Chapter 384: Muyue's Speed

"Since it was the Loulan Dragon Vein that sent you through time and space, try not to leave Loulan to avoid any accidents. I'll handle the rest." Muyue reminded them.

Taking Uzumaki Naruto to the Grass Country battlefield would make it easier to meet Jiraiya, but if they went too far and lost contact with the Loulan Dragon Vein, making it impossible to return, the trouble would be enormous.

Actually, for Muyue, having one more Uzumaki Naruto in the world was a good thing. That way, he wouldn't have to go out of his way to become Nagato's teacher; he could simply use his fifth disciple slot on Uzumaki Naruto.

Moreover, the current Uzumaki Naruto already had considerable strength. With Muyue's training and learning Sage Mode, he could become a huge asset directly.

But it wouldn't be so good for the other world. Losing Uzumaki Naruto's power would lead the ninja world toward an unknown outcome, so for now, the best candidate for Muyue's fifth disciple was still Nagato.

"I'll be careful, Big Brother Muyue. No matter the outcome, I'm very grateful to you." Uzumaki Naruto said gratefully.

Even if Muyue later told him there was no way to let him meet Jiraiya, Uzumaki Naruto wouldn't blame Muyue, because he knew Muyue must have tried his best and simply failed.

Even though it was their first meeting and they weren't from the same time, Muyue still chose to help them. Such a Muyue clearly wouldn't be someone who took promises lightly.

"We ask for your help, Lord Muyue." Yamato said respectfully.

The more he talked with Muyue, the more regretful he felt—such an excellent ninja, yet...

"You don't need to call me 'Lord.' Just call me Muyue. I'm not your senior or superior." Muyue said with a warm smile.

By age, Yamato was actually seven years older than him. No matter how you looked at it, Yamato didn't need to address him as 'Lord.'

"Alright, Senior Muyue." Yamato thought for a moment and replied.

He felt that just calling Muyue by name wasn't quite appropriate. After all, this was Kakashi-senpai's teacher and a ninja worthy of respect, so Yamato added an honorific.

Faced with Yamato's insistence, Muyue said nothing more and soon left the room.

Hearing the sound of the door opening and then closing, the three hiding in the closet breathed a sigh of relief.

Just now, afraid of being discovered by Muyue, they had barely dared to breathe and were extremely nervous.

Obito was about to open the closet door, but Kakashi stopped him.

Obito looked at Kakashi in confusion, but Kakashi shook his head. They only came out after three minutes had passed.

"After all, he's Muyue-sensei. We have to be cautious." Kakashi explained.

He was worried that the noise of them opening the closet door and stepping out might be detected by Muyue.

Obito scratched his head—this was indeed something Kakashi understood better. But Obito couldn't wait any longer. He nodded and ran over to Uzumaki Naruto and Yamato, asking:

"When exactly did Minato-sensei pass away, and for what reason?"

He had almost finished listening while hiding in the closet, but unfortunately was interrupted by Rin Nohara. Still, Obito didn't blame Rin Nohara—after all, she was kind-hearted Little Rin; what ill intentions could she have?

Yamato didn't answer Obito's question directly; instead, he looked at Kakashi.

Strictly speaking, Yamato had resolved himself to tell Kakashi everything, and then Kakashi said he would bear it all alone. So Yamato wanted to know Kakashi's current stance.

Kakashi looked at Obito's anxious face, then at Rin Nohara's worried eyes, and fell into deep thought.

He didn't want to involve Obito and Rin Nohara, because this was nothing good. Based on Kakashi's understanding of them, they would definitely feel a heavy sense of guilt.

"Just say it directly." Kakashi took a deep breath, walked over beside Obito, sat down, and said to Yamato.

Although he had wanted to shoulder everything alone, Obito and Rin Nohara already knew some things. If he drove them away now and later Kakashi failed to change history, with both Muyue and Minato dead, Obito and Rin Nohara would surely sink into endless self-blame.

"Captain Yamato, just go ahead and say it." Uzumaki Naruto also spoke up.

Now he could fully understand how Kakashi and the others felt, because just now he too had been eager to meet Jiraiya, tell him his future, and change the fate of Jiraiya dying while gathering intelligence.

"The Fourth Hokage died during the Nine-Tails' rampage. At that time, the war hadn't been over for long—only about a year had passed since the Third Great Ninja War that had swept the entire ninja world."

