The Hyuga Clan.
Everyone instantly froze.
Although most of them might not know who Uzumaki Naruto was, they understood the meaning of the words "Seventh Hokage," alright.
The supreme leader of Konoha—someone who, no matter the era, stands at the pinnacle of the Shinobi World.
For the Hyuga Clan to dare place the Caged Bird Seal on the Hokage's wife and children would practically be hanging themselves. The fate of the Uchiha was a bloody lesson in what happens when you provoke the Hokage.
However, Hinata married the future Hokage?
Hiashi looked at his eldest daughter. A rare flicker of surprise crossing his usually impassive face. The question of which daughter would inherit the main family while the other would be branded with the Caged Bird Seal was resolved in an instant now.
If Hinata married the Hokage, then she would be the Hokage's wife—how could she possibly be branded with the Caged Bird Seal? And Hanabi, as the second daughter, would naturally become the heir of the main family, also without needing the seal.
Both daughters—neither would have to suffer!
Hiashi's heart leaped with joy. His future self was truly brilliant.
Meanwhile, Hizashi and the other branch family members were deeply disappointed. What kind of solution was that? It couldn't be applied to them at all.
Neji, in particular, felt nothing but disdain.
As expected of the eldest daughter of the Main House. Even when she marries, she marries the Hokage.
---
[Konoha, Year 60. Training Ground]
Naruto jumped up in excitement, his arms waving: "Sakura, Sasuke, Kakashi-sensei—did you see that? I become Hokage in the future! I become Hokage!!"
"As expected of me—the man who's going to be Hokage!"
Kakashi stood in place, watching the frantic blond-haired boy before him, a look of shock flashing through his eyes.
This kid, who spent every day shouting about wanting to become Hokage... actually achieved his dream?
Sasuke was also stunned. He stood with his hands in his pockets, staring expressionlessly at the Sky Screen.
Future Naruto... becomes Hokage? This dead-last in front of him? This grinning fool? This idiot who can't even throw a shuriken straight?
The corner of Sasuke's mouth twitched. But soon, he began to think, rubbing his chin.
If future Naruto could become Hokage, his strength must not be weak; he could help him deal with the Akatsuki.
Yes, Sasuke's thinking had already changed somewhat.
With so many Kage-level powerhouses in the Akatsuki, and Uchiha Itachi being a member, killing him would surely mean facing the entire organization.
Although Sasuke was confident, he wasn't stupid; he would definitely be at a disadvantage alone. So he was now thinking about dragging Naruto onto his chariot.
"Sasuke! Sasuke!" Naruto's voice interrupted his thoughts, "Did you see it! I am the Hokage! Hahaha!"
Sasuke rolled his eyes: "I saw it. So stop being so noisy."
But Naruto didn't mind at all and continued to laugh loudly.
Sakura stood to the side, looking incredulous: "What happened in the future... even an idiot like Naruto can become Hokage?"
She looked carefully at the family photo on the Sky Screen, her gaze falling on the gentle dark-haired woman.
"That must be the future Hinata, right? She's grown into such a beauty, and she actually became Naruto's wife. And two kids—they look so cute."
Naruto's laughter came to an abrupt halt.
"Huh?"
He looked at the dark-haired woman snuggled up next to his future self on the Sky Screen, blinked, and his face instantly fell.
"My future wife isn't Sakura?"
"No, no, no, my wife has to be Sakura!"
Sakura was instantly furious upon hearing that: "You idiot! Who would marry you?! The one I like is Sasuke! I will definitely marry Sasuke!!"
She turned to look at Sasuke, a shy blush appearing on her face: "Isn't that right, Sasuke-kun?"
Sasuke looked at her expressionlessly: "Dream on."
Sakura: ಥ_ಥ
Kakashi put a hand to his forehead, watching these three goofballs, feeling helpless in his heart.
They really were just kids. The focus of their attention had somehow drifted to the strangest places.
But still... he looked up at the mature, composed blond man on the Sky Screen, a gentle light shining in his visible eye.
'Minato-sensei, did you see it?'
'Naruto—just like you—becomes Hokage in the future.'
---
Elsewhere in Konoha. Team 8's training location.
"N-Naruto-kun... Aaahhh!"
The young Hinata turned crimson from her forehead to the nape of her neck, her whole body looking like a boiled shrimp.
She stared at the family photo on the Sky Screen—at her future self leaning against Naruto, and the two adorable children beside them.
"I married Naruto-kun in the future!!"
As soon as she finished speaking, her eyes rolled back and her body went stiff, toppling backward.
Fortunately, Kurenai was quick and caught her.
"This girl..." Kurenai shook her head helplessly, "She's just too shy."
Shino stood to the side, adjusting his sunglasses: "This is a good thing. Hinata got her wish in the future, didn't she?"
Akamaru barked excitedly a few times, as if in agreement.
Kurenai looked down at Hinata, still unconscious in her arms, and sighed: "Yeah, it's a good thing. But this reaction of hers..."
"Never mind. Let her faint for a while."
