Clearly—
Neji had placed his bet.
On Naruto.
On a future where the Hyūga would no longer be shackled by the Caged Bird.
Even though Neji knew the Caged Bird Seal was, in truth, more beneficial than harmful—
His childhood instincts rejected that answer.
A presence more terrifying than a "big landlord,"
and one who had Hinata's affection—
Naruto had a strong chance of changing the Hyūga's future.
Chatroom
Mei Terumī: "That eye just now… did you all see it?"
Sakura Haruno: "Y-yeah… it was terrifying. Naruto sometimes turns like that!"
Mei: "Then it's confirmed. That was the Nine-Tails' chakra."
Shikamaru Nara: "But the question is—whose chakra appeared before the Nine-Tails'?"
Orochimaru:
"Black-Frame Naruto-kun is very different from our Naruto-kun."
"That child is sharp-minded, calm, and far more independent."
"But I'm also very curious—aside from the Nine-Tails, whose chakra exists inside him?"
Orochimaru: "Hiruzen-sensei… does this have anything to do with you?"
Orochimaru asked outright in the chat.
Hiruzen ground his teeth in anger.
But when he thought of Tobirama—
he hurriedly replied.
Sarutobi Hiruzen:
"No. I don't know either. In this world, I never used genjutsu or anything similar to control Naruto."
Uchiha Madara:
"Hmph. Don't bother thinking about it. Even if you wanted to, you couldn't."
"This kind of thing—your useless teacher couldn't do it either."
Senju Hashirama: "What are you all talking about?"
Senju Tobirama: "Big brother… you—sigh."
Tobirama: "Hm?! Wait—if that's the case…"
"Big brother, didn't Black-Frame Naruto feel familiar to you?"
Madara's heart jolted.
Hashirama: "Did he? Hahaha~ maybe."
The footage continued.
Much like the gold-framed version—
[Little Naruto clutched his head, curled on the ground, trembling.]
[But this wasn't fear or grief—it was rage and hatred.]
[He was fighting against the strange sensations in his mind.]
[Some people began to feel uneasy.]
[But most followed the crowd, with the Nine-Tails incident still fresh in memory.]
[For some, even though they knew deep down this was wrong—]
[Seeing everyone else do it erased what little guilt they had left.]
[Eggs, rotten vegetables, even stones were thrown.]
[All aimed at Naruto.]
["Die, demon fox!"]
[Curses filled the air.]
[When a stone struck Naruto's head—]
[Buzz—]
[His vision went black.]
[He instinctively touched it—his hand came away wet and warm.]
[The crimson color was blinding.]
[Thump. Thump. Thump.]
[He heard his own heartbeat clearly.]
[His blue eyes turned crimson.]
[Yet—he felt relaxed.]
[His frail body trembled as he slowly sat up.]
["Finally… some peace~" he muttered.]
[The crimson faded, returning to blue.]
[And the whisper urging him toward kindness vanished completely.]
"That… did that strange chakra disappear?"
"He resisted it!"
Shikamaru exclaimed.
"Black-Frame Naruto is incredible!"
Being smart, Shikamaru understood just how impressive this was.
Seeing Chōji and Ino's confusion, he spoke in the chat.
Shikamaru:
"If we consider the starting point of both Narutos—black frame and gold frame—to be roughly the same…"
"Then Black-Frame Naruto preserved his self."
"While Gold-Frame Naruto became a slave to the whispers."
Senju Tobirama: "Nara clan? That analysis makes a lot of sense."
Ōnoki: "Hahaha! I'm suddenly really looking forward to the Third Hokage's appearance later!"
Orochimaru: "+1."
Sarutobi Hiruzen: "Ōnoki, did I do something unforgivable when I appeared?"
Namikaze Minato: "You already did."
—Clack—
Minato's voice sounded.
Every Konoha shinobi froze when they saw the ID.
The Fourth Hokage.
Who died protecting Konoha during the Nine-Tails incident.
This…
Sarutobi Hiruzen:
"Minato, you are also an inheritor of the Will of Fire. Are you questioning me?"
Hiruzen spoke instinctively in a superior's tone.
After all—
From First to Seventh, the Hokage's desk was always buried in paperwork.
Only the Fourth's desk—
was clean enough to reflect light.
Because Orochimaru was disobedient,
Hiruzen chose the most obedient one—Minato.
The fame of the Yellow Flash was heavily promoted during that period.
To cover up mistakes on the front lines,
Hiruzen stepped down voluntarily, lowering Konoha's profile—
and pushed Minato into the Fourth's seat.
But in truth—
The Fourth Hokage held authority in name and deed.
But many entrenched powers from Hiruzen's era never truly disappeared.
They even had a name for it—
The footage continued.
[With the whispers gone, Naruto felt relieved.]
[Whoosh—]
[A stone suddenly flew toward him.]
[Buzz—]
[He heard it tear past his ear.]
[He tilted his head slightly.]
['I can see all these attacks clearly now.']
['Is it because I have chakra?']
['When I get angry… everything slows down.']
['But I overheard ninjas saying chakra needs training—chakra control…']
['Could it be related to that chilling feeling earlier?']
Inside the seal, the Nine-Tails smiled.
This Black-Frame Naruto—
the more he looked, the more he liked him.
In that world, it wouldn't be long before he could pour massive amounts of knowledge into the boy.
The fox narrowed its eyes.
It could already see Black-Frame Naruto opening the seal gates himself.
["Die, demon fox!"]
[Whoosh—]
[Another stone flew straight at his face.]
[Buzz—]
[Naruto dodged again.]
["You want me dead?"]
["What did I do wrong?"]
["It hurts so much!"]
[Growling, Naruto grabbed a stone at his feet, rolled to avoid other attacks, then snapped his head up.]
[His eyes locked onto the first old woman who threw something at him.]
[The ferocity in his gaze made her stumble back in fright.]
[Whoosh—]
[Without hesitation, Naruto hurled the stone back—aiming for her forehead, exactly where she'd aimed at him.]
["Damn it! This fox dares fight back—everyone, kill him!"]
[A voice suddenly rang out—strangely powerful.]
[Despite the chaos of curses, everyone heard it.]
[?!]
[Naruto's pupils shrank.]
[He saw the old woman collapse to the ground.]
[There was no relief on her face—only fear.]
['So that's it… someone's been deliberately stirring this up!']
['But even so… why does such cheap incitement make them treat me like this?!']
[Understanding the cause only fueled his anger.]
["You want to kill me?"]
["Demon fox—whatever that is."]
["If I really am one… then I'll kill you all right now!"]
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