Chapter 36: I'm Going to Be Hokage!
"Y-You're lying to me, aren't you? You must be lying to me! There's no way the Fourth Hokage is my father. How could that be possible? I don't believe it! I don't believe it!!"
By the end, Naruto was screaming at the top of his lungs. Iruka poked his head down from above.
"Naruto, what are you doing? Why did you stop?"
But Naruto was too overwhelmed to stop. His cries grew louder and louder, until Franklin's voice rang out again.
"Crying won't solve anything. Ever since you were little, you've probably cried alone under the covers countless times, haven't you? And every time, it did nothing. If they ever noticed something was off about you, you'd never get answers to the secrets you're desperate to know.
Like—where the Nine-Tails came from. Where it was before. Why your parents died such a horrible death. Why the Third Hokage hid all of this. Why no one knows that your parents were the Fourth Hokage—great heroes.
Keep crying, and they'll think you've lost control. They'll believe the Nine-Tails might break free again. Then they'll lock you away under heavy guard, and you'll never see the light of day again.
And even if you don't care about yourself, think about the people who care about you. Hyuga Hinata—she's liked you for a long time.
And your so-called best friend, Uchiha Sasuke—he's just like you. Neither of you were trusted by Konoha's leaders, and because of that, both of your families were destroyed."
Those words hit their mark. In an instant, Naruto's sobbing stopped. Within seconds, he had calmed himself down again.
At the same time, Iruka, who had been hesitating with a communication talisman ready to send, slowly tucked it away.
"Naruto, what's going on? Why were you so out of control just now?"
"I'm sorry, Iruka-sensei. I wasn't losing control. I was just… thinking about how you've always looked after me since I was little, and how you're even going to treat me to ramen later. I guess I got a little emotional. But I'm fine now, so don't worry."
Naruto resumed his work. This time, he moved very slowly, almost as if he were carefully wiping down the face of his long-departed father.
By the time the bright moon hung high in the sky, Naruto finally put down his brush.
"Let's go, Iruka-sensei. You promised me ramen."
Seeing Naruto's bright, cheerful smile, Iruka finally relaxed completely. He laughed.
"Well, you did your part, so I can't go back on my word."
With a bowl of ramen polished off—broth and all—Iruka asked, "Want another bowl?"
Without hesitation, Naruto ordered a second.
"Naruto, can you tell me why you were painting the Hokage Rock?"
After finishing the second bowl, Naruto answered without hesitation. "All the Hokage in history were the strongest in Konoha. Especially the Fourth—he's the great hero who saved the village from the fox."
"Then why would you do something like that, knowing that?"
Naruto fell silent for a long time. A strange light flickered in his eyes.
"Because my goal is to become Hokage! And if I want to be Hokage, I have to earn everyone's recognition…"
Iruka fell silent. Franklin, who had just returned, was surprised too. He had revealed a lot of information to Naruto during the day, but the boy's resolve hadn't wavered one bit. Why?
Was it that the timeline itself couldn't be altered? Or was there some unseen force constantly correcting it? Franklin wasn't sure, but he had plenty of time—trying again tomorrow wouldn't hurt.
If he really couldn't make large-scale changes to the timeline, Franklin would initiate his "If They Don't Mess with Me, I Won't Mess with Them" plan. When Konoha was heavily destroyed, the timeline would surely be disrupted. But he suspected he'd face enemies even he couldn't handle.
After parting ways with Iruka, Naruto walked home in silence. Franklin said nothing either—if anyone was secretly watching, revealing the presence of his phantom projection now would ruin everything.
Once he closed the door behind him, Naruto threw himself onto his bed and pulled the blanket over his head.
"Uncle… I guess I can call you that, right? You sound a lot older than me…"
Franklin's phantom sighed. "Do I sound old to you? Quit calling me uncle—call me big brother."
Naruto didn't argue. "Alright, Big Bro Lin… how do you know so much? And why have you been following me all this time?"
Franklin's phantom was speechless. "Are you stupid or something? From now on, call me Big Brother Lin. If you promise, I'll tell you more secrets about your parents."
