Fishing Fanatics Rejoice

Naruto froze for a moment at that. He looked at Mizuki, blinked, and asked.

"Mizuki-sensei, what... what do you mean?"

Mizuki's mental state seemed somewhat strange, giving off an indescribably abnormal feeling. It was as if he had taken some kind of hallucinogen, making him seem particularly sinister.

Honestly, even though he had been mentally prepared, Mizuki's face still gave him quite a fright the instant it appeared.

"Tomorrow is the Ninja Academy graduation exam, right?" Mizuki asked.

"Yeah." Naruto nodded.

"Then are you confident you can pass, Naruto?" Mizuki narrowed his eyes slightly and sized Naruto up with a half-smiling gaze.

"Well, Mizuki-sensei, you know me." Naruto scratched his head, pretending to be embarrassed. "My graduation will probably get postponed again this year."

"Then do you want to become stronger, Naruto? I happen to know a secret that will definitely let you pass the graduation exam."

Naruto's eyelid twitched slightly at that.

If Mizuki had known about his perfect score on the surprise Three Jutsu test that afternoon, he would not have said such things to him.

However, Mizuki had indeed not appeared at the Ninja Academy all day. It was normal for him not to know about it. In other words, Mizuki had not gone looking for Iruka; he had come straight for him.

Being this anxious meant something must have changed, making Mizuki eager to trick him into stealing the Scroll of Seals.

But the problem was, the Scroll of Seals itself was an open scheme laid out by the village.

Naruto found it utterly ridiculous.

Now they were starting to worry about the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki's mental state? Afraid the Jinchuriki would develop hatred toward the village?

And now they were going through all this trouble, planning to brainwash me with my companions' approval? What were they doing before?

Come to think of it, this village was strange too. The higher-ups' brains seemed like they had grown in a sewer.

If they wanted to protect the Jinchuriki's identity and keep the villagers from knowing he was the Fourth Hokage's son, then what the hell was the point of spreading the news about the Nine-Tails?

They desperately kept Naruto's identity as the Fourth Hokage's son under wraps while turning a blind eye to rumors that he was a fox demon. What a double standard—kicking him while he was down.

Even capitalists did not play things like this. They withheld the compensation they owed him, then tried to PUA him. They let the villagers target him while brainwashing him into protecting the village. The audacity.

The stage had been set, and the actors were in place. A grand Will of Fire brainwashing spectacle aimed at the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki was about to begin.

As long as he nodded and agreed, Mizuki would immediately notify Iruka that he had stolen the Scroll of Seals—and he really could steal it with ease.

For some reason, Mizuki had gone completely mad and actually believed a child could steal the Scroll of Seals, a document no less important than the Nine-Tails.

Yet judging from his eyes, he truly believed it without a doubt.

Naruto did not want to agree. He had no interest in the Scroll of Seals. In the short term, he could only learn one Shadow Clone anyway, and with the system at his side, it meant little to him.

Besides, he did not want to walk into a prearranged tearjerker scene and force himself to look touched. That would feel worse than killing him.

The village had treated him like this. If they wanted him to protect those who treated him equally, he could accept that. But asking him to say something about protecting the village was truly hard to believe.

Why should he repay hatred with kindness?

No way!

Just as Naruto was about to refuse, the system panel popped up again.

Option One: Reject Mizuki's invitation and tell him to get lost before he startled the fish in your spot. Reward: Max-level Fishing Skill.

Option Two: Accept Mizuki's invitation and steal the Scroll of Seals. Reward: Impure World Reincarnation (Incomplete)

After one glance, Naruto immediately made his choice.

Although stealing the Scroll of Seals would earn him the A-rank ninjutsu Shadow Clone and let him learn an incomplete version of Impure World Reincarnation as well.

But... what use was an incomplete Impure World Reincarnation? Using that technique required a living sacrifice! Tasteless to keep, a pity to throw away.

At the moment, Naruto did not have anyone in particular he wanted to revive.

While the Shadow Clone was indeed very tempting, getting tangled up in trouble over it would leave him in a passive position later on.

"Mizuki-sensei, I must decline." Naruto's voice was calm.

"What?" Mizuki was somewhat surprised.

He apparently had not expected Naruto to refuse. In his impression, Naruto had always been a simple-minded, impulsive dead last.

"Why? Naruto, this is a precious opportunity. If you give it up, you'll definitely regret it later!"

"Mizuki-sensei, there's no need to waste your breath." Naruto glanced at him. "My mind is made up. There's no point in saying more."

"Don't you want to become stronger and be acknowledged by the village, Naruto?" Mizuki made one last struggle.

"Ah, I don't want that. It sounds like too much trouble." Naruto spoke carelessly. "Ever since I was little, the people in the village have never liked me."

"If I keep causing trouble, they'll only hate me even more, right?"

Mizuki was momentarily speechless.

After a long while—

"Naruto, don't you want to know why everyone in the village treats you that way?" Mizuki's voice rang out again, carrying a hint of temptation.

"You want to say I'm a fox demon, right?" Naruto's voice held no emotion as he lazily gripped his fishing rod. "The Nine-Tails Fox Demon that destroyed the village and killed its people?"

"You! How did you know?" Mizuki staggered back several steps, his face full of shock.

"Come on, I'm already twelve years old, not a three-year-old child." Naruto turned and stared at Mizuki. "Mizuki-sensei, I have ears."

"I grew up in this village. Ever since I could remember, no one liked me, and I had few friends. Shop owners always looked at me with gloomy faces, and the villagers around me were the same."

"I wanted to buy fresh vegetables too. I wanted to live under the sun like a normal person too. But I was destined to shrink into a corner, watching children my age go home after school for dinner."

"Mizuki-sensei, you've been isolated by others too, right? You must understand. Suffering isn't some kind of treasure; it's just unavoidable."

"When people bullied me, no one spoke up for me."

"But so what? I'm not a fox demon. None of it has anything to do with me. I'm just myself, Naruto Uzumaki."

Mizuki said, "Why? You already knew! Didn't you feel dissatisfied with this village?"

Naruto withdrew his gaze and fixed his eyes on the fishing rod beneath the moonlight. The hook hung beneath the water, ripples spreading around it.

He did not know whether the one asking that question was Mizuki himself or the person controlling Mizuki from behind the scenes. Was he dissatisfied with the village?

Of course he was, but he could not say it. At least, not yet.

After a long while, a mechanical synthesized voice sounded in Naruto's mind.

Max-level Fishing Skill activated

Naruto reeled in a grass carp, and his voice rose at the same time. It was calm in the night sky, seeming to echo the night breeze.

"No."

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