Hiruzen drew deeply on his pipe, the wrinkles between his brows knitting even tighter.
Had he noticed anything?
Of course not.
In his mind, Naruto was the very picture of a good kid—ever since entering the Academy, he had never once skipped class. How could a child like that possess such terrifying combat power?
"Jiraiya, could you have made a mistake?" Hiruzen finally asked.
"I'm not wrong!" Jiraiya bristled like a cat, teeth clenched. "I'm certain—'Bofū Menma' is Uzumaki Naruto."
His eyes reddened as he stared at Hiruzen. "His heart is full of hatred—hatred for Konoha, hatred for the village 'civilians.' That can't be faked… And he knows his lineage. He knows who his parents are…"
The more Hiruzen listened, the more shocked he became, because everything Jiraiya said ran counter to what he knew.
As the room sank into a collective headache, Danzō—wrapped head to toe in bandages, face thunderous—spoke coldly: "If you're all so confused, then just grab the brat and ask him to his face."
Silence fell over the office.
Jiraiya stared at Danzō. "You're saying… Naruto is still in Konoha?"
Danzō let out a low, humorless laugh and said nothing—he merely lifted a finger and pointed toward the window.
Everyone followed the gesture.
A collective gasp.
Down below the Hokage Tower, a blond boy was strolling past.
Seconds later, Jiraiya sprang up and bolted out, tearing down the stairs. The other shinobi snapped into motion and followed.
"Uzumaki Naruto!!!"
Jiraiya's roar split the street. He charged out, eyes blazing at Naruto. "You're Bofū Menma, aren't you?! You took Tsunade, you destroyed Mount Myōboku—how dare you still linger here—"
"Jiraiya-dono, please calm down!" Shikaku, sweating bullets, grabbed at him.
He still couldn't believe Jiraiya's claim. It sounded far too absurd.
Under all those eyes, Naruto tilted his head, sticky rice dango skewer in hand. "Jiraiya-sensei, what are you talking about?"
Jiraiya's pupils blew wide, as if he were staring at a demon. Rage boiled up. "Still pretending?! You are Menma—he already admitted it. You're just a clone!"
Naruto couldn't help but smile. "Jiraiya-sensei, did you drink too much again?"
"Uzumaki Naruto!!!" Jiraiya bellowed, shoving past Shikaku to lunge at Naruto.
Chōza, Inoichi, Kakashi, Guy, and the others rushed in, wrestling Jiraiya back with a flurry of hands. Even if he said Naruto was Menma, they hadn't accepted that as truth—yet.
Hiruzen came forward, studying the blond boy with a complicated look. "Naruto… are you truly that missing-nin, Bofū Menma?"
Only now did it strike him: "Bofū" and "Uzumaki"—those were the surnames of Naruto's parents.
Naruto took a bite of dango. "Jii-chan Hokage, I don't know what you mean. There has to be some misunderstanding."
"Lies!!!" Jiraiya snarled, teeth gritted. "Stop lying! Your face, your eyes, even the whisker marks—they're identical to Menma's!"
"That could just be a coincidence," Naruto said, head cocked.
Watching the standoff, shinobi who trusted Jiraiya by instinct now found themselves wavering, uncertainty spreading like fog.
Who was telling the truth?
Who was lying?
Was Uzumaki Naruto really that S-class missing-nin?
Yes, the villagers called Naruto a monster, a fox, a demon… but at his core he was just the Jinchūriki (Tailed Beast Host) of the Nine-Tails. Without mastering that power, he was only an ordinary boy. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been bullied by villagers for so long.
Jiraiya's fury roiled hotter as images flashed—Tsunade with a slave collar around her neck, the toads slaughtered on Mount Myōboku… His shout rose to a ragged edge. If not for all the shinobi holding him back, he might already have swung at Naruto—
By now the street had devolved into chaos. Shinobi crowded the perimeter, heads pounding as they tried to keep Jiraiya and Naruto apart. Villagers swarmed up too, pointing with faces twisted by hate.
"Even Jiraiya-dono says he's a monster…"
"Right! He must be the fox—and a missing-nin now, too…"
"We should've cast this monster out and left him to die—he's the Nine-Tails' very incarnation…"
"It's not too late—Hokage-sama should lock him up!"
"Get out of Konoha, you damned monster!"
The curses multiplied.
Glares of loathing fixed on the blond boy.
Naruto ignored them. He watched with a small smile, calmly chewing his sticky rice dango as the uproar swelled.
"Enough, Jiraiya," Hiruzen said, voice like iron. "Whatever this is, don't discuss it here. Back to my office."
If this circus kept going, they'd plunge Konoha into disorder long before they found the truth.
Bandaged and bleak as ever, Danzō stepped up beside Naruto and clapped a hand on his shoulder. "Hiruzen. One way or another, the brat is of special importance. Let me take him to Ne (Root). That way, whether he's Uzumaki Naruto or Bofū Menma, he can't betray Konoha. I'm only thinking of the village."
His righteous tone couldn't mask the greed Naruto felt pulsing from him. The corner of Naruto's mouth lifted; he bit down the last dango ball, chewing while he watched the show heat up.
"Danzō!" Hiruzen snapped, fury breaking loose. "Things are bad enough, and you're still eyeing Naruto! How is that 'for Konoha'?"
"Of course it is," Danzō said darkly. "Only Ne can keep Uzumaki Naruto under control. Don't forget our curse seals."
Hiruzen's anger spiked even higher. "Shut up! He's still a child. I will never let you brand him with a juinjutsu (curse seal)!"
(End of Chapter)
[Get +20 Extra Chapters On — P@tr3on "Zaelum"]
[Every 500 Power Stones = 1 Bonus Chapter Drop]
[Thanks for Reading!]