The soul, how mysterious, yet unpredictable.
When Orochimaru was still in Konoha, Neri was ordered to become Orochimaru's assistant.
That period was also the happiest period of her life.
What she came into contact with was pure and non-purpose research.
It was also during that time that she and Orochimaru had a preliminary understanding of the soul.
Unfortunately, the soul was too mysterious.
"I am not qualified to study the soul right now." Neri's tone was quite regretful.
No matter if it was the equipment, materials, or resources in the laboratory, they were far from qualified to study the soul.
Neri's talent in research was definitely not inferior to Orochimaru, but Root's commission and restrictions greatly affected her growth.
"There will be a chance in the future." Naruto looked at Neri meaningfully, leaving behind a sentence that made people think deeply.
During this period of time, he saw Neri's enthusiasm for research.
This was also a stepping stone for her to join her faction in the future.
In the following days, Tsunade, who had just been promoted, was busy with Hokage's affairs.
Jiraiya helped on the side for a few days and lingered in the bathroom.
Sasuke, who had returned to the village, once again joined the training.
Jiraiya, who had nothing to do, would occasionally give some guidance.
Naruto had really rested for the past few days, and even his training had been temporarily slowed down.
However, in the past few days, when he had just received Oni no Kuni's request and had not warmed up the entrustment information, a piece of grievous news appeared.
When Rock Lee's parents were out of the village on a mission, they died due to a sudden situation. Now, their bodies had been transported back to the village.
The incident happened too suddenly, and everyone was caught off guard.
After receiving this news, Naruto's first reaction was not sadness, but doubt.
Perhaps it was because he had been hiding his habits for many years that he became suspicious and good at guessing.
"Rock Lee's parents are only Genin. They rarely carry out village missions, let alone dangerous ones."
"How could there be such a coincidence? I also heard that their companions survived. Only the two of them got their bento boxes."
"There are too many coincidences. It makes people suspicious."
"If their death was not an accident, who would want to kill them? Could it be... Danzo?"
The first person that popped up in Naruto's mind was Danzo.
Because Danzo was vicious and merciless, he also had 'mysophobia' when using people.
As long as Ninja joined Root, most of them were Ninja who had no parents and no worries.
Therefore, Rock Lee's joining could be considered a precedent.
Based on Danzo's character, he wanted to beat Rock Lee into becoming Naruto's most loyal subordinate.
But to Root, Ninja, who had a family backing, had a huge weakness.
If Rock Lee's family was threatened in the future, would he reveal Root's information?
An additional emotional concern meant an additional weakness.
With Danzo's cautious personality, he definitely would not allow such an unexpected existence to exist.
Therefore, using the commission to make Rock Lee "clean" seemed to be understandable.
This way, Rock Lee would be completely loyal to Naruto.
Should he become the best subordinate of Naruto?
From the looks of it,
Danzo was quite devoted and thought a lot for Naruto.
Regardless of whether this guess was correct or not, it meant that Naruto needed to be more vigilant.
To be able to do such a crazy thing to his fellow villagers, Danzo was definitely not someone easy to deal with.
Once Danzo discovered his true thoughts, he would be in big trouble.
Naruto's eyes darkened. When they arrived at the cemetery, Rock Lee knelt in front of the grave and cried.
His friends were standing behind him.
Tenten, Neji, Sasuke, Sakura, and even Hinata's group, who had just finished their mission, were all there.
"Naruto, you're here." Seeing Naruto, Sasuke heaved a sigh of relief. "I'll leave it to you." He patted Naruto on the shoulder.
"We have been comforting him for a long time, but it is useless. Young man, just rely on your youth to ignite him." Guy's face was full of tears as she sobbed and grabbed Naruto's arm.
Everyone's faces were filled with sadness.
This scene made everyone sigh.
Ninja's world was too cruel.
The tragedy had come too suddenly.
It hadn't even been a year since he became Ninja, but he had already witnessed Shinobi world's cruelty and bloodiness.
Everyone's hands were already stained with blood.
They had also witnessed the separation of life and death.
Ninja had never been a family.
People would die.
This also made them start to think.
If they died in the mission, how sad would their family be?
"Rock Lee, I'll leave it to you." Guy was the most emotional person among them.
In the past, he had brought disciples with him.
But in the end, these disciples would either die or give up on being Ninja.
When they saw the people close to them die on missions, when they saw the cruelty and reality of the commissions, many people would give up.
Guy was very worried that Rock Lee would collapse because of this and give up becoming Ninja.
After everyone left, Naruto came to Rock Lee's side.
This scene felt somewhat familiar.
Rock Lee, who had previously felt inferior, was also unable to recover.
It was just that back then, he was sad because of his lack of strength.
Now, he was sad for losing his family.
"Ninja's world is cruel," Naruto said softly.
"The moment you become Ninja, your life is no longer in your control."
"I won't say more. You must be strong. Didn't you say you wanted to follow me?" Naruto's tone was still gentle.
His heart was not moved at all.
Because from the beginning, he had stepped on a path that was even more ruthless and cruel than Ninja.
This was the realization that he had.
"It is sad to die, but you have to remember that you are a Ninja. Ninjas will not be immersed in the past. Danzo Sensei has given me a new commission. Going to Oni no Kuni, that commission may come into contact with the Pure Land. It is a very dangerous commission. But I have made preparations. If you are not ready, I will take Neri to go first."
The clear wind blew, blowing the fallen leaves on the ground.
Rock Lee stared at the fallen leaves on the ground that were rolled up by the wind like duckweed.
From today on, he was like a fallen leaf, without support.
As he listened to Naruto's words, his empty eyes gradually lit up.
Yes, he had said it before.
He wanted to follow Naruto.
But now, he was sinking into the pain of losing his family, like a dog.
He raised his head and looked at Naruto.
Under the sunlight, Naruto smiled gently.
Those who did not know might think that Naruto's family was harmonious and full of happiness.
But Rock Lee knew.
Naruto's background was miserable, and he had been bearing malice from the moment he was born.
He was the first to know Naruto, and he had seen Naruto receive recognition with a smile all along the way.
His heart was deeply moved, and he stood up and wiped away his tears.
"I've let you see a joke, Naruto. From now on, I am Root's Ninja Sage, your most reliable and loyal follower!"