Whoosh-
An arrow pierced through the air, embedding itself in the ground before the group.
Before anyone could react, more arrows followed.
It was clear the attackers didn't intend to harm them, as the arrows only targeted the ground at their feet.
The weakest among them was a Kirigakure's Missing-Nin capable of matching a regular Jonin, so a few ordinary arrows without any infused Chakra weren't enough to cause alarm.
Jiraiya raised his hand, signaling everyone to hold their response and wait.
Soon, a group of robed figures riding ostrich-like creatures charged down from a high sand dune, surrounding them.
'Sand bandits?'
The thought crossed everyone's minds.
"Who are you?!"
The robed figures parted to the sides, and a woman rode out on an ostrich.
She removed her headscarf, revealing dark red hair and a beautiful face.
Judging by her appearance, this woman seemed slightly older than Yugito.
"Strangers, why have you entered Roran's territory?"
The woman's tone was neither submissive nor arrogant, showing no immediate intention to attack.
"Roran?"
Jiraiya was momentarily stunned, then quickly understood.
But before he could say anything, the woman seemed to finally notice the attire of the others in the team, and her expression changed instantly.
"They're Ninja! Capture them!"
Initially, seeing so many people suddenly appear in the desert, she had thought they might be a merchant caravan.
But upon spotting the forehead protectors worn by B, Yugito, and others, she immediately realized the truth.
The surrounding guards acted decisively the moment they received the order, throwing weighted nets towards the group.
Of course-
These actions were practically useless in the eyes of Naruto and his team.
Before the red-haired woman could take further action, the more impatient members of the team had already subdued all the ostrich riders.
"Wait, don't harm them."
The speaker was Naruto.
Hearing this, Gaara, who had already used sand to restrain a group of people, frowned but ultimately obeyed and didn't continue.
"It seems you hold a deep grudge against Ninja. Can you tell us why?"
"It's you! You Ninja took my daughter!"
"You won't make the people of Roran submit!"
Even when Naruto's imposing figure approached her, the red-haired woman stubbornly withstood the pressure and spoke these words.
"It seems there must be some misunderstanding between us..."
…
The misunderstanding was resolved much faster than expected.
After all, if the other party possessed overwhelming force but was still willing to sit down and talk calmly, most people would be willing to think rationally.
After some conversation, they finally learned the origins of these people.
"My name is Sara, the Queen of Roran."
The red-haired woman sat inside the tent and bowed slightly to the group.
"I apologize for misunderstanding you."
"A queen!"
Kousei's eyes sparkled upon hearing the title.
She broke free from Naruto's embrace, pattered over to Queen Sara, puffed out her small chest, and declared,
"Hello! My name is Kousei! I am the future Queen of Kuja!"
The little girl's pride didn't last long before a pair of hands from behind scooped her back up.
"Sorry about that, sorry. Your Majesty, please continue."
Naruto, like any parent, wore an apologetic expression for his child's mischief.
Looking at this surprisingly young father and daughter pair, Sara finally let go of her last bit of wariness.
"This is what happened..."
According to Sara's account-
Two days before Naruto and the others appeared in Roran territory, her daughter had taken a team of cavalry on a routine patrol of the ancient Roran's ruins.
This was their clan's duty.
To prevent anyone from using the legendary power of the Ryumyaku for killing and destruction.
Even though the original Kingdom of Roran had been destroyed due to war, the remaining Roran people, under Queen Sara's leadership, continued to fulfill this mission.
According to the surviving cavalry members, two individuals in black robes used Ninjutsu to kill most of the cavalry and forcibly took the Princess.
The power of the Ryumyaku could only be maximally activated under the control of the Roran's royal bloodline.
Similarly, only the Roran's royal family had the ability to temporarily seal it.
The two Ninja probably didn't know this yet, which was why they only took her daughter.
Sara, worried about her daughter's safety and fearing she might reveal the Ryumyaku's secret under interrogation, had been conducting high-intensity patrols around the entire Roran area, trying to find the two Ninjas.
This led to today's misunderstanding.
"That masked man really brings trouble wherever he goes."
Naruto's tone carried a dangerous edge.
Hearing this, Sasuke silently stood up.
"You know those two Ninjas?!"
Upon hearing Naruto's words, Sara clung to this lifeline, her voice urgent.
"Where did they last appear? Take us there."
"Okay!"
Sara nodded decisively.
Before pushing open the tent flap to leave, she turned back to look at Naruto.
"If possible, please let us assist in the fight as well, even if it's just to avenge my daughter."
The mother's tone was resolute.
It seemed she had already prepared for the worst.
Naruto simply shook his head gently.
Before she could say more, Naruto explained.
"First, he might not necessarily kill your daughter."
"Although they might not know the Ryumyaku's secret, they certainly know the key lies with your daughter."
"Secondly, you cannot intervene in our fight."
Though the words sounded harsh, they were the truth.
Judging by the combat prowess displayed by Sara's guard cavalry, they wouldn't just be unable to assist in battle, and they would only likely be caught in the crossfire of area attacks.
Naruto placed a hand on Sara's shoulder and spoke to her seriously.
"I will bring your daughter back."
'Alive or dead.'
Having become a father himself, Naruto deeply understood Sara's feelings at this moment.
Therefore, he didn't need her to beg further, and he took the initiative to promise this.
Queen Sara clenched her teeth, her knuckles turning white from gripping her sleeve.
But she remained silent and nodded, saying nothing more.
With a guide, Naruto and the others progressed much faster.
Jiraiya didn't even worry about sandstorms, directly using his Devil Fruit to create seven or eight giant ink birds.
The giant birds weren't as fast as Karin, but they were much faster than the ostriches.
Led by a cavalryman, they reached the vicinity of the Roran ruins in just half a day.
"It was right here. Those two killed the other brothers down there and took the Princess."
"If I hadn't been assigned to scout the perimeter, I might have been killed by them too."
As he spoke, the cavalryman's eyes were red.
It was unclear whether it was from the pain of his comrades' deaths or the shame of watching the one he served being taken away.
"Please, I beg you, save the Princess!"
Unlike Sara, this cavalryman had personally witnessed the heights Ninja could reach.
So from the beginning, he knew that even mobilizing the entire nation of Roran might not be enough to deal with those two robed Ninjas.
"Leave it to us."
Naruto swung his cloak, carrying Kousei on his shoulder and leaping down from mid-air without looking back.
Behind him, Sasuke, Karin, and the others jumped down one after another.
Jiraiya dismissed the other ink birds, keeping only one to carry the cavalryman back to their base.