69novels Chapter 102 Kid, isn't it good to be alive?
Chapter 102 Kid, isn't it good to be alive?
Chapter 102 Kid, isn't it good to be alive?
Kakashi woke up from his sleep, still feeling a little dazed.
Suddenly returning to Konoha Village twenty years ago, he saw his father again, who had passed away many years ago—
Rubbing his slightly drowsy forehead, Kakashi staggered out of the room.
Pushing open the door, Kakashi was surprised to find Jiraiya leaning against the doorway, waiting.
In the morning light, Jiraiya stood with his arms crossed, his face solemn.
Upon seeing Kakashi emerge, Jiraiya immediately straightened up and asked in a deep voice, "How did things go last night? Any new information?"
Hearing this urgent question, Kakashi felt a pang of guilt.
He certainly wanted to find out the guy's identity and purpose as soon as possible.
Unfortunately, he couldn't control which dream he entered.
Recalling last night, Kakashi shook his head helplessly and said, "I'm sorry, Jiraiya-sama. I didn't get any new information yesterday."
He paused, then continued to explain, "Last night I didn't go to the dream about the masked man; instead, I returned to Konoha Village twenty years ago."
"Konoha twenty years ago?" Jiraiya frowned upon hearing this and repeated it in a low voice.
"Yes." Kakashi nodded. "This dream is far too bizarre and unpredictable, with absolutely no discernible pattern."
Jiraiya remained silent for a moment, then suddenly sighed.
Even with his intelligence network, he had never heard of such a dream. "If only I could go in and see for myself, maybe I could find some clues."
Kakashi nodded slightly upon hearing this, but his mind began to ponder.
He raised his hand to stroke his chin and pondered, "Thinking about it carefully, it seems that everyone who was able to enter that audience seat has some connection with Naruto and Sasuke."
"Oh? What do you mean?"
Jiraiya looked thoughtful upon hearing this.
"So far," Kakashi recalled his previous dream experiences and slowly analyzed, "the people we saw in the audience included Hinata, Iruka, and Namino—these are all acquaintances of Naruto and the others. Perhaps, if we want to enter the audience in that dream, we should try to get on good terms with Naruto and the others; that would increase the chances of being pulled in."
Jiraiya listened for a moment, then nodded thoughtfully, "Is that so?"
It was the morning of the fourth day of the Chunin Exams.
As dawn broke, two figures appeared in front of the main gate of Konoha Village.
Izumo and Kotetsu.
As door gods, they arrived at their posts early in the morning to begin their day's guard duty.
The morning air was exceptionally fresh, but the expressions on their faces were more serious than usual.
The two of them simultaneously recalled the order that the Hokage had specifically given them the day before.
The situation in Konoha is tense recently, and no one is allowed to enter or leave the village at will!
As dawn broke, villagers began to walk toward the main gate of Konoha, intending to leave the village to run errands.
This time of day is usually when people travel.
However, today, no matter who came forward, they were all ruthlessly blocked by Izumo and Kotetsu.
The villagers, who were stopped one after another, looked at each other with a mixture of confusion and helplessness, and had no choice but to quickly leave the gate.
Soon, everyone noticed that the atmosphere in the village had changed.
The atmosphere suddenly became much more tense and somber.
Reasons for leaving the village that were once easily granted are now all prohibited, and even outsiders are being kept out of the village.
As the news spread, the people of Konoha Village gradually felt a sense of impending doom.
Outside Konoha Village.
Exercise Field No. 44.
Inside the offices of the central tower.
The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, slowly exhaled a puff of smoke, looking out the window at the dense, gloomy forest in the distance.
He stood with his hands behind his back, gazing at the Death Forest bathed in the morning sun, his expression complex and filled with emotion.
"I never thought that my two old buddies would team up again."
Not far behind Hiruzen Sarutobi was none other than Danzo Shimura.
Upon hearing Sarutobi's words, Danzo first snorted coldly, then said with dissatisfaction, "Your information had better be true! Otherwise, I will not let your arbitrary behavior go unpunished this time!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi wasn't angry when he heard this. He took a deep drag on his pipe, slowly exhaled a smoke ring, and said in a deep voice, "Hmph, I wish that information was false."
"Um?"
Danzo's eyes flickered slightly. He stepped forward, staring at the dark, indistinct forest outside the window, and slowly spoke, "How did you obtain such crucial information? Why didn't I receive a single whisper of it?"
