Naruto peeled open the yogurt lid. He fiddled with the camera for a second before looking up at her with a grin, "Smile for the camera, okay? You wouldn't want Onoki to lose face in the Land of Earth, would you?"
"You!!! I'll kill you!!"
The only response Kurotsuchi got was the click-click-click of the camera shutter.
After a while, Naruto released his control over her. He tossed the empty yogurt carton aside and said casually, "Go wash up somewhere later. And maybe watch your mouth from now on, okay?"
Kurotsuchi clenched her teeth, wishing she could punch him into the sky, 'What kind of lowlife would resort to such despicable methods? Absolute trash, a complete bastard!'
Naruto didn't care how Kurotsuchi judged him. He'd given her chances, but she just had to refuse the easy way. Sure, his methods were underhanded, but at least he hadn't crossed the line.
If he'd really wanted to, he could've given Onoki a great-grandchild.
But Naruto found Kurotsuchi too troublesome, and right now, he didn't need to deal with Onoki directly. There was no real conflict of interest… just a push for cooperation. Specifically, cooperation in genetic Medical Ninjutsu.
After all this, Kurotsuchi finally quieted down, sitting in silence as she wiped the yogurt from her hair with a tissue. She didn't even dare glare at Naruto anymore, just pressed her lips together in silence.
"See? You had to make things difficult," Naruto said, squatting nearby as he swiped through the photos he'd just taken, "I came to Iwagakure in good faith to discuss cooperation. There was no way around dealing with you. Wouldn't it have been better if we'd kept things civil? Just a small collaboration, sharing the results… everyone benefits."
"But no, you just had to make a scene. Locals really have no manners. Ugh, what a pain, turning things into this mess."
Kurotsuchi looked up and glared at Naruto for a few seconds, "You never even said what the cooperation was about! How was I supposed to know?"
"Did you ask?"
"You didn't say anything either!" Kurotsuchi retorted, her voice tinged with frustration.
"Why don't you ask first? You're so unreasonable."
"I did bring it up, but you ignored me!"
"You didn't even ask properly… with that attitude, I thought you were just trying to cause trouble!" Naruto smacked his forehead theatrically, "It seems like this was all just a misunderstanding. So, how do we fix this?"
He put on an exaggerated look of distress, playing the shameless rogue, "My bad, I got a little carried away, why don't you go and wash up now?"
Hearing this, Kurotsuchi couldn't hold back her anger anymore. She had never met someone this shameless in her life. She thought she was willful enough, but this guy was on another level.
She felt so wronged, as she had never been treated like this before.
Unfortunately, Naruto didn't believe in tears. Even as he muttered 'misunderstanding' and 'my bad', his eyes were still glued to the photos he'd taken.
Kurotsuchi suddenly didn't feel like talking anymore. It was like punching cotton, and no matter what she said, it wouldn't land.
"Alright, alright, since it was just a misunderstanding, let's get down to business."
Naruto casually tossed the incriminating photos into his seal space, acting as if nothing had happened.
Kurotsuchi: "…?????"
By the time Naruto finished explaining his plan, Kurotsuchi no longer dared to oppose him. She didn't fully understand why he wanted to research genetics or what his real goal was, but she had no choice but to comply.
"This… isn't too big of an issue. The old man won't object either." Kurotsuchi agreed first, "But... why are you doing this?"
"If I said it's to prepare for a rainy day, would you believe me? You wouldn't get it anyway… it's for dealing with aliens."
"Aliens? What aliens?" Kurotsuchi was stunned.
"See? I told you you wouldn't understand." Naruto didn't want to explain to Kurotsuchi at all, and brushed her off, "There's no point in explaining it to you, so I won't explain it."
Kurotsuchi: "…"
'Do I look like an idiot to you? Even if you don't want to tell me, at least come up with a believable excuse.'
Naruto made it clear he had no interest in talking to 'idiots'. After giving his instructions, he left without another word. He had mentally prepared himself for Kurotsuchi's difficult personality beforehand, but thankfully, it hadn't taken too much effort.
The Land of Earth was far more feudal than the other Great Nations. Onoki ruled Iwagakure like an emperor, and Kurotsuchi was essentially the heir to the throne… an empress in waiting.
…
Konoha.
Kakashi's honeymoon period with the village had long since ended. However, the mess stirred up by the higher-ups had further strained Naruto's already fractured relationship with Konoha, at least on the surface.
Ironically, this gave Kakashi an opportunity. He didn't react immediately during the meeting, but afterward, the most vocal higher-ups were swiftly taken away by Anbu one by one.
Maybe it had something to do with Rin, or maybe Kakashi had just reached his limit. Either way, after the meeting, Kakashi's methods became far more ruthless.
Without following standard procedures, he had evidence of collusion planted in the homes of those higher-ups. Overnight, they were all arrested and stripped of their positions.
More than a hundred Anbu's members, fully armed and wearing white animal masks, surrounded the residences of those higher-ups, torches in hand.
At first, these higher-ups were still loudly berating the Anbu, until blades were drawn in unison. Only then did they fall silent.
The ringleader of the opposition was especially terrified, kneeling on the ground as if plunged into an icy abyss.
The man was pinned to the ground with a dull look in his eyes, staring sideways at the Anbu Commander, Yugao.
'Framing us with such dirty tactics? What kind of underhanded games are these?'
The Anbu moved swiftly and decisively. Ordinary villagers didn't hear even a whisper of the operation. One or two hundred Anbu's members rushed through Konoha, leaping across rooftops.
With the higher-ups arrested, their underlings were left with no choice but to face the consequences. Evidence was needed to detain the higher-ups, and Kakashi had already prepared that.
But for the small fry who had colluded with the nobles of the Land of Fire, attempting to undermine Konoha's foundation, no evidence was necessary… just a list of names are needed.
Who would listen to their excuses? They could just save their words for the Sage of Six Paths.
In a single night, Konoha was thrown into turmoil.
Even when Tsunade took office as the Godaime Hokage, there had never been such a large-scale operation. Yet now, under the rule of the supposedly mild-mannered Rokudaime Hokage, the higher-ups were being arrested for the first time.
On the night Naruto left, the sounds of blades and screams tore through the heavy darkness. Evidence was fabricated on the spot, fingerprints were pressed posthumously, and the most expedited procedures were followed as documents were rushed to the Hokage's Office.
Shikamaru was forced to pull an all-nighter, staying up with Kakashi. Once the Anbu completed the paperwork, the Hokage's Office immediately approved it… the red seals still fresh and wet.
The Anbu's blades fell like a relentless storm, swift and merciless.
In one night, they struck fear into the hearts of all troublemakers. The last time Konoha had seen such large-scale bloodshed was during the Uchiha Clan's massacre.
The next day at dawn, the blood on the streets had already been washed away. It was as if nothing had ever happened… except for the handful of insiders who heard the news and were left deeply shaken.