That's… Wood Release?!
Staring at the towering tree behind Naruto, Jiraiya's eyes bulged as wide as saucers.
In the Hokage's office, Hiruzen Sarutobi, who had just taken a sip of tea while watching their interaction with great satisfaction, suddenly choked and spat it out in disbelief.
Naruto had awakened the First Hokage's legendary Wood Release?
Watching the scene unfold through his crystal ball, Hiruzen was visibly stunned.
Minato was a commoner, of that he was certain. So, could this power have come from Kushina's side?
Now that he thought about it, the Uzumaki clan was distantly related to the Senju… but weren't they supposed to specialize in sealing arts and restraint techniques?
Brushing aside his shock, Hiruzen immediately summoned the Anbu and handed them a prepared document.
"Make this public immediately."
"Yes, sir!"
As the Anbu disappeared, Hiruzen let out a bitter smile.
He had already planned to announce Naruto's identity. It was part of his strategy to ease tensions with the Uchiha clan.
On one hand, revealing the truth would forge a stronger bond between Naruto and the village. On the other, it would serve as a gesture of goodwill toward the Uchiha, to dissuade them from using the situation to cause unrest.
After all, the Fourth had been a hero to the entire village. During the Nine-Tails' attack, he had even protected members of the Uchiha. During his time as Hokage, he had worked to mend the rift between the Uchiha and the rest of the village.
Whether it was out of their typical pride or a sense of moral obligation, the Uchiha would likely be less inclined to covet the Nine-Tails' power if they saw Naruto as the Fourth's child.
What worried Hiruzen the most was the potential backlash questions about why the truth had been hidden in the first place.
He had already thought of a solution to that.
For one, Naruto's guardian, the Fourth's teacher Jiraiya, had been away on a long-term mission. Second… Danzo made for an excellent scapegoat, didn't he?
The higher-ups had concealed Naruto's identity to protect him from the enemies of the Fourth Hokage.
But there were those within the village who coveted the power of the Nine-Tails. They leaked Naruto's status as a jinchuriki, hoping to push him into darkness and seize control of the tailed beast.
Danzo had just approached him about Naruto a few days ago. He certainly had the means to act even under the Hokage's nose.
Blaming someone properly took skill. Hiruzen couldn't make Danzo the fall guy outright even if he was involved. Fortunately, he had enough experience in this area. All it would take was a reason to strip Danzo of his titles, and the entire village would understand what had happened.
It would satisfy the public, give Naruto an explanation, and neatly crush Danzo's ambition in the process.
Yes, it would slightly damage the reputation of the leadership. But what did that matter compared to the importance of Wood Release and the Nine-Tails?
Hiruzen had never seen Naruto as just another child. But no matter what, he was still young. The aloofness he showed now was, in Hiruzen's eyes, just the stubbornness of a child.
Give him time, and he'd come around.
Sure enough, within half a day of the announcement, the entire village knew Naruto was the son of the Fourth Hokage.
"Hey, did you hear? About that kid…"
"Just heard myself."
"Who would've thought he's the Fourth's son?"
"They say the Fourth sealed the Nine-Tails into his newborn son to protect the village…"
People murmured across every street corner.
Some had already suspected the truth, noticing Naruto's resemblance to the late Hokage. But most were still in disbelief.
Then, at the end of one street, a pair of figures appeared one tall, one small. The crowd quieted, stealing glances at the boy with forced calm.
Returning to Konoha's streets for the first time in a while, Naruto immediately sensed a strange shift in the atmosphere. The usual flood of malice directed at him had lessened significantly.
Glancing at Jiraiya beside him, it wasn't hard to guess why.
"Where's the ninja tools shop?"
"Should be northwest of the village… I think."
Jiraiya let out a hearty laugh. "Been a while since I was back, so I'm not exactly sure. But hey, the weather's nice. Worst case, we take a few extra steps."
Naruto didn't bother responding. He simply turned and headed northwest.
All he wanted was to buy some chakra paper. He couldn't care less about Jiraiya's little act.
Jiraiya, meanwhile, observed the subtle change in the villagers' demeanor, nodding silently to himself.
Looks like the old man already announced Naruto's identity. The villagers' attitude has definitely changed…
He might have his complaints about how the leadership had handled things, but now wasn't the time to argue. If he hadn't come back when he did, Naruto might have left the village for good.
As the two made their way through the streets, curious eyes followed them.
"Na… Naruto?"
As they passed a dessert shop, a plump middle-aged woman behind the counter hesitantly waved at Naruto, her smile tinged with guilt.
"Want a treat"
Before she could finish, Naruto had already walked past without so much as a glance.
Sensing the awkward stares around her, she forced a smile and slowly set down the bag of sweets in her hand.
"Hey, Naruto!"
Jiraiya quickened his pace to catch up. "That lady was just trying to be nice. Ignoring her like that is a bit rude, don't you think?"
Naruto gave him a sideways glance. "Did I ever say my name was Naruto?"
"Don't try to fool me, brat."
Jiraiya gave him a knowing smirk. "Using a fake name to deceive an old man like me..."
"Oh, my bad."
Naruto waved dismissively, his tone devoid of apology.
"Sheesh…"
Seeing Naruto's indifferent expression, Jiraiya sighed.
"Guess I'm the one who should apologize. You've probably figured out I approached you on purpose. Naruto… I'm actually your father's teacher."
"What's that got to do with me? I don't have parents, and I don't acknowledge any so-called father. So there's no need to apologize."
Naruto didn't seem surprised by Jiraiya's confession. After all, he wasn't some gullible protagonist from the original story, ready to fall for the first bit of affection.
I'm not some soft-hearted kid you can manipulate with a few words. What, you gonna hit me with the Will of Fire next?
"Don't be like that."
Jiraiya smiled and walked beside him. "I'm guessing you don't know what kind of man your father was, do you?"
"Unless he was secretly a woman, I'm guessing you mean the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze? That who you're talking about?"
"So you already knew…"
Jiraiya's expression grew complicated. "Then you must've met him before."
"Nope."
Naruto shook his head with a slight smile. "I didn't want to be disgusted, so after absorbing the knowledge about ninjutsu, I erased their chakra remnants."
"Their…?"
Jiraiya froze, his face slowly darkening. "That's not funny, Naruto."
Naruto shrugged with an innocent look. "So what? You gonna kill me?"
"Why would you do something like that?"
Jiraiya looked at him in disbelief. "Minato believed in you…"
"Are you deaf, Jiraiya?"
Naruto narrowed his eyes. "I said, what does that have to do with me?"