Naruto: Passerby and Returnee

Chapter 219 The Wonderful Holiday Passes By in the blink of an eye

"Here you are, your sweet shrimp sushi~" Even surrounded by a dozen hungry mouths, the owner calmly hummed a song.

"Thank you." Itachi took the plate rather awkwardly, his whole body seemingly lost in thought.

Zhu Nan's team, who were in a hurry, were the first to arrive. They sat in the innermost seats. Because Kisame's figure was blocking the view, Kisame was leaning against the wall, while Itachi was sitting on the outside.

What started as a simple show of food and a chance to observe the target up close turned into a surprise. The second group of customers wasn't the usual group from the Land of Earth, but rather two men and a woman. Itachi froze upon seeing the woman; her striking resemblance to his mother nearly made him lose his composure as a ninja. He quickly lowered his head when she looked at him, avoiding her gaze. Coincidentally, the woman sat just one seat away from him; the seat between them was empty.

Itachi tried to mentally prepare himself for a while but couldn't lift his head. However, time wouldn't wait for him; the third group of guests arrived. There were six of them, and the empty seats were just enough, but no one wanted to be separated from their companions. So the second group of guests politely moved over, and the woman sat down right next to him.

"Is something wrong?" The gentle voice sounded a few years younger than he remembered. Itachi finally dared to look up and was met with a woman who looked remarkably like his mother, her expression slightly worried.

"No, I'm fine." Itachi forced a smile.

"Sorry for being abrupt, my child is about your age, so I'm used to it." The woman took out a small bag from her purse. "If you're not feeling well after eating seafood, you can try some ginger candy. I happened to bring a lot, so I'll give you some."

"...Thank you." Unable to utter the words of refusal, Itachi accepted the small bag, barely the size of his palm, his hand under the table almost clenching until it bled.

Mother, has it been you who came back to see me?

"Is this stuff... really delicious?" Taki, sitting on the edge, couldn't help but ask. He was the only one of the six people sitting with the other guests, and as the dishes were served in order, he had naturally seen the whole process of the person next to him eating the raw salmon sushi.

"Absolutely amazing!" The person next door, who seemed like an outgoing and sociable fellow, gave a thumbs up, then covered his nose and took a big gulp of water. "The only downside is that you can't use too much wasabi, it's too pungent..."

Yuhe, who was sitting one seat away, leaned out and asked excitedly, "Do you eat here often? Can you recommend a place?"

“Yuhe, manners.” Fengcheng, the teacher, pulled back the impetuous student. “I’m sorry, sir, this child is rather lively.”

"It's okay. As for seafood, I recommend sea cucumber and sea urchin, but it's not the best season for sea urchin now."

"Oh, you really are a discerning customer. We'll have to order you some more food."

"Haha, not at all, I just ate a lot for a while."

Mealtimes are always pleasant, and during the meal, Fengcheng noticed that the person who had initially struck up a conversation with them seemed to be no ordinary person. Leaving aside his demeanor, his knowledge was astonishingly vast. He could speak of delicacies from all over the country, and share his experiences tasting them. Most people couldn't visit that many places in their entire lives; how did he manage that? So Fengcheng tentatively chatted with the students about the recent incident, wanting to gauge the man's attitude towards the local government. The man listened while eating, and then suddenly asked:

Are you satisfied with the process?

“I’m very satisfied. This is the most efficient government I’ve ever seen, if his claim of three days isn’t a lie,” Feng Cheng replied.

"That's good."

The white-haired youth walked away lightly, not because he acted that way, but because his two companions each grabbed one of his arms and carried him away.

"What's that little weasel doing here? I didn't even disguise myself properly! What if he recognizes me?"

What are you up to now? Taking on jobs unsolicited won't do!

Would you believe me if I said this was an accident?

The two elders gave him a disbelieving look in unison, after all, he had too many criminal records!

"Shisui's in the group too. I thought your clone was looking for him, but there are so many people here. Are you protecting them? From Akatsuki?"

"Taking on assignments for the New Year? That's too much, Xiao! Being homeless and living a life of hardship is one thing, but working overtime during the holidays?!"

"This is really unexpected. Shisui probably knows this restaurant too; he thought it was delicious and came here. He didn't expect us to come here too. Also... Itachi is a wanted rogue ninja; it's dangerous for him to stay in one place..."

"No overtime allowed!"

The three people, who appeared to be getting along harmoniously, were actually having a huge internal argument, which was also heard by the three working overtime who could hear the group chat.

Izuna sternly rebuked Naruto for his troublemaking, angrily saying, "Someone in Wande City specifically requested to see you by name, it's that group of people, right? And you didn't even say a word, personally escorting them here?"

"...I just...saw injustice and couldn't control myself, and it was my clone who decided to save them."

Tobirama added, "Wasn't that you? Tell me, where's the plan? Get Izuna to find it."

[Um... in drawer number three, the sixth document.]

"You just wait!" Izuna said before muting himself. They were already familiar with this little fox's logic; it was straightforward and went straight to the right path.

As for what Feng Cheng thought when he saw Jin Lun three days later? He cried quite loudly.

In short, the day the holiday ended was just as abrupt as the day it began.

Tobirama tossed out a stack of lists, which looked a bit crumbly, but he tried his best to suppress his temper. "The work in Konoha is done. The list of problematic items and the corresponding evidence are all compiled. When you raid the houses, remember to be quick, accurate, and ruthless. Don't leak any information beforehand... Oh, this is for Tsuna."

Fugaku held a rather formal document, densely covered with writing. "We need to reconsider the work assignments. This is what I've been working on these past few days... I suggest you get a full medical check-up first; it's very important."

The mushrooms around Hashirama were practically growing onto the table. He said dejectedly, "I think that kid hates me... I'm so sorry, Naruto!"

Izuna returned last, and said with a beaming smile, "Akatsuki's mission failed, but they completed their mission to protect Taira no Chiaki, so they don't have to pay the penalty, just not the full amount due. Are you satisfied?"

For the first time, Naruto wasn't sitting up straight, and he had an urge to use the Flying Thunder God Technique to escape, but he still managed to maintain a smile and said, "Thank you, everyone, you've all worked hard."