Konohagakure Village.
At the main gate.
Two elite Chunin are guarding the Konoha gate. One of them is out on a ninja mission, and the other is training a newcomer.
"Eh? Senpai, did you... really meet that Whitebeard a year ago?" The new gatekeeper, full of curiosity, asked, "You even talked to Whitebeard?"
"Of course! I am your senior, why would I lie to you?" The Chunin, acting as the senior, raised his chin, "At that time, a great battle took place!"
Under the admiring gaze of the newcomer, he cleared his throat.
"Don't think that Whitebeard can do whatever he wants in the ninja world without anyone stopping him. A year ago, I was able to block him once. Even a man like him had to give me some face!"
He boasted without hesitation, "Let me tell you, that day, Whitebeard came with a blond kid, trying to leave Konoha village without permission."
"How could I agree to that? My partner and I fought him for several rounds on the spot. Swords clashed, and ninjutsu flew everywhere."
"Unfortunately..."
He sighed and shook his head, "My partner and I held on, but the gate didn't. The gate was smashed by Whitebeard's sword, and then he took the opportunity to leave Konoha village."
At this point, he found that the newcomer in front of him seemed to have not heard what he said.
Suddenly, he was a little dissatisfied, "Hey hey hey! Respect your seniors! Why are you absent-minded when I'm talking?"
"Huh? What's with that expression, kid?"
He finally realized something was wrong.
Because the new gatekeeper was looking at a direction behind the "gatekeeping senior" with an incredible look.
This look made the Chunin's heart thump.
He took a deep breath and immediately turned his head.
In that instant...
His face changed drastically!
His pupils contracted!
Cold sweat dripped!
"White....White....White...." The thing is, he really had seen Whitebeard but he had never fight him like he just said. Whitebeard's figure had been deeply imprinted in his memory a year ago, and he could never forget that tall and burly figure.
"Whitebeard!!!" The elite Chunin's exclamation was accompanied by a bit of shock, disbelief, and fear.
In his line of sight, Whitebeard was already close at hand.
The distance between the two was less than a few meters.
He had to exaggerate and raise his head to see Whitebeard's face.
His body was unconsciously retreating.
He didn't want to lose face like this.
But this was the body's instinct.
Uncontrollable.
"Gurarararara...." Whitebeard glanced down at the two ninjas, his sword lightly tapping on the ground, making a "bang" sound, like a death knell, stirring up the most fearful emotions in people's hearts.
"Little gatekeeper, you remember me, huh?" Whitebeard grinned, "Then you should know what to do, right? Kid!"
"...I, I, I am a Chunin of Konoha!"
"I... Whitebeard-sama, please! I'll open the door for you!"
The gatekeeper's bravado lasted less than two seconds.
His momentum instantly softened.
The image of the Konohagakure Village gate being brutally hacked open by Whitebeard was vivid in his mind, and he didn't want to end up like that gate.
He was well aware that if anything happened as a result of letting Whitebeard into the Konohagakure Village, he, as the gatekeeper, would definitely bear the brunt of the responsibility.
However, even if he were thrown into the Konohagakure Village prison now, he wouldn't want to make an enemy of such a terrifying man.
He knew it was shameful.
It was not in line with the "Will of Fire."
But he was dealing with Whitebeard, who had a bounty of 100 Million!
The Hokage...
He would forgive him, right?
"Phew... Fortunately, this person is quite sensible." Kakashi did not criticize the gatekeeper's submissive behavior.
Because clashing with Whitebeard would be the most incorrect approach.
Over these days, Kakashi felt that he had gotten a clear understanding of what kind of person Whitebeard was.
As long as you don't provoke Whitebeard...
Or threatening Whitebeard's family.
Then Whitebeard is just a rather domineering old man.
He's not a murderous maniac, and he won't actively destroy a place. To some extent, he's quite reasonable.
Sure enough,
After the two Konohagakure Village gatekeepers backed down...
Whitebeard immediately ignored them. With a hearty smile on his face and his giant sword in hand, he swaggered into the Konohagakure Village.
