Half an hour later…
Hiruzen Sarutobi stared at the ruins before him, a bit stunned.
Clearly, he hadn't accounted for the Daimyo's reckless behavior.
Moryo was dead.
The ones who contributed the most were Shisui, Naruto, and the Miko princess.
But the problem was... the Daimyo was also dead.
Literally evaporated—physically gone.
Even though the Daimyo had been killed due to Moryo's possession, it still happened within the Hidden Leaf Village.
This could easily become a pretext for other nations to attack Konoha.
"The Daimyo has disappeared…"
However, with just one sentence, Danzo defused the situation.
The older the ginger, the spicier it gets—and Danzo was the slyest of them all.
Danzo outright declared: The Daimyo of the Land of Demons has gone missing...
Dead? Who said anything about someone dying? No one's dead!
Hiruzen Sarutobi was dumbfounded by Danzo's handling.
Seeing Sarutobi's dumbfounded, kind-old-man face, Danzo couldn't help but think of Naruto Uzumaki.
The same kind of dummy.
But the thing was—Naruto only looked naive. Inside, he was full of tricks.
So then…
Had Sarutobi just been pretending to be senile for half his life?
As soon as this thought arose, Danzo suppressed it.
He had spent decades working with Sarutobi. He knew exactly what kind of man his old classmate was.
Just weak. Pathetically, consistently weak.
Weak enough to want to be a "pure white lotus" and let others carry the burden for him.
As long as I, Hiruzen Sarutobi, don't do anything bad, then I am a good man…
Danzo inwardly mocked his old classmate. He was clear on the truth of things.
Hiruzen wasn't even one ten-thousandth as devious as Naruto Uzumaki.
"Anyway, Moryo was defeated by Shisui. What a joyous occasion…"
Danzo began his summary speech.
Hiashi Hyuga, Fugaku Uchiha, Kakashi Hatake… all the major figures were present.
Something this big had happened in the village. Everyone had to drop what they were doing and come—unless, of course, they were in the middle of giving birth.
Under Danzo's explanation, the crowd learned the full story.
The Daimyo of the Land of Demons came with ulterior motives, seeking to stir up chaos in Konoha.
But was stopped by the priestess, who placed justice above kinship, along with Shisui and Naruto, defeating Moryo together.
As for the Daimyo? Disappeared… ran away… certainly not dead. Absolutely not.
"…"
The crowd nodded slightly, though doubt lingered in their hearts.
Moryo being dead was shocking.
But Shisui was the one who defeated him? How?
"If it weren't for Shisui holding off Moryo and wounding it multiple times beforehand, how could the priestess and Naruto have delivered the final blow…?"
Danzo's lips curled into a cold, chilling smile.
The onlookers nodded one after another.
Many of them had seen Shisui's might firsthand.
A flicker of unease crossed Fugaku Uchiha's mind, though he couldn't read Danzo's true intent.
Nonetheless, Shisui's performance in this operation was stellar—he even used Susanoo.
The Uchiha name would rise again.
A clan with growing influence would soon be in a higher position.
It was time to begin challenging Konoha's leadership.
Fugaku made up his mind—tonight he'd hold a secret meeting with the clan to discuss seizing power.
As for Naruto—
Once again, he had protected the village and earned further recognition from the higher-ups.
After going through so many incidents, Naruto's name was beginning to shine at the upper levels of the village.
Silently, things were starting to shift.
Naruto's reputation—
Public opinion… was beginning to change. In a good way.
The son of the Fourth Hokage was proving to be an outstanding young man.
A boy with unlimited potential.
Everyone started calculating their next moves—how to get close to him, even win him over.
The attitude of the upper echelons would inevitably influence the middle layers, and then the lower ones.
Good days were finally coming for Naruto.
"This is all thanks to my own hard work," Naruto said, satisfied with his rising reputation.
Kurama: "…"
"All thanks to my own hard work~!"
I, Naruto Uzumaki, got here through my own efforts!
Kurama: "Yeah, yeah—I get it! Stop yelling!"
Kurama bared his teeth and shouted back.
"Nine-Tails…"
Naruto squinted his eyes, frowning slightly.
It was the same pitying expression he had once given Sasuko—now directed at Kurama.
"Don't look at me like that!" Kurama barked.
"Nine-Tails… you're being a little too extreme…" Naruto replied.
Kurama: "…"
The rise in Naruto's reputation even made Danzo feel a bit uneasy.
Still, he thought it was just the Fourth Hokage's son regaining the recognition he deserved.
The real priority now was eliminating Uchiha Shisui.
From how curious everyone was about Shisui's Mangekyo and Susanoo, it was clear that Danzo and Naruto's joint scheme was working.
The increasingly arrogant Uchiha would soon stand opposed to the rest of the village.
Their growing ambition would eventually be their undoing.
Next step? They'd probably try a coup.
Danzo's eyes drifted toward Fugaku Uchiha.
And at that moment… would come Shisui's death.
And the fall of the Uchiha Clan!
"Naruto, you did very well this time…" Hiruzen Sarutobi praised him face to face.
Naruto nodded seriously. "Grandpa Hokage, can I go to the Ninja Academy too…?"
When Sasuko had come before, she mentioned the academy.
The next enrollment would start soon.
She'd be joining then—so of course, Naruto couldn't miss it.
Hearing that Naruto wanted to go to school—that this street-dwelling illiterate wanted to become a Konoha-loving student—Hiruzen was deeply moved.
He thought:
Naruto had already outgrown his rebellious phase and wanted to study?
What a joy…
His own son, Asuma… already an adult and still in rebellion!
People really are different…
Watching the Third Hokage speak with Naruto,
Those paying attention secretly nodded—resolving to pull Naruto into their circles…
Given his talent and the elders' attitude toward him,
Naruto was clearly destined to become Hokage one day.
---
After the crowd dispersed—
The priestess and Shion were safely settled.
Fugaku called Shisui over to talk about the Mangekyo Sharingan.
When Shisui saw how unsurprised Fugaku was, he was the one shocked.
"Uncle Fugaku… don't tell me you also…"
In private, that's how he addressed Fugaku—after all, he had a mentor-friend relationship with Itachi.
"Hmm…"
Fugaku nodded solemnly, admitting he too possessed the Mangekyo Sharingan.
But that wasn't the point.
"Your attitude toward Naruto… don't you think it's a bit strange?"
"Huh? Isn't he… the Nine-Tailed Fox?" Shisui was puzzled.
Wrong.
> "That child… is the son of the Fourth Hokage!" Fugaku revealed a truth most adults already knew.
Shisui, you fool.
How did a young man like you not know something like this?
And you're a Jonin?
"!!!"
Shisui's expression changed drastically.
***********************************************
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