"Do you know what will happen if you do this to me, a Hokage Advisor, in the village?"
"Even Madara Uchiha left Konoha alone back then. Without our support, no one has the right to become Hokage!"
Danzo glared at Naruto.
He had only meant to argue with Orochimaru and Tsunade, using the opportunity to put himself forward as the new Hokage.
In Danzo's mind, Naruto Uzumaki would at most shout a few times. He wouldn't dare do anything more.
Shimura Danzo was a disciple of Tobirama Senju, a colleague of Hiruzen Sarutobi, and a longtime advisor to Konoha.
He held a lofty position!
He also had Root as his own faction, carrying out missions even darker than those of the Anbu.
Yamato and Sai had both been raised there.
He also had several powerful ninja under his command.
Especially these two guards at his side.
Torune Aburame could kill a whole crowd with a single move using his poison.
Fu Yamanaka could control an enemy's mind in an instant with the Mind Transfer Jutsu.
Danzo himself had a Sharingan in one arm, along with the Mangekyō he had taken from Shisui Uchiha!
Position, influence, guards, and strength—all in one man.
An elder at the very pinnacle of Konoha.
Shimura Danzo!
"Are you trying to become a traitor to Konoha, Naruto Uzumaki?"
"Or, as the Demon Fox, have you never been human at all?"
Danzo raised one hand.
He wasn't just ordering his subordinates to attack.
He was also ordering every ninja in Konoha to strike at once.
"Wait!"
"Naruto! Danzo is a Hokage Advisor! He has the right to handle this matter!"
Shikaku Nara, Shikamaru's father, tried to step in as a mediator.
He had come up alongside Minato Namikaze's generation.
If Minato had remained Hokage, Danzo's position would have belonged to Shikaku by now.
"Naruto, be careful!"
Jiraiya stood atop Toad Gamabunta's head.
"Recommending someone to become Hokage is my business. Don't you think you're going too far, Danzo?"
Tsunade stood beside Katsuyu with her arms crossed.
"You're all supporting him, are you?"
"Fine!"
Danzo looked around.
This group was getting more and more out of control.
After Hiruzen Sarutobi's death, Konoha had been hollowed out from within and should have been on the verge of collapse at any moment.
Yet now they had united as one.
They were even standing up to him over a Chunin.
"You don't seem very popular."
Orochimaru looked at Danzo with a smile.
"Let's stop fighting, everyone! The village's interests must come first!"
Guy appeared in a flash between Danzo and the others.
"After all, there are still many wounded who need Lady Tsunade's treatment, and Naruto and Lord Jiraiya need to rest after defeating Orochimaru!"
Might Guy.
He seemed to be the most unremarkable person there.
For years, he had never shown the full extent of his hidden strength.
But nobody wanted to see his true power—not unless they wanted to die.
As Konoha's strongest peacemaker, Guy's arrival eased the tension in Danzo's expression.
"How much longer are you going to keep this up?"
"Danzo was only taunting him. Naruto Uzumaki, you've already shown great disrespect to a Konoha advisor!"
Utatane Koharu spoke from beneath the feet of a gigantic summoned beast.
"Let's put an end to this. It's all for Konoha."
Mitokado Homura had also come specifically to mediate.
"Fine!"
Danzo was the first to back down.
But he tossed a letter toward Naruto.
"You're still too young. Come find me at Konoha Back Mountain after you've rested."
"You don't understand Konoha. You'll never understand why I matter more than you do!"
Danzo walked away slowly, leaning on his cane.
It wasn't that he didn't want to fight. He just hadn't expected so many people to take Naruto's side.
Two of the Sannin stood behind Naruto, while the third was watching the show.
Everyone else wanted either Tsunade or Jiraiya to become the Fifth Hokage.
They had all taken Tsunade's recommendation as a joke.
They hadn't expected Danzo to show not the slightest bearing of a powerful elder, going straight to taunting Naruto.
At a time like this, the only thing to do was step between them and try to smooth things over.
And so,
Danzo found that hardly anyone was on his side.
Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura hadn't expected Danzo to have no one backing him at all. That was why they had stepped in to help.
"I'll go."
Naruto held the challenge letter without even opening it.
He burned it to ashes with a single burst of flame.
Naruto jumped down from Ten-Tailed Snake's head.
He dispelled all the summoned beasts.
Many people looked at him in surprise.
He could summon the beasts of the Konoha Sannin and the Third Hokage all at once.
Just how strong was Naruto?
In a sense, he really was a successor to the Hokage.
Those familiar with the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, had also witnessed Naruto's performance at the Chunin Ninja Exams.
"He's a true genius ninja. It's just a shame he's so young."
Even Shikaku Nara felt it was a pity.
How wonderful it would be if another young and capable Hokage could rise.
"Naruto is so strong now!"
Konohamaru swallowed nervously.
"That looked like Grandpa's summoning beast. How did Naruto learn to summon it?"
After much deliberation, Konohamaru had hidden in an alley and never come out.
Ichiraku Ramen.
Iruka and Naruto sat eating ramen, having come to meet each other.
