bioinnovel Chapter 359 Talk-no-jutsu: Mengming is a true master, Menma is a true noob.
Chapter 359 Talk-no-jutsu: Mengming is a true master, Menma is a true noob.
Chapter 359 Talk-no-jutsu: Mengming is a true master, Menma is a true noob.
Naruto looked down at his fist, which was clenched tightly around Menma's collar, and then suddenly came to his senses.
He took a deep breath and slowly released his grip.
Without the support of being suspended in mid-air, Mianma's legs buckled, and he stumbled back two steps.
Just moments ago, Naruto was burning with rage, but now the fury on his face gradually faded.
His tense expression slowly relaxed, replaced by a complex yet peaceful look.
Naruto looked at Menma, remained silent for a moment, and then said, "I can roughly understand how you feel. Being looked at with strange eyes, being rejected, being isolated—I've experienced all of that too."
His voice was unusually calm, echoing through the silent woods as if he were telling someone else's story.
"Oh----"
Menma was taken aback at first, then tugged at his swollen and sore lip, and sneered, "Don't try to play dumb with me! Your father was the Fourth Hokage, the hero who sacrificed himself for the village. Even though he's gone, you're still branded as the son of a hero. With that status, haven't you enjoyed enough privileges in Konoha?"
"No." Naruto shook his head slightly, his expression becoming serious. "My background—everyone only recently found out. Before that, for a very, very long time, no one told me who my parents were."
"Son of a hero? Before that, I was just a loser, an orphan without parents."
"You—you don't know?"
"Your father was the Fourth Hokage—you didn't know that?!"
He shouted in disbelief.
Naruto nodded silently.
"Wh-what?!" Menma froze on the spot, his expression turning to stone in an instant.
Even with both his parents alive, he couldn't bear the rejection, isolation, and backbiting from the villagers of Konoha who treated him as a Jinchūriki. Every day was torture.
However, Naruto had no parents and no one to rely on since birth.
To face the malice of the entire world alone without anyone to protect you —
How did he manage to get through it all by himself?!
"Then—how have you—lived all these years?" Menma asked without realizing it.
At this moment, his tone was no longer aggressive; his voice was dry and full of shock.
Naruto scratched his head, giving an embarrassed smile: "You'll get used to it! Of course, it was tough at first—I even hid and cried in secret, but then I met Iruka-sensei, the perverted sage, Kakashi-sensei, Sakura, Sasuke, and so many other people who care about me—"
I didn't hear a word of what Mianma said after that.
Naruto's casual remark, "I'm used to it," kept echoing in his mind.
Habit?
He knew better than anyone the torment of those strange looks and isolated cold treatment, that fear and disgusted hostility.
He was trapped in that boundless darkness, and even with his parents to rely on, he often felt suffocated and angry.
And Naruto, he actually survived all alone from a young age with absolutely nothing?!
All his previous jealousy, superiority, and resentment now seemed pale and laughable.
Menma realized in a daze that what he hated was actually just another version of himself in another world who possessed the happiness he craved but could not obtain.
The real Naruto before us, however, does not possess happiness, but rather a situation a hundred times more cruel than his own.
After the initial shock subsided, what remained for Menma was a more complex and incomprehensible emotion.
He looked at the blond boy in front of him again. Growing up in that kind of environment, he did not fall into depravity, nor did he become a monster like "Menma" who was consumed by hatred.
On the contrary, he grew into such a cheerful, optimistic, and even somewhat naive guy, with a smile on his face that made people feel like they were basking in a spring breeze, and eyes so clear that people dared not look directly at him.
Just imagining that childhood of being helpless and facing the malice of the whole world alone sends a chill down Menma's spine.
However, Naruto not only survived, but also retained that purity and kindness—this guy is simply...
amazing.
Looking at the boy who had the same face as her, Menma suddenly felt a soft spot deep inside her being gently touched.
An indescribable pang of heartache quietly surfaced in his cold heart.
"Well, that's all in the past!" Naruto suddenly smiled and waved his hand, his voice instantly becoming relaxed. "I'm very happy now!"
"Because I can see my mom and dad in my dreams, talk to them, and feel their warmth. It's so wonderful! And also—"
He became more and more excited as he spoke, gesturing with his hands.
"There's another, incredibly awesome version of myself in my dreams!"
When Naruto mentioned his dream self, his face immediately lit up with undisguised admiration and pride, and his eyes sparkled.