With each step he took, it seemed as if the ground trembled slightly.
It was then that the two gatekeepers realized that it wasn't just Whitebeard who had entered the Konohagakure Village.
They saw Kakashi of the Konohagakure Village.
They also saw Shunshin no Shisui of the Konohagakure Village.
They even saw the "Demon Fox" of the Konohagakure Village.
There were also two red-haired people who looked like a mother and daughter, and a cute "girl" with long black hair, and a strange man with a shark-like face trailing behind.
The man with the shark-like face had one arm hooked over the shoulder of a Konohagakure Village ninja next to him. That Konohagakure Village ninja looked a bit familiar, wasn't his name something like Iruka?
It wasn't until Whitebeard's figure disappeared from sight...
That the two ninjas looked at each other.
"Senpai... Didn't you once fight Whitebeard?" The rookie gatekeeper swallowed nervously and asked weakly.
"Shut, shut up!" The elite ninja's face turned red as he tried to defend himself: "Last time, Whitebeard didn't have any help. Who could have expected him to bring so many people this time?"
"Right!" He suddenly reacted: "Quickly notify the Hokage, the 'Nation Destroyer' Whitebeard has entered the village!"
"No need."
A strange voice suddenly sounded from above the high wall, attracting the attention of the two gatekeepers.
They quickly looked up.
To their surprise, it was an Anbu ninja wearing a mask!
When did this Anbu ninja get there?
How long had he been there?
They didn't even notice!
"Our Anbu has gone to inform Hokage-sama," the Anbu ninja spoke without emotion, "Don't worry, Hokage-sama won't punish you. It was within Hokage-sama's expectations that Whitebeard would bring the Jinchuriki back to the village."
"It's just unexpected..." The Anbu ninja's calm tone finally stirred a little, "The missing Uchiha Shisui, Kirigakure Village's Hoshigaki Kisame..."
"They're actually here too!"
...
Hokage Office.
"Hokage-sama!" The Anbu ninja had quickly run here and directly entered the Hokage's office, immediately reporting to Sarutobi Hiruzen, who was sitting in his chair, "Whitebeard has brought Uzumaki Naruto back to Konohagakure! At the same, He brought Shisui, Hoshigaki Kisame, Kakashi, and several of Whitebeard's daughters."
Sarutobi Hiruzen lifted his eyelids, placed the warm pipe on the table, and a faint white smoke drifted up from one end of the pipe.
He calmly emptied the ash from the pipe.
Then he pinched a new bunch of tobacco and slowly stuffed it into the pipe.
He lit a match and ignited the tobacco.
After taking a satisfying puff, Sarutobi Hiruzen clicked his tongue, his face showing no fluctuation, "Huh... they're all back, huh!"
It seemed as if he was strategizing.
But before this, Sarutobi Hiruzen was extremely anxious. He feared every day that the Jinchuriki would fall into the hands of the enemy village. Even in his dreams, he would dream of such things.
Now, he could finally breathe a sigh of relief.
But soon...
Sarutobi Hiruzen had a headache again.
"Whitebeard..." The most troublesome was still that Whitebeard.
This was an extremely unstable factor, no different from the beast inside Naruto.
Next, what gave Sarutobi Hiruzen a headache was Shisui.
Shisui was still alive, which should have made him very happy, after all, he really admired this young man.
But the key was, Danzo had done those things.
This made the matter very complicated.
"And Hoshigaki Kisame... he's one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, right?" Sarutobi Hiruzen squinted, "I remember, Kakashi didn't mention this man in the intelligence!"
Sarutobi Hiruzen guessed that the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of Kirigakure would not just follow Whitebeard casually.
He guessed there were two possibilities.
First: Whitebeard, who killed the Fourth Mizukage, had completely controlled Kirigakure Village, and Hoshigaki Kisame, one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, now seemed to be a kind of "bodyguard".
Second: Hoshigaki Kisame had joined the Whitebeard Pirates, he was no longer one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of Kirigakure Village.
