Naruto: I, who fooled the ninja world, was hailed as a savior.

Chapter 327 The Ten Who Left Konoha

A few days later, as night deepened, the tall side gate of Konoha cast a shadow.

In the open space in front of the gate, there were three unremarkable horse-drawn carriages, their tarpaulins worn and their ruts covered in mud, no different from the vehicles of ordinary merchants.

rustle……

As a soft rustling sound came from the woods, several figures emerged from the shadows.

Leading the group was Hiruzen Sarutobi, his face bearing a complex expression of loss and regret.

Behind him stood Hyuga Kumokawa and Kazuma, their expressions calm. Umino Iruka was also nearby, constantly turning back to look at the students behind him, his eyes filled with reluctance and worry.

Besides Naruto Uzumaki, there were nine other selected students whose faces showed a mixture of apprehension and barely suppressed excitement about the unknown journey ahead.

Uchiha Sasuke, as well as Naruto's classmates Karin and Chiba Ryosuke, were prominently featured.

In the group, Naruto had the black cat nestled in his arms, unconsciously grooming its soft fur.

He turned his head slightly and whispered to Uchiha Sasuke in a voice only those next to him could hear, "Why did you come along too?"

How could the Uchiha clan agree to let Sasuke leave Konoha?

In his memory, weren't these ninja clans with bloodline limits always protecting their geniuses with impenetrable secrecy?
“Unlike you, I have to come back after a year in the capital.”

Upon hearing this, Sasuke glanced at him and said in a low voice, "However, do you have some misunderstanding about the Uchiha clan?"

"The Uchiha clan members have never feared death or hardship, let alone..."

Have you forgotten what my ideal is?

Sasuke's ideal was never just to become stronger, but to become Hokage and restore the glory of the Uchiha clan.

However, to become Hokage, immense power alone is far from enough; one also needs political wisdom, the ability to govern a village, and...

—The recognition and support of the great name.

These are precisely the things that the Uchiha clan, and the Konoha ninja system focused on combat and missions, cannot provide for him.

Only by going to the capital can one access this knowledge and establish contact with the daimyo in advance.

Having figured all this out, the last trace of surprise in Naruto's heart dissipated.

He looked at Sasuke, and their eyes met briefly in the air, a silent understanding flowing between them.

They had different goals, yet at this moment they chose the same seemingly converging path.

Even if, at the end of this road, there is destined to be divergence.

"Is this your cat? Is it a ninja beast?"

Sasuke's gaze was drawn to the black cat in Naruto's arms. With a hint of curiosity, he reached out to touch its rather smooth fur.

However, before his fingertips could even touch it, the black cat slowly raised its head, and one of its single eyes opened eerily in the night, staring at him.

The sharp claws hidden in the soft pads of flesh silently peeked out with a cold glint, carrying a clear warning, causing Sasuke's hand to freeze in mid-air.

Damn it, what a fierce cat.

Just then, the horse in front stopped, turned around, and said to the children with a gentle smile, "We've arrived. Please get in the carriage."

Hyuga Kumokawa turned around, his gentle gaze falling on Uzumaki Naruto, his eyes, which seemed to contain nebulae, appearing exceptionally deep in the night.

“Naruto.” He patted Naruto’s head. “If you encounter a problem that you can’t solve on your own, don’t try to be strong. You can write to me.”

Looking into Hyuga Kumokawa's eyes, Naruto felt a surge of warmth in his heart.

He nodded vigorously, then took a step forward, gently hugged Hinata Yunchuan, and whispered, "I'll remember, Yunchuan-nii."

After the two parted, Hiruzen Sarutobi took a deep breath of the cool night air, walked over, patted Naruto's head one last time, and then took a deep look at the other children.

"Take care on your journey..." All the words in the story ultimately boiled down to a heavy admonition: "Remember, Konoha will always be your home."

