In a single moment, Sasuke with his Sharingan and Naruto with the Nine-Tails in a rampage roared at the same time and rushed towards each other madly! This blow… one would die, and the other would live. There was no other way. All the Anbu immediately prepared to attack, but they found that it was probably already too late.
The moment cold sweat rolled down their backs— a figure suddenly appeared between Naruto and Sasuke. He just stretched out his arms and easily intercepted both Naruto and Sasuke at the same time, and then threw them out!
*Bang—*
*Bang!*
The two boys suddenly fell and collapsed heavily to the ground. Both Naruto and Sasuke felt the chilling fear of having survived a disaster!
"Just now… what was I doing? This isn't a dream, this is reality… Did I really want to kill Sasuke?!" Naruto was frightened for a moment, as if he didn't even recognize himself, and was gasping for breath.
But the same was true for Sasuke. "What am I doing? Just because of the rage and anxiety in my heart, I actually wanted to kill Naruto? How could it be… Have I also degenerated into a beast like Uchiha Itachi?!"
The Anbu ninjas all breathed a collective sigh of relief. "Hokage-sama! Thank God…"
Naruto and Sasuke struggled to get up at the same time, only to see a familiar yet unfamiliar old face. It was Konoha Village's… Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi! At this moment, his face was also extremely ugly. His brows were furrowed, and the wrinkles on his face seemed much deeper than usual.
"Naruto, Sasuke, what do you two think you're doing?!"
Naruto and Sasuke looked at each other from a distance, then both panted and lowered their heads. The regret and fear in their hearts now spread throughout their bodies, and they felt a sense of complete exhaustion.
"As fellow villagers, you actually fought each other, and even… almost killed each other?!"
Naruto's face turned pale, and he lowered his head to look at his shaking hands. "Third Hokage, I… I don't know what happened to me just now…"
Sasuke remained silent as well. His Sharingan disappeared, returning to his normal form.
Hiruzen Sarutobi closed his eyes and sighed deeply. "It's not like I can't understand your thoughts. However, always remember, whether you want to become stronger or realize your dreams, strength is not to be used against your companions! If you two want to decide the winner, then have a fair and open fight during the ninja sparring! Instead of fighting to the death in private like you are now!"
Naruto was dejected, his eyes dull, and he nodded with a sense of defeat. "I… I understand…"
Although Sasuke was also extremely regretful and scared, he was never as frank as Naruto. "Hmph—" He just snorted lightly, turned around, and left. In a direction where Hiruzen Sarutobi and Naruto couldn't see, he revealed a look of deep pain and regret. The part of his body that had been hit by Naruto's Konoha Whirlwind kick was still aching. But he was more afraid of what he had just done. He wanted to turn around and say something to Naruto. However, he just gritted his teeth, clenched his fists, and his body involuntarily moved away.
…
Looking at Sasuke's back, Hiruzen Sarutobi shook his head and sighed. He lit his pipe, took a deep drag, and then exhaled a long stream of smoke. At this moment, several Anbu ninjas appeared and quickly cleaned up the mess. With a water-style ninjutsu, the trees that had been set on fire by Sasuke's fireball were extinguished. In the gradually darkening night, only the flame of Hiruzen Sarutobi's pipe lit up from time to time.
"Go home, Naruto."
"…Yes."
…
Hiruzen Sarutobi followed the limping Naruto back to his home. He helped Naruto pull out the kunai that had pierced his right leg, then used hemostasis techniques to stop the bleeding and bandaged the wound. However, the horrific wound that had been pierced was already healing rapidly at this moment.
Hiruzen Sarutobi's heart moved. *'Is it the power of the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox? Or… Naruto's own strength?'*
Although Naruto grimaced in pain, he had fully recovered his vitality. Soon, he stood up again and tried to walk. Although he was still in pain, he was able to walk again. "Ahaha, that's great… I was worried that this leg injury would affect my studies and practice!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi nearly dropped his pipe. Was this something that Naruto could say? Naruto had recovered his strength. "Thank you, Third Hokage!"
"You haven't eaten yet? I'll make some food!" It was a rare occasion to have a guest, and he was the Hokage of Konoha Village, so Naruto quickly and spontaneously became busy. Of course, his craftsmanship was still a complete mess. But the fact that he could cook for himself surprised Hiruzen Sarutobi. This was completely different from the Naruto he remembered.
However, while Naruto was cooking, he would pause from time to time, as if someone had pressed a button. Hiruzen Sarutobi smoked his pipe and couldn't help but frown. "Naruto, what are you doing?"
Naruto was stunned for a moment, then smiled and said, "Oh, I'm practicing multitasking, cooking and practicing my chakra refining techniques at the same time!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi was shocked. "Can you actually do it?"
Naruto scratched his head embarrassedly and laughed dryly twice. "Haha, I haven't mastered it yet. I can only practice for a while, stop, and then start practicing again… I can't compare to you, jiji…"
Hiruzen Sarutobi almost choked on a puff of smoke. In reality, how could he do such a thing? Not to mention him, even if it were a ninja who was extremely talented, he had never heard of anyone being able to do that. But asking him to admit it in front of Naruto would be a bit embarrassing. Could it be that Naruto was the real genius?!
"Naruto, why are you suddenly training so hard?"
Naruto said, "Because I want to become stronger and have everyone recognize me!"
"Is that so?" Hiruzen Sarutobi blew out a smoke ring. " Is that true for sasuke as well?"
Naruto brought the prepared dinner and handed a portion to Hiruzen Sarutobi. When he heard Sasuke's name, his arm trembled slightly involuntarily. "Um… Sasuke… is the one I most want to defeat! Perhaps, he is also the one I most want to be recognized by…"
Hiruzen Sarutobi took a bite of the ramen Naruto had made himself and frowned slightly. "So, that's why you wanted to kill him just now?"
Naruto's face darkened. "I didn't mean to kill him! It's just… I can't seem to control myself… Third Hokage, I… what should I do?"
Hiruzen Sarutobi took another bite of the ramen Naruto had made and shook his head. "Naruto, this is what is called obsession… Your obsession is to become Hokage and gain everyone's approval. Sasuke's obsession is revenge, to defeat that man… For this reason, neither of you will ever back down, and you both see each other as your competition. In a sense, obsession and rivalry aren't necessarily bad things. Instead, they become the driving force behind our growth. However…"
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