Honestly…
Instead of wasting time on something like this, they should have gone training instead.
But Naruto had this inexplicable pull to him, a strange kind of charisma.
Just like before, when he'd suggested pulling off Kakashi-sensei's mask.
Sasuke hadn't been interested at first, but once he heard phrases like "sausage mouth," "buck teeth," and "cherry lips," he found himself unable to walk away. Before he knew it, he'd joined the super-sized idiot prank squad.
This time, Naruto hadn't just convinced Sakura and Sasuke. He'd even managed to rope in Team 7 from another era.
Obito Uchiha, young Kakashi Hatake, and Rin Nohara.
Rin was still a little worried.
"But… won't this make the First Hokage-sama and Second Hokage-sama angry? And wouldn't the rest of Konoha object too?"
Naruto waved it off.
"We don't get a chance like this very often. Wouldn't it be a shame if we didn't leave something behind?"
He slung an arm around Obito's neck.
"Besides, you want to give 'that guy' a little payback too, right?! He beat you and that idiot Sasuke half to death, didn't he?"
Obito thought about it for a moment, then nodded hard.
Obito Uchiha and Naruto Uzumaki. These two dead-last troublemakers really lived up to the saying that newborn calves fear no tigers.
Staring at the empty cliff, they'd actually set their sights on Madara Uchiha.
This wasn't just fearless. This was outright courting death.
Sasuke let out a sigh.
"Do either of you even know Earth Release?"
It wasn't that he was looking down on them. One was from the Uchiha clan, where Fire Release was the norm. As for the other… that super idiot should probably master the Three Basic Jutsu and shuriken techniques first.
But among all of them, the one truly proficient in Earth Release…
Everyone's gaze turned toward the silver-haired boy with his face partially covered.
"Kakashi."
"Kid Kakashi-sensei!"
Under the combined pressure of five looks that clearly said "Who else could it be?", young Kakashi finally gave in.
That actually made Obito feel a little relieved. Ever since coming to Naruto's era, Kakashi hadn't been as rigidly obsessed with missions or carried himself with that aloof elite air anymore.
It probably started back in the Land of Waves, when he scolded that kid named Inari. Naruto's personality and determination had slowly influenced the people around him.
It was still afternoon, not a good time to act.
So they continued their Summoning Technique training, preparing to move once the night was dark and the wind was high.
...
By the next morning, Madara had spent the entire night tossing and turning, his thoughts tangled up with the Mangekyō Sharingan, Edo Tensei, and the possibility of reviving Izuna.
Thinking about the Fūinjutsu Minato Namikaze and Tobirama Senju were researching, he gave up on the idea of catching up on sleep. He went straight to the courtyard, grabbed a bucket of cold water, and poured it over his head to clear his mind before heading to the Hokage Tower to find Hashirama and the others.
However…
Before Madara, freshly changed into clean clothes, could even step outside, hurried footsteps sounded beyond his door.
"Madara-sama!!"
"What is it?" Why the panic?
"Uh… it's those juniors from the future…" The Uchiha outside spoke haltingly, already rushing to make excuses for the clan's children before he even finished. "They must've been led astray by that Uzumaki brat! Otherwise, our clan's descendants are all so obedient and well-behaved—"
"Well-behaved?" Madara snorted. "Which part of that describes that little bastard Obito Uchiha?"
"Uh…"
"What exactly happened?"
"The cliff…" The man swallowed. "You really should see it for yourself. But it'd be best to prepare yourself mentally."
Madara hated this kind of half-spoken nonsense. He adjusted his clothes, pushed open the bedroom door, and strode straight out of the mansion.
Because the mansion walls were so high, it wasn't until he reached Konoha's main street that Madara noticed the strange looks being thrown his way. When he turned his head toward the massive cliff encircling the village, he froze completely.
Three enormous heads, each towering hundreds of meters high.
Three gigantic faces carved into the rock wall with Earth Release.
The first had hair spiking wildly in every direction, like a porcupine.
