You Go Do The Plot, I'll Use The Scroll of Sealing

"I'll tell you the truth," Mizuki said with a smile. "There's a rule that says Naruto can never be allowed to know this. The truth is, Naruto, you are the demon fox that attacked the village twelve years ago. In other words, you're the murderer who killed Iruka's parents!"

"No one will ever acknowledge you. Even Iruka hates you!" Mizuki suddenly raised his voice, the sound like an ice spike dipped in poison, stabbing viciously into Naruto's heart.

When Naruto heard Mizuki's words, it was as if he had been struck by lightning. All the blood in his body seemed to freeze in an instant.

He widened his eyes in disbelief, his azure pupils filled with terror and confusion. His lips trembled, but he could not say a single word.

"De... demon fox?"

He murmured to himself, his voice as thin as a thread, as if those three words weighed a thousand pounds.

Just then, Mizuki swung the giant shuriken and hurled it straight at Naruto. Seeing this, Iruka rushed forward and blocked the blow for Naruto.

"How laughable," Mizuki sneered on. "Iruka has always hated you for killing his parents! The only reason he treated you well was to take back the scroll in your hands!"

At that moment, Naruto no longer trusted anyone. Just as he was about to run, Duanmu's figure appeared like a ghost on a nearby tree. "Naruto! Give that scroll to me first, then run!"

Duanmu's earlier efforts to get on good terms with Naruto took effect. Naruto barely thought before throwing the scroll to Duanmu, and the moment Duanmu got it, he used the Body Flicker Technique to leave.

Mizuki watched Duanmu's figure vanish into the night, his face twisting with rage. He had never expected someone like this to barge in halfway through.

His originally perfect plan had been disrupted, and the Scroll of Sealing that was already within reach had flown away just like that. How could he not be furious?

"Damn it! That damn brat!" Mizuki gnashed his teeth, his eyes filled with resentment and unwillingness. He knew Duanmu was extremely fast. Once he let him get far away with the scroll, trying to retrieve it would be harder than climbing to the heavens.

"Forget the scroll! Deal with them first!" Mizuki abruptly shifted his target to Iruka and Naruto. Since he could not get the forbidden techniques, then at the very least, he had to get rid of these two nuisances.

Naruto was terrified now. He turned and ran off, leaving only Iruka behind to face Mizuki.

After obtaining the Scroll of Sealing, Duanmu arrived at a hidden place and immediately opened it to study. He knew he only had a very short window of time.

The first thing he prioritized finding was the Flying Raijin Technique...

On the other side, Mizuki and Iruka began a fierce battle.

The two were evenly matched in skill, but Mizuki clearly had more combat experience, and with resentment long pent up in his heart, his attacks were vicious, every move aimed straight for vital points.

.Though Iruka fought with all his might, he gradually fell into a disadvantage. Several wounds soon appeared on his body, blood soaking through his ninja uniform.

"Iruka, a piece of trash like you who can't even teach genin properly dares to get in my way?" Mizuki grinned viciously. The kunai in his hand sliced through the air, bringing a cold flash as it stabbed straight at Iruka's throat.

A trace of resolve flashed through Iruka's eyes. He knew he could not fall, at least not before stopping Mizuki from hurting Naruto, who had fled.

He forcibly drew up the remaining chakra inside him. "I won't let you hurt Naruto in any way!"

Iruka roared, using his arm to forcefully brace against Mizuki's kunai. Metal scraped against metal with an ear-piercing sound.

At this moment, Iruka thought Duanmu had already taken the scroll to Hiruzen Sarutobi, so he had to buy Naruto enough time and wait for support from the Third Hokage and the other ninja.

However, he did not know that Duanmu was currently using this precious time to greedily absorb the knowledge within the Scroll of Sealing.

Duanmu's fingers slid rapidly across the scroll, his gaze burning as he imprinted one complex technique formula after another into his mind. The exquisite coordinate formula of the Flying Raijin Technique, the energy compression principles of the Rasengan, and many powerful forbidden techniques he had never heard of before all made his heart surge.

As he memorized them, he quickly used the special paper, brush, and ink he carried with him to copy down the key principles of the techniques and the methods of forming their hand signs.

He knew he had to return this scroll. Keeping it in his hands was far too dangerous. But this knowledge would become an important asset for him to establish himself in the ninja world in the future.

Meanwhile, Naruto was hiding behind a tree, secretly listening to Iruka and Mizuki argue.

It was also at this moment that Iruka said that classic line:

"Naruto is different. He is an excellent student whom I acknowledge. He works hard, he stays focused. He isn't some demon fox. He is Uzumaki Naruto of Konoha Village!"

