Naruto: Passerby and Returnee

Chapter 345 Holiday Plan

Following last year's pattern, "Golden Wheel" was given another long holiday. Last time, the main person who tried to persuade them was Aunt Mikoto, who was worried about the children. This time, the most enthusiastic ones were the Senju brothers, who were about to work overtime. This made the suspicious Izuna scrutinize them with a probing look for a while, but in the end, he let them off the hook and didn't ask them anything.

However, Naruto this year is not as easily fooled as he was last year. He has not returned to Hokushin in his original form and is determined to spend this festival in Konoha.

"Don't worry too much, Granny Tsunade still has a conscience; she didn't assign me any extra tasks this year." Jinlun sat upright in his office, yawning. "However, we do need to be careful with this snow. It's better if I stay in Beichen; just in case something really happens."

“If anything goes wrong, we’ll definitely report it via telepathy. We’ll know whether you’re here or not.” Izuna was still pressing on a stack of documents, silently struggling with his hand that was trying to pull them out. “Signal towers are prone to malfunction in snowy weather. Even if they can send, the received signal is very weak, and important information is easily lost. In some extreme environments, telepathy is still an irreplaceable real-time communication method.”

"But my presence or absence makes a difference. Working overtime with a leader always makes me more motivated," Jinlun said, withdrawing his hand as if in resignation, but his words were anything but weak.

That makes sense, but who would willingly work overtime? Naruto is an oddball, though. Even though he's on leave, he still insists on going to work.

"...You can sit, but you're not allowed to look at anything." Izuna took a small step back.

"But the information will be sent to me."

"I'll come pick it up after I've finished approving it!"

"Then I'll write down some plans..."

"No! Sitting down is the limit!"

"But even if I don't write here, my true form will still be writing in Konoha."

"Shut up, or I'll send you back to Konoha." Izuna's smile was quite sinister, giving the impression that he would plunge a knife into the other person's head at any moment.

Is it because they are young and easily fooled that they were put in that position and therefore worked particularly hard?

Izuna actually knew that wasn't the case.

If Naruto were merely a law-abiding individual, he would never have been able to build such a massive multinational organization. Before Hikaru's birth, he had never seen such a large organization that thrived not through blood ties or self-interest, but solely through passion and a seemingly impossible dream.

This is a miracle, and the creator of this miracle is also a miracle. No one dares to imagine what Hui would become without the "Golden Wheel."

Will it crumble overnight, or will it carry on the dreams of its predecessors and continue to move forward?

Naruto isn't truly obedient. Even during his last vacation, he managed to find something to do halfway through, and afterwards he wrote an investigation report. It's impossible to tell if he went on vacation or conducting research. The high-intensity work makes even the supposedly tireless Edo Tensei (reincarnated) sleep like a normal person, so how much energy does Naruto, a living, breathing human, need to exhaust to manage such a large organization?

The Uzumaki clan possesses incredibly strong vitality, and with the added benefit of being the Nine-Tails' Jinchuriki, Izuna had never worried about Naruto's health until six months ago. However, Tobirama's unusual abandonment of many important projects and his single-minded focus on biotechnology aroused his suspicion. Moreover, for the past six months, Tobirama had been intentionally preventing Naruto from being on the front lines, and during the New Year holidays, he was a staunch advocate for a break, having already read through Konoha's intelligence and preparing to replace Naruto at any time.

All of this is very unusual, and it all points to one possibility.

His bright red eyes peered through the glass, and the person at the desk was already writing and drawing. Shadow clones couldn't be detected, and the Sharingan, unlike the Byakugan, couldn't see through things; he could only see the usual, stable, and powerful flow of chakra.

Hopefully he's overthinking it. This kid absolutely can't die. He still wants to... go down to his brother and brag about it, and then wait for the kid to come down so he can introduce him to someone.

"You want to go to the Land of Demons?"

The first day of the new year is a time for relatives to visit each other. Last year, due to special circumstances, Shikamaru had to come in early to work overtime. This year, things should return to normal. Apart from Iruka-sensei, he, being all alone, shouldn't have anyone coming to visit. However, Naruto, who was unusually lounging at home, was woken up by a knock on the door at noon. He wondered why Sakura and Tenten were here so early, only to receive this request.

"We've already made plans with Shion to visit her during the New Year." Sakura came over carrying two bags of lunchboxes, skillfully separating the contents and preparing to heat up the food.

"Let me handle this," Naruto, who had maxed out his survival skills to grow up properly, immediately spoke up. "There's no reason to let the guests do the work."

"Shikamaru said you've been wearing too many layers lately, and feeling cold is one of the signs of declining physical health. You need to eat something nutritious." Sakura glared at him with considerable force. "Follow the doctor's orders and stay out of the way."

Naruto blinked, too afraid to speak, lest Sakura suddenly decide to check him out—he hadn't even had a chance to use genjutsu today. So he moved back to the dining table and started brewing tea on the heater.

"You actually have such good tea at home?" Tian Tian was helping out, but the open kitchen couldn't completely block out the aroma. She followed the scent and took a look, and was a little shocked.

Naruto would never admit that he bought it specifically to support his own products, and he chuckled dryly, "I bought it during a promotion, it wasn't expensive at all."

"I just feel... you and tea are completely incompatible." Tenten looked Naruto up and down and commented.

Really? He thought it tasted pretty good, probably because he's drunk it so often on various occasions that he's gotten used to it.

Sakura's meal was quite substantial, though some dishes weren't very visually appealing due to the limitations of the lunchboxes. Worried it wouldn't be enough for the three of them, Naruto contributed some of his stockpile. He had a lot of semi-finished products, the result of his "canned food project" launched a year ago. They were easy to make, and he quite enjoyed them. However, in pursuit of the original flavor, they contained relatively few additives, resulting in a shorter shelf life; they weren't yet suitable for desert conditions.

As they ate and chatted, they learned that Team Guy had already planned a team-building activity, Sakura was going to bring Ino along, and Tenten would most likely bring Hinata. However, none of these people were there today because they were either tied up with large groups of relatives or too engrossed in training.

"There are so many people, aren't we going to report this to Granny Tsunade?"

"I'm not asking you to submit a report, so you'll definitely agree, right?"

"..."

These kids are really something... It's good for them to go out more; they'll definitely be surprised.