Hokage's Office
On the ceiling, an enormous design was carved into the wood—an abstract leaf pattern. At the center of the leaf was a spiral, like a vortex.
Seated beneath it, the Third Hokage took a long, thoughtful puff from his pipe. He held the smoke in his mouth for several seconds before exhaling a stream of pale rings. One after another, they drifted upward, expanding until they vanished into the spiral overhead.
At the moment, he looked every bit the overworked administrator: hunched over his desk, carefully turning pages of village reports and intelligence briefs gathered from multiple channels.
As Hokage, he didn't need to handle everything personally. The real skill was delegating the right tasks to the right people—and then keeping the machine running.
But because the previous Hokage—the Fourth—had once held this same seat, the village's power structure had been deliberately reshaped. To counterbalance the Hokage's office, many of Minato's authorities had been redistributed: to major clans and to the three senior advisors.
As a result, the Fourth had held far less practical power than most people assumed.
Back then, Hiruzen had intended to retire and govern from behind the scenes, gradually transferring authority while retaining influence as an elder—after all, the Sarutobi clan still carried weight.
All of those plans had been shattered four years ago.
Now, the balance of power was fractured. Even though he had resumed the mantle of Hokage, reclaiming what had already been handed out was daunting—almost impossible.
The thought alone gave him a headache.
He set one document aside just as a knock sounded from outside.
"Come in," he said calmly—yet his voice carried quiet authority.
The door opened, and two figures entered.
Hiruzen lifted his eyes. "Ah… Shikaku and Hayate."
"Lord Hokage," Nara Shikaku said, his pineapple-shaped hair as unruly as ever. "You wanted to see me?"
Hiruzen nodded and slid a file across the desk. "Read this first."
Shikaku stepped forward. The moment he saw the red seal stamped on the cover, his pupils tightened.
CLASSIFIED — JINCHŪRIKI(jinchūriki: a human host of a tailed beast)
Several thoughts crossed his mind as he opened the file and began to read.
He didn't get far before his brow furrowed.
The papers were surveillance reports—records tracking Naruto from early childhood to the present. The stack looked thick, but Shikaku flipped through it quickly. The actual substance was sparse.
Moments later, he neatly returned the documents to their envelope and slid it back across the desk.
"Well?" Hiruzen asked. "After reviewing Naruto's file, what's your assessment?"
Shikaku was silent for a moment, then replied, "Possibly precocious."
"'Possibly'?" Hiruzen's eyes narrowed, catching the nuance.
Shikaku paused, choosing his words carefully. "Yes. Some children show signs of early development—my son Shikamaru, for example. But Naruto lacks the traits we typically associate with genuine precocity."
"Normally, exceptionally intelligent children show three clear signs:
Wide interests and the drive to pursue them.
Original, creative thinking and vivid imagination.
Bottomless curiosity—and dissatisfaction with shallow answers."
"Based on these reports, Naruto shows none of that. His behavior is… too calm. Too controlled. So at best, I can only say it's possible."
Hiruzen didn't respond. Instead, he shifted his gaze to the other man.
"Hayate. What's the latest from Naruto's side?"
"Cough, cough."
Hayate's familiar dry cough echoed as he pulled a small sheet of paper from his pocket.
"At approximately 7 a.m., the target left his home and used the Transformation Jutsu to blend into the crowd. He walked through several familiar streets, then arrived at the Shinobi Tools General Store around 9 a.m."
"He lingered outside for two minutes before entering. Fifteen minutes later, he left."
"No clear evidence of purchasing tools."
"After leaving the store, he returned home via one of his usual routes. Along the way, he encountered Miss Hinata of the Hyūga clan, who had gotten lost."
"The target volunteered to escort her home. I then followed your instructions and went to contact Mr. Shikaku. According to observers along the way, the target has since returned home. No abnormalities reported."
Shikaku raised an eyebrow as he listened.
This much surveillance… on a four-year-old?
His expression tightened. But remembering who Naruto was, he could only sigh inwardly.
Hiruzen remained silent for a long time. Then he rose and glanced at a photo frame hanging on the wall.
It was a picture of the Fourth Hokage.
According to medical reports, Naruto hadn't inherited his mother's striking red hair—but he had inherited the Uzumaki clan's physique, famed for enormous chakra reserves and exceptional vitality.
And now—only yesterday evening—he had learned chakra extraction. By the next morning, he could already perform the Transformation Jutsu.
