo~"
A pure white pigeon flapped its wings and flew to the windowsill.
Naruto paused his actions upon seeing this, then immediately looked up at the sky.
"It's very late. I'll water them again later."
Naruto murmured to himself, then put away the watering can, stood up, and returned to his bedroom.
At this moment, on the street, the figure of an old man leaning on a cane flickered in and out of view.
After confirming no one nearby was paying attention to him, the old man's figure instantly vanished from the spot.
When he reappeared beside Naruto's house, the old man's stooped posture had straightened.
He then pushed aside the bushes before him, his gaze fixed on the small room on the second floor where Naruto lived.
In that room, a small figure was silhouetted against the window.
The light suddenly went out, and the room plunged into darkness.
"Heh, this should be the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox's residence then."
The old man revealed a sneer, thinking inwardly: "What are those Konoha guys thinking, actually allowing the villagers to give the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki such an obvious nickname."
The old man's name in Konoha was Uemura Nagano; his identity was that of a lonely old man with no children.
But his true identity was actually Buribi, an intelligence operative dispatched to Konoha by Kumogakure in his early years.
Unfortunately, the difficulty of infiltrating Konoha was too great, so intelligence operatives like them in Konoha were highly valued.
To date, Buribi had only transmitted intelligence to Kumogakure a few times and had never received an assassination mission.
Recently, with Konoha's internal turmoil, Kumogakure finally prepared to assassinate Sarutobi Hiruzen and directly kill the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki.
As long as the Hokage and the Jinchūriki were killed, Konoha wouldn't even have the strength to fight back against Kumogakure.
A Jōnin-level spy had already gone to Konoha Hospital, while Buribi came to assassinate the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki, who was an easier target.
After all, Sarutobi Hiruzen was the Third Hokage; the security around him was surely extremely tight.
Naruto, however, was different.
He was just a Nine-Tails Jinchūriki who hadn't grown up yet; the severely understaffed ANBU probably wouldn't be monitoring or protecting him.
Chirp chirp chirp...
Squeak squeak squeak...
The calls of birds and insects occasionally sounded in the dark night, which instead calmed Buribi's emotions further.
After observing carefully for a moment and confirming no ANBU were guarding nearby, only then did he lower his guard.
Transforming into a black shadow, he shot out from the bushes, directly climbing up to Naruto's window.
Then he gently slipped into the room, the entire movement smooth as flowing water, making almost no sound.
However, after landing, Buribi suddenly felt a sharp pain in his arm.
"Hmm?"
He cautiously looked at his arm but only saw a fine cut.
"Was it scratched by a branch just now?"
Since he didn't detect anything unusual, he didn't bother with minor details.
Buribi drew a short blade, came to the bedroom door, and slowly pushed it open.
Creak~
A slight sound of the door opening echoed, breaking the tranquility of the night.
Buribi took out a sleeping drug and slowly blew it into the bedroom.
Seeing no movement in the bedroom, a savage grin finally appeared on his face.
"So this is Konoha's Nine-Tails Jinchūriki? His alertness is truly terrible. No match for Lord Killer Bee at all!"
As a Nine-Tails Jinchūriki, yet still playing house at the Ninja Academy.
Konoha had truly fallen.
Buribi could already imagine the scene of the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki being killed.
This was a Jinchūriki; it was an unparalleled meritorious deed.
However, he didn't see.
His every move had long since fallen into the eyes of the white dove by the window.
Buribi gripped the long knife in his hand tightly, walking step by step into the pitch-black room.
In the darkness, he could vaguely make out the room's layout, his gaze fixed intently on the bed.
Upon hearing the steady sound of breathing,
A brutal glint flashed in Buribi's eyes.
"Brat, go to hell!"
He transformed into a black shadow, raised his short blade high, and stabbed fiercely towards the bed.
Pfft!!
The short blade directly pierced the bedding, but he didn't hear the familiar muffled groan.
Moreover, it clearly wasn't the sensation of a short blade piercing flesh.
"This..."
A horrified look appeared on Buribi's face. He subconsciously wanted to flee.
But before he could react,
Click!
The lights suddenly turned on, instantly illuminating the entire room.
A gentle voice also sounded from behind Buribi.
"Did you... happen to touch my flowers?"
Buribi was terrified, the hairs on his body standing on end.
Following the voice, he turned around, gripping his short blade, ready to slash at the person.
But upon seeing the person behind him, his hand movements couldn't help but pause.
He saw a figure sitting at the table in the living room.
Those azure blue eyes were staring intently at him.
"It's actually not the Nine-Tails brat?"
Buribi was only stunned for a moment before quickly coming back to his senses.
A ruthless look appeared in his eyes, and the speed at which he attacked the masked person (Naruto) increased severalfold.
But the next instant,
Buribi's eyes suddenly widened, his figure freezing in mid-air.
Splurt!
"This is... what..."
Buribi slowly looked down at his chest, his eyes filled with incomprehension.
Hiss~ Gurgle~
At some unknown point, a vine covered in thorns like a briar had pierced his chest.
The vine swayed as if alive, continuously sucking the blood gushing from his heart.
"Who... on earth are you..."
As his life force faded, Buribi's body went limp. He fell directly to his knees, the short knife in his hand also clattering to the ground.
His vision gradually blurred; he could only vaguely see the white dove in the masked person's hand.
That white dove's eye... was an abnormal, chilling scarlet.
