Naruto: Passerby and Returnee

Chapter 172 A Little Voice

Halfway through the day, the two of them left the Land of Mist and returned to the Land of Iron. But instead of landing on a ship, they went to a dark alley in the port city. Sasuke wasn't surprised, because he knew all too well how much Naruto liked to leave his marks everywhere; he had one on his right palm, and he'd be leaving even more in new cities in other countries.

After eating seafood for several days in a row, even the two inland ninjas couldn't take it anymore and promptly found a restaurant serving land-based dishes to cleanse their stomachs. The large ship was estimated to arrive at shore that night, and for navigational safety, they would definitely stop in the nearshore waters overnight and enter port at dawn. Therefore, Naruto's statement about a "day" was indeed true, even including the night.

The Land of Iron is far more prosperous than the Land of Mist. Although it lacks pearls, it boasts strangely shaped minerals and corals. Each region has its own unique characteristics, and this port city's specialty is coral; the renowned red coral originates here. However, such rare items aren't sold on the streets, so what they see more often are ornaments made from seashells and the like. Sasuke doesn't find these things appealing, strolling through the streets as if walking, passing through a dozen shops in no time.

Naruto was still trying his best to control his mind and not think too much, but there were always some clueless people who just had to run into him.

The steady flow of people suddenly turned chaotic; panicked, people scattered in all directions, desperately trying to get away from the center of the street. But some were simply too slow to react—the middle-aged man pulling a cart, the bewildered child, the young man carrying loads of belongings…

"Get out of the way! All of you, get out of my way!!"

Naruto's body moved faster than his mind. With a wave of his hand, he created a bridge of earth and rock, allowing the horse galloping through the bustling city to pass directly over the heads of the people. He even thoughtfully moved only a clod of earth, letting it roll across, completely defying the laws of physics. The entire street fell silent, their eyes fixed on Naruto as he manipulated the clod of earth.

Sasuke's first thought was that this thick-browed, big-eyed guy had come up with something new behind his back again; his second thought was to grab him and run. Ninjas are a threat to any city; entering a city requires revealing one's identity, and concealing it is considered trespassing. Naruto's identity was indeed registered, but he should be at sea with the fleet, not wandering around the city with an trespassing ninja! He was the one who said he couldn't reveal his identity, yet he was the one who exposed it first.

"Your move was too conspicuous..." Sasuke was actually about to make his move as well, but Naruto beat him to it. He had only intended to pull the person off the horse's hooves and be done with it; preventing anyone from dying before his eyes was his bottom line. However, Naruto still perfectly displayed his bad temper. He not only wanted to save them, but he wanted to save them all, including those behind the scenes whom they couldn't see.

Naruto's face was grim; he rarely looked at Sasuke with that slightly angry gaze. He knew Sasuke wasn't the type to stand by and watch someone die, but his rising anger made him lose his composure.

"I can't let him rush over there, that's a busy area!"

"You always want to save everyone, so why not just knock him off his horse?"

"Do you think I don't want to?! But knowing the nature of those bastards, if we don't step in, he'll take his anger out on everyone nearby!" After shouting this, Naruto suddenly realized he had misspoke. Konoha ninjas shouldn't be witnessing such a scene; nobles would at least maintain proper etiquette in front of them.

Sasuke became suspicious as expected, and he suddenly grabbed Naruto's shoulder and asked, "Have you ever encountered something like this before?"

How should he answer that? He had encountered it more than once. Not all nobles rode horses and cracked whips, but without exception, they ignored the common people and didn't care at all whether anyone would die in order to achieve their own goals.

“Sasuke, this is the norm for most people.” Naruto calmed down, his bright blue eyes dimming. “The nobles don’t treat them as human beings, nor do they treat us as human beings. They fear our power and only maintain a false respect.”

"You said I wanted to save everyone. Yes, I was such a naive fool, I wanted to save everyone from them."

Silence fell between them, and the distant commotion grew louder. The situation was urgent; Sasuke had only managed to pull the man into the alley. Judging from the noise, it sounded like the man on horseback was leading his men back, trying to find the one who had sent him to his death. Before Sasuke could even take a step, the scene around them suddenly changed. The slight dizziness felt so familiar; they had arrived at another Flying Thunder God Technique location.

It looked like a house, and he could hear voices outside, so it must be close to the street. Sasuke only needed to raise his eyes slightly to see a conspicuous decoration hanging on the door: an invisible wind outlined by a few lines.

The alarm was lifted, and Sasuke released his grip. Meeting Naruto's gaze, he did not back down, but said with absolute certainty, "You've joined Dongfeng."

This was to be expected; Naruto had deliberately entered the safe house belonging to Dongfeng, and Sasuke, with his intelligence, couldn't possibly have failed to guess. But what Sasuke wanted to know more about was Sasuke's attitude towards this; he had already shown him everything he could.

"They align with my ideals."

"...Do you think they can do it?"

"At least they're still trying."

Sasuke started pacing, one of the signs of his frustration. Naruto, having failed to get anywhere with his attempts, felt his heart sink. Despite his usual confidence, if Sasuke really rejected him, he might cry… Just kidding, how could that be! Of course, he would continue to try to get Sasuke to acknowledge him!

"Are you planning to kill the nobles?" Sasuke's answer was still unexpected. "Which one? I'm no longer a Konoha ninja, so it's better if I do it myself."

...Isn't it true that he's an Uchiha? If he had announced his name as the Daimyo of the Land of Fire, would Sasuke have tried to kill him?

"I remember discussing this issue before. Solving the problem doesn't necessarily solve it. Even if one person dies, another will emerge."

Sasuke frowned, a sign of his deep unease; emotionally, he was indeed momentarily terrified.

"From what you're saying, you want to kick the entire nobility out of power?"

Naruto didn't answer, only looking at Sasuke with calm eyes. He wasn't sure if he should stop now; Hui's ideals were far more arduous.

Sasuke took a deep breath, then slowly exhaled, and said, "Do what you want to do. Isn't keeping your word the ninja way you always preach? I only have one request..."

"Don't die, you big idiot."