Naruto: Passerby and Returnee

Chapter 416 The Entrance to the Temple of Fire

Chapter 416 The Main Gate of the Fire Temple

"It's been a long time, Jiraiya." After paying his respects to the Buddha statue, Asuma approached the monk who was meditating quietly beside it. The monk's face looked particularly fierce, and the corner of his robe had the same "fire" character pattern as Asuma's.

"Asuma? How rare to see you here." The monk opened his eyes, his peaceful gaze softening his serious expression. He looked at Asuma, then at the green-vested ninja not far behind him, and a knowing look appeared on his face. "Is the Daimyo arriving soon?"

"It will be a while. We're here to clear the area first, and we also want to tell you something very important."

Di Lu frowned. "An enemy?"

"Haha, you're still the same as ever." Asuma laughed first, then said seriously, "Two S-rank rogue ninjas are on their way and may arrive at the Fire Temple at the same time as the daimyo."

"Didn't the daimyo authorize you to attack and stop them?"

"No."

"understood."

Dilu finally got off his cushion, put down the prayer beads, carefully placed them on the altar, and turned to say, "It's been several years since we fought side by side, hasn't it?"

"It has indeed been a while, and I almost forgot about you, my old friend. The wedding invitation was clearly sent, but you didn't come."

"...I am a martial monk."

"You are also an old friend who has been through thick and thin with me."

The monk's expression shifted slightly, and he sighed helplessly, "You're the same as before; I can't argue with you."

The two first met with the temple's abbot to explain the situation, and then went outside to meet Kakashi, who was waiting at the entrance. The three greeted each other while sizing each other up, assessing the possible teamwork they could muster if a battle broke out.

“We have two companions left with the daimyo to protect him. Once the daimyo arrives, let him take refuge in the Fire Temple. I remember you boasted about the temple's protective barrier before.”

"These are the only things you remember clearly." Jiraiya finally understood why they hadn't desperately stopped the daimyo from courting death. "But how exactly did you know someone was going to attack this place?"

"He's my student. He's a sensory ninja. He immediately reported it when he detected unusual chakra approaching." Kakashi, who hadn't been able to get a word in edgewise, smiled and showed off his student.

It's not surprising that there are perception-type characters in the guard force, nor is it surprising that perception-type characters stay by the side of the daimyo.

"So now, how do we find out where the attackers are going?"

"If they arrive soon, Naruto will bring Jiraiya to their aid. However, it's best if we don't actually encounter such a situation."

This wasn't a reverse prophecy, but the situation was a bit more troublesome than they had anticipated, because as the daimyo ascended the stone steps of the Fire Temple, Kakuzu and Hidan also emerged from another path leading there. Their appearances were quite appalling; one was wearing only a tight-fitting vest on his upper body, revealing his bizarre body connected by tentacles; the other had a large hole in his stomach, even revealing some of his well-defined abdominal muscles.

The daimyo noticed them. He covered half his face with a fan and used the other half to feign panic, but in reality, he was completely calm and even had a hint of amusement at watching the show.

"Protect the Daimyo!" Jiraiya shouted as the black lines on Kakuzu's body bloomed. The samurai quickly surrounded the Daimyo and led his men toward the gates of the Fire Temple. The four ninjas each performed their duties, maintaining their formation as they pressed forward against the enemy.

"You brat, I'm going to offer you up to the evil god!" Hidan, with his super loud voice, immediately went ballistic upon seeing Naruto. Without his three-moon scythe, he could only charge forward wielding his long, thin black spear, wishing he could stab Naruto to death with that thing.

Naruto also chimed in, as a speed-type ninja, he was incredibly fast even without the Flying Thunder God Technique. After closing in to a certain distance, Naruto suddenly accelerated, bursting into Hidan's face, his longsword, imbued with light blue chakra, stabbing straight towards Hidan's neck.

This completely different fighting style from the previous night caught Hidan off guard. Since he himself wouldn't die, he naturally had no habit of dodging attacks. His first reaction to being approached so closely was to aim his spear at Naruto's body—anywhere, as long as it was hard to dodge! In an instant, blood splattered everywhere. Naruto's sword pierced Hidan's neck, and Hidan's spear pierced Naruto's left shoulder. However, Hidan felt no joy in having struck, because the guy before him wasn't bleeding at all! Instead, he left behind a provocative smile and disappeared.

Another shadow clone!

Hidan tried to shout that, but instead, blood and a hoarse, strange sound came out of his mouth. That thing hadn't cut off his head, but had precisely pierced his throat—the very organ he used to speak! And this was a shadow clone—where was the real one?!

While the two sides were clashing, the other side wasn't idle either; otherwise, Kakuzu would have rushed to their aid long ago.

Although Naruto didn't come, he informed Kakuzu and Hidan of their general direction, so they knew which route the two had taken. Given that, how could the two who arrived first not have made any preparations?

As Kakashi charged forward, another Kakashi, who had been waiting underground, also emerged, wielding a lightning bolt. This second Kakashi was even more discreet, nearly succeeding in delivering the Lightning Blade into Kakuzu's back. Unfortunately, the exploding black tentacles were far too swift; they seemed to have eyes, protecting Kakuzu from every angle.

In the blink of an eye, the two shadow clones were destroyed, one enemy was injured, and the other instantly unleashed its strongest form. Even the black cloth on its face was blown off by the tentacles it spat out, making it look like a giant octopus, only many times larger.

"Die." Even with his body swollen, Kakuzu's speed remained incredible. His menacing tentacles served not only as weapons but also to aid him in moving faster. His primary target was Kakashi, who was charging towards him. However, the moment his tentacles extended, he was struck by an intense burning sensation. A purple wall suddenly appeared before him, and he managed to pull himself up by digging his tentacles into the ground, preventing a direct collision.

Kakuzu looked around and saw four Narutos standing in the four directions, their purple barrier completely enveloping Kakuzu and Hidan.

He'd seen before that Jinchuriki possessed vast amounts of chakra, but he hadn't expected them to be used in this way. But how long could one person sustain the Four Purple Flame Formation? What were they trying to do? Capture them alive?

As it turned out, Kakuzu was overthinking things. The earth-shaking commotion ahead proved that the enemy wasn't trying to capture them alive, but rather to take their lives!