"A friend…?"
Gaara looked at Nagi, warmth rising in his chest for the first time in years.
"Isn't that what we are?"
Nagi glanced at the hand Gaara had been gripping tightly.
"…Yeah."
Gaara tightened his hold.
When they finally let go, Nagi smiled.
"As a first gift between friends… you should get a good night's sleep."
Before Gaara could react, Nagi coated his palm in chakra and pressed it against Gaara's abdomen.
"Eight Trigrams Seal."
A spiral pattern instantly appeared over Gaara's stomach, surrounded by intricate black markings.
At the same time, within Gaara's inner world—
ShukaKū suddenly sensed something descending from above.
Before he could respond, a network of red torii gates slammed down, separating him from Gaara entirely.
"Damn you!!"
Outside, Gaara felt a lightness he had never experienced before. A deep sense of relief washed over him.
And for the first time in his life—
He fell asleep peacefully.
Gaara: "A friend… Thank you, Nagi."
Nagi: "It's nothing. I may need your help in the future."
Gaara: "Mm."
Rasa: "Gaara, you are SunagaKūre's—"
Onoki: "Enough, Rasa. You know exactly how you treated him."
Nagi quietly drew a small vial of Gaara's blood and handed it to Kabuto Ya Kūshi, who carefully preserved it.
Then Nagi used the Flying Thunder God Technique to bring everyone back to Konoha.
Chūnin Exams Arena…
"Leaf Strong Whirlwind!"
"Lightning Cutter!"
"Fire Release: Burning Ash!"
"Konoha-Style Sword Technique: Crescent Moon Dance!"
The Leaf's jōnin and drove the Sand shinobi back step by step.
Konoha Streets…
"Fang Over Fang!"
"Shadow Strangle Technique!"
"Konoha Style: Willow!"
The Ino–Shika–Chō trio and other elite shinobi nearly wiped out the invading Sand forces.
Back at the arena—
Baki sighed heavily.
"SunagaKūre has lost."
He raised his hand in surrender. One by one, the remaining Sand shinobi followed suit.
Leaf ninja swiftly restrained and imprisoned them.
The Third Hokage exhaled slowly.
"Next comes negotiations. SunagaKūre had better prepare themselves."
Several Days Later
Konoha had largely recovered.
In truth, the damage had been minimal.
Before the Chūnin Exams Finals, the village had already begun quietly evacuating civilians to shelters. Combined with hidden elite forces lying in wait, SunagaKūre had been caught completely off guard.
Most of their shinobi were overwhelmed before they could react.
SunagaKūre dispatched a diplomatic envoy to negotiate the release of their captured shinobi.
This time, they had no leverage.
They were the aggressors—
And the One-Tail's Jinchūriki was currently in Konoha's custody.
What SunagaKūre did not know—
Was that Gaara had been living with Nagi and Naruto these past few days.
On the night the Konoha Crush ended, Nagi had carried the sleeping Gaara and knocked on Naruto's door.
Still groggy, Naruto opened it—
Only to see Nagi carrying the same bloodthirsty opponent he had faced earlier.
Now asleep.
After hearing Gaara's story, Naruto burst into tears, empathizing deeply.
Since Naruto lived in Minato and Kūshina's former house, there was more than enough space for three.
And so Gaara stayed with them.
Through Nagi, Gaara learned that Naruto was also a Jinchūriki.
Over the next few days, Gaara's killing intent diminished significantly.
Naruto spoke passionately about his dream—to become Hokage.
The idea shook Gaara deeply.
At Nagi's suggestion, Gaara could aim to become Kazekage.
At first, Gaara found the notion unbelievable.
But Naruto's relentless persuasion—and Nagi's subtle guidance—planted the seed of resolve.
Gaara would become Kazekage.
Thus, the first phase of Nagi's SunagaKūre plan succeeded.
Later…
With their manpower severely depleted, Ebizo personally came to Konoha.
Hiruzen Sarutobi negotiated with him directly.
Old rivals, neither yielding an inch.
Sharp words flew like blades.
Finally, ShikaKū Nara stepped in to smooth things over. Ebizo reluctantly agreed to preliminary terms, though final approval would require discussion back home.
After Ebizo departed, ShikaKū and the Third Hokage exchanged knowing smiles.
Soon afterward, the Sand prisoners were permitted to return home.
Gaara bid farewell to Naruto and Nagi, reluctant to leave.
"I will become Kazekage."
And with that—
The Konoha Crush came to its true conclusion.
Little V: "That concludes today's broadcast. The next stream will begin tomorrow morning. Everyone, get a good night's rest."
Hiruzen Sarutobi: "Finally… it's over."
Onoki: "Yes. Watching this nonstop has nearly broken my back."
Kūrotsuchi: "Then maybe it's time you stepped down as Tsuchikage, old man."
Onoki: "You little—ah! My back!"
Kakashi Hatake: "It's almost evening… What should I eat? YakiniKū sounds good."
Might Guy: "Kakashi! Let's have a contest of youth!"
Kakashi: "Spare me, Guy."
Onoki: "You Leaf ninja sure are relaxed."
Though he said that—
Kakashi, Guy, and several other Konoha jōnin were already moving swiftly toward the Ninja Academy.
Their casual banter was merely a smokescreen.
Nagi, Naruto, and the Rookie Nine had been exposed to the entire Shinobi World.
There was no guarantee that spies from other villages wouldn't attempt assassination.
At the same time, Onoki and other village leaders had quietly classified Nagi as an extremely high-risk individual.
And certain ambitions began to stir.
Tobirama Senju: "By the way—if anything happens to my disciple, my brother and I will simply return via Impure World Reincarnation. Consider that carefully."
Hashirama Senju: "Indeed. I quite like Konoha's new generation. I would hate to see harm come to them."
Though Hashirama disliked war—
If anything happened to Konoha's children, he would show no mercy.
Onoki: "Hahaha, of course not! Nagi- Kūn is quite talented—we admire him greatly."
A (Fourth Raikage): "Yes! KūmogaKūre would be delighted to host him as a guest."
Dodai: "We have plenty of good food and entertainment!"
Mei Terumi: "KirigaKūre… will have to settle its own issues first."
She and Ao were still cleaning up the chaos left behind by Obito Uchiha.
Meanwhile, under heavy jōnin escort, Nagi and the others returned home safely.
Kakashi and several others even relocated nearby as a precaution.
As night fell—
Nagi and the shinobi of the world quietly absorbed the power bestowed by the mysterious sky screen, up until the end of the Chūnin Exams.
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