It was already late at night when Shikaku Nara returned home. As soon as he stepped inside, he found Shikamaru waiting for him in the living room.
"Father," Shikamaru asked immediately, "how does Lord Hokage plan to assign Naruto's team?"
"There's no final decision yet," Shikaku replied as he removed his shoes and sat across from his son, documents in hand. "But I'm relieved you won't be on the same team as him."
Shikamaru's expression tightened. "Why do you say that?"
Shikaku looked serious as he sat down, setting the files on the table.
"Ever since you realized that Naruto's father was the Fourth Hokage, I told you what kind of fate he's burdened with."
Shikamaru nodded.
"I know. Naruto's a Jinchūriki—he has the Nine-Tails sealed inside him."
"That fact alone makes him dangerous," Shikaku said gravely. "Which is why Lord Hokage must be extremely cautious with his graduation assignment. So far, only one of his teammates has been finalized."
Hearing his father's heavy tone, Shikamaru paused to think.
"That teammate… it's not Hinata, is it?"
Shikaku shook his head.
"Of course not. At the Hokage's office, we reviewed how other villages handle their Jinchūriki. Lord Hokage hopes Naruto can one day become a perfect Jinchūriki, like Killer Bee of the Hidden Cloud."
Shikamaru furrowed his brow.
"Perfect Jinchūriki?"
Shikaku pulled two thick files from his stack and handed them over.
"These are intel reports on the Hidden Cloud's Jinchūriki."
Shikamaru flipped through the first one—shorter than the other. The cover featured a photo of a woman named Yugito Nii. His brow creased as he skimmed through, then he picked up the second file.
This one was much thicker. Two men were pictured on the front: Blue B and Killer Bee.
As he read, Shikamaru's eyes widened.
"One was the Fourth Raikage's cousin, and the other was bonded with the Raikage since childhood… I didn't expect both hosts of the Eight-Tails to be that closely connected to the Raikage himself."
Shikaku nodded slightly, gesturing for him to keep reading.
A long time later, Shikamaru handed the files back.
"So Naruto really might lose control like the Eight-Tails Jinchūriki did?"
Shikaku silently passed him another document.
"This is an incident report on Naruto from a few years ago."
Shikamaru's eyes sharpened. As soon as he opened the file, his expression changed.
"He… lost control before?"
Shikaku's face darkened.
"Yes. This happened before he even started at the Academy. If Lord Hokage hadn't arrived in time, the consequences could've been unimaginable."
"You've heard the stories—what the Nine-Tails did to Konoha all those years ago. The destruction it caused was beyond measure."
Shikamaru fell silent. It was a long while before he spoke again.
"So… what is Lord Hokage planning for Naruto? The intel on Killer Bee doesn't explain how he became a perfect Jinchūriki."
Shikaku shook his head.
"We discussed it at length. Based on what we know, Lord Hokage wants to follow a two-step plan."
He pulled out another document and laid it flat on the table.
Shikamaru's gaze fell on the paper—and saw a photo of Hinata Hyuga attached to it. He frowned.
"Two steps?"
Shikaku pointed at the photo.
"You already know who Naruto's mother was—Kushina Uzumaki, the previous Nine-Tails Jinchūriki."
"She and the Fourth Hokage confirmed their relationship early on and later married. Despite the Fourth often being away on missions, she never lost control—not even once—until the Nine-Tails attack ten years ago."
"Why? Because of that bond. Because of love."
"But the situation now is different. Konoha's strength has declined significantly. The village needs a perfect Jinchūriki—someone like Killer Bee. Or even someone like Yugito Nii, who can freely control the Two-Tails."
Shikamaru's eyes narrowed.
"So that's the first step. But if that's the goal, wouldn't it make more sense to place Hinata on Naruto's team?"
"No." Shikaku's tone turned sharp.
"Hinata's case is more complicated. Putting her on the same team would cause more problems than it solves."
"Because she's heir to the Hyuga Clan?" Shikamaru asked.
Shikaku nodded.
"That's part of it—but not all. Think back a few years. Do you remember what happened when the Hidden Cloud delegation came to Konoha?"
Shikamaru's expression changed.
"The Byakugan…"
Shikaku let out a sigh.
"Exactly. The Byakugan is one of the most coveted kekkei genkai in the shinobi world."
"If Hinata and Naruto were on the same team, and something happened to her on a mission... and given how fond Naruto is of her—can you imagine what he might do?"
"Her very presence draws attention. That's why Hinata must stay in the village."
Shikamaru's face twisted into an odd expression. For some reason, he suddenly remembered how Naruto had specifically asked him to include his feelings for Hinata in the mission report.
Thinking about that now gave him an indescribably weird feeling.
After a moment, Shikaku suppressed his doubts and continued.
"So—what's the second step? Earlier, you mentioned the bond between Killer Bee and the Raikage. Are we really…?"
Shikaku shook his head.
"I don't know. Even the first step was something Lord Hokage arranged himself. He only called me tonight to help evaluate who might be a suitable teammate for Naruto after graduation."
"Do you have any suggestions?"
Shikamaru shrugged.
"Not really. Naruto only hangs out with me, Chōji, and Hinata. He barely talks to anyone else in class."
"Oh—right. You said one teammate is already confirmed. Who is it?"
Shikaku pulled out another sheet from the file stack and handed it over.
Shikamaru took it—and immediately twitched.
"This… this had to be Iruka-sensei's idea!"
The Next Morning – Forest near the Naka River
After careful consideration, Naruto had decided—for now—not to go to the Land of Demons.
As long as he followed his own plan, it didn't matter if that old toad from Mount Myōboku could see the future. Whatever it foresaw would be the result of his decisions. Even if it tried to interfere, Naruto would still hold the initiative.
But one thing still puzzled him—if the toad sage could see the future, surely it had already uncovered several of his secrets.
Considering that Jiraiya was still missing—and Konoha's official story claimed he'd disrupted an Akatsuki plot in the Land of Hot Springs—Naruto couldn't help but wonder:
Had Mount Myōboku already begun preparing its moves?
From what he could tell, they were probably only acting indirectly through Jiraiya.
In theory, the future was fixed. The past couldn't be changed. And the present shaped what was to come. So as long as—
Naruto was still deep in thought when Sasuke approached, looking contemplative.
"You good?" Naruto asked.
Sasuke's eyes were distant.
"Naruto… what does it mean to have a clan?"
Naruto replied casually,
"For humans? I'd say a group formed by shared history, culture, language, territory, beliefs, or bloodline. A collective identity."
Sasuke blinked.
"That's it?"
Naruto shrugged.
"What else would it be?"
Sasuke looked down.
"If that's the case… then I barely understand anything about my own clan. There's almost nothing left of the Uchiha at home. Even if I succeed in getting revenge… what future does the Uchiha have?"
Naruto narrowed his eyes and entered the Mirror World, pulling up Sasuke's data feed.
Turns out Sasuke's brain hadn't rested at all last night.
He'd been obsessing over how to evolve his Sharingan, replaying images of Itachi showing off the Mangekyō. Eventually, his thoughts spiraled into how to rebuild the Uchiha clan.
Looks like he's starting to lose confidence.
Naruto exited the Mirror World and saw Sasuke still zoned out.
He spoke up.
"Who can say what the future holds? But why are you so fixated on reviving the old Uchiha?"
"Why not take a different path?"
Sasuke blinked.
"…What do you mean?"
Naruto's voice turned deep and steady.
"Why not build a new Uchiha clan—one even stronger than before?"
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