In the original timeline, Naruto's reaction to failing the graduation exam wasn't to stay home and cry. Instead, he did the absolutely unthinkable: he committed high treason.
By listening to Mizuki's manipulative whisper promising a secret path to graduation, Naruto broke into the Hokage's residence and stole the Scroll of Seals—a collection of Konoha's most dangerous, forbidden jutsu.
Frankly, Suzuki knew perfectly well that if anyone other than the protagonist had pulled this stunt, they would be dead. If Suzuki, a civilian orphan, had stolen that scroll, he would have been stripped of every yen to his name, thrown into an ANBU black site, and executed before morning. But Naruto was the son of the Fourth Hokage, the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, and the Third Hokage's personal ward.
Plot armor is amazing, Suzuki mused silently.
Because Iruka was currently standing in his doorway looking absolutely frantic, Suzuki had to play the part of the clueless, concerned friend. He shook his head regretfully. "I'm sorry, Sensei. I don't know where he is. We parted ways right after everyone finished eating at the BBQ."
"I see! I'm so sorry for bothering you this late, but if you happen to see him, please notify me immediately, okay?!"
"What's wrong, Sensei? You look pale."
Iruka took a ragged breath, deciding to trust his top student. "He... he stole the forbidden jutsu scroll from the Hokage's Office."
"..."
Suzuki blinked his dark eyes, feigning absolute shock. "Is he insane?"
"He is!"
"...."
Suzuki carefully managed his expression, though internally he was scoffing. Did Iruka honestly believe a twelve-year-old academy failure could sneak past a group of elite ANBU guards to steal a national treasure on his own? Hiruzen obviously let him take it!
Taking a deep, steadying breath, Suzuki stepped out onto the porch and slipped on his sandals. "Do you need my help, Sensei? I can mobilize my workers to search the civilian sectors for him."
This was a golden opportunity. Earning "good boy" points from the Hokage right now would practically guarantee his safe, lucrative future.
"Thank you so much, Suzuki-kun!" Iruka bowed deeply, overwhelmed with gratitude.
"Don't worry about it, Sensei. Naruto is my friend. I really don't want to have to visit him in a maximum-security prison."
"Haha..." Iruka laughed awkwardly, but the underlying fear in his eyes showed he knew the boy wasn't entirely joking. If Naruto wasn't stopped, prison was the absolute best-case scenario.
They split up immediately. Suzuki didn't actually deploy his charcoal shop workers or real estate tenants to look for Naruto. He simply offered them a massive cash bonus if they spotted the boy, keeping the details of the treason completely quiet.
Watching through his crystal orb in the Hokage's office, Hiruzen Sarutobi smiled warmly, the wrinkles around his eyes softening.
"Should we stop the Tanaka boy from interfering?" an ANBU commander asked from the shadows.
"No, it is fine," Hiruzen replied gently. "He is a highly intelligent child. He won't cause any unnecessary trouble. It is good to see Naruto has a genuine friend—almost like an older brother—who is willing to support him like this."
Hiruzen nodded to himself, feeling a deep sense of relief that the seeds of the Will of Fire were blooming so beautifully in the next generation.
"..."
If Suzuki had known what the Hokage was thinking, he would have snorted. For an "ant" like him, actively attempting to outplay the god-like figures of this village was arrogant. But Suzuki also knew exactly how the script played out. He didn't need his workers to find Naruto. All he had to do was quietly trail behind Iruka, letting the invincible power of the plot lead him straight to the target.
Deep in the woods, Iruka finally tracked down the orange-clad boy.
"Naruto! What do you think you're doing?!"
"Huh? Iruka-sensei? What are you doing out here?" Naruto grinned, panting heavily from his training.
"I should be asking you that! Why did you steal the Scroll of Seals?! Come back with me right now! We are going to apologize to Hokage-sama!"
"Wait, wait, Sensei! But Mizuki-sensei told me that if I mastered a jutsu from this scroll and brought it here, he was going to let me pass!"
"Eh? Mizuki told you...?"
As Iruka's brain finally processed the sheer absurdity of the lie—knowing full well Naruto lacked the mental capacity to invent a story like this—a terrifying chill rushed down his spine. His combat instincts screamed.
He violently shoved Naruto out of the way!
"Sensei?!" Naruto yelped as he hit the dirt.
