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"Naruto! You must not do anything reckless. Birth, aging, sickness, and death are the natural laws of the world. Forcing them to break will only invite punishment from the unknown. I don't need to be resurrected; I only hope you can live a happy life..."

"It's fine, I have the Rinnegan. This is very simple."

Seeing that Minato still wanted to object, Naruto said, "If Dad doesn't want to be resurrected, then I won't force it. I'll just resurrect Mom alone. When that happens... Mom is so young and beautiful, what do you think might happen, Dad?"

You actually want to find a stepfather!!!

Minato's eyes widened, and for the first time, he felt the urge to give his son a good beating.

Kushina had already taken action, slamming a fist onto Naruto's head and fuming, "What kind of person do you take me for? I would never betray Minato..."

Still feeling unsatisfied, she landed a few more punches on Naruto before turning to Minato and saying, "If you are willing to die with me, then I can die with you. If Naruto only resurrects me, I will never live alone."

Naruto hurriedly explained, "I was just joking. I will absolutely resurrect both Mom and Dad. There's no 'who comes first'—the whole family will be together, safe and sound."

Minato didn't say anything to refuse this time. He held Kushina and Naruto tightly in his arms, remaining silent.

Before long, Minato's body turned into specks of light and entered Naruto's body.

"This is... Dad's training memories."

Shadow Clone, Rasengan, Shuriken Shadow Clone, Four-Symbols Sealing, Eight Trigrams Sealing... and the Flying Thunder God technique that Naruto wanted most.

At the Hokage Building, the Konoha F4 were discussing how to handle the events of last night.

Mitokado Homura raised his eyes and sighed, "I never expected that the mastermind behind the Nine-Tails Incident was actually Obito. But he was only fourteen at the time, wasn't he?"

A mere fourteen-year-old boy had managed to leave Konoha half-destroyed, resulting in the loss of both a Hokage and a Jinchuriki. Just thinking about it felt unbelievable.

"Hmph, the Uchiha... the Uchiha are the kind of people who would even strike at their own teachers... Tobirama was right to warn us. It's a good thing the Uchiha were wiped out."

Utatane Koharu could not hide her relief. The other three did not refute her, and Danzō even wanted to applaud loudly.

I am the one who inherited the will of Tobirama, so the position of Hokage should be mine.

Isn't that right, Hiruzen?

"I remember it was Hiruzen who let the Fourth take Obito as a student. If not for that, the Fourth probably wouldn't have been killed by Obito."

Looking at the Third Hokage, Danzō said with a pained expression, "So, in the final analysis... the Fourth was actually killed by you! Hiruzen, you must take primary responsibility..."

Mitokado and Utatane looked on, speechless. You're trying to shift the blame even for this? You must be crazy about becoming Hokage.

The Third Hokage puffed on his pipe, remained silent for a moment, and said, "I admit I bear some responsibility. I misjudged Obito and placed the hope of reconciliation between the village and the Uchiha on him, but I never expected his heart to be so twisted..."

Hearing the Third admit his mistake, Danzō became even more emboldened. He intensified his condemnation, painting the Third as a heinous sinner who had to resign to apologize to the entire village.

But the two advisors couldn't stand it any longer.

"Enough, Danzō, stop talking. No matter what you say, we will not support you becoming Hokage... Now, let's discuss the real business."

The first order of business was the handling of Obito.

Stripping him of his title as a hero of the Sharingan, erasing his name from the memorial stone, issuing an S-rank missing-nin wanted poster, and dispatching a specialized pursuit unit to track his trail...

The second order of business was the handling of Naruto.

Danzō, who had been sitting with a gloomy face since the beginning, spoke up.

"Given Obito's covetous eyes on the Jinchuriki, the existing protective measures are no longer sufficient to ensure the Jinchuriki's safety. Therefore, more powerful means must be taken... I suggest that the Jinchuriki withdraw from the academy, be placed under the direct control of Root, and undergo specialized training under my supervision..."

In short, it was the same old tune.

"Hiruzen, I think Danzō's idea is quite good. Why don't we do as he says?"

Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura expressed their agreement one after another.

"No need to say more. I will have the Anbu increase the level of protection for Naruto. You don't need to worry about this."

As expected, the Third Hokage refused once again.

The two advisors frowned, but in the end, they said nothing.

Danzō shouted unwillingly, "Hiruzen, you will regret this!"

"Danzō, I am the Hokage!"

The familiar dialogue played out once again, and the Third Hokage didn't take it to heart at all.

Afterward, the four chatted about other matters for a while, and the Third suddenly said, "I intend to make Naruto's lineage public."

The other three were stunned, then voiced their opposition in unison.

Mitokado Homura said, "Given the Jinchuriki's terrible reputation in the village... if his lineage is revealed, it will damage the Fourth's reputation."

Utatane Koharu said, "It is not appropriate to announce it now. It would be better to wait until the Jinchuriki graduates and becomes a ninja, performs great deeds, and improves people's impressions of him before announcing it."

It seemed... there was some truth to that.

The Third Hokage hesitated.

Danzō, who understood the Third best, said, "Hiruzen, if you announce the Jinchuriki's lineage at this time, how will the people in the village view you?"

They certainly wouldn't praise you; people would think... what were you doing all this time, why are you only announcing it now?

What a sinister, hypocritical villain!

When people further recalled the miserable treatment Naruto Uzumaki had endured in the village, the image of the Third Hokage would deteriorate even further, which would in turn damage the reputation of Konoha.

Wait, this announcement actually seems like a good thing for me!

Danzo realized this and said with a straight face, "I agree with the opinion of Hiruzen. This matter should be handled sooner rather than later; we cannot let the son of a hero continue to suffer such grievances..."

Danzo, what has gotten into you? Did you take the wrong medicine?

The two advisors looked confused, but they quickly caught on, casting meaningful glances toward the Third Hokage.

Since Danzo is in favor, I assume you know what needs to be done now.

The Third Hokage remained silent for a long time before finally letting out a long sigh.

"Then let us wait a little longer. We will announce it when a suitable opportunity arises."

Minato, do not blame me; I am doing this for the sake of Konoha.

--Land of Rain--

Itachi returned to the Akatsuki base alone; his teammate Biwa Juzo had been killed in action, dying in his homeland of Kirigakure.

According to Itachi's report, their team had accidentally encountered the Fourth Mizukage Yagura and his squad of pursuers while carrying out a mission in Kirigakure.

The two had just assassinated an important figure from Kirigakure, and Biwa Juzo himself was one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen who had defected from the village.

Needless to say, the two sides were like dry tinder meeting a raging fire, and they clashed instantly.

Although Itachi and Biwa Juzo were strong, the Mist ninja were numerous, and Yagura possessed immense power.