Naruto: From Fake to Real, Deceiving the Ninja World.

Just then, the man, still shaken, caught his breath and seemed to regain some of his usual arrogance from the fear of death.

He straightened his disheveled, luxurious clothes, and the elation of surviving a disaster on his face was quickly replaced by condescending dissatisfaction.

"Hey! You two!"

He clearly mistook Sasuke and Naruto for ordinary ninjas sent by the Daimyo to deal with the Hollows, and reprimanded them imperiously, "Why are you so slow to react!"

"If it had been any later, I would have lost my life here! Does His Highness pay you so much for your jobs just to support people like you who neglect their duties?"

Sasuke seemed not to hear his barking at all, not even lifting an eyelid.

He merely turned his head slightly, his gaze shifting to Naruto beside him, his tone calm yet chillingly serious: "Should we kill him?"

"No one will find out."

Upon hearing this, the man's arrogance froze instantly. He took a step back, his voice trembling with fear, and said, "What did you say? Do you know who I am?"

"If you dare lay a finger on me, His Highness the Great Ming will never let you get away with it!"

In fact, Sasuke and Naruto recognized the man as soon as they entered the place and saw him.

This man attended the private banquet that the famous man had hosted.

However, it was clear that the other party did not recognize them at all, which made Sasuke's gaze even colder.

Naruto didn't answer Sasuke immediately. He first glanced at the man who was all bark and no bite, then looked away and surveyed the messy room.

Through the hole, he saw men and women outside, still fleeing in panic and confusion, their clothes disheveled, and his gaze turned somber.

“It’s pointless.” He shook his head, his eyes lowered. “He was just the last straw that broke the camel’s back. Even if we kill him, it won’t change anything.”

"It will only bring you and the village unnecessary trouble."

Sasuke frowned, not noticing the fleeting coldness in Naruto's eyes as he lowered them, and was about to retort.

But just then, a series of hurried and chaotic footsteps approached from afar.

The patrolling ninjas and samurai responsible for maintaining order in the capital finally arrived at the scene.

The leader, with a belt bearing the mark of the Land of Fire around his waist, was none other than Nango, one of the Lightning Release Four and the Twelve Guardian Ninja.

Nanwu's gaze quickly swept over the messy room, and his expression changed slightly when he saw the woman slumped on the floor and the man in fine clothes.

His experience as a guardian ninja allowed him to quickly guess what had happened, and a hint of understanding and barely perceptible annoyance flashed in his eyes.

However, when he saw that the 'Hollow' exuding a terrifying aura had been completely subdued, he visibly breathed a sigh of relief and looked at Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha.

"Lord Naruto, Lord Sasuke."

His eyes, which he usually kept squinting, were now wide open. He took a few steps forward and said sincerely, "Thank you both so much for your timely intervention, which prevented a greater disaster."

"Please rest assured, I will definitely report the truth to His Highness the Daimyo and the Hokage and request commendation for you both."

After saying that, Nanwu turned to the bound 'Void', placed his right hand on the hilt of the sword at his waist, clearly intending to kill the 'Void' completely to prevent future troubles.

"Wait." Naruto suddenly spoke up to stop him, and Nanwu paused, looking at Naruto with some confusion.

"Leave it to me," Naruto said calmly.

Before Nanwu could respond, Naruto's mind stirred.

Suddenly, the golden chains binding 'Void' seemed to come alive, shooting out and piercing straight into 'Void's' body.

hum!

A surge of chilling spiritual energy, flowing along the golden chain like a guided stream, was slowly drawn out and poured into Naruto's body.

Naruto closed his eyes, his brows furrowed, as he absorbed this vast and tainted spiritual energy.

The 'illusory' body became thinner at a visible speed, and its struggles gradually weakened.

Seeing this extraordinary scene, Nan Wu could not hide his shock.

However, he wisely refrained from asking further questions, instead stepping back to signal the others to take control of the situation and protect the well-dressed man.

Sasuke watched all of this with a cold eye, and finally glanced at the richly dressed man who was now hiding behind a group of samurai and watching him warily.

Upon seeing this, a hint of undisguised mockery flashed in Sasuke's eyes.

He didn't linger and turned to walk out of the broken wall.

As he passed Naruto, who had his eyes closed, he paused slightly, but didn't turn around. He simply murmured, "Meaning..."

"Is that kind of thing really important?"

After saying that, he didn't linger and walked into the night, his figure disappearing into the darkness.

Naruto stood still, opened his eyes, and looked at the man with a calm and indifferent gaze, as if he were looking at a corpse.

significance?

That kind of thing is important, of course.

The reason this ninja world is so distorted and chaotic is because too many people are doing too many meaningless things.

Those high-ranking rulers, for reasons unknown, launch wars, driven by selfish desires or empty ambitions, and plunge countless lives into hell.

I don't know why wars are started, why people die because of them, why they stop, or why they keep repeating themselves...

Even this FUNFUN street is nothing more than an insignificant microcosm in this vast and meaningless cycle.

Meaningless killing, meaningless death, meaningless hatred, meaningless continuation...

All of this is the breeding ground for monsters and even more tragedies.

Naruto's gaze fell on the man, his eyes hiding an even deeper chill.

Therefore, even a beast destined to die must have a meaning in its death.

Chapter 372 Hiruzen and Danzo, Brothers in Misfortune

At the same time, the lights in Konoha gradually went out, and silence descended.

However, deep within the village, far from all human activity and noise, lies underground.

