Yugito and Fu were somewhat nervous and silent.
Utakata, on the other hand, showed no restraint at all. He grabbed the menu and started ordering directly, deliberately picking the most expensive items, clearly intent on giving Yuto a thorough billing.
Utakata, who had always appeared lazy and unmotivated, now wore a rare trace of a smile on his face.
With no Tailed Beast inside him, Utakata felt as though he had broken free from some kind of shackle.
Seeing this, Yuto's mouth twitched slightly, but then he remembered that all the expenses could be reimbursed, and immediately put on a magnanimous expression.
Perhaps because of the casual atmosphere between Yuto and Utakata, Yugito and Fu gradually relaxed their tense bodies as well, and the two of them also started ordering a few dishes.
Before long, the previously empty table was quickly piled high with all sorts of food.
Yuto even had the leisure to chat with the owner for a few moments. Business had naturally improved a great deal lately, with far more people traveling to and from Kirigakure.
Once all the dishes had been served, Yuto paid no attention to Utakata and the other two. He simply started eating in large mouthfuls — partly to replenish his stamina, and partly because it had been a long time since he'd had a proper meal.
Soon, Utakata joined in as well. His manner was far more refined than Yuto's, but his eating speed was certainly not slow.
Yugito and Fu were still somewhat reserved at first, but after seeing roughly half the dishes on the table already demolished by Yuto and Utakata, the two of them also abandoned their initial hesitation and began eating quickly.
After all, they needed to replenish their stamina and chakra as well, and eating was the fastest and most enjoyable way to do so — far better than eating soldier pills.
In less than twenty minutes, the four of them had polished off every last bit of the food piled on the table.
Yuto gently patted his belly, a satisfied look on his face. The restaurant had quite a few customers, and the cooking was genuinely good.
It was a pity, though, that Ichiraku Ramen hadn't opened a branch in Kirigakure — that was a small disappointment for Yuto.
"Yugito, Fu — you two are free to leave now."
After letting his food settle a bit, Yuto looked up at the two of them with a smile.
Fu was momentarily stunned, then pursed her lips and prepared to get up and leave.
But at that moment, Yugito beside her didn't move. Instead, she looked at Yuto with a startled expression: "Yuto-sama, what do you mean?"
"Sis Yugito, isn't this guy telling us to go back?"
Fu looked at the confused Yugito with some puzzlement, thinking Yugito hadn't heard Yuto's words clearly.
"No — Yuto-sama doesn't mean for us to go back to where we're staying now. He means we can return to our own villages."
Yugito shook her head gently, her tone carrying a note of surprise as her gaze remained fixed on Yuto across from her.
Return to their own villages?
Fu's face also showed a shocked expression, her orange eyes staring at Yuto in disbelief.
As for Utakata, he merely raised an eyebrow slightly, a flash of understanding passing through his eyes, though he remained seated in silence without saying a word.
"The reason I brought you two to Kirigakure in the first place was because of the Tailed Beasts inside you — I didn't want Uchiha Madara to get his hands on them."
"But now that the Tailed Beasts have been extracted from both of you, there's no reason to keep you here anymore. I imagine you can get in touch with people from your own villages, so I won't bother sending an escort."
"Also, Kirigakure will always welcome the two of you back."
Yuto wore a gentle smile as he looked at Yugito and Fu.
Hearing Yuto's confirmation,
both Yugito and Fu fell silent for a moment.
"You bastard — you'd better not go back on your word."
A look of joy appeared on Fu's face first, her childlike nature showing through completely. Fu, who had been away from Takigakure for a long time, naturally wanted to return to her own village.
"Of course." Yuto nodded with a light smile.
"Goodbye, Utakata-nii! And you too, sis Yugito!"
As if afraid Yuto might change his mind, Fu waved to everyone and then turned and quickly vanished from sight.
"That kid."
Yugito watched Fu's departing figure and couldn't help but laugh. After spending so much time together, she had grown rather fond of the naturally lively little girl.
Yugito turned her gaze back to Yuto. Compared to Fu's more innocent personality, Yugito's mind naturally worked through more things.
But no matter how much she speculated or deduced, she knew one thing clearly — she no longer held any cards in her hand.
Thinking of this, Yugito sighed softly in her heart.
"Thank you, Yuto-sama."
Yugito gave Yuto a slight bow, her face carrying a trace of respect — respect for someone stronger.
To be honest, when she had first been brought to Kirigakure, Yugito never imagined she would live to walk out of this place.
Just as Yugito turned to leave, Yuto suddenly called her back.
