The next day.
Hokage Office.
Sarutobi Hiruzen kept rubbing his temples. A sleepless night had left him looking utterly haggard, the puffy bags beneath his eyes hanging like two silkworms.
Bang! The doors to the Hokage Office were suddenly shoved open, and a rough hand slammed down onto the Hokage's desk.
"Hiruzen, do you know? Namikaze Mirai is back!!"
Danzo's lone visible eye was filled with gloom. The darkness festering in his heart made his aged face look especially terrifying.
"Don't panic."
Sarutobi Hiruzen glanced at Danzo.
His old friend was good in every way except for his terrible mentality.
Look at himself. Other than not sleeping all night, he was not panicking at all.
"Hmph! The streets are full of rumors about the Demon Fox's powerful uncle. He vanished for three years and chose this moment to return. That guy must be hiding some unspeakable secret..."
Danzo narrowed his eyes. He had never had a good impression of Namikaze Mirai.
During Minato's rule, that man had often used his influence to suppress him, leaving him utterly embarrassed.
When news of Namikaze Mirai's disappearance arrived, Danzo had been thrilled for a long time.
Without that troublesome younger brother, what could Minato use to suppress him?
Yet only a few months later, the Nine-Tails Attack erupted, and Minato was gone as well.
"But he is Naruto's guardian in name now. That is troublesome."
Sarutobi Hiruzen felt his headache worsening. No matter how he rubbed his temples, it brought no relief.
That was what gave him the biggest headache.
Minato and Kushina had both died in that incident. If Namikaze Mirai had not returned, then as the Third Hokage, he would have been Naruto's highest guardian.
Given enough time, he could have completely molded Naruto into the shape he wanted.
In fact, that was exactly what he had done. Despite his heavy official duties, he gave Naruto a considerable sum for living expenses every month.
But now Namikaze Mirai had stepped in.
That man had never been one to stay quiet. If he really started making trouble...
"Hiruzen, why not strike first..."
Danzo narrowed his eyes.
"Too reckless."
Sarutobi Hiruzen shook his head.
"Setting aside the fact that he is no weaker than Minato, he is also Naruto's uncle. If we rashly act against him and make Naruto resent the village, that will be troublesome."
Naruto was the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, the village's most important strategic weapon.
There could be no accidents! "Precisely because he is Naruto's uncle, we need to act as soon as possible. If we keep delaying, who knows what complications may arise!"
Danzo gritted his teeth unwillingly.
"Keep hesitating, Hiruzen, and you will regret it!"
"Danzo, I am the Hokage!"
While Konoha F2 was putting on a grand argument in the Hokage Office, Namikaze Mirai was taking Naruto to Ichiraku Ramen and letting him devour bowl after bowl.
The chewy noodles were swept into Naruto's mouth at lightning speed. He did not even have time to chew before swallowing them whole.
Several empty bowls sat on the table beside them, clean enough to look as though they had been carefully licked spotless. They were the fruits of Naruto's battle.
A few seconds later, another bowl of ramen was finished and stacked atop the empty bowls.
Naruto held his bulging belly and let out a satisfied burp.
"Are you full?"
Namikaze Mirai, seated beside him, smiled at Naruto.
"I'm full, I'm full. This is the fullest I've ever been. Uncle, will I get to eat like this again?"
Naruto looked at Namikaze Mirai eagerly.
"Of course. As long as Naruto wants to, you can come eat anytime."
"Uncle is the best!"
Naruto was so excited that he nearly jumped up.
This uncle he had only just met was the person who treated him best in the entire world.
"Get ready. I'll take you to do something interesting in a bit."
Namikaze Mirai said with a smile.
"Something interesting?"
Naruto tilted his head.
"You'll know when you get there!"
Ten minutes later.
"Uncle, is this the interesting thing you were talking about?"
Naruto tugged on Namikaze Mirai's large hand and blinked in confusion at the building across from them.
The Hokage Office should be where Grandpa Hokage worked, right?
What interesting things could they do here? A trace of curiosity appeared in Naruto's eyes.
"My good nephew, watch closely!"
Namikaze Mirai took a fifty-ryo coin from his pocket, the one used to pay for the ramen.
"Hm?"
Naruto tilted his head.
"This move is going to look really cool!"
He flicked the coin upward with his thumb. As it spun and fell, the world around them seemed to slow down. When the coin reached its lowest point, blue lightning coiled around Namikaze Mirai's fingertips, and he gave it a light flick.
Sizzle! Amid the burst of wind, the coin suddenly transformed into a blue beam of light and shot toward the Hokage Tower.
"Danzo! I am the Hoka—"
Inside the Hokage Office, Sarutobi Hiruzen and Danzo's argument was still continuing.
A chilling sensation rose from Sarutobi Hiruzen's spine, making every hair on his body stand on end uncontrollably.
Years of life-and-death experience allowed Sarutobi Hiruzen to keenly sense the danger behind him.
But before he could react, the Hokage Office window shattered with a boom. A beam crackling with azure lightning pierced through it and slammed into the portraits of the previous Hokage hanging on the opposite wall.
When everything settled down.
Sarutobi Hiruzen's pupils trembled slightly, and Danzo's eyes shook as well. The portrait of the Third Hokage hanging in the office had been completely pierced through.
The gentle smiling face that had once worn a conical hat was left with nothing but a scorched hole that curled with smoke. The building behind it was clearly visible.
That single strike had pierced through the entire Hokage Tower!!! "Enemy attack! Protect the Hokage!"
The Anbu hidden in the corners appeared beside Sarutobi Hiruzen in a blur, shielding him tightly in the middle.
That attack had been too fast! Too fast! So fast that they had been unable to react at all!
By the time they came to their senses, the Hokage Tower had already been pierced straight through.
The air became incomparably heavy, oppressive like frozen ice. The stationed Anbu's Adam's apples bobbed as they swallowed nervously.
Even Danzo, who had always been ruthless, could not stop sweat from seeping across his forehead.
That attack, fast to the absolute extreme, reminded him of a secret technique that had earned a fearsome reputation during the Third Great Ninja War.
Could it be...
In that deathly silence, the doors to the Hokage Office creaked open.
Looking at the Blonde Figure who appeared, Sarutobi Hiruzen gritted his teeth slightly.
"So it was you after all, Blue Flash! What exactly do you want?"
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