Chapter 159: Shippuden Begins
Time flew by.
A year slipped past the ninja world in the blink of an eye.
On the surface, little seemed to have changed.
Compared to the Konoha Crush two years ago, the later assaults, and the rampages of the Tailed Beasts, these past two years could almost be called peaceful.
It felt as though the entire world was quietly storing power, breath held, waiting for some unseen signal to move again.
In that same year, while the children continued to grow, new forces also rose and spread, some in the light, others in the dark. On paper, many things had changed. In reality, it all looked eerily the same.
Akatsuki now sat high on every major village's danger list.
That rogue organization, composed of missing nin who hunted Tailed Beasts, had begun to stir openly. Their presence was now a constant shadow across the Lands.
The Land of Waves, after the completion of the great bridge, had settled back into something close to its original rhythm. The tides of trade flowed, but no great storm had yet crashed down upon it.
Elsewhere, in other villages, the children of that generation had rapidly grown into their roles as the backbone of their homes. Those who had passed the Chunin Exams were now either Jonin or Chunin, forming the main pillars of their villages' strength.
The young ninjas who had once all been labeled geniuses now stood at diverging crossroads. Two years after the Konoha conflict, their paths, talents, and achievements had clearly begun to separate.
Gaara had already served as Kazekage of Sunagakure for two years, and there were no signs of major rebellion beneath him. The most gifted among the other villages had reached Jonin level, and even the less famous had settled into their positions as Chunin.
The Hidden Sound Village remained eerily quiet.
Rumors whispered that descendants of the Uchiha clan were active in the world, but for now, those stories were nothing more than faint echoes in taverns and mission halls.
Konoha, however, had changed in ways no one could ignore.
Over the last year, the village's strange movements had shaken the perception of other nations. Some even began murmuring that Konoha was showing signs of decline.
Mission deployments from Konoha grew fewer with each passing season. Teams that once moved swiftly and decisively now seemed slow, cumbersome, and oddly absent from the Land of Fire's borders.
After the Konoha Crush and the defection incident, it felt as though the village's core strength had quietly come apart.
Many lesser known ninja, who had never been in the spotlight to begin with, simply vanished from talk and record. Their names faded from mission rosters and rumor alike.
To distant observers, it was as if the entire village was sinking.
Of course, the major powers had not yet moved.
No blood had been spilled.
Any experienced hunter knew a wounded beast that had not yet lashed out was the most dangerous kind. At such a time, patience was a more useful weapon than any kunai.
The true health of a nation or village could be seen through its ninja system.
A sound system gave rise to a stable world.
A small difference of one or two years did not seem like much, but over time, those differences stretched and deepened into chasms.
Whether from a lack of talent or from an unforgiving environment, people who once stood side by side suddenly found themselves separated into completely different classes.
Time magnified every small gap.
It allowed people to see, with cruel clarity, just how vast the distance truly was between the so called successful and the ordinary.
When everyone was young, that gap still felt bridgeable, as if sheer effort could close it.
Yet as research and training dug deeper, reality made itself known.
People were different.
The world was built upon layered gaps and unequal heights.
The fact that those differences were not apparent at first was not because everyone was especially kind or fair, but because those disparities had not yet grown large enough to be undeniable. For a while, it was possible to believe in the illusion that everyone could still catch up.
That illusion did not last forever.
The more one grew, the more one understood their own powerlessness.
The deeper that powerlessness sank in, the more it hurt. And when the pain finally became too much, people chose numbness instead.
They went still.
They stopped struggling.
They twisted into shapes that no one recognized anymore, shapes that no one wanted to see.
In the end, some people accepted their helplessness and became fuel for others.
Others, driven by something unshakable, carved out a different path.
Most belonged to the former group.
Only a precious few made it to the latter.
"What the hell is going on with Granny Tsunade?"
On the road to Konoha, a blond boy with a bit of stubble on his chin grumbled, hands stuffed into his pockets as he walked.
"I heard her name a hundred times while we were traveling," he went on irritably. "Everywhere we went, people said Konoha was done for, that no ninjas were taking missions, that the whole village was falling apart.
"If Granny Tsunade is slacking off, what is going to happen to Konoha's future?"
"Relax, Naruto."
The tall man with white hair and wooden sandals behind him gave a lazy chuckle.
"I am sure Tsunade has her reasons. Just trust her a little."
"If Granny Tsunade does not have a good explanation when we get back," Naruto shot back, clapping his hands together as if already imagining the confrontation, "I am not letting it slide this time.
"If she starts spouting nonsense like before, I am going to knock some sense into her. She is Konoha's Hokage. How can she act like she has quit the job already?"
Naruto strode down the road, muttering threats under his breath, already picturing himself socking a sulking Tsunade and yelling her back to her senses.
Jiraiya followed a few steps behind, watching Naruto's back with a warm smile that did not reach his eyes.
His thoughts were far from relaxed.