"This matter is highly classified, so I don't know much. I only know that the Fourth Hokage used his life to seal the rampaging Nine-Tails to protect the village." Yamato told everything he knew about the Fourth Hokage's death.

"The Nine-Tails... that's not..." Uzumaki Naruto looked at his own body in some shock—the Nine-Tails was inside him.

"That's right, the tailed beast inside your body." Yamato nodded and quickly reassured Naruto.

"Naruto, you don't need to blame yourself for this. It has nothing to do with you. It's the evil act of the tailed beast inside you."

Yamato felt it was unfair to place the crime committed by the tailed beast on the jinchuriki. When the Nine-Tails rampaged, Naruto had probably just been born; what did that have to do with him?

Uzumaki Naruto nodded seriously. Hearing that the tailed beast inside him was the culprit who killed the Fourth Hokage, he became even more determined to control the tailed beast's power rather than be controlled in a rampage.

"The Nine-Tails' rampage..." Kakashi silently memorized everything Yamato had said, planning to look up the relevant files when he returned.

"Tailed beasts" he knew something about; they were the war weapons of the five great nations. Each major ninja village had one or two tailed beasts. However, Kakashi really didn't understand the matter of a tailed beast going berserk.

"Asuma-senpai died shortly before we traveled through time. In our time, there was a ninja organization called Akatsuki. All members of Akatsuki were S-rank missing-nin from various ninja villages. They seized the tailed beasts from the major ninja villages. Asuma-senpai died at the hands of an Akatsuki ninja."

Speaking of Asuma's death, Yamato couldn't help but recall the times when he and Asuma would confide in each other at the izakaya. Thinking that he would never again go to the izakaya with Asuma, Yamato's eyes dimmed a little.

Since even the Fourth Hokage had been mentioned, Yamato decided to also mention Asuma. After all, Kakashi and the others were going to change history. If they could change Asuma's fate of death, then all would be well.

"A ninja organization made up of S-rank missing-nin." Kakashi thought for a moment, then simply took out a pen and scroll and wrote down everything Yamato had said on the scroll.

Since Asuma's death occurred not long before Naruto Uzumaki and the others traveled through time, it was still far away. To prevent forgetting, Kakashi chose to record it.

Kakashi engraved the three characters "Akatsuki" in his mind. He thought that he could eliminate Akatsuki before it had a chance to grow, which would save a lot of effort.

A ninja organization cannot be established overnight. According to Yamato's description, the Akatsuki of their time was already terrifyingly powerful, not caring in the slightest about offending the major ninja villages.

Kakashi boldly guessed that the later Akatsuki might already exist in the ninja world, but was still gathering strength.

"Could it be that the Nine-Tails' rampage that caused Minato-sensei's death was connected to Akatsuki?" Kakashi suddenly had a flash of insight, linking the Nine-Tails' rampage to Akatsuki.

Akatsuki's goal was the tailed beasts, so Konoha's Nine-Tails was naturally one of their targets. However, Konoha's strength was too great, so their plot did not succeed, only causing Konoha to lose some power.

Kakashi shook his head slightly, suppressing all the chaotic thoughts in his mind. He needed to obtain more information about the tailed beasts before continuing to think, otherwise it would just be baseless speculation.

"Let me confirm with you again: you know nothing about the matters of Muyue-sensei, Obito, and Rin." Kakashi looked into Yamato's eyes and asked.

Although Yamato had said before that he didn't know about Muyue and the others, at that time Yamato hadn't yet made up his mind to help him change history, so there was a possibility he had lied.

"I really want to help, but I truly don't know." Yamato said helplessly.

Since he had decided to change history, Yamato certainly wouldn't conceal anything, but he really didn't know about Muyue and the others.

"However, I can be sure that Muyue-senpai's death should have been earlier than the Fourth Hokage's. Most likely, he died in the Third Shinobi World War." Yamato thought for a moment and stated his speculation.

For an excellent ninja like Muyue, the only reason he had no fame in later times was that he died too early.

If Muyue had died after the war ended, given the abilities and charisma he displayed, Yamato would have at least heard of Muyue's name.

Kakashi's eyes flickered. Yamato's speculation was indeed very reasonable. War was too dangerous; even a strong person like Muyue would not prevail if surrounded by ninja forces.

