LRAB Chapter 482 Reshaping the Worldview of the Konoha Youngsters
Chapter 482 Reshaping the Worldview of the Konoha Youngsters
Chapter 482 Reshaping the Worldview of the Konoha Youngsters
After an unknown amount of time, Choji, who was still unconscious, let out a muffled groan and slowly opened his eyes.
He felt a tearing pain all over his body, especially in his chest, abdomen, and arms, which burned with pain.
Before him were dappled shadows of trees and a somewhat dazzling sky. He turned his still dizzy head slightly and saw Shikamaru sitting next to him, as well as Yakumo and Tenten talking in hushed tones not far away.
"Shikamaru—" Choji's voice was a little hoarse and weak. He tried to sit up, but the force he exerted on his arm pulled on his wound, making him wince in pain.
"What's wrong with us?!"
"I think I was bumped into by a hedgehog?"
His last memory was of transforming into a "human bomb tank," charging towards the white-haired boy with the belief of crushing everything, followed by indescribable pain and darkness.
"Watch out." Shikamaru quickly reached out and pressed down on Choji's shoulder to stop him from moving around, while giving Tenten a look.
Tenten immediately understood, brought over the medicine bottle and water bag, carefully helped Choji up, fed him some water, and checked the bandaged wound.
"Don't move around, the bleeding has only just stopped." Shikamaru felt bad for Choji, seeing the pain furrowed on his honest face.
"We lost, Choji, we lost completely."
"Now—I suppose I'm considered their prisoner."
"Lost?" Choji blinked his still somewhat confused little eyes as his memories gradually returned. He remembered the boy covered in bone spurs, who looked like a monster, and the terrifying feeling of his own multiplied body being easily torn apart.
He looked down at the bandages wrapped around his body, then at the five humanoid puppets standing silently like statues not far away, and at Toneri, Kimimaro, Sasuke, and the others standing beside the puppets.
"Oh—" Choji responded sullenly, without much anger or resentment, but rather a sense of relief.
He is honest and simple by nature and dislikes fighting. In the face of an absolute difference in strength, if there is no life-or-death hatred, admitting defeat is not shameful.
He looked at Shikamaru and Ino with some concern: "Are you two alright? And what about Lee, Sakura, and the others—"
"Ino suffered a bit of mental backlash and needs to rest. Sakura is fine, just knocked unconscious. Lee is exhausted and unconscious, but Neji says he's alright." Shikamaru briefly explained the situation, then looked at Kimimaro and Toneri, raising his voice slightly.
"Next, we'll probably be going to the Star Kingdom with you, right? As prisoners?"
Kimimaro's gaze swept over Shikamaru, then looked at the Konoha members who were gradually waking up or regaining some of their strength. His voice was calm: "Lord Menma's order is an invitation. As for the specifics, you will understand when we arrive in the Land of Stars."
"Now, those who can move, prepare to leave. We should not linger here."
Shikamaru sighed, knowing that further discussion was pointless, and began to organize his remaining companions who were still able to move.
Although Choji's injuries were not serious, thanks to the stimulation of medicine and soldier pills, as well as the rapid recovery of the Akimichi clan's strong physique, he was able to move around with difficulty.
Ino's face was still pale, but she was able to stand on her own.
Sakura was feeling down and silently stayed by Tenten's side.
Xiao Li is still unconscious, being carried by a puppet.
Before long, Naruto and Neji returned to the hillside.
They seemed to have helped the young man who was giving the speech to basically stabilize the order of the refugee evacuation at the city gate, and most of the civilians in the city had also left.
Naruto's face still bore the sweat of his busy work and a hint of exhilaration, but when he saw Shikamaru and the others on the hillside with a somber atmosphere, that exhilaration quickly dissipated.
Upon seeing Naruto return, Shikamaru, Kiba, Shino, Tenten, and the others had very mixed feelings.
If Sasuke had defected, they could understand it to some extent.
