Naruto: AFK System

Seeing the distant battle come to an abrupt halt and Yoruha disappear, Sakura assumed something bad had happened to him.

Clenching her teeth, she sprinted toward the battlefield.

Soon, she arrived at the edge of a massive crater.

Staring at the giant pit, about a hundred meters wide, Sakura was utterly stunned.

"D-Did Yoruha create this with his jutsu?"

"It's terrifying."

Sakura couldn't begin to comprehend the sheer power required to create such destruction. This was far beyond anything she considered possible.

The crater was even larger than the one caused by thousands of explosive tags going off simultaneously.

Still, Sakura didn't dwell on it for long.

She looked down into the crater and saw Yoruha standing at its center.

Without hesitation, she rushed toward him.

When she reached his side, she found Yoruha standing in front of a grave.

Noticing the name engraved on the tombstone, Sakura let out a sigh of relief. "So… Kurosuki Raiga is dead?"

She turned to Yoruha.

Yoruha nodded calmly.

Still worried moments earlier, Sakura now smiled and said, "Yoruha, you're amazing! Even a jōnin is no match for you!"

However, Yoruha showed no trace of joy. Instead, he turned and began to walk away.

Sakura was puzzled. "You won the fight. Why does he look so unhappy?"

"Boys are so strange."

She glanced at Kurosuki Raiga's grave one last time before chasing after Yoruha.

Once they returned to the surface, Yoruha looked up at the moon in the sky.

Frowning, he muttered, "It's already nighttime. I wonder how Kakashi-sensei is doing. I need to go assist him."

He turned to Sakura. "Sakura, go bring Aunt Tsunami and Inari here. We'll go together to support Kakashi-sensei."

"I can't leave you all here alone; it's too dangerous."

Sakura nodded. "Got it."

Although she wanted to ask how Yoruha had grown so powerful in such a short time, now clearly wasn't the right moment.

After fetching Tsunami and Inari, the group of four headed toward the construction site of the Great Bridge.

It took them a while, but they finally arrived at the scene.

There, they witnessed Kakashi battling Zabuza. At the same time, Yoruha's gaze shifted toward another part of the battlefield, where a surge of sinister chakra made his expression tense.

"That evil chakra… could it be Naruto losing control?"

Yoruha looked in Naruto's direction. In the darkness, the red chakra stood out, glaring and menacing.

Kakashi, mid-battle with Zabuza, caught sight of Yoruha and exhaled in relief.

"As expected, this kid's strength has already surpassed that of a jōnin. He's probably as surprised by his own abilities as I am."

In Kakashi's eyes, Yoruha's cautious personality and Shikamaru-like lack of enthusiasm for most things held him back from fully understanding his own strength.

During their training sessions, Kakashi had already assessed Yoruha's abilities to be well beyond those of a jōnin. In a direct confrontation, Kakashi knew he wouldn't stand a chance against him.

But Yoruha himself refused to believe it.

To Yoruha, the title of jōnin still seemed like an insurmountable goal.

True, jōnin were considered the pinnacle of a village's combat strength, but that didn't mean they were invincible.

This was something Yoruha had yet to grasp.

When Zabuza mentioned that Kurosuki Raiga had gone to ambush Yoruha, Kakashi was worried despite his faith in Yoruha's abilities.

Though Yoruha's raw strength had already surpassed that of a jōnin, his lack of real combat experience remained a significant weakness.

Who knew if Kurosuki Raiga might resort to underhanded tactics?

After all, ninjas were notorious for using any despicable or shameless means necessary to complete a mission.

In this regard, Yoruha lacked experience.

Many top-level shinobi in the ninja world had been assassinated, often by individuals weaker than them, using covert and dishonorable methods.

This was precisely what worried Kakashi.

Now that Yoruha was here, it meant Kurosuki Raiga had failed.

"Yoruha, hurry over to Naruto's side—something's happening over there!" Kakashi called out to Yoruha.

Yoruha glanced at Kakashi, then turned to Sakura and said, "Protect them. I'm going to check it out."

Sakura knew she couldn't contribute much, so she nodded. "Don't worry, I'll make sure they're safe."

Without another word, Yoruha turned and sprinted toward Naruto's location.

