Just as Jiraiya returned to the village, he grinned and said, "What a sweet love story. I've decided—I'm putting you two in my next book! How about calling it Hero's Moonlit Rescue?"
He added with a chuckle, "When your son grows up, he can read it too."
Minato smiled helplessly. "Please don't tease me, Jiraiya-sensei. Kushina will be angry."
Off to the side, Kushina's red hair bristled like tails flaring out from the Nine-Tails itself. "Jiraiya-sensei, please don't write me into your pervy literature. Thanks."
Jiraiya scratched his head sheepishly. "Now now, don't be like that…"
The screen lit up again.
[Voiceover: "Back then, Minato gave me such a reassuring feeling."
"It felt like my dreams could be realized through him."]
The screen shifted.
It was the Hokage inauguration ceremony.
The Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, took the Hokage's hat from the hands of the Third, Hiruzen Sarutobi.
Kushina stood nearby in full shinobi gear, smiling warmly at Minato.
[Kiba Inuzuka: Huh??? Hold up, hold up—that's… the Hokage inauguration?!]
[Choji Akimichi: What's going on?]
[Sakura Haruno: Am I still half-asleep? That's the inauguration of the Fourth Hokage?!]
[Tenten: You're kidding, right? Minato? His full name is Minato Namikaze, isn't it?]
[Shikamaru Nara: No wonder he looked so familiar. With that ceremony, there's no mistaking it.]
[Sakura Haruno: So… that handsome guy is the Fourth Hokage?! And that red-haired beauty is his wife? But what do they have to do with Naruto?]
[Raikage A: That's… the Yellow Flash?]
[Killer Bee: Baka-yarō, konoyarō! If you see the Yellow Flash, you better dash!]
[Samui: He sounds incredible. So that's the legendary Yellow Flash of Konoha—the Fourth Hokage?]
The younger generation of Konoha fell into a frenzy of confusion.
Sakura furrowed her brows tightly. "I never expected that handsome guy to be the Fourth Hokage. But... what does that have to do with Naruto?"
Ino seemed to piece something together and gasped, turning to Shikamaru. "Shikamaru, what do you think?"
With his trademark bored expression, Shikamaru sighed. "What a pain… The son of a hero—who else could that be but the Fourth?"
"Eh?! What?!" Everyone froze. "You mean…"
"Don't you think Naruto looks like a perfect mix of the two? His face shape is just like that red-haired woman's, but his hair and eye color match the Fourth. And his smile… is pretty similar too."
Sakura looked dumbfounded. "That's impossible. Naruto's so… uncivilized…" She didn't even finish the sentence before Shikamaru shot her a sharp glare.
She swore she had never seen Shikamaru look that aggressive before.
"Sakura, don't talk about Naruto like that. He might be a bit of a goofball, but he's still my friend," Shikamaru said seriously.
Feeling awkward, Ino quickly stepped in to rescue her childhood friend—and romantic rival. "Sakura didn't mean it like that. She just blurted it out. I mean, everyone's always saying stuff like that…"
Choji crunched on his chips and added gently, "Naruto's a good guy. He's a great friend to both me and Shikamaru."
Sakura found herself at a loss, forcing a sheepish smile. "Sorry…"
—
The villagers watching the broadcast were equally stunned.
Especially those who had once mocked Naruto for being the Nine-Tails' host.
"This can't be real…"
"There must be some mistake. That fox demon couldn't possibly be related to the Fourth!"
"Didn't the Fourth die because of the Nine-Tails?! That's the only connection!"
—
In the Warring States era.
Reactions were even more animated.
Hashirama tugged on Tobirama's sleeve. "Hey, Tobirama, don't those big stone heads at the back look familiar?"
"You blockhead, that's obviously us."
"Hahaha! So our clan's still around after all!"
Hashirama was thrilled, while the Uchiha… weren't as amused.