After all, almost the entire Uchiha clan migrated to the Land of Stars. As an orphan, Sasuke's only option to find his clan and uncover the truth was to go to the Land of Stars.
However, Naruto's defection was somewhat difficult for his fellow classmates to understand.
Shikamaru and the others were unaware of Naruto's secret identity as the son of the Fourth Hokage and the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, but they could vaguely sense from the occasional sighs of their elders, the strange looks from the villagers, and the village's special attitude towards Naruto that Naruto's identity was anything but simple.
Even so, Naruto had grown up in Konoha for the past twelve years.
He's carefree, optimistic to the point of being silly, and constantly talks about becoming Hokage, gaining everyone's approval.
Unlike Sasuke, he did not carry the burden of a blood feud and yearn for the power of revenge.
Why did he choose to leave Konoha so decisively by "defecting"?
This question, like a bone stuck in his throat, made Shikamaru feel compelled to voice it.
"Naruto." Shikamaru stepped forward, arms crossed, his expression unusually serious and earnest as he looked directly into Naruto's still clear, azure eyes.
Can I ask you a question?
"Misunderstanding?" Naruto was about to go over and check on Sakura, and offer her some words of comfort, when he heard Shikamaru's words and paused, looking at Shikamaru with some confusion.
"Shikamaru, what do you want to ask?"
His attitude remained open and honest, as if he had no idea that he had done anything outrageous or caused any great trouble.
Shikamaru took a deep breath, organized his thoughts, and asked in a low voice, "Why did you choose to leave Konoha?"
"Or rather, leaving the village in this way."
"If you just want to find Menma to ask him some questions, or go see him, you can use other methods, such as applying for a mission, or at least discuss it with us, with Jiraiya-sama."
"Why leave without saying goodbye, and even—by joining Sasuke in a way that is tantamount to 'defection'?"
This question clearly reflects the inner thoughts of Kiba, Shino, Tenten, Sakura, and even the somewhat dazed Ino.
Everyone turned their attention to Naruto, including Neji and Kimimaro from the Land of Stars, who also looked over with a hint of curiosity.
The atmosphere at the scene became subtle and quiet because of this question, with only the whistling of the wind blowing across the hillside.
Feeling uncomfortable being stared at by so many eyes, Naruto scratched the back of his head, his golden hair becoming a mess.
He first glanced subconsciously at Sasuke, who was standing not far away with his arms crossed and expressionless, before he hesitated and said, somewhat uncertainly, "I—I don't know why either."
"At first, I just felt a tightness in my chest and really wanted to find Menma and ask him face to face what he was thinking and why he did those things—"
"Then I told the lecherous immortal, but he was very opposed and told me a lot of things like I shouldn't leave the village."
Naruto paused, a look of mixed memories and confusion on his face: "Then—that day Sasuke came to find me and said he would come with me."
"I don't know why, but at the time I just felt that if Sasuke was with us, everything would be fine."
"Moreover, Sasuke said that he wouldn't find the answers he was looking for if he stayed in Konoha."
So—I went with him.
After he finished speaking, the hill was quiet for a moment.
This answer surprised everyone, including Shikamaru who had asked the question.
It wasn't because of disappointment in Miyo, nor because of the pursuit of power, nor even because of Menma's "temptation," but simply because—
Sasuke came to him, and he agreed?
Such a massive defection sounds like child's play!
But looking at Naruto's confused yet matter-of-fact expression, everyone felt that this seemed to be in line with Naruto's usual way of thinking.
He's always been the kind of guy who prioritizes intuition over thought and values his companions over rules.
Shikamaru frowned, his doubts deepening rather than being resolved.
He looked at Sasuke, who remained indifferent, neither agreeing nor disagreeing with Naruto's explanation.
The relationship between these two seems to be far more subtle than their partners perceive.
It was as if an indescribable, invisible bond connected them and influenced their choices.
Neji and Kimimaro exchanged a glance, both seeing a hint of curiosity in each other's eyes.