Inside a heavily guarded laboratory, the atmosphere was so tense it felt almost frozen.

Danzo Shimura sat on the cold operating table in the dimly lit room. The operating light cast a shadow on his wrinkled face, making him appear both dark and gloomy, adding to his sinister and eerie aura.

He slowly raised his right arm, the layers of bandages had been removed, revealing pale, loose skin with red lines spreading across it.

At this moment, only one last sealing shackle remains on this arm, imprisoning the two restless forces within it.

"Finally, only this last seal remains!"

In his emotional state, three tomoe appeared in Danzo's right eye, flashing with fervor, excitement, and anticipation.

The forced fusion experiment in the second phase has already achieved "success" far exceeding expectations.

After forcibly absorbing the power of the second Hollow and unlocking the corresponding second shackle, he achieved a new level of control over the Hashirama cells within his body.

Now, he can use powerful Wood Release ninjutsu like "Wood Release: Silent Killing Binding Technique" at will, just like Yamato.

At the same time, the three-tomoe Sharingan transplanted into his right eye finally freed him from the predicament of constantly consuming large amounts of chakra, just like Kakashi Hatake did in his early years.

He can now freely control the Sharingan to open and close, only summoning it when its power is needed, greatly reducing the burden on his body.

The increase in power was significant, but Danzo knew that it was far from reaching its limit.

That's why he's been like a venomous snake lately, having sheathed all his claws.

Even when humiliated by Hinata Kumokawa, he showed no intention of retaliating, playing the role of a defeated, down-on-his-luck, and submissive old dog.

He is waiting.

He was holding back.

This is the moment he has been waiting for.

When I possess the power of Wood Release, Hollow, Sharingan, and Byakugan simultaneously!

He wanted to completely overwhelm Hinata Kumokawa, sweep away all obstacles, and ascend to that coveted position!

And now, the experiment has finally reached its final stage!

Danzo's eyes gleamed with an almost fanatical light as his gaze first swept greedily over a huge cylindrical transparent container beside him.

Inside the container, a 'Void' was sealed and imprisoned, falling into a deep slumber.

Then his gaze shifted to another, slightly smaller container.

The container was filled with a pale green nutrient solution, and a pure, flawless white eye was quietly suspended within it.

"Lord Danzo."

A woman's voice clearly reached Danzo's ears through the laboratory's sound transmission device.

Danzo tilted his head slightly and looked through the thick, specially made glass window at the woman in the control room outside, who was wearing a white lab coat and glasses.

"Are you ready?" 'Mink's' voice was devoid of any emotion.

"Let's begin." Danzo's voice was hoarse. Without further hesitation, he slowly leaned back and lay flat on the cold, hard operating table.

“Give all power to me,” he said.

Click... Buzz...

Several tubes of varying thicknesses and made of special materials were placed around the operating table, with sharp needles at the ends, which were inserted into acupoints on Danzo's arms, chest, and other areas.

The other end of the interface is connected to the container that seals the 'Void' and the container that stores the 'Byakugan'.

Gulu!

The pale green nutrient solution and black spiritual energy began to slowly flow into Danzo's arm and body through the channels!

A wave of immense pain washed over Danzo, causing him to groan as his body tensed instantly, veins bulging like dragons beneath his aged skin.

But he stared intently at his reflection in the ceiling, his eyes burning with an almost insane obsession.

Hinata Kumokawa!

I will make you kneel before me like a dog!

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Meanwhile, at Konoha Hospital.

The corridor was filled with the pungent smell of disinfectant, and the pale, cold light from the ceiling lamps made everyone's faces look somewhat haggard.

The red "Operating" indicator light above the operating room door was incredibly glaring.

Hiruzen Sarutobi stood motionless in front of the closed operating room door, like a withered old tree, his back casting a long shadow under the light.

He wasn't even wearing his divine robes, just a dark nightgown, clearly having rushed over after receiving the news.

Behind him stood Jiraiya, Kakashi Hatake, Kurenai Yuhi, Aoba Yamashiro, and others, all of whom were sent to explore the underground palace in the Land of Hot Springs.

Almost all of them were wounded, their clothes were torn, their bodies were wrapped in blood-soaked bandages, and their faces showed undisguised exhaustion and signs of travel, clearly having gone through a fierce battle.

"Cough! Cough cough cough..."

A sudden, uncontrollable fit of violent coughing shattered the silence of the corridor.

With a face as pale as paper and breathless, Moonlight Gale covered his mouth tightly with his hand, his thin body trembling with each cough, seemingly unable to even stand.

His old ailment seems to have worsened.

Jiraiya frowned and gave Genma Shiranui a wink.

Genma Shiranui nodded in understanding, quickly stepped forward, helped Hayate Gekko up, and whispered, "Hayate, let me take you to your ward to rest first."

Immediately, the Moonlight Gale carried away this oppressive area.

The corridor fell silent again, with only the faint ticking sound and the heavy breathing of the people.

Looking at the once straight back in front of him, which now appeared somewhat hunched, Jiraiya took a deep breath.

“Old man…” He stepped forward, his voice low and apologetic, “I’m sorry, I couldn’t protect Asuma…”

"No need to say anything more, Jiraiya."

Before he could finish speaking, Hiruzen Sarutobi, with his back to him, gently shook his head, interrupting him.

"Your opponent this time was the Akatsuki organization. It's already quite an achievement that you managed to bring most of them back safely."

"How could I blame you..."