Harvest Season

"Neji, you'll teach Naruto chakra extraction and the Three Basic Techniques."

Uchiha Siming shook his head helplessly.

Forget it.

Whether it was Neji or Naruto, both had follow-up teaching tasks, and he could still earn the task rewards.

Meanwhile.

Hokage Building, Office.

The door was slammed open with a dull thud, the force of it revealing the intruder's fury.

"Hiruzen! This is what you get for indulging Uchiha Siming."

Shimura Danzō's triangular eyes gleamed with seething anger and bitter disappointment.

"Now Uchiha Siming has directly taken Naruto Uzumaki away. He's a blight on Konoha!"

Damn it.

He had said it long ago—Uchiha Siming couldn't be kept alive, he was a menace. But Hiruzen always paraded his self-righteousness, which in his eyes was no different from hypocrisy!

"Naruto Uzumaki must be handed over to me for training, or the village will relive the Nine-Tails's Rampage!"

He was absolutely furious.

That blockhead Hiruzen Sarutobi wasn't fit to sit in the Hokage's seat at all. He had no ambition to unify the shinobi world and revive Konoha.

He was the one who truly deserved to be Hokage!

"Impossible!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi's voice was flat, his murky eyes carrying calm and pressure.

"Siming is a good child. He possesses an outstanding Will of Fire. He would make any sacrifice to protect Konoha."

"As for Naruto..."

He paused.

He couldn't help clicking his tongue. How did Siming end up tangled with Naruto again?

First Neji, now Naruto. What exactly was Siming trying to do?

"I've already made arrangements. Asuma is watching Siming closely—nothing will go wrong."

No matter what, in his eyes, Siming was far more reliable than Danzō.

"Hmph, Hiruzen, do you even hear what you're saying?"

Danzō sneered, his gaze growing even more disappointed.

"Hand Naruto over to me. Let me raise him into an excellent jinchūriki. That's the most beneficial course of action. Most importantly, Uchiha Siming is already a threat to the village. He must... be killed!"

In his youth.

Under Hiruzen's overwhelming strength and authority, he had always diligently handled the village's darkness without a shred of disloyalty. But later, the scales in his heart began to tip. He felt that he should be Hokage!

And now.

He believed that he should have been the one to become Hokage back then.

If he had become Hokage, Konoha would have already unified the shinobi world!

With time passing, the rage of not obtaining Shisui's Kotoamatsukami, the bitter disappointment in Hiruzen Sarutobi, and the immense threat of Uchiha Siming all burned like a fire line racing toward the warning limit in his heart.

It made his scalp crawl, and hatred festered in his heart!

"Danzō, as long as I draw breath, your ambitions will never come to pass. Remember, I am the Hokage!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi felt a chill run through his body.

Could it be that what Siming said was true? A strange glimmer flickered in his eyes.

Shimura Danzō didn't notice. His expression shifted sharply, and he turned away in fury:

"Hiruzen, you will regret this!"

The door let out a dull groan, as if struck by a heavy blow. With a crack, the hinge snapped, and the door hung slightly askew, a testament to the force Danzō had used.

Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed helplessly: "Have someone replace the door."

Over the years.

This door had been replaced the most often.

On the other side, back at Root, Danzō's face was as cold and grim as a corpse that had been dead for days.

"What news from Orochimaru?! I can't afford to wait any longer. Without Shisui's Kotoamatsukami, I need even greater power!"

His eyes churned with ambition and malice.

Like an owlman lurking in the forest, forever waiting to strike.

"Lord Danzō, this is the [Living Corpse Reincarnation] Orochimaru sent over, along with his latest experimental subject. This body..."

The Root ninja's Adam's apple bobbed, his eyes filled with disbelief.

"A pair of Mangekyo Sharingan! And it's said they can wield the power of Wood Release!"

"What?"

Danzo froze, then a burst of astonished delight erupted in his eyes. His gaze instantly fell upon the pale, grotesque experimental subject—in his view, this ugly body was the greatest gift of all!

"That Orochimaru has indeed created another new experimental subject!"

"As long as I use Living Corpse Reincarnation, I can possess this powerful body!"

Ugly?

He couldn't care less. He immediately took the Living Corpse Reincarnation scroll and began studying it.

The only thing he cared about was whether he could achieve his goal!

The more Danzo read, the more excited he became. He commanded, "Dispatch my Root operatives. Target: Naruto Uzumaki. Once I reincarnate into this body, I will gain the power to control the Nine-Tails!"

By then.

Neither Uchiha Siming nor Hiruzen Sarutobi would be a match for him.

And the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki would become the most powerful weapon in his hands!

Senju Clan.

"How is this possible?"

Watching Naruto Uzumaki, who had almost instantly learned Chakra Extraction and the Three Basic Techniques, his face full of bewilderment, Neji opened his mouth in shock.

"A genius—Naruto, you're a true genius!"

Uchiha Siming's crimson Three Tomoe Sharingan spun gently. Under his gaze, the flow of chakra within Naruto's body was completely unaffected. Even though he had just learned Chakra Extraction, he already had far more than a single card's worth.

"Let me give you both an insurance policy. When you encounter danger in the future, just channel your chakra into this."

Uchiha Siming placed his palm on the backs of Naruto's and Neji's hands. A black pattern of a triangular shuriken Mangekyo appeared:

"I will descend like a divine soldier from the heavens, rescuing you from fire and water."

In the original story.

Neither Neji nor Naruto suffered much harm in the early stages.

But with him around now, who knew what plot changes might occur?

"Also, since you've already extracted chakra..."

Uchiha Siming grinned, letting out a low, creeping laugh: "Then it's time for me to reap what I've sown!"

"What do you mean?"

Naruto Uzumaki shuddered: "Sensei Siming, the way you look right now... it's terrifying!"

Boom—!

A crimson Mangekyo Sharingan emerged. In an instant, Uchiha Siming appeared inside Naruto's body. His eyes held three parts anticipation, seven parts malice, as he gazed at the five-year-old Naruto, his smile brimming with delight.

"Come on, Naruto. It's time for a tug-of-war."

In that moment.

Naruto dazedly found himself in a mental space.

Uchiha Siming didn't hesitate. He placed his hand on the seal and yanked hard, intending to tear it off. But the next second, a golden figure flashed past, and a powerful force surged, trying to repel Uchiha Siming.

Yet Uchiha Siming didn't budge an inch.

With a sharp rip.

He tore the Sealing Formula paper clean off.

In the original story, the tug-of-war happened after Naruto's "face-to-heart" reconciliation with the darkness within. But now, with him around, there was no chance of Naruto being corrupted by evil thoughts.

"You bastard, do you have any idea what you're doing?"

Minato Namikaze was stunned. His azure-blue eyes were calm and stern, filled with vigilance.

"An Uchiha? What are you here for? Could you be the culprit behind the Nine-Tails's Rampage back then?!"