I, who just wanted to be lazy, was forced to become the Hokage.

Chapter 466 Naruto Uzumaki: This woman is a bit fierce~

Sasori of the Red Sand was defeated, and the usurper was executed.

The Konoha ninjas then abandoned any intention of staying in Loulan.

However, the contributions made by Nara Rinka and others to Loulan were truly immense.

It's no exaggeration to say that...

Nara Rinka and his companions' actions completely saved this oasis kingdom from collapse!

Therefore, even though the Konoha ninjas wanted to leave, the people of Loulan, led by Sara, were unwilling to let their benefactors go so easily.

At Queen Sara's sincere invitation, Nara Rangsuke and the other ninjas could not refuse and stayed overnight in Loulan.

That evening, Loulan hosted a grand and lively banquet.

Even on the distant desert horizon, one can see the dazzling fireworks of Loulan Kingdom, like a tree ablaze with silver.

That same night, Nara Rinkei used the Summoning Jutsu to send the contents of the agreement he had reached with Loulan back to the village, and instructed the Executive Vice Hokage (Nara Shikaku) who remained in the village to quickly send people with supplies to Loulan.

According to the agreement reached between Nara Rangsuke and Sara, Loulan "pays" for the dragon vein, and Konoha will reciprocate with economic resources and security protection.

Given the speed of the Konoha ninja, the first group of personnel carrying supplies will arrive in Loulan no later than three days later.

But then it wouldn't fall under the jurisdiction of Nara Rinkei...

Habitually leaving work matters to Nara Shikaku, Nara Rinka (and his shadow clones) and the Slug Sage silently studied the Dragon Vein Chakra all night, but unfortunately, they gained very little.

Dragon vein chakra involves changes in properties related to space and time.

This is a rather thorny problem for both Nara Rinka and the Living Slug Sage.

Fortunately, the Dragon Vein Chakra has been completely sealed into the [Dragon Vein Mask].

Even the dragon vein chakra that Centipede had extracted from the dragon vein and transferred to his puppet army was secretly transferred to another new mask thanks to Nara Ranke's tireless efforts.

The amount of chakra in the dragon vein is still very large.

We can't figure anything out right now, but there's plenty of time.

the next morning.

Nara Rinka and the others bid farewell to Loulan and boarded the [Shadow Creature] together, flying towards the Land of Fire.

Compared to when they arrived, the Konoha ninja team has one more new member.

"Wow! That ninjutsu is amazing! It can make you fly that high!"

Naruto Uzumaki crouched on the back of the [shadow creature], looking around at the high-altitude environment with great curiosity.

"Uncle Pineapple Head, is that big bird also a shadow?"

"Yes."

Nara Rinkazu turned around, looked at the energetic Naruto Uzumaki, and then glanced at Minato Namikaze, who was smiling obsequiously beside him.

"Naruto, Minato must have given you a lot of instructions last night, right?"

Nara Ranka couldn't understand why Naruto Uzumaki had stayed in this world.

However, the other party came from the future, and there was a—no, half of the Nine-Tailed Fox sealed in its body.

From any perspective, Naruto Uzumaki is an absolutely crucial figure!

Not to mention, this guy is a true chosen one!

Therefore, Nara Rinkazu could not "let Naruto go" in Loulan; he had no choice but to bring him back to Konoha.

Throughout Konoha's history, there have always been elaborate and special "protection procedures" in place for the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki.

Just like Kushina Uzumaki.

Others may not know, but Nara Rinka knows.

After becoming the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, this descendant of the Uzumaki clan basically lost the right to move freely and lived his daily life under the protection (surveillance) of the Anbu squad.

According to Nara Rinkei, this method of monitoring Jinchuriki greatly affects their normal growth.

He didn't plan to arrange any secret service team to monitor Naruto Uzumaki around the clock, euphemistically calling it "protection."

But considering Naruto's thick skin...

Nara Rinkazu still urged Minato Namikaze to keep an eye on Naruto Uzumaki.

Just like he said before.

Naruto Uzumaki's "custody" has now been handed over to Minato Namikaze.

"Yeah, haha!"

Faced with Nara's question about plucking the laurel, Naruto scratched his head, a blush creeping onto his fox-bearded face.

"Minato-nii took good care of me, like... like... well, like the Perverted Sage and Iruka-sensei!"

Naruto Uzumaki is not an "idiot" in the absolute sense.

He's just a bit oblivious, but occasionally, this guy's intuition can be incredibly sharp.

After a period of close contact, Naruto Uzumaki realized that there might be some special relationship between him and Minato Namikaze.

To be precise—it's a father-son relationship.

But perhaps it's because I've never felt my parents' love since I can remember.

Naruto Uzumaki instinctively rejected such speculation.

Even so, the two examples he gave at this moment are quite special.

Jiraiya and Iruka Umino.

The roles these two people played in Naruto's life were not much different from those of "fathers".

It could even be said that Jiraiya and Iruka Umino gave Naruto Uzumaki fatherly care and attention.

As early as yesterday, Minato Namikaze had already thoroughly investigated Naruto Uzumaki's personal growth trajectory.

Little Sun naturally understood what Jiraiya and Iruka Umino meant to Naruto Uzumaki.

Therefore, upon hearing Naruto's words, Minato Namikaze unconsciously revealed a fatherly smile on his face.

"Heh... Brother Minato?"

Nara Rinkazu glanced at the grinning Minato Namikaze, and his lips twitched slightly.

"You call him 'Big Brother' but me 'Uncle'?"

"Let's each talk about our own points!"

Naruto Uzumaki smiled brightly.

"Uncle Pineapple Head, don't be so stingy!"

Naruto Uzumaki could sense the friendly attitude of Nara Rinka and the others towards him.

Unlike the indifference, rejection, or even hatred shown by others...

Therefore, Naruto was very relaxed when he was talking to Nara Rin.

however.

Nara Rinkazu glared coldly at Naruto Uzumaki and Minato Namikaze.

He had just wanted to give these two a heads-up about the "surprise" that was coming up.

Now...

You two, just wait and see!

The shadow creature swiftly soared through the sky, crossing the border between Loulan and the Land of Fire, like a bird returning to its nest, and returned to Konoha in no time.

Tsunade and the others originally thought that Nara Rin would directly control the [Shadow Creatures] to return to the village.

Unexpectedly, the shadow creature hovered in the sky for a while before landing in the vicinity of the Valley of the End.

Meanwhile, three figures were already waiting in the Valley of the End.

Upon seeing the landing of Nara Rinka's [shadow creature], the three of them rushed over together.

Nara Shikaku.

Hiruzen Sarutobi.

And those at the very front—

Uzumaki Kushina!

It seems someone has provoked Konoha's Red Hot Chili Pepper.

Kushina Uzumaki's long, blood-red hair, a symbol of powerful vitality, shot straight into the sky like octopus tentacles, propelled by an inexplicable aura, each strand seemingly burning with raging flames.

"Brother Minato!"

Naruto Uzumaki stared at the figure ahead that resembled a mother tyrannosaurus, and unconsciously cleared his throat a few times.

"That woman is so fierce!"

"It's even more ferocious than the Nine-Tails!"

Minato Namikaze stiffly turned his neck to look at his silly son.

"……what?"

(End of this chapter)