"That 'me' was ridiculously strong, much stronger than I am now!"
"And he's incredibly reliable, and much smarter than me! He always manages to find a solution whenever we encounter trouble, and he's taught me so much!"
Naruto counted them off on his fingers as if they were his own treasures, his face beaming with pride.
"In short, my biggest goal right now is to become like Naruto someday!"
Menma quietly watched Naruto's smug expression as he portrayed another "self," listening to him lavish praise on the dream Naruto.
Powerful, reliable, excellent—it seems like all the best words in the world apply to that guy.
A sudden, indescribable bitterness welled up in Mianma's heart, making it difficult for him to breathe.
Is Naruto from another world really worshipped to this extent in this kid's heart?
"Hmph!" Menma couldn't help but snort softly, turning his head away and saying casually, "Him—he's a bit troublesome, that's true, but he's nothing special!"
"If it were a one-on-one fight, he would have no chance against me!"
"?" Naruto was taken aback, then turned around and looked Menma up and down.
His face was swollen and pockmarked, his clothes were tattered, he was covered in dust, and he looked utterly disheveled.
Naruto curled his lip, revealing a look of disgust.
"You're nowhere near as good as him! How can you compare?" He bluntly poked at Mianma's sore spot. "If it weren't for his help, the people of Konoha might still not know about my background, and they wouldn't accept and acknowledge me like they do now! He's done so much for me!"
"He did it?"
Menma was stunned by what he heard and was speechless for a moment.
Naruto puffed out his chest and continued, "Of course, he not only helped me find the evidence and revealed my background to the public, but he also taught me the Flying Thunder God Technique, although I'm still not very proficient at using it—"
As he said this, he couldn't help but scratch the back of his head and chuckle sheepishly. Then, he changed the subject and excitedly pointed to the dazzling golden chakra cloak he was wearing.
"And this! This power is a gift he left me!"
Naruto proudly raised his chin and concluded, "In short, he's way better than you!"
"But—but he's not a Jinchūriki, how could he possibly control the Nine-Tails' chakra?!"
With a wide-open eye, Mianma couldn't believe his ears and blurted out a rebuttal.
"So what?" Naruto retorted confidently. "He just knows a lot, is strong, and is incredibly reliable. He's much better than some other people!"
Naruto's unwavering trust in the dream Naruto left Menma utterly speechless.
Every single thing Naruto listed—revealing his past, gaining recognition, learning the Flying Thunder God Technique, and assisting in controlling the Nine-Tails—was precisely what Naruto most desired and what he had lacked in the past, and the other Naruto fulfilled all of it for him.
Mianma opened his mouth, wanting to argue, saying, "I can do those things too" or "That's nothing special," but when the words reached his lips, he couldn't utter a single one.
Because he suddenly realized what he had been doing since he came into this world.
A wave of heat surged through his numb face; his cheeks felt burning, as if he had been slapped hard again.
After a long silence, Menma finally spoke again: "I am indeed not as good as him now—but this is only temporary."
He gave a bitter smile, then bowed deeply, his face full of guilt and remorse.
"And—I'm sorry! I'm so sorry for all the rubbish I said and all the terrible things I did!"
Naruto's eyes widened slightly.
He never expected to hear an apology from Menma.
At this moment, Mianma hung his head, his fists dangling loosely at his sides, his lips pressed tightly into a line, and half of his face was swollen and bruised, looking both disheveled and dejected.
Naruto looked at him, the anger that had risen in his heart because of Kaori's injury had long since dissipated.
"Maybe—he's not so bad after all?" Naruto thought to himself, his expression softening.
In the shadows not far away, Itachi Uchiha quietly kept an eye on the commotion.
"This blond brat—" Itachi sighed inwardly. He had seen too many genius ninjas and too many souls who had fallen into darkness.
Naruto is not the most talented person, nor is he particularly meticulous; in fact, he often appears impulsive and naive.
However, he possessed a peculiar power that could shake even a dangerous and gloomy person like Menma.
No wonder Sasuke treats him differently.
Itachi's mind drifted to his stubborn and lonely younger brother.
Perhaps one day in the future, when Sasuke truly becomes powerful, he will indeed need such a partner by his side to pull him back from the cold darkness onto the path of light.
Just as Itachi was pondering to himself, Naruto's expression suddenly turned serious again.
After hearing Menma's apology, he not only refused to accept it, but stared intently at the other person, shook his head again, and said firmly, "No, your apology means nothing to me."
