Konoha Village, Hokage Office
Knock, knock!
Sarutobi Hiruzen, who was buried in documents and meticulously handling various trivial matters, responded without lifting his head when he heard the knock.
"Come in."
Click, creak—
"Third Hokage, the mission is complete."
"Well done," the Third Hokage nodded as he received the scroll, offering a word of encouragement.
"No, it wasn't hard."
The young ninja at the forefront quickly shook his head.
Seeing the ninja with multiple bandaged wounds seeping blood, Sarutobi Hiruzen sighed inwardly, reflecting on Konoha's current situation.
This was a small team that had just returned from an investigative mission at the border between the Land of Fire and the Land of Hot Water. Their task was to look into some suspicious activities by the Hidden Cloud Village at Konoha's border.
Although the Third Shinobi World War had ended last year, small skirmishes had not ceased, with Hidden Cloud Village being one of the persistent adversaries entangling Konoha.
After the Nine-Tails' attack and the Fourth Hokage's sacrifice, it was only natural for the other side to intensify their actions. If it were him, he'd do the same—strike while the enemy is weak.
Noticing that the trio hadn't left, Sarutobi Hiruzen knew they had other matters to discuss. His gaze shifted slightly to a small boy of about four years old, standing with his head bowed, looking pale and unhealthy from the long journey.
The boy had short, gray-green hair, which looked somewhat wilted. However, Sarutobi Hiruzen noticed a spark of vitality in his downcast blue eyes.
Especially those eyes—they resembled the pure, blue eyes of the recently sacrificed Fourth Hokage.
Before Sarutobi Hiruzen could speak, the leading ninja handed over the boy's file.
"The Kōgetsuki clan, huh..."
Looking at the young boy's file, Sarutobi Hiruzen sighed inwardly again. He had an impression of the Kōgetsuki clan.
Though not ninjas, they were a farming family with hundreds of acres of land and dozens of cattle, annually donating a significant portion of their harvest to Konoha. Last year's war was barely sustained thanks to the Kōgetsuki clan's generous donation of several years' worth of crops.
They weren't ninjas, but their Will of Fire burned brightly!
"The village..." Sarutobi Hiruzen began.
Hearing this, the leading ninja shook his head and glanced at the small, still dazed boy beside him.
Sarutobi Hiruzen's heart suddenly clenched. Was it possible that this farming village on the edge of the Land of Fire had been slaughtered, leaving only this small boy?
"Chloe, right?" Sarutobi Hiruzen, standing, walked slowly to little Chloe, trying to hide his sadness and appear kind. "From now on, you'll live in Konoha. Everyone here is your family."
Chloe still didn't speak, his head down, eyes lifeless.
Seeing this, Sarutobi Hiruzen, misinterpreting the child's silence as mourning for his slaughtered family, squatted down and gently hugged Chloe with his old hands.
'System, what should I do at a time like this? What's the appropriate expression?'
"Cry, cry loudly!"
"Waah—!"
At that moment, Chloe looked up and started to wail loudly. Large tears streamed down his cheeks, and his sorrow swept through the Hokage's office in an instant.
Everyone present was moved by the boy's grief. The three ninjas who had saved him clenched their fists, inwardly condemning the ruthless enemy.
A four-year-old child, hiding under the floorboards, had witnessed the slaughter of his parents, kind neighbors, and playmates by unknown ninjas. The psychological shadow this left was unimaginable for those present!
Seeing Chloe cry uncontrollably in the Hokage's office, a few ninjas admired their resilient and compassionate Third Hokage even more.
During the journey, Chloe hadn't spoken a word, eaten, or shown any response to comfort. But with one loving hug from the Hokage, Chloe's icy heart melted, and his feelings poured out. Truly... remarkable!
Sarutobi Hiruzen didn't show any irritation at Chloe's loud crying. Instead, he gently patted his back with a kind hand.
…
Because Chloe came from a family that had greatly supported Konoha, likely as a form of respect for the descendants of heroes, he was given a single room in the orphanage!
Other war orphans had to sleep in large shared rooms, so a single room was a top-tier treatment in the orphanage!
Black Zetsu—no, the boy should now be called Kōgetsuki Chloe—lay on the somewhat hard but warm wooden bed filled with the Will of Fire and Konoha's warmth, quietly flipping through a book titled "Master of Expressions."
