Naruto: Passerby and Returnee

Chapter 406 The Bridge Between Heaven and Earth

Chapter 406 The Bridge Between Heaven and Earth

The opportunity Sasuke had been waiting for soon arrived, but... this assist came from the very group of people he least wanted.

Thirteen days after the Kazekage's incident, the Konoha team infiltrated the Land of Grass and arrived near the Tenchi Bridge as planned. At this time, it was still unknown whether news of Sasori's death had spread, and they couldn't be certain whether there would be any leaks within Sunagakure. Therefore, this operation was both a gathering of intelligence and a planned ambush. If the other side had other intentions, they would simply take them down; otherwise, why send out such a powerful weapon?

"You've gotten quite the smooth talker, haven't you? You even know how to call Sakura 'beauty'." Naruto, completely unfazed, was still in the mood for conversation. Their mission had been assigned five days ago, but they had only set off two days prior. The brilliance of the Flying Thunder God Technique was undeniable!

"Really? I learned that from a book." Matsuri's eyes narrowed to almost invisible, and the corners of her mouth turned up to an extreme degree, but the muscles around her eyes didn't change much, making it a definite fake smile. "I learned it from you when I was always smiling."

Naruto's smile vanished instantly, replaced by a helpless expression as he said, "Then you should at least try to imitate it more closely."

"Doesn't it look like it? I practiced in front of the mirror for a long time."

"Not at all. That was a genuine smile from the heart, while yours looks like a fake smile."

Matsuri's smile faded, and she lowered her head to continue writing. "How can I laugh from the bottom of my heart? Do tasks and work make you happy?"

"How could that be? I'm not a masochist." Upon hearing those two dreadful terms, Naruto immediately expressed his disdain. How could an ordinary person possibly enjoy their job, unless... "But, when I think about how my job can make more people happy, I can't help but smile."

Upon seeing that familiar smile, Ji seemed to be deep in thought. He quickly put pen to paper, and in no time, what he saw and thought was vividly written.

"Can't you two be a little more urgency? We're staking out this place!" Sakura couldn't help but clench her fists, unable to bear watching any longer. But they couldn't fight. The barrier they were in could isolate their presence and some movement, but it probably couldn't stop the cracking ground and the buzzing in their heads.

"It's okay if we're found out, we know where Sasuke is anyway." Naruto waved his hand dismissively.

"So what exactly are we here for?"

“Look at Orochimaru’s attitude towards Akatsuki, and…” Naruto’s fists clenched so tightly that they cracked, and he responded with an extremely bright fake smile: “Three years are almost up, he’ll be making a move on Sasuke soon, won’t he?”

Sakura, whose nerves had been relaxed due to Sasuke's occasional contact, immediately changed her expression, looking as if she wanted to use her superhuman strength to make a hole in Orochimaru. "I wonder how immune that guy is to genjutsu. This time it's not like three years ago, it's our turn to chase him!"

Although Matsuri didn't understand their feelings at that moment, their spirit infected him, and he decisively became one of their comrades. The three of them started discussing tactics before the other side even appeared. However, Yamato, standing on the bridge, was completely unaware of all this. He was still dutifully pretending to be Sasori, trying to extract information.

Sakura's prophecy came true; Orochimaru really did appear and was indeed chased and beaten by Team 7.

The person who came to hand over the duties was none other than an old acquaintance, Kabuto. Even Naruto thought this guy was a true master of time management. Three years ago, he was a Konoha Chunin who participated in the Chunin Exams seven times, and three years later, he had transformed into Sasori's spy planted next to Orochimaru. Why was Sasori so confident that his spy wouldn't betray him? Given how devoted Kabuto was to Orochimaru, they no longer expected to actually extract any information from him and began to focus intently on waiting for an opportunity to intervene. Soon, that opportunity was delivered by their target.

Suddenly, a large python sprang out and bound Kabuto's body. Their long-awaited target also appeared behind Sasori. Yamato on the bridge was startled and immediately distanced himself, while the three below were incredibly excited, raising their weapons.

The moment Orochimaru appeared, the three of them couldn't wait to get moving.

First up was the ritual performer. His technique was well-suited for long-range harassment; a swarm of ink-black birds engulfed Orochimaru and Kabuto, completely disregarding whether Kabuto was genuinely loyal or feigning allegiance. Orochimaru reacted quickly, but his instinctive reaction was to release the snake binding Kabuto and command it to pounce into the flock of birds.

This action made it very clear that he believed Kabuto was one of his own, and that tying him up was just for show to make Captain Yamato relax.

The second one to appear was Sakura. Surprising, isn't it? Those little birds drawn with ink were easily turned into a rain of ink, and these things are excellent mediums for casting genjutsu. Although Sakura focuses most of her energy on training her superhuman strength and medical ninjutsu, she hasn't completely neglected genjutsu.

Kurenai-sensei is a Special Jonin, so she's definitely not busier than the Hokage. Sakura can still find some spare time to study. Moreover, Kurenai-sensei recently became pregnant, so Sakura has stopped all missions and is resting at home to prepare for her pregnancy. Sakura also visits Kurenai-sensei at the hospital from time to time, so Sakura's study time is naturally longer.

Illusion techniques are excellent for surprise attacks, as seen with young Kabuto who fell for them unintentionally. As for Orochimaru, he was indeed more difficult to control. At that moment, the Giant Rasengan suddenly filled the opponent's vision, the glowing spiral sphere encompassing the entire bridge surface, almost hitting Orochimaru in the face. Unfortunately for him, this guy, true to his snake nature, could run incredibly fast even after grabbing someone.

Orochimaru ran along the bridge, and when he finally stepped onto solid ground, the iron fist descended from the sky. Knowing how terrifying superhuman strength was, Orochimaru adopted a contorted posture that no normal person could possibly do, narrowly dodging the blow. However, this also meant that he couldn't dodge the second Flying Thunder God Technique attack.

The Giant Rasengan still landed on Orochimaru's face. With Sakura and Matsuri's combined harassment, plus Kabuto's hindrance, Orochimaru had no choice but to take the hit squarely. Not only was he sent flying, but Kabuto, whom he was holding, was also flung away.

This feeling is truly long-lost. Back when Naruto fought those three brats in the Forest of Death, he didn't even know the Flying Thunder God Technique yet. But they were able to use their teamwork to unleash a series of control attacks, forcing their true killing blows to land. Back then, only Naruto could truly go toe-to-toe with him. Now... heh, he's grown up very quickly.

Taking advantage of the slight decrease in the Rasengan's momentum, Orochimaru's mouth opened abnormally, instantly shedding his heavily injured exterior and disappearing into the surrounding billowing dust. Meanwhile, Kabuto, who had been thrown out, crashed into a tree, forcibly snapping out of the genjutsu. His reaction was fast enough; he almost immediately ran towards the direction of the explosion, but was tightly bound by wooden planks that suddenly sprang from the ground.

Completely bewildered, Yamato didn't understand why his teammates had gone in, but as an excellent ninja, he seized the opportunity perfectly and captured half of the target of the mission in one fell swoop.