BlackStar_BH:
More Power Stones and comments, guys!
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"Dattebayo?"
"Dattebayo?"
A large question mark appeared over the heads of both Minato and Kushina at that moment, as they felt a strange sense of familiarity with the word Naruto had begun using at the end of his sentences.
Minato and Kushina looked at each other, eyes half-closed.
"Is it a habit among your Uzumaki clan people to add strange—similar—words at the end of your speech?" Minato asked. He was used to hearing Kushina say 'Dattebane' at the end of her sentences, just like Naruto's Dattebayo.
"Yes, there are some individuals who get into the habit of adding odd words to their sentences, but they all carry similar meanings—like 'I told you!', 'I warned you!', 'You have to believe me', 'See?' Most of them share meanings like that in our dialect."
"I've even heard people from different clans in Konoha speak in the same way," Kushina added.
"I see. But what I don't understand is why Naruto's Dattebayo is suspiciously similar to your Dattebane." Minato said as he scratched his head, clear confusion showing on his face.
"That… even I don't know. He is an Uzumaki after all." Kushina was even more confused than Minato.
Since they were still quite young, at the beginning of their teenage years, they couldn't connect the many tangled threads together and reach the conclusion that Naruto might actually be their son.
First of all, Naruto's appearance was almost a carbon copy of Minato, while also carrying Kushina's traits, her clan name, and even her manner of speech. Anyone with high intelligence could easily connect Naruto to the two of them.
This was exactly the conclusion the Third Hokage had reached at that moment, as he stared suspiciously at both Minato and Kushina.
'To think these two might be connected in the future… interesting.' Hiruzen thought, before returning his focus to the events of the chapter.
…
[—"Whaddaya think? It was hard getting just the right expression! It took me three hours to get that shot!"
"After all, it's not like something ordinary would do… but with my artistic vision~!"
Naruto was brimming with excitement as he talked about his graduation photo, but the Third Hokage could no longer endure it and shouted, interrupting him.
"Do it over!" he exclaimed.
"What concerns me more is why you chose not to wear your hitai-ate—the headband that marks you as an adult shinobi of our village…" said the Third Hokage.
"I didn't want to damage it. I'll start wearing it after the ceremony tomorrow," Naruto said.
"In any case, the secret dossiers in this yearbook are an essential intelligence resource for Konohagakure village. So, to present yourself with such a face…"
The Third Hokage felt foolish as he spoke to Naruto.
"But I don't know about all that stuff—Dattebayo."
Naruto said nervously. Just then, the hall's door suddenly opened, and a small boy slipped inside.—]
…
"I feel like that word is going to get stuck in my head from how often he says it…" Jiraiya felt annoyed by the boy Naruto's manner of speech, yet somehow he loved seeing that lively child—it reminded him exactly of his own childhood, back when he was still an academy student.
Naruto acted exactly like he had back then. That behavior, that liveliness, that spirit—and even being an orphan—Jiraiya felt that Naruto's background mirrored his own.
"Except for being the Kyūbi's jinchūriki…" At that point, Jiraiya definitely didn't resemble Naruto.
"Maybe that's what makes him the protagonist of the story, right?" Jiraiya said with a smile as he continued reading the second chapter.
"Ohhh, so this is Konohamaru? A troublesome kid… oooh, the Third Lord's grandson? How surprising."
Jiraiya marveled at the identity of the mischievous child named Konohamaru, then glanced sideways at the Third Hokage, who was wearing a stunned expression at that moment.
…
The Senju clan residence—inside a luxurious mansion, Rob stared in astonishment at a beautiful young woman. He felt as though he were looking at the most beautiful girl in the world.
Her soft blond hair was tied in a ponytail. Her brown eyes, tinged with yellow, gazed at him with irritated curiosity. Smooth, fair skin. She wore a kunoichi outfit as if she were ready to head to the battlefield at any moment. What caught Rob's eye the most was the mesh vest covering her ample chest… Rob secretly swallowed his saliva as he forcibly pulled his gaze away.
