Naruto: Passerby and Returnee

Chapter 341 Snowfall

"It's snowing again. Winter came really early this year."

"It's a bit early; in previous years, it wouldn't fall until at least the middle of the month."

"Ugh, I hate snowy days."

"Why are you so annoying, you office worker? It's just a few steps. If all else fails, you can use your chakra to protect yourself."

"Don't we still have to walk?"

As the group was engrossed in their conversation, their vision suddenly blurred, and a figure wrapped up tightly appeared out of thin air.

"Greetings, Naruto-sama!" The honorifics were sparse, and the group was clearly caught off guard by Naruto's sudden appearance.

"Good morning~" Naruto nodded, walked a few steps to his desk, picked up a document from the newly stacked scrolls, and soon got into work mode.

This is the main office of the mission allocation department. Naruto's official position remains unchanged, but his work is clearly becoming increasingly unrelated to the mission allocation department. Sometimes, people can even see the secretary carrying a stack of documents to deliver Hokage documents running towards him.

The group of people stopped chatting, quickly gathered their lunchboxes from the corner, and ran back to the cafeteria to continue their conversation in another spot.

"No matter how many times I watch it, I still want to say, Flying Thunder God is just so convenient!"

"Keep your voice down."

"I didn't say anything bad about you."

"Naruto-sama is getting busier and busier. He used to walk to and from get off work, and if he was in a good mood, we could even have a meal together. Now, we don't see him move an inch when we walk by every day."

"What do you know? That's called being on the verge of great success. I think the Hokage is practically treating him like Hokage. Look at the insignia on those official documents on his desk; those should all be on the Hokage's desk."

"You're overthinking it. How could it be possible in less than ten or eight years? No matter how strong Naruto-sama is, he's only fifteen years old. Have you ever seen a Hokage this young?"

"What if? Who will you vote for then?"

"Oh dear, are you out of your mind from being frozen? We little ninjas don't have the right to vote."

"This is just a hypothetical situation! If it were me, I would definitely vote for Naruto-sama, just because he works overtime every day but doesn't drag us down with him."

"Um... your voting criteria are really peculiar."

"If it were me, I would vote for Lord Kakashi. In terms of the number of missions completed, Lord Kakashi is far ahead of everyone else!"

"...Didn't any of you consider that it was most likely Jiraiya-sama?"

"I admit that Jiraiya-sama is indeed very powerful and famous throughout the ninja world, but doesn't our Naruto-sama have the same strength? Support the leader, don't you understand?"

"Alright, in the end, we still have to wait until the Hokage is replaced again. What's wrong with Lady Tsunade? Why do you want her to step down?"

"It's just a temporary illusion, why take it so seriously?"

They arrived early, and the cafeteria was almost empty. The group sat around a table and chatted freely while no one was around, which helped to dispel some of the winter chill.

Large offices have their downsides. Although the entire building has heating, the larger the space and the more windows, the less effective it becomes. Ninjas are generally not used to wearing too many layers. Even without mission requirements, they prioritize mobility based on their professional habits. Maintaining chakra protection throughout the day is very tiring, so most people would choose to keep warm intermittently, just enough to avoid getting cold.

However, Naruto, who was nestled in his office chair, was fully armed with cotton pants, a jacket, and a hat. Even so, he still had to keep a rechargeable hot water bottle by his side and touch it every now and then.

"Good morning... Have you had breakfast yet?" Shikamaru greeted him listlessly, his eyes showing faint dark circles.

"I've already eaten. What, were you out stealing yesterday?" Naruto teased.

"It's all your fault. You said you were about to abdicate and told me to be prepared at all times, which scared me so much that I went to play shogi with my dad all night."

Naruto laughed irresponsibly. He knew that Shikamaru liked to play Go with Shikaku whenever he couldn't figure something out. They would play and make sarcastic remarks at the same time, without wasting any time.

"Have you come up with any rules?"

"...No. My father thinks I'm not up to the task yet and I have to wait another two years. The fact that you've managed to hold on is a testament to your ability." Shikamaru looked at Naruto with a melancholy expression and said, "I'm sorry to trouble you to hold on for a few more years and not give in to the Hokage so quickly."

"This is such a hassle."

Naruto laughed even harder, but his smile had a hint of schadenfreude about it. "This isn't up to me. Granny Tsunade has been short-handed for a long time. Stop thinking about it, Konoha's future strategist, go eat your food."

Shikamaru walked away listlessly, but then suddenly turned back halfway and asked, "By the way, is it that cold today? You're wearing so much."

"We also have to consider the temperature at night, right? I almost froze to death when I got home late last night."

Naruto gave his explanation without even looking up, his eyes glued to the official documents.

"This winter is unusual; it's snowing in the desert region, and it's only mid-December, not even the coldest time yet."

"Have you prepared the emergency plan? We've never encountered a snow disaster before, and we have absolutely no experience with it."

"Should we ask the people of the Land of Snow?"

"Before we took over, that area didn't do any disaster relief at all, so where did we get our experience?"

"Being able to summarize some experience in surviving snowy weather is better than being unprepared at all."

"It's unbelievable how we always seem to run into all sorts of terrible things."

"Don't we see ghosts every day?"

"...I cannot refute it."

"With such a vast territory, anything can happen. I can't even imagine how busy we'll be if we really do own the whole world."

"Even Lord Jinlun hasn't complained. Can our workload compare to his?"

"...Forget it, let's get back to work. Quickly recommend some places that snow heavily often so I can apply to visit them."

As the start of the workday approached, the office building in Beichen was bustling with activity. Most of the people coming and going were chatting about their upcoming work and livelihood issues, a stark contrast to the relaxed atmosphere in Konoha.

Konoha has basically stopped accepting missions from outside, and everyone is happy without the worries of work. Hui, on the other hand, is in a different situation. The more extreme the weather or the major holidays, the more vigilant they need to be, ready to deal with any emergencies.

Of course, it is still very necessary to balance work and rest. They will still have holidays during the New Year period, but the way they take holidays is usually by taking turns to make up for lost time, rather than having a collective holiday on the actual holiday.

At that moment, they were unaware that someone they had inadvertently mentioned was standing at the corner of the stairs, reaching out to catch a falling snowflake.

It rarely snows in the area where Beichen is located; you might not even see white all year round. But this year, the snowflakes have actually accumulated, which is indeed quite unusual.

"I wonder if the clouds used for snowfall can be dispersed?"

"...I don't seem to be able to think about these questions either."