"No matter which of the two possibilities..."
Sarutobi Hiruzen couldn't help but take a deep puff of smoke.
"It's not good news for Konohagakure."
Whitebeard himself was very powerful, and now he had a powerful helper, who could stop him?
The defeat a year ago...
It was still fresh in Sarutobi Hiruzen's memory.
...
Meanwhile.
Whitebeard and his group who had entered Konohagakure had already "gone their separate ways". Kakashi's mission to monitor Naruto had been completed, so he was going to report to the Third Hokage first, and then invite Naruto for a bowl of Ichiraku Ramen another day.
Shisui, after politely saying goodbye to Whitebeard, went straight to the Uchiha clan's residence. Although Itachi, an Anbu ninja, might not have "got off work" yet, he decided to go back to the clan first and wait for Itachi to come.
Now, only Whitebeard and his sons and daughters were left.
Whitebeard's entry into Konohagakure naturally caused a panic.
After all, his size was too eye-catching.
His reputation was too intimidating.
"It's... it's the 'Giant'!" Some of the civilians of Konohagakure who had seen Whitebeard recognized him at a glance: "The Giant... The Giant has brought the 'Demon Fox' back again!"
When the Whitebeard Pirates appeared in the residential area of Konohagakure, the words they heard most were "Demon Fox" and "Giant".
Calling Whitebeard a "Giant" was fine.
After all, "Giant" is not a derogatory term, just a nickname, and it's very descriptive.
But calling Naruto a "Demon Fox"...
"Do all of you in Konohagakure discriminate against Jinchuriki?" Kisame looked down at Uzumaki Naruto. After spending these days together, Kisame knew that Naruto was the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki of Konohagakure.
Naruto took a deep breath and showed a brilliant smile: "It's okay, I'm used to it. They don't know I'm a Jinchuriki, they just think I'm a Demon Fox."
"Is that so?" Kisame saw through Naruto's naive disguise: "Naruto, your fingers are trembling!"
Naruto: "...."
It was impossible for Naruto to let go of his grudges in just one year.
After all, Naruto had been isolated and bullied for five years.
Even if you take away the time before he was three years old when Naruto didn't remember anything.
That's still a full two years.
The trauma left in his heart...
It's not so easy to heal.
Kisame grinned, showing his sharp teeth. His eyes filled with more blood, and he was filled with murderous intent: "Do you need me to kill them all for you and turn Konohagakure upside down? Although I know it's troublesome, thinking that you are my family, I'm quite willing to do it for you."
"Eh? Wait, wait!" Naruto was startled by Kisame's words. Naruto hurriedly stopped him: "Isn't that too extreme? If you... if you kill everyone, won't there be no one left in Konohagakure?"
"I can get used to it, I'm already used to it."
Naruto spoke calmly: "As long as they don't say it in front of me, I won't care what they say."
Actually, Naruto's temperament had changed.
Before he met Whitebeard...
Even if there were villagers who called him a "Demon Fox" to his face, Naruto wouldn't say much. He would just go home feeling wronged, cover himself with a blanket, and cry hard.
After he finished crying.
Everything felt much better.
But now it's different. Naruto doesn't care if people talk behind his back, but if someone talks bad about him in front of him, Naruto won't take it lying down like before.
"Pops. Can I go find Chouji and Shikamaru? " Naruto suddenly thought of something and said to Whitebeard.
Speaking of which.
Naruto also said to Kisame, Karin, Haku, and Uzumaki Fuushi: "They are my friends in the village! Oh, and there's also one called Uchiha Sasuke!"
When he mentioned the word "friends", Naruto had a smile on his face.
"Gurarara! You're the captain of the first division of the Whitebeard Pirates, aren't you? Stupid son!" Whitebeard also grinned: "You don't need to report everything to me, just do what you want to do."
"If you have to report everything to me, how are you going to stand on your own in the future? Stupid son! Gurararara!" Whitebeard's hearty laughter echoed in the residential area of Konohagakure.
