The Overlooked Matter

"There are a lot of unfamiliar faces in the village lately."

Naruto, having climbed to the top of the tree, found a relatively thick branch and struggled to stand upright, maintaining his balance.

"I heard that this year 'Chunin Ninja Exams will be held in Konoha, and many nobles have accepted the invitation."

Ino, searching for pretty flowers among the blossoms, tidied the strands of hair that were hanging by her ears and reached out to pluck a pink flower in front of her.

After answering Naruto's question, Ino held up the flower and gestured towards Sakura under the tree, a smile playing on her lips, before tucking the flower into her clothes.

Flowers the same color as Sakura's? Hmph, I'll use this to mock her wide forehead.

Ino thought to herself mischievously.

"What a hassle."

Shikamaru yawned and rolled over on the grass.

Because of this incident, his father hasn't been home for two nights, and his mother's complexion is visibly grim; even the food tastes...

"Choji, can I come over for a late-night snack tonight?"

Smart people always prepare a backup plan in advance.

If his father still doesn't come home tonight, Shikamaru can't even imagine what kind of dark matter will appear on the dinner table.

"Sure, but our plan for tonight is to go to a barbecue restaurant and have a feast."

Choji grabbed a handful of potato chips and stuffed them into his mouth, chewing them heartily.

"Hey, big brother, if you fall, Mom will spank your bottom after you're healed."

Karin showed no interest in joining the conversation; her attention was entirely focused on Naruto was about to perform some dangerous maneuvers.

This wasn't because of any sibling affection; it was simply because if Kushina got angry, she would also suffer unjustly.

"Hmph, Karin, don't underestimate your brother."

Naruto was initially a little scared, but after hearing Karin's voice, he defiantly let go of the branch he was holding onto.

Before he could finish his boastful words, Naruto felt his foot slip, and everything in his vision began to spin. He was then forced to plummet towards the ground by gravity.

"Naruto!"

"Naruto-kun!"

Sasuke and Hinata were the first to notice Naruto's unusual behavior. They exclaimed in surprise and were about to rush over to do something.

Karin seemed indifferent. She and her brother had always been able to heal quickly from any kind of injury they suffered since childhood, so this time would probably be no different.

"Heave-ho!"

A dark shadow flashed by, and a figure that wasn't very tall firmly grabbed Naruto by the back of his collar, stopping his freefall just as he was about to hit the ground.

"Is it because the pressure of studying is too much that you've lost the will to live, Naruto? I don't recall ever teaching you that weird way of dying—jumping off a tree."

A flirtatious voice reached his ears, attracting even Shikamaru's attention, who turned to look at the source of the voice.

"Who are you..."

Because of her family's financial situation, Sakura had no idea what the others were talking about, so she could only concentrate on reading. Looking at that somewhat delicate face, she seemed to realize something and quickly covered her mouth.

"Damn it, Brother Kazashiro, I just made a mistake!"

Naruto struggled a few times, like a grumpy kitten being grabbed by the neck of fate.

The name "Brother Kazashiro" reached everyone's ears. Even though everyone present was a young child, under the combined influence of their education at the Ninja Academy and the teachings of their parents, they quickly realized the true identity of the person in front of them.

"The Fifth Hokage?!"

"Haha, hello kids!"

Kazashiro Bai laughed twice, enjoying the shocked looks on everyone's faces.

Hmm, Karin, Hinata, Shikamaru, Choji, Sakura? Ino, Kiba.

Aside from Neji who were one level above them, the Konoha 12 had clearly gathered around Naruto.

I always feel like someone is missing.

Who is it?

Kazashiro was completely unaware of the figure in the crowd wearing a high-necked trench coat.

"Anyway, I'll tell Kushina about you climbing the tree. Just wait to get a loving roar from your mom when you get home, Naruto!"

Unlike the Third Hokage, who was a kind old man who would exchange a few words with children whenever he saw them.

After saying those words, Kazashiro casually tossed Naruto aside and left.

He sometimes seriously suspected that the Third Hokage was sending out Shadow Clone all over the village, otherwise how could every named character be guided by this old man in a gentle voice at different ages?

So much so that this old man appears in the memoirs of every character.

"Wow, that's so cool! Is this the power of Hokage?"

Sakura covered her mouth and sighed.

Is this level of Body Flicker Technique cool?

Upon hearing this, Shino tilted her head.

He always felt like he was being ignored by the Hokage, but the Hokage hadn't greeted anyone else either; this was just his guess.

Unlike Shino, who was focused entirely on whether the Hokage had discovered her, Ino understood Sakura's thoughts very well.

For Sakura, the only place where she could access the Body Flicker Technique was the Ninja Academy. As for Iruka, who could use it, his appearance was naturally not as pleasing to the eye as Kazashiro.

However, the Fifth Generation Hokage's appearance wasn't exactly what she liked.

Ino still prefers guys like Sasuke.

"If you wanted to see it, why didn't you stay there earlier?"

Uchiha Hikari couldn't understand Kazashiro's behavior. The Hokage was currently standing on a small hill far away from the group of children, gazing at them from afar.

"I just wanted to think about it quietly."

Kazashiro looked confused.

He always felt like he was overlooking something.

In order to find the things he had overlooked, Kazashiro was mentally prepared to start from scratch and sort everything out.

No matter how you look at it, Setsuna and the other unnamed Uchiha were acting according to Madara Uchiha's plan.

Behind Madara Uchiha stood Ōtsutsuki Shinobu, the most filial son in the Shinobi World —no, it should be Black Zetsu.

Behind Black Zetsu is, of course Kaguya Otsutsuki.

That's how things should be.

But--

One-Tails has disappeared.

This is information that Kazashiro recently received from Pakura.

It is said that he disappeared shortly after Naruto was born.

All the monks of the Temple of Wind were also brutally murdered by the enemy.

This means that the plan to collect the Tailed Beast should have already begun.

If I remember correctly, the Tailed Beast' powers must be sealed in a specific order to complete their final activation.

In that case, the reason for the instantaneous attack becomes clear.

The Two-Tails has been defeated.

So it was my turn.

Seeing that Kazashiro was truly deep in thought, Uchiha Hikari casually took out a lollipop, tore off the outermost wrapper, and popped it into his mouth.