The second… looked more or less bald.
The third had a spiky, sea-urchin-like hairstyle that was oddly artistic.
Of course, that alone wasn't what nearly drove Madara Uchiha to the brink.
What truly made him lose his mind were the bizarre expressions carved onto those three heads.
Could you even imagine it?
A shy, bashful-looking Madara Uchiha.
A Hashirama Senju caught mid-rant, mouth wide open in furious shouting.
And a Tobirama Senju wearing the unmistakable expression of the Sexy Technique.
Tobirama probably had it the worst. Beside his stone head, Earth Release had even carved out comic-style text.
"Hmm~?"
"........"
This was probably the most nerve-wracking moment in the entire history of the Uchiha clan.
Amid the fearful stares of those terrified he might go on a killing spree, the Uchiha clan head charged forward like an enraged dragon. He didn't even bother using ninja footwork or the Body Flicker Technique.
Step by step, like a living Godzilla, he marched toward the rock wall behind the Hokage Tower.
Each step felt as if it might shatter the ground beneath him.
Through clenched teeth, he muttered a string of names.
"Naruto Uzumaki!! Obito Uchiha!! Sasuke Uchiha!!!!!"
The one who had actually been threatened into using Earth Release, young Kakashi, was completely overlooked by Madara. Being too low-key had its perks, apparently.
Yet for Sasuke and young Kakashi, both boys burdened by hatred, it was only during this reckless prank with Naruto and Obito that they truly lived like teenagers.
Under the cover of night, four boys and two girls laughed, played, and argued freely, discussing how to give the Hokage Rock a proper "artistic upgrade."
And now, the price for that decision was—
"You brats!!! Get down from the rock wall right now!!!!!"
Tobirama Senju roared at Naruto and the others with lungs that could rival a Water Release jutsu. Veins bulged on his forehead, looking ready to burst at any second.
Minato Namikaze, who had followed behind, was laughing himself to death internally, but on the surface he still put on a stern expression.
"Ahem. What you're doing is wrong."
"You're spoiling them too much, Minato!!" Tobirama snapped.
"Isn't this great? Hahahahaha!" Hashirama Senju said as he walked over, laughing so hard he could barely stand. "Tobirama, you never let big brother see you during those red-light district missions when we were kids. I was always curious!"
Everyone looked at Tobirama.
–_,–
"Big brother, shut—your—mouth—!!!"
Clang!
Hashirama instantly deflated.
But the increasingly heavy footsteps approaching from behind didn't give him time to stay down. Uchiha Tyrannosaurus Rex Madara was closing in, one step at a time.
"Good grief, did Madara dunk his face in ink?!" Hashirama exclaimed.
"Tobirama shouted, "Have some common sense, brother! He's just furious! Go stop him!"
This time, Madara ignored them completely. Instead, he drew in a breath worthy of Fire Release: Great Fire Annihilation and bellowed toward the figures on the cliff.
"Obito Uchiha! Sasuke Uchiha! Naruto Uzumaki! You three little brats! Now! Immediately! This instant!"
"Get over here and kneel down!!!"
Naruto and Obito, paint buckets hanging from their backs as they worked on applying lipstick to the Hokage Rock, were startled so badly they nearly fell. If Sasuke hadn't grabbed Naruto's ankle and young Kakashi hadn't seized Obito's collar, both of them would've gone straight down.
Naruto and Obito were unharmed.
The same could not be said for the red paint buckets at their waists.
One of them entered free fall, plummeting straight toward Madara's head.
Madara didn't even think. In a blind rage, he summoned Susanoo and swatted the bucket away, then immediately used it to grab the culprits.
But when he landed back where he stood…
"Ha… Hashirama…?"
The red paint bucket he'd knocked aside landed perfectly over Hashirama Senju's head.
Nearby, Tobirama and Minato dodged just in time, though not without consequence. At most, they were left with a suspicious crimson stain below the waist.
Hashirama stood there with the bucket still covering his head.
