At the Third Hokage's question, Naruto Uzumaki's expression immediately twisted in conflict. Shin's words when he had left flashed through his mind, and he stammered, unable to say anything.
If it had been someone else—Uchiha Itachi, for instance, or any other clever, gifted person—they might have found an excuse to muddle through.
Unfortunately, Naruto had no talent for that sort of thing. As Minato Namikaze and Kushina's child, his talent for ninjutsu was by no means poor. It was just that all his talent seemed to have been allocated solely to ninjutsu.
"Oh? What's so difficult about that?" The Third Hokage asked in puzzlement, tapping his pipe against the desk. Even now, he had not truly taken this matter seriously.
"Can't say!" Naruto shook his head, his tone firm.
"Hm?" The Third Hokage raised a brow, finally sensing that something was off. If Jiraiya had taught him, Naruto should not have reacted like this.
"What exactly is going on?" This time, a hint of severity entered the Third Hokage's voice. His instincts, honed through years as a ninja, told him there was something hidden here. While making such a guess based solely on Naruto's reaction was rather hasty, countless experiences had taught him that following his instincts was never wrong.
"Can't say!" Naruto shook his head again. No matter what the Third Hokage asked, that was his only answer.
Holding his pipe in hand, the Third Hokage looked at Naruto with a headache. It felt like a dog trying to bite a turtle—nowhere to sink its teeth in. Sometimes, a stubborn idiot truly left people helpless.
Looking at Naruto now, he thought, *It seems Naruto is determined to keep this secret for some reason. I'll have to change the way I ask. With Naruto's intelligence, I should be able to