A sharp, metallic hiss instantly filled the air, followed by a sickening, wet squelch.
Iruka raised his arms to protect his vitals, but several razor-sharp kunai tore right through his flak jacket, burying themselves deeply into his limbs. He grunted in agony, dropping to one knee as blood began to seep into his clothes.
"SENSEI!"
"Hehehe..."
A cruel, arrogant laugh drifted down from the canopy above. Mizuki perched on a thick tree branch, looking down at the wounded instructor and the terrified boy with absolute disdain.
"MIZUKI-SENSEI! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" Naruto screamed.
"Naruto," Mizuki ordered coldly, holding out his hand. "Give that scroll to me."
"Eh? What—"
"Stop! Don't listen to him, Naruto!" Iruka coughed, clutching his bleeding shoulder as he glared at his former colleague. "Protect that scroll with your life! He planned to steal it for himself all along! He just used you to get out of the Hokage's office!"
"...What?"
"Hehehe..." Mizuki chuckled darkly. "With your pathetic talent, keeping that scroll is completely meaningless. Give it to me, Naruto. Think of it as your final good deed before you die."
"W-What are you talking about?" Naruto stammered, clutching the massive scroll to his chest.
"Shut up, Mizuki!" Iruka roared. "Don't listen to another word he says, Naruto!"
But Mizuki thrived on the despair. He wanted to break the boy completely before killing him.
"Has no one ever told you the truth, Naruto? Do you know why everyone looks at you with such hatred? The truth is... you are the Demon Fox that destroyed Konoha twelve years ago!"
"...You're lying."
"I'm not! You are the monster that caused all those tragedies! Even Iruka hates your guts! You are the beast that slaughtered his parents!"
"...You're lying!" Naruto's voice cracked, tears brimming in his wide, panicked eyes.
"Hahaha! Stop running from the truth, demon! You are a killer! Everything is your fault! So just die and rot in hell, and finally let the rest of this village be happy!"
Naruto's world completely shattered. The deepest, darkest abyss of despair swallowed him whole. Everything finally made sense. The cold stares. The whispers. The isolation. It was all because he was a monster.
"DIE!"
Mizuki ripped the massive Fuma Shuriken from his back and hurled it directly at the paralyzed boy!
The giant, four-bladed weapon whirred through the air like a lethal buzzsaw, aimed to cleanly bifurcate the genin. Naruto was too consumed by despair to even lift a finger to defend himself.
Squelch!
"Sensei..."
Naruto stared in absolute, numb shock. Iruka had thrown himself entirely over Naruto's body, taking the lethal impact of the giant shuriken directly into his own back to shield the boy.
Blood dripped onto Naruto's cheek. "Why...?"
"Because... you reminded me of myself, Naruto," Iruka whispered, a gentle, pained smile forming on his lips. "After my parents died... I was all alone too. I played the class clown just so people would look at me. I know how much it hurts."
Iruka coughed, a splatter of blood hitting the grass. "I'm sorry I was a weak teacher, Naruto. If I had been better, you wouldn't have been pushed this far. But you have to believe me... you are not the Demon Fox. You are Naruto Uzumaki of Konohagakure."
"Sensei..." Tears finally spilled over Naruto's cheeks.
"Hehehe, what a sickeningly touching scene," Mizuki sneered, drawing a second kunai. "Don't worry, Iruka. I'll make sure to kill the boy right in front of you so you can both be happy in the afterlife!"
Mizuki leaped from the branch, dropping like a stone to finish them both off.
But just as he descended—
"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"
A massive, highly pressurized shockwave of roaring wind violently exploded from the treeline!
The gale-force impact slammed into Mizuki mid-air, blowing him completely off course like a discarded ragdoll. The sheer atmospheric pressure felt like a giant, invisible palm swatting him out of the sky.
Mizuki crashed heavily into the dirt, skidding to a halt as he crossed his arms to protect his face from the debris. "What the hell?!"
"Are you okay, Naruto? Iruka-sensei?"
A calm, utterly unflappable voice cut through the howling wind.
Iruka and Naruto looked up, feeling as if absolute salvation had just stepped out of the shadows.
"SUZUKI!" they shouted in unison.
Suzuki stepped into the moonlit clearing, his dark eyes locked onto the traitorous Chunin, and entered the battlefield.