"Okay! Pops!" Naruto's smile was even brighter.
After he unloaded most of the weight from his body.
He ran off in a hurry.
"Naruto was a pitiful child before he met Pops." Uzumaki Fuushi looked at Naruto's gradually disappearing small figure and murmured to herself: "He was isolated and discriminated against from a young age, but he could still show such a brilliant smile."
"The brighter he smiles... the more it makes people feel sorry for him." Uzumaki Fuushi looked around at the civilians of Konohagakure who were avoiding Whitebeard like the plague.
"It seems that there's no difference between this big ninja village and the Kusagakure Village. Although Konohagakure looks more glamorous than the Kusagakure Village on the surface, and is covered with the shiny skin of the Five Great Ninja Villages."
"But... in its root, it's no different from the Kusagakure Village." Uzumaki Fuushi was criticizing Konohagakure.
After all, she didn't have a very good impression of Konohagakure to begin with.
"That's the nature of a ninja village!" Kisame agreed: "It's dark, bloody, and disgusting at its core."
Kisame's eyes filled with more blood.
He remembered his experience in Kirigakure.
"Pops... Can mom and I go for a walk in Konohagakure?" Karin who hadn't experienced the destruction of the Whirlpool Country, Uzumaki descendants didn't have much negative feelings about Konohagakure.
"Go ahead!" Whitebeard laughed: "Remember to buy some good wine for me on the way! The strongest wine! The strongest!"
"Okay! Pops!"
.....
Nara Clan Residence.
"Shadow Imitation Jutsu!!!"
Nara Shikamaru, the son of the Nara clan leader, although he has not officially entered the ninja school, has mastered the family's secret Ninjutsu under the "pressure" of his family.
The dark shadow under his feet surged forward like an arrow, quickly spreading to Chouji's feet in the blink of an eye.
"! Shikamaru, I can't... move!"
Chouji's eyes widened.
"Stupid Chouji! That's because you're caught in my Shadow Imitation Jutsu." Shikamaru held a wooden Kunai in his hand, he threw it forcefully in the direction of Chouji.
Under the control of the Shadow Imitation Jutsu, Chouji also made the same action, but Chouji had no weapons in his hand.
Whoosh.....
Thump.....
"Ouch! That hurts, Shikamaru!" Chouji couldn't help but scream, the wooden Kunai hit Chouji's forehead accurately.
It left a red mark on his forehead.
Chouji screamed in pain.
"Sigh..." Shikamaru sighed, released the Shadow Imitation Jutsu, and said helplessly, "Chouji, this won't do... The ninja school will start soon, if you can't even handle me, how are you going to win against the geniuses of other ninja clans?"
Chouji was carefully rubbing the red mark on his forehead, he laughed at Shikamaru, "I don't like fighting, my dad told me... as long as I can graduate smoothly, it's okay to be at the bottom."
"You really have a big heart!" Shikamaru also laughed, "But you're right... in six years, as long as you can graduate, that's enough."
"Hmm?" Shikamaru's face changed.
He immediately covered the back of his head and looked back sharply, "Hey? Who poked me?!"
But he found that there was no one behind him.
Shikamaru was a bit stunned.
"Chouji, just now..." When Shikamaru turned back to look at Chouji, he found that Chouji had a ghostly expression on his face, full of shock and surprise.
Both shocked and surprised?
What's going on?
"Hmm?" Shikamaru felt someone tug at the little braid on the back of his head, he turned his head back so fast that he almost twisted his neck.
A mischievous "ghost face" suddenly appeared in his sight, startling Shikamaru so much that his heart felt like it was being squeezed.
He retreated several steps in a row.
Only then did he get a clear look at the other person's face.
Shikamaru was stunned.
"Na...Naruto?"
"Hahaha! Long time no see!" Compared to the last time they met,
Naruto, who had grown a year older, scratched his head and laughed, "Shikamaru, Chouji! It's been almost a year since we last saw each other, hasn't it?"
.....
.....
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