Chapter 84 – The Return of the Hero 英雄归来

As Nagato activated the Outer Path–Samsara of Heavenly Life Technique, dots of life's light flashed amidst the ruins of Konoha Village. The fallen ninjas awakened from the darkness, one by one opening their eyes again. Kakashi supported himself on the ground with both hands and slowly got up, a hint of confusion and relief in his eyes. Between life and death, he had finally achieved an understanding with his father and smoothed out his regrets.

Jiraiya's toad companion, Fukasaku, stroked his beard, his tone tinged with a bit of amazement. "What an incredible technique. It can bring so many people back to life..." Shizune rubbed her forehead. She just woke up. Seeing her companions waking up one by one, tears filled her eyes.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the village, Lin Yuan stood in front of Ino, Shikamaru, and Choji, looking a bit uncomfortable. Now that everyone had been revived, Lin Yuan simply took out a scroll, quickly formed hand seals, and shouted, "It's not easy for everyone to be revived. Since that's the case..." Before he could finish his words, a puff of smoke suddenly rose from the scroll, and then there appeared... a huge pot and a pile of ingredients.

"Let's celebrate! There's no way we can miss hot pot on such a big occasion!" Lin Yuan said.

Shikamaru: "..." He slapped his forehead and sighed. "Hot pot? Now?"

Choji's eyes lit up in an instant. "Hey, hot pot! Lin Yuan, you really get it!"

Ino rolled her eyes, covered her forehead, and said helplessly, "We almost thought you were going to do something important, but it turns out you are just hungry... I really don't know what to say about you."

Lin Yuan waved his hand confidently. "Don't you think that after coming back from the brink of life and death, the most important thing is to have a good, hot meal? "And," Lin Yuan glanced at the ninjas slowly waking up, smiling. "Hot pot lets everyone sit and eat together. Even without words, it comforts us in this ruined place."

Everyone was speechless, but the atmosphere somehow eased a lot.

...

Not long after, Kakashi carried Naruto, who was almost exhausted, back to the village. As soon as they stepped into the center of the ruins, thunderous cheers erupted around them. Naruto raised his head slightly, and what met his eyes were countless Konoha villagers filled with gratitude and tears. Countless fragments flashed through his mind, from the loneliness and mockery he had endured when he was a child, to the recognition he had fought for with his life in one battle after another. Until then, he finally clearly sensed that he was recognized and had truly become a part of Konoha.

He still remembered that when he was a child, he had used graffiti and pranks to attract attention, but what he had received in return was only indifference and estrangement. Even when he had loudly declared, "I'm going to become the Hokage!" at that time, he had only received countless disdainful looks. However, now, some of these people who had once looked down on him the most were shouting his name and showing their heartfelt respect. The label of "Son of the Nine-Tailed Fox" had finally been completely torn apart.

"Naruto!"

Sakura rushed over first and hugged him tightly. "You made it!"

Naruto scratched his head and forced a smile. "Well, haha... It's not too bad."

Then, Shikamaru, Choji, Ino, Kiba, and other companions swarmed up one after another, pride written all over their faces. Kiba even grinned and slapped Naruto on the back, smiling as if he himself were the hero. "Naruto, you're really amazing this time!"

Among the crowd, Iruka stood silently, his eyes slightly red. He walked step by step towards Naruto, his gaze filled with endless relief. He raised his hand and gently placed it on Naruto's shoulder. "Naruto, I'm very happy... that you protected Konoha."

After a moment of stunned silence, a warm current welled up in Naruto's heart. He looked up and saw Iruka smiling warmly and proudly. He grinned, with tears glistening in his eyes. "Thanks, Teacher Iruka. You've always helped me."

Just then, a uniform cheer burst from the crowd: "Naruto! Naruto! The hero of Konoha!"

Naruto was hoisted high into the air by his companions, and the deafening shouts rang in his ears. He looked down at the land that once made him feel lonely. Now, everyone was looking at him, and all the cheers were for him. At that moment, he whispered in his heart, "Teacher Jiraiya, Dad, I made it..."

...

Meanwhile, at the edge of the crowd, Lin Yuan leaned against a fallen pillar, holding a bowl of steaming hot pot soup in his hand, and looked at all this with an embarrassed expression. He had wanted to avoid these formal scenes and find a quiet place to secretly have hot pot with Choji, Shikamaru, and the others. But who would have thought that just as he set up the pot, Naruto, who was being held high by the villagers, directly met his gaze.

Choji was wolfing down food, a piece of meat in his mouth. "Lin Yuan... Wanna change places?"

Shikamaru rubbed his forehead and sighed. "..." Great. Everyone saw us."

Sure enough, a few sharp-eyed villagers noticed the steaming hot pot on Lin Yuan's side, and amusement and exasperation were written all over their faces. "At this crucial moment, they're actually thinking about hot pot?"

Ino rolled her eyes and tried to cover it up. "Stop looking, stop looking. These guys' minds work like this." But there was also a helpless smile on her face.

"Tsk, stop staring at us like this." Lin Yuan and Choji sighed. Then Lin Yuan mumbled, "Even with a hero back, we can't go hungry."

