I Have Many Reasons to Stay in Konoha

"Move out immediately! We need to head to the western side of the Forest of Death right now!"

"Damn it! What's going on with the Barrier Team? Can't they handle this all at once? In less than half a day, they've reported abnormal chakra activity dozens of times, and the locations are spread all over the entire Forest of Death!"

"Could they be mistaken? We just got back from the north, and besides the corpses of some wild animals, we didn't see a single soul. The team in the south also just passed through!"

"Yeah, and with this thick fog and the pouring rain…"

Amidst a dense forest, three masked Anbu, each carrying a ninja sword, stood on a tree trunk, complaining while checking their map. After a brief exchange, they quickly rushed off in a specific direction.

"Naruto, the Barrier Team has probably detected your location again. The Anbu are definitely on their way."

Minato Namikaze's voice rang out from within the seal.

"It's fine. I'll change locations again soon. I'm now completely confident in infusing chakra into ninja tools. By the way, Father, didn't you always say that Konoha's Barrier Team monitors the village 24/7? Why is the Forest of Death, outside the village, now also covered by their detection barrier?"

Beneath a towering tree, Naruto's voice echoed.

The roots of the giant tree twisted and intertwined, forming a natural hollow. Outside the entrance, the corpses of two wolves lay motionless, long since dead, with blood pooling around them.

Inside the hollow, Naruto stood wearing a mask. Surprisingly, his hair was black.

Leaning against the side of the hollow, he focused intently on the kunai in his hand. A faint, flickering blue chakra pulsed along its surface.

He was contemplating issues related to chakra nature transformation.

Just then—

"Awooo—"

A series of low growls interrupted Naruto's thoughts.

"Tch, I killed two brainless beasts, and now the rest of you are here for revenge?"

Naruto stepped out of the hollow and glanced up at the sky.

The mist was thick, and rain poured down in fine, dense lines. Even the lush canopy of the trees couldn't fully block it, allowing moisture to seep through layer by layer. The vibrant green leaves had been washed to a brilliant sheen.

The ground beneath the trees had turned into a patchwork of puddles, the rainwater saturating the uneven terrain.

Naruto shifted his gaze. Not far away, rustling sounds approached, and soon, pairs of glowing green eyes emerged from the mist, glaring at him with hostility. A pack of wolves, their expressions fierce, moved with an eerie coordination, slowly forming a loose encirclement around him and the tree.

"Heh. Looks like I've attracted a whole pack. Perfect—just in time for some practice and experiments."

Naruto surveyed the pack. There were over fifty wolves in total. Smiling slightly, he formed a hand seal.

"Shadow Clone Technique!"

Poof!

Instantly, the number of Narutos matched the number of wolves.

The wolf pack erupted into chaos. They didn't understand how so many enemies had suddenly appeared, but their instincts quickly kicked in. Some growled warnings, while others dug their claws into the ground, slowly retreating.

They could sense danger and seemed to be preparing for a strategic withdrawal.

Naruto smirked and gave his clones a command.

"Go."

His clones responded immediately, charging into the wolf pack.

"One, two, three… Hmm, lost eleven clones, but all fifty-two wolves are marked."

Standing in place, Naruto counted silently. Once he confirmed that every wolf had been marked, he dispelled his clones.

At the same time, the kunai in his hand—coated in a thin layer of blue chakra—suddenly condensed into a short sword about half a meter long.

His eyes flickered, and in an instant, he disappeared.

The wolf pack, momentarily confused by the loss of their opponents, hesitated. Their glowing green eyes reflected a rare, almost human-like contemplation. Just as they were about to make a move, a dark flash swept across them.

"Whimper—"

Blood sprayed through the air. Pain spread through their bodies, but before they could even let out a proper howl, their consciousness faded to nothing.

Swish!

Naruto reappeared atop a tree branch. Below, the ground was littered with severed limbs.

He furrowed his brows and shifted his awareness to the sealed space.

"Father, have you come up with any solutions for the issue of shadow clones only being able to teleport once using Flying Thunder God?"

Minato shook his head. "No, I haven't. I encountered the same problem when I was alive."

"Logically, shadow clones should be able to use any jutsu the original body can. I spent a long time researching this issue. Initially, a shadow clone can sense and teleport to a Flying Thunder God mark set by the original body. But no matter what, the clone can't teleport a second time."

"Even the Second Hokage, who created the Flying Thunder God Technique, couldn't figure out why."

"Also, the Shadow Clone Technique was developed by the Second Hokage as well. His original intent was to combine it with Flying Thunder God to maximize its effectiveness, but unfortunately, he never succeeded."

Naruto nodded regretfully. It seemed there was no solution—the issue of shadow clones being unable to teleport more than once with Flying Thunder God was a dead end.

In the anime, shadow clones could gather natural energy for Sage Mode, and Uchiha Madara's Wood Clones could even summon Susanoo.

So why was it that when it came to Flying Thunder God, the clones hit an insurmountable barrier?

Naruto had been in the Forest of Death for nearly two months now. Ever since the Third Hokage left the village, the "Naruto" being monitored by Hayate Gekkō was actually just a shadow clone.

With his father's guidance, he had successfully mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique within the first month.

And that wasn't the only good news—through his time in the Mirror World, he had acquired many different jutsu as rewards. More importantly, he had finally obtained chakra natures beyond just Yang Release.

Now, in addition to Yang Release, Naruto possessed Wind, Fire, and Water chakra natures. He had obtained Water Release from a data puppet of Izumo Kamizuki.

Over the past month, he had fully integrated the jutsu and training experiences from the data puppet into his own abilities while also researching chakra nature transformation.

He had now mastered infusing chakra into ninja tools to condense solid forms.

Just as he was thinking about this, three chakra signatures entered the edge of his sensory range.

"This time, they're faster than before. Looks like it's time to head back—my clone should be arriving home soon."

The moment those words left his mouth, Naruto vanished from the tree branch.

Swish!

When he reappeared, he was already in his second-floor bedroom at home.

"Naruto, when do you plan to leave Konoha?"

Minato suddenly asked.

Sensing his shadow clone and Hayate Gekkō approaching the house, Naruto once again entered the sealed space.

"Father, why do you think I'll leave Konoha?"

Minato's expression darkened. "I don't know. I just have this feeling. Now that you've mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique, no one can control you anymore."

Naruto met Minato's gaze. "Father, I can tell you this—I won't be leaving Konoha anytime soon."

Minato was taken aback. "Why not?"

Kurama, who was lying nearby, opened one eye. He had a feeling Naruto's answer had something to do with him.

"There are many reasons," Naruto said, walking toward Kurama. "The first and most important reason is that I need to wait for Jiraiya to return to Konoha."

"I need to retrieve the seal key from him—only then can I unlock the seal."

Minato's expression grew serious as he glanced at Kurama's massive form. "And the other reasons?"

Naruto smiled. "Father, Konoha is the best cover for my current identity. It's not necessarily the safest place, but staying here is definitely the most convenient."

"If I leave Konoha, I'll immediately be classified as a rogue ninja. And as a Jinchūriki, I'd become an obvious target. The entire ninja world would come after me. They might not be able to catch me, but it would be an endless hassle."

"Besides, my Mirror World still needs more data."

"Konoha has many things I want."

"I have too many reasons to stay. You wouldn't understand."

"Unless absolutely necessary, I won't leave Konoha."

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