"Boss, please, just say yes already! I'm begging you! Look, I've already had three cups of coffee..."
Naruto slumped over the counter, his consciousness hazy from the caffeine rush, yet he still didn't forget why he had come.
Seeing this, Kuroda didn't know what to say. After all, this was the first customer who had ever appreciated his coffee this much.
"Naruto, wake up."
Kuroda lightly knocked Naruto on the head. Naruto jolted upright instantly, regaining full awareness.
"Boss, you agreed? I heard you!" Naruto's face lit up with excitement, his energy surging as if he'd been injected with pure adrenaline.
"I told you already, my name's Kuroda... ah, forget it." Kuroda sighed. "So, how many people are in your organization right now?"
"One!" Naruto proudly raised a single finger.
"So basically, it's just you? At this rate, you won't even be able to play the organization modes."
"Huh? Organization modes?"
"Things like Territories and Fortresses... anyway, that's not something you should worry about right now." Kuroda waved his hand dismissively. "What about the rest of Team 7? Aren't they joining your organization?"
"They're not in a hurry. I've already decided to include them. But even with them, I still need six more members." Naruto groaned at the thought. "But if you join that makes five!"
Naruto's eyes sparkled with determination, but Kuroda wasn't buying it at all.
"Start by telling me who the other five are supposed to be."
"Old man Hokage counts as one, and then... and then..." Naruto trailed off, unable to continue.
Seeing Kuroda about to show him the door, Naruto clenched his teeth, deciding to go all in.
"And also Zabuza and Haku!"
At that, Kuroda was left speechless.
Including the Third Hokage was already ridiculous enough—but those two? They weren't even remotely connected!
"So how exactly are you planning to convince them to join your organization?" Kuroda said flatly.
"Ah, that's easy! They definitely know who I am! All I have to do is ask them to leave the Land of Waves and come to Konoha!" Naruto slapped the table eagerly.
Kuroda rolled his eyes. The way he said that—it was like Naruto thought he was the leader of Konoha itself, that he could just summon anyone he wanted into the village.
Wait a second. He wasn't the leader, but he was the legitimate heir of Konoha, the village's golden boy.
Even the First Hokage could only call himself Naruto's predecessor!
"Alright, fine," Kuroda rubbed his forehead, "even if you could somehow convince them to travel halfway across the world to a strange village, who would fill the other slots?"
Now Naruto was really stumped. Even counting on his fingers didn't help—he couldn't squeeze out four more names.
Of course, he thought of Shikamaru and Choji.
But there was a problem: Kiba and Shino were clan heirs, and so were Shikamaru and Choji.
Even if they wanted to join, could they really defy their clans for Naruto's personal organization?
In the end, it really was just Team 7.
"Guess this unwanted organization should just be disbanded..." Naruto's face fell in defeat.
"Don't give up so soon, Naruto."
Kuroda suddenly smiled and pointed toward the door.
"Haven't you ever heard the saying?"
...
"'When you look back suddenly, that person is right behind your butt?'"
Muttering the strange phrase, Naruto left Cube Internet Café—only to stop dead at the sight before him.
The streets of Konoha were always smooth and well-paved, a testament to the road builders' fine craftsmanship.
But right there in front of him sat a single, oddly placed red brick tile—utterly motionless.
Naruto felt a bead of sweat roll down his temple. Were they... pretending to be part of the ground? But...
"No disguise would ever be this obvious!"
Bang!
As soon as he said that, the red brick exploded, and several agile figures burst out of the smoke.
"Konohamaru!"
"Moegi!"
"Udon!"
"KONOHAMARU CORPS, ASSEMBLE!!!"
Staring at the three pint-sized kids striking their dramatic poses, Naruto suddenly understood how the villagers must have felt watching him cause mischief back in the day.
Back then... did they look at him the same way he was looking at these brats now?
"No wonder you're the guy I admire! You saw through our brilliant disguise in an instant! You're amazing, Naruto!" said the one in front with a wide grin.
Naruto blinked.
Looking closer, he realized he actually knew this kid—he'd appeared back in the very first chapter, even before Kakashi-sensei!
"Sarutobi Konohamaru? The Third's grandson?"
"Argh! Is that the only thing you remember about me? We're rivals for the Hokage title!"
Konohamaru protested indignantly.
Wait—did this kid really mix up the in-game story with reality?
Although, Naruto wasn't exactly one to talk.
"So what do you guys want? And what's with the goggles?" Naruto asked helplessly.
"We're learning from our boss!" Moegi said earnestly.
"That's right, that's right!" Udon adjusted his goggles proudly.
"Naruto, judging by your troubled face... you're having a hard time finding members, huh?"
Konohamaru teased.
"What?!" Naruto's eyes widened.
"Don't ask me how I know! I'm your eternal rival!" Konohamaru shouted.
Wait, what...
Naruto scratched his cheek awkwardly, feeling like he was hallucinating. But more than that, another thought came to mind.
"You guys... don't tell me you want to join my organization?"
"Correct!!!"
The Konohamaru Corps shouted in unison.
"No way!" Naruto crossed his arms firmly. "My organization only accepts strong players. You guys haven't even grad—graduated yet."
He stuttered as three smartphones appeared before him. On the screens were their ranks from the Duel Arena:
Genin II! Genin I! Genin I!
"Wait, what? Those are your ranks?! You're all Genin already?!" Naruto was completely dumbfounded.
What kind of joke was this? His own rank was barely Genin II—he'd been planning to study how to reach Chunin next!
"That's right. Sadly, we're not as good as Konohamaru, so we're only Genin I," Moegi said regretfully.
"Yeah, yeah, but Naruto must be way stronger, right?" Udon asked with admiration.
"See? They believe in your strength!" Konohamaru's eyes shone with anticipation.
"Ahahahaha..." Naruto gave an awkward laugh. "Of course! Well... since you're all so sincere, let's add each other as friends, and I'll invite you into the organization."
"Yay!!!" The three of them cheered with pure excitement.
["Invincible Hokage" invites Invincible Konoha Kage, Super Konoha Kage, and Strongest Konoha Kage to join the organization — Uzumaki Naruto]
[Ding~ Successfully joined] x3
"Awesome! From now on, we'll carry the honor and strength of this organization alongside Naruto!"
Konohamaru waved his tiny hand grandly.
"Come on, everyone! Ramen's on me!"
Moegi and Udon clapped and cheered enthusiastically, making Naruto break out in a cold sweat.
Hey, wait—who's the actual leader of this organization here?!
"Ramen?" Naruto suddenly froze as a thought struck him.
"Right! How could I forget about Teuchi-san and Ayame-san?!"
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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