Chapter 250 The Power of the Dragon Vein
"Yes, but what do you want to do?" Jiraiya looked at Gaara somewhat nervously.
"I... I want to see my mother." The honest Gaara answered Jiraiya's questions without hesitation, knowing his request might be a bit excessive, so his demeanor was somewhat awkward.
However, he received two completely different answers.
Naruto patted Gaara's shoulder casually and said with a smile, "Is that all? I'll go with you in a bit."
"No, Naruto," Jiraiya reminded him seriously, "If we act recklessly in the past, it might have a huge impact on history and the future."
"Grandpa Jiraiya, what's the basis for your statement?" Naruto scratched his head and asked.
"Uh..." Jiraiya was momentarily stumped by Naruto's question, mainly because it was just his speculation.
"Jiraiya-sensei, who is this child?" At this moment, Minato turned to Gaara and asked.
"The son of the future Fourth Kazekage, the Jinchuriki of the One-Tailed Beast from Sunagakure." Having guessed that Minato Namikaze might seal this memory after the mission, Jiraiya didn't hide anything and revealed Gaara's identity.
"A Jinchuriki from Sunagakure?" Minato was taken aback, then looked at Naruto and Jiraiya with a strange expression, as if asking, "How did you two get involved with a Jinchuriki from Sunagakure?"
"Yes, anyway, let's figure out a way back first," Jiraiya said.
"Alright, follow me," Minato nodded, beckoning the others to follow.
The three followed Minato, navigating the intricate streets of the ancient city of Loulan. During this time, they encountered crowds several times. However, as they navigated around them, Naruto noticed something strange about the city. Having gained Kurama's approval, Naruto possessed some of Kurama's abilities to sense human emotions. Yet, in Loulan, he strangely discovered that none of the people seemed to exhibit any emotional fluctuation.
"Did you notice?" Minato's voice rang in Naruto's ears. "They're all puppets."
"Puppets?" Naruto exclaimed in surprise. "What about the people in this city?"
"Follow me," Minato said, leading the group to the outskirts of Loulan, where they quickly reunited with Akimichi Choza and Aburame Shiki.
Upon seeing Jiraiya, the two looked on incredulously and asked curiously, "Lord Jiraiya, why are you here?"
"Because the Third Hokage gave me a special mission, I came here. After seeing Minato, I figured I could help you out," Jiraiya replied evasively.
The two didn't think much of it; Jiraiya was always wandering the ninja world, so his presence anywhere wasn't unusual. Akimichi Choza, on the contrary, was delighted to see him, saying, "It's wonderful that you're here. According to the intelligence we've gathered, this mission is quite serious. Even with Minato leading the team, it would be difficult for the three of us to complete it successfully."
"Have you gathered any intelligence?" Minato asked at this moment.
"Yes, Zhiwei and I circled around the outskirts of Loulan and found that the situation is basically the same as the intelligence our spies planted here provided. The people in the entire ancient city of Loulan have been basically replaced by puppets. However, what's more troublesome is that Zhiwei's reconnaissance insects detected that a large number of combat puppets are hidden in this ancient city. These puppets are much more advanced than the puppets of Sunagakure. Ordinary Jonin would not be able to deal with them without methods to counter puppets. More importantly, these puppets do not seem to need a puppeteer to control them. The chakra threads on their bodies are directly connected to there." Akimichi Choza said, looking at the tall tower in the ancient city of Loulan, which was clearly visible even in the outer area.
"If that's the case, then the power source for these puppets must come from the dragon vein that the ancient Loulan Kingdom has guarded for generations," Minato Namikaze frowned. "It seems that Loulan has been completely controlled by that so-called Prime Minister An Lushan who suddenly appeared a few years ago
. I didn't find any trace of their queen in the inner city." "This An Lushan's ambition is probably quite large," Shino Aburame said. Putting aside everything else, just the number of combat puppets they found hidden throughout the ancient city of Loulan would be enough to give Sunagakure a hard time if they used them to attack. Who would believe that he has no ambition?
"Then, let's infiltrate Loulan first and find their queen's whereabouts. After all, only the royal bloodline of Loulan has the ability to seal the dragon vein," Minato Namikaze said. "Otherwise, I'll have to risk sealing the dragon vein myself."
"Understood." Choji Akimichi and Shino Aburame nodded at the same time.
"Master Jiraiya, I'm entrusting these two children to your care," Minato Namikaze said at this moment.
"I can come too! Ba… Brother!" Naruto almost called Minato "Dad" in front of Choji Akimichi and Shimi Aburame.
"Lord Jiraiya, who are these two children?" Choji Akimichi asked.
"Uh… I found them outside." Jiraiya thought for a moment and scratched his head.
"Naruto, you stay here with Jiraiya-sensei and wait for us. Try not to fight here." Minato said.
"I'm strong! I can definitely help you!" Naruto insisted.
"Minato, since the enemy is strong, we should go with you. More people mean more strength." Jiraiya said at this time.
After hearing Jiraiya's words, Minato considered it. The fighting power that Naruto and Gaara showed when facing those puppets was more than enough to help a lot in this mission. Anyway, he definitely didn't have their strength when he was that age.
Thinking of this, Minato couldn't help but feel a little gratified, thinking to himself: It seems that my future son's talent will surpass mine.
"Alright." Minato nodded, but before setting off, he still instructed, "If possible, it's best not to leave too many traces here."
"I understand." Jiraiya nodded.
