A secluded spot in Konoha.
It was an underground building. Cries of agony rang out from its dark, damp rooms now and then.
Root was the darkest place in Konoha, a powerful faction under Shimura Danzō's command. Those who joined Root all possessed some kind of special ability.
In a silent room, Danzō, his head wrapped in white bandages, wore a gloomy expression. The fury in his eyes seemed almost tangible.
"Hiruzen, one day I'll prove you wrong," Danzō muttered.
"Someone come here," he called softly.
A man wearing a cat mask emerged from the shadows and knelt on one knee. "Lord Danzō," he said respectfully.
"Put our recruitment of Uzumaki Naraku on hold for now. Continue monitoring the Jinchuriki, Naruto Uzumaki. As for Kushina Uzumaki..."
Danzō paused, remembering that he also had to deal with the Uchiha Clan. "Forget it. She's a cripple. Pull back the people monitoring Kushina Uzumaki for now."
"Yes." Though puzzled, the man knew that Root members never needed a reason to carry out their missions. Whatever Danzō said went. With that, he vanished in a flash.
Even someone from the Uzumaki Clan couldn't survive having their Jinchuriki extracted, could they? Danzō thought to himself.
He might not have known that the Nine-Tails had been sealed in two separate halves.
The next day,
Naraku got up early as usual. After an hour of morning training, he headed to Kushina's hospital room.
Shizune was tending to Kushina, providing her with some daily care. Though Kushina was still unconscious, her body needed nourishment, so she was given a special nutritional solution each day to meet her basic needs.
Naraku had been there for a while and was just about to leave when a familiar figure arrived.
She had long black hair and a gentle smile. It was Uchiha Mikoto.
A small figure stood behind her, with black hair and two deep creases on his face that made him look far more mature than other children his age.
Uchiha Itachi, a man who had truly inherited the Will of Fire.
He was holding a baby only a few months old. Naraku knew without asking that it had to be Sasuke.
"Big Sis Mikoto," Naraku greeted her as he stood. Because of Kushina, he knew Mikoto fairly well. She and Kushina were close friends.
"Naraku." Mikoto smiled gently, then turned to look at Kushina in the room, worry filling her eyes.
"She still hasn't woken up?"
She had wanted to visit Kushina much earlier, but Sasuke had only recently been born and still needed care. On top of that, there had been changes within the clan, so she had put off her visit until now.
Suddenly, Naraku seemed to sense something and whipped around. A figure dressed as an Anbu had arrived.
The moment she saw the newcomer, Mikoto's expression changed. After exchanging a quick greeting with Naraku, she left with Itachi and Sasuke.
After she was gone, the Anbu member disappeared as well.
They've already started targeting the Uchiha? Naraku thought as he watched Mikoto and Itachi walk away.
The Nine-Tails' rampage hadn't caused much damage to Konoha this time, since Jiraiya had been there. The greatest loss had been Minato's death.
But with the Fourth Hokage's sudden passing, Konoha's leaders had grown suspicious of the Uchiha Clan. Several of the elder councilors, led by Danzō, had made their suspicions especially clear.
Politics was complicated.
"Uchiha Itachi. I'll have to make an effort to get to know him."
Naraku was very interested in this genius who was the same age as him.
Naraku left too. He wasn't worried about Kushina's safety. The Anbu's appearance just now proved that the Third Hokage must already know something.
After leaving the hospital, Naraku headed to a forest in the village to begin training.
"Shadow Clone Technique," Naraku said, forming Hand Seals.
Poof! Poof!
Two clouds of white smoke appeared, and when they cleared, two identical versions of him stood in their place.
At Naraku's direction, the two Shadow Clones went off to practice throwing Shuriken and performing various Ninjutsu.
As a member of the Uzumaki Clan, he had an immense amount of chakra. He could even use the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique now, but there wasn't much point. He was only five, after all, and overtraining would hinder his growth.
Soon, the two clones began their training, while Naraku strolled over to the river.
The clear water reflected a small figure. Naraku closed his eyes.
"Sharingan."
The next moment, his sharp eyes snapped open, revealing a pair of crimson irises, each with a black Tomoe.
As soon as he activated the Sharingan, Naraku could clearly feel how much his eyesight had changed. He could observe everything within his field of vision in far greater detail.
At the same time, he felt his chakra slowly decreasing. The amount wasn't large, but he was definitely using some.
Naraku closed his eyes and deactivated the Sharingan.
He knew the Sharingan well. It was one of the most powerful Dōjutsu in Naruto. Once the Sharingan evolved into the Mangekyō Sharingan, its wielder's power would undergo a qualitative transformation.
Of course, Naraku also knew that while the Mangekyō Sharingan granted its wielder immense power, it had one fatal flaw: the user's eyesight deteriorated.
That was the so-called Kekkei Genkai disease.
In the original story, Itachi had ruined his body completely by using the Mangekyō Sharingan too often.
Naraku had a plan for dealing with that, but it was still a long way off. He only had a One-Tomoe Sharingan right now, and the Mangekyō was far beyond his reach.
Poof!
A cloud of white smoke appeared, and a scroll materialized in Naraku's hand. It was covered in dense writing describing many unfamiliar techniques. Kushina had left it to him.
Besides detailing the various Sealing Jutsu of the Uzumaki Clan, it also contained instructions for learning Adamantine Sealing Chains and the Mind's Eye of the Kagura.
The power of Adamantine Sealing Chains spoke for itself. Kushina had relied on that technique to suppress the Nine-Tails.
Then there was the Mind's Eye of the Kagura, a Sensory Ninjutsu unique to the Uzumaki Clan. Its remarkable sensory abilities allowed the user to detect chakra fluctuations within a ten-mile radius and even determine the number of enemies and the direction they were moving.
When in danger, the user could also conceal their own chakra to create a chance to escape.
Naraku wasn't about to pass up these two powerful techniques.
For now, Naraku had chosen three paths for his development: Sealing Jutsu, Ninjutsu, and the Sharingan. As for Taijutsu, he was still too young to consider training in it. He would stick to basic exercises for now.