Naruto didn't know much about Princess Toki initially.
However, the numerous fan works portraying her as the Princess of Vengeance left a lasting impression on him. These works often featured scenarios like, 'You don't want your brother's death to go unavenged, do you?'. In the Land of Birds, one would find themselves accidentally discovering the truth about the Daimyo's daughter.
In those dark tales, Toki was depicted as having fallen to the dark side, driven by her desire for vengeance! Imprisonment, failure, torture… so many vivid depictions burned into Naruto's mind.
When it came to revenge, Toki was indeed a resolute girl.
The deaths of her father and brother deeply scarred her. To avenge them, she tied her hair up, disguised herself as her brother, and took on the role of the Daimyo of the Land of Birds.
Hatred consumed her, making her ignore anything unrelated to revenge.
Naruto was very aware that she didn't care whether the Konoha's Shinobi lived or died, nor did she care if she herself survived. As long as she could exact her revenge, she would stop at nothing, forsaking everything.
After careful consideration, Naruto ultimately decided to abandon the idea of seizing control of the Land of Birds.
It is simply unrealistic to rely on the Princess of Vengeance to take over the Land of Birds. Although the Land of Birds is small, it still had all the essential components of a nation. While the country lacked exceptional Shinobi, it did have clever and fearless individuals like Komei.
Controlling a country is much more difficult than simply fighting and killing. It couldn't be done just by controlling one Princess of Vengeance, especially one as difficult to control as Toki, whose mind was fixated on revenge.
After much thought, Naruto decided it was best to complete the mission and just leave.
And so, in Toki's shocked gaze, Naruto calmly slapped her again.
"I am the Daimyo of the Land of Birds!"
"No, you're not. Your brother is. You're just an imposter." Naruto stared at her and said, "I advise you not to entertain any other ideas."
With that, Naruto stood up.
"You know what Shinobi are capable of. You wouldn't want your father and brother to be restless in their graves, would you?"
"You!! What on earth do you really want?" Toki asked through gritted teeth, her face red and swollen.
"I already told you, why don't you listen to others properly?" Naruto wasn't far from Toki. A couple of steps forward and he could reach her.
When Naruto's gaze once again fell on Toki's cheek, the latter shuddered violently.
They say you shouldn't hit someone in the face, but Toki didn't understand what was wrong with this blonde from Konoha. At the slightest disagreement, he would slap her. As the fake Daimyo of the Land of Birds, her dignity was shattered.
But the man didn't seem to care at all and even appeared to want to continue hitting her.
'Crazy! Doesn't this person have any concept of diplomacy? Doesn't he know what the consequences of offending the Daimyo of other countries are?'
"Don't hit me anymore, I remember now." Toki lowered her head and said.
"Very good." Naruto took two steps back, his figure instantly disappearing, leaving behind a final remark, "I'll be waiting for your good news, fake Daimyo."
Toki was still smart enough. She led a group of people to the residence of the chief advisor, Moso, and posted an announcement along the streets that Moso was a Missing-nin.
They stormed the mansion and directly found evidence of Moso's collusion with Missing-nin, rescuing the strategist, Komei in the process. With Komei's testimony, Moso and his associates were sentenced.
The truth was just as Naruto said, but even though Toki was mentally prepared, she was still stunned for a long time when faced with the truth.
Compared to Neji and Tenten, who specialized in Taijutsu, Naruto's skills in Ninjutsu and assassination were even more impressive.
The strength of Moso and the other Missing-nin was not very high. Naruto held his presence and quietly moved forward, killing most of them cleanly and neatly.
[Shinigami's Gaze, Impure World Reincarnation (No Sacrifice Version) was successfully dispatched.]
It turned out that strategist Komei was indeed clever. Before Moso took him away, he had already arranged how to inform Toki and even set up guards.
As the truth was fully revealed and the dust settled, Komei, the strategist, decided to continue supporting Toki as the Daimyo, even after the death of the former Daimyo.
It is precisely because of the existence of people like Komei in the Land of Bird that Naruto gave up the opportunity to exploit the system's bug and chose to end the mission in the Land of Birds early.
The matter has come to an end, but the impact has not disappeared.
Not long after Naruto, Neji, and Tenten left, the Land of Birds sent an envoy to Konoha to submit a request for the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two sides.
By the time the mission was over, Konoha had entered deep autumn.
Fallen leaves, harboring a latent chill, hinted at the impending winter, giving the once lively streets of Konoha a sense of desolation and powerlessness.
Tsunade also granted Naruto a few days off.
When he returned home and unlocked the door, Kurama's head popped up from behind the sofa. Upon seeing Naruto's face, the fox's expression turned to one of disappointment.
"Why aren't you dead?"
"It's a pity that the opponent is too weak." Naruto responded nonchalantly.
He walked into the living room, stood beside the sofa, and lit the incense that had gone out. Staring at his own photo in front of the three incense sticks, he examined it for a moment, rubbing his chin.
"Too bad it's not in black and white."
"I couldn't find a black-and-white one." Kurama turned to Naruto, casually flicking his paw, showing disinterest in everything.
"I'll take a black-and-white one for you someday." Naruto said, then walked into the kitchen to start preparing food. Then, his voice came from afar, "Did the girl with golden hair come here during the time I was away?"
"No." Kurama replied while drinking, "No one came here. You've lost your value now, brat. Hurry up and find a new owner to buy me some booze!"
The sound of water running came clearly from the kitchen.
Naruto paused at the kitchen doorway, leaning against the frame with a smile as he asked, "Kurama, how's your backflip practice going?"
"Not doing it anymore." Kurama replied, chugging from his bottle, "Although I don't understand the twists and turns of you humans, I later found that there are some things that cannot be solved even with a backflip."
Naruto, who was leaning in the doorway, laughed uncontrollably, as if he had heard something very funny.
The stove clicked as the fire was lit, a soft blue flame emerging. Oil heated in the pan, and two eggs were cracked and slid into it, gradually taking on the shape of a sun.
The sizzling heat spread, and slices of bacon were added to the other side of the hot oil. In another pot, various seasonings were mixed, and under the high heat, the broth began to bubble and roll.
Fruits were rinsed under the faucet, water droplets splashing around the sink, slowly trailing down the basin's edge.
When everything was cooked to perfection, filling the kitchen with a rich aroma, the food was carefully placed into containers, and the fruit was cut and stored as well.
After cleaning the kitchen out of habit, Naruto carried the food containers out to the living room, placing them on the dining table. He then went to his room, grabbed some clothes, and headed into the bathroom.
"Where are you going? It's already dark." Kurama asked boredly as he glanced towards the bathroom.
With a click, the bathroom light turned on, casting a warm, bright glow.
"To coax someone." Naruto replied.