Naruto : Cruel Rebirth

In the dark place under the candlelight in the Land of Fire, a mouse with ink strokes was searching everywhere.

Super Beast Imitating Drawing, a technique that combines chakra with exceptional artistic skill, is unique to Sai. 

In the woods near the hideout, Sai maintained his hand seal while speaking to Mitarashi Anko, who was investigating Kabuto's whereabouts with him. 

"Yes, this is one of Orochimaru's former hideouts." 

Anko, hands in her pockets, said: 

"Looks like Kabuto is making use of his old base..." 

*Thud!* Suddenly, a noise came from the large tree behind them. 

*Swish!* Sai drew his sword, but Anko stopped him. 

"Wait, it's an ally." 

Emerging before them were three members of Konohagakure's scouting team: Hyuga Iroha, Aburame Muta, and Yawara, respectively a jonin, special jonin, and chunin. 

Muta, dressed in the Aburame clan's signature light coat with dark sunglasses and carrying a bug container on his back, stepped forward and said: 

"Captain Mitarashi, I bring orders from the village!" 

"The mission has changed. For now, we are to stop searching for Yakushi Kabuto and prioritize finding Uzumaki Naruto. We will assist you in this task!" 

"Uzumaki Naruto..." Anko was surprised. 

"On the way here, Yamato rushed back to the village in a hurry. Is this related?" 

Aburame Muta explained: 

"Konohagakure was attacked by Akatsuki, resulting in severe destruction and heavy casualties. Tsunade-sama is currently in a coma..." 

"What?" 

"Because of this, Danzo-sama has been appointed as the Sixth Hokage..." 

Upon hearing this, Sai's pupils shrank sharply. 

Anko muttered: 

"I still can't believe it... But what's the situation with Naruto?" 

"We will provide more details later, Captain," said Hyuga Iroha, stepping forward and glancing cautiously at Sai. Given Sai's affiliation with Root, some things couldn't be discussed openly. 

"Excuse us for now." 

Sai leaped through the trees toward Konohagakure, thinking: 

*Danzo-sama has become Hokage, and Naruto has left the village. I have a bad feeling about this...* 

With the mission changed, Anko's team began their search for Naruto's whereabouts. 

Anko had learned about the cause and the events leading up to this moment. 

"Naruto betraying Konohagakure? I don't believe that for a second."

She still remembered Naruto's carefree personality during the Chunin Exams and had kept an eye on his growth since then.

Aburame Muta said, "None of us want to believe it, but we need to find Naruto to clear the truth and stop Danzo from using or framing him. There's already some bad talk spreading in the village…"

"Hm!?" Hyuga Iroha, who was scanning the area with his Byakugan, suddenly said, "At 12 o'clock! I see Naruto—he's heading straight for us!"

"What!?" Anko landed on a tree branch and said, "That's way too convenient. Everyone, stay on guard!"

The group didn't move but tightened their grip on their kunai, ready for anything.

A kilometer away, Naruto, running at full speed, deactivated his Sage Mode. "We've been spotted…"

Facing his comrades for the first time since returning, Naruto felt a hint of nervousness. Before he knew it, he was standing in front of Anko's team.

"Phew…" Naruto took a deep breath, then greeted them calmly. 

"Yo, Miss Anko. Long time no see."

Anko's team of four sized up Naruto and then turned their eyes to Konan standing behind him.

Aburame Muta frowned. "That woman... her outfit—she's from the Akatsuki!"

Anko walked forward with her hands in her pockets. "Naruto, you disappeared without a word, and now you're hanging out with the Akatsuki? You'd better have a good explanation."

Naruto said, "There's nothing to explain. It's just as you see."

"Oh?" Anko's eyes narrowed as she clenched her fists in her pockets, a vein popping on her forehead. "You're really sticking to your guns, huh?"

Naruto adjusted the rogue ninja forehead protector tied around his head—one Sasuke had left behind after their battle at the Valley of the End. "Yeah. This is my ninja way."

Anko was so frustrated that she couldn't help but laugh. "You're joking around even now? You're really something else!"

From behind Naruto, Konan said coolly, "It seems I'm not very welcomed here."

Naruto smiled faintly. "Well, Sister Konan, many Konohagakure shinobi lost their lives to the Akatsuki long before Nagato. It's only natural."

Konan asked, "Are you planning to fight them alone?"

Naruto replied, "I haven't had a proper fight in decades. My reflexes have dulled. Four Jonin-level opponents—not too many, not too few—are just what I need to sharpen my instincts again."

"Be careful then…"

Konan stepped back, leaving the battle to Naruto. 

Anko analyzed the situation carefully. *That Akatsuki member isn't planning to join the fight—that's an unexpected surprise. But Naruto defeated the enemy that destroyed the village. His strength now might even surpass Orochimaru-sensei's…*

*Even though we have the numbers advantage, we might not be able to outmatch Naruto in sheer strength. But at least we have the advantage of knowing his abilities. We can use that to come up with a strategy.*

*Naruto is skilled at using shadow clones to mislead his enemies. His signature move is the Rasengan, and he also knows Jiraiya-sama's Sage Mode. Judging from his chakra, he isn't in Sage Mode right now, but he's said to be able to use shadow clones to recharge it.* 

"Iroha, use your Byakugan to check the area. See if there are any of Naruto's shadow clones nearby!"