For two years, they had wandered through the ninja world, training without a home base, sharpening their techniques and seeing the state of the Lands for themselves.
A year ago, Konoha's reputation had still been solid. A little bruised by war, but on the mend.
Now, every rumor they heard had dipped several notches lower.
Stories spread of Konoha's buildings falling into disrepair, of families quietly moving away, of clans disappearing from the public eye.
Even within the village, according to travelers and merchants, alarming rumors circulated.
The worst of them claimed that Tsunade had gambled away a massive amount of Konoha's assets, that a huge portion of the village's wealth had been transferred to some unknown individual.
When they first heard it, both Jiraiya and Naruto had exploded in anger.
Later, that anger ebbed into a guilty unease.
They knew Tsunade was not irresponsible.
They knew she understood priorities better than anyone.
But she was still Tsunade.
And Tsunade's vice was gambling.
Each of the Three Sannin had their own vices.
If Jiraiya chased women and hot springs, and Orochimaru chased the poison called immortality, then Tsunade gambled with the kind of stubbornness that bordered on addiction.
Those rumors dug into that weakness.
It was hard to ignore them completely.
With a silent, shared resolve, they quickened their pace, eager to see with their own eyes what had become of the village they loved.
When the village gates finally came into view, a cold chill ran down both their spines.
Konoha's main gate had always been a symbol.
In Naruto's memory, it was a place of constant movement, where patrol teams rotated shifts and gate guards kept watch with easy familiarity.
Now, cobwebs clung thickly to the inside of the guard pavilion. Dust swirled in gusts of wind, drifting across an empty road.
The massive wooden gate itself had lost several panels.
Support beams leaned askew.
Sections of the structure had simply collapsed and never been repaired.
A lone figure stood atop the weathered gate.
When the silhouette spotted them approaching along the road, it lifted a hand in greeting.
"Yo, Naruto. Long time no see."
Who…?
Naruto stared as the figure jumped down from the battered gate.
The voice was familiar, but the tone, the rhythm, was all wrong.
He watched, eyes widening, as the person walked through the settling dust.
She had cherry blossom pink hair, just like in his memories.
But the similarity ended there.
Standing at the entrance of Konoha was a girl in a tattered white coat, expression odd, movements strangely stiff. On both sides of the coat, dozens of brightly colored, translucent strands hung like decorative cords, chiming lightly against one another every time she moved.
She stopped in front of Naruto, who stood frozen in place, and smiled brightly.
"You are so slow," she said. "Everyone has been waiting in the lobby forever. You are the last one we need."
"…Sakura?"
"Yeah, it is me. Surprised?"
She tilted her head.
"Have I changed a little since back then?"
"A little…"
Naruto felt his face go hot.
It was not just a little.
It was too much, he did not even know where to look.
The edges of Sakura's white coat were ripped and scorched. Through the gaps he could see pale skin, the soft line of a pale pink tube top, and tight black shorts. Everything about her outfit screamed freedom of movement, and absolutely nothing about it said modesty.
She still wore no makeup, but her features were sharper, more vivid.
The standard ninja vest, the familiar leg warmers, the neatly tied forehead protector, all of that was gone.
In their place was a simple high ponytail and a pair of pale green eyes that gleamed with something wild and sharp.
"Is it that obvious?" Sakura laughed. "I do not think it is that big a change. Maybe I just stopped pretending, so you are finally seeing my real personality."
"Your… real personality?"
"Yeah, this is the real me."
She puffed out her chest, unbothered by how much it revealed.
"No more playing the quiet, well behaved academy girl. I have actually got a pretty bad temper, you know."
"Oh. I see."
"Hey. Eyes up here."
She moved in a blur.
In the time it took Naruto to blink, she was suddenly right beside him, her arm hooked around his shoulders.
The speed made his skin prickle.
The soft press of her body against his side made his brain freeze.
His heart started pounding in his chest, tripping over itself like it was trying to escape.
What is going on what is going on what is going on
This is bad, right?
You do not just get this kind of luck for walking back into the village, right?
Naruto wondered if he had fallen asleep somewhere on the road and stumbled into a dream.
Sakura, on the other hand, seemed completely oblivious to his panic.
She casually leaned against him and started walking toward the village as if nothing were out of the ordinary.
"We are still a three person squad, remember?" she said cheerfully. "Sasuke ditched me here and has not sent a single word back.
"I have been stuck in the village studying, and studying, and studying, for a very, very, very long time. You know how long I have been waiting for you?
"Your training went on way too long. If you had not come back within one more month, I was seriously going to snap and go look for him myself."
"Sakura! Why are you acting like this all of a sudden…"
"Huh? What is with that face… Oh, this?"
She glanced down at their linked arms, as if only just remembering they were pressed together.
"It is just physical contact. It is fine. Relax."
Her green eyes glinted with amusement as she watched Naruto turn bright red.
She laughed, light and unrestrained, and smacked his shoulder.
