BlackStar_BH:
More Power Stones and comments, guys!
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Kakashi was extremely happy to see his father finally leave the house. Not only that, but he had even come to accompany him while reading the manga.
Today was truly a blessed day.
Little Kakashi had been deeply worried over the past few days.
He could sense the gloomy atmosphere surrounding his father—the fingers pointing at both him and his dad hurt him more than he could put into words.
He knew that his father had failed an extremely important mission, one whose success would have guaranteed Konoha's victory and completely shut the door on any possibility of the Third Ninja War breaking out.
But that failure didn't just cost Konoha its chance at dominance… it hastened the outbreak of conflict itself.
Young Kakashi didn't know the details, but from people's sharp remarks and countless accusing fingers, he understood the weight and severity of what his father had done.
His father's silence regarding the incident only pushed Kakashi deeper into depression… He never expected his father to leave the house so suddenly, nor did he ever expect to see him smiling.
Before Sakumo came out, and after he did, it was like night and day for little Kakashi's mood.
"Hm, I think Naruto is absolutely right. Yes, definitely… You don't become Hokage just because you want to. To become Hokage, you have to earn everyone's respect in the village and make them acknowledge you as the next qualified leader—and that certainly isn't easy at all."
Thinking about how he had lost the respect he had accumulated over years of service made Sakumo sigh inwardly, again and again.
Seeing his father's expression change into a gloomy one made Kakashi's heart ache at that moment.
"Dad… in my eyes, you're the most deserving of the Hokage title! Dad, you're my hero—please don't be sad…"
Kakashi bit his lips with a sorrowful expression as he said that.
Sakumo smiled upon hearing Kakashi call him his hero. 'At least… I still have my son,' he thought, feeling the urge to hug the child who had lost his mother three years ago.
The thought that he might have lost his father, too—because of reckless behavior—filled Sakumo with even more resentment. He really had considered suicide, leaving such a child without parents in this cruel world.
Sakumo looked at Naruto in the manga…
This kid somehow grew up without parents, and the village abandoned him, too. 'In some way… we're going through the same thing.'
What impressed Sakumo even more was that this so-called "demonic fox in human form" possessed an unbreakable spirit, like that of a grown man inside a kid's body. He wasn't crushed by his circumstances—he became even more determined to impose his existence upon the world.
'He earned his teacher Iruka's acknowledgment, became a genin, and took his first step toward affirming himself—despite everyone's hatred...'
'Meanwhile… me. My strength even surpasses that of the current Hokage, yet it's meaningless… I couldn't even impose my principles on the comrades around me. I don't have the defiant spirit of a mere kid…'
'How truly shameful…'
Just two chapters of the Naruto manga were enough to cause a massive shift within Sakumo at that very moment.
By chance, Sakumo raised his eyes and saw the village's chief advisor, Shimura Danzō, glaring at him… It wasn't as though he didn't know what this man had done.
'What kind of hostility do you harbor toward me…?'
Sakumo averted his gaze from Danzō and looked toward the Hokage, who was awkwardly avoiding his eyes.
'Why are you acting as though nothing happened…? Did all my contributions to protecting Konohagakure over the years hold no value at all? Tell me, Lord Third?'
He didn't say it out loud—but the look in his eyes said everything.
At that moment, Rob placed his hand on Sakumo's shoulder.
"Keep enjoying the manga, my friend. I'll go get you a special drink—you'll definitely like it."
Rob said with a smile, pulling Sakumo back to reality.
Rob was no longer worried about Sakumo's suicide. The problem was actually simple—and easy to solve.
Give the man a stronger reason to live, a reason that outweighs the one pushing him toward death.
And Rob held in his hands one of the strongest reasons anyone could want to live for it.
Naruto manga!
The Art Store!
Drinks from all across the multiverse!
Foods from countless worlds!
Rob truly had so much…
'Even if you kill yourself, I'll drag you back from the depths of hell just to make you give me more coins—so you'd only be making things harder for yourself! Hahaha!'
Rob laughed inwardly as he headed behind the bar.
There stood an endless line of drooling customers! Everyone who had tried his amazing drinks wanted more.
'Damn it… one free day like this and I'll go bankrupt!'
