Chapter 2
After Hiruzen finished speaking, his old face flushed with embarrassment. Admitting this felt humiliating. If he hadn't been old and weakened back then, he never would have only managed to seal Orochimaru's arms! Saying it out loud now was truly shameful—especially with so many Kage and legends in the chat room. It made him look like he was dragging down the average strength of the Kage level.
"It's all that damn Orochimaru's fault!" "He didn't fight honorably—sneak-attacked a sixty-nine-year-old Hokage!"
Meanwhile, Orochimaru was equally furious. That old geezer Hiruzen—if you're going to die, just die quietly. Why drag my arms down with you? Now, without a new body to transfer into, forget fighting—even basic hand seals were impossible!
Kabuto, standing nearby, spoke up shyly: "Orochimaru-sama, you still have me..."
Orochimaru: "..."
[Ding! Viewing system fully loaded. Audience members have been successfully pulled in.]
[Playback countdown starting…]
[10…]
[9…]
[8…]
[7…]...
As the system's cold voice finished, the massive black-and-white screens in the sky shifted. The black-bordered screen faded away, and the white-bordered one slowly expanded, growing clearer.
[Konoha Village]
[A bustling, lively street.]
[A small boy with golden hair and bright blue eyes wandered aimlessly.]
[Six whisker-like marks adorned his young face.]
[He looked excited, as if he was about to do something fun.]
The moment the boy appeared, everyone in Konoha instantly recognized him. Who else could it be? Konoha's infamous prankster king—Uzumaki Naruto!
Uzumaki Kushina: "Is this little Naruto? He's so cute!"
Namikaze Minato: "He really is. He inherited all your best traits, Kushina."
Fourth Raikage: "But why is the screen showing Uzumaki Naruto? And such a young version?"
The Raikage's question echoed the confusion in the chat room. Why Konoha? Why Naruto specifically? Couldn't they show someone else's past—like Ōnoki's youthful romantic adventures?
Hashirama, however, didn't care who was on screen. He was simply delighted to see how prosperous Konoha had become.
Senju Hashirama: "Not bad at all, Hiruzen. It looks like Konoha has thrived under your leadership."
Hiruzen Sarutobi: "All thanks to the strong foundation you laid, Lord First."
Hiruzen wiped the sweat from his brow. Being suddenly questioned by the First Hokage had startled him. Was Konoha doing well? Absolutely—people lived in peace and prosperity. But compared to the First's era? There was no comparison. In the current age, the other great nations all wanted to dominate Konoha. Under his "glorious" rule, he had repeatedly compromised and made concessions. He silently prayed that neither Hashirama nor Tobirama would learn the full truth—otherwise, his legacy would be ruined!
The screen continued.
[Naruto arrived at a mask stall.]
[He spotted a white fox mask and loved it.]
[He reached into his pocket with his small hand and pulled out his money.]
[But the shopkeeper didn't even glance at it—he shoved Naruto to the ground.]
[The white fox mask landed on top of him.]
["Get lost, you damn monster! Take the mask and never come back!"]
Faced with the shopkeeper's curses, Naruto's eyes showed pure helplessness. He didn't understand what he had done wrong. He stood up, brushed off the dust, and left without even picking up the mask. A crowd had already gathered at the stall entrance to watch.
"That's the kid—disgusting!"
"Get out of here, freak!"
"I heard he's the demon fox!"
"Hmph, you can tell just by looking—he's no good!"
Used to the insults, Naruto simply lowered his head and slowly walked toward the village gates.
Seeing this on the screen, Kushina could no longer hold back.
Uzumaki Kushina: "Third Old Man, what the hell is going on?!"
This time, even Minato stayed silent. He couldn't understand it either. He had sealed the Nine-Tails into Naruto hoping the village would see him as a hero. How had it turned into everyone treating him as a hated demon fox?
Orochimaru: "Sensei, care to explain? @Hiruzen Sarutobi"
Hiruzen Sarutobi: "Orochimaru, you traitor, stop stirring trouble. I don't know who leaked that Naruto was the jinchūriki, but I swear it wasn't me. It was most likely spies from other villages trying to harm him!"
Orochimaru: "Sensei, who would bother framing a small child? That excuse doesn't hold water."
Hiruzen: "Are you saying the Hokage would target his own student's grandchild? Does that make more sense?"
Orochimaru: "Hard to say with you, Sensei."
Hiruzen: "Tobirama-sensei, you know me. If I wanted to make Naruto's life difficult, I wouldn't need tricks—I could have just handed him over to Danzō."
Shimura Danzō: "??? What? Hiruzen, don't drag me into this!"
Senju Tobirama: "Enough arguing. Jinchūriki are a sensitive topic in every village. It's normal for a few people to misunderstand or fear Naruto."
Fourth Raikage: "I disagree. If anyone in my village dared bully our jinchūriki, I'd twist their head off!"
Hearing this, Killer Bee felt touched. He never expected to mean so much to the Fourth Raikage. Inspiration struck.
Killer Bee: "Jinchūriki got feelings too, heart can hurt, yo! Please don't attack us jinchūriki, uh-huh, skr!"
Iruka: "Naruto was indeed a bit mischievous early on, which caused a lot of misunderstandings. But now he's earned the respect of many people in the village."
Uzumaki Kushina: "Is that true? And who are you?"
Iruka: "I'm a teacher at the Ninja Academy. My name is Iruka."
Uzumaki Naruto: "Um… yeah… back then I did get pushed around a lot. It hurt at first, but thanks to Iruka-sensei's guidance, I changed. The village started accepting me."
Hearing Naruto say this, Kushina didn't argue further. But her heart ached even more. All those years she couldn't be there for him—how much suffering had her son endured?