"Damn war! I will definitely end the war!" Obito said through gritted teeth.

He had never liked war. His dream was to end war and become Hokage. Now that he knew Muyue might die in the war, Obito hated war even more.

Rin Nohara felt the same way. Her greatest dream was to make war disappear. At this moment, she was very dissatisfied with her own weakness. If she could become strong, then in battle, Kakashi and Obito wouldn't need to be particularly mindful of her safety.

"As for Rin and Obito, I'm not sure. It could be because of the Third Shinobi World War, or the Nine-Tails' rampage, or later wars with Iwa and Kumo." Yamato continued.

Compared to the powerful Muyue, Rin Nohara and Obito were younger, so Yamato found it hard to judge the time of their deaths.

After the Third Shinobi World War, the entire ninja world was not completely at peace. In fact, Konoha and Kumo fought for several more years before signing a peace treaty, and there were also conflicts with Iwa in between.

However, the intensity of those wars was not comparable to the Third Shinobi World War. A strong person like Muyue would not fall in such wars.

Moreover, Yamato was not very young at that time. If Muyue had lived until then, he would definitely have heard Muyue's name.

"Please tell me the details of the Third Shinobi World War." Kakashi said bluntly.

He had always prepared for the worst. Since Obito and Rin Nohara might also die in the war, he would assume that, without unexpected events, Team Muyue would be reduced to only him during the Third Shinobi World War.

Under such circumstances, Kakashi had to obtain more information about the war and then analyze when in the war they had met their end.

"I don't know much about it either, only the general idea." Yamato said somewhat awkwardly.

He had not participated in the Third Shinobi World War as a ninja; at that time, he was still undergoing secret training under Danzo.

And Yamato was not someone interested in history; he had not specifically studied the history of the Third Shinobi World War, so he didn't know much about it.

"Naruto, your ninja academy's history class should have covered this content. How about you tell us?" Yamato said to Naruto Uzumaki.

"Huh? The Third Shinobi World War? Did the school teach that? I don't know." Naruto Uzumaki replied with a bewildered look.

Obito looked at Naruto Uzumaki at that moment and felt a strange sense of familiarity; the sense of déjà vu was too strong.

"Naruto, let me ask you frankly: how are your usual theoretical results?" Kakashi glanced at Obito, then asked Naruto.

"Usually dead last." Naruto Uzumaki answered a little sheepishly.

Kakashi showed an expression of "as expected." Naruto's behavior just now was not just similar to Obito's; it could only be said to be exactly the same.

If it weren't for Naruto's surname being Uzumaki and his blond hair, Kakashi would have suspected Naruto had some connection to Obito.

Obito was dumbfounded—running into a complete deadbeat who knew nothing was just his luck. Right now, he desperately wished Uzumaki Naruto was a genius like Kakashi or Shisui, who could ace any test effortlessly.

Kakashi shifted his gaze back to Yamato. The deadbeat Uzumaki Naruto was clearly useless; although Yamato didn't know much either, any extra intel was better than none.

"During the Third Shinobi World War, Konoha fought against the four great ninja villages one after another, and the enemy invaded the Land of Fire multiple times." There was no other choice; Yamato had to recall and narrate the Third Shinobi World War as best he could.

He didn't know many details, but he still remembered some of the major events.

"Four great ninja villages!" Kakashi frowned involuntarily. He had thought Konoha being declared war on by three great ninja villages was already the limit; he never expected Sunagakure would also go to war with Konoha later.

This made Mugetsu's death in the Third Shinobi World War seem even more plausible. Facing so many powerful enemies, Konoha must have been severely lacking in combat strength, and as a strong shinobi, Mugetsu naturally bore greater pressure.

This made Kakashi even more anxious. His current strength was far too weak; merely being able to defeat an average jōnin wasn't enough to make any waves in a shinobi world war.

"Doesn't this mean all the great ninja villages are ganging up on Konoha? That's way too despicable." Obito really wanted to say to those great ninja villages, "If you've got guts, fight one-on-one."

"Although Konoha faced the most challenges, the other ninja villages weren't united against Konoha. While fighting Konoha, Kumogakure was also at war with Sunagakure, while Iwagakure was at war with Kumogakure. Even the Third Raikage died in the encirclement by Iwagakure's ninja forces," Yamato explained.