Rob complained internally. A single free day had cost him a massive amount of coins just to buy drinks and sweets from the Toriko world…
(Author's note: Rob can freely spend Art Coins and buy whatever he wants from the system shop, which opens the door to the multiverse… of course, everything is ridiculously expensive. Learn how to do the things from the One Piece world's Rob—he started robbing everyone from day one! Nothing is free!)
…
Minato felt a chill of awe at the next scene.
On the page, the Third Hokage stood with his hands behind his back, calmly gazing at the rocky face carved into Konoha's mountain.
The rocky face was drawn in exquisite detail, its features so clear that Minato felt an overwhelming sense of familiarity with it. He remained silent, staring at it with curiosity.
But soon, his attention was drawn to the conversation that followed between the old Hokage and Naruto's teacher, Iruka.
Become a full-fledged shinobi and earn the respect of everyone in town…
Minato knew this was Naruto's dream—simple, noble, and beautiful… It had been Minato's dream too, one to which he had devoted himself entirely.
Minato could feel Iruka's genuine happiness for Naruto as he said it… But the old Hokage's reply felt harsh—at least to Minato.
That may be a difficult dream for him to realize.
That was the Third Hokage's answer to Iruka, who was left stunned.
On the next page, the Third Hokage spoke about the Kyūbi incident—this time in his own words. In the background, the terrifying beast appeared, radiating a dreadful aura that nearly made Minato stumble… And he wasn't the only one—Kushina broke into a sweat as she stared directly at the monster sealed inside her small body.
Danzō clicked his tongue as he watched Hiruzen speak about the incident in the manga.
Hiruzen himself frowned as he focused on the words spoken by his counterpart.
Meanwhile, Sakumo fixed his full attention on the scene and tucked the delicious sake bottle into his pocket so it wouldn't run out too quickly.
The truth was spoken through the old Hokage's mouth in that scene. All the readers focused intensely at that moment—thousands of them—reading the Third Hokage's words.
He explicitly stated that Naruto was indeed the human form of the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox, the one that had tormented their people years ago before being defeated.
'And who could defeat such a creature?'
The Third Hokage swallowed… At his current peak, could he fight and suppress such a tailed beast—a walking catastrophe?
He wasn't like the First Hokage, nor like that monster of his era, Uchiha Madara, who treated tailed beasts like small cats—capturing them whenever they pleased.
"It looks like the Kyūbi in this scene is venting all its accumulated grievances against the village…"
Hiruzen said nervously.
"What was supposed to be a secret in this manga… has now become a truth known to everyone."
Hiruzen lifted his head and curiously surveyed the Art Store. The place was truly packed—people from all walks of life were here, all of them reading the manga.
What was truly strange was that even those who were supposedly illiterate were reading the words inside the speech bubbles without any difficulty…
'Without a doubt, Rubirō had truly succeeded in promoting his product on the very first day! He had entered a field no one even knew existed,' the hokage thought to himself.
An entertainment industry that all four great villages would envy Konoha for in the future.
…
Elsewhere, the boys who had come from the academy's various divisions were learning truths they had no business knowing at their age.
Who hadn't dreamed of becoming Hokage one day? Almost all of them had…
But Naruto manga truly opened their eyes to how difficult that dream was.
The Fourth Hokage succeeded in defeating such a monster and sealing it away—saving the village!
To become Hokage, first you had to possess the same spirit of sacrifice as the Fourth Hokage. And not only that—you also had to possess his overwhelming power.
At that moment, everyone became curious about the identity of this hero.
Everyone wanted to know: Who was the Fourth Hokage, the man who defeated the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox, saved the village, and died as a hero?
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Upcoming chapter titles (spoilers):
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Chapter 29: A Truth from the Near Future.
Chapter 30: The True Shinobi!
Chapter 31: An Unexpected Kiss!
Chapter 32: The Formation of Team Seven — Naruto, Sakura, Sasuke!
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BlackStar_BH:
The chapters currently available on Patreon are up to Chapter 42.
There are 14 advanced chapters available now:
5 chapters in the Silver tier ($5 subscription), 5 more chapters in the Gold tier ($10 subscription), and 4 more chapters in the Platinum tier ($15 subscription).
On Patreon and Ko-fi, too.
In the coming days, chapters will be made available for all tiers, reaching up to 50 advanced chapters… Enjoy!