Hearing this, Naruto, hidden behind the tree, was already streaming with tears. Mizuki no longer wanted to argue with Iruka either. Instead, he took the giant shuriken from his back and charged at Iruka.

"Iruka! You're dying here today!"

Iruka saw Mizuki charging over, and with almost no strength left, he could only barely lift his kunai, preparing to meet this fatal blow.

At this critical instant, a figure shot out from behind the tree like an arrow leaving the string and stood in front of Iruka.

"You're not allowed to hurt Teacher Iruka!"

It was Naruto! Tear tracks still hung wet on his face, but his eyes burned with a determination he had never shown before. He spread his arms, shielding the weakened Iruka behind him, his small body looking especially stubborn beneath the moonlight.

Seeing this, Mizuki revealed a cruel smile. "Oh? Come to die? Fine. I'll start with you, demon fox brat!" The giant shuriken in his hand howled through the wind as he chopped viciously down toward Naruto's chest.

"Naruto, dodge!" Iruka's eyes nearly split with rage.

"Multi Shadow Clone Technique!" Naruto quickly formed hand signs, summoning a massive number of shadow clones.

In an instant, it was as if over a hundred Narutos had appeared in the forest.

Mizuki and Iruka recognized at a glance that this was the ninjutsu from the Scroll of Sealing!

Mizuki was so frightened by this move that he collapsed to the ground. He could never have imagined that this brat, who could barely maintain the Clone Technique for a few seconds, could actually use such a high-level forbidden technique!

Over a hundred shadow clones surrounded him completely. Every clone wore the same anger and determination as the original, and the surging chakra fluctuations made his heart pound in terror.

"Th... this is impossible!" Mizuki screamed, his voice cracking. The giant shuriken in his hand nearly slipped from his grip.

Iruka was also shocked, but even more than that, he felt gratified and excited. He

looked at Naruto, surrounded by shadow clones in the center, that child who had always longed to be noticed and acknowledged, now protecting him and Konoha in his own way. "Naruto... you..."

"Go!" At Naruto's command, over a hundred shadow clones surged toward Mizuki like a tide. Though they were only clones, far weaker than the original, they had the advantage in numbers and coordinated flawlessly. Some swung their fists, some kicked fiercely, and others picked up stones and branches from the ground to use as weapons.

Mizuki instantly sank into the vast ocean of a "people's war." He was hard-pressed from every side, exhausted and overwhelmed, and soon took countless punches and kicks all over his body. He wanted to form hand signs and counterattack, but he could not find the chance at all. The shadow clones clung to him like maggots on bone, leaving him unable to move.

"Damn it! You damned brat!" Mizuki had been beaten black and blue, a total wreck. He roared in fury, but under the Shadow Clone Technique's assault, all he could do was keep retreating.

"This is... my power!" Naruto stood where he was, feeling the chakra surging through his body, feeling the strange connection between himself and his shadow clones, and a confident smile unlike any he had ever worn spread across his face. He was no longer the dead last who couldn't even learn the Clone Technique, no longer the lonely kid who could only sit in a corner and quietly envy others. In his own way, he had proven himself!

In the end, beneath the overwhelming rain of fists and sweeping legs, Mizuki let out a scream and lost consciousness completely, collapsing to the ground, out cold.

After it was over, Naruto looked at Iruka. "Iruka-sensei, are you okay?"

"Yeah," Iruka nodded. "Naruto, come here for a moment."

Naruto walked forward, a little confused, not knowing what Iruka-sensei was going to do.

Iruka bent down and gently brushed the dust and bits of grass from Naruto's face, his movements as tender as if he were handling a priceless treasure.

Then he took off his own forehead protector and solemnly held it out in front of Naruto.

"Naruto, you passed. From today on, you're a full-fledged ninja." Iruka's voice was a little hoarse, but it was filled with absolute certainty and relief. His eyes were faintly red, glistening with tears of excitement and joy.

Naruto stared blankly at the forehead protector before him. It was the thing he had dreamed of, the symbol of being a ninja.

"Sensei..." Naruto choked out, a thousand words clogging his throat, until in the end they became only those two.

Iruka smiled and gently patted Naruto on the shoulder. "Hurry up and put it on. This is your honor."

Naruto nodded hard, then clumsily yet with utter seriousness tied the forehead protector around his forehead. The moment the metal plate touched his skin, it was as if an invisible power had flowed into his body.

He raised his head, meeting Iruka's encouraging gaze, and a brilliantly radiant smile bloomed across his face.