(T/N: Please consider reviewing this Fanfic, Thanks and appreciate all who support me)
(T/N: Enjoy!!)
<><><><><><>
Although Kushina and Minato still cared for Naruto as they always had, seeing them dote on Toneri made Naruto feel uncomfortable.
These were his parents, yet they were now also concerned about someone else. However, this wasn't what bothered Naruto the most.
What got to him was that whenever he wanted to teach Toneri a lesson, Kushina would warn him to respect his older brother.
Yes, even though Naruto was reluctant to admit it after Toneri was adopted by Kushina, he was supposed to call him "brother."
Naruto never actually called him that, but his plans to discipline Toneri were thwarted before they could even start.
Every day, seeing Toneri's bright, cheerful face made Naruto angrier and angrier.
After bottling up his frustration for three months, Naruto finally had enough.
If he couldn't teach Toneri a lesson, he could at least blow off some steam at the village's training ground.
He decided to venture into the Forest of Death, a place usually off-limits to him. Curious to see what made it so special, he set off immediately.
Despite his young age, Naruto moved quickly. It wasn't long before he reached the edge of the Forest of Death.
As he got closer, he grew more cautious. Strangely, the Forest of Death, usually heavily patrolled, seemed to have lax security today.
Naruto easily slipped inside without any trouble. He scoffed, unimpressed by the forest's reputation.
Unbeknownst to him, Toneri was watching from a distance. Toneri, having a mature mind, could sense Naruto's hostility towards him.
He understood that the root of the problem was that he had taken away some of the love Minato and Kushina had for Naruto.
But what could he do? Leave? He didn't want to; he had grown fond of this place.
To make up for it, Toneri had been silently following Naruto for the past month, protecting him from the shadows.
It was akin to the Hyuga clan's system of the main and branch families.
Toneri willingly saw himself as part of the branch family, silently protecting Naruto, the main family member.
This was Toneri's way of compensating for the guilt he felt towards Naruto.
Although he knew his efforts were probably unnecessary—who in Konoha would dare harm the children of Minato and Kushina?—he continued to protect Naruto.
This decision was inspired by his new friend, Neji Hyuga. Both possessing the Byakugan, Toneri, and Neji quickly became close.
Although Neji bore the caged bird seal, without the loss of his father, he wasn't the fatalistic boy depicted in the original series.
On the contrary, he was protective of his younger cousin Hinata, a member of the Hyuga main family, and ensured her safe return home after school.
Influenced by this, Toneri decided to see himself as part of the branch family, silently watching over Naruto.
No one could have predicted that this decision would eventually lead to Naruto fully accepting Toneri.
Returning to the present, Naruto, and Toneri's situation unfolded further.
As Naruto entered the training ground, Toneri also ventured into the Forest of Death.
However, due to Naruto's keen senses or Toneri's lack of strength, Toneri didn't dare get too close for fear of being discovered.
This caused the distance between them to grow, and eventually, Toneri lost track of Naruto.
As time passed, Naruto wandered deeper into the Forest of Death.
Along the way, he encountered some dangers, including attacks from wild animals, but he managed to handle or avoid these threats.
A typical child might have turned back by now, but Naruto was different. The excitement and thrill of the situation fueled his adventurous spirit.
Rather than retreating, Naruto pressed further into the heart of the forest. This sight made Toneri's heart tighten with worry.
If the outer edges were already dangerous, who knew what perils awaited in the inner regions?
Nonetheless, Naruto's increasing speed forced Toneri to follow. Soon, they reached the inner part of the Forest of Death.
Here, even Naruto moved with more caution, carefully observing his surroundings. Before long, he heard a series of crackling noises.
Like any curious child, Naruto didn't consider the potential danger and ran toward the source of the sound.
As he approached, he discovered an unusual puppet, unlike any he had seen before. This puppet had no chakra strings controlling it.
Naruto's discovery did not go unnoticed. Danzo, the puppet's master, spotted Naruto immediately.
Truth be told, had Danzo not been so engrossed in his work, he would have noticed Naruto much sooner.
Seeing the young boy, Danzo's eyes glinted with malice.
He had specifically arranged for a reduced patrol in the Forest of Death to keep his activities secret, yet here was Naruto, the Hokage's son, stumbling upon his work.
Danzo was torn. If it had been anyone else, he would have eliminated the intruder without a second thought. But this was Naruto.
After a brief moment of consideration, seeing that Naruto was alone, Danzo's thoughts took a darker turn.
Years of resentment and frustration bubbled up within him.
The Root organization was on the brink of dissolution, and his position as an elder had become almost meaningless.
Why else would he be reduced to experimenting with puppets? His hatred for Minato Namikaze now shifted to Naruto.
A flash of ruthless determination crossed his eyes as he decided to kill Naruto.
Danzo reasoned that with no one aware of his presence and using a puppet to do the deed, no one would suspect him.
Moreover, in the Forest of Death, Naruto's demise would be seen as an unfortunate accident.
However, Danzo knew he had only a brief window of opportunity. Naruto would likely have some means of protecting himself.
