Hidden Sand Village.
"Third Hokage Sarutobi Hiruzen, Jiraiya… and Elder Chiyo of the Sand… people who are already dead?"
"Since Hiruzen and Jiraiya are confirmed dead… does that mean I'm dead too?"
Chiyo was utterly dumbfounded.
"We already learned earlier that the One-Tails from our Sand Village would fall into Akatsuki's hands."
"And now we find out that I'm dead? Does that mean I died fighting Akatsuki?"
Not only Chiyo—
the entire Hidden Sand Village was in turmoil.
The Fourth Kazekage had already been confirmed killed by Orochimaru in an ambush.
Gaara, the One-Tails jinchūriki, had been captured by Akatsuki.
And now even Elder Chiyo was dead.
Which meant—
"Is the Sand Village doomed!?"
"We absolutely cannot let that terrible future happen! We must protect our future!"
"But what can we do? You saw Akatsuki's strength! They're terrifying!"
"At the very least—we must protect Gaara!"
"Protect Gaara? Are you kidding? He's a jinchūriki who could bring disaster at any moment!"
"Didn't you hear what the Fifth Hokage said? Didn't you see how Konoha treats their jinchūriki?"
"I don't think Gaara is a tool to stop wars—he's a ninja who protects the Sand Village. Just like Naruto protects Konoha."
"That's right! Gaara is strong! We have to protect him with everything we have. If we do that, our Sand Village still has a future."
Konoha
Konoha's ordinary shinobi and villagers were deeply moved.
The Twelve Guardian Genin—
now just children—
but in the footage, they had already grown into the next generation of hope.
"We don't have to be afraid! Lady Tsunade was right—we must believe in the power of believing!"
"Let's believe in the future! Believe in the next generation!"
"And especially Naruto! We can't discriminate against him anymore—we should make it up to him!"
"Konoha won't fall! No matter how strong the enemy is—we still have hope!"
Their eyes grew bright—
hope rekindled.
Koharu and Homura looked at each other and saw guilt reflected in one another's eyes.
Homura: "We have failed the First Hokage… We were once the younger generation he believed in. If he could trust us… why can't we trust the new generation?"
Koharu: "After seeing Naruto in those earlier scenes… I think we have no reason not to believe in him."
Homura: "It's decided. From now on—I will not allow anyone in the village to discriminate against Naruto ever again."
Root Base
"Power of believing? Nonsense!"
"If believing worked, why would the Fourth Hokage have died? Why would Jiraiya die in the future?"
"Hmph! If believing were useful, would the Uchiha have been annihilated?"
"I admit the new generation is growing… but we cannot place hope on them. Use them? Yes. Trust them? Never."
Danzō's eyes narrowed dangerously.
Those who could be controlled—
he would begin grooming them now.
Those who couldn't be controlled—
he would find the right chance to eliminate.
Danzō muttered darkly:
"Everything I do… is for the good of the village."
Chūnin Exam Arena
The Twelve Genin were fired up.
Who would've thought—in the future
they would become the hope of the village?
If the village needed them—
if the future needed them—
Then they would train harder than ever!
But…
Neji, Tenten, and Lee were depressed.
Because they hadn't appeared in the footage at all.
Of course, neither had Naruto (busy training on Mount Myōboku) nor Sasuke (already defected).
But what about them?
Neji: "…Did the three of us… die?"
Tenten: "No way! I die that early!?"
Lee: "Youth does not fear death! But… I don't want to die that early either!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi's old face flushed red.
The better Tsunade made him look,
the more guilty he felt.
But it didn't matter—
as long as he started behaving well now.
Besides, he had already received rewards from the Ranking Scroll.
Once he took the Shapeshift Pill and gained tenfold power…
He, Sarutobi Hiruzen…
really might become the strongest Hokage in history!
Tsunade — Gambling Inn
Shizune: "Lady Tsunade, what you said was incredible. I realize now—I wrongly judged you before."
Tsunade's forehead popped a large cross vein: "Oh? So in your mind I was extremely disappointing?"
"N-no—that's not what I meant!"
Shizune panicked and stepped back quickly.
Pure Land
[Hashirama: The power of believing… Yes. I believe Naruto truly is Konoha's hope.]
[Mito: I also feel that child Naruto will become Hokage one day—and lead Konoha into a brand-new future.]
[Tobirama: Aside from Naruto, those kids in the footage… performed adequately. Of course compared to my brother and me at their age—they're far behind.]
[Madara: Hashirama! Don't make me laugh! You really think Konoha can rely on a few brats?]
Madara scoffed internally.
If he revived,
those little brats in the footage—
he could wipe out with one hand.
If that was Konoha's "hope,"
it was truly pathetic.
The footage continued.
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