The children nodded solemnly, some of the more sentimental girls already having tears welling up in their eyes. Guided by Kazuma, they boarded the three carriages one by one, filled with anticipation for the future and reluctance to leave Konoha, their hearts filled with complex emotions.

Inside the carriage, Naruto Uzumaki sat quietly in a corner, his eyelids lowered as if he were resting, but his mind had already sunk into the sealed space within his body.

Consciousness descended once more upon that familiar sealed land.

However, when Naruto opened his eyes, the scene before him stunned him instantly.

Unlike the golden beach and ocean that I remembered, which were bathed in false sunlight, the sealed space was now completely immersed in a deep, dark night.

The sky above was no longer a bright dome, but a deep night sky, in which the boundless aurora borealis flowed and changed slowly.

Those dazzling streams of light were like a rosy robe, exuding a mysterious and magnificent aura, illuminating the dark space with a bizarre and wonderful light.

What shocked Naruto the most was the Nine-Tails sitting there cross-legged like a human.

The Nine-Tailed Fox's enormous body still exudes a suffocating sense of oppression, but its form has undergone a significant change.

Those originally slender limbs are now covered with a grotesque exoskeleton, the bone lines are sharp, and they have a cold, metallic sheen, exuding a sinister aura.

"Big fox, what is this...?" Naruto looked up, his azure eyes filled with disbelief, and blurted out the question instinctively.

"Humph!"

Nine-Tails lowered its head to look at him, letting out a muffled breath, a hint of barely perceptible smugness in its eyes: "Kid, do you think you're the only one worthy of guidance?"

Upon hearing this, Naruto was even more surprised. He hadn't expected that the Nine-Tails, which was already so powerful, could continue to grow stronger, and in such a way.

Is it because of the teacher?
Even a being like the Nine-Tails could undergo such an evolution under the teacher's guidance?

"teacher."

Naruto looked up at the figure sitting atop Kurama's head, his azure eyes reflecting the dreamlike, ethereal light in the night sky, and asked, "What are those lights?"

Yun Shi slowly opened his eyes and calmly said, "That's the chakra within you."

"The chakra within my body?"

Naruto was taken aback. Sensing the streams of light, he could vaguely discern at least three auras, except for Ashura's chakra, which he couldn't distinguish.

How can there be so many different chakras within my own body?
“There is your own chakra there,” Yun Shi said. “And there is also the chakra left by your mother and father.”

"If you want to see them, I can use the chakra they left behind to let you see them and talk to them right now."

Too sudden.

Upon hearing this, both Kurama, who had a smug look on his face, and Naruto, who looked puzzled, were stunned.

Meanwhile, in the same carriage, Karin lifted a corner of the curtain of the carriage window and looked at Hinata Kumokawa, who was watching them leave in the distance.

Noticing her gaze, Hinata Kumokawa's eyes met hers in mid-air, a smile appearing on his face, his lips moving silently a few times.

Seemingly understanding what he was saying, Karin's eyes trembled slightly, and she gently lowered the curtain, shutting out the outside world.

In the dim light of the carriage, she slowly lowered her head and opened her palm.

In the center of her fair palm, a black diamond-shaped mark quietly appeared, and her hand slowly clenched.

Snapped!
The crisp crack of the whip echoed in the silent night sky, sounding particularly jarring.

The driver gently flicked his long whip, and the wheels began to turn slowly, making a heavy creaking sound as they rolled over the ground, gradually accelerating.

Three carriages carrying ten boys and girls from Konoha gradually blurred into the distance.

Hiruzen Sarutobi stood there for a long time before slowly withdrawing his gaze and letting out a long sigh.

He turned around, the hem of his shadow robe fluttering in the night breeze, and looked at Hinata Kumokawa, whose face was as calm as still water.

“Let’s go back.” Hiruzen Sarutobi gave him a deep look and said, “It’s time to discuss the joint campaign by the five great nations against Amegakure and Akatsuki.”

(End of this chapter)