Inside the barbecue restaurant.
"Naruto, did you really get kidnapped by the Akatsuki?"
Chōji asked, chewing on grilled meat, his words coming out indistinctly.
As he asked, the other classmates all put down their chopsticks and looked at Naruto, who was also eating a big mouthful of meat.
Although everyone present was still a shinobi school student, most of them came from shinobi clans—some were from bloodline limit families, and others from clans with secret techniques, which meant they all had access to insider information.
The news of Naruto being kidnapped by the Akatsuki was still a secret to ordinary villagers, but many of them had already heard about it, even if it hadn't been confirmed.
So when Chōji brought it up, everyone turned their gaze to Naruto.
Naruto scratched his head, "Why is everyone staring at me? Alright, alright, it's true, that happened."
Sakura asked curiously, "I heard the Akatsuki members are all S-rank criminals. Why did they want to kidnap you?"
"How would I know!"
Naruto pouted.
Although he enjoyed everyone's attention, being kidnapped was still a bit embarrassing, and he really didn't know why it had happened. Even after being rescued and brought back to the village, he still hadn't figured out what was going on.
Shion, who had been quiet all this time, suddenly raised her hand, "I know, I know!"
Everyone turned to look at Shion.
"The Akatsuki kidnapped Naruto because of the tailed beasts!" Shion said in a mysterious tone, crossing her arms, "This is classified information from the Five Kage Summit—I'm only telling you guys, okay?"
After hearing Shion's words, many of the classmates had a change in expression, looking at Naruto thoughtfully.
There had always been various rumors about Naruto and the nine-tailed fox in the village—some said Naruto was the child of the fox demon, while others said there was a fox demon sealed inside Naruto.
So, even if they didn't fully understand what a tailed beast was, many classmates still connected it with those rumors.
Of course, there were still those who were clueless.
Lee was one of them. He asked in confusion, "A tailed beast? What's that? Does it have something to do with Naruto?"
"A tailed beast is, well…"
Shion paused, realizing she didn't actually know what a tailed beast was.
Seeing Shion at a loss, Tenten laughed, "You don't actually know, do you?"
"I-I obviously know! But it's classified, I can't tell you!"
Shion sat down in a huff.
In truth, anything that had been discussed at the Five Kage Summit was hardly a secret at this point. Shion just wanted to show off a little, and there was no real risk of exposing anything confidential.
"Hmph!" Sasuke scoffed at this point, coldly scanning the room, "Tailed beasts aren't something people at your level need to know about—there's no need to learn more."
Sakura and Ino were easily impressed by Sasuke, and their eyes immediately lit up with admiration.
Shikamaru asked, "Sasuke, I heard that you also took part in the rescue and that you were the one who brought Naruto back?"
"Mm."
Sasuke smirked and nodded, his gaze instinctively moving to Shinji, Kimimaro, and Neji.
Without a doubt:
At this gathering of their peers, not only had Naruto and Sasuke joined in after recently returning to the village, but Shinji, Kimimaro, Neji, Haku, and Karin—who had also quietly returned through various channels—were also present.
The purpose of attending this gathering was to cover up the fact that they had snuck out of the village in recent days.
In fact, when they had left the village, the factions behind them had made arrangements, placing substitutes to temporarily take their place.
However, Naruto's kidnapping by the Akatsuki had prompted a round of strict scrutiny within the Hidden Leaf, so they had to publicly join the event to reduce suspicion.
Otherwise, they would have preferred not to attend this gathering right after sneaking back into the village.
And their caution was not without reason, as just in the adjacent room, two ANBU members were secretly monitoring them.
This showed that the village had already put Naruto's peers under observation as part of the investigation.
From the kidnapping of Naruto, it was clear that the kidnappers were very familiar with Naruto's daily routine, suggesting that there was likely an Akatsuki spy among his peers.
Sakura asked excitedly, "Sasuke, tell us how you saved Naruto!"
Triggered by Sakura's question, the pride on Sasuke's face slowly faded. He shook his head, "There's nothing to say."
"Wow, as expected of Sasuke!"
Sakura looked at him with admiration.
Sasuke ignored Sakura and turned to Shinji, who was focused on eating, "Shinji, I need to talk to you later."
Shinji looked up, "About what?"
"It's about the Sharingan," Sasuke replied.
Upon hearing the words "Sharingan," Kimimaro's expression visibly shifted, as if feeling a phantom pain in his chest.
In truth, thanks to the strong recovery abilities of his Shikotsumyaku and Kabuto's medical ninjutsu, his previous injuries had already healed.
The reason his chest still felt as if it hurt was because of the profound impression left by their mission in the Land of Lightning.
The power of the "Upper Rank One" had left him deeply in awe.
Even more so, the helplessness that such a powerful "Upper Rank One" had shown in the face of "A" had left him with an unprecedented shock.
This also changed his evaluation of the Sharingan.
Neji, too, was affected by the mention of the Sharingan.
During the mission in the Land of Earth, he had witnessed Karin's near-complete form of the massive Susanoo Tomoshibi, leaving him stunned.
He couldn't imagine how the Gentle Fist of the Hyuga Clan could possibly counter someone wielding such a powerful dojutsu, and so, throughout the journey back, he had been dazed and lost in thought.
Karin, unaware of Neji's thoughts, sat in a corner, eating quietly.
During the great battle in the Land of Earth, she had temporarily retreated out of fear due to the overwhelming group of demons. But once Neji successfully destroyed the "anchor point," the demons dispersed, and she returned to the cave containing the anchor point, using her Susanoo Tomoshibi to completely demolish it.
After that, she had changed out of her Akatsuki robe with red clouds in a secluded area and found the team from the Grass Village that was meant to pick her up, making her way back to the Hidden Leaf.
Haku, sitting in another corner, had a face full of smiles.
His mission in the Land of Water had left him with numerous injuries all over his body, and without Kimimaro's strong physique, if not for Karin's healing, he might have already been exposed.
Nevertheless, he had no complaints.
No matter what, the shinobi world had been saved, and in his eyes, any price paid for that was worth it!
Watching all this unfold, Shinji remained expressionless, quietly eating his grilled meat.
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