Iroha said, "Other than the Akatsuki woman, it's just Naruto himself."

Anko's eyes narrowed. *So he doesn't plan to enter Sage Mode—does he think he doesn't need to? That kid who once froze under my killing intent has really grown.*

"Formation B!"

*Swish!* The team spread out.

Anko remained in front of Naruto, Iroha moved to the right, Muta to the left, and Yawara circled behind.

"Naruto… show me if your strength is the real deal!"

Anko's lips curved into a battle-hungry smile. She bit her finger and formed the summoning hand seals. 

—Summoning Jutsu! 

*Bang!* 

White smoke billowed as a giant snake coiled and rose up! 

Naruto exclaimed, 

"That's huge! It looks just like the one from the Forest of Death during the Chunin Exams. Speaking of which, Anko, weren't you one of the Sannin Orochimaru's students?" 

*Boom!* 

The snake lunged down, forcing Naruto to leap back. The tree he had been standing on was smashed to pieces by the snake's attack. 

*Swish! Swish! Swish!* 

From behind, Yawara threw several kunai equipped with explosive tags. 

*Clang! Clang! Clang!* 

Naruto casually tossed shuriken, precisely intercepting all the kunai. *Boom!* The explosive tags detonated mid-air, leaving Naruto unharmed as he landed safely. 

Yawara's expression turned serious. 

"He didn't even look behind him and still managed to perfectly block my kunai. Was he judging the position by sound? His skill with shuriken is ridiculously good!" 

From the front, the summoned snake launched another fierce assault. 

Naruto's lips curved slightly upward as he formed hand seals and pressed his hands to the ground. 

—Earth Release: Swamp of the Underworld! 

*Whoosh!* 

A swamp suddenly appeared, trapping the snake within. 

Mitarashi Anko was stunned. 

"Earth Release? Isn't Naruto's chakra nature supposed to be Wind?" 

The common belief was that Naruto only had the Wind attribute. In truth, Naruto possessed six chakra natures: Wind, Earth, Lightning, Fire, Water, and Yang, with only Yin being absent [as confirmed in the official Naruto databook, *The Book of Formation*]. 

Among these, Naruto was most adept at Wind, which is why his paper test back then primarily revealed Wind nature. 

In his previous life, after becoming Hokage, Naruto also developed proficiency in the other attributes. He was no longer the ninja who relied solely on Shadow Clones and the Rasengan. 

Naruto crouched, maintaining the swamp. 

*Swish!* 

Behind him, Yawara formed hand seals, his chest swelling with air. 

—Fire Release: Great Fireball Jutsu! 

*Whoosh!* 

A thin flame extended from his mouth, growing into a roaring fireball aimed at Naruto's back. 

*Bang!* 

A puff of white smoke appeared as Naruto's Shadow Clone materialized. 

The crowd was stunned. 

"He managed to form the seals for a Shadow Clone in that situation?" 

The Shadow Clone faced Yawara with its back to Naruto, forming a series of hand seals. 

—Wind Release: Gale Palm! 

*Boom!* 

A fierce gust roared, blowing the Great Fireball back towards Yawara! 

Yawara was shocked. 

"Impossible! He used Wind Release to overpower Fire Release!?" 

"Argh…!!" 

The violent wind and flames tore through a swath of trees, sending Yawara flying backward until he hit the ground hard. 

"Hey, are you okay, old man?" Naruto called out, startled by the scene. He only wanted to test his skills and hadn't intended to harm a Konoha ninja. 

Yawara, lying on the ground, was holding a nearly shattered ninja shield. It was this shield that had saved him. 

"Whew…" Naruto let out a breath of relief. 

"A Jonin shouldn't go down that easily, right?" 

"I… I'm a Chunin…" Yawara muttered before passing out. 

*Buzz, buzz, buzz!* 

At that moment, Aburame Muta opened the insect jar on his back. Thousands of parasitic insects swarmed together, forming a dark cloud that surrounded Naruto... 

The Aburame clan's techniques are known for their wide coverage, making them nearly impossible to evade. 

Naruto knew better than to underestimate them. Before the bugs could completely surround him, he threw a kunai toward Muta. 

Muta quickly dodged, and the kunai embedded itself in the tree behind him. 

At that moment, the parasitic insects closed in on Naruto. 

Muta said, 

"I can feel it... The bugs are absorbing his chakra. We've gained the upper hand." 

"Good... Now combine it with this move to completely immobilize him!" 

——Hidden Shadow Snake Hands! 

From under Anko's sleeves, multiple snakes shot out, wrapping tightly around Naruto and binding him completely. 

"Surrender, Naruto!" 

*Whoosh!!* 

But just then, the bugs scattered unpredictably, and the snakes fell to the ground! 

Muta exclaimed in shock, 

"What? The target... suddenly disappeared!?" 

Hyuga Iroha shouted, 

"Muta, watch your back!!" 

But it was too late. With a soft *thud*, Naruto's hand struck the back of Muta's neck. 

"Ugh..." Muta collapsed against the tree trunk, unconscious. 

Snap!

Naruto slowly pulled the kunai he had thrown out from the tree trunk. On the kunai, there was a strange spell written on it!

Cold sweat flowed down Muta's face:

"Impossible, it's the Fourth Hokage's... Flying Thunder God Technique!"

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