Chapter 97 Don't Eat That!

After delivering the final blow, Naruto rummaged through the pile of bones, selecting a particularly nice-looking one to toss into the seal space.

"What a hassle."

After saying that, Naruto quickly took off.

When he caught up to Neji, he arrived just in time to see Kidomaru's large arrow piercing through Neji's shoulder, leaving a chillingly clean hole.

"Hiss~"

Naruto inhaled sharply, as just looking at it made him wince in pain.

"Is he dead?" Neji, lying on the ground, clutched his shoulder in pain, gritting his teeth as he asked.

"Yeah, he's dead!" Naruto pulled the Kusanagi Sword out of Kidomaru's heart, and then stabbed him again for good measure, "Cold as ice."

"Are they all dead?" Neji looked up at the sky through the gaps in the trees, referring to Kimimaro.

"Dead." Naruto hoisted Neji onto his back, "This pursuit mission is probably over. Since even you are injured, the others can't be in much better shape."

"You're strong."

"Thanks, but that's not a compliment." Naruto's sharp tongue remained unfiltered.

If he left Neji here in the middle of nowhere, he'd probably be dead within half a day. Naruto himself wasn't sure if Tsunade had called for backup, nor if the backup could arrive in time, so he decided to carry Neji and catch up with the others.

Also, he planned to call off this mission temporarily.

If they were to face opponents stronger than themselves one by one, the result would be either mutual destruction or suicide.

If something happened to these young masters of Konoha at the same time, Tsunade would undoubtedly face severe repercussions from the higher-ups.

Whether it is the Nara Clan, the Inuzuka Clan, or Akimichi Clan, they are all closely aligned with the Hokage Faction. For them, as long as they were loyal to the Sandaime Hokage's lineage, it didn't matter who held the position.

However, if Tsunade were to fall out of favor, Naruto's future wouldn't be much better.

'Damn it, Danzo has to take the blame!'

After a frantic rush…

"Neji, check our position." Naruto said as he followed the markers left behind, "We've come this far, they should be nearby."

Enduring the pain, Neji activated his Byakugan.

His vision, like an eagle's, cut through the dense forest, finally settling on a deeper part of the woods.

"Choji is over there."

On an unknown open space on the east side of Konoha Forest, Choji was sent flying by a kick from Jirobo, who had activated his Cursed Seal, and crashed heavily to the ground.

Before activating his Cursed Seal, Jirobo was a cautious person. However, once he activated his Cursed Seal, he immediately transformed into an arrogant, trash-talking fighter.

"You're just a worthless piece of trash left behind. Die, you fat pig." Jirobo stomped on Choji's chest. "A fat pig like you has no right to live."

"It seems your companions have abandoned you. Poor little pig."

As he spoke, Jirobo picked up the bag of chips Choji had dropped and poured the last chip into his mouth.

"What a trash, you don't even have enough snacks. You should just die!"

"But don't worry, after killing you, fat pig, I'll make sure to eat all those worthless companions of yours who abandoned you!"

Choji could barely speak, and the Chakra stored in his body was almost exhausted. He believed in his companions, and at this moment, with a resolve to die, he was ready to take Jirobo down with him.

He lay on the ground, barely clinging to life. Facing Jirobo who kept on talking and insulting him, he used his last bit of strength to take out a red pill that, once consumed, would push him into a berserk state but ultimately lead to his death.

Just as Choji was about to pop the pill into his mouth, a familiar and somewhat annoying voice echoed through the forest canopy.

"Don't eat that. It's not worth it."

Naruto leaped down from the top of a giant tree, with Neji slung over his back. The moment he landed, he grabbed Choji's wrist and forcibly stopped his action of taking the drug.

At the same time, he used his Lava Release to force the meat tank, Jirobo, back several meters.

"Naruto?" Choji whipped his head around, "And… Neji?"

He saw the bloody hole on Hyuga Neji's left shoulder that had been simply treated and bandaged, and he was suddenly so concerned that he couldn't speak. He narrowed his eyes and tried to be serious, but failed to convey any real intimidation.

"How did you guys…?"

"How? We just happened to be passing by." Naruto tossed Neji to Choji like he was throwing a backpack, "Here, take care of Neji."

Neji glared at Naruto but was promptly ignored.

Choji caught Neji like a ball, quickly realizing that Naruto intended to deal with Jirobo alone. However, a glance at Jirobo, now in his second state Cursed Seal, still left Choji with a sense of dread.

He knew that guy's whole body was as hard as iron, his sparse hair like steel nails, and his hands like steel claws.

"Naruto, you have to be careful against that guy."

Naruto didn't respond and simply walked towards Jirobo not far away.

Looking at Naruto, who was slowly approaching, Jirobo let out a maniacal laugh. But unfortunately, his excessively fat face twisted the laughter into something grotesque.

"The fat pig couldn't beat me, so he brought in another piece of trash? What's the point?"

"Why aren't you saying anything? Trash is still trash, right? Or maybe..."

Naruto remained silent, step by step drawing closer to Jirobo.

He completely turned a deaf ear to Jirobo's low-level taunts. After all, when it came to breaking others' defense, no one could beat him.

However, he didn't have time to play the defense-breaking game with Jirobo, so he directly activated the Four Symbols Seal and pulled out the Kusanagi Sword from inside his pants.

"All of you might as well come at me together, you're all just a bunch of…"

Jirobo stopped mid-sentence, his eyes wide with disbelief.

"Damn it! Don't pull your sword out of there! You're trying to disgust me, aren't you?"

With a loud roar, Jirobo slammed his hands into the ground, causing boulders to fly in all directions and a huge stone slab to rise up and fly towards Naruto's direction.

In less than two seconds, the stone slab was sliced into pieces. Facing the blade of the Kusanagi Sword, the rocks crumbled like tofu, with debris and dust filling the air.

Naruto used Lava Release to coat the Kusanagi Sword, stopped ten meters in front of Jirobo, and said in a flat tone, "Stop shouting, you underdeveloped freak."

"Orochimaru doesn't like ugly children."

Naruto then silently pulled out a cloth and, with a blank expression, wiped Jirobo's blood off the blade.

Choji watched in astonishment as Naruto effortlessly dispatched Jirobo as if cutting through vegetables. He blinked several times, struggling to process what had just happened, as it was too surreal.

'What was that thing in his hand?'

"Naruto, you..." Choji said 'you' for a long time before managing to say, "You're so f*cking awesome!"

Choji, though usually kind and soft-spoken, couldn't help but cursed at this time.

Naruto put away the Kusanagi Sword, patted Choji on the shoulder, and said meaningfully.

"Well, you still need to learn more."

The three of them didn't waste any time and followed the markers left by Shikamaru, Lee, and Kiba. After a while, they found the seriously injured Kiba, Akamaru, and Lee in a large fissure in the ground.

After Naruto killed Sakon and Ukon cleanly and efficiently, they set out again to find Shikamaru, intending to call off the mission.