Yugito turned her head to look at Yuto with a puzzled expression, though the tension in her eyes had faded compared to before.
"Oh right, I almost forgot something."
"Pass a message to the Raikage for me: a meaningless battle serves no purpose beyond casualties."
Yuto's face still carried that gentle smile as he spoke softly to Yugito.
Yugito's expression turned serious, a rare look of earnestness appearing on her face. She could naturally understand the meaning behind Yuto's words.
"I will deliver Yuto-sama's message to the Raikage."
"However, based on my knowledge of the Raikage and Kumogakure, the Raikage will absolutely never compromise or yield."
Yugito spoke with neither humility nor arrogance, her face full of sincerity. After finishing, she bowed to Yuto once more and turned, vanishing from sight.
"This era is like a horse that has broken free of its reins. Anyone who stands in its path will be trampled to pieces by its charge. Konoha was the first — and it will absolutely not be the last."
Yuto gazed in the direction where Yugito had disappeared, murmuring softly to himself.
"What a terrifying thought."
Utakata shook his head gently from the side, speaking in his usual flat tone.
Hearing Utakata's complaint, Yuto just smiled lightly and glanced over at him.
"I'm afraid I won't be able to rest easy for a while."
Utakata wore a somewhat lazy expression, unable to help but press his hand against his forehead.
Before, because he was a Jinchuriki, he hadn't needed to do anything. And with Yugito and Fu — both Jinchuriki — around, his only task had been to watch over them.
But now, Yugito and Fu had left, and with the burden of the Tailed Beast removed from him as well, he clearly wouldn't be as idle as before.
"You know how it is — the village is short on people lately. Very short…"
Yuto wore a bitter expression, sighing heavily as he looked at Utakata, clearly about to launch into a complaint.
"Alright, alright — just tell me what you need me to do."
Utakata's mouth twitched, and he quickly cut Yuto off before he could go on, speaking directly.
"Cough cough — it's nothing major."
"There's a clan called the Tsuchigumo Clan, living in a mountain fortress. Rumor has it they possess a secret art that can make use of natural energy. So I want to send you to investigate."
Yuto coughed lightly and pulled a scroll from his robe, tossing it over to Utakata.
Utakata caught the scroll and opened it directly. The scroll contained all sorts of intelligence on the Tsuchigumo Clan. Reading this, Utakata's eyelid twitched hard.
So Yuto-sama hadn't just come up with this on the spur of the moment!
"I understand."
Utakata spoke in a flat, expressionless tone.
"Don't make that face. The mission isn't urgent, and who knows — something interesting might happen along the way."
Yuto wore a peculiar smile as he looked at Utakata and spoke softly.
However, Utakata clearly didn't believe much of what Yuto said. He stood up from his seat and stretched.
"Since the mission isn't urgent, I'm going back to catch up on some sleep."
Utakata scratched his head and turned, strolling slowly toward the exit.
Seeing this, Yuto could only shake his head with a light smile.
At this moment, on the other side.
Amegakure.
The village, normally shrouded in a ceaseless drizzle, was unusually blessed with a clear night under a bright moon.
In a deserted, narrow alley, a faint spatial fluctuation suddenly rippled through the air. Then a spatial vortex appeared out of thin air in the small lane.
Uchiha Obito and Sasuke stepped out of the spatial vortex, their feet touching the ground.
"I didn't expect sneaking in to be this easy."
Sasuke first cautiously surveyed his surroundings, then spoke in a low, somewhat puzzled voice.
"It is rather easy — but that's only natural. Having lost the Rinnegan, Nagato's strength has declined to an extreme."
Uchiha Obito wore a calm expression as he spoke in a quiet, smiling murmur.
After observing the situation around them for a while, Uchiha Obito and Sasuke quickly vanished without a trace.
As a former member of the Akatsuki, Uchiha Obito had spent no small amount of time in Amegakure, and was naturally extremely familiar with the surroundings.
Combined with the effects of his space-time ninjutsu, the two of them encountered no obstacles whatsoever on their way, moving at tremendous speed toward the heart of Amegakure.
However.
As the two drew closer and closer to their target, both Uchiha Obito and Sasuke couldn't help but frown slightly — their infiltration had been far too smooth.
So smooth that even Uchiha Obito, who had already been somewhat suspicious, began to wonder: could this be a trap?
But the thing was, the decision to infiltrate Amegakure had been made on the spur of the moment, and only the two of them knew about it. There was no possibility of information leaking, so there couldn't possibly be any trap set specifically for them.
[
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