The more Minato listened, the heavier his heart became. Just as he was about to speak, Naruto had already withdrawn from the seal space and descended the stairs.
The shadow clone that had led Moonlight Hayate back home had entered through the door. Once the clone closed it, Naruto released all disguises. With a single flicker of thought, the shadow clone vanished.
The stream of memories that flowed back made his brow twitch slightly.
Shikamaru had quietly hinted that the Third Hokage would be returning to the village tonight.
What did that mean?
For so long, Naruto had felt Shikamaru was strange. He knew very well that Shikamaru was arranged by the Third Hokage to approach him, and Shikamaru himself had admitted as much, saying the Hokage had given him tasks.
But now it seemed… Shikamaru was trying to be a true friend.
"Father, you once wore the Hokage's mantle. Tell me, what do you think of the Nara clan?"
Naruto's consciousness returned to the seal space. His gaze was steady, his tone serious.
Minato studied his son for a moment, then thought back to his time as Hokage.
"The Nara have always been the Hokage's most trusted clan. No one else comes close. They swear loyalty only to the Hokage, content to remain as his shadow."
Minato's face shifted. Even he realized something was off about the Third sending Shikamaru to watch Naruto.
"Most trusted… loyal only to the Hokage…"
Naruto repeated the words in his mind again and again. His eyes glinted.
The Third Hokage was already old.
After the Fourth Hokage fell, by rights the Fifth should have been chosen. But the Third had seized the title once more, reclaiming authority in a matter of days.
Not only had this stunned the entire village, even the other hidden villages must have found it bizarre.
The anime had shown discussions about electing a Fifth Hokage.
And yet the Third, who had resigned once in disgrace after a failed war, had returned without resistance.
They said it was because the Fourth died suddenly, because Konoha was on the brink and had no one fit to lead. Who could believe that?
The truth was that the Third, Danzo, and the two advisors had already seized Konoha's politics. The Fourth was nothing but a puppet.
Why not send for Jiraiya or Tsunade?
Jiraiya was difficult, yes. But Tsunade? The gambler who left trails of debt wherever she went? She was not impossible to find.
Even during the Chunin Exams, when Orochimaru launched the Konoha Crush and killed the Third, the village endured and immediately searched for a new Hokage. Jiraiya declined, then easily located Tsunade and returned her to take the seat.
Which proved the excuse back then was a lie.
In the world's eyes, Shikaku Nara was the Hokage's loyal vassal. But Shikamaru had not even entered the Academy yet. He was free to think about his own future, unbound.
Their clan was loyal to the Hokage, yes. But the Third had reigned too long. He was old. The next Hokage might not be of the Sarutobi line. Shikamaru knew this. A clever man would never bind himself to a single tree.
The boy obeyed, yes. But he was choosing how to obey.
Night draped itself over Konoha. The village was silent when the Third Hokage returned. Without fanfare, he stood in his office, flipping through stacks of paperwork.
Two months away in the Land of Fire's capital. The trip had not gone smoothly.
"Lord Hokage!"
A figure landed on the balcony outside.
"It is you, Hayate," said the Third, eyes narrowing. "While I was gone, what of Naruto?"
Moonlight Hayate handed over a notebook with practiced ease. "This contains the detailed report on the target for the last two months."
The Third flipped it open. His eyes froze on the first page. "Naruto saved people of his own will? Yet he was then misunderstood by the villagers and surrounded?" His brows furrowed. "And after that, he simply told them to move aside and went home? He did not lash out?"
Hayate shook his head. "I could not see his expression in the crowd, but afterward, as he walked home, there was no anger or resentment."
"Good." Relief spread across the old Hokage's face.
Naruto saved lives. Even when accused unjustly, he did not rage. This was proof his guidance was working. Proof Naruto still walked the path he had planned for him.
Turning pages, he saw little else had changed. Naruto still had not learned the Shadow Clone. Everything else was stable.
"Is he resting now?" the Third asked with a smile.
"Just as I came, the target was about to"
A masked ANBU appeared in a blur, kneeling.
"Lord Hokage! The Barrier Team just detected abnormal chakra again in the Forest of Death."
The Third's expression hardened. "Again? You say again? It has happened before?"
"Yes!" The ANBU pulled out a record. "Here is the log of all abnormal chakra signatures since your departure. The activity has been constant."
The Third scanned it. His eyes sharpened like blades. "We depart immediately."
Naruto too had noticed.
Since noon, he had stayed at home, keeping watch with his wide-reaching senses. He had felt the Third's chakra reappear in the office. But then, out in the Forest of Death, he sensed something strange.
A chakra that was foreign, yet familiar in its malice. It traced his old paths in the forest as though hunting him.
And then, the Third Hokage himself led a squad of ANBU rushing to meet it.
"This is no ordinary intruder," Naruto thought, eyes narrowing.
In the forest's choking mist, the ANBU squad surrounded a lone figure cloaked in shadow.
"Long time no see, Sarutobi-sensei."
The voice was raspy, dark.
A pale face emerged from the gloom, framed by black hair. Golden snake eyes gleamed as they scanned the circle with amusement.
"Orochimaru," the Third said coldly. "You should never have returned. But since you have, you will not leave."
Orochimaru's lips curled into a smile. "So decisive. Then let us fight. How fitting, for I have just made progress with the Second Hokage's forbidden techniques."
The Third's pupils contracted.
Orochimaru spread his arms wide, his laughter echoing like the hiss of serpents.
"Let me become the wind, Sarutobi-sensei. The wind that will turn Konoha's rotten windmill and prove whether it can still spin."
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