Naruto: Different Path

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Taking Hinata back to the base, Naruto realized that continuing missions as an Anbu member was no longer feasible for him in the long term. 

So, he returned to Konoha. In the Hokage's office, Naruto, still wearing his Anbu mask, stood before Tsunade. 

She said, "You've worked hard on this mission. Not only did you face powerful enemies, but you were also constantly on the move." 

"On behalf of Konoha, I thank you. However, your mission cannot be paused for now, as I currently have no one to replace you."

Naruto felt puzzled. Tsunade thought he was unwilling to carry on with such a troublesome task. 

Understandably, anyone assigned to such a duty would likely harbour complaints. 

Naruto took the opportunity and said, "I'm willing to continue, but I have one condition." 

Tsunade adopted a serious expression and replied, "What condition? Tell me, and I'll consider it."

Naruto responded, "From now on, I don't want to carry out missions under the guise of an Anbu member. I want to act as Uzumaki Naruto." 

Hearing this, Tsunade grew serious. "Naruto, this arrangement ensures your safety and prevents other villages from targeting you. From now you will be publicly known as White Flash."

"The Anbu identity is more advantageous for such missions. Still, I'll leave the final decision to you, but you need to think carefully."

Ultimately, Tsunade could only sigh and accept Naruto's choice. Along with Black Flash, Sweetheart (Hinata) was also reassigned. 

Hinata couldn't return to the base for the time to avoid raising suspicion among the base's shinobi. 

From the perspective of the shinobi at the base, these reassignments seemed entirely normal. However, Naruto, who had worked closely with them, felt lost. 

The Anbu rules of Konoha meant that neither Black Thunder nor Sweetheart ever learned Naruto's true identity.

Watching Naruto and Hinata leave, the other shinobi felt reluctant and kept watching until they disappeared. In truth, Naruto only sent Hinata back alone. 

Shortly after, he returned to the base himself. Presenting the Hokage's token, Naruto was warmly welcomed by Hyuga Kenko, who greeted him enthusiastically. 

Kenko first said, "Naruto, you remind me a lot of the previous commander here." 

His remark made Naruto think he had been exposed, and he quickly tried to deflect with an excuse.

Kenko continued, "Naruto, as per Lady Hokage's orders, you are now in charge of this base." 

Naruto nodded in acknowledgement. By this point, Naruto had been officially promoted to jonin in Konoha, making him the natural choice to assume command. 

His promotion stemmed from his exceptional performance in the recent major battle and excellent written cultural exam results. 

Such a promotion might have involved more bureaucratic hurdles during peacetime, but wartime circumstances streamlined the process, especially for highly skilled shinobi like Naruto.

Naruto found it much easier to interact with his comrades without the Anbu mask. The following two days passed uneventfully. 

On the second afternoon, Kenko informed Naruto that Konoha had sent word of another shinobi being assigned to their base. 

This puzzled Naruto. Why would Tsunade send reinforcements when manpower was already stretched thin? Moreover, the base already had more than enough personnel.

Not long after receiving the notice, Naruto encountered a familiar figure. 

With her pink hair and a pink qipao outfit, it was Tsunade's apprentice, Sakura Haruno. 

Upon seeing Naruto, Sakura flashed a bright smile and said, "Naruto, we're finally on a mission together again! It's been so long since the last time."

Naruto returned the smile, though internally, he wondered what Tsunade had in mind. He jokingly said, "Sakura, why would Granny Tsunade send you here?" 

Seeing Sakura's puzzled look, he quickly clarified, "What I mean is, you've been focusing on medical ninjutsu training lately." 

"Isn't this a critical period for your practice? Why would she let you leave the village?"

Sakura thought momentarily before explaining, "Lady Tsunade mentioned that you were sent to the frontlines and might face some powerful opponents." 

"So, I asked her to assign me here too. At first, she refused, but luckily, Shizune helped convince her." 

"Tsunade eventually agreed, saying that some real-world combat experience would help me and that my medical ninjutsu might come in handy."

Naruto was speechless at the situation. Still, since Sakura was already there, he welcomed her warmly. 