He had inherited Minato's talent as well.
That… had to be handled carefully.
Because Naruto didn't merely possess dangerous potential.
Inside his body slept something far more terrifying.
If Naruto ever lost control—even by accident—the consequences would be catastrophic.
"For Konoha's peace… I hope you won't hate me."
Hiruzen stared at Minato's photo. After a long moment, his expression darkened. He turned and walked to the window, gazing out across the village, eyes deep and unreadable.
Meanwhile… inside the jinchūriki's sealed space
Father and son stood locked in a tense standoff.
"Naruto! You have to listen to me!" Minato snapped. "The Nine-Tails can't be trusted! The moment you step inside that seal, it will devour your consciousness and take over your body!"
He blocked Naruto's path, expression grim, glaring at the fox behind the iron gate.
"Keh keh keh… scared, little brat?" the fox chuckled, baring its fangs.
"I told you—humans and tailed beasts will never truly understand each other. Just look at your father's face."
"Tell me, Fourth Hokage—have you ever heard of a tailed beast breaking a promise?"
"I've lived a long time. I've seen far more humans betray their word than tailed beasts." Its eyes narrowed. "Especially when it comes to that little incident—the destruction of Uzushiogakure(the Hidden Eddy Village). Konoha, your precious ally, didn't exactly act with honor back then."
"Enough, Nine-Tails!" Minato shouted, eyes blazing. "Don't twist the truth!"
"Heh. Who's twisting anything?"
The fox smirked, enjoying the tension. Then it lowered its massive head and closed its eyes, savoring Minato's frustration in silence.
This confrontation came after a long discussion between Naruto, Minato, and the Nine-Tails about the seal itself.
Minato explained: the seal was a modified Eight Trigrams Seal(Hakke Fūin Shiki), derived from the one Naruto's mother, Kushina—also a former jinchūriki—had used.
It was designed to allow Naruto to gradually draw out the Nine-Tails' chakra over time.
Naruto rejected the idea immediately.
He wasn't interested in borrowing someone else's power—especially not when that someone was clearly unwilling.
He would rather set the fox free than become dependent on it… assuming he could survive the process.
The Nine-Tails, for its part, suspected this was all a trick—mind games meant to lure it into hope before crushing it again.
"Freedom?" it scoffed inwardly. "Who in the shinobi world ever gives us that? They all want our power."
It didn't believe Naruto for a second.
Still, curiosity got the better of it, and the fox said, "If you want trust, kid—prove it. Step inside the gate."
"Father, step aside," Naruto said firmly. "The mistrust between humans and tailed beasts started with us. But to me, there's no difference between the two."
"Even among humans, understanding requires trust. Since the Nine-Tails invited me in… I have to answer."
Minato hesitated, still blocking the way.
Naruto sighed. He wanted to explain that he had a trump card. After collecting data from Minato earlier, the Mirror World had unlocked a new feature—one that protected his consciousness from being invaded.
As long as the Nine-Tails broke its word first, Naruto had nothing to fear.
When Naruto said humans and tailed beasts were the same, the fox's eyes snapped open.
It hadn't expected those words. The last person who had said something like that…
…was long gone.
Minato turned, face hard. "Absolutely not. I won't allow this."
"Absolutely not?" Naruto repeated, patience thinning as he stared his father in the eyes.
"Father… do you remember what I said earlier?"
Minato's heart sank.
"You're already dead," Naruto reminded him softly.
Minato froze. Naruto's meaning was obvious.
This Minato—only a residual chakra imprint—had no true power to stop him.
"Every journey needs a beginning."
Naruto stepped past his father.
SLAM.
One foot landed beyond the iron gate.
"And this… is mine."
(End of Chapter)
PS :
Nara ShikakuA high-level strategist of Konoha (Nara clan). Evaluates Naruto as "possibly precocious," noting his abnormal calm.
Gekkō HayateA Konoha shinobi assigned here as a surveillance operative; delivers a detailed field report.
CLASSIFIED — JINCHŪRIKIA sealed intelligence file concerning Naruto as the Nine-Tails' host.
Uzushiogakure (Hidden Eddy Village)The former village of the Uzumaki clan, destroyed in the past; raised here as a political grievance.
Eight Trigrams Seal (Hakke Fūin Shiki)The sealing formula used on Naruto, described here as modified to allow gradual access to the Nine-Tails' chakra.