Chapter 234: The White Dragon Horse
Naruto could only be thankful that it wasn't some fool sent by a monkey.
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Otherwise, he would definitely have to have a word with the system.
He glanced at the surrounding situation.
Konan and Haku were engaged in a battle of beauties.
One was a paper person, the other was 'beautifully freezing'.
Their Ninjutsu were all sorts of flashy and fancy.
After two or three years of growth, Haku's strength had improved significantly, and for a short time, he fought on par with Konan.
Kakuzu's opponent was Jiraiya.
He currently held the upper hand.
Although Jiraiya had one or two ultimate moves, he was ultimately a normal human.
But Kakuzu was not.
As a stitched monster with five hearts and the advantage of age and experience, he would win no matter how the fight went.
The remaining Uzumaki Menma was dealing with the twelve ninja monks.
It looked intense, but he was actually holding back—no, he was holding back an ocean's worth.
As for En Shū, he was crouching with his head in his hands, trembling.
He didn't know what to do, and there was nothing he could do.
Roshi and Naruto's appearance was immediately noticed by Konan's trio.
Before anyone could speak, Roshi shook his arms, the ground cracked open, and bright white lava surged out, aimed straight at Kakuzu.
The path it took was scorched black.
He was a stubborn and vengeful man.
Kakuzu had hit him the hardest earlier.
The air suddenly twisted and deformed as heatwaves rolled through.
Kakuzu's expression, which had been full of confidence, suddenly turned sour.
Dealing with Jiraiya alone was no problem.
But adding Roshi was no longer something that could be settled by just adding more money.
At the very least, he would have to sacrifice one or two hearts.
Kakuzu retreated and formed hand seals.
Countless streams of water suddenly surged and coiled around his body, quickly condensing into a wall in front of him.
He retreated to Konan's side and said, "There's no benefit in continuing this fight."
Including Jiraiya and Haku, the three of them were at a disadvantage against Roshi's group.
There was no need to lose any manpower.
Konan was not as arrogant as the other members.
After a brief thought, she nodded and said, "We're withdrawing."
"Don't chase them."
Naruto stopped Roshi, saying, "Our goal isn't the Akatsuki Organization, and there might be an ambush. The priority is to reach Konoha."
Jiraiya deactivated the Thousand-Armed Guanyin Statue, and a sense of weakness washed over him, nearly causing him to collapse.
He didn't have a freakish body or Chakra reserves like Senju Hashirama.
Although his Guanyin statue was gilded, compared to a wooden one, it was like night and day.
The gap couldn't be described in words; it was practically a difference of a thousand Kuramas.
It wasn't that Naruto looked down on Kurama, but based on the combat power where Senju Hashirama's Guanyin statue could capture a Kurama with a single hand... cough, cough, with over a thousand hands... saying any more would be too disrespectful to Kurama.
Naruto stopped his wandering thoughts, pressed his hands together, and said, "Master, we meet again."
"..."
Jiraiya twitched the corner of his mouth.
He wasn't stupid.
He knew his group had suffered an undeserved calamity.
But now he could only go along with it.
Three mysterious powerhouses were targeting the Daimyo.
If they left Naruto and Roshi, they would certainly be unable to cope.
Jiraiya suppressed the anger in his heart and said calmly, "Thank you both for saving our lives."
"We just each got what we needed," Naruto smiled and said. "Everyone's destination is Konoha, why not travel together?"
"Meeting is fate," Jiraiya nodded slightly. "If you two don't mind, let's head out together."
Seeing Naruto and Roshi agree, he turned to En Shū and whispered a few words.
A moment later, the group continued their journey.
Naruto followed Haku and said, "Hey handsome, I have a song. Do you want to learn it?"
Handsome?
It was the first time Haku had heard someone call him that.
He was quite surprised.
However, this also confirmed that the strange young man before him was a member of the Tianming Organization.
Aside from them, no one knew his true gender.
He just wasn't sure who this was.
Although En Yui had told him the plan, he wasn't clear on the specific details of every aspect.
"What song?"
"White Dragon Horse, hooves facing west, carrying Tang Sanzang and followed by three disciples. On the great road to the West to fetch scriptures, a journey of tens of thousands of miles..."
"???"
Haku's entire mind was blank.
Who are you? What are you singing? Why are you so happy?
Is there not a single normal person in the Tianming Organization?
"I now feel that your code name, Chariot, is indeed very appropriate."
Naruto said with a sigh after he finished singing.
"I don't understand."
It was fortunate that Haku had a good temperament; otherwise, he might have been sunk by his own teammate.
"It's fine, you don't need to understand."
Naruto waved his hand.
This matter couldn't be explained clearly anyway.
Haku felt that if this continued, something would go wrong.
He changed the subject and asked, "May I ask what your code name is?"
Naruto thought for a moment. He had too many aliases and fell into a bit of decision paralysis.
The Hermit.
"Huh?"
Haku heard an extremely unexpected code name and let out an instinctive "huh."
"I said my code name is The Hermit."
Naruto repeated it once more. "Speaking of which, we've already met several times."
The second half of the sentence allowed Haku to confirm his identity.
However, he still found it somewhat hard to believe.
He hadn't expected that this plan was being carried out by him.
Wasn't he afraid the Akatsuki Organization would see through his identity as a Jinchuriki?
Leaving Konoha and being outside was incredibly dangerous.
If Naruto knew his thoughts, he would probably tell him that he knew nothing about the power of the Tianming Organization.
It seemed so.
Zabuza and Haku indeed didn't know much about the Tianming Organization.
Mainly because they had been responsible for the affairs of the White Lotus Sect.
He needed to find a time to hold a gathering.
Naruto thought as he walked and soon discovered a problem.
The Master, the Eldest Disciple, the Second Disciple, and the White Dragon Horse were all gathered.
All that was missing was Junior Brother Sha.
Should I bring Gaara over?
Forget it, too far away, and it would be hard to explain logically.
Naruto gave up on that plan.
Because of En Shū's presence, the group's speed wasn't very fast.
And Konan's trio didn't come to attack again.
Naruto scratched his head.
When they stopped in the woods to rest, they saw the ground shaking and mountains swaying deep within.
Roshi and the others immediately stood up, looking alert.
A few seconds later, a massive figure crashed through everything to stand before them.
A monkey.
Although it was huge, it was indeed a monkey.
The group immediately looked puzzled.
"Who is Son Goku?!"
The monkey's voice was thunderous.
Its eyes were as white as moonlight, and Natural Energy diffused outward with its breath.
Visibly, the surroundings were petrifying.
Roshi raised an eyebrow and asked, "Are you looking for me?"
Son Goku was the Four-Tails' original name, and since he was the Jinchuriki, he naturally thought it was looking for trouble with him.
"I'm looking for a giant gorilla, not a human."
The monkey shook its head, glanced at Naruto, and said, "Call Son Goku out! I want to have a fight with it to see who is the number one monkey in the Ninja World!"
"..."
Roshi was speechless.
What on earth is this!
Before he could speak, the monkey—or rather, Liu Er—clapped its hands together, and Sage Chakrasurged out.
Invisible pressure pushed against the air.
Everyone present changed expression.
"Let's fall back!"
Jiraiya sold out his teammates without hesitation.
His primary goal was to protect the Daimyo.
Others could be sacrificed if necessary.
Before Roshi could condemn his behavior, he saw the world fill with endless wind.
Amidst the whistling, it all turned into countless bullets.
Liu Er had learned this move from its old friend, Danzo.