Tsunade stood atop a massive boulder.
Beneath her feet lay an artificial lake formed by Rin Nohara's Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique.
No matter how she looked at it, she never would have expected a group of young ninja with an average age of barely twelve or thirteen to be this capable.
Of course, part of it was her own mistake. She had completely underestimated them.
Aside from the girl capable of unleashing such an overwhelming Water Release, the Uchiha boy who had awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan also shocked her.
Obito Uchiha looked just as goofy and simple-minded as Naruto Uzumaki at first glance, yet he possessed talent of this level. No wonder Minato had said that this world's Obito could even manage something as outrageous as controlling the Nine-Tails.
And that Naruto Uzumaki wasn't nearly as foolish as she'd assumed.
This strategy was probably his idea.
Shadow clones to pin down the others. The first wave was nothing but brainless clones rushing in to die. The second wave sent clones equal to their numbers, with two deliberately transforming their eyes into Sharingan to create the first layer of misdirection. Then came the third wave, shadow clones transformed into the others, acting as if they'd been defeated.
And finally, the fourth wave—
Everyone transformed into kunai using the Transformation Technique, launching a surprise attack.
Shaking her arm, which Katsuyu had almost completely healed, Tsunade was just about to praise the kids when she suddenly realized—
The Naruto standing in the distance, waiting for his chance, vanished with a bang.
Danger surged instantly.
Tsunade instinctively leaned backward. With a sharp splash, the real Naruto Uzumaki burst out from within Rin Nohara's Water Release?!
From Minato Namikaze's perspective.
From adult Kakashi's perspective.
From Tsunade's perspective.
From Jiraiya's perspective.
Even from inside Kamui's Dimension, from adult Obito Uchiha's perspective—
None of them had expected this.
So the first four waves were all feints?
Only this was the real attack?!
The real Naruto leapt out of the water, riding the momentum as he slammed a fist toward Tsunade's shoulder?!
"!!!!"
"Tsunade-sama!" Shizune cried out.
Everyone stared wide-eyed as Naruto's fist stopped less than three inches from Tsunade.
He didn't hit her.
"One minute…" Naruto panted heavily.
"That minute passed a long time ago."
Earlier, Tsunade had said one minute was all she needed to deal with them.
At this moment, the outcome was obvious.
Tsunade hadn't gone all out. It could even be said she was just playing with them.
But this match was undeniably her loss.
Naruto was the same. Despite shouting earlier that he'd beat up anyone who insulted the Hokage, his dad, and their dreams—woman or not—in the end, he stopped short, proving their victory instead.
If asked why he didn't follow through, Naruto would say it was because there were six of them.
At that moment, Tsunade's expression was unmistakably shocked. Her eyes were wide, reflecting the childish smile on Naruto's face.
"Don't get too—" she muttered.
Naruto blinked, not quite catching what she said.
The next instant, Tsunade raised her hand and flicked forward. Before Naruto could react, his forehead protector was sent flying into the air.
"—cocky, kid!!" Tsunade shouted as the rest of her words came out.
A finger flick struck Naruto square on the forehead.
"Bang!"
"Naruto!" Minato cried out.
"Dead last!" Sasuke snapped.
"Hey!" Obito and Kakashi shouted.
"!!" Rin and Sakura gasped.
"Tsunade-sama?!" Shizune exclaimed.
Jiraiya pressed a hand to his forehead. "Tsunade… of course…"
Everyone watched as Tsunade mercilessly flicked Naruto away, sending him flying more than ten meters, his forehead protector knocked loose first.
With a splash, Naruto fell into the water. A moment later, his forehead protector followed, floating on the surface.
Two figures flashed past. Sasuke grabbed the forehead protector, while Obito hauled Naruto back out.
Having fallen into the water twice, Naruto was completely soaked. His clothes clung to him, his hair hanging limp as water dripped steadily from the ends.
Even so, he sprang to his feet, still full of energy, fuming with indignation.
"We clearly won! You old hag cheated! That was a foul, dattebayo!"
"Pfft…" Tsunade couldn't help laughing at his expression. "Hey, kid—"
"Huh?" Naruto shot back unhappily.
Tsunade looked at him seriously. "Why are you so obsessed with it?"
She genuinely couldn't understand why so many people still scrambled for the title of Hokage, a position that seemed destined to bring nothing but death.
The others understood what she meant as well. Their gazes turned toward Naruto, curious how he would answer.
Naruto took his forehead protector back from Sasuke. "Thanks."
It was still the one Iruka-sensei had given him. Because of that single moment of recognition, he had chosen to stay true to himself instead of hating the world and walking a darker path.
"Because…"
He pressed the forehead protector against his brow and tied the strap behind his head.
Then he looked straight at Tsunade.
"Being Hokage is my dream."
"!!!"
In that instant, Tsunade saw the shadows of Nawaki and Dan Katō overlapping with him.
[Hokage is my dream.]
In Kamui's Dimension, Obito Uchiha froze. This wasn't the first time he'd seen his own reflection in Naruto Uzumaki.
"That's right!" Young Obito jumped to Naruto's side and faced Tsunade. "Hokage is our dream! We won't let you trash it so casually!"
Tsunade was visibly shaken. After a moment, she asked them quietly,
"Even if it means dying, you'd still cling to that dream?"
The question made Naruto and Obito pause.
Naruto thought carefully before answering. "Before I become Hokage, I absolutely won't die."
"But—"
He suddenly shifted his tone. Obito, Tsunade, Minato Namikaze, and the others all waited for what came next.
Naruto's eyes shone brightly as he spoke.
"From the day I chose Hokage as my goal, I already made peace with the idea of dying!"