Their orders were to meet Naruto and Sasuke. Now it seems that there is some strange connection and driving force behind their "defection," which they themselves may not even be fully aware of.
They were naturally unaware that there was a generational reincarnation and entanglement between Naruto and Sasuke, originating from the chakra of Ashura and Indra, the two sons of the Sage of Six Paths.
When one person makes a major life decision, the other's fate will inevitably be affected and pulled, like the two poles of a magnet, or like intertwined twin stars.
Just as Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha were, Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha, driven by some kind of destiny, have embarked on similar paths.
After resting and providing basic treatment and immobilization to the wounded, the group set off again, heading west towards the Star Kingdom.
Kimimaro, Neji, and Toneri formed a triangular formation, protecting the nine members of Konoha in the middle.
The five humanoid puppets were positioned at the rear and flanks of the group, guarding the perimeter.
When Rock Lee slowly awoke from the turbulence, they had already crossed the blurred border between the Land of Fire and the Land of Rivers and officially entered the territory of the Land of Rivers.
As soon as Lee woke up, he struggled to get up, but Shikamaru and Tenten quickly held him down.
"Xiao Li! Don't move! You just fainted from exhaustion and need to rest!" Tian Tian said anxiously.
"Neji! I want to fight you again! I'll definitely win this time!" Lee ignored him, his eyes searching around. When he saw Neji's back not far ahead, he shouted passionately, even though his voice was still a little weak.
Shikamaru sighed and placed a hand on Lee's shoulder: "Lee, listen, healing your injuries and restoring your strength is what you should be doing right now. If you want to challenge others, there will be plenty of opportunities in the future. Don't be reckless at this time."
Perhaps it was Shikamaru's unusual seriousness that had the effect, or perhaps his body was still genuinely weak, but Lee, though his face was full of resentment, finally quieted down, only muttering to himself, "Youth allows for failure, but I will definitely defeat Neji!"
He was passionate, but not foolish. He knew that the current situation was beyond his control, and that getting back into shape was the right thing to do.
The procession continued onward.
As they ventured deeper into the heart of the land of rivers, the scene before them gradually sank everyone's hearts. The horrific sights they had witnessed in Fukuyama Castle seemed to be merely the tip of the iceberg of this land of suffering.
As far as the eye could see, there were vast stretches of cracked, barren land.
The farmland, which should have been lush and green, is now only covered with dry, blackened straw, pointing forlornly to the sky.
The river had dried up, revealing a grayish-white riverbed and the skeletons of dead fish.
Along the roadside, the once lush forests have become sparse and withered. Many trees have been stripped of their bark, revealing pale trunks, and their roots have been dug out, leaving behind pits.
What's even more shocking are the people on the street.
Countless emaciated and ragged refugees, like soulless walking corpses, staggered numbly westward along the main road.
Some of them were pushing dying elderly people in wheelbarrows, some were women holding babies who were too hungry to even cry, and many more had blank stares, dragging their leaden legs with only the instinct to survive.
Along the roadside, corpses could be seen lying dead from time to time, left uncollected, quickly rotting under the scorching sun, emitting a nauseating stench that attracted crows to peck at them.
Even when passing through a small refugee settlement, they witnessed firsthand a tragedy in which people had completely lost their humanity due to hunger.
Several emaciated men were fighting and tearing at a recently deceased, equally small corpse, their eyes gleaming with a wild, beast-like green light.
The sight sent a chill down everyone's spine, including Shikamaru and Kiba, who had been through many missions, and made their stomachs churn.
"Ugh—" Sakura was the first to not be able to hold back, covering her mouth and running to the roadside to dry heave, her face as pale as paper.
Tian Tian rushed over to support her, even though her own complexion wasn't much better.
Ino closed her eyes tightly, her body trembling slightly.
Choji watched the refugees scrambling for the corpse, and especially when someone was licking a human bone, he gagged.
The red ball on the top of the tooth barked uneasily.
Shino pushed up his sunglasses, his silence terrifying.
