Uzumaki Naruto's Identity

Late at night, in an office within the Hokage Building, the Third Hokage was handling the village's affairs.

I'm getting old. My efficiency at dealing with things is getting worse and worse.

The Third Hokage smoked in silence, keenly feeling that his energy was no longer what it had once been. He had been working overtime more and more often.

"Knock, knock, knock."

Just then, a steady, unhurried knock sounded. The Third Hokage's eyes turned thoughtful as he spoke.

"Come in."

The door was pushed open, and a short old man walked in, dressed in a yellow bodysuit and wearing square-framed sunglasses.

If Naruto had seen this old man's appearance and attire at that moment, he would definitely have cried out in surprise.

Because this old man was Chen Baojun, the Konoha Dragon God Naruto had mentioned a few days ago—the one who had returned from the dead.

"Baojun, what brings you here?"

Seeing the visitor, the Third Hokage showed a hint of surprise and teased, "With the village short on manpower right now, are you planning to come out of retirement and help fill the gap, contributing to the village's construction?"

Chen Baojun shook his head and smiled bitterly. "You jest, Lord Third. The village is full of human talent now. The younger generation has already become the pillars who can shoulder the village's future. An old man like me, with one foot in the grave, shouldn't hold them back."

The Third Hokage merely smiled at Chen Baojun's words, neither confirming nor denying them, before making a self-deprecating remark.

"Old fellows like you have successors to take over, so you can enjoy your leisure. An old man like me has no choice but to shamelessly remain in this position."

"Lord Third, you are still vigorous despite your age. Both the villagers and the shinobi trust and respect you greatly. Everyone can see the achievements the village has made under your leadership."

"Old, old." The Third Hokage waved his hand with a smile. "I am only serving as Hokage temporarily. Once the village's younger generation grows up, I will entrust this position to them. Then this old man can rest for a while and spend time with my grandson at home."

"Go on, Baojun. What did you come to see me about this time?"

After exchanging pleasantries for a while, the Third Hokage got straight to the point.

Chen Baojun pondered for a moment before saying, "I came to speak with you about Naruto. He came looking for me."

"Naruto?" The Third Hokage was slightly taken aback, and his expression grew much more serious.

"How did Naruto find you?"

Chen Baojun's records listed him as dead, a shinobi who had perished during the Third Shinobi World War. The Third Hokage had personally handled the matter. In all of Konoha, only the Third Hokage knew Chen Baojun was still alive.

How could Naruto have found a dead man?

Or rather, how did Naruto know Chen Baojun?

Chen Baojun gave a wry smile and replied, "Naruto found a scroll I left behind in the Konoha Library. Using the grave address written on it, he found me. Because... well... I couldn't hold myself back and taught him a lesson with taijutsu."

"I see." The Third Hokage nodded in understanding. "And then?"

"Then that child kept pestering me these past few days, asking me to become his teacher and teach him taijutsu."

"Because Naruto's identity is of great importance..." Chen Baojun looked at the still-composed Third Hokage, hesitated for a moment, and continued, "I wanted to report this to you first and hear your thoughts."

The Third Hokage flicked the ash from his cigarette rather than answering directly. He softly asked, "Baojun, what kind of child do you think Naruto is?"

Chen Baojun thought for a moment, then said with a headache, "Mischievous, sharp-tongued, disrespectful, impolite, reckless, impulsive..."

The Third Hokage smoked quietly without interrupting him.

"These past few days, Naruto has indeed given me quite a headache, but..." Chen Baojun's tone shifted, and his expression turned serious.

"I can sense the loneliness in that child's heart—the loneliness of longing to be acknowledged. He may look carefree and absentminded, but isn't that smile also a way of hiding his inner anxiety and keeping others from worrying about him? In some ways, that child is not a fool. Or rather, he is a true fool!"

"And that child is incredibly persistent. Once he sets his mind on something, he will always give it everything he has."

Chen Baojun sighed, recalling Naruto's determination over the past few days and the taijutsu that could only have been forged through long, relentless training. In the end, he summed it up.

"That child will definitely become an outstanding shinobi in the future—a pillar shinobi who can shoulder the village's future."

"Hahaha!"

The Third Hokage listened quietly. Only after Chen Baojun had finished did he burst into laughter, wearing the gratified smile of an elder.

"Baojun, it seems you think very highly of Naruto."

After saying that, the Third Hokage fell silent for a while. Then he adopted an incomparably solemn expression and said seriously, "Baojun, do you think Naruto is the Demon Fox incarnation from the village rumors?"

"No!" Chen Baojun shook his head in denial.

"That child is a hero—a hero who imprisoned the Nine-Tails within his own body. Just like his parents, he is a hero of Konoha!"

As a former top elite jonin of Konoha, the so-called Demon Fox incarnation might deceive villagers who did not know the truth, but it could not fool him.

He could clearly distinguish between the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki and the Demon Fox incarnation.

The instant he saw Naruto, Chen Baojun had even guessed Naruto's true identity.

Blond hair, the surname Uzumaki—were there any other Uzumakis in Konoha?

Although Chen Baojun did not know the identity of the previous Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, he did know the Fourth Hokage's wife—Uzumaki Kushina.

Combined with Naruto's resemblance to his parents, Naruto's true identity was obvious.

"It seems you have already guessed Naruto's true identity."

The Third Hokage sighed, set down his cigarette, and extinguished it.

As the orphan of the Fourth Hokage and his wife, Naruto should have grown up respected and cared for by the villagers as the son of heroes.

But because Naruto was the vessel sealing the Nine-Tails, if enemies—or even others with ulterior motives—learned his identity, Naruto would be in constant danger.

Therefore, the Third Hokage believed that the best way to protect Naruto was to conceal both of his identities and let him grow up like an ordinary child.

That had been what the Third Hokage intended to do, but the result seemed to have been terrible.

The entire village knew Naruto was the Demon Fox incarnation, yet they did not know he was the son of heroes.

Those who should not have known, knew. What they should have known had been concealed.

With the Third Hokage's decades of political acumen, he naturally would not make such a foolish mistake. After all, the identities of the previous two Nine-Tails Jinchuriki had been concealed perfectly, yet Naruto's generation had somehow become common knowledge.

Skit: The Third Hokage opened Uzumaki Naruto's file and saw the words "Nine-Tailed Demon Fox" scrawled crookedly across every page.

The Third Hokage could not sleep. After studying it carefully for half the night, he finally saw two words between the lines, written throughout the entire file.

"Danzo!"