He looked at her for less than a second, yet within that second it felt like a year—under the effect of his photographic memory, which analyzed every part of this stunning kunoichi's appearance and stored it in a complete book.
If he stared any longer, Tsunade Senju would certainly feel disgust toward him—and that was the last thing Rob wanted.
Rob placed his hands together in a friendly greeting, a gentle smile forming on his face. "Greetings, Princess of the village, Miss Tsunade-san."
Seeing Rob's polite attitude, Tsunade felt something was off. "Did you hit your head, Rubirō? I heard you were on the verge of death. Did you lose your memory or something?"
Lose his memory? Of course not.
"Big sister Tsunade, surely you're joking with me… I'm just showing the proper respect to the Princess." Rob smiled again, this time dropping the excessive formality from his words.
Before he could even react, a punch landed on his head, making the vast library inside his mind shake—some books even fell.
"You're definitely acting way too strange… I heard you opened some kind of shop. I was on my way to check it out before you arrived…"
Rob held his head, but to preserve his dignity, not a single tear fell, despite the terrible pain he was feeling at that moment. "That blow was fatal, as you know."
"Alright, alright. There was no other way to knock some sense back into you." Tsunade said with a smile.
"Didn't you learn your medical skills under my supervision? I'm your mentor, you know… yet you're talking to your teacher with such formality as if you don't even know me, huh? So, why did you come here?"
Of course, he remembered. Yes—of course. As Uzumaki Rubirō, he had crossed paths with Tsunade many times. After graduating from the academy, he received personal guidance from her when he became a medical ninja. And whenever he visited Grandma Mito, he often ran into Tsunade as well. It was mainly because of Grandma Mito that Tsunade had formed a good impression of him and decided to teach him.
Even though there was only a four-year age difference between them, Tsunade's terrifying talent placed her leagues above him. He was still a chūnin, while she had already become an elite jōnin.
So learning from her was nothing strange.
Rob took out a volume of the Naruto manga and handed it to Tsunade… In truth, he had come here just to see Grandma Mito. He hadn't expected to run into Tsunade, but since she was here, it would be unreasonable not to take advantage of the opportunity.
"As you know, I've become a store owner. As for what I sell in my store—it's this…"
Tsunade looked curiously at the manga book in Rob's hand. She took it, her attention drawn to the cover featuring Naruto.
She was still slightly annoyed by Rob's formal behavior toward her, but she pushed that thought to the back of her mind as her focus settled entirely on the book.
"It's a fantasy series about a boy named Naruto who dreams of becoming Hokage," Rob summarized the story briefly. "You'll definitely like it."
"I came here to bring a bit of fun to my grandma Mito—and to check on her," Rob said with a smile.
Seeing Tsunade open the volume and quickly become absorbed in Naruto's chapters, Rob nodded with a smile as he glanced at the system notifications that appeared—Tsunade's name shining brightly among them, having contributed a considerable amount of Art Coins!
Since Tsunade had already fallen deeply into Naruto's story, Rob headed straight for Grandma Mito's room. He had to hurry before she died, and he lost a great deal of benefits just because he hadn't been fast enough.
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Upcoming chapter titles (spoilers):
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Chapter 24: Tsunade's Shock — Grandma Mito, I Won't Let You Die.
Chapter 25: Uzumaki Mito's Reaction. Sakumo appears!
Chapter 26: The Third Hokage's Grandson, Konohamaru!
Chapter 27: You don't get it just because you want it.
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BlackStar_BH:
The chapters currently available on Patreon are up to Chapter 34.
There are 12 advanced chapters available now:
5 chapters in the Silver tier ($5 subscription) and 5 more chapters in the Gold tier ($10 subscription).
On Patreon and Ko-fi, too.
In the coming days, chapters will be made available for all tiers, reaching up to 50 advanced chapters… Enjoy!