Of course, Guy and Riolu lost the subsequent battle.
The difference in power was too great, and no amount of youthful passion could bridge that gap.
However, for the ever-optimistic Guy and Riolu, a loss meant nothing; it only made them want to become stronger.
...
Afternoon, under the big tree near Central Park.
"Target sighted."
A Konoha ninja, with grayish-black eyes devoid of emotion, murmured as he stood there.
His gaze was fixed on a blond-haired child playing on the lawn of Central Park with a few wild Pokémon.
He was a member of the Anbu.
But not just any Anbu—he was part of Hiruzen's private Anbu, serving only the Third Hokage.
The Anbu stood there silently for a few minutes, confirming the situation before stepping out.
"Uzumaki Naruto."
His target was clear as he walked straight to Naruto, who was playing nearby.
"Huh?"
Naruto heard someone calling his name and looked up instinctively. "Uncle, who are you?"
Naruto was feeling a bit lonely today, as most of his friends were busy training.
Since he hadn't scheduled any training for himself, he wasn't hanging out with the others either.
"A Konoha Jonin."
The Anbu pointed at his forehead protector and showed his specially prepared credentials.
Seeing all this, Naruto indeed let his guard down and trusted him.
"So, what do you need, uncle?"
Naruto didn't understand why this Jonin was looking for him.
He had been away from Konoha for so long and shouldn't have caused any trouble. If it were for something he had done before, it would be Iruka-sensei who came looking for him, not a Jonin, right?
"Do you know the identities of your parents?"
The Anbu completely ignored Naruto's questions and continued speaking according to his own plan.
He was acting like an NPC.
"My parents? Uncle, do you know where my parents are?!" Naruto jumped up at the mention of his parents, looking very excited.
The few Pokémon around Naruto were startled by his sudden reaction and curiously looked at the Anbu.
But after a glance, a few sensitive ones quickly ran away.
They didn't like the aura and feeling emanating from the Anbu—it made them uncomfortable.
"Your parents are dead."
The Anbu, indifferent to Naruto's feelings, stated the fact bluntly. "But I can tell you their true identities."
[Inform Uzumaki Naruto, the Jinchuriki of the Nine-Tails, about his parents' identities and tell him that Konoha is about to enter a time of war and may soon face destruction.]
This was a secret mission issued by the Third Hokage, Hiruzen. The entire Konoha delegation was likely unaware except for this one Anbu member.
As for Hiruzen's motives in issuing this mission, that was beyond what an Anbu ninja like him should speculate.
They were like machines—it's not that they weren't smart, but they wouldn't actively overthink the orders and missions assigned by superiors.
"What?"
Naruto's eyes dimmed slightly upon hearing that his parents had died.
However, it was just a momentary reaction.
He had long suspected that his parents had passed away—after all, he had never heard anything about them.
But he was still very curious about who they were.
No one in Konoha had ever told him about them or even spoken to him about it.
"Your father was the Fourth Hokage, Namikaze Minato, and your mother was the previous Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, Uzumaki Kushina."
The Anbu said, taking out a photo from his pocket.
The photo, of course, showed a young Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki.
It was a beautiful picture taken during their wedding, with Hiruzen Sarutobi holding flowers to bless the couple. Everything looked so harmonious and happy.
"..."
Naruto woodenly took the photo from the Anbu's hand.
His big blue eyes soon filled with tears.
It wasn't the first time he had seen what Minato looked like, as there was a stone face of him on Hokage Rock.
But today, he finally knew that he was the son of the Fourth Hokage and that his father was such an amazing person.
And this was also the first time he had seen his mother's face. Kushina's smile in the picture showed Naruto how beautiful his mother was.
As for Kushina being the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, Naruto instinctively ignored it.
He didn't even know what a Jinchuriki was—he just knew people called him a "demon fox."
"Sniffle~"
Seeing Naruto cry, his partner, Vulpix, grew anxious.
It kept circling Naruto's legs, trying to see what was in the picture that was making its trainer cry.
"Why..."
"Konoha is now in a state of readiness for war. Soon, we may be embroiled in a major conflict, which could potentially lead to the destruction of the entire village."
