Naruto and his traveling companion, Jiraiya, continued their journey, with Jiraiya sharing tales of his time with Minato and Kushina.
Back in Konoha...
Kakashi was recovering in bed after a brutal battle against Itachi and Kisame, with Asuma, Gai, and Kurenai keeping him company.
"Those guys are a handful... But from what we can tell, they haven't tracked down Naruto yet..." Gai pointed out.
"It's pretty wild, isn't it? I mean, they've managed to sneak into the village, finding Naruto should've been a walk in the park..." Asuma mused, settling into a chair.
"Itachi even knows what Naruto looks like..." Asuma began, but was hushed by Gai's warning "shhhhh..."
Sasuke entered the room, calling out for Kakashi, only to find him resting on the bed...
"What's going on...why is Kakashi asleep and why is this room full of Jounin?" Sasuke questioned, a puzzled look on his face.
"Nothing much, really..." Gai replied nonchalantly.
Suddenly, another ninja bustled into the room, "Is it true? Has Itachi returned...?" The newly arrived ninja asked, causing Gai to shoot him a fierce look. "And did he come here for Naruto..." The man continued, heaving a sigh as he took in everyone's expressions.
"Moron.... " Kurenai muttered under her breath.
Hearing Itachi's name, Sasuke's face was a whirlwind of emotions, predominantly fury... He stormed out of the room in a huff...
Gai rose to his feet "Oh dear... Why does this always have to happen?" Gai lamented in exasperation.
Meanwhile, Naruto and Jiraiya were making their way into the red-light district of Hima, checking into a hotel for the night...
As they entered the hotel, Jiraiya's eyes caught sight of a stunning woman just outside the establishment....
Handing the room key to Naruto, Jiraiya excused himself for some "research purposes," as he put it.
Naruto ascended the stairs and unlocked the room... But as he settled onto a bed, he sensed two potent chakras approaching from a distance.
Naruto, however, remained unperturbed, "Let's see! Who could they be? I recognize Jiraiya sensei's chakra, so it's not him... Has to be someone else...." Naruto pondered...
"Alright, they're getting seriously close now... Feels like they're just outside..." Naruto thought as he heard a knock at the door.
"Must be them...." Naruto mused to himself as he opened the door.
As the door swung open, a tall man stood before him... Naruto initially recoiled at the sight of the Sharingan eyes but quickly regained his equanimity...
Peering over his glasses, Naruto saw the Sharingan eyes shimmering....
"Wow, wow, wow... Quite the unexpected honor, meeting a renowned traitor and backstabber... I'm thrilled to meet the amazing Itachi Uchiha," Naruto remarked with a hint of sarcasm.
Naruto's words caught Itachi off guard, yet he managed to remain tranquil and poised.
"I get it, you're going for the dramatic villain entrance, but I'm a bit pressed for time, so tell me, are you here for your little brother, Sasuke?" Naruto asked, noticing another man standing next to Itachi.
"So, this is the Nine-tails brat, eh? Doesn't look like much of a..." Kisame began, but his words were cut short as Naruto's foot connected with his jaw, catapulting him into the air.
"Hey, when two main characters are conversing, side characters shouldn't interrupt. Haven't you learned that much?" Naruto retorted, glaring at Kisame.
Kisame, who was kicked by Naruto, stood to his feet with anger and rage. He ran towards Naruto to attack him, but suddenly Naruto disappeared from his place and reappeared behind him.
Naruto stood behind Kisame and commented, "I don't understand how a man like you walks around with such morons by your side..." Naruto spoke, looking at Itachi.
Kisame turned around, realizing Naruto was behind him, and drew his sword in rage. He attacked Naruto with it, but to his surprise, the attack didn't land and stopped mid-air.
"What's happening...?" Kisame thought.
"Don't mind, but you're disturbing our conversation, so I will just..." Naruto said as Adamantine Sealing Chains came out of his back and grabbed Kisame, wrapping around him as he fell to the ground.
Kisame tried to break free, but he couldn't break the chains.
"Just be there for a while. I need to talk with Itachi, then I'll free you for sure..." Naruto said.
As this happened, Naruto casually walked in front of Itachi. "So where were you? Yeah, why are you here?" Naruto asked.
"I see... I gotta give it to you, you're quite strong, Naruto..." Itachi decided to finally speak.
"Yeah, I already know that... Anyways, are you here for your brother?" Naruto asked.
"No, we are here for you, Naruto..." Itachi said with a calm expression.
"For me? What do you want, to kill me or something? No, that can't be the case. I am not an Uchiha that you'll kill me... So what do you want from me?" Naruto asked.
"You speak too much, and it's good that you have the strength to back it up, kid..." Itachi spoke calmly.
"But, you're coming with us!!!" Itachi said with calmness.
Naruto wanted to say something but then stopped as his face turned to a smirk. "Well, I guess we'll have a brother reunion to see now..." Naruto said with a smirk.
"It's been a long time, Sasuke..." Itachi spoke as Sasuke came running into the hotel room.
