After carrying the Scroll of Seals on their backs, the two ANBU operatives glanced at everyone present and gave a curt nod.
"We'll report back to the Third Hokage that the Scroll of Seals has been recovered. As for Naruto's punishment for stealing it, that will be left to the Hokage's discretion. After all, it's still a fact that he took a forbidden scroll."
Naruto smiled sheepishly and scratched his head. "Thank you so much! Please help me plead for mercy. I really didn't mean any harm!"
Of course, this was all an act.
As someone who had been a Naruto fan for years, Satoru knew this scene inside and out. The Third Hokage wouldn't actually punish Naruto. In fact, that old man was probably watching the entire thing unfold through his crystal ball and laughing to himself.
Two ANBU just happened to be nearby? What a coincidence! Who would believe that?
Satoru didn't know how long they had been watching from the trees, but they had the nerve to act like it was a coincidence. Shameless!
To understand why this situation unfolded like this, you had to look at both the Third Hokage and that half-step-to-the-grave schemer, Danzo. As one of Konoha's oldest relics, Danzo always played the hypocrite—preaching justice in public while operating in the shadows. He had Root agents deliberately spread the fact that Naruto was the Nine-Tails' jinchūriki, while conveniently concealing the truth that he was the son of the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze.
And as for Sarutobi Hiruzen? The plot made him out to be an indecisive but kindhearted old man—merciful even in a battle to the death against Orochimaru.
But Satoru didn't buy that for a second.
To him, the Third Hokage was more scheming than Danzo. Think about it—why couldn't he just reveal Naruto's parentage? Was he afraid of enemies seeking revenge?
Fine, let's accept that. But where was the compensation for Minato's sacrifice? For twelve years, Naruto had lived on expired instant ramen, fishing and roasting creek fish to survive. No official support. No hero's pension. Nothing.
Meanwhile, the Third Hokage's grandson, Konohamaru, lived like a noble's heir. He even had an elite jōnin like Ebisu as his personal tutor!
And Naruto? The son of the Fourth Hokage, the savior of the village, forced to grow up in squalor and ridicule?
Both children were descendants of Hokage—so why was the difference in their treatment like heaven and earth?
Now they set up this little game, letting Naruto "accidentally" steal the Scroll of Seals and learn a jutsu or two as some kind of hush-hush compensation?
As if stealing such a high-level artifact was so easy. Naruto—a bottom-of-the-class prankster—got past all the traps and security and stole a scroll containing forbidden jutsu? What kind of joke is that?
That wasn't just bending the plot. That was plunging headfirst into the Pacific Ocean.
This entire stunt had two objectives:
Eliminate Mizuki, a traitor who was already halfway down the road to rebellion.
Let Naruto—the Fourth Hokage's son—learn a forbidden technique as a form of quiet repayment.
Satoru had long seen through the Third Hokage's motives. As someone who knew the plot better than the characters themselves, he could only laugh at how obvious it all was.
Meanwhile, in the woods, the two ANBU with the Scroll of Seals moved swiftly through the trees.
Gang Zetsu, Yamashiro Aoba, and the others were carrying Mizuki—now barely clinging to life—back to Konoha. As for Iruka, he was being helped along by Ebisu, who had only just taken his hand earlier. Although Iruka repeatedly insisted he was fine and uninjured, Ebisu stubbornly refused to let him walk alone, just in case.
Hokage's Office
The ANBU were fast. In just a few minutes, they arrived at the Hokage Tower and delivered the scroll.
Sarutobi Hiruzen was seated behind his desk, listening to their report with a look of growing surprise.
"More than three thousand shadow clones? Are you sure?"
Both ANBU immediately dropped to one knee, heads bowed.
"Every word is true, Hokage-sama. Naruto created over three thousand shadow clones instantly. He beat Mizuki so badly that he was completely unrecognizable. Without context, you wouldn't even know it was him."
Sarutobi was silent for a moment. Then he sighed deeply, an exaggerated look of regret on his face.
"Damn! If I had known it'd be that good, I would've held in my bathroom break! I even missed the climax! What a loss!"
One of the ANBU added, "We didn't have time to count exactly, but based on the formation and numbers, it might have been over four thousand."
"Haha! Excellent! I didn't expect that the one technique he was worst at—cloning—would turn out to be the one he mastered the fastest. And it's Multiple Shadow Clone Technique, no less! What a twist!"
"Exactly! Who would've thought the dead-last in class would take down a chunin teacher? If you ask me, this kid will be a ticking time bomb in the ninja world someday!"
Sarutobi chuckled at the thought, but his expression quickly turned serious again. "Aside from the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique, did he learn anything else?"
One of the ANBU shook his head. "He had very little time with the scroll. During the entire battle with Mizuki, he only used that one jutsu. If he had learned more, he definitely would've shown them off. Those forbidden techniques are incredibly flashy—no way he'd hold back, especially with his personality."
"After he learned it, he even showed off in front of Iruka, completely forgetting he was still being hunted. Based on his reaction, we're confident that's the only jutsu he learned from the Scroll of Seals."
"The forbidden techniques in the Scroll of Seals aren't so easy to master—they're forbidden for a reason! And he only had a short window of time to learn anything from it!"
The two ANBU discussed the situation, bouncing theories off one another. The Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, listened quietly, nodding in agreement. Their analysis seemed plausible. Naruto was still just a child, with very limited time to study the scroll. The fact that he managed to learn even a single jutsu from it was already astonishing.
And that jutsu wasn't just any technique—it was the Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu.
If he had the talent to grasp something that advanced in such a short time, how could he possibly be the worst in his class?
It would be like you deliberately scoring single digits in elementary school just to get a beating from your parents when you got home. Who does that?
The Multiple Shadow Clone Technique allows him to instantly create over three thousand copies of himself. If he combines that with even a few basic Taijutsu moves, he could overwhelm almost anyone.
He could simply exhaust the enemy with sheer numbers, attacking in waves, retreating behind a flurry of real and fake bodies—sending his clones to die while keeping his true self safe.
For Naruto, this technique is perfect.
Now, the Fourth Hokage can finally rest in peace. With this jutsu alone, unless Naruto throws himself into certain death, it'll be very hard to kill him.
Sarutobi had already made up his mind.
Now that little Naruto had mastered a forbidden technique and had gained such a massive leap in combat ability, it was time to move forward with the next step: indoctrinating him with the Will of Fire.
The boy was already strong—and he hadn't even used the power of the Nine-Tails yet. Without tapping into Kurama, Naruto could summon thousands of clones. If he did harness that chakra?
Tens of thousands of shadow clones.
If they could just keep Naruto loyal—securely tied to Konoha's chariot—then what could the other four great shinobi villages possibly do?
...
TN:
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