Even the most passionate Xiao Li stared wide-eyed at the scene that looked like it had crawled out of hell, his lips moving but no sound coming out.
Naruto clenched his fists so tightly that his nails dug deep into his palms, his azure eyes filled with shock and anger.
And an indescribable sadness.
This stark despair and cruelty was far worse than what Naruto saw in the Land of Waves!
Konoha is like a carefully protected greenhouse, while the outside world is a living hell with starving people everywhere.
Soon after, they arrived outside a relatively prosperous city in the central part of the River Country.
The towering city walls and rows of arrow towers demonstrate the city's defensive strength.
However, the city gates were tightly closed at this moment, and the city walls were filled with fully armed warriors holding longbows and crossbows. They looked vigilant, as if facing a formidable enemy.
Beneath the city walls, a much denser concentration of refugees had gathered than on the road!
The number could be as high as tens of thousands!
They swarmed like gray ants in front of the city wall, stretching all the way to the edge of the distant woods.
Cries, pleas, and curses merged into a sea of despair.
"Open the city gates! Please, gentlemen, give us some food!"
"The child is starving! Please have mercy!"
"We are citizens of the Land of Rivers! Why won't you let us in!"
"Fire! Anyone who comes near will die!" the nobles on the city wall shouted sternly. The archers drew their bows, and the cold arrows were aimed at the refugees below.
However, no matter how much the refugees below cried and begged, and even when some tried to ram the city gate with their bodies, the heavy city gate remained unmoved, like an iron wall separating the two worlds.
The nobles and warriors on the city walls coldly looked down at the famine victims struggling like ants below, showing no sign of opening the city gates or distributing food.
Naruto and his group landed on a desolate hill in the distance. Gazing at the apocalyptic scene, they were filled with a profound sense of powerlessness and desolation.
Although they were ninjas with superhuman strength, their individual power seemed so insignificant in the face of tens of thousands of people trapped in dire straits, and in the face of the oppression and indifference stemming from the entire social structure.
Sakura covered her mouth, tears silently streaming down her face. This was not only because of the terrible scene before her, but also because it had shaken and made her deeply doubt her understanding of herself, ninjas, and the world.
She always thought that becoming a powerful ninja, carrying out missions, and protecting the village was everything.
But now————
"These people—" Naruto's voice was hoarse, and he was panting heavily.
Neji Hyuga walked to Naruto's side and stood beside him. Looking down at the despairing crowd below, he slowly said, "They are all refugees affected by this once-in-a-century drought."
"According to the latest assessment by the Star Kingdom's meteorological department, this extreme drought has affected the central and western parts of the Fire Kingdom, the central and northern parts of the River Kingdom, and parts of the eastern part of the Star Kingdom. At least three million civilians have been affected, of whom more than one million have been displaced and become what you see now—the disaster victims."
"Three million people—one million people—" Naruto repeated these numbers in a low voice, each number like a heavy hammer pounding on his heart.
He couldn't imagine what kind of scale that was.
"Then...is no one going to take care of them?" Naruto turned to look at Neji, a sliver of unrealistic hope still lingering in his eyes.
"Those nobles, those great lords, aren't they the ones who govern this land? Surely they have grain in their granaries?"
""
"Control?" Neji's lips curled into a sarcastic sneer. He turned his gaze to Naruto: "Wasn't what you saw in Fukuyama Castle exactly how they 'control' themselves?"
"For nobles, the grain in their granaries was their private property, their wealth, and the guarantee of their enjoyment. For famine victims without food, letting them starve to death or succumb to disease was the most 'cost-effective' option."
"If the disaster victims dare to gather and cause trouble, threatening their rule and order, then sending out warriors and troops to suppress them is the most effective means."
"In their eyes, the lives of these civilians are not even worth as much as a guard dog in their castle."
Neji's words, like a cold knife, peeled away layer by layer the employment relationship between nobles and ninjas that Konoha had taught Naruto and the others, revealing the cruel nature of this world.
