Konoha Notes

Chapter 433 Weight (Two Chapters Combined)

The sensation of the document being snatched from my hand came too suddenly.

Sasuke didn't even see when Kakashi moved in front of him; it was only a moment before the thick paper about the Land of Snow was already in the other's fingers.

"Alright, now you've seen how hard my job is."

Hard work? Where was it hard work?

From the moment I entered until now, the one truly handling affairs and making judgments has clearly been Mr. Shuji sitting behind the desk. This bureau chief has merely eaten half an orange and flipped through some documents.

Before he could finish speaking, the director of the Joint Affairs Bureau tilted his head, his exposed eye curving into a lazy arc, and began to exert force on Sasuke's shoulder.

"If I let you stay any longer, who knows what other nonsense that guy over there will say." Kakashi pushed the boy toward the door. "You haven't finished your homework yet, have you? I heard that third-year students have a lot of homework."

"Oh dear, it's all because of that guy who's been stuffing his schedule with stuff... If he doesn't hurry up and get back, he'll probably be staying up really late tonight..."

The soft sound of the door closing behind him brought Sasuke back to his senses.

Sasuke stood in the dimly lit corridor, staring at the unmarked dark wooden door in front of him, remaining motionless for a long time.

verified.

Kakashi Hatake is certainly not someone who only knows how to slack off. But in every sense of the word, he is a guy who is completely, utterly, and in no way can be respected.

Sasuke turned around.

The path leading to this office was unmarked, and all the forks in the road looked almost identical. The walls were a uniform light gray, and the wall lamps cast evenly spaced, dim yellow light. Even the pattern of the floor tiles followed a certain monotonous rhythm.

But this did not trouble Sasuke.

Following the trail he had left behind, he walked outside. Just as he was about to step out of the building's side door, a faint melody drifted over.

Sasuke stopped in his tracks.

The sounds originating from the main stadium were reduced to intermittent rhythms by layers of walls and corridors.

Is that the one...?

What Naruto and the others are rehearsing.

He stopped in the narrow shadow cast by the side door and listened intently.

The music suddenly rose after a certain accented note, only to abruptly cut off as if something had choked it. This was followed by a dull thud like a heavy object falling to the ground, and a muffled, frustrated shout. The content was indistinct, but it was unmistakably Naruto's voice.

Sasuke pursed his lips. The night settled in his dark eyes. After a few seconds, he finally took a step, stepped out of the side door, leaving the intermittent music and lights behind him behind the gradually deepening silhouette of the buildings.

However, just as his figure disappeared into the dim light of the stadium area's roads, the music from the direction of the main stadium started playing again.

This time, it lasted a little longer, and the rhythm seemed to be a bit more stable.
-
Inside the main stadium.

Naruto remained in the position of propping himself up after falling, his palms pressed tightly against the cold floor.

The dozen or so shadow clones around them were all crooked in their own ways, some rubbing their buttocks, some baring their teeth, but all their blue eyes were staring straight in the same direction.

"Retreat—retreat—retreat—a major setback! A catastrophic landslide!"

Killer Bee raised his index finger, his dark body swaying from side to side with his shout, the syllables that came out of his mouth still rhyming strangely:

"The axis of rotation is completely off to the side! The landing is as slow as a tortoise crawling! All fluidity has vanished, leaving only clumsy spinning around on stage! Oh! Idiot! Bastard!"

"That was just a mistake!" Naruto jumped to his feet, his cheeks flushed slightly with embarrassment and anxiety. "There's still time before the opening ceremony! I'll definitely practice well! I absolutely won't make a mistake that day!"

All the shadow clones straightened their backs in unison and shouted:
"absolute!"

The moment the words left his mouth, Naruto felt the pent-up frustration in his chest finally find an outlet.

But the next moment, that energy returned heavily.

Because the two Yugito put down their bass guitars.

The instrument made a soft clinking sound as it rested on its stand. She turned around, her golden ponytail swaying over her shoulder with the movement. Her usually indifferent eyes were now calmly fixed on Naruto, her gaze containing neither reproach nor encouragement.

