Chapter 185: The Pokémon Patrol Unit

Even in his uncontrolled state, Naruto paused momentarily when he saw Sasuke's transformation.

But the hesitation didn't last—he quickly charged forward again.

"Power… overwhelming power."

Sasuke felt the dark energy surging within him, his eyes flashing with a crazed glint. As Naruto drew closer, his voice was filled with killing intent. "I'll kill you—I'll kill you!"

From that moment on, both Naruto and Sasuke had ceased to be normal.

Whoosh—

They clashed mid-air once again, their enhanced strength making every strike thunderously loud. The force of their blows sent waves rippling violently across the water.

Boom—

Their attacks collided again and again with equal force, neither able to overpower the other. However, if one looked closely, it was clear their chakra was rapidly depleting.

Eventually, they both leapt back, panting heavily as they stared each other down.

Then, at the same time, they began channeling chakra into their hands—one forming a crackling black lightning, sinister and twisted, the other a fiery orange chakra sphere, wild and ominous.

"Sasuke!"

"Naruto!"

They shouted each other's names, determination burning in their eyes as they charged forward.

"Sasuke!"

"Naruto!"

Crash—

Lightning and chakra clashed violently, the air trembling under the pressure.

The water beneath them surged and rolled back, as if trying to flee the impact. The force of their collision even caused the water level within a three-meter radius to drop by nearly two meters.

Then, with a thunderous blast, both boys were thrown backward, crashing into the water. Their transformed states faded instantly.

Struggling to stand, they exchanged one last bitter glare before collapsing unconscious.

Whoosh—

At that moment, Jiraiya arrived, appearing beside Naruto. He sighed, shaking his head. "Why go this far? Are your lives so cheap to you?"

Lifting Naruto from the water, he glanced over at Sasuke.

As he approached to retrieve him, a sudden gust of wind caught his attention.

Jiraiya's expression shifted—he leapt back instinctively.

A long sword pierced the spot where he had just stood.

"Orochimaru… you dare show yourself?"

Jiraiya looked toward the cliff and spotted Orochimaru standing atop it. His expression turned grim with rage.

Orochimaru sheathed the Kusanagi Sword and shrugged. "I didn't plan to show up, but since you were about to take my person—I had no choice."

Jiraiya's eyes flared. "Your person? You brainwashed a Leaf shinobi into defecting, and now you claim he's yours? Do you really think you can take him with you?"

"Hehehe…"

Orochimaru chuckled. "Jiraiya, you can't stop me."

Jiraiya narrowed his eyes. "You're welcome to try."

Orochimaru shook his head. "Still so impulsive…"

With that, he leapt from the cliff and landed beside Sasuke, ignoring Jiraiya completely. He opened his mouth—and swallowed Sasuke whole.

Jiraiya's face turned pale. He lunged forward. "Stop right there!"

Orochimaru laughed, then opened his mouth again—dozens of snakes shot toward Jiraiya.

He stopped in his tracks and let his hair grow out, forming a shield around himself and Naruto.

When he finally dispersed his defense, Orochimaru was already gone.

"Damn it. He escaped again."

Jiraiya clenched his jaw, frustrated but helpless. If Orochimaru really wanted to flee, there wasn't much he could do.

That disgusting substitution technique of his… both visually and practically revolting.

Sighing, Jiraiya muttered, "Forget it… the mission's a failure anyway. Time to head back."

He jumped up the cliff, carrying Naruto with him.

…

The next morning, Ryo opened his eyes and sat up in bed, rousing Hoopa and Diancie who were still clinging to him.

They'd gotten a little too comfortable lately—it seemed they'd grown used to sleeping beside him during their time outside.

Yesterday, Cynthia had intended to sleep beside him, but seeing the two clinging Pokémon, she was visibly jealous. Her gaze was filled with resentment.

After washing up and eating breakfast, just as Ryo was about to resume his training, Tsunade appeared.

Inside the Pokémon House, Ryo looked at her. "What is it? Just say it."

Tsunade glanced at Deidara and Sasori nearby before answering.

Ryo immediately understood. "Come with me."

He led her into a private room.

"Alright, no one else is here. Speak."

Tsunade hesitated for a moment, then gritted her teeth and said, "Ryo… is it possible to form a Pokémon unit? For patrolling and managing the village?"

"Huh?"

Ryo frowned. "What do you mean?"

Tsunade explained, "When Orochimaru attacked last time, even though Konoha didn't suffer major damage, we still lost many shinobi—especially weaker Chūnin and Genin."

"We're short on manpower. I'm thinking of recruiting ordinary civilians to form patrol teams with Pokémon for low-risk missions."

Ryo nodded slowly. "It's feasible, but… they'd have to catch their own Pokémon. Otherwise, the Pokémon won't obey."

Tsunade frowned. "Isn't there any other way?"

She clearly knew that if people caught their own Pokémon, they'd be less willing to take on minor, low-paying missions.

Ryo stroked his chin. "You're not wrong—it's hard to expect someone who owns a powerful Pokémon to take menial jobs."

"But you're also overlooking something: most civilians can't afford to raise Pokémon properly."

"You could implement a policy where those who can't afford to train Pokémon are allowed to catch them—and the village provides basic Energy Cubes in return."

"Set reasonable terms, and I think many people would go for it."

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