What surprised him, however, was that Sakura ended up staying in the room Naruto had previously used—a room Hinata had occupied not long ago.

Having not been on a mission with Naruto for a while, Sakura seemed eager to talk, and their conversation extended late into the night. 

Naruto shared details of his recent missions and training progress, while Sakura spoke about her advancements, especially in medical ninjutsu. 

Naruto learned that Sakura had significant talent in this area.

When the topic shifted to medical techniques, Naruto grew curious about transplanting doujutsu and asked, "Has Granny Tsunade taught you anything about organ transplantation? I heard about a shinobi who had Byakugan transplanted."

Sakura thought momentarily before replying, "Tsunade hasn't taught me that yet, but I've read about it in medical textbooks." 

"The procedure itself isn't too complex as long as the surgeon is skilled. The real challenge lies in managing post-surgical rejection." 

"However, the rejection risk for eyes is relatively low."

Hearing this, Naruto felt he had gained some insight. It made sense why Kakashi had been able to transplant Obito's Sharingan so easily. 

Naruto suspected that the strain Kakashi experienced while using the Sharingan was more due to his naturally limited chakra reserves than the eye itself. 

After all, wielding the Sharingan consumed a significant amount of chakra.

Just as Naruto thought he might enjoy a period of peace, news came the next morning: trouble had arisen at Kakashi's base again. 

Naruto prepared to head out immediately, but Sakura insisted on accompanying him. 

Unable to dissuade her, Naruto took her along as he used the Flying Thunder God Technique to reach Kakashi's base.

Upon arrival, Naruto saw a group of shinobi guarding the front of the base. 

Floating above them was an elderly man. Kakashi and Guy were in poor condition but did their best to stand their ground.

Naruto found it strange. Considering Tsuchikage's cautious personality, he shouldn't have acted recklessly after a defeat. 

Yet he was, personally leading an attack and bringing many forces with him. 

What stood out even more was that the Tsuchikage had only brought members of the Iwagakure Anbu, despite appearing himself—a contradiction to the notion of keeping their identities concealed.

Hovering midair, the Tsuchikage glared down at Kakashi and angrily declared, "Konoha's actions have gone too far! Yes, our country's rogue Anbu brought this upon themselves by opposing you." 

"Their deaths are their fault. However, you must return our two Jinchūriki! There was an agreement among the great nations regarding Jinchūriki." 

"We are not being unreasonable."

The matter of Jinchūriki allocation had been decided early in the founding of Konoha during negotiations led by the First Hokage. 

Naruto, unaware of this history, remained silent. Judging by the Tsuchikage's demeanour, it seemed likely that Roshi and Han hadn't yet returned to Iwagakure. 

Perhaps they were recovering somewhere due to injuries and depleted chakra. However, Naruto couldn't openly voice such a theory.

With Naruto and Sakura having arrived, Kakashi seemed more confident. 

He firmly responded to the Tsuchikage, "Lord Tsuchikage, your Jinchūriki are not in Konoha. While we did clash with them earlier, we did not capture them."

Unconvinced, the Tsuchikage shouted, "Don't think that just because we lost before, we fear Konoha! If you don't hand over the Jinchūriki today, I'll flatten this outpost first!"

Kakashi exchanged a helpless glance with Naruto, who stepped forward and addressed the Tsuchikage, 

"Lord Tsuchikage, if Konoha says we haven't taken your Jinchūriki, then we haven't. We have no reason to lie." 

"And if we had captured them, do you think we'd be afraid to admit it?"

The Tsuchikage scrutinized Naruto and remarked, "You must be the famed 'White Flash,' Konoha's genius, Naruto Uzumaki."

"Konoha truly does produce extraordinary talents. In comparison, our younger generation in the Land of Earth indeed pales." 

"Our Jinchūriki's absence from the village makes it hard for us not to suspect Konoha's involvement."

Already in Sage Mode, Naruto had his shadow clones collecting natural energy in preparation for combat. 

Realizing there was no avoiding a confrontation, Naruto subtly instructed Kakashi to have Konoha's forces retreat and maintain a safe distance from the Tsuchikage. 

