Chapter 79: Chapter 79: Meeting Temari

Chapter 79: Chapter 79: Meeting Temari(T/N: There is now a p.atreon for this work, and any new work I add will be dropped there first. check it out for an early release of up to 30 chapters edited

smoothly. https://www.p.atreon.com/INeedRest)

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At the Sunagakure station in Konoha Village, Baki leaned against a pillar, eyeing Kabuto Yakushi with displeasure.

"Why is it you? Where's Orochimaru?"

Kabuto pushed up his glasses, the glare obscuring his eyes.

"Orochimaru-sama has more pressing matters. I'm sufficient for this meeting."

Only Kabuto knew the truth: Orochimaru was actually injured.

Despite his formidable escape skills, he couldn't fully evade the [Kirin] unleashed by Colt.

Coupled with the subsequent Kazekage assassination plan, Orochimaru was dedicating all his time to recovery.

Kabuto himself feared Colt, who had managed to wound Orochimaru.

In his eyes, Orochimaru was among the strongest in the ninja world, yet a thirteen-year-old boy had hurt him. It was simply... Unbelievable.

"Tsk"

Baki snorted in annoyance but said nothing.

His village's top priorities came first. He had contacted Orochimaru to arrange a more detailed plan.

Initially, they had thought Konoha's strength had been greatly reduced after the Uchiha massacre. However, recent observations showed that Konoha was still formidable. Without careful planning, their scheme was likely to fail.

Kabuto smiled, watching Baki start his prepared talk. Inwardly, he felt a hint of mockery.

'This level of intelligence... He's only worthy of being a pawn for Orochimaru-sama.' Meanwhile, with Colt.

After leaving home, he first went to the seventh training ground, often used by Team 7.

There, Sasuke and Kakashi had already begun their practice.

Looking at Sasuke's panting appearance, it was clear he must have arrived early in the morning and had been training hard since.

"Morning, EdgeLord, Kakashi-sensei," Colt greeted, observing Sasuke constantly stimulating his body with thunder-type chakra.

Sasuke, focusing on what he was doing, continued training without responding.

"I finally understand why you wanted me to keep a Shadow Clone here," Colt said, as he looked at the injuries of Sasuke.

Indeed, Kakashi had asked Colt to come so he could leave a Shadow Clone to treat Sasuke's injuries at any time. After all, lightning wasn't easy to tame. Poor control could harm Sasuke's body.

"Well, it is the ninjutsu you taught. You should contribute too," Kakashi gave an eye smile, leaving Colt helpless.

After leaving a Shadow Clone and teaching Kakashi [Chidori]-style techniques, Colt set out to find a place with more natural energy. He eventually chose a spot beneath a waterfall. Though the natural energy here wasn't comparable to the Three Holy Places, it was significantly higher than in Konoha Village.

Colt exchanged points for the most basic [Sage Mode] training method from the [Healer's Benevolence System].

While the techniques of the Three Holy Places had their specialties, all sage arts essentially increased the caster's all-around abilities. The specific abilities developed through this [Sage Mode] would depend on Colt himself.

The first step was to perceive the natural energy in the atmosphere and incorporate it into the body. Colt lacked the aid of toad oil to facilitate this, but his [Sage Body] had developed to a high level already.

Closing his eyes and focusing inward, he sensed the colorful natural energy flowing freely around him. He attempted to use his body's pores to breathe it in, slowly drawing the energy into his body.

Although it seemed gentle, the natural energy was actually quite violent. Without sufficient chakra control and experience, it would be impossible to control it at all.

What Colt lacked the least was chakra and thus control.

His chakra had reached 8 Kakashi's, and as such, he might need to switch to another measurement system soon.

The next step in his training was the hardest.

Generally, chakra was produced by mixing mental and physical energy in a fixed ratio. The same held true for sage chakra, which required a 1:1:1 mixture to produce. But such violent foreign energy was definitely not so easily integrated.

Throughout the day, Colt spent two hours controlling natural energy into his body. But until sunset, he still had no clue how to fuse it properly.

Fortunately, there was no danger in the systematic training of such a technique; at worst, his pathways might be damaged. But for Colt, who possessed rather adept healing skills, was this even a concern?

After finishing his training, Colt didn't go home directly. Instead, he headed to Konoha's business district. It had been a while since he'd eaten at Ichiraku Ramen, and today he wanted to visit Teuchi and Ayame.

As night fell, the commercial street was brightly lit, with people coming and going. Feeling the bustling environment, Colt suddenly felt content. There was much more life here than being alone at home.

From time to time, he could experience exotic customs from foreign tourists. As he passed through a red-light district, many women waved, trying to entice him inside. Fortunately, Colt wasn't a loner in this life otherwise he might not have been able to resist the temptation. "Kamiyo Colt!" Just as he was nearing Ichiraku Ramen, Colt suddenly heard a shout behind him.

Looking back, he saw it was none other than Temari.

The current Temari appeared strikingly different from her usual combat attire. Sёarch* The nôvel_Fire.ηet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

She was adorned in a pure white kimono, intricately decorated with delicate Sakura flower

patterns.

Even her ever-present giant fan, a staple of her ninja equipment, was nowhere to be seen. The fierce, heroic spirit that typically emanated from her had vanished, replaced by an unexpected softness that transformed her demeanor entirely.

Since Temari had taken the initiative to greet him, Colt couldn't simply ignore her presence.

"Out for a stroll?" he inquired, attempting to initiate a conversation.

"Mm-hmm," Temari responded with a brief nod.

"Where are your two brothers?" Colt asked.

"They're resting," she replied almost immediately, leading him to raise an eyebrow.

'Why does it feel like I'm interrogating her?'

The exchange between them felt inexplicably awkward. Colt found himself at a loss for words after these brief exchanges. The main issue was that his previous two encounters with Temari

had been far from friendly.

Additionally, they were set to be opponents in the next round of the Chunin exam, leaving Colt uncertain about how to interact with Temari in this unexpected situation.

Eventually, as the silence stretched on, Temari broke it by asking, "Where are you headed?"

"Ichiraku Ramen," Colt replied.

Then, surprising even himself, he added, "Would you like to join me?"

"Okay," Temari answered quickly, her rapid agreement causing Colt to eye her with slight

suspicion.

Could this be a tactic employed by the Sand Village, he wondered, an attempt to lure him to the Land of Wind? If so, Colt could only scoff inwardly at such a ploy. It would take far more than that to deceive him.

Temari, following behind Colt, remained oblivious to the strange thoughts running through

his mind.

Her face flushed slightly as she walked. She had originally come out to relax, but upon spotting Colt, she had called out to him on impulse.

Now, faced with the prospect of dining together, her mind raced. Was this a date? Would he

think that she was being too forward? Did he suspect she had ulterior motives...? What would they name their children? No, no, no!

Temari hurriedly shook her head, banishing that last outlandish thought, and followed Colt into the ramen shop, her heart beating a little faster than usual.