Naruto : Cruel Rebirth

Konan asked in surprise, "The Sage Power from the same source as yours, Mount Myoboku?"

Naruto replied cautiously, "I'm not sure yet, Sister Konan. Stay close to me, don't wander off!"

Both of them had Sage Power, and Naruto sensed the presence of another, who also sensed him! Hiss! Amid the mist, a pair of golden horizontal eyes flickered, and a jaw clicked ominously.

Naruto's pupils contracted sharply. "Killing intent!" 

Whoosh!!

A shadow shot through the mist toward them!

"So fast!!"

Naruto, with Konan, quickly dodged to the side... The shadow struck where Naruto had just been standing—an arrow made of a purple-green liquid mix! Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle...!!

The arrow quickly dissolved, turning into mist. 

"This... is poison!" 

Konan, who had fought against Hanzou's forces in the past, was very sensitive to toxins. "The potency of this poison is even stronger than that of the venomous salamander! Naruto, we need to get out of here, or we'll both die!"

Gurgle!

The second poison arrow followed closely behind...! Naruto's left eye snapped open.

—Shinra Tensei! 

Boom! The repulsive force exploded, causing the arrow to disintegrate and release an even larger, denser cloud of poison! 

Naruto's Rinnegan locked onto the mist's depths, and he spoke in a low voice, "I've memorized your chakra..."

Whoosh! The Rinnegan's central pupil expanded into a black circle! 

—The Realm of the Rinnegan, released!

Whoosh! 

Outside the tall tower in Amegakure, Naruto and Konan opened their eyes simultaneously, their gazes meeting through the rain... Their faces, soaked with rain, carried a cold expression, yet could not hide the lingering thrill of the danger they had just escaped.

Naruto sighed, "That was really close and exciting..." 

Konan, however, said, "It was nothing compared to the memories you showed me."

Naruto smiled and stretched as he stood up. "There were a total of 152 of them, and over 30 can go into the sea. That should be enough!"

"Ah... You're right, it's time to rest."

Konan, pale and exhausted, stood up and quickly headed for the tower, but suddenly stumbled and fell. 

"!" Naruto was startled, rushing over to support her, asking concernedly, "Are you okay, Sister Konan?"

Konan, looking extremely weary, said, "I'm fine, just... just used up too much chakra..."

But Naruto could tell by her appearance that it wasn't that simple! He gently placed the back of his hand on Konan's forehead, his expression changing immediately. "You're burning up! You've got a high fever!!"

Konan, her gaze unfocused, murmured, "Maybe it was when I dispersed the paper clones earlier... too much chakra and too much rain... Sorry, Naruto. Can you help me back to my room?"

Naruto helped Konan back to her room. 

Konan's fever didn't subside, and she was still wearing completely soaked clothes. If this continued, her condition would only worsen!

Naruto made a quick decision. "I'll go get some women from the village!"

"Stop... Don't!"

But Konan stopped him by grabbing his hand.

"No, Naruto, I'm the leader of Amegakure. The image I've built in people's hearts is one of being beyond human affairs! If that image is broken, it will be a huge problem in the future..." 

Naruto anxiously said, "But we can't just leave it like this?"

"Ha... ha..." Konan weakly released his hand, breathing heavily as she closed her eyes. "It's fine, I'm a ninja. I won't die from something like this."

"..." Naruto's expression was conflicted as he looked at Konan's soaked clothes: her fire-cloud robe, the backless fishnet top with zippers, and her light purple tight pants.

Once, Hinata had fallen ill, and Naruto had taken care of her, even helping her bathe.

In a marriage, of course, that was understandable. 

But Konan was his senior, and he respected her deeply!

He couldn't do such things for her; it would only make things complicated later.

"Ha." Naruto took a deep breath. "Sister Konan, wait for me a moment. I'll be right back..."

"..." At that moment, Konan was already slipping in and out of consciousness. 

The village of Konohagakure was bustling in the early morning.

Since the battle with Pain, Tsunade, who had been unconscious for several days, finally woke up! Shizune, holding her pet Tonton, walked out of a temporary tent, suddenly stopping and looking at the shadows. Coldly, she said, "Who's there?"

"Shizune-san, long time no see..." A boy dressed in Fire Cloud attire calmly walked out and removed his mask.

"Naruto!?" Shizune was surprised, but then remembered Naruto's current status as a rogue ninja, becoming cautious. 

"What are you doing in Konohagakure?" she asked.

Naruto replied calmly, "I want you to help me with something..."

Shizune, holding Tonton in her left arm, quietly gripped a Kunai with her right hand. "You're not joking, are you...?"

"Do I look like I'm joking?" Naruto replied.

Suddenly, his right eye transformed into the Three Tomoe Sharingan. 

"Sharingan, not good!" Shizune realized and quickly closed her eyes.

Naruto smirked, dashed forward, and lifted Shizune onto his shoulder! Shizune's face turned pale. "What... what are you doing?"

Naruto said, "Sorry, it's an emergency, I have no other choice..."

Whoosh! Naruto, carrying Shizune, used Flying Thunder God to leave.

Tonton fell from mid-air. 

Whoosh! Naruto flashed back, grabbed Tonton, and disappeared again.

In the Amegakure, on the seventh floor of a tall tower, Shizune sat by the wall, her face stern. "Naruto, you need to explain the situation to me!"

Naruto, holding Tonton, sincerely said to Shizune, "Shizune-san, I'm sorry for bringing you here in such a rough way. One of my companions is sick and needs someone to take care of them. It's inconvenient because of the difference between men and women, so I thought of you right away!"

"..."

Shizune looked at Naruto carefully. 

Naruto said, "You have to trust me, otherwise, I could just use Genjutsu with my Sharingan on you..."

Finally, Shizune's expression softened. She had worked with Naruto before, and even though things had come to this point, deep down, she still trusted him.

As a medical ninja trained by Tsunade, she believed in the principle of prioritizing patients.

Shizune stood up and said seriously, "Where is the patient?"

Naruto replied, "In the room behind you." 

"Later, I have a lot of questions for you!" Shizune glanced at Naruto, then turned and entered the room.

Naruto, holding Tonton, looked out at the cold rain and the moonlight outside the tower, which touched his heart.

'Yeah, I'm no longer Hokage, I don't have the authority I once had, and now I have to sneak back into the village like a thief...'

Naruto sighed. 'Being a rogue ninja is even heavier than I thought. Sasuke, it must be the same for you, right? The road ahead for us is still long...' 

"Gurururu~..." Tonton made a cute pig-like sound.

Naruto stroked its round little head and smiled. "Are you hungry? Don't worry, I'll make sure you're full before we go back..."

...

In the new hideout of the Akatsuki.

Whoosh! Kamui's black vortex was released. 

Looking at the cold boy who had been forced to revert to his true form, Obito spoke in a low voice. "Sasuke, can you keep your calm now?" 

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