Uchiha Madara: "What's going on, Orochimaru? I see everyone is rallying behind Konoha!"
Orochimaru: "..."
Orochimaru: "I'm talking about the Konoha under the rule of another Ninjutsu God—Hiruzen-sensei!"
Sarutobi Hiruzen: "Ahem. I may be too old to be the First Hokage, but I will never allow anyone to provoke the Hidden Leaf Village!"
Senju Tobirama: "Well said, Monkey. Konoha has never feared going to war with any other village!"
The Second Hokage wasn't wrong.
In every previous Great Ninja War, Konoha had never fought against more than one major power at the same time.
But as time passed, and under Sarutobi's leadership...
Konoha began to decline in talent and faced a shortage of strong successors.
---
["Kakashi-sensei, you're absolutely right."]
[Naruto slowly raised his head, which had been lowered.]
[He looked at Kakashi without a trace of fear.]
["But it's a pity... even if the Hokage kisses Jiraiya, Cardo is still going to die today!"]
Naruto looked at his reflection in the black frame.
Am I always this handsome?
No wonder Ino, Tenten, and the others were so enchanted.
Even he was almost captivated by his own appearance!
"This is... 'Too Cool To Handle'!"
Hinata felt her heart flutter.
She found herself more and more drawn to this confident Naruto—the Naruto from the alternate world.
Unlike her timid self, who struggled to express her feelings,
That version of Naruto had the courage to listen to his heart,
Even for a land as insignificant as the Land of Waves.
He could make a stand and act decisively.
That's exactly what I've always wished I had the courage to do.
But as the eldest daughter of the Hyuga Clan, burdened with expectations,
There were too many things she couldn't do—even trying was a luxury.
"Naruto-kun... do your best!"
---
[On the bridge, Cardo sneered as he saw the small Konoha ninja before him.]
[To him, Naruto looked like just a reckless child courting death.]
["A brat like this... and even Zabuza couldn't handle him?"]
["Looks like the so-called demon of the Bloody Mist is overrated!"]
["Kill all these ninja!" Cardo roared.]
[Following his command, his mercenaries charged at Naruto with weapons of every kind.]
["Heh, just a little kid. I'll take him down in one strike!"]
Leading the charge was a former Chūnin from the Land of Lightning.
He used chakra to enhance his speed, chakra gathering at the soles of his feet.
Holding a sword reminiscent of a katana, he leapt toward Naruto with deadly force—
['Bang!!!']
Before the Chūnin could react,
He was sent flying by a single punch from Naruto!
More than a dozen of Cardo's men standing behind him were also knocked off their feet.
This Chūnin had been among the elite of Cardo's forces,
Yet in one blow, he was completely defeated.
Everyone froze, stunned by what they had just seen.
["What are you doing?! Hurry up and kill that brat!"]
["Whoever does it gets a hefty reward!"] Cardo's hoarse voice rang out.
Greed lit up the mercenaries' eyes.
Naruto was powerful, yes—but he was just one person.
Kill him, and they'd never have to worry about money again!
And so, despite the fear, they charged once more—
But Naruto only smiled coldly, preparing to fight back with all his strength.
Just then, two figures appeared by his side.
["Naruto, we're here too!"]
["You can't always take all the glory for yourself!"]
It was Sakura and Sasuke!
Sasuke's injuries had improved, and the senbon needles had been removed from his body.
As Naruto and his teammates stood side by side,
Kakashi, watching from behind, was struck by a wave of nostalgia.
It reminded him of the old Team 7...
Obito and Rin had once stood beside him like this,
Choosing to fight with him no matter what.
["Somewhere along the way, I became so cautious... so afraid."]
Kakashi chuckled to himself and walked up to the trio.
["K-Kakashi-sensei!"]
And with that, Team 7 was reunited!
---
Jiraiya: "I'm moved. I never thought I'd see Team 7's unity like this again."
Tsunade: "Come to think of it... we were also Team 7 once."
Orochimaru: "I miss the days when we were called the Sannin."
Minato: "Teacher Jiraiya, now that I think about it, it seems every generation's Team 7 is full of monsters."
Senju Tobirama: "Indeed. The Monkey led the legendary Sannin, the Fourth Hokage mentored the Kakashi trio, and now we have this new generation of Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura. Konoha's young talents are something to behold."
Hashirama: "That's the heritage of the Hidden Leaf Village!"
Fourth Raikage: "But wasn't Minato's Team 7 kind of... ordinary? Besides Kakashi, I haven't heard much about the others."
Rin: "I'm sorry... I must have held the team back."
Obito: "Hmph. Raikage, someday you'll realize just how powerful I am!"
Obito clenched his fists in frustration.
If he weren't hiding under the guise of being dead,
He would have charged straight to the Land of Lightning to shut the Raikage up—
To show him the might of the Uchiha's Sharingan.
He wasn't trying to prove his greatness to anyone...
He just wanted to reclaim everything he had lost with his own hands.
---
Back on the bridge—
Sakura never expected Kakashi, who had been hesitant just moments ago,
To step up and stand with them so firmly.
["Let's be clear—if we're doing this, we're making sure Cardo dies!"]
Kakashi's tone was no longer lazy or laid-back.
It was cold. Sharp.
This was the voice of a veteran of the Ninja World War—
A man who had killed countless enemies.
["Since we're taking action, we'll finish this once and for all!"]
["Hmph. Of course."]
Naruto smirked, then swiftly formed hand seals.
["Shadow Clone Jutsu!"]
With a loud puff—
Thousands of Naruto clones appeared all over the bridge!
Cardo's eyes bulged in panic.
He thought Naruto was just a loud-mouthed brat—
But what he saw now… was a terrifying monster!
["Damn it, you bastards! I won't let Konoha get away with this!"]
Before he could finish his curse,
A black shadow appeared above his head.
A chilling breeze brushed against his scalp.
["Am I… not dead yet?"]
Cardo's consciousness blurred.
He could still see—
He saw a short figure standing confidently on the bridge,
Wearing an expensive suit, gold chains hanging from his neck,
And ten shimmering rings—one on each finger.
Everything was so extravagant—
Except for one crucial thing...
He had no head.
Just before darkness took him,
Cardo caught a glimpse of the Konoha brat with whisker marks on his cheeks,
Grinning while looting all his valuables.
["You… you're human, aren't you? Don't do this..."]
But his words never reached his lips.
---
Team 7 had assembled. And they had won.
The bridge, once soaked in blood and fear, now stood bathed in the warm light of dawn.
The will of fire had been reignited.
And in this battle—
The next generation of Konoha made its stand.