Naruto felt a chill run down his spine, his fists clenched so tightly they cracked, a burning rage raging within him, yet he didn't know how to vent it, or who to vent it on.
The world he knew, the world he dreamed of where "everyone could live with a smile," seemed so naive and distant in the face of such a cold and dark reality.
Shikamaru, Choji, Ino, Kiba, Shino, and the others were all solemnly digesting Neji's words and the living "teaching material" before them.
The ninja clans they came from had more or less intermarriages with the nobles of the Land of Fire, but they were taught from a young age to be loyal to the daimyo.
Seeing their blatant disregard for human life has a tremendous impact on their worldview.
At this moment, the attendant also came over.
"However, these disaster victims are not entirely without a way to survive."
Upon hearing this, Naruto and the others all looked at him.
Sheren continued, "As long as they continue westward, through this death zone, and into the borders of the Star Kingdom, they—can survive."
"The Land of Stars?" Naruto suddenly looked up, a glimmer of light rekindling in his eyes, and asked eagerly, "Will the Land of Stars take care of them? Will they give them food and shelter?"
Toneri turned to Naruto, a faint smile on his face.
Of course.
Sheren's voice was gentle: "Dozens of disaster relief and resettlement points have been set up on the borders of the Star Kingdom. As long as you enter the Star Kingdom, you will undergo basic registration and quarantine, and if you are confirmed to be free of malignant infectious diseases, you will be able to obtain enough food to sustain your life, clean drinking water, warm clothing, and temporary shelter."
"These refugees will also be organized to participate in work-for-relief programs, such as building water conservancy projects and roads, and reclaiming new land. The elderly, children, and patients who have lost their ability to work will also receive basic relief and medical care."
"This is a responsibility that the nation must bear, as stipulated in the Star Kingdom's Basic Livelihood Guarantee Law and Disaster Emergency Response Regulations."
The words of the hermit depict a world completely different from the hellish scene before his eyes.
A world full of hope.
The expressions on Shikamaru and the others' faces became incredibly complex.
They saw clearly what the nobles of the Land of Fire and the Land of Rivers did in the face of natural disasters.
If what the servant said is true—
For these twelve or thirteen-year-old boys and girls, the good and evil, right and wrong of the world will become incredibly clear and distinct.
Neji looked west, towards the Land of Stars, and said slowly, "Let's go. About fifty kilometers ahead, we'll see the eastern border of the Land of Stars."
"At that time, you can see for yourselves how the Star Kingdom treats these refugees."
"Look there, and at this place, at Konoha, at the Land of Fire, what are the differences?"
His words stirred something within everyone.
Even though their trip to the Star Kingdom was involuntary, an impulse to verify and experience it firsthand began to quietly grow in their hearts.
Just as everyone composed themselves and prepared to continue this thought-provoking journey to the west, which was full of shock and inspiration...
Kaguya Kimimaro, who had been silent all along, suddenly paused slightly, turned her head, and looked in the direction they had come from.
"What's wrong?" Neji keenly noticed his unusual behavior and asked.
"It's the Anbu's pursuit force." Kimimaro withdrew his gaze, a hint of killing intent creeping into his voice. "Shikamaru and the others were probably the first to try and persuade them to turn back. The ones arriving now are the real pursuit force responsible for handling the mission."
Shikamaru and the others felt a chill run down their spines.
Is Konoha's Anbu finally coming?
Neji and Toneri looked at Kimimaro.
Kimimaro stretched his neck, making a slight "crack" sound, and then said to Neji and Toneri, "You two escort them onward, I'll take care of these tails."
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"I'll be back soon."
His tone suggested he was about to deal with a few stray dogs.
"Be careful, there might be more than one team on the other side, and they could very well have connections," Neji warned.
"Hmm." Kimimaro simply responded without saying anything more.
His figure flickered and vanished from the spot in an instant.
On the hillside, only the sound of the wind and the faint, desperate cries of the disaster victims could be heard from afar.
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