Training activity—chopping down trees!
It built strength and coordination, provided wood for carving, and supplied firewood for outdoor cookouts.
It was a win-win-win.
Naruto's days were full and busy. He spent his mornings training in the forest and his afternoons earning money by standing guard at the shop entrance.
Just like that, two years flew by.
--Two years later--
The forest was quiet and secluded in the early morning. The mist had yet to lift, and sunlight filtered through the leaves, dappling the ground.
Thud!
Thud!
Thud!
At the edge of the forest, in a clearing dotted with stumps, Naruto swung an ax at the trees, chopping at an unhurried, steady rhythm.
An hour later, a great tree crashed to the ground.
Naruto moved on to another tree and kept chopping.
Two hours later, another tree fell.
After sitting down to rest for a while, Naruto got to his feet, pulled a Kunai from his ninja pouch, and ran into the forest.
An hour later, Naruto emerged from the forest, panting hard, with a rabbit in hand.
He looked up at the sky. The sun blazed overhead. It was noon.
"Right, time for lunch..."
Not far away stood a small, simple wooden cabin. Inside were pots and bowls, firewood, rice, oil, salt, and other cooking supplies.
A quarter of an hour later, Naruto had set up a spit by the river and was roasting the rabbit.
He added seasoning as it cooked. Once the aroma filled the air, he dug in.
"Hm? Did I get a bite?"
As he ate, Naruto noticed the fishing rod beside him twitch.
He had put it out that morning, but hadn't expected to catch anything. His fishing skills had never been much good.
He'd only been passing the time, and hadn't even baited the hook.
Who would've thought...
"Once there was Jiang Taigong; now there's me, Uzumaki Naruto!"
Naruto was a little excited. He stuffed a rabbit leg into his mouth, wiped his greasy hands on the grass, then gripped the fishing rod with both hands, braced himself, and pulled with all his might...
It wouldn't budge!
"That's heavy. Must be a big fish."
Naruto grew even more excited and pulled with all his strength.
But the more he tugged, the more something felt wrong.
"Something's not quite right..."
As the dark shape gradually surfaced, it didn't look like a fish. It looked more like...
A corpse!
At the sight, Uzumaki Naruto stopped pulling.
"I didn't see a thing. That's right, I didn't see anything."
He still had lunch to eat. Finding a corpse was enough to ruin his appetite.
Naruto dropped the fishing rod, turned around as if nothing had happened, grabbed the roasted meat from the spit, and started to leave.
"Wait!"
Two Anbu hiding nearby jumped out. Naruto could pretend he hadn't seen anything, but they couldn't.
One Anbu ran into the river to retrieve the corpse, while the other stopped Naruto.
What a pain, Naruto sighed inwardly. Looking at the Anbu in front of him, he complained, "This has nothing to do with me. Why are you stopping me?"
"I know you had nothing to do with it, but you were the first to see—"
Naruto cut him off. "No, I didn't see anything. You were the first to see it."
The Anbu was speechless. "I saw it too."
Naruto nodded. "Exactly. You saw it."
"..."
What the hell? That's not what I meant!
"Th-that's Body Flicker Water?!"
A startled cry came from the riverbank.
The Third Hokage hurried over after receiving the Anbu's report and looked at the corpse lying on the grass.
Pale, wrinkled skin, a swollen body, empty eye sockets...
"Shisui..."
The Third Hokage couldn't help sighing.
Another promising heir to the Will of Fire had been lost.
"So he really is dead. But who ended up with his other Mangekyo?"
Danzo had received the news as well and arrived soon after. His eyes immediately settled on Shisui's empty sockets, and his expression tightened.
Danzo asked in a low voice, "Who found him first?"
The Anbu all turned to look at Uzumaki Naruto.
Naruto was just about to sneak away.
"..."
What the hell? Why are you all looking at me?
Danzo frowned. "You!"
The Nine-Tails Jinchuriki!
Naruto glanced at the Third Hokage, decided he was safe, and lifted his chin. "That's right, it was me. What are you going to do about it?"
Did I do something to offend him? Why's he so hostile?
Danzo paused, then said with displeasure, "Is that any way to speak to your elder?"
Naruto shot back, "Then how am I supposed to speak to you?"
Should I get on my knees and call you Grandpa? You old bastard!
"How insolent!"
Danzo's face darkened, his eyes glinting coldly. Naruto didn't flinch and glared right back.
You're just Danzo. You think you can act tough with me—
Wait!
The bastard had Kotoamatsukami now!
At the thought, Naruto shuddered and hurried behind the Third Hokage, praying frantically.
Don't look at me, don't look at me. If you have to look at someone, look at the Third Hokage. Once you control him, what couldn't you get?
The Third Hokage had no idea what Naruto was thinking. Assuming Danzo had frightened him, he patted Naruto's head kindly and offered him a few words of comfort.
Then the Third Hokage said, "Danzo, why are you picking a fight with a child? You're making yourself a laughingstock."
A laughingstock? Who would dare laugh? Let me see who dares!
Danzo looked around. Every ninja in his line of sight lowered their heads and pretended not to notice.
The Darkness of the Shinobi World was ruthless not only to outsiders, but to his own people as well. None of them dared cross him.
At last, Danzo's gaze settled on Naruto. He said coldly, "If he's disrespectful to an elder of the village at this age, who knows what he'll be like when he grows up? Are you planning to defect from the village?"
What a way to pin the blame on someone. Danzo really was the king of blame-shifting.
"That's an exaggeration, Danzo," the Third Hokage said.
"Is it? Not at all, Hiruzen. Think about Orochimaru..."
The Third Hokage's expression darkened. Orochimaru was a wound that would never heal, and Danzo was bringing it up to hit a sore spot.
Seeing this, Danzo thought he had swayed the Third Hokage and said eagerly, "Hiruzen, hand the Jinchuriki over to me to train—"
The Third Hokage cut him off sharply. "Danzo, that will never happen. Don't bring it up again!"
Hand the Jinchuriki over to Danzo? Was he trying to make sure the Hokage Position was the only thing the Third Hokage had left to lose?
"Hiruzen, you'll regret this!"
"Danzo, I am the Hokage!"
They'd had this exchange countless times. The Third Hokage knew it by heart and didn't take it to heart at all.
He ordered the Anbu to take Naruto away.
Danzo snorted. He didn't press the issue further, instead turning to Shisui's corpse. "Give me the body. Root will help find the killer."
He wanted to dispose of the body before the Third Hokage could examine its wounds and work out that Danzo had obtained Kotoamatsukami.
Whoosh!
Itachi appeared in front of the corpse. He forced down his seething rage and said, "There's no need for your help, Elder Danzo!"
This was the man who had killed Shisui, and now he even wanted to defile his body.
He deserved to die!
Before you continue