That Damn Danzo

Sarutobi Hiruzen was exhausted and miserable. Too much had happened over the past two months. It was strange—only two months had passed, yet it felt as though several years had gone by.

First Naruto had suddenly gone berserk, then Anbu had been killed, then the Uchiha coup had happened. After that, a Masked Man with terrifying strength had appeared, and now he still had to deal with Naruto's problem. Since the Nine Tails Rampage, he had not felt this tired in years. He really was getting old.

The one making him sigh now was the Nine Tails Jinchuriki seated across from him: Uzumaki Naruto.

"Naruto, you promised Grandpa that you wouldn't use ninjutsu on the villagers."

Sarutobi Hiruzen's expression was exceedingly stern. He was suddenly beginning to regret his decision to teach Naruto ninjutsu ahead of time.

Naruto, meanwhile, looked utterly unconcerned. "What I used wasn't ninjutsu. It was genjutsu!"

"This..."

Sarutobi Hiruzen was suddenly at a loss for words. He had not expected Naruto to talk back to him. Was it because he had been too busy lately to visit Naruto and maintain their relationship?

Wait! Since when could Naruto use genjutsu?

Sarutobi Hiruzen's expression turned even more serious, with a hint of gloom. In an icy tone, he asked, "Who taught you genjutsu?"

"No one taught me. I learned it myself."

"Y-you learned it yourself?!" Sarutobi Hiruzen's voice rose several notches. This was the first time he had heard that genjutsu could be self-taught.

"How did you teach yourself?"

Naruto shot the old fart a glance and said, "I accidentally discovered that everyone's Chakra flowed in regular patterns. So I wondered what would happen if I tried interfering with someone else's Chakra flow and made it run according to my own ideas. Then I learned it."

Sarutobi Hiruzen was somewhat stunned. He suddenly recalled how Naruto had shut himself in his home for the past month and could not help asking, "Was this the technique you've been studying all month?"

Naruto nodded in acknowledgment.

Sarutobi Hiruzen pressed his lips together and said nothing. After thinking for a long while, he finally let out a long breath.

"From now on, whether it's ninjutsu or genjutsu, you are not allowed to use them on your classmates."

"What about taijutsu?"

Veins bulged on Sarutobi Hiruzen's forehead. Gritting his teeth, he said, "That's not allowed either!"

Naruto frowned. "Then I can only get beaten and cursed at?"

"This..."

Sarutobi Hiruzen fell silent. He had not expected Naruto's mind to become so quick. After steadying his emotions, he spoke again.

"You may only use taijutsu to protect yourself. You must not hurt your companions. Do you understand?"

"Fine, then can I go to class now?"

Seeing Naruto act so unconcerned, Sarutobi Hiruzen could not help feeling deeply weary. Where had that obedient Naruto from before gone?

Sarutobi Hiruzen's thoughts drifted as he began considering why Naruto's personality had changed so drastically. After pondering for a long time, his thoughts settled on the day Naruto had returned home from the back mountain two months ago. It seemed that everything had begun that day.

Naruto's changes, the Masked Man's appearance—they had both started that day.

That damn Danzo!

Of course, he could not possibly connect the Masked Man with Naruto. He had watched Naruto grow up bit by bit. Although his strength had improved quickly, expecting him to block Shisui head-on and nearly kill Shimura Danzō was giving him far too much credit.

What he needed to think about now was how to rebuild his relationship with Naruto.

Naruto's birthday seemed to be coming up...

"Come to think of it, next month is your birthday, isn't it, Naruto?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen suddenly smiled kindly again, leaving Naruto bewildered.

You changed faces that fast?

Are you some kind of Sichuan Opera master too?

"Mm. Does Lord Hokage want to celebrate my birthday with me?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen's smile grew even more benevolent. "When the time comes, I'll give Naruto a surprise."

Last time, he had told Naruto the story of the Fourth Hokage. This time, he would tell Naruto about the Fourth Hokage's relationship with him. He had hidden it for so long; it was time Naruto knew.

"Is that so? Then I'll start looking forward to Lord Hokage's surprise."

Naruto smiled as well.

When Naruto entered the classroom, the entire room fell silent. It was like suddenly being transported from a bustling marketplace into a cold morgue—except the corpses were still letting out faint breaths.

Even Iruka had not expected this. He had thought Naruto would at least take a few days off from school, or perhaps transfer to another class altogether. Yet Naruto was still in their class. Iruka suddenly felt that his teaching career was going to be bleak.

Though the scene was deathly quiet, Naruto was not one to read the mood. He walked straight to the podium in a few strides and stood beside Iruka.

"Yo, everyone. My name is Uzumaki Naruto. I think all of you probably know me already, right? I'm happy to meet you too."

That sunny demeanor made him look like a second Minato Namikaze. The confidence on his face only added to his charm.

Aside from the students who had personally witnessed Dongye's miserable state earlier, it was difficult for everyone else to associate Uzumaki Naruto with the rumored Demon Fox. Some of the children who cared more about looks had even begun to feel a vague fondness for him.

Regardless of gender, most people tended to like things that were attractive and sunny.

With a smile on his face, Naruto narrowed his eyes and swept his gaze over the students below. He spotted quite a few familiar faces: the Ino-Shika-Cho trio sitting together, the boy who attended class with a little dog, the girl with cherry-pink hair, and the little Byakugan girl who looked somewhat timid but still bravely raised her head and smiled at him.

Hinata really had changed a little.

Hm?

As he continued looking around, Naruto suddenly felt an extremely burning gaze.

He followed it and was startled. Th-this was Sasuke?

But why was Sasuke looking at him so strangely? Could it be that Indra's Chakra-fueled little-brother obsession had erupted? That did not fit his character at all.

"Ahem, Naruto, if you're done introducing yourself, go find a seat."

Iruka's cough pulled Naruto back to his senses.

"Mm."

Naruto headed straight for his previous seat. After all, it was a seat he had used before, so most people would not sit there.

Other than Neji, Rock Lee, and Tenten, he had seen all of Konoha's Twelve today.

Hm? Why did it feel like one was missing?