"!!!"
Not just Tsunade. Even Minato was stunned into silence.
"I'm the same!" Young Obito laughed, scratching his head as he replied.
"Though maybe there are things even scarier than death," he added, thinking of what his other self in this world had gone through. "But I'll find a way to stick to my true self. Just like Naruto said, I'll never waver from my ninja way!"
Tsunade stared at Naruto and Obito, as if her beloved little brother had come back to life.
"If you can really do that, then go ahead and try," she said at last, giving up on persuading them. "But the Hokage position is still not something I'll accept."
Naruto exploded. "Like anyone would ever expect you to be Hokage anyway, Granny!"
He pulled a face at her retreating back. "Even the Pervy Sage would be a better Hokage than you! Idiot!"
Shizune hurried after Tsunade. As she passed Naruto and the others, she bowed slightly in apology.
...
Back at the inn, because of what had happened, they never managed to bring up the second matter—asking Tsunade to take Sakura and Rin as apprentices.
After returning, Obito kept apologizing to Rin, worried she might be upset.
Instead, Rin and Sakura were surprisingly calm.
"I've always admired Tsunade-sama as a medical ninja," Rin said gently, "but not to that extent. Compared to that, you and Naruto matter more to us. We want real strength so we don't have to keep relying on you guys getting hurt to protect us. You understand, right, Obito?"
"Rin…"
Young Obito was so moved he almost cried.
Grandma in heaven—Rin really was an angel!!!
Minato Namikaze, on the other hand, felt troubled. If Tsunade truly had no intention of becoming Hokage, then the only way to keep Danzo Shimura from taking the position would be for Jiraiya-sensei to accept it—or to hope the Third Hokage could hold on long enough for Kakashi to eventually succeed him.
That was asking far too much.
But neither Jiraiya nor Kakashi, the Fourth Hokage's disciple in this world, wanted the title. Kakashi never said it outright, but it was obvious he avoided the position as well.
Minato sighed inwardly. Surely they couldn't expect the Third Hokage to hold out until Naruto grew up.
For now, the most urgent matter was still stopping Orochimaru.
If the Third Hokage were killed, Orochimaru and Danzo Shimura would inevitably join forces. Whether Tsunade-sama or Jiraiya-sensei took the position afterward, neither would be able to check both of them alone.
Back in Minato from the Kannabi Bridge Timeline's era, Danzo's power had been significant, but never to this extent. Since arriving in this time, Minato had reviewed intelligence across the entire ninja world and realized Danzo's ambitions had already grown completely out of control.
Internally, Danzo had established Root as his own ANBU force, granting it authority equal to the Hokage's and demanding that every major clan send direct heirs to join. In practice, his power was already close to surpassing the Hokage's.
Externally, he had secretly colluded with Orochimaru, with Akatsuki, and with Hanzo of the Salamander…
Any one of those, in Minato's eyes, was a grave crime.
...
Jiraiya said grimly, "Three days from now, if Tsunade really agrees to treat Orochimaru's subordinate for that Kekkei Genkai disease…" His expression twisted with anger. He was furious that Orochimaru had used Nawaki and Dan as leverage, deliberately pinning Tsunade down with her deepest wounds.
"It's not impossible," Minato Namikaze replied. "After all, Orochimaru offered terms like that."
Adult Kakashi frowned. "Minato-sensei, just how strong is this Kimimaro you mentioned?"
Minato thought for a moment before answering. "At present, if Kimimaro fights without regard for the consequences, his strength could nearly reach Kage-level."
"Kage-level?!" Kakashi exclaimed in shock. "You mean that boy who looks only fifteen or sixteen?!"
Minato nodded. "Judging by appearances, Kimimaro is probably at most a year older than Haku." Thinking of the boy made Minato briefly recall his voice, but that wasn't important right now.
"The key point," he continued, "is that if Kimimaro's Kekkei Genkai disease is completely cured…"
Under the puzzled gazes of the others, Minato paused.
"I suspect Kimimaro's Kekkei Genkai originates from the mother mentioned by the Sage of Six Paths—Kaguya Ōtsutsuki."
"The Sage of Six Paths' mother?!" Adult Kakashi froze. "Why do you think that?"
Minato explained, "First, the name 'Kaguya' itself immediately brings Kaguya Ōtsutsuki to mind. Second, this information came from Orochimaru, who learned it through the Fifth Kazekage: a woman who possessed the same Kekkei Genkai as Kimimaro, yet did not suffer from the Kekkei Genkai disease. Her strength surpassed Kimimaro's by tens of thousands of times."
That revelation left both Adult Kakashi and Jiraiya stunned.
They understood exactly what Minato meant. If Kimimaro's Kekkei Genkai disease were cured, even if he fell far short of Kaguya Ōtsutsuki herself, stopping Orochimaru's ambitions would become extraordinarily difficult.
...
At the same time, on Orochimaru's side—
After the fact, Kimimaro had also guessed why Orochimaru-sama was so eager to cure his Kekkei Genkai disease.
To Orochimaru, Kimimaro's death in the past would have been a pity, but not an irreplaceable loss. However, ever since those words from the future Fifth Kazekage, Orochimaru-sama's expectations toward Kimimaro's Kekkei Genkai—and his desire to study it—had grown much stronger.
None of that mattered to Kimimaro himself. All he needed to do was calmly and faithfully obey Orochimaru-sama's orders.
Within the cold, shadowy snake lair, Orochimaru once again opened Naruto Uzumaki's mission scroll with keen interest.
At that very moment, something completely unexpected happened.
Beside the arm holding the scroll, space itself began to twist and spiral at an incredible speed?!