"Before making this decision, Naruto Uzumaki, do you really understand what you're promising?"

Kirabi stopped his impromptu rap, his fingers hovering in mid-air. Han looked up from behind the drum set, and Yu's fingers, which were pressed firmly on the piano keys, remained motionless.

Naruto's face was still flushed. He met Yugito's gaze and nodded vigorously: "I understand! I don't want to give up! This is a performance we all worked hard to prepare. It's even better than what Uncle said about 'the greatest band in history'! And—"

"If it's just a group of friends getting together for playful rehearsals, then it's fine no matter what."

He was interrupted by the wooden figure.

Her tone remained calm, even gentle, but the content of her words caused the air on the stage to freeze instantly.

"If my previous statement was too euphemistic, then I will put it more bluntly now: Konoha, and even the entire Land of Fire, has been dragged into the very center of the shadow of war because of the Jinchūriki gathered here."

Her gaze slowly swept over the other adult Jinchūriki on the stage, finally settling back on Naruto, Gaara, and Fu.

"No matter how we negotiate, no matter how many layers of defense we set up, it doesn't change the fact that the other side's target is all of us. The higher the exposure and the more conspicuous the actions, the closer we are to danger."

“Han, Yu Gao, Bi, and me,” Yugito said. “We possess relatively complete combat capabilities and have experience in protecting ourselves and even counterattacking on the battlefield. Even if we are being watched and locked on, we are capable of maneuvering and taking the corresponding risks for the choices we make.”

Then, her gaze returned to Naruto.

"But the three of you are different."

“Especially you, Naruto,” Yugito continued, her words carrying an almost cruel bluntness that stripped away all pretense of warmth.

"You've never seen the Nine-Tails, let alone been able to unleash its power. Once it becomes a clear target, when real danger strikes, you can largely rely on the village's protection and the sacrifices of others."

"So, before you shout 'absolutely'."

Yugito stopped, standing just three steps away from Naruto. The stage lights shone from behind her, casting a long, thin shadow that almost completely enveloped Naruto.

"I'm asking you, Naruto, are you prepared... for death?"

That last sentence was like a bucket of ice water poured over my head.

The color drained from Naruto's face at a visible speed. He made a muffled murmur in his throat, but couldn't form a complete sentence.

death.

He had heard this word many times.

Before starting school, the word was associated with news I heard from the Third Hokage about the death of my parents. Just a few days ago, it became more specific, linked to the Fourth Hokage, the Fourth Kazekage, and the Fourth Mizukage.

"I..." Naruto's voice trembled slightly, but he still shouted, "I'm not afraid!"

The two wooden figures stared at him for a long time.

It took so long that Naruto almost thought she would get angry or show a disappointed expression.

But she just sighed softly.

“Is that so?” she said. “Then—”

"Even if your choices and your persistence might cause others who didn't need to get involved, or who could have avoided the most dangerous positions, to be put in dire straits or even die in your place in order to cover for you and protect you..."

Yu Muren's words were calm, yet each syllable was clear, like cold raindrops falling: "You also feel it's okay? Can you accept it calmly?"

Naruto froze completely.

All sound was ripped from his ears. The stage lights above became blinding, and the blurry figures around him swayed, yet no sound came through. He could only see Yukito's lips moving, the lingering echo of her words scraping against his eardrums like a dull knife.

Someone...because of me...

Several images flashed uncontrollably through my mind.

Iruka-sensei always had a helpless smile on his face, and Shuji-nii always had a nonchalant profile...

Then the image began to shatter. Blood splattered, figures fell, and eyes lost their light.

A faint gasp escaped from his throat. Naruto abruptly took half a step back, his heel hitting the edge of the stage steps, and stumbled before regaining his balance.

"I..." Naruto opened his mouth, "I will do everything in my power to become strong enough! Strong enough that I won't need anyone's protection! Strong enough to protect everyone! I will never let that happen!"

He clenched his fists, stared wide-eyed at Yugito, and tried to convey his determination with his eyes.

Yugito's expression softened as he looked at him.

