"Eh?! Really?!!" Naruto jumped to his feet.
Hearing that made him extremely happy, for two reasons.
First, he had seen the speed of the Flying Thunder God Technique before.
If he could learn a jutsu like that, wouldn't he be able to defeat that bastard Sasuke?!
Second, back in the ninja academy, the thing Naruto envied the most…
…was how all his classmates had family members who gave them private lessons—teaching them things the academy hadn't covered yet, like shurikenjutsu, or even the The Three Body Technique.
But him?
He had nothing.
"That's awesome, believe it!!" Naruto looked like he wanted to start learning right away.
Seeing how excited he was, Uzumaki Mito felt a complicated mix of emotions.
She was happy the boy was so likable, just like Kushina—bright and lively, his chakra filled with a sunny warmth that felt like…
Mito suddenly froze.
Why was it that inside this child's body, she could sense a kind of chakra she had once felt from Hashirama?
It was like sunlight filtering through a forest, carrying the scent of a gentle breeze.
Noticing the red-haired woman staring at him, Naruto squinted and asked, "Who's that? That big sister with the pretty hair."
Next to her stood another red-haired woman who didn't look like a ninja, and a red-haired girl wearing the uniform of a Grass ninja.
Yeah… their hair all looked pretty nice.
"…"
The few ninjas who knew Mito's identity sighed inwardly.
They had already given up on expecting Naruto to address people according to seniority.
Sasuke and Sakura didn't show it, but their ears had quietly perked up.
They had long been curious about the woman who even the Second and Third Hokage treated with such respect. Until now, they only knew her name and that she was a ninja from the Land of Whirlpools—but that alone didn't seem like enough to warrant this level of respect.
Besides, Kakashi-sensei seemed to know who she was too.
The Third Hokage sighed and introduced her.
"Naruto, you should show this lady proper respect. She is the princess of Uzushiogakure in the Land of Whirlpools, and also the wife of the First Hokage… Lady Uzumaki Mito."
Sakura gasped. "The First Hokage's wife?!"
Sasuke's eyes widened. Uzumaki… That's the clan name of the First Hokage's wife?!
Naruto froze.
"Hokage-grandpa… what did you just say?"
He could have sworn he heard that this woman's surname was Uzumaki.
"My name is Uzumaki. I'm one of your clansmen, little Naruto~," Mito said, gently patting his head and giving him a bright smile. "And the two over there are also members of the Uzumaki clan."
"Eh?!!!"
Naruto's big blue eyes sparkled.
He was so shocked he almost thought today must be his birthday—otherwise why were so many good things happening all at once?!
"But she's clearly a Grass ninja!" Naruto pointed at Karin. "And why do you all have red hair while I look nothing like you!"
Even though he was happy, he still had to make sure he wasn't getting his hopes up for nothing.
Kakashi quickly stepped in to explain.
"Well, Naruto, there's no doubt your surname is Uzumaki. As for your hair and eye color… you probably take after your father."
Kakashi kept smiling, but inside, his heart ached.
He didn't dare tell Naruto or Sasuke the truth.
After all…
Naruto had been only one step away from reviving his own father.
But for Sasuke's sake, he had missed that opportunity.
Even if there was only a one-in-ten-thousand chance, Kakashi didn't want this matter—if it were ever revealed—to become an irreparable wound between the two boys.
Just like what had once happened between him and Obito.
They had missed so many chances.
Naruto paused, then deliberately pouted. Remembering what Sasuke had said earlier about him growing up alone, he snorted.
"Hmph! How would I know who I take after? I've been alone since I was a kid anyway!"
Realizing Naruto was still angry about that earlier comment, Sasuke fell silent.
"…Maybe I should find a chance to start a conversation with the dead last."
Naruto suddenly stared at Karin.
Karin already knew this boy's name was Uzumaki Naruto. But until now, she hadn't realized they were actually from the same clan.
Clinging to the faint hope of finding family, she hurriedly greeted him.
"H-hello… my name is Karin—Uzumaki Karin."
Naruto was thrilled too. He had never heard of anyone in Konoha with the surname Uzumaki.
Wait… a Grass ninja?!
"Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto asked in a comical panic. "Don't tell me I'm actually a Grass ninja?!"
Everyone: "…"
His lack of brainpower was a real cause for concern.
If that "Horror Quiz" reward included Intelligence (Ken) stat, Naruto definitely needed some!
Kakashi ruffled Naruto's hair.
"Idiot. You're from Konoha. That's beyond question. I guarantee it as your sensei."
After all, Kakashi had once been assigned to guard Kushina during her pregnancy.
"Yo!" Naruto greeted Karin enthusiastically. "Your hair looks awesome! If mine were red too, I'd definitely look even cooler!"
Karin looked at his goofy grin—it reminded her of a silly little fox—and found it strangely cute.
He looked even smaller and thinner than her, but his chakra was abundant, and the feeling he gave off was incredibly comfortable.
Like sunlight shining into a forest after rain.
A refreshing, gentle breeze.
What Karin didn't notice was that when Naruto praised her red hair, she instinctively reached up to touch the ends of it.
That movement exposed the dense bite marks covering her arm.
Naruto immediately noticed.
"Hey!!"
He grabbed Karin's wrist in horror and shouted angrily,
"What the hell is this?!!"
Iruka stepped in. "Naruto, let her go first."
Noticing how frightened Karin looked, Naruto quickly apologized and released her.
"But why? Why do you have so many wounds? If we're both Uzumaki, why are you a Grass ninja while I'm a ninja from Konoha?!"
Fuso remained quiet.
She had been feeling out of place this whole time.
In truth, she was anxious to return to the Land of Rain to find her son. But this was Konoha, in the Land of Fire—the very stronghold of the people who had killed her and her husband.
She didn't dare speak much and tried to keep as low a profile as possible.
Uzumaki Mito, however, had long wanted to ask. The girl's situation pained her even more than Kushina's had back then.
"Could you tell us what happened to you and your mother in the Land of Grass?" Mito asked gently. "Of course, if you don't want to talk about it, we won't force you."
Karin opened her mouth to speak.
But before she could—
[Understood]
The metallic voice of the mysterious being behind the projection suddenly exploded in their ears.
"!!!!"
Because they couldn't sense any human presence or chakra, they had grown careless.
That thing… was still around them?!
"It might exist everywhere…" Tobirama analyzed. "And that 'everywhere' probably doesn't only refer to space—the horizontal axis—but also time, the vertical axis. Otherwise, it's impossible to explain how it possesses images from both the past and the future."
Fear flashed in Karin's eyes.
She didn't want her experiences exposed for everyone to see.
If Lady Mito wanted to know, she wouldn't mind telling her.
But if—like before—her abilities became known to all of Konoha and even the other villages participating in the Chunin Exams…
She would die an even more miserable death than her mother.
Naruto, who had been watching her closely, recognized that fear.
Because of his own childhood, he understood it better than anyone.
He immediately jumped up and shouted,
"Hey! Whatever you are! We never asked you to show this to all of Konoha or anyone else! Don't you dare do something like that, you bastard!!"
[Please reconfirm the projection range]
"Proje—what?" Naruto didn't understand.
Tobirama answered instantly.
"Can you make it so only the few of us can see it?"
[Understood]
…
Soon after, inside a separate room within the Central Tower of Konoha's Training Ground No. 44.
A projection screen about the height of a person and the width of two appeared before them.
["No!!!"]
—
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Every 30 Powerstones = 1 Bonus Chapter (For this week only) ^_^