If the four great ninja villages had truly worked together to attack the Land of Fire and take down Konoha, how could Konoha have possibly held out? The Konoha of the Third Shinobi World War didn't have a power like the God of Shinobi.

Hearing Yamato say that the Third Raikage would die in the shinobi world war, Kakashi once again realized the danger and cruelty of war.

"Sorry, that's all I know." After talking for about five minutes, Yamato said apologetically.

He felt that if Kakashi-senpai had been the one to travel back, he could definitely help his past self change history. But him?...

Kakashi put away his pen, rolled up the scroll, and solemnly thanked him, "You don't need to apologize. We should be the ones saying that."

Kakashi was fully aware of how treasonous what he was doing was—he was actually trying to change history and alter fate.

If their actions failed and both Konoha and the shinobi world ended up in a bad result, then Yamato and Uzumaki Naruto would have done nothing and inexplicably become sinners of history. So Kakashi felt a bit sorry for them.

"Kakashi-senpai, please do your best. I believe you can succeed," Yamato encouraged.

If it weren't for the request coming from the Kakashi-senpai he trusted, Yamato's choice might have been different.

"Although Kakashi-sensei has a lot of bad habits, he's never let us down. I believe you, little Kakashi-sensei, will be fine. When the time comes, I'll treat Mugetsu-niisan and all of you to ramen," Uzumaki Naruto chimed in.

Uzumaki Naruto was starting to look forward to traveling back. He hoped that after returning, he could see that man who would break an ice pop in half and give him one; he hoped to see Mugetsu's warm smile again; he hoped that Mugetsu's team back then would still be as lively as ever.

"Don't make it sound like it's all up to Kakashi. He was once just my defeated opponent. Mugetsu-sensei, Minato-sensei, Rin, and Asuma—I will definitely create a future with them all!" Obito declared boldly.

He would protect everyone he cared about, all his friends. To achieve that goal, he was willing to give everything.

"Are you going to talk about that one win for the rest of your life?" Kakashi said, exasperated.

He felt that losing to Obito that time was a major setback in his life.

"Just say whether I won or not." Obito insisted that a win was still a win.

"You two…" Rin Nohara looked at them helplessly, "Hurry up and go to sleep. We still have to carry out the mission tomorrow."

Obito and Kakashi knew what was important. After a few bickering words, they each returned to their own rooms.

Things had to be done one step at a time. Although they bore the heavy burden of changing history, they first had to finish the mission at hand.

Uzumaki Naruto looked at Kakashi and Obito, recalling the time he had spent with Sasuke. Their teams were really too similar. But Sakura wasn't as gentle as Rin Nohara.

After the three left, Uzumaki Naruto and Yamato soon went to sleep as well.

The next morning, everyone began working hard on their own.

Kakashi and the other two continued investigating An Lushan; Naruto and Yamato searched for traces of Mukade; and Mugetsu went to seek help from the Queen of Loulan.

"Any findings?" the Queen of Loulan first inquired about Mugetsu's mission progress.

Mugetsu didn't answer the Queen of Loulan's question directly. Instead, he asked her a question of his own.

"The minister An Lushan is a ninja, isn't he?" Mugetsu asked.

The Queen of Loulan hesitated for a moment, then nodded.

Although Loulan had few ninjas, the Queen was not completely ignorant of the term "ninja."

"I did find out something. An Lushan's strength as a ninja far exceeds the scope of a B-rank mission," Mugetsu said calmly.

Although he hadn't investigated, and Kakashi and Obito hadn't found anything either, for Mugetsu, who was familiar with the plot, making up some intel on the fly wasn't a problem.

The Queen of Loulan was a very shrewd person; she immediately understood what Mu Yue meant. Her mission intelligence had been given incorrectly, leading to a mistake in the mission rank. In such a situation, the ninja carrying out the mission could simply walk away.

"Sorry, this was my oversight. I'm not very familiar with your ninja matters, and I didn't know what kind of strength he had among ninjas." The Queen of Loulan immediately apologized.

"I can add an additional commission fee." The Queen of Loulan then proposed a solution.

Seeing that she had successfully intimidated the Queen of Loulan, Mu Yue continued without changing her expression: "Aside from the commission fee, there's another issue, Your Majesty. Don't you have information about An Lushan that you haven't told us yet?"

