Honestly, in the past few days,
Naruto had been feeling conflicted...
On one hand: the village had suffered an attack, over half of it destroyed, countless ninja killed, and The Third had also perished.
Such a heavy blow naturally cast a gloom over the village, leaving Naruto deeply unsettled.
On the other hand: Jiraiya's return, along with the revival of the First and Second Hokage, had fundamentally changed Naruto's life.
From these individuals, Naruto could clearly feel one thing:
The sense of being valued, of being cared for.
And this brought him a joy he'd never experienced before.
After all, to them, Naruto was just Naruto—nothing more than himself—and the Nine-Tails was only the beast sealed within him.
The former was simply a hero's son;
The latter just a troublesome fox...
They never confused the two, nor did they look down on the jinchuriki because of it.
Otherwise, back then, Hashirama's wife, Mito, wouldn't have voluntarily become the first jinchuriki of the Nine-Tails.
And most importantly,
Jiraiya had finally decided to reveal Naruto's true identity without hesitation.
He personally told Naruto everything about his parents—Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki—and their story, holding nothing back!
Originally, although Jiraiya felt guilty, he still followed The Third's final orders, keeping Naruto's identity hidden.
But now, with Sarutobi gone,
And under direct instruction from the First and Second,
Jiraiya naturally saw no reason to keep it secret anymore.
In fact, when Tobirama learned of Naruto's tragic life, his exact words were:
"Foolish! Utterly foolish! How could you let the son of a hero suffer through such hardship? Who would be willing to risk their life for the village in the future? That monkey truly was beyond help!"
Hashirama also voiced his agreement.
To him, a jinchuriki was nothing more than a normal ninja who happened to have a beast sealed inside them.
There should be no difference between them and ordinary ninja.
Certainly none that justified discrimination.
After all, in his time, his own wife, Mito, had never faced any prejudice as the Nine-Tails' jinchuriki.
Just try looking down on the First Hokage's wife—it wouldn't end well for anyone!
Therefore, seeing how young Naruto—a fellow jinchuriki—had endured such unfair treatment,
Hashirama felt deep regret, overwhelmed with emotion.
So during these past few days,
Hashirama, Tobirama, Jiraiya, and others had all treated Naruto exceptionally well—as if trying to make up for the Fourth Hokage's legacy.
Not only did they let Naruto move into the Hokage Tower to live with them,
But they also wholeheartedly guided his ninjutsu training—
An arrangement that left many envious.
Moreover, they could all clearly sense that this kid truly loved the village with all his heart.
And he possessed undeniable talent, with limitless potential.
With proper cultivation and guidance,
In time, he was sure to become the backbone of the village!
Of course, due to his personality and other reasons,
During this time, Naruto often quarreled with a certain "Granny Tsunade."
Even got scolded by Tsunade a couple of times already.
...
At this moment, right outside the Hokage's office.
Naruto was happily trotting along, eager to ask the First Hokage about training in the Clone Jutsu.
But he just happened to see—
Jiraiya, looking especially downcast, exiting from the Hokage's office.
"Jiraiya-sensei, what's wrong?" Naruto asked curiously.
"Tobirama rejected [Mixed Bathhouse]. And on top of that, he slashed nearly half the number of baths I proposed rebuilding too…"
"Oh no! Without my sacred research location, how am I supposed to get inspiration anymore?"
Jiraiya held his head with both hands, rubbing his white hair anxiously as he groaned in frustration.
After all, just recently following a major battle…
All the bathhouses, adult bookstores, and lingerie shops he'd planned to expand had been turned to rubble.
And now they wouldn't even be rebuilt!
Wasn't this like taking his very life?
How could he possibly keep writing novels without inspiration?
Tobirama really could be too harsh sometimes!
"A mixed bathhouse? Who even cares about a place like that?"
"Didn't you yourself say the other night—when you were drunk—that compared to Lady Tsunade's, the views at the bathhouse are way too plain…?"
"That doesn't spark your cre… whatever it was you said?"
"Oh right! Creative desire!"
"And you also said that you sneaked a peek at Lady Tsunade last night…"
Naruto mumbled sleepily, recalling.
After all, he was only seven—still totally clueless about grown-up stuff.
However, out of deep respect for Jiraiya, he remembered quite clearly everything the older man had muttered while drunk.
"Shhh!!!"
Jiraiya immediately panicked.
He quickly moved close, clamping a hand tightly over Naruto's mouth and whispering urgently.
Naruto: "???"
Jiraiya: "Kids shouldn't know these things! Don't ever repeat what I just said!"
Naruto: "Why not?"
Jiraiya: "A week's worth of free ramen!"
Naruto: "Make it a month!"
Jiraiya: "You little—fine!"
Naruto was thrilled—he wriggled free from Jiraiya's grasp, grinning smugly.
Although he didn't understand why Jiraiya feared Lady Tsunade so much,
that didn't stop him from profiting off the situation!
After all, it was just some bowls of ramen anyway…
"You're even sneakier than your old man ever was!" Jiraiya scolded with a chuckle, clearly not upset.