“Although at first I also thought it was just an absurd farce, a joke by that idiot,” she spoke again, her voice much softer than before, even carrying a hint of almost imperceptible emotion, “watching you all these times, tuning instruments together, arguing about rhythms, practicing a simple move over and over again… it’s really been quite enjoyable.”

She slightly raised her face.

“Meeting Jinchuriki from other villages, gathering together, not for missions, not for fighting, but simply to accomplish something that many people consider meaningless…” Yugito paused, the corners of his mouth twitching slightly upwards, “This feeling is surprisingly not bad.”

She refocused her gaze on Naruto's face.

“But Naruto, listen carefully,” she said. “The place we are standing here now, the situation we are in, is completely different from when we first started rehearsing just because it was a spur-of-the-moment thing. Sometimes, rash decisions are more dangerous than cowardice.”

The stage was completely silent.

Fu pursed her lips, her fingers unconsciously clutching the hem of her clothes. Han silently adjusted the position of the drumsticks, the metal rubbing against the leather producing a soft rustling sound. Yu Gao's gaze remained fixed on the piano keys, without looking up, but the lines of his profile were more taut than usual. Kirabi crossed his arms, his expression behind his sunglasses unreadable, but his usually swaying body was now as still as a statue.

“By a wooden man”.

A cool, calm voice came from the other side of the stage, breaking the almost frozen silence.

Gaara took two steps forward. The red-haired boy stepped into the spotlight.

"Same."

He said.

Yugito turned her head, her brows furrowing slightly. She had thought that of the three children, Gaara should be the most clear-headed and able to understand the advantages and risks involved.

He has always appeared far too mature and calm. As for Fu, Takigakure had narrowly escaped disaster just months ago due to an attack by Akatsuki, so she should know how close the shadow of war is.

She originally thought that the person who needed to be persuaded was mainly Naruto Uzumaki, who was still clueless about the world of Jinchuriki.

“From deciding to form a band, to our first fist bump, to every rehearsal,” Gaara continued. His voice wasn’t loud, but it carried clearly in the empty arena. “What we’ve done, from the beginning until now, has been essentially the same.”

"The opening ceremony performance was for the audience who came to watch the game, as well as the ninjas who participated in the game."

Gaara's gaze swept over Naruto's still flustered face, over Fu's tightly pursed lips, over Yugito's slightly widened eyes, and over every face on the stage.

"But more importantly, it is primarily aimed at ourselves."

He paused, his bluish-green eyes appearing exceptionally clear under the light.

"And those inside us."

The moment the words were spoken, a muffled thud came from the side of the stage.

Killer Bee had somehow appeared beside Yugito. He extended his right fist, hovering it in mid-air between the two, a wide grin spreading across his dark face, his white teeth gleaming in the light.

"Come on, Yugito! My last comrade! My final confirmation!"

The Eight-Tails' Jinchūriki shouted, his voice regaining its exaggerated energy: "Our hearts must be in sync at this moment! Our rhythms must be synchronized at this moment! Throw all hesitation and unnecessary worries to the winds! Let's let our music and fists do the talking! Idiots! Bastards!"

Yukito turned his head to the side and glanced at the fist stretched out in front of his nose, his face expressionless.

Then she moved, delivering a clean, sharp, and precisely angled strike to Killer Bee's unsuspecting side.

"Awooohoo—!!!"

A piercing scream instantly shattered the solemn atmosphere that had just been established. Killer Bee clutched his abdomen and staggered back several steps, arching his back exaggeratedly and howling in pain.

The wooden figure turned back towards Gaara.

“That’s… incredible confidence,” she whispered. “Since you insist…”

"Then that's settled."

She turned and walked back to her seat, picking up her bass again.

Naruto stood there, still somewhat dazed, his mind buzzing. He felt a mix of shock from being questioned, astonishment at seeing Killer Bee get beaten, and a bewildered jolt from Gaara's words.

Until a cool hand gently patted his shoulder.

He turned his head and met Gaara's calm gaze.

“Let’s continue,” the red-haired boy said.

(End of this chapter)