Meanwhile, Zabuza, who was engaged in combat with Kakashi, widened his eyes when he saw Yoruha.

"How is that kid here? What the hell is Kurosuki Raiga doing?"

After unleashing a jutsu, Kakashi said calmly, "Zabuza, things aren't as you imagined. My student is far stronger than you think."

"It seems even the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist can't defeat him."

Zabuza frowned deeply.

Yoruha's presence was entirely unexpected.

To Zabuza, no matter how talented Yoruha might be, he was just a genin—a mere rookie who had just earned the rank.

There was no way he could possibly defeat Kurosuki Raiga, a skilled elite jōnin.

Not to mention, Raiga had brought along two chūnin as backup.

Zabuza couldn't fathom how Raiga could have lost.

But regardless of his disbelief, Yoruha's presence here meant Raiga had failed.

Zabuza scowled in frustration. "That guy sure talks big. Saying he wouldn't even need ten minutes to kill that kid. Kurosuki Raiga is completely unreliable."

Turning his attention back to Kakashi, Zabuza sneered coldly. "I don't know why Raiga didn't stop that brat, but if that Nine-Tails kid has gone berserk, it'll be a major problem for you, Kakashi."

Kakashi glanced toward the distant surge of crimson chakra, his brows furrowing.

This was the most troublesome issue at the moment.

Now that Yoruha had arrived, the two of them could easily take down Zabuza together.

But with Naruto losing control, handling the situation would be far more difficult.

Kakashi vividly remembered the last time Naruto went berserk as a child. The fallout was catastrophic for the Anbu.

If not for the Third Hokage deploying the entire sealing team, along with the Anbu and several jōnin from the village, Naruto might have destroyed the entire village.

At the time, the Third Hokage had even considered using the Dead Demon Consuming Seal as a last resort.

Kakashi knew very well that if Naruto lost all reason and allowed the Nine-Tails to completely take over, it would be beyond his ability to contain.

He didn't want Yoruha heading to Naruto's side—it was far too dangerous.

But with Zabuza keeping him occupied, Kakashi couldn't break free.

Worry clouded his thoughts. Yoruha, you'd better be careful. If anything happens to you, how will I face Tōichi?

Kakashi couldn't bear the thought of Yoruha suffering any harm here.

After all, he had confidently promised back then that he would protect Yoruha while taking him out on missions.

"Here we go," Yoruha muttered as he quickly reached Naruto's location.

By now, Naruto's entire body was wrapped in the tailed beast cloak, and a tail had already emerged behind him.

"A tail has already formed... this is bad."

In his tailless state, Naruto's strength was roughly at the level of a jōnin. But once a tail appeared, his strength soared to that of an elite jōnin.

Of course, this referred to raw destructive power—when it came to combat experience, both he and the Nine-Tails still fell short of seasoned jōnin.

However, the sheer power Naruto was exhibiting at this moment was something most ordinary jōnin couldn't hope to withstand. Only elite jōnin like Kakashi, who had far superior combat experience, could suppress such strength.

Now, with Naruto in his one-tail form, the chakra emanating from him was enormous—so overwhelming that the pressure felt even more terrifying than that of a Kage-level shinobi.

This wasn't Naruto's chakra. It was the Nine-Tails' chakra.

Even Yoruha, as composed as he usually was, couldn't help but feel shocked.

He knew his own chakra reserves were already larger than Kakashi's.

After days of continuous growth, Yoruha's chakra levels had reached the Kage level.

But the amount of chakra Naruto was releasing now made Yoruha feel utterly outclassed.

"No wonder the Nine-Tails is considered the strongest of the nine tailed beasts, with the largest reserves of chakra," Yoruha thought to himself, impressed.

"If we don't stop Naruto soon and he manifests more tails, this situation could spiral out of control."

A Jinchūriki going berserk outside the village was not only a blow to Konoha's reputation but would become an even greater embarrassment if they failed to contain him.

Despite the immense threat Naruto posed right now, Yoruha had no choice but to intervene.

Sasuke was already lying on the ground, covered in blood.

Even Haku, who was nearby, was paralyzed by the overwhelming pressure of Naruto's chakra, unable to move.

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