In fact, he seemed rather pleased with their close interaction.
"Hehehe!" Naruto laughed innocently.
Ever since discovering that his father was none other than the Fourth Hokage—the great hero who sacrificed himself for the village—
Naruto had become even prouder, his personality growing even more cheerful and outgoing.
Now completely unafraid of any rumors or gossip.
…
Yet, right at this moment—
"Hasegawa! I'm here!"
"Come out right now!"
Two thunderous shouts echoed through the area.
Even deep inside the Hokage Tower, through layer after layer of walls, the shout rang loud and clear.
"Who is that? Who's looking for the First Hokage?"
Naruto stood puzzled, blinking in innocent curiosity.
Compared to Naruto, Jiraiya—who had much sharper sensory abilities—couldn't help but react immediately.
He knew all too well that amplifying one's voice using chakra to the point of covering the entire village clearly and distinctly was no feat an ordinary ninja could accomplish!
Even Jiraiya himself would find it extremely difficult to do so.
This clearly showed that whoever was behind that voice must possess terrifying strength.
And from the tone,
the speaker seemed extremely familiar with The First Hokage—showing absolutely no sign of respect!
Who in today's Ninja World could possibly be like this?!!
"Lord Tobirama?!!"
Sensing something ominous, Jiraiya quickly pushed open the door to the Hokage's office and shouted toward Tobirama inside.
Just then, as he heard that chillingly familiar voice once again—
Inside the Hokage's office, Senju Tobirama abruptly stood up, his face turning pale.
"This is…Madara's voice?"
"How could he still be alive?!!!"
"Is he here looking for my older brother?"
Looking out through the window toward the northern part of Konoha, Tobirama wore the most serious expression he'd ever had.
At this moment,
at the entrance of the office,
Naruto suddenly dropped to his knees, gripping his stomach and gasping in agony.
"My stomach...it feels so hot, so painful!"
"What's happening to me?"
Seeing this, Jiraiya immediately squatted down to examine Naruto.
Inside, Senju Tobirama instantly teleported and stood beside Naruto and Jiraiya.
"This is...the Nine-Tails' chakra vibrating, impacting the seal..."
Tobirama quickly identified the issue and explained.
"But how? The Nine-Tails couldn't possibly break free from the seal!"
Jiraiya said, clearly perplexed.
There was no exaggerating the power of the [Hakke Kuin (Eight Trigrams Sealing Style)].
Minato himself had personally checked it back then.
Without external interference, the Nine-Tails almost had no way to escape!
Moreover, unless Naruto actively used the Nine-Tails' power, it couldn't even struggle at all.
Otherwise, Minato wouldn't have dared sealing the Nine-Tails into a newborn Naruto back then…
Tobirama: "It's not the Nine-Tails acting on its own."
"Somebody used the [Kuchiyose no Jutsu (Summoning Technique)] to force-summon the Nine-Tails…"
"That's what's causing the seal to vibrate…"
Jiraiya: "How is that possible? The Nine-Tails isn't a summoning beast. Who could possibly establish a summoning blood contract with it?!!!"
Tobirama: "There is one person."
"The evil Madara Uchiha—the owner of that voice just now!"
"It seems that guy has truly returned..."
"Madara Uchiha...truly relentless as always!"
At this point, Tobirama was convinced.
It really was Madara who had descended.
Only he could manipulate the feared Nine-Tails so effortlessly, establishing a forced blood contract with it...
"Lord Tobirama?"
"You, Jiraiya, take this kid and retreat; find a safe place to reinforce the seal."
"No matter what happens, Madara must never get the Nine-Tails again."
"Leave the rest to me and my older brother!"
Tobirama swiftly issued orders.
Jiraiya hesitated briefly, glancing at the agonized Naruto.
Then he could only obey immediately.
They left the building quickly, Naruto in tow...
At another location altogether.
Atop the northern outer wall of Konoha.
Lord Madara ended his summoning technique and exhaled deeply.
"Hmph! So the Nine-Tails is still inside the jinchuriki after all?"
"A solid seal indeed—not a single trace of Nine-Tails chakra leakage could be sensed..."
"Konoha must really cherish that little fox!"
Of course, he was unable to directly summon the Nine-Tails.
Lord Madara wasn't disappointed—it was exactly as he'd expected.
What frustrated him most, however,
was that Hashirama still hadn't shown up even now!
It had already been thirty full seconds!
Shouldn't Hashirama have come out immediately upon hearing his voice?
Damn it!
Could it be he no longer cares about me?!
"Looks like I'll need to give him a proper reminder then!"
Lord Madara let out a cold snarl, and a sharp gleam flashed in his left eye. No holding back anymore.
Putting down the Uchiha war fan in his hand,
he immediately formed hand seals and unleashed a ninjutsu.
Instantly, surging blue chakra erupted outward as two Susano'o forms materialized and began forming seals in unison.
[Heavenly Obstacle Quaking Star!]
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