Chapter 332: A Painful Choice Between Two
Torn between the Fourth Gray Wolf Clone and the village, Naruto ultimately chose to prioritize protecting the village, turning and teleporting in that direction.
Konoha Village Center
Several Susanoo were wreaking havoc on the buildings.
"Die!!"
With a thunderous shout, one of the Susanoo was punched into the air, only landing again after a long moment.
Looking valiant and fierce, Sakura had released the Yin Seal on her forehead, a curse mark now spreading across it.
"Sakura!"
Hearing her name, Sakura turned to look. "Ino, Chōji!"
"Do you know what's going on, Sakura? Why are there so many Susanoo in the village?" Ino asked as she gazed at her friend.
Faced with such a sudden attack, every department in Konoha was mobilized.
Jōnin engaged the Susanoo directly. Chunin and Genin were tasked with evacuating civilians from the battlefield. Medical-nin provided support in the rear.
Despite the village's full-scale mobilization, they still couldn't find an effective way to repel the Susanoo. All they could do was try to minimize civilian casualties while the buildings continued to be destroyed.
"I don't know either," Sakura replied, shaking her head.
"And where's Naruto? Where did he go at a time like this?" Chōji asked, his question just falling when—
A golden flash slammed into one of the rampaging Susanoo, sending it flying.
"It's the Hokage—Seventh Hokage-sama!"
Naruto's arrival lifted the morale of the Konoha shinobi.
"It feels like... as soon as Naruto shows up, the whole atmosphere of the village changes," Ino said, watching the cheering shinobi around her.
"Well, after all, Naruto's saved the village over and over again. Of course people trust him." Sakura smiled. "Come on, let's hurry up and go help him."
"Yeah."
…
"This is the last one…"
Panting, Naruto looked at the defeated Fourth Gray Wolf Clone wood clone in front of him. Around him, Konoha shinobi supported each other and raised their hands in celebration.
"Seventh Lord is way too cool!"
Back to her usual plump figure after exiting Butterfly Mode, Chōchō Akimichi gazed at Naruto, eyes shining.
"There she goes again..." Inojin said with a sigh as he glanced at Chōchō. Then, noticing the furrowed brows of Shikadai nearby, he asked, "Shikadai, what's wrong? Are you hurt? If you are, you should go to the hospital."
"No, I'm fine. It's just… strange. As far as we know, the Uchiha clan in the ninja world should only consist of Sasuke and Sarada now, right? So how can there be so many Susanoo? And the people summoning them—something's off…"
"That's nothing! I heard the Seventh once fought an enemy with a shark face. An enemy that looks like a wolf? Not that weird."
"Hmm…"
Shikadai lowered his head in thought. Maybe it was his sixth sense, but he had a nagging feeling that things weren't over yet.
Just as the cheers faded and everyone began organizing for reconstruction, a sudden burst of applause rang out.
"Well, I didn't expect you to take down my wood clone so quickly. As expected of the strongest ninja village in the world."
Standing atop a rooftop, the Fourth Gray Wolf Clone looked down at them and spoke.
"What?!"
Inojin and Shikadai exchanged glances and instantly understood what the other was thinking—what they had just struggled so hard to defeat was only a clone.
"You didn't run away while you had the chance."
Something felt wrong. When things are unusual, there's always a catch.
Naruto was no longer a child. As a grown man and seasoned Hokage, he immediately grew alert, wary of another disaster befalling the village.
Even though the Liquid Robot incident had passed long ago, Naruto still had nightmares about it. He remained afraid that one might still be lurking within the village.
"No need to be so tense, Seventh Hokage. I just came to tell you something. Don't you care about where Himawari and those criminals are?"
"Where is Himawari?!"
Hearing his daughter's name, Naruto couldn't stay calm anymore. If he weren't worried for her safety, he would've already charged in and fought the Fourth Clone himself.
"Relax. Himawari and the criminals are both safe. But from now on, your choice will decide their fate. Between your daughter and those criminals—only one can live. Make your choice, Seventh Hokage."
The moment the words left his mouth, Ino made a hand seal and shouted, "Mind Body Switch Technique!"
As she took over the Fourth Gray Wolf Clone's body, Sai appeared beside him in a flash, driving a shuriken straight toward his chest.
It wasn't fatal, but it would've been enough to take the Clone out of commission.
But just as it struck, the clone turned into a block of wood.
"A Wood Clone again! Dammit!"
Compared to other clone techniques, Wood Clones were especially hard to detect.
"I hope this is the last time. Otherwise, I can't guarantee the hostages' safety," the Fourth Gray Wolf Clone said coldly as he looked around at the Konoha shinobi, then locked eyes with Naruto. "Alright, Seventh Hokage. It's about time you made your choice. If you don't, the hostages will still die."
"No matter what, Gray Wolf… I will take you down!"
"Sure, sure. I get it. Now then… what's your choice?"
The Fourth Gray Wolf Clone remained indifferent.
"Naruto."
Sakura turned to look at the conflicted Naruto, hesitating to speak. Deep down, she hoped he would choose Himawari. After all, the criminals—even though there were many—were people who had committed crimes in the village. But when she saw the expression on Naruto's face, she swallowed her words.
Naruto had always regarded every person in the village as family—even the ones who'd committed crimes. Besides, those crimes weren't even that serious—just petty theft and mischief.
"…I choose… the criminals…" Naruto's voice trembled by the end. Clenching his fists, he looked up at the Clone on the rooftop. "Now… let them go."
"Of course. I always keep my word," the Clone said, putting his palms together.
Several flowers broke through the ground and slowly bloomed, revealing inside them the bewildered criminals.
"Then as agreed… I'll be taking Himawari's life."
"Over my dead body!"
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