The Queen's expression did not change as she replied, "No. If I knew that much, I wouldn't have asked you to help investigate."

She had indeed concealed a piece of information, but she couldn't reveal it because it concerned Loulan's safety and was also the secret behind Loulan's rapid development over the past two years.

The latter didn't matter much; the most important thing was the former.

Mu Yue quietly watched the Queen. After three minutes, she spoke: "An Lushan is a ninja from Sunagakure who is skilled in using puppet techniques. I discovered that he has secretly stockpiled many combat puppets. I have no idea what his purpose is."

"Combat puppets?" The Queen of Loulan's expression changed.

The information she had hidden was her previous cooperation with An Lushan.

Beneath Loulan lies a vast energy called the Dragon Pulse. However, this immense power is not uncontrollable. There is a probability that members of the Loulan royal family will awaken the ability to control the Dragon Pulse. The Queen of Loulan was one such awakener, and it was because of this ability that she became Queen.

In fact, it could even be said that it wasn't because the royal family had this ability, but because of this ability that they were the Loulan royal family.

Since An Lushan had displayed extraordinary abilities, the Queen of Loulan initially agreed to cooperate with him to develop the Dragon Pulse's energy and promote Loulan's growth.

Although An Lushan had always acted cautiously, he was ultimately a lawless rogue ninja. The perceptive Queen of Loulan sensed something was off and directly terminated the cooperation.

During this period, the Queen of Loulan kept an eye on An Lushan, but he showed no signs of abnormality, as if he were merely a Loulan minister devoted to development and the welfare of the people.

However, the Queen of Loulan trusted her judgment, so she eventually issued a mission to the ninja village to investigate An Lushan.

The efficiency of the ninjas exceeded her expectations; in just one day, they had made such a significant discovery.

"Additionally, there's another matter where I need your help, Your Majesty. Yesterday, I encountered another pair of comrades from Konoha. They had accepted a mission to capture a rogue ninja from Sunagakure. Their investigation revealed that the target seemed to have come to Loulan two years ago, so they rushed here to search and wanted to obtain some related information." Mu Yue continued.

Upon hearing Mu Yue's words, the Queen's expression changed again.

According to Mu Yue's investigation, An Lushan was a ninja from Sunagakure, and he had coincidentally arrived in Loulan two years ago.

Connecting the dots, the Queen immediately felt that An Lushan was the rogue Sunagakure ninja Mukade.

If it had been anyone else, the Queen would have been suspicious first, but Mu Yue was a ninja she had hired. Mu Yue had no reason to harm her; otherwise, Konoha's reputation would be ruined if word got out. After all, she was still a queen.

"I suspect that An Lushan is the rogue Sunagakure ninja Mukade." Mu Yue directly stated what the Queen was thinking.

"There aren't many rogue ninjas from Sunagakure, and even fewer are skilled in puppet techniques. It's highly likely that An Lushan is Mukade."

"I have a perception secret technique. Through it, I can sense a powerful energy beneath Loulan. Perhaps An Lushan has been staying in Loulan precisely to seek that power." Mu Yue followed up with her deduction.

The Queen could no longer remain calm. Her face drastically changed, and she stared at Mu Yue in shock.

Mu Yue had only investigated for a day, but based on her current performance, she seemed to know even more than the Queen herself.

Coupled with Mu Yue's earlier words, the Queen realized that her concealment had likely been seen through by Mu Yue long ago, but Mu Yue had spared her face by not bringing it up.

"I'm sorry. I did indeed conceal something." The Queen of Loulan bowed sincerely to Mu Yue in apology.

At this point, it was pointless to deceive herself any longer, so the Queen of Loulan chose to confess sincerely to Mu Yue.

"I truly didn't mean to harm you all. I hope you won't mind, but this matter concerns Loulan's safety." The Queen of Loulan explained.

"Beneath Loulan lies a power called the Dragon Pulse. This power is very strong, and only our Loulan royal family can control it. To prevent it from being coveted by others, this has always been Loulan's highest secret."

The Queen of Loulan didn't know how the Dragon Pulse compared for ninjas, but it was truly powerful for ordinary people.

