Vertical and Horizontal Alliances, a Thousand-Mile Strategy! Ninja World's Strongest Schemer

Izumi Uchiha stood up and added, "On the night of the Nine-Tails' Rampage seven years ago, Clan Head Fugaku Uchiha personally led the clan's elite ninja to rescue the Fourth Hokage,

but Anbu ninja carrying the Third Hokage's written order stopped us and commanded the Uchiha Clan to evacuate the civilians. We had no choice but to obey,

yet in the end, the Fourth Hokage and his wife both died, the Third Hokage became Hokage again, and the Fourth Hokage's son was treated by everyone as the incarnation of a fox demon."

Inside and outside the plaza, apart from the Jonin who had already known Naruto Uzumaki's true identity, everyone else fell silent in shock.

That fox demon brat was actually a hero? He was the child of Minato Namikaze, the Fourth Hokage who had saved Konohagakure? Then what they had done to him before...

Were they ashamed and guilty? Or were they humiliated into rage?

Faced with such a complete reversal of identity, countless villagers and lower- to mid-ranking ninja who had once treated Naruto Uzumaki harshly flushed red.

Unwilling to shoulder such a heavy moral burden, they all began shifting the blame elsewhere, onto the person who had put them in this predicament.

Desperate for a new outlet for their emotions, they turned around and mercilessly cursed Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage they had once revered.

The more they had hated Naruto Uzumaki in the past, the more they hated Hiruzen Sarutobi now...

After several consecutive days of buildup, one earth-shattering reversal became the fuse that ignited their emotions.

In an instant, Naruto Uzumaki and Hiruzen Sarutobi's positions and reputations had switched places!

"Kill Hiruzen Sarutobi!" "Die, you despicable bastard!" "Arrest Hiruzen Sarutobi!"...

Facing the furious curses of the red-faced villagers in the plaza, Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu fell into a flustered panic.

They had always used such methods against others in the past. Now, for the first time, someone else had firmly seized the moral high ground and was calling for their deaths.

That feeling was truly indescribable!

To everyone's surprise, Hiruzen Sarutobi remained exceptionally calm, as though he had long prepared himself for this.

But in the next moment, before anyone could react, he used the Body Flicker Technique to appear at Naruto's side.

"Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

A shuriken flung from his waist multiplied into countless copies in the blink of an eye, blanketing Naruto's entire body like a barrage of bullets!

Kakashi, who had only just walked some distance toward the meeting area, was stunned. The Konoha 11 were stunned. The Jonin present were stunned. Every villager who saw this scene was stunned as well!

"Hiruzen Sarutobi!"

Kakashi let out a roar, as if he had once again seen Rin die before his eyes. Tears burst from his eyes...

Yet the next moment again surpassed everyone's expectations. Naruto, covered in a layer of crimson Nine-Tails Chakra, stood calmly in place without a single injury. The dense shuriken barrage could not even break through his defenses.

"Just as I thought! I guessed right, Naruto—you can already control the Nine-Tails' power! I truly don't know how someone as young as you managed it."

Hiruzen Sarutobi did not seem surprised in the slightest. He merely let out a long sigh, looking particularly melancholy.

Naruto asked curiously, "Third Hokage, weren't you afraid you might be wrong? That you might accidentally kill the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi unhurriedly raised his pipe and took a deep drag before saying with certainty, "Don't worry. Even if I was wrong, with a Jinchuriki's vitality, you would at most be seriously injured for a while. It wouldn't endanger your life or leave you with wounds that could never heal. I know how to control my strength!"

"The Third Hokage is very confident. But did you ever imagine you would end up like this?"

Naruto Uzumaki sneered. At last, he could no longer suppress the hatred and fury in his heart, and overwhelming hatred surged in his eyes.

"The real you is completely different from the person I knew! So you had been pretending all along. You had been hating me all along!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi paused in the middle of exhaling smoke. Regret appeared on his face as he began regretting the "special" arrangements he had made for this child's life. He asked in return,

"How long have you known your parents' true identities?"