"Who am I?"
Naruto stroked the white dove's feathers, his tone calm: "The dead have no need to know."
With that, his finger flicked lightly.
Splurt! Splurt!
The thorn-covered vine directly wrapped around Buribi's heart.
With the irrigation of blood, the originally green vine gradually stained blackish-red.
Thump!
Buribi's eyes gradually lost focus. He collapsed powerlessly to the ground,
Completely losing all signs of life.
"Coo coo coo~"
Naruto stroked the white dove, then immediately stood up and began to fabricate "battle traces".
Although with his apparent strength, killing a Chūnin-level spy wasn't world-shattering,
In this world,
The dead... can also speak.
"Wind Style: Vacuum Wave."
Naruto used ninjutsu and kunai to destroy the upper body, including the brain and heart.
Even the Yamanaka clan wouldn't be able to obtain any intelligence related to Naruto from the corpse.
About ten minutes later.
Swish!
A black shadow leaped through the window into Naruto's room.
"Uzumaki..."
The ANBU ninja wearing an animal mask was about to say something, but the next moment, suddenly froze on the spot.
He saw Naruto standing in the washroom, woodenly and continuously washing blood from his hands.
And beside him,
Under the night sky, the red rose was still swaying.
Contrasting with the blood on his hands, it appeared even more bewitching, more scarlet.
"Coo coo coo~"
The white dove standing on Naruto's shoulder suddenly cooed.
Only then did Naruto stop his movements, warily gripping a kunai, looking at the ANBU ninja.
"Ahem, don't misunderstand."
The ANBU ninja came back to his senses, also startled by Naruto's cold gaze, and quickly explained: "We ANBU received news that you became the target of an enemy village's spy. It seems you should be alright now."
He then subconsciously glanced at the mangled corpse nearby, a rough guess forming in his mind.
No wonder he's the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki; at such a young age, he can already kill a Chūnin.
No wonder Lord Third was so anxious to see him.
He didn't mind Naruto's alertness; after all, having just experienced an assassination attempt,
If he were too calm, it would actually be somewhat abnormal.
Thinking this, the ANBU ninja said gently: "Uzumaki Naruto, tidy yourself up. I will take you to see Lord Third."
Naruto also seemed to have just come back to his senses, nodding blankly: "Thank you for your trouble. It's been a long time since I last saw Grandpa Third."
With that, he bowed slightly in a polite manner.
Paired with his current tone and behavior, it made the ANBU ninja feel a sense of goodwill from the bottom of his heart.
However, he didn't see the thoughtful glint that flashed in Naruto's eyes, hidden by his long hair.
Sarutobi Hiruzen... is already awake?
"You're too kind."
A smile couldn't help but appear under the ANBU ninja's mask.
He then came to Naruto's side, placed a hand on his shoulder, and left using the Body Flicker Technique.
...
Inside a hospital room in Konoha.
Sarutobi Hiruzen lay on the hospital bed, brow furrowed, his gaze sweeping over the intelligence scroll in his hand.
"Those Kumogakure fellows really don't give up. Fortunately, this old man was prepared."
Although his mental state wasn't too good, Sarutobi Hiruzen had already woken up yesterday.
After learning about Kumogakure's minor movements at the border, he had anticipated that Kumogakure would inevitably use hidden spies to assassinate him.
So he simply played along, letting those hidden demons and monsters jump out, then catching them all in one net.
In the end, just as he expected, that spy disguised as medical personnel clearly hadn't anticipated this move.
The moment his front foot stepped into the hospital room, his back foot was captured alive by Kakashi and Tenzō.
He didn't even have time to bite open a poison sac to commit suicide.
He was then sent to the Interrogation Department, and all the intelligence he knew was extracted.
It's just that Sarutobi Hiruzen hadn't expected there would also be a spy sent to assassinate the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki.
"Sigh, I hope Naruto is alright..."
Sarutobi Hiruzen sighed deeply, subconsciously reaching for the pipe at his bedside.
But suddenly realized he was still in a hospital room.
A bitter smile couldn't help appearing on his face, and memories he had deliberately forgotten surged back into his mind.
"Shinnosuke..."
Remembering Kakashi's vague and evasive manner,
Sarutobi Hiruzen could roughly understand the tragic state of Shinnosuke's death.
Perhaps just as "Ame-no-Minakanushi" said, he was probably already smashed to pieces, difficult to even find a whole corpse...
A deep look of sorrow flashed in Sarutobi Hiruzen's cloudy old eyes.
But only for a moment, then it transformed into intense hatred and killing intent.
Creak!
Sarutobi Hiruzen clenched his fists, his face twisted, saying through gritted teeth, word by word:
"Crimson Moon! Ame-no-Minakanushi!!"
Just then.
Dong dong dong!
A knock on the door suddenly sounded, interrupting Sarutobi Hiruzen's complex thoughts.
He wiped the corner of his eye, his expression returning to calm again.
"...Please come in."
Click.
The hospital room door was pushed open.
Naruto walked into the hospital room behind the ANBU ninja, his eyes showing great joy as he looked at Sarutobi Hiruzen.
But upon noticing his pale face,
Naruto's expression changed from joy to worry.
"Grandpa Third! You... Are you sick?"
(End of Chapter)
---
Read up to 25 Chapters ahead on patreon.com/Fanglin
[Please leave a 5 Star review and power stone for this novel]
*Thank you*