Tsunade and Jiraiya were also resting there for the time being.
Shizune had taken Kabuto away and locked him up alone, while Jiraiya had to keep watch over Orochimaru.
"Naruto! To become Hokage, you need everyone's approval. If you can't hold back just because someone taunts you, you'll face even more doubt."
Iruka watched Naruto eat, feeling that the boy was kind at heart after all.
The people of the village were unhappy with Danzo, but many things still had to be kept to themselves.
By bringing Orochimaru and Tsunade back, Naruto had certainly earned the approval of many people this time.
"Do you need everyone's approval to become Hokage?"
Naruto dug into his nineteenth bowl of ramen.
"What if everyone is wrong one day? If I'm the only one who's right, do I still need the villagers' approval?"
"Iruka-sensei, Kakashi-sensei's father, Konoha White Fang, was once approved of by many people too, wasn't he?"
"When I went to pay my respects to the Third Hokage, I saw that grave everyone had shunned."
"This fickle, false approval isn't really approval. It's just a blade used to kill."
Naruto finished his ramen in one bite.
He happily slapped the table.
"Everyone, I'm going to find Danzo!"
He didn't need fickle, false approval.
Iruka murmured to himself, then said softly, "Naruto has grown up."
"Should I follow him?"
Tsunade looked at Jiraiya, a little worried about Naruto.
"I'm responsible for watching Orochimaru. If anyone else were doing it, this guy would escape in no time! I'm counting on you!"
Jiraiya believed Naruto was stronger than Danzo now.
He was only worried that Danzo might really attack Naruto—especially with some underhanded trick!
"I'm not going anywhere. I came back with Naruto."
Orochimaru couldn't use his hands, so he had to eat ramen with his mouth, like a real snake.
"Right."
Tsunade turned her head.
Naruto had already vanished without a trace.
Konoha Back Mountain.
Danzo had been waiting there for a long time.
The guards at his side and the Root members
were all on high alert. It looked as though they had come to talk with Naruto.
But they had only one goal.
After leaving the disadvantageous situation behind and getting away from the Sannin, Danzo would face Naruto himself and take him down, just as he had attacked Shisui Uchiha.
And
Danzo had already decided which jutsu to use first.
Kotoamatsukami!
If he had to control someone, Naruto was undoubtedly the best choice in Konoha right now.
From then on, Danzo would have a powerful fighter at his side when he took the Hokage Position!
And the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki would be completely loyal to Danzo after Kotoamatsukami changed his mind!
"You're just a brat. What makes you think you can act so brazenly in front of me?"
"There were too many people around just now. Now I'm going to make Naruto Uzumaki kneel and beg me!"
Danzo spoke in a gloomy voice.
"Danzo! I've come as promised!"
The same afternoon, the same setting sun.
Naruto stood alone opposite Danzo.
He was even younger than Shisui had been.
Young people were always too naive. They didn't understand schemes and manipulation.
"I only want to talk with you about how to pass the test and become the Hokage everyone approves of."
Danzo used his unbandaged hand to remove the covering over his eye.
A Mangekyō Sharingan was revealed.
Then came the ultimate genjutsu.
"Kotoamatsukami!"
"Fool! Obey my every command and help me become Hokage!"
Danzo's expression twisted with excitement.
He'd succeeded!
His jutsu had worked perfectly!
He had thought Naruto Uzumaki was a useless brat with no value to exploit.
He'd never imagined Naruto would one day become his greatest weapon!
"Naruto Uzumaki! Get on your knees! From now on, you have only one purpose: obey my orders!"
Danzo burst into laughter, utterly overcome with triumph.
Naruto still stood opposite him, undergoing the complete change brought on by Kotoamatsukami.
Whoosh!
His eye stung.
It felt like something had grabbed it, but it had happened far too fast.
"My eye!"
Danzo screamed hysterically.
Naruto held Shisui's Mangekyō Sharingan in one hand.
He walked toward the other Naruto, who was standing in front of Danzo.
"What did you do, you bastard?! How dare you attack me! Give me back my eye!"
Danzo flew into a rage.
Shisui Uchiha's eye was the strongest eye he could use to become Hokage.
He absolutely couldn't lose it!
"I evenly divided the chakra in my Shadow Clone Technique and combined it with the mirror image from my Water Mirror Technique. That way, your Sharingan wouldn't detect the truth, and dispelling the technique wouldn't affect my real body."
"So you hypnotized a fake me in the mirror!"
Bang!
Naruto slapped his hands together, and the Naruto standing motionless on the spot immediately burst into a cloud of water mist.
"As for this eye, it's mine now!"
Naruto grinned.
"I wonder if my superhuman constitution and massive chakra reserves will let me forcibly use Kotoamatsukami a second time?"
Whoosh!
Naruto switched one eye for the other.
The Sharingan seemed to turn, its Tomoe pitch-black and its pupil blood-red!
"Hahahaha!"
This time,
fate changed.
Shisui's defeat from years ago was replaced by Danzo's madness in this moment.
"Kotoamatsukami!"