"Hokage-sama!"
"Minato..."
"..."
The approaching ninjas halted in their tracks.
Sarutobi Hiruzen fell silent.
All the ninjas stood frozen in the rain, their gazes fixed on the two lifeless bodies on the ground, as well as Amamiya Rei, who was holding a small baby.
The rain washed away the blood from the earth.
Kushina and Minato's hands were still intertwined, their faces ashen, their eyes tightly shut.
The Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, stepped forward. He stood beside Amamiya Rei and looked down at the baby she was cradling. His gaze fixed on the seal on the baby's stomach.
...
In the Hokage's Office
"Even if the Hokage sacrificed his life to save the village, it does not erase the fact that he concealed the existence of a ninja possessing the Wood Release kekkei genkai." Danzo slammed his cane against the floor with a loud thud.
Amamiya Rei, holding the small Naruto, gently patted his tiny body to calm him as the noise and chaos reverberated around them.
Naruto opened his eyes, briefly looking at Amamiya Rei, before closing them again, peacefully drifting back to sleep.
"I am not a ninja."
Amamiya Rei lifted her head, her voice cold and firm as she refuted Danzo's words.
Sarutobi Hiruzen glanced at Rei for a brief moment, silently taking a puff from his pipe.
"You have the Wood Release, and that alone makes you destined to be a ninja!" Danzo's voice was sharp, his single eye gleaming with a dark light.
The Hokage's office was filled with the clan heads and elite ninjas of Konoha.
Many of them were staring intently at the young girl cradling the infant.
Sarutobi Hiruzen stared at Amamiya Rei's red eyes, inevitably reminded of his former sensei.
A descendant of the Senju clan, red eyes, Wood Release Kekkei Genkai...
Amamiya Rei could very well be related to his sensei.
Hearing Danzo's authoritarian words, Kakashi stepped forward and addressed Sarutobi Hiruzen.
"Sandaime-sama, Hokage-sama once said that we should respect Amamiya Rei's decision to choose whether she wants to become a ninja. Rei has already refused."
Kakashi said this hoping that the Third Hokage would honor the will of his sensei.
Sarutobi Hiruzen exhaled a puff of smoke but did not speak immediately.
Danzo and the other high-ranking Konoha officials continued to speak up one after another.
"That was a decision made by the Hokage himself!"
"This is a matter of great importance, and yet we were not even informed!"
"She is a Wood Release ninja!"
"She is of the same bloodline as the god of ninjutsu, Senju Hashirama. She has a responsibility to carry the weight of Konoha!"
"..."
The office erupted into chaos, the voices of the gathered officials clashing with one another, their argument growing louder by the second.
The Hokage's office had become a marketplace.
Sarutobi Hiruzen calmly tapped his pipe against the desk.
The sound was subtle, but it instantly silenced the room.
All eyes shifted to Sarutobi Hiruzen.
"Minato is the Hokage. We will respect the decision he made!"
The images of Minato and Kushina's lifeless bodies flooded Sarutobi Hiruzen's mind. He closed his eyes for a moment, collecting his thoughts, and then opened them again. His voice rang out with quiet authority.
He glanced at Danzo, his eyes heavy with unspoken warning.
Danzo narrowed his eyes, tightening his grip on his cane. Veins bulged on the back of his hand.
His gaze turned cold as it shifted to Amamiya Rei.
Suddenly, his eyes dropped, focusing on the baby in her arms.
Danzo narrowed his eyes again, his expression darkening.
"Fine. If that's the case, then let her leave."
Sarutobi Hiruzen was taken aback by Danzo's unexpected decision.
Danzo, who had never given in so easily, was now allowing her to leave without protest.
This was not the Danzo he knew.
"Danzo..."
Homura and Koharu exchanged concerned glances, their brows furrowed in confusion.
What was Danzo playing at?
How could he easily let go of a Wood Release ninja?
Did he not know what the Wood Release meant?
"However..."
Danzo's voice turned cold once more.
He raised his chin slightly, a mocking smile appearing on his face as he fixed his gaze on the baby in Amamiya Rei's arms.
"Naruto, now Konoha's new Jinchuriki, cannot be touched by ordinary people. They must keep their distance."
Danzo gave a subtle nod to the Root ninja behind him.
The Root ninja immediately began to stride toward Amamiya Rei, his eyes fixed on the baby she held.
"..."
Danzo had not disappointed Rei.
As he expected, Rei's face became vigilant. She tightened her grip around Naruto, pulling him closer.
The Root ninja was now only a meter away from Rei when Kakashi stepped in front of her.
His eyes were locked onto the Root ninja.
The atmosphere grew thick with tension.
"What do you mean by this, Kakashi?" Danzo's voice was sharp.
The atmosphere between Kakashi and Danzo grew tense, thick with hostility.
Kakashi glared at Danzo but remained silent.
Sarutobi Hiruzen pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to hold back his frustration.
At that moment, Amamiya Rei, standing behind Kakashi, raised her head and met Danzo's cold gaze.
"I don't care about the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki. What I know is that before Minato and Kushina died, they entrusted Naruto to me, hoping I would care for him."
"Hmph!"
Danzo sneered disdainfully, his tone dripping with sarcasm.
"You, a mere ordinary person, not even a ninja, think you can take care of something so important to Konoha, the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki?"
He then turned to Sarutobi Hiruzen, seated in the Hokage's chair, and asked, "Hokage... don't you agree?"
Sarutobi Hiruzen remained silent, his face unreadable.
Kakashi's fist clenched tighter, his eyes burning with restrained fury.
Uchiha Fugaku remained silent.
Given the circumstances, the Uchiha clan was already in danger—there was no way they would stand up for Amamiya Rei.
The fact that the Sharingan had been used to control the Nine-Tails was witnessed by many Konoha ninjas, and naturally, the Uchiha clan was the prime suspect in the Nine-Tails attack.
No need for evidence,the Sharingan itself was the best proof.
Since Fugaku entered the Hokage office, he had already felt the strange stares from the ninjas around him.
"Kakashi, step aside!"
Danzo's voice was stern, demanding.
Kakashi did not move.
The Root ninja stepped around Kakashi and reached for the baby in Amamiya Rei's arms.
Before Kakashi could stop him, a wooden vine shot up from the ground and wrapped around the Root ninja, binding him tightly, like a cocoon.
Amamiya Rei stared down at the baby in her arms, then backed away, still holding him tightly, her eyes wary of the ninjas in the office.
"Are you really going to attack a fellow Konoha ninja? If you harm someone from within the village, you will be branded a rogue ninja. And you will never be allowed to care for the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki."
Danzo tried to force her into submission,but Rei stood firm.
She had nowhere to retreat as her back hit the cold wall of the office.
Looking down at the sleeping baby in her arms, she turned to Sarutobi Hiruzen, who had remained silent.
The silence stretched on, thick and suffocating.
Nobody spoke.
Yet, every second of silence felt like an oppressive weight pressing down on her.
"Fine."
"As long as I can take care of Naruto, I will become a ninja."
Amamiya Rei's voice wavered slightly but held firm. She had given in.
Sarutobi Hiruzen sighed inwardly.
Kakashi's heart sank as he watched her.
The struggle, the emotion in Rei's words—it was as if she was surrendering her very soul.
A deep, silent pain seemed to seep from her being, and Kakashi's heart grew heavier with every passing moment.
***