If given time to react, Naruto could thwart Danzo's plan. Danzo, having made up his mind, had a ruthless glint in his eyes.
With a mere thought, the puppet in the distance began to move.
At that moment, Naruto was still curiously observing the puppet, completely unaware of the danger it posed.
Living in the safety of Konoha, Naruto had never anticipated an attack from a puppet. However, his battle instincts were sharp.
As the puppet moved, Naruto instinctively retreated.
Sure enough, the next second, the puppet's arm lashed out towards him, a gleaming blade reflecting the sunlight.
A drop of blood fell from the blade. Despite Naruto's quick reaction, the puppet had managed to slice his cheek, leaving a long, bleeding cut.
Hidden in the shadows, Danzo cursed his lack of familiarity with the puppet's controls and the fact that the weapon wasn't poisoned due to it being a new experiment.
If it had been, Naruto would be dead already. Though he regretted the missed opportunity, Danzo's hands didn't slow.
Naruto was still in shock and fear, giving Danzo another chance. Naruto, touching the wound on his cheek, was filled with terror.
This was his first real close to death, and he was paralyzed, unable to think of what to do next.
Danzo, however, wasn't going to give him the time to recover.
The puppet, under Danzo's control, closed in on Naruto, its blade poised to strike his head.
Despite Danzo's clumsy control, it was more than enough to overpower Naruto in his current state.
Just as the blade was about to split Naruto in two, he felt himself shoved forcefully aside. This push sent Naruto flying, landing hard on the ground.
The person who had pushed him, now standing beneath the puppet's blade, was Toneri, who had been secretly following Naruto.
The moment Naruto was attacked, Toneri sprinted towards him.
Although there was some distance between them, Naruto's quick reaction to the first attack had bought Toneri enough time to reach him.
Toneri had used all his strength to arrive just in time to push Naruto away, but now he was facing the puppet's blade.
The weapon had dug deep into Toneri's shoulder, and he grimaced in pain, using all his might to hold the puppet's arm in place with his hands.
If not for this desperate act, Toneri would have already fallen victim to Danzo's deadly trap.
Seeing Toneri kneeling on the ground, veins bulging around his eyes, and his shoulder bleeding profusely, Naruto was struck with disbelief.
He couldn't comprehend why the person he disliked had risked his life to save him.
At this critical moment, fear left Naruto, and he shouted, "Why are you here!!"
As Naruto's voice reached him, Toneri could feel the puppet trying to pull back its blade.
Determined to buy Naruto more time, Toneri clung desperately to the puppet's arm, ignoring his safety.
He was resolute in preventing it from launching another attack on Naruto. At the same time, Toneri shouted to Naruto,
"Run quickly and contact Uncle Minato!" With a firm resolve to face death, Toneri's mind was exceptionally clear.
He knew Naruto surely had one of Minato's Flying Thunder God kunai, just as he did. In his earlier panic, he had forgotten this fact, and now he couldn't use it because he was occupied.
This is why he reminded Naruto. Given the current situation, if they didn't call for Minato's help, even if Naruto managed to escape, it would be futile.
Anyone could see that if Danzo's target wasn't Toneri, Toneri wouldn't last a few seconds against the puppet.
Hearing Toneri's reminder, Naruto remembered he could summon his father, Minato Namikaze, with the Flying Thunder God kunai.
Without any hesitation, he quickly took out the kunai and summoned Minato. By this point, Danzo realized his opportunity was lost.
If Minato arrived, Danzo would be discovered immediately. Surviving that encounter seemed impossible even to Danzo himself.
Although he was a Konoha elder and Minato and Kushina's superior, attempting to kill their son and adopted son would provoke Kushina to kill him on the spot.
As the future Hokage who had endured much, Danzo wouldn't gamble with his life. So, the moment Toneri reminded Naruto, Danzo swiftly retreated.
To save time, he even abandoned the chance to kill Toneri.
Although killing Toneri would deeply sadden Minato and Kushina, the time wasted might cost Danzo his life.
Danzo wasn't one to make such risky trades. He even left behind the newly created puppet.
With Danzo's retreat, Toneri sensed the puppet he had been holding onto lose its strength and go limp.
However, Toneri didn't dare relax and continued gripping the puppet's arm tightly.
Only after Naruto summoned Minato by infusing chakra into the kunai did Toneri allow himself to relax completely.
As he let go, the combination of blood loss and his severe injuries caused Toneri to pass out.
But Toneri didn't hit the ground. As soon as Minato arrived, he took in the scene and caught Toneri just as he lost consciousness.
Seeing Toneri pass out, Naruto panicked.
In these brief moments, he had fully accepted Toneri.
Now, he feared that Toneri might die saving him. In his panic, Naruto stumbled towards Toneri.
Despite the short distance, he even fell once, but quickly got up and ran to Toneri's side.
By then, Minato had already used healing jutsu to stop Toneri's bleeding. After stabilizing Toneri's condition, Minato assessed his overall injuries.
If you want to support me, join my patr**on. Have 15 advanced Chapters for you guys.
patr**n.com/saitamablast > TSMSW NOVEL TIER