---
Hokage's Office.
Hiruzen sat in his chair, took a deep draw from his pipe, and slowly exhaled the smoke. His eyes filled with deep satisfaction.
"Naruto becomes the Seventh Hokage? That's wonderful."
"He truly is someone with a strong Will of Fire."
Jiraiya, standing nearby, burst into hearty laughter upon hearing that.
"I didn't expect it either! This kid... although I've only known him for a short time, he's definitely interesting. As expected of Minato's child! I can already sense that his talent is in no way inferior to Minato's—just in a different direction."
Tsunade was a bit surprised to hear Jiraiya's words.
This time, she had come back on her own after seeing the Sky Screen—not because Naruto had persuaded her to return, as in the original plot.
All she knew for now was that Naruto was Namikaze Minato's son and the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki.
She hadn't expected to hear such high praise from the old man and Jiraiya.
No wonder the Sky Screen had also said his future self would surpass her grandfather.
"Hmph." Tsunade gave a light snort, "Then I'll just have to see for myself what's so special about this kid."
Jiraiya grinned: "Don't worry. You won't be disappointed."
---
[Konoha, Year One]
Madara looked at Naruto frowning slightly: "Is this the... bigger Hashirama that was mentioned before?"
"Uzumaki Naruto? The future Seventh Hokage of Konoha?"
Hashirama watched excitedly from the side: "He looks quite sunny, doesn't he? Not bad, not bad at all."
Madara let out a cold snort: "Compared to your appearance in that red armor, he looks far less impressive. And yet his strength is supposedly greater than yours?"
He then shook his head: "Indeed, you cannot judge a book by its cover."
Still, what level of strength was that exactly?
Super Kage? Six Paths?
Or some other unheard-of tier?
A glint of curiosity flickered in Madara's eyes.
Hashirama, however, didn't care about such things. He watched the Sky Screen with a look of deep satisfaction on his face.
"Wonderful! The Third Hokage is Hiruzen, and now we see a future Seventh Hokage as well. Konoha truly endures!"
Hearing that, Madara immediately retorted: "Hmph, as I said, he's just a stronger version of you. The path to peace through mutual understanding you spoke of—it hasn't been realized in his era either."
But Hashirama was unfazed: "I lead for some years, he leads for some years—that still gives the world decades of peace. That's quite remarkable in itself."
"Besides, isn't the Sky Screen still playing? Maybe one of these times it will show a real path to peace. All we can do for now is keep trying."
After a moment of silence, Madara slowly spoke.
"Let's get one thing straight first. The Tailed Beasts absolutely cannot be distributed to the other villages now."
"It seems these things will play a crucial role in the future. What if someone gets ideas from watching and tries to imitate the Akatsuki—creating so-called 'weapons of war'?"
Hashirama nodded: "That's true. The Tailed Beasts need to be kept secure."
Young Hiruzen stood to the side, curiously examining the man on the screen.
According to what the Sky Screen had said earlier, the Hokage succession would follow the teacher-disciple line... so that man was his own future successor as well, wasn't he? He wondered whether he had ever met him.
After all, they were separated by generations.
---
[Konoha, Year 50. Hokage Office]
Kushina stood by the window, her eyes full of surprise.
"Uzumaki Naruto—he's one of my clansmen."
She turned to look at Minato beside her, a bright smile on her face.
"Minato! Where did the village find another member of the Uzumaki clan in the future? And—this guy is even better than me—he became Hokage!"
Minato stood beside her but did not respond. He was staring fixedly at the Sky Screen, a complicated mix of emotions flashing through his eyes.
'Uzumaki Naruto... Uzumaki... Naruto!'
He hadn't told anyone yet that he was planning to use the name of the protagonist from Jiraiya-sensei's novel, "The Tale of the Utterly Gutsy Shinobi," for their future child.
Naruto, that was the name he had long decided on.
But now...
It wasn't that the Third Hokage and he hadn't sent people to look for the survivors of the Uzumaki Clan. But the Shinobi World was vast, and it wasn't easy to find members of the Uzumaki Clan who had gone into hiding. So it wouldn't be so easy for the village to find suitable Uzumaki clansmen in the future.
A bold guess began to take shape in Minato's mind, and he looked at Kushina's belly.
"It can't be such a coincidence, can it?" he muttered to himself.
But the guess grew stronger with each passing moment.
He took a deep breath, suppressing the excitement in his heart, and turned to Shikaku beside him.
"Shikaku, can you please record this image."
Shikaku nodded: "Yes, Hokage-sama."
He took out a scroll and began recording the image on the Sky Screen.
Minato continued to stare at that family photo, committing every single detail firmly to memory.
Kushina also noticed Minato's unusual behavior and tilted her head, asking: "Minato? What's wrong?"
But Minato shook his head and smiled: "Nothing. I'm just... thinking about some things."
He didn't voice his guess.
Because he wasn't certain yet, and if he was wrong, Kushina would be disappointed.
But deep down, he had already begun to suspect the answer.
*****
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