If the statues represented Hokage, and Hokage were the village's top leaders, then both the First and Second positions had been taken by the Senju clan.
So what about the Uchiha?
The only Uchiha they'd seen so far was that brief glimpse of Uchiha Sasuke during the commentary.
[The screen shifted again.]
Kushina was sitting in front of a doctor, her blue eyes wide in surprise. "Huh?"
The doctor smiled. "Congratulations. Your due date is October 10."
Minato, holding a mixing bowl, blinked in shock as Kushina returned. "You're pregnant?"
"Mhm. I'm going to be a mom-da-tebune~"
"I'm going to be a dad?"
"I'm going to be a mom-da-tebune~"
"I'm going to be a dad!"
A silly dad and a silly mom.
They walked toward each other, repeating it over and over again.
"I'm going to be a mom."
"Then that means… I'm going to be a dad! Hahaha!"
They embraced in joy, happiness radiating from them both.
—
Jiraiya smacked Minato's head. "Oi! Reading my Tale of the Gutsy Ninja again?"
Minato scratched his head sheepishly. "Well, it was your first book, right? The writing's a bit raw, but it's still great."
"No need to flatter me," Jiraiya waved him off. "It barely sold any copies. Maybe I should throw in some spicy content next time…"
Minato flipped through the pages. "The protagonist's unwavering perseverance was really inspiring. It reminded me of you, sensei."
Jiraiya was caught off guard by the direct praise. "Y-You think so?"
"That's why I've decided," Minato said suddenly. "If our child could become a ninja like the one in this book… that would be incredible."
"So, can I borrow the name of the protagonist for him?"
Jiraiya's eyes widened in shock.
"Wait, seriously? I just made that name up while eating ramen, you know!"
"Naruto." Kushina waddled out of the kitchen with her baby bump. "It's a wonderful name."
[Choji Akimichi: Oh my gosh, it really is Naruto.]
[Naruto Uzumaki: Huh? My name? Are you serious?]
[Jiraiya: Hahaha! Bet you didn't see that coming! Your name came straight from a book written by the great Toad Sage himself. Honored, aren't you?]
Naruto, training by the river with the Rasengan, hadn't been paying attention. But when he heard the name "Naruto," his body froze. His strength left him, and he collapsed to the ground.
"'Naruto'? The Fourth Hokage? This has to be a joke…"
"Hey, Pervy Sage, this isn't real, right? I can't be the Fourth's son. I'm just… a monster."
He clutched the fabric over his chest in agony, eyes full of confusion.
His entire life, he'd been isolated, rejected, treated like a freak. Countless times, he had shouted to the world that his name was Naruto Uzumaki.
But he never understood what that name truly meant. He didn't even know who gave it to him… So every time he shouted it, it sounded hollow, forced—like he was trying to convince even himself.
And now someone was telling him he was the son of the Fourth Hokage? The child of a hero?
What kind of twisted joke was this?
He had always admired the Fourth. The Fourth was a hero. Everyone loved the Fourth Hokage. Naruto wanted to be loved like that too.
But how could that ever happen? He was the Nine-Tails' host. The demon that killed the Fourth.
Hatred surged to the surface, and without realizing it, fiery red chakra began to leak from his body.
Jiraiya clapped a hand on his shoulder. "Calm down, Naruto."
"How can I calm down? If the Fourth really is my father…"
Wasn't it the Fourth who sealed the Nine-Tails inside him? Who left him to endure all this suffering?
If he was really the Fourth's son, then what was all the pain he'd been through for?
Why did he work so hard to become Hokage?
"Naruto! Get a hold of yourself." Jiraiya's heart dropped. This was the worst-case scenario. He quickly slapped a sealing tag on Naruto's forehead, suppressing the red chakra.
When Naruto came to, he shoved Jiraiya aside and ran off on his own.
Jiraiya didn't chase him. He figured… Naruto probably needed some time alone.
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100 P.S = 1 Extra Chapter