There was no need for Sarutobi Hiruzen to hide anything.
He directly told the story of how he had tried to recruit Uzumaki Xiangling but failed.
In short: he had been scared off by her!
Naruto was speechless upon hearing this and complained,
"Third Hokage-sama, if you think about it from my perspective, do you think you would dare to stay in Konoha?"
Sarutobi Hiruzen was momentarily stunned.
Putting yourself in someone else's shoes…
This really fit the Will of Fire perfectly.
He considered things from Xiangling's perspective and suddenly understood.
No wonder!
No wonder she had been in such a hurry to leave.
As a child forced to leave her homeland because of the war, Xiangling had wandered the ninja world with her mother.
After finally joining a small ninja village, she had paid an enormous price.
And now?
She was being invited to the Chūnin Exam by the Kage of Konoha, with promises of benefits: a place to live, living expenses, and other perks.
Any reasonable person would have been suspicious.
Sarutobi Hiruzen's biggest mistake was not revealing his true purpose, which naturally made Xiangling wary.
As a woman of sense, she couldn't help but wonder: what could the Great Ninja Village want from her?
She wasn't particularly strong—so what was the goal?
Anyone could guess: once she agreed to stay, they'd probably want her to bear children and take care of the village!
Sarutobi Hiruzen exhaled and puffed on his cigarette.
"Oh, it's not enough that people are dissatisfied," he muttered.
The Kazekage Rasa noticed Hiruzen's embarrassment and quickly changed the subject.
"So this is Konoha's genius Jinchūriki? I've heard of you. On behalf of Sunagakure, I thank you for sealing Shukaku."
Naruto looked at him.
In the original story, this Kazekage had been killed by Orochimaru.
He was an older man with a square face and short brown hair, rumored to be able to manipulate gold and had repeatedly subdued Shukaku in a berserk state.
His strength was at elite Kage level, fitting for a leader of a major village.
Rasa's words of gratitude prompted Naruto to respond casually:
"I'm just trying to protect the people I want to protect."
It felt strange…
All he had been doing was completing system tasks and testing ninjutsu. Otherwise, wouldn't it have been easier for Naruto to simply take Sasuke and the others away?
Seeing Naruto evade the topic, Sarutobi Hiruzen said,
"Little Naruto, after our decision, we'll promote you directly to Chūnin. You won't need to participate in the competition."
"Yeah," Naruto hummed, saying no more.
Sarutobi Hiruzen sensed that Naruto had emotional struggles, so he added,
"Little Naruto, in light of your outstanding performance in the Chūnin Exam, the village has decided to reward you. What would you like?"
Naruto immediately perked up.
"I want the First Hokage's ninjutsu scroll. Is that okay?"
Hiruzen's eyes widened.
"Little Naruto, why do you want that?"
The First Hokage's ninjutsu had been recorded on that scroll, but most of Hashirama's techniques were senjutsu and Wood Style.
Naruto didn't have a summoning contract, so he couldn't use senjutsu.
Without it, he couldn't practice Wood Style.
Did Naruto already have it?
He didn't explain, just raised his palm.
Kakakka~
As chakra condensed, tiny branches sprouted from his hand.
Hiruzen jumped up in excitement.
"Is this…?"
Wood Style!
Naruto actually knew Wood Style?
Was it something he developed himself?
Hiruzen quickly composed himself and glanced at Rasa, who was equally surprised.
"Lord Kazekage, please keep this a secret for Konoha. Is that acceptable?"
Rasa nodded silently, a glimmer in his eyes betraying his thoughts.
Hiruzen turned to Naruto:
"The First Hokage's ninjutsu scroll is yours if you want it.
But there's one condition: you must hide your Wood Style ability for three years.
It's too ostentatious, and showing it now would make others jealous.
In three years, with your talent, you'll be able to fully learn the First Hokage's ninjutsu."
Naruto didn't hesitate.
"Okay, I agree. I'll hide it."
Satisfied with Naruto's compliance, Hiruzen nodded.
"Kakashi."
In the next moment, a one-eyed, white-haired ninja appeared.
Hiruzen instructed him,
"Kakashi, go to Anbu and tell the minister to make a copy of the First Hokage's ninjutsu scroll, then deliver the original to Naruto."
"Yes, Hokage-sama." Kakashi nodded, slightly confused, but went straight to work.
Naruto, a little excited, stayed to watch the upcoming matches.
After all, this was not the original story.
More participants were present, and with Rasa alive, Konoha's collapse plan was likely gone.
The first match began sooner than Naruto expected.
Haruno Sakura vs. Hinata Hyuga.
At the competition venue, Sakura glared at Hinata.
"Even if I can't defeat you, the thought of you taking down Naruto first makes me angry!"
Hinata blushed, looking at her former classmate shyly.
"I… I didn't mean to, Sakura-chan. I'm sorry."
Clearly, Hinata didn't intend sarcasm, but to Sakura, it sounded like:
"Hmph~ I'm just a humble loser. I did it on purpose. What can you do about it?!"
Impulsive as always, Sakura rushed toward Hinata seriously.
Hinata's expression showed confusion.
Ten seconds later, Sakura was pushed to the ground by Hinata, muttering,
"Damn it… I lost!"
In terms of both strength and development, Hinata had clearly surpassed her.
Sakura turned her head, staring at Hinata's rapid growth, feeling her heart ache.
Hateful!
Why did everyone else grow so strong so quickly?
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