Naruto Uzumaki recalled his experiences in the Dream World and smiled coldly. "I suppose it has been many years? That long and painful experience made me grow up a lot!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded in understanding, confirming another one of his guesses. "It seems the Uchiha Clan really has been keeping in contact with you in secret for many years!"

Naruto Uzumaki froze. What are you talking about...

Without waiting for Naruto's reply, Hiruzen Sarutobi, having already connected all the clues in his mind, sighed and revealed his final discovery. "So you were the mastermind behind everything, Naruto Uzumaki!

"Although you are only seven years old, you had already gained control over most of the Nine-Tails' power long ago, hadn't you? Once you controlled that power, you naturally had the qualifications to cooperate with anyone.

"The Uchiha Clan and Fugaku Uchiha must have maintained long-term contact with you after Minato Namikaze died.

"The Hyuga Clan must also have reached a series of cooperation agreements with you through the close relationship between you and the clan head's daughter, Hinata Hyuga.

"No wonder Hinata Hyuga, the Future Heir of the Byakugan Clan, always behaved so strangely in her daily life.

"She disappeared for no reason, then there was that inexplicable hero-saving-the-damsel incident, and then she inexplicably fell in love with you. What incredible acting. You even fooled me into believing it was just a coincidence...

"And now the Hyuga Clan has inexplicably replaced its heir with Neji Hyuga. Is that because Hinata Hyuga will marry you in the future and become the Hokage's wife?

"And the Shamate Organization—a loose group formed by commoner children as if it were just a game—yet you keenly spotted the opportunity it offered.

"Through it, you formed bonds with the Future Heirs of most Ninja Clans in Konohagakure, becoming companions with close ties and shared interests..."

Noticing the dumbfounded expressions on everyone's faces, including Naruto's, Hiruzen Sarutobi only believed it was because his deductions were entirely correct. For the first time in recent days, he felt so relieved and satisfied as he continued explaining his reasoning.

"From the very beginning, I felt there was a hidden hand stirring up Konohagakure's situation from behind the scenes. But there were too few clues to draw any conclusions, so I simply allowed you to act and waited for you to reveal a flaw yourselves.

"During this time, I listed every ninja in Konohagakure and eliminated them one by one. In the end, I found you, Naruto Uzumaki!

"Your age made everyone overlook your threat. In all of Konohagakure, only you could quietly possess the power to overturn its situation without drawing anyone's suspicion, because the Nine-Tails is sealed inside you!

"Impressive! Truly impressive!

"You are indeed Minato Namikaze's son, the last descendant of the Uzumaki Clan!

"Naruto, the excellence of your talent and ability, the depth of your schemes and calculations—they truly terrify me!

"Am I wrong?

"The friend of the heirs to most Ninja Clans in Konohagakure, the future husband of the Hyuga Clan head's daughter, the close friend of the Uchiha Clan Heir, the Fourth Hokage's son who bore seven years of false infamy and could take over Konohagakure in the name of a hero once that infamy was cleared—Naruto Uzumaki!

"Even the distribution of benefits from this enormous cake called Konohagakure has probably already been discussed among you, hasn't it?

"Naruto Uzumaki will become Hokage, Hinata Hyuga will become the Hokage's wife, and the next Hokage will possess half the Hyuga Clan's bloodline?

"And then what? Naruto's son will marry Sasuke's daughter?

"The Hokage after that will possess half the Uchiha bloodline?

"Everyone gets what they need, and everyone is satisfied!

"Naruto Uzumaki becomes Hokage, while the Hyuga and Uchiha Clans finally gain the chance to ascend to the position of Hokage they have always dreamed of. Everyone gets exactly what they want!

"Naruto, your scheming is truly formidable!

"No, perhaps Minato Namikaze had planned all this back then? Given the relationship between his family and Fugaku's family,

"if Sasuke had been a girl, Hinata Hyuga would not have had any chance of becoming the Hokage's wife, would she?"