Even a tiny, insignificant amount of Dragon Pulse energy could turn an ordinary person into a superhuman capable of fighting ten men alone. Of course, the consequences were also terrible—that person would die before long.

This was why the Loulan royal family could remain the Loulan royal family. By controlling the Dragon Pulse, they could raise a squad of superhuman suicide soldiers.

However, since the cost was too severe, the Loulan royal family rarely used the Dragon Pulse. After all, Loulan didn't have many people, and people themselves were valuable resources in Loulan.

"An Lushan and I cooperated once. I controlled the Dragon Pulse's power and gave it to him, and he used that power to help Loulan develop."

"But one day I noticed something was off about him, so I terminated our cooperation. Looking back now, it's probably because he was a rogue ninja before." The Queen of Loulan said with a sigh.

She had previously thought that heaven was blessing Loulan and that Loulan would begin to prosper from then on, but ultimately, there was no such thing as a free lunch.

"That makes sense now. An Lushan is probably really the rogue Sunagakure ninja Mukade." Mu Yue acknowledged.

He did not intend to waste too much time on this mission. Once he finished dealing with An Lushan, he would still have time to guide Naruto Uzumaki in his training.

"But An Lushan has a high reputation among the people of Loulan. I will continue investigating to find more evidence and then make it public," Muyue said finally.

He had only come today to expose all of An Lushan's secrets to the Queen, and did not intend to deal with An Lushan immediately.

If An Lushan couldn't handle it and self-destructed, then Naruto and the others might have to go back directly. Muyue would choose a suitable time to act.

Anyway, now that the Queen's side was no problem, they could act whenever they found a reason.

"That would be even better," the Queen of Loulan said with satisfaction.

At this moment, the Queen of Loulan's favorability toward Konoha greatly increased. Konoha ninjas were truly reliable—not only efficient but also considerate of their clients.

If she ever needed to hire people again, the Queen of Loulan's first choice would definitely be Konoha. Even if it was a bit more expensive, it didn't matter—Konoha ninjas were truly effective.

After bidding farewell to the Queen, Muyue went to study the Dragon Vein again.

As soon as he arrived, Muyue turned his perception to full power, activating everything like the Transparent World and Byakugan, plus the Enlightenment skill had refreshed, so he immediately used it on himself.

Perhaps because he was in the Enlightenment state today, Muyue experienced a different feeling from yesterday.

In his perception, that powerful energy source was closely connected to the land of Loulan, the two influencing each other.

This led Muyue to a conjecture: Could the Divine Tree absorb power by absorbing a force similar to Dragon Vein chakra from the planet?

If that were the case, then this Dragon Vein chakra shouldn't be used too much; overuse might cause all of Loulan to collapse.

After evening arrived, Muyue returned to the inn to regroup with the others and shared the results of his day's work.

"So that An Lushan is actually Mukade, just like you thought, Brother Muyue! He traveled to a time earlier than ours," Naruto said, looking at Muyue with admiration.

In his eyes, Muyue truly seemed all-capable. Based on today's results, Muyue's speculations from yesterday were almost entirely correct—he was practically prescient.

"Senior Muyue, you are incredibly fast," Yamato exclaimed in amazement.

They had another day with no results. Yamato had prepared for a prolonged battle, but unexpectedly, as soon as he returned, Muyue said he had found Mukade.

"So our missions are essentially one mission," Obito realized that they could now act together.

He wasn't too surprised—after all, this was Sage Muyue, so it was perfectly reasonable.

"Now we just need to defeat that An Lushan—no, that Mukade, right?" Obito said with an eager expression.

Kakashi shook his head and said, "Didn't you listen carefully to what Teacher Muyue said? This is just an inference based on the available information. We still need to conduct some investigations."

"After all, the other party has been building up power in Loulan for two years. Now that the enemy is in the light and we are in the dark, we can use this opportunity to get a clear understanding of their current strength before making a move," Muyue explained.

"We can also do some pre-battle training to boost our combat power."

Muyue briefly explained his plan: Naruto and Yamato would take turns fighting Muyue's squad to help him train his disciples, and then Muyue would guide Naruto and Yamato through the course of their battles.

Yamato's eyes lit up. Wasn't this a chance to openly beat up Senior Kakashi?

Additionally, the focus of this part of the story was not on fighting monsters, so the Mukade-related plot would end quickly.