Naruto had just raised his head to ask something when the Anbu coldly interrupted.
He was well aware that he couldn't let Naruto ask questions; he had to keep control of the conversation.
This mission and today's actions were top-secret. Talking to Naruto in a public place like Central Park carried a risk of being discovered.
Especially since he had noticed Sarutobi often bringing Kurenai here for their private activities late at night.
However, he had no better opportunity or location to approach Naruto—most of the time, Naruto was surrounded by others, which was entirely different from when he used to be alone in Konoha.
"What?!"
Naruto's face turned pale upon hearing the news.
The question he had been about to ask—"Why didn't anyone tell me before?"—was forgotten.
If he'd known about his parents' identities earlier, he might have only been concerned about Konoha's situation.
But now, he couldn't accept the idea of Konoha being destroyed.
It was his parents' homeland. Both of them had fought for it, and now he, the son of the Fourth Hokage, had an obligation to defend it.
He wanted to return to Konoha and fight alongside it.
The Anbu ninja silently left once the mission was complete.
By the time Naruto came back to his senses, only Vulpix was still beside him.
"Vul?"
'Are you okay?'
Vulpix looked at Naruto with concern.
"I'm fine... My head's just a mess right now. I need to think." Naruto shook his head, looking lost.
His mind was a jumble—he had to think about both his parents and the war in Konoha.
Taking a deep breath, Naruto decided to head back home first.
He was no longer the same as before. Whatever decision he made, he had to consult with his grandpa and ask for advice.
...
In the Shinobi World.
Konoha Hidden Village, Hokage's Office.
[Battle broke out with Sunagakure ninja in the Land of Rivers.]
[Conflict with Iwagakure ninja occurred in the Land of Grass, with Kumogakure forces also joining the fight.]
[Clash with Otogakure occurred in the Land of Fields.]
[Encounter with Kirigakure forces in the Land of Bears; both sides avoided conflict.]
[An unknown ninja squad attacked the Sky Country's ninja prison.]
Recently, Konoha had received numerous mission reports of conflicts with other villages' ninja squads.
Additionally, there were various other incidents being reported—a seemingly endless stream of them.
It was as if the entire ninja world had suddenly descended into chaos.
After investigating over the past few days,
Hiruzen had discovered that minor wars had always been occurring frequently among the smaller countries between the Five Great Nations. These war commissions had never stopped.
However, in the past, many of these commissions had been suddenly completed by an unknown organization before even reaching the Great Nations.
Hiruzen had never known about this until he recently sent people to investigate, finding out that the Land of Rain had an organization called "Akatsuki" that specialized in taking commissions from small countries.
But recently, for reasons unknown, Akatsuki seemed to have disbanded.
This led to a sudden influx of war commissions into the Five Great Ninja Villages.
With each village handling its war missions, clashes and conflicts between them were inevitable.
For example, if the Land of Taki fought the Land of Frost, and Taki hired a Konoha squad to guard their treasury while Frost hired a Kumogakure squad to raid it, a battle would surely break out.
But these commissions couldn't be ignored—if Konoha didn't do them, other villages would, and they would grow stronger by taking the money and completing the missions.
However, these tasks also exacerbated tensions among the Five Great Nations.
A few days ago, a small-scale battle involving dozens broke out between the sworn enemies Kumogakure and Iwagakure within the Land of Fire.
Their purpose for being in the Land of Fire remained unclear, but in the end, Konoha had no choice but to intervene.
The current situation in the ninja world was growing increasingly dire, and war could break out at any moment.
"Let's hope Naruto chooses to come back..."
Hiruzen exhaled a puff of smoke as he sat at his desk.
More than wanting Naruto to return, it was about getting the Nine-Tails—Konoha's weapon for war—back.
If war broke out, the other villages had their own tailed beast Jinchuriki. They might unleash them at a moment's notice, and without one of their own, how could Konoha possibly compete?
That was why he had secretly issued the mission to have the Anbu inform Naruto about his parents.
If anyone asked in the future, "Why are you only telling me this now?"
He had already prepared an answer:
"It was all to protect you."
(End of Chapter)
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