There was a long silence before Naruto's voice came again. "Big Brother Lin… why are you telling me all this? Do you have a grudge against Konoha?"
Right on target. Franklin didn't bother to hide it.
"You're wrong. I have no grudge against Konoha. I just think it's unfair for you to be kept in the dark, blaming yourself for everything.
You already know the truth now, but judging by your answer earlier tonight, you seem to like being despised.
After everything—the ignorant villagers, the paranoid leaders—you're still not angry. Why?"
Tears rolled down Naruto's cheeks again, and his voice trembled.
"I always thought I really was the fox. That I'd brought terrible harm to Konoha. The marks on my face… they felt like proof of that.
So when the Third Hokage took me in, I was grateful—even if the villagers despised me, I felt like I deserved it. I had no complaints.
But if things really happened the way you said… then I'm just a fool. Everything I've done has been foolish. Can you tell me—are you sure you're not lying to me?"
Franklin hadn't expected Naruto's thoughts to run that deep. But thinking about it, it was the only explanation for why he would willingly be the village's punching bag.
Since that was the case, Franklin decided to go all in.
"Before you were born, the Nine-Tails was sealed inside your mother, Kushina. She was known as the Nine-Tails' jinchūriki—and she accepted that role, becoming Konoha's strategic weapon.
Everything changed when she went into labor. First, news of the jinchūriki giving birth was leaked. Instead of sending anyone to protect her, Konoha focused on guarding against a potential Uchiha rebellion.
Because of that paranoia and suspicion, the Uchiha clan was later massacred—only Sasuke and the rogue ninja Itachi survived.
At that time, the only person protecting your mother was your father, the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze. And because the news of the birth had leaked, a mysterious man calling himself Uchiha Madara attacked.
Your father had to protect both your mother and you, leaving an opening for 'Madara' to kidnap Kushina.
He forcibly tore the Nine-Tails from her and summoned it into Konoha. That's how the Nine-Tails' rampage began.
While battling the intruder and protecting his family, your father defeated and repelled 'Madara' and managed to save you and Kushina, placing you together in safety.
Then, he used the Flying Thunder God Technique to teleport the Nine-Tails out of the village. All the while, Konoha's leaders were still obsessively guarding against the Uchiha, leaving only your exhausted parents to face the full might of the beast.
In the end, with Kushina near death after losing the Nine-Tails, her strength to suppress it had weakened drastically. To protect you, both of your parents were impaled by the beast's claws.
Your father then used the Reaper Death Seal to take half of the Nine-Tails with him, sealing the other half inside you. Before they died, they hoped you'd live as the son of heroes—admired, cherished, and happy.
But the Third Hokage hid the truth. Not only that, but the compensation you should have received as the son of heroes became almost nonexistent. For the sake of 'village stability,' you were branded a monster—a target for the villagers' hatred."
Franklin laid out the truth, albeit in a carefully measured way. The impact on Naruto was immense. He cried for a long time, eventually crying himself to sleep without realizing it.
Franklin replaced his phantom with his real body and appeared at Naruto's side. Looking at the protagonist he had watched grow up, he felt a surge of emotion. Channeling spiritual energy into his eyes, he activated the Eye of True Sight—he wanted to have a word with the Nine-Tails.
Name: Naruto Uzumaki
Age: 12/96
Race: Human
Bloodline: Divine Tree Bloodline 60% (Generates and uses chakra. The purer the bloodline, the more chakra produced and the higher its efficiency. In extreme cases, reversion to ancestral form occurs. Bloodline purity decreases in descendants.)
Body Cultivation: Body Tempering Stage 1
Chakra Utilization: 3%
Mental Cultivation: Mortal Heart Realm
Jinchūriki: Kurama (sealed)
Ninjutsu: Substitution Jutsu E-, Transformation Jutsu E, Sexy Jutsu D-, Clone Jutsu E-, Verbal Jutsu SSS
Talent: Protagonist Halo
Overall Power Level: 3~ (Loses rationality entirely if power exceeds 100)
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