Beneath the Itachi mask, Menma's brow furrowed slightly, and a ripple finally stirred in his usually calm heart. Had I been wrong? Menma was stunned. The courage he had just mustered seemed to have been doused with cold water, and he stood frozen in place, helpless.
His apologetic expression stiffened again, and a look of confusion flashed in his eyes before dimming.
After a long silence, he forced a smile and said in a hoarse voice, "I understand—"
After all, he had gone too far before, so it's understandable that the other party wouldn't accept his apology.
Although this result stung Mianma's heart, he could only accept it with a bitter smile.
"No, you don't truly understand what I mean." Naruto took a step forward, staring directly into Menma's eyes, and said firmly, "The person you should apologize to most isn't me, but Kaori!"
Upon hearing this, Itachi suddenly understood, thinking to himself, "So that's how it is."
His face went numb, his pupils contracted, and his breathing became slightly sluggish.
He couldn't help but recall the scene of the battle just now; he had been so focused on interrogating the caster about their whereabouts, and then, after his identity was exposed by Xiang, he had become enraged and ashamed.
"Xiang—is she someone important to you?" Menma's voice was hoarse, but the previous hostility was gone.
Looking at Naruto's undisguised anxiety, he suddenly recalled what Naruto had said before.
Growing up alone, without parents, without any relatives —
Naruto nodded vigorously and said without any hesitation, "Kaori is my comrade, my clansman, and an important member of my family."
A sudden jolt ran through his chest as something soft pierced the depths of his heart, causing him to tremble involuntarily.
family----
By the way, this boy, who grew up in loneliness, finally found a girl from his own clan and cherished her like a treasure.
For Naruto, Kazekage was more than just an ordinary companion; she was the family he had longed for.
And yet, he himself had almost destroyed Naruto's most precious possession with his own hands.
Just thinking about this makes Mianma feel a chill run down his spine, and he feels like he's filled with deep regret.
He was silent for a moment, then exhaled a long breath, utterly powerless, and said, "—I lost."
At that moment, he completely let go of all his pride and hostility.
"I admit I lost this game."
He slowly turned around and said in a deep voice towards the direction where Uchiha Itachi was, "Take me back. I—I want to apologize to her in person."
This statement is both an admission of defeat and a disguised surrender.
Menma finally gave up her obsession with continuing to fight and investigate the truth behind the scenes, choosing to face the mistakes she had made and willing to pay the price.
Itachi Uchiha nodded slightly, but did not act immediately.
The next second, a ripple suddenly appeared in the surrounding air.
Immediately afterwards, the once tranquil forest scene shattered like glass, peeling away and disappearing in large pieces.
The dense forest, the dappled sunlight, the fragrance of the earth, the birdsong in my ears—all quickly faded into nothingness.
Mianma felt the scene before her eyes distort rapidly, then immediately regained its clarity.
Looking closely, he was shocked to find himself still standing on that familiar street in Konoha Village.
Beneath his feet were scorch marks and cracks left from the clash; all around him were familiar streetscapes; and in the distance, the statue of Hokage Rock stood majestically.
"This—!?" Mianma stared in disbelief.
He finally realized that he had never left Konoha at all from beginning to end!
How could they possibly take him away from here in such a short time?
As expected, it was all just an illusion!
A bone-chilling coldness shot up his numb spine and straight to the top of his head, causing him to shiver involuntarily.
When did the opponent use the illusion?
Why didn't he notice anything?
If Itachi wanted to, he could have killed him in the illusion, and he only realized it now.
A layer of cold sweat seeped from his forehead. He looked at the motionless cat-faced masked figure not far away with lingering fear, a deep sense of dread rising in his heart.
This man—
A terrifying monster!
Meanwhile, on the streets in reality, Kakashi gradually recovered.
He shook his groggy head, barely recovering from the dizziness caused by the backlash of the Mangekyou Sharingan.
Although his face was still somewhat pale, Kakashi forced himself to stand up and watched Menma's every move warily. He was clearly unaware of the conversation that had just taken place in the illusion.
Seeing that Itachi Uchiha had dispelled his genjutsu and Menma had calmed down, Kakashi breathed a sigh of relief and turned slightly to ask in a low voice, "Is everything alright?"
Uchiha Itachi nodded slightly, calm and composed: "Yes, it's alright, Naruto has taken care of it."
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