Chapter 135:
"The ones assigned to monitor you," Sasuke said as he looked at the two people in front of him.
"I can keep an eye on them," Hinata volunteered as she held Boruto tightly.
"Hinata," Sasuke looked at her, then nodded. "Having someone from the Hyūga Clan do the surveillance is perfectly fine."
"Um, Mom—wait, Hinata, could you maybe let go of me?" Boruto said.
Hinata stared at him. Under the intensity of her Byakugan, Boruto once again recalled the terror of growing up under its constant scrutiny.
"Or, I guess… not letting go is fine too."
"Then I'll leave it to you, Hinata," Sasuke said, turning to her.
"Mm." Hinata nodded in response.
As Sasuke turned and walked away, Sakura glanced at Hinata, then chose to follow after him. "Wait up, Sasuke."
"Hinata, would you mind showing us around the village a bit?" the Jar Merchant asked.
"Sure." Hinata nodded again.
Hokage's Office.
"Come in," Tsunade said at the sound of the knock. "Oh, it's Sasuke and Sakura. Why are you back already?"
"We ran into two outsiders on the road," Sasuke replied.
"Outsiders?" Tsunade looked at him. "Spies?"
Sasuke shook his head. "Not sure. One adult, one child. The adult had a jar on his head, couldn't see his face. The child… looks a bit like Naruto."
"Naruto?!"
Tsunade slammed her hand down on the desk.
"Yeah. Hinata's keeping an eye on them for now."
"I see… someone who looks a lot like Naruto." Tsunade paused in thought, then looked up. "Sasuke, bring them to me tomorrow. I want to see them myself."
"Yes."
—
"Hey, Jar Merchant… are we really just going back like this?" That night, Boruto ran alongside the Jar Merchant toward the village outskirts. "We didn't even investigate anything!"
"Idiot, investigate what? This was just a test," the Jar Merchant said. "Besides, the Akatsuki already has that traitor Naruto. What else is there to investigate in the Leaf? Just ask Naruto and you'll know everything."
"So you are spies after all."
The Jar Merchant suddenly stopped mid-run. Sasuke was now standing in their path.
"I like to go for nightly jogs to stay in shape. You believe me?"
Sasuke didn't answer. He silently drew his Kusanagi Sword.
"What do we do now, Jar Merchant?" Boruto asked, clearly nervous after being discovered.
"We miscalculated. I should've realized it sooner—knowing Sasuke's personality, there's no way he'd rely solely on Hinata to watch us." The Jar Merchant stared intently at Sasuke. "He had Hinata monitor us in the open, while he stayed hidden in the dark. Boruto, get ready to fight!"
"But…" Boruto hesitated.
"Boruto, this is a parallel Shinobi World. Sasuke here might not be as strong as the one from our world."
"Not that strong?" Sasuke's Sharingan gleamed with three tomoe. "You really have the nerve to say that."
In an instant, Sasuke appeared right in front of the Jar Merchant and swung his sword.
The Jar Merchant skillfully dodged the horizontal slash and retreated. "I'm not exactly a fighter, you know."
"Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu!"
As soon as the Jar Merchant moved out of the sword's range, Sasuke followed up with a Great Fireball.
Watching the flames erupt and smoke billow, Sasuke muttered, "Did I get him?"
"Nope." The Jar Merchant's voice came from above as he leapt through the mist and landed atop a utility pole. "Hmm?"
Just as he turned his head, he saw Tsunade hurtling toward him, fists raised and aiming directly at the jar on his head.
"Nuclear Release: Nuclear Blast Fist!"
Their fists clashed in a violent shockwave. Judging by the power behind the punch, Tsunade had the edge—her blow knocked the Jar Merchant off the pole. But she didn't come out unscathed either.
Landing on the ground, Tsunade looked down at her own fist, now covered in green splotches. "Poison, huh? Might be tricky for others, but for me…"
A soft green glow enveloped her fist as she instantly purged the nuclear radiation.
"Nuclear Explosion Fist… come to think of it, this might be the first time I've seen the Jar Merchant actually attack," Boruto muttered. Even during his brief clash with Naruto, the Jar Merchant had only dodged and fled.
"Lady Tsunade, you're here," Sasuke said.
"Mhm." Tsunade nodded, then turned to the Jar Merchant and Boruto. "Who exactly are you two?"
"Hahaha," the Jar Merchant chuckled awkwardly. "Like I said, I'm a detective, and he's my assistant."
Tsunade cracked her knuckles, a series of sharp pops echoing in the air. "Seems like you don't want to tell the truth. Just so you know, not just anyone can waltz into the Hidden Leaf!"
As she spoke, Kakashi, Hinata, and Sakura also arrived on the scene.
"Oh? Granny Tsunade, you're being a bit rude."
"Who's there?!" Tsunade looked toward the voice. Bathed in moonlight, Naruto sat on a rooftop wearing the Akatsuki cloak, smiling down at them.
"Naruto!"
"Yo. Long time no see, everyone." Naruto squinted, as if greeting old friends. "Looks like you've all been doing pretty well lately. Makes sense, I guess. Living comfortably while sitting atop the graves of the previous generation—you'd be smiling like fools too."
"Naruto!" Kakashi, Sakura, and Hinata all shouted his name, each filled with their own emotions.
"Naruto…" Sasuke stared up at him, teeth clenched. "So you've been doing fine, huh? And you… you actually joined the Akatsuki?! Whether it's Uchiha Itachi or this so-called Akatsuki, they're all my enemies!"
"Is that so, Sasuke?" Naruto stood up, gazing down at him. "You look smart on the outside, but inside, you're still a clueless fool. Always protected by others—no wonder you never truly grew up. But I'm not here to fight. I came to take these two back with me."
Following the direction Naruto pointed, everyone saw the Jar Merchant and Boruto, clearly trying to sneak away.
Tsunade looked at them. "So you are members of the Akatsuki too?"
"Naruto, you're really just going to ignore us like that?"
"Someone like me—a dead-last—would never underestimate you so-called geniuses," Naruto said as he looked at Kakashi. "To take revenge on the Leaf, I've endured humiliation day after day, pretending to be a fool. If I hadn't done that, I wouldn't have lived this long."
Then, in an instant, Naruto entered his dazzling golden Nine-Tails Mode.