Sarutobi didn't answer immediately, but turned and gave Danzo a wary look, saying meaningfully, "Danzo! In Konoha..."
Nothing can escape my eyes.
Upon hearing this, Danzo's pupils contracted slightly, and his heart sank.
What does Hiruzen mean by that?!
He was furious, and his face immediately darkened.
Damn it! Where did this intelligence come from?
Danzo didn't believe that the Root Organization hadn't found any clues. He thought that Hiruzen Sarutobi's bunch of useless ANBU could find anything!
Just as the atmosphere between the two was tense, footsteps came from outside the office door.
The next second, Jiraiya led Kakashi in quickly.
Upon hearing the sound, Hiruzen Sarutobi withdrew his gaze from the window, turned his head and saw Jiraiya. His expression turned slightly veiled, and he cast a questioning look at Jiraiya.
Jiraiya and Kakashi exchanged a glance and silently shook their heads.
A hint of disappointment flashed across the Third Hokage's eyes, but he didn't say anything. He simply put the pipe back to his lips and took a deep drag.
This time, the smoke slowly being exhaled from the pipe was much thicker than before.
A day passed in the blink of an eye.
As dusk fell, the afterglow of the setting sun cast a blood-red glow over the Death Forest.
Most of the surviving squads who passed the exam are now resting temporarily inside the central tower.
On this day, Naruto and Sasuke also spent a fulfilling training session near the tower.
As night deepened, Naruto lay on his soft bed, feeling utterly exhausted, and soon drifted off to sleep.
In the blink of an eye, the three of them returned to the audience seats.
Just then, a strange fluctuation suddenly appeared in the dark audience seats.
Naruto and Sasuke looked up at the same time and saw a blurry figure that had appeared in the dimly lit seats in the distance.
The man was wearing a strange tiger-skin patterned mask.
Naruto and Sasuke recognized each other at a glance.
It was the mysterious masked man who had appeared in my dreams many times before!
Sasuke's pupils contracted, and anger instantly welled up within him.
He jumped to his feet, his fists clenched so tightly they cracked, his voice filled with suppressed, burning rage: "You bastard—you actually dared to show your face again!"
Naruto also stood up abruptly. He and Sasuke stood side by side, staring intently at the newcomer, their muscles tense as if facing a formidable enemy.
[Ding! Emotional fluctuations from Uchiha Sasuke have been detected! Emotional value +200!]
[Ding! Naruto's emotional fluctuations have been detected! Emotional value +200!]
Obito didn't take the two boys' hostility seriously.
He simply sat in his chair, tilted his head slightly, and glanced at Naruto and Sasuke, his expression obscured by the dark mask.
Obito casually put his hands behind his head, crossed his legs, and leaned back lazily in his chair, as if he were at home.
After finding a comfortable position to sit down, he ignored Naruto and the others and calmly waited for the screen to light up.
This nonchalant attitude undoubtedly further enraged Naruto and Sasuke.
Sasuke's expression was uncertain as he stared intently at the masked man, his mind flashing back to his previous encounter with him in his dream.
Last time, when he claimed to be the ancestor of the Uchiha clan, the right eye he revealed was indeed a Sharingan.
He must be a member of the Uchiha clan.
Upon realizing this, Sasuke could no longer suppress his questions and anger. He took a step forward, pointed at the masked man, and demanded sharply, "Since you are also a member of the Uchiha clan, why did you attack the Uchiha clan?!"
When Obito heard Sasuke's question, he paused almost imperceptibly.
He turned his neck and looked at the furious Sasuke, his expression behind the mask seeming somewhat surprised.
"Oh? Does this brat know something?"
A hint of doubt arose in Obito's mind: "The details of the Uchiha clan massacre should only be known to Itachi and me. How did he find out about it?"
[Ding! Emotional fluctuations from Uchiha Obito have been detected! Emotional value +200!]
Obito shrugged. "You can't blame me for that. It was your brother who personally invited me to join in!"
"Impossible! You're talking nonsense!" Sasuke's eyes were red, and his reason was instantly swallowed up by anger.
He suddenly roared, "How could Nissan do such a thing?! You damned bastard, stop spouting nonsense!"
[Ding! Emotional fluctuations from Uchiha Sasuke have been detected! Emotional value +400!]
The masked man looked at the distraught Sasuke, and his brows furrowed behind the mask.
"Kid, isn't it good to be alive?"