"I was saying… Madara…"
Naruto and Obito, caught by the backs of their collars, shrank their necks instinctively. Sasuke, still holding his composure, turned his head away with a quiet snort.
In an instant, all the blame that had been aimed at the kids shifted squarely onto Madara.
Beneath the rock carvings of Bald Hashirama and "Hmm~?" Tobirama, one man stood with a paint bucket over his head like a slapstick disaster, while the other had an unknown crimson stain below the waist.
No matter how taciturn or gloomy Madara usually was, there was no way he could keep control of his expression now.
Looking at Hashirama's utterly mortified state, Madara burst out laughing.
Not the wild, arrogant laughter of dominance, but something far more pure.
It was as if the laughter carried with it everything they'd lost that day by the river, releasing it all at once.
The morning air of Konoha echoed with that laughter, letting its people witness the presence of one of the legendary Uchiha's Four Great Laughers more than sixty years ahead of time.
Hashirama had been unbearably embarrassed at first, but when he saw that long-lost smile on Madara's face, his surprise outweighed the awkwardness.
Hashirama could handle it.
His brother could not.
Tobirama Senju was on the verge of completely losing his mind.
After all, what man could calmly accept standing there with a crimson stain right where everyone could see?
Especially when more and more people were drawn over by Madara's booming laughter, unaware of what had happened earlier, only to stare straight at Tobirama Senju and the blond youth beside him…
…
The expressions were nothing short of spectacular.
Like colors dumped into a dye vat, even the most disciplined ninja couldn't suppress their inner gossip instincts.
Everyone stared at the gigantic heads carved into the cliff.
Shy Madara, bald Hashirama, and the unmistakable "Hmm?" Tobirama…
And yet Madara Uchiha hadn't flown into a rage after such blatant nonsense?
"Turns out Madara-sama isn't that hard to talk to after all?"
"Look, Tobirama-sama is shaking with anger!"
"Hashirama-sama really does have a great temper. He didn't even get mad. Well… he's always been pretty good-natured."
"I don't know what happened, but I suddenly see the Uchiha clan head in a different light."
"Yeah, I always thought he was terrifying. I never even dared get close."
"Who knew he was actually pretty approachable? And that carving on the cliff… pfft—"
"Hahahaha."
"Hahahahaha..."
Once the first person started laughing, the second followed, then the third…
No one bothered to hold back anymore. The entire Konoha was flooded with uncontrollable laughter.
The noise completely drowned out even Madara's own booming laugh, leaving him, once he finally came to his senses, feeling even more awkward than Hashirama.
Nearby, adult Kakashi, who was in the middle of personally receiving the head of the Hatake clan, glanced toward the Hokage Rock and immediately understood what had happened. He could only sigh inwardly at Naruto's "masterpiece."
Before Madara could even force his expression back into place, Naruto wriggled free from his grip, jumped back, and made a face at him.
"The Hokage Rock is one of Konoha's most famous landmarks! Sooner or later, I, Naruto Uzumaki, will become Hokage and have my head carved up there, so the whole village will acknowledge me, dattebayo!!!"
Madara froze.
Taking advantage of that moment, Obito Uchiha, clearly influenced by Naruto, also slipped free from Madara's grasp.
"Sooner or later, I, Obito Uchiha, will become the first Hokage from the Uchiha clan! I'll have my goggles and my Sharingan carved onto the Hokage Rock too!!!"
Lively, unrestrained youth was always the most comforting thing in the aftermath of war.
The villagers, many of whom still didn't fully grasp the deeper significance of the Hokage Rock, weren't particularly offended by the prank. Instead, it became a rare moment of levity amid the busyness, tension, and chaos of Konoha's founding days.
Hashirama stared at Naruto in astonishment. Only now did he begin to faintly realize…
Naruto Uzumaki, Obito Uchiha, Sasuke Uchiha, Kakashi Hatake, Rin Nohara, and Sakura Haruno…
These children might actually see things more clearly than the adults.