====================

随着长门发动外道·轮回天生之术,木叶村中的一片废墟间闪现出点点生命的光芒.战死的忍者们从黑暗中苏醒,一个个重新睁开了眼睛.卡卡西双手支撑着地面,缓缓起身,眼中带着一丝茫然和释然的神色.他在生与死之间,终于和父亲达成了理解,将遗憾抚平.

一旁的深作蛤蟆捋了捋胡子,语气中带着些许惊叹:"真是不可思议的术啊,竟能让这么多人复生..." 静音揉了揉额头,显然也刚刚回过神来,看着身边逐渐苏醒的伙伴,眼中泛起泪花.

与此同时,在村子的另一侧,林远站在井野,鹿丸和丁次三人面前,表情似乎有点不自在.眼看大家都复活了,林远干脆拿出一张卷轴,快速结印,喊道:"好不容易大家都复活了,既然这样..." 话音未落,卷轴中顿时腾起一股烟雾,随即出现了...一口巨大的锅和一堆食材.

"咱们庆祝一下吧!这么大的场面,怎么能少了火锅呢?" 林远一脸理所当然地说道.

鹿丸:"..." 他扶额叹气,"火锅?这时候?"

丁次却一瞬间两眼放光:"欸,火锅!林远你太懂了!"

井野翻了个白眼,捂着额头,无奈地吐槽:"我们差点以为你要干什么大事,结果是为了吃火锅...真不知道说你什么好."

林远理直气壮地摆摆手:"你们不觉得刚刚从生死之间回来,最重要的就是好好吃顿热乎的吗?而且啊..." 林远朝正在慢慢苏醒的其他忍者看了一眼,嘴角扬起一抹笑, "火锅可以让大家坐在一起吃,不用说话,也算是对周围凄惨环境的一种安慰吧."

众人无言,气氛却莫名缓和了不少.

...

不久后,卡卡西背着几近脱力的鸣人回到村子,刚踏入废墟中央,周围便爆发出雷鸣般的欢呼声.鸣人微微抬起头,映入眼帘的是无数满怀感激与热泪的木叶村民.他的脑海中闪过无数片段,从小时候的孤独和受到的嘲讽,到一场场用性命争来的认可,直到这一刻,他终于清晰地感受到,自己被认可了,真正成为了木叶的一员.

他还记得,小时候他用涂鸦和恶作剧吸引注意,换来的却是冷漠和疏远.即使那时他大声宣告着 "我要成为火影!" ,也只换来无数鄙夷的目光.然而如今,这些人中有的甚至曾经是最瞧不起他的,却正高呼着他的名字,向他发自内心的敬意."妖狐之子" 这个标签,终于彻底被撕碎了.

"鸣人!"

小樱第一个冲了过来,一把将他紧紧抱住,"你真的做到了!"

鸣人挠了挠头,强撑着露出一丝笑容:"嘛,哈哈...还行吧."

接着,鹿丸,丁次,井野,牙等同伴纷纷涌上来,每个人的脸上都写满了骄傲.牙甚至咧着嘴拍了拍鸣人的背,笑得像是他自己才是那个英雄:"鸣人,这次你可是真厉害啊!"

而在人群中,伊鲁卡默默站着,眼眶微微发红.他一步步走向鸣人,目光中带着无尽的欣慰.他抬起手,轻轻搭在鸣人的肩膀上:"鸣人,我很高兴...你守护了木叶."

愣了片刻,随即一股热流涌上心头.他抬起头,发现伊鲁卡的笑容里带着温暖和骄傲.他咧嘴一笑,目光中却隐隐泛起泪光:"伊鲁卡老师,谢谢你一直以来的帮助."

就在此时,人群中爆发出整齐的欢呼声:"鸣人!鸣人!木叶的英雄!"

鸣人被同伴们高高举起,耳边是震耳欲聋的呐喊.他俯视着这片曾经让他感到孤独的土地,如今所有的目光都投向他,所有的欢呼都属于他.这一刻,他心里默念着:"自来也老师,爸爸,我做到了..."

...

与此同时,在人群边缘,林远倚着一根倒塌的柱子,手里举着一碗热腾腾的火锅汤,正一脸尴尬地看着这一切.他本想避开这些正式的场面,找个清净地方和丁次,鹿丸他们悄悄吃火锅,谁料刚把锅架起来,鸣人被村民高举的身影就直接对上了他的眼神.

丁次吃得正欢,嘴里还塞着一块肉:"林远... 要不要换个地方?"

鹿丸按着额头,无奈叹气:"...这下可好,大家都看见了."

果然,有几个目光敏锐的村民看到了林远这边冒着热气的火锅,纷纷露出哭笑不得的表情:"这都什么节骨眼了,他们竟然想着吃火锅?"

井野一边翻着白眼一边试图掩饰:"别看了,别看了,这些家伙脑回路就这样." 可她的脸上却也带着一抹无奈的笑意.

"啧,你们别这么看着我们啊." 林远和丁次叹了口气,随即自言自语道,"就算是英雄归来,也不能让肚子饿着啊."