Naruto chuckled a little at the sight.
"Itachi Uchiha..." Sasuke said with anger.
Itachi didn't bother to look at Sasuke as his main target was Naruto at this moment.
"Itachi Uchiha, I hope you're prepared to die..." Sasuke said with a raging voice.
"May I help you?" Naruto said.
"No... Keep yourself out of this, Naruto... I want to take my revenge on him by myself," Sasuke said.
"Well, as you wish... I won't interfere. Just remember not to die..." Naruto said with a playful voice as he stepped back a little, standing beside a wall in the hotel hall.
"Sasuke, I don't have anything to do with you .... I'm here only and only for Naruto , so Don't interfere..." Itachi spoke.
"You don't have anything to do with me, you're saying after doing the things you did at past, you're such a bastard..." Sasuke spoke with a rage and angered voice.
Sasuke gritted his teeth in anger and replied, "I definitely hate you for killing our parents and annihilating our clan! I'll show you how much!"
Sasuke moving at extreme speed before appearing beside Itachi in a kicking motion. Itachi noticed it by the corner of his eye and dodged downwards, his palm reaching the floor before kicking Sasuke in the chin, sending him flying to the ceiling.
Boom! Crack!
"Gah!" Sasuke groaned in pain but calmed down. He couldn't fight against Itachi with pure ability alone. He had to think of a plan.
He gritted his teeth to bear the pain and sent lightning from his arms towards Itachi.
Chichichichicchicihcihcih! Itachi calculated each lightning strike and dodged while slowly approaching Sasuke.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
Itachi dodged each and every strike and grabbed Sasuke by the neck, not letting him do anything more, and slamming him against the wall.
Coughing out blood, Sasuke felt helpless. "It still isn't enough?! I should have trained more! I need more chakra! I need to train more... Why I can't be strong like Naruto... "
Even with all the training he did, he still wasn't a match for Itachi yet. Itachi looked at Sasuke with a look that would anger him even more, saying, "Hate me more... Sasuke..."
"How rough... Even towards your own blood brother," Jiraiya teased with a smile on his face as he saw the interaction between the brothers.
Itachi looked at Jiraiya and knew it was the perfect time to escape. He also had to find Kisame, his partner, wherever Naruto had him. "Jiraiya, a legendary sannin."
Itachi looked at Sasuke with a look that made it clear he wanted to kill him and said, "Next time, show me more hatred... Sasuke!"
Sasuke had a look of disbelief on his face as Itachi let him down from the stranglehold on his neck.
That's what his brother always used to say! He knew there was a reason! He had to find out what drove Itachi to kill the entire clan to extinction! "Wait! Itachi!"
Itachi held back the tears in his eyes. It was too late; he couldn't turn back now.
"No, you don't!" Jiraiya said as he weaved hand seals and said, "Toad Style: Toad Mouth Bind!"
And the surroundings slowly turned into the innards of a huge toad. Itachi, in the nick of time, made it outside before it was completely secluded.
Itachi quickly scanned the hall and spotted Kisame, who was still trapped in the chains of Naruto. Despite being restrained, Itachi managed to free Kisame and the two of them made their escape.
"Tsk! He escaped!" Jiraiya clicked his tongue in disappointment and walked over to Sasuke. "Are you okay, little guy?" he asked, concerned.
"Arghhhhhhhhhhh! I need more strength!" Sasuke yelled, his eyes bloodshot with frustration. He believed that if he had more strength, Itachi would finally reveal the reason behind his actions.
Naruto joined them, as Jiraiya quickly undid his Jutsu questioned him, "Why didn't you help him, Naruto?" Jiraiya's tone was filled with confusion.
"Well, Sasuke refused any assistance, so I respected his decision and stayed out of it," Naruto explained. He understood that Sasuke wanted to confront Itachi on his own terms, and interfering would only complicate matters further.
"Well, it's important to respect your teammates' decisions, but I understand your concern," Jiraiya said, feeling a sense of responsibility for Sasuke's condition as he fell unconscious in his arms.
"You see, if you had just intervened, this might not have happened," Jiraiya continued, expressing his disappointment.
"I'm sorry, sensei," Naruto replied, a hint of remorse in his voice. "But if Sasuke can't back up his words with strength, then maybe he shouldn't be saying those words at all," he added before walking down the hall towards his room.
Sasuke, still partially awake, heard Naruto's words and felt a mix of frustration and determination. He realized that he needed to become stronger if he wanted to face Itachi and uncover the truth.
At that moment, Might Guy appeared in the hotel hallway.
"Is everything alright?" Guy asked, noticing Sasuke unconscious in Jiraiya's arms.
"Well, everything is okay, except for the fact that Itachi and the other guy showed up here, and Sasuke had a confrontation with Itachi and ended up getting badly beaten," Naruto explained, returning to the scene and standing beside Guy.
[Hey there, how about dropping those Powerstones to show some love for this tale, huh? And don't forget to add this beauty to your library - wouldn't want you to miss out on the fun. Thanks]