Naruto: Passerby and Returnee

Chapter 292 Clue Integration

Although the clues were pitifully few, the matter still had to be done.

After most of the day's conversation, Naruto quickly confirmed it. Yoru was an ambitious and idealistic person, but he still had significant shortcomings in his ability to handle matters. He was indeed very good at interpersonal relationships, and he was able to gather so much information even with this case full of obstacles, but in terms of information processing ability, one could only say... he was a little better than Naruto when he was a first-time Hokage, but not by much.

This is probably a problem of national limitations; even if someone receives a good education, there are still things they can't access. They have absolutely no experience or clues when faced with a missing persons case involving over ten thousand people.

Naruto had a great time chatting with the other person and figured out their background, but the audience was completely surprised and their understanding of Naruto was refreshed.

I initially thought Naruto's expertise was limited to what he had already explored, and that in investigating cases he could only offer sensory assistance rather than meticulously unraveling clues and grasping the key points. But Naruto not only does that, he does it in incredibly complex ways. Those briefings that give others a headache, Naruto can pick out the key points with just a few glances... as if he's done it many times before.

"Lord Naruto, after the case is solved, may I discuss some investigation techniques with you in a personal capacity?" After the conversation, Ye Ming was completely convinced and even tried to become his student.

Naruto, of course, had to refuse. He believed his skills were far inferior to those geniuses in the intelligence department; he was still a student and couldn't possibly teach anyone. "Sorry, what I just said was all based on experience, and there were no techniques involved. Besides, I'm really not good at being a teacher..." Konohamaru, who had to teach himself the Rasengan, was the best example of what not to do.

"Your experience is your invaluable skill! If you don't know where to begin, I can prepare some questions to help you organize your thoughts. Is that alright?"

The light of "hope" in Ye Mei's eyes was too dazzling, and Naruto couldn't refuse it, so he had no choice but to agree.

"Okay, but I might not be able to answer all of them."

"I believe in you, and please have confidence in yourself! I have a feeling that this case will be resolved soon!" At this moment, Ye Ming was like a young man, and almost immediately took action with great energy, investigating the important locations pointed out in the discussion in his own way.

Naruto's thinking was actually quite simple: things that have happened will inevitably leave traces, but traces from too long ago are hard to find, so resources should be concentrated on the last year or two.

Nightfall's collected resources were very comprehensive, including all missing persons with available police reports, even those who perished at sea and never returned. Such scattered records could easily mislead the investigation, so Naruto, based on his experience, ruled out suspected stowaways and then compared the relationship between maritime disaster records and weather over the past few years, ultimately eliminating many relatively normal shipping routes.

But there were indeed some unusual flight paths, so unusual that Naruto felt the data was extremely unrealistic. Even if it was a flight path for transporting people, surely not this many people would die?

The reason for focusing on shipping routes is to solve the problem of whereabouts of missing persons. In this country where most of the land is at sea, having a ship really allows one to travel freely to various places and even go abroad at any time.

"But why do you only look at the crew's shipwreck records? There are many other people who have died while on a ship."

Naruto sighed deeply and said, "Each crew member needs time to train and be documented. Most fleets cherish their crews. Losses in non-extreme environments are already abnormal. The more crew members go missing, the more it indicates a problem, doesn't it?"

"You've reminded me. It would be best to check the death records of retired sailors as well; if there's any data on unnatural deaths, that would be ideal."

Human traffickers are considered the most despicable people by the people of every place. First, there was the embezzlement by a nobleman from the Land of Earth, and then the unusual disappearances in the Land of Frost. Could it be a regional issue? But the missing persons data from all countries doesn't look good. Indeed, as long as this chaotic world continues, there will always be evil spirits who don't treat people like human beings, lurking in the cracks and causing chaos.

"How come I didn't know you had this kind of experience?" Sakura, who had been quiet for a long time, poked her head out from the pile of documents.

Naruto, without batting an eye, fabricated, "It's from my experience investigating Root. You wouldn't want to know where those unregistered 'orphans' came from..."

“I want to know.” Sakura’s answer was unusually firm, which drew Naruto’s attention.

He looked into those emerald green eyes, which were still clean and bright. Naruto could see calmness and strength in them, without the slightest cowardice in the face of the ugliness of the world.

Sakura seems to have always been like this. He doesn't really know what Sakura is like behind closed doors, but once she's on the battlefield, she's always the one who resolutely charges forward.

Naruto laughed. "This is a matter outside of the mission, and I don't want to add to my burden. Let's ask Granny Tsunade; she'll be very happy."

"Tsunade probably won't give it to her," Jiraiya interjected. "Protecting children's innocence is something we adults should do. You're one thing, none of us can stop you, but Sakura can wait a few more years..."

"Why should I wait! I'm going to go see!" Sakura threw a thick booklet at her with a snap and said, "Here, this is the record of the Wavebreaker fleet you asked for. How did you manage to pick out the fleet with the most shipwrecked crew members so accurately?"

Naruto's expression was somewhat serious. He said, "Let's talk about it when we get back. I'll go take a look now."

"Is this how we conduct an on-site inspection? Or should I..." Jiraiya, unable to sit still, tried to escape.

"I'll have to ask you for help with the handover to the officials, Master. After all, you have a great reputation, and everyone trusts you. We can't just leave all the pressure on Sakura, can we? You just said you wanted to protect the child's innocence."

"...Got it...you brat, you're waiting for me here, huh! You wait, I'll give you extra training when we get back!"

So Naruto quickly appeared near the port and headed towards the "Wavebreaker Dock" sign.