"I have not seen you in forever, I am just happy, that is all."
"You should be happy too," she added. "Think of it as a little welcome back bonus, okay?
"Do not act so shy, it is weird. We have been through all kinds of dangerous missions together. Why are you suddenly turning into some awkward little kid now"
She snorted.
"You are going to make me feel like an old lady at this rate."
"Huh? Huh???"
Is this really Sakura?
Do I have to change which Sakura I like now?
With her laugh close to his ear, her arm still slung around his shoulders like a rowdy teammate, Naruto felt like someone had flipped him upside down and dropped him into some soft, dizzying world.
Before he could get his thoughts in order, a weary sigh drifted from behind them.
Jiraiya, who had been quietly following, rubbed his forehead.
Instead of sneaking a glance at Sakura's exposed figure like his reputation suggested he would, he spoke in a firm, serious tone.
"Careful, Naruto," he said. "This Sakura is not the real one."
"…Huh?"
"Haha. Of course."
Sakura did not even blink at having her identity called out.
"Uncle Jiraiya is sharp."
She grinned and released Naruto's shoulder, turning her attention fully to the white haired Sannin.
"I am a chakra clone," she said matter of factly. "I have been really busy lately. But it does not matter. Whether it is the original or a clone, it is all still me. The only difference is where the signal source is."
Even with that blunt confession, her expression did not waver.
On the contrary, she looked curious and vaguely impressed.
"So how did you notice?" she asked. "I thought this technique was pretty perfect. I adjusted the human tenketsu network, flesh and blood texture, all of it.
"You can touch and test all you want, and it still feels real. How did you see through it at a glance? Got some secret trick, old man?"
"Old man… You are telling me your clone's chakra is not altered at all?"
Jiraiya's tone was half incredulous, half wary.
"The chakra fluctuations when you used that movement just now did not change," he said. "There was no shift when you moved.
"Unless it was a Shadow Clone Technique, there should have been some kind of sign."
"Huh? Why would that movement require chakra at all?"
"…What?"
"Breathing doesn't use chakra," Sakura said simply. "Why would this?"
"…"
"It is a really simple theory. Easier than high level Body Flicker, actually."
She folded her arms.
The motion shifted her ragged coat and made the pale pink of her bra even more obvious. She did not bother to pull it closed.
"See, if you treat the human body itself as a chakra module," she continued casually, "then you can use relative chakra resonance to treat the ambient chakra in the air as your jump unit.
"Adjust your own chakra fluctuations, cause a convergence and attraction reaction, and you transfer your physical body straight to the target position.
"No large scale chakra fluctuations required.
"The only condition is that the environment cannot change too drastically between the starting point and the destination. In the end, it is just a travel method.
"Sub void technique. You have not heard of it? It has been in a journal for almost four months now."
"I do not understand a word you just said."
"Huh? You do not even get that much?"
"Sakura," Jiraiya muttered, "have you maybe been stuck indoors too long and gone a little crazy…?"
What is she even talking about?
He stared at her, his expression tightening.
That movement just now had been a high level Body Flicker Technique. He was sure of it.
Any ordinary Body Flicker required a visible surge of chakra.
Even the most refined variation had a clear shift at the point of activation.
Clones could not withstand that level of usage and still feel natural, and if they did, the main body would have to consciously trigger the technique.
In all his years of experience, there had never been a case where such a movement produced no noticeable chakra fluctuation at all.
Yet this girl in front of him, who freely admitted to being a clone, shrugged as if it were basic academy theory.
Watching Jiraiya's entirely lost expression, Sakura slapped her own forehead.
"Ah… right," she said. "Now I get it.
"You two have been wandering around outside this whole time and have no idea what Konoha has turned into, do you"
She waved a hand.
"Come on, I will explain as we walk."
"…"
"What are you both freezing up for?" she teased. "Let's go already.
"I have a ridiculous amount of things I want to say to Naruto."
"Oh. Oh oh!"
"…"
This kid…
Jiraiya watched Naruto light up like someone had just handed him a festival prize and eagerly fall into step beside Sakura.
He had planned to lecture him, to act at least a little like a wise elder for once.
But the words caught in his throat and dissolved.
He simply followed, silent, as they passed under the battered gate and into the village proper.
It was not that Jiraiya had suddenly become a calm, gentle guardian.
It was because he had noticed something else.
The girl in front of him spoke in a slightly disjointed way, as though she had not talked to anyone face to face in a long time.
And despite claiming to be a clone, the density of her chakra was almost identical to his own.
If that level of chakra was only a clone…
Then what had happened to Sakura's real body in the last two years?
What had Konoha gone through?
And why did the village now feel like a husk of itself when no great disaster had been reported?
Trailing behind the laughing Naruto and the strangely dressed Sakura, Jiraiya looked around at the village that had once raised him.
His eyes were sharp, his muscles tense, every sense stretched taut.
He intended to find out exactly what had hollowed Konoha out from the inside.
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