Understanding Naruto's intent, Kakashi complied, signalling his team to pull back.

The Tsuchikage noticed this and sneered, "So, you're planning to face me alone?"

At his command, the Anbu from Iwagakure surged forward, engaging Konoha's forces in combat. Strangely, this relieved Naruto somewhat. 

With the Tsuchikage's forces occupied, he couldn't target Konoha's forces as easily. 

Not waiting for the Tsuchikage to make the first move, Naruto and a shadow clone simultaneously weaved signs.

"Sage Art: Great Dragon Fire Technique!"

"Sage Art: Tornado Formation!"

A massive flaming dragon appeared, its flames radiating intense heat far beyond ordinary fire. 

Simultaneously, a giant tornado formed and merged with the flaming dragon, creating a fiery vortex that surged skyward, devastating everything in its path with overwhelming heat and suction.

Sensing the danger, the Tsuchikage quickly performed hand seals. "Dust Release: Detachment of the Primitive World Technique!"

A beam of white light expanded from his hands, growing to its largest radius and sweeping through Naruto's attack. 

The white light annihilated the flames and dissipated the intense heat effortlessly.

Naruto observed and commented, "As expected of Dust Release, the Kekkei Tōta that surpasses Kekkei Genkai—it can even erase fire itself."

Not missing a beat, Naruto initiated his next jutsu. "Sage Art - Mokuton: Birth of the World of Trees!"

A massive forest erupted from the ground, surging toward the Tsuchikage like a tidal wave. 

The trees intertwined and expanded rapidly, their power amplified by Sage Chakra. 

Witnessing the sheer scale of the Wood Release, the Tsuchikage couldn't hide his astonishment. 

Hearing about Wood Release was one thing, but seeing it firsthand was entirely different.

Its magnitude and ferocity were terrifying, even to someone of his experience.

Realizing that ordinary jutsu would be ineffective, the Tsuchikage prepared another Dust Release. "Dust Release: Detachment of the Primitive World Technique!"

The white light swept through the advancing forest, obliterating a large swath of trees. However, Naruto's Sage Chakra allowed him to continuously replenish the forest, causing it to surge forward again.

The veteran Tsuchikage began analyzing the situation, searching for weaknesses in Naruto's technique. 

Since Wood Release relied on a combination of chakra natures, countering it through elemental superiority was nearly impossible. 

Deciding to target the jutsu's user, the Tsuchikage focused his attack on Naruto. A beam of white light pierced through the dense forest, aiming directly at him.

Naruto, stationary while maintaining the jutsu, saw the beam approaching and knew he couldn't withstand it. 

Activating the Flying Thunder God Technique, he teleported to a different location in time.

The Tsuchikage's eyes widened in surprise. "Did I see that correctly? Was that some sort of Body Flicker Technique?"

Without precise intelligence, the Flying Thunder God Technique could easily be mistaken for an advanced Body Flicker. 

Both allowed for rapid movement, but the former made an opponent nearly untouchable, rendering even the most powerful jutsu ineffective if it couldn't land.

As soon as the Dust Release dissipated, Naruto unleashed another wave of Wood Release. 

The enormous forest surged toward the Tsuchikage again, fueled by what seemed like Naruto's boundless chakra reserves.

Meanwhile, the aging Tsuchikage began to tire. Repeatedly using such high-level Dust Release techniques had left him short of breath. 

He found himself unable to keep up with Naruto's relentless onslaught. Forced to retreat, he took to the air, using his flight ability to escape the advancing forest. 

Despite his dislike for fleeing, the Tsuchikage had no choice.

Naruto, however, wasn't about to let him escape. 

Controlling the trees, he directed them to grow taller and intertwine, forming a massive wood tower chasing after the Tsuchikage into the sky. 

The towering structure continued to rise, forcing the Tsuchikage to ascend higher and higher.

Finally, the immense weight of the wooden tower reached its limit, and the structure ceased to grow. Hovering above, the Tsuchikage panted heavily and muttered, "It finally stopped..."

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