After discussing the specific plan of the operation, Minato took out several kunai engraved with the Flying Thunder God Technique symbol from his ninja tool bag and handed them to the people present, saying, "Take these. If there is any danger, I will come to your rescue immediately."
"Is this the legendary kunai for the Flying Thunder God Technique? It's amazing!" After obtaining the Sword of Ninja Love, Naruto's face was filled with excitement as he kept playing with the special kunai in his hand. Since learning about his origins, Naruto had spent a lot of time in the village collecting stories about his father. Naruto knew that this was the origin of his father's nickname in the ninja world—the Yellow Flash—and the vessel for the Flying Thunder God Technique.
Naruto had seen this kind of kunai before in the museum that Uchiha Tohsaku had ordered to be built next to the Konoha Heroes Monument two years ago, but the inanimate objects in the museum separated by counters and restaurants could not compare to the feeling of touching this kunai with his own hands.
Upon hearing Naruto's words, Minato Namikaze frowned imperceptibly. There was no doubt that Naruto was his son, but both his previous attitude towards him and his expression upon receiving his Sword of Love indicated one thing: his son didn't seem familiar with his father. This made Minato wonder, "Didn't I watch this child grow up? Or perhaps..."
Thinking of a possibility, after setting off, Minato subtly glanced at Naruto, who had been following him like a little shadow, before slowing down, approaching him, patting his head, and softly asking, "Your name is Naruto, right?" At this point, Jiraiya hadn't yet
discovered his astonishing talent in software hardening engineering, and the novel about the origin of Naruto's name, "The Tale of the Strong-Willed Ninja," hadn't been published yet, hence Minato's question.
"Mmm-hmm!" Naruto nodded hurriedly. "Naruto! Uzumaki Naruto!"
"Uzumaki?" Minato Namikaze nodded. If it were him, he had indeed considered having his future child with Kushina inherit the Uzumaki clan name. Aside from the fact that the Uzumaki clan's reputation was far superior to their Namikaze family, having his future child bear the Uzumaki surname would reduce many troubles as the child grew up. After all, while he had built a formidable reputation in the ninja world over the years, many people genuinely wanted him dead. If his child bore the Namikaze surname, perhaps some ninja from other villages would target him because they didn't want to see another Yellow Flash.
Although this thought showed a lack of trust in Konoha's defenses, to be somewhat disrespectful, the Third Hokage had become somewhat weak with age, and Minato Namikaze didn't think he could protect his child.
"Naruto, you seemed really strong before. In the future, you should at least be a Chunin, right?" Minato Namikaze asked with a smile.
"Uh... sort of..." Naruto felt a cold sweat drip from his forehead after hearing Minato's question, and then he said somewhat guiltily.
Seeing that his father was so excited that he had forgotten his identity, he was now a rogue ninja of Konoha. What if his father found out and wanted to clean house?
"sort of?" Minato Namikaze also looked a little confused. Chunin? You can count that?
"Yes! I'll be a Chunin soon," Naruto said.
In Naruto's opinion, if the Chunin Exams went smoothly and he didn't run away, defeating Sasuke and becoming a Chunin would be a piece of cake.
However, his statement clearly did not satisfy Minato Namikaze. Minato frowned and said, "Naruto, the most important thing for us ninjas is discipline. Yes is yes, no is no."
"Sorry, sorry!" Naruto scratched his head, a strange feeling rising within him as he listened to his father's lecture.
[Is this what it feels like to be scolded by Dad?]
"Fine, I'm still a genin," Naruto admitted helplessly, head bowed.
"Genin?" Minato nodded. Although he believed Naruto's strength far surpassed that of a typical jonin, a ninja's rank wasn't solely determined by strength.
The group quickly re-entered the center of the ancient city of Loulan. At this time, the crowds on the streets began to gather, and thousands of puppet dummies converged in front of the Loulan Kingdom's palace, seemingly preparing for some kind of festival.
Hidden in the gaps between houses not far from the palace, the people watching this scene were secretly alarmed. If these people were all puppets, then where were the real Loulan people?
Just as everyone was filled with doubt, a richly dressed figure, surrounded by a crowd, ascended the high platform above the palace and waved to the puppets below.
"That's... their princess?" Minato Namikaze frowned upon seeing this. What was going on? The people below were clearly puppets; who was this princess's showy gesture for? Or was this princess fake too?
However, the next second, a sudden change occurred. The bricks on the tower cracked, and the princess, caught off guard, lost her footing and fell off the platform.
Using the Nine-Tails' power, Naruto sensed that this was a real person and rushed forward without hesitation, dashing towards the platform and leaping high to catch the falling woman.
But at that moment, commotion began to erupt from all directions as dozens of massive battle puppets converged on the tower's location.
"Naruto?" Minato Namikaze, who was also preparing to rescue Naruto but hadn't even thrown his Flying Thunder God kunai yet, saw Naruto dart out first and panicked. He now understood why Naruto, despite his exceptional strength, was still only a genin.
Couldn't this kid at least assess the situation? For a ninja, acting rashly was a major taboo!
However, the next instant, facing the onslaught of puppets, the golden light emanating from Naruto, who was holding the Queen of Rouran, and the chakra aura he exuded, made Minato's eyes widen in disbelief.
"This is…" Minato looked at Jiraiya beside him in disbelief. He was all too familiar with this chakra fluctuation—wasn't that the Nine-Tails' chakra?
Moreover, Naruto's posture was exactly like the description of a perfect Jinchuriki that Minato had read about in the books.
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(End of Chapter)