Actually, this started about a month and a half ago.
That day, Obito, that impulsive fool, insisted on coming to Konoha to celebrate his master's wife's childbirth, despite all efforts to stop him. Though it posed some risk to his plan, he tried to persuade Obito.
"Do you really think you're invincible?"
Both the former and current Hokages of Konoha were there, surrounded by many capable individuals. What if he lost and got exposed?
Obito wouldn't listen and insisted on going!
Surprisingly, he succeeded. Seeing his master's wife give birth made him incredibly happy, as if it were his own child!
Overwhelmed with joy, Obito declared that such a joyous day must be marked with blood, turning the delivery room into a sea of red (by killing the Third Hokage's wife).
Looking at the little blond boy he'd taken (stolen) before his real father even held him, Obito grew more excited, thinking a red delivery room wasn't enough to express his joy!
So, he decided there had to be a celebration that everyone in Konoha could see and that would become famous throughout the ninja world!
That night, Obito unleashed the Nine-Tails, the strongest tailed beast, causing a massive disturbance in Konoha and the entire ninja world!
If paparazzi existed in this world, the recent headlines would be—
"Shocking the World! Fourth Hokage's Disciple Uses Nine-Tails to Celebrate His Master's Wife's Childbirth!"
"Look at Other People's Disciples, Then Look at Your Own!"
"Become a Disciple of the Masked Man!"
"A Certain Anonymous Fourth Kazekage Publicly Disses Konoha and the Masked Man, Saying, 'Do you think having money makes you special? Always showing off!' Konoha responds, 'Yes, being rich is special! We can demolish houses at will, lose talents at will! We have more money and talent than we can use!'"
The Fourth Kazekage then threw down his microphone and left the live broadcast angrily.
Ahem, back to the main story.
That night, Black and White Zetsu, who was alone in the Akatsuki, heard from White Zetsu's scouting that Obito had succeeded in celebrating his master's child's birth. Suddenly, a voice appeared in his mind!
"Question: Do you think Kaguya Ōtsutsuki was wrong?"
Huh?! Black Zetsu was startled, seeing the reactions of his other half and the scouting White Zetsu, knowing they hadn't heard it. Only he did!
Had someone noticed him?
Someone mentioned his mother's name—who was casting a genjutsu on him?!
The more Black Zetsu thought about it, the more anxious he became, looking around frantically, but there was no chakra reaction! And he didn't seem to be under a genjutsu!
"Final question, Black Zetsu: Do you think Kaguya Ōtsutsuki ever made a mistake?"
Panicking, Black Zetsu roared back in his mind: No! My mother never made any mistakes!
"Answer received, conditions met."
Ding—!
"Your Ninja Reputation System is now online. Beginner's Gift Pack has been distributed!"
Black Zetsu was stunned. What was this? What was the Ninja Reputation System? What was the Beginner's Gift Pack?
After the mechanical female voice stopped, Black Zetsu was still confused, not understanding what had just happened. But then he noticed a small light spot floating in the lower right corner in front of him.
"Did you... hear anything just now?"
"Hmm?" The white half was puzzled. "What?"
"Can you see anything strange in front of you?"
The half-buried White Zetsu was immediately displeased. "Hey, White Zetsu already looks strange. Aren't you strange too? How about looking in the mirror before mocking others? Wait, you can't do that, and neither can I. Haha..."
Seeing that neither could see the light spot, Black Zetsu carefully reached out and clicked it. As soon as the light spot was clicked, a screen the size of an A4 paper appeared in front of Black Zetsu!
Cautious, Black Zetsu first observed White Zetsu's reactions. From their behavior, they couldn't see the screen, only he could!
"First time viewing the system, check-in successful, awarded three ninja reputation points."
The mechanical female voice spoke again, but this time, Black Zetsu wasn't panicking. Instead, he was captivated by the contents on the screen!
Ninja reputation points, reputation point shop, tasks, and... the beginner's gift pack in the inventory.
The more Black Zetsu read, the more shocked he became. Although he didn't fully understand, items like the Rinnegan, Tenseigan, Otsutsuki's body, and the God Tree seed in the points shop were too conspicuous!
However, he couldn't let his guard down and be blinded by such things!
He had to understand what was going on!