Watching Naruto vanish into thin air, Sasuke couldn't have been more frustrated.
For some time now, he'd had a Shadow Clone tailing Naruto's clone every day—trying to learn as much as he could, hoping to find some way to unravel the mystery surrounding Naruto. He'd been sure he was doing it without anyone noticing.
And yet not only had Naruto called him out to his face… Sasuke's clone had apparently been tailed by someone else, too.
Naruto's words echoed in his mind. The Third Hokage might already be on his way to Naruto's place.
It was just after noon, right after classes. Sasuke calculated the timing and Naruto's usual routes home. Then he hastily formed a hand seal, used the Transformation Technique, and sprinted off.
In the past few months, while training, Sasuke had also been using Shadow Clones to quietly re-examine everything he thought he knew about Konoha.
Even ignoring secrets he couldn't access, just studying the village's history left him more confused the more he learned—too many things simply didn't add up.
Especially now. Sasuke was sure that if the Third Hokage discovered his clone truly had followed Naruto all the way home, the outcome would be very bad.
Ever since he confirmed that even outsiders could transplant the Sharingan, he'd been deeply wary of the village. So much time had passed, and yet none of Konoha's leadership had shown any intention of telling him what happened to the bodies of his clan—where they were taken, who handled them, what became of them.
The thought made Sasuke's skin crawl.
He kept Naruto's warning firmly in mind: unless absolutely forced to, he would never reveal that he had already awakened the Sharingan.
Before long, he reached an intersection where several roads branched off. Choosing a narrow side path, he ran a bit farther before stopping. Panting, he surveyed his surroundings.
All the other roads led toward the village center. Only this thin path cut abruptly in a different direction—and it was too remote. The road was bare, with no buildings on either side.
He hadn't stood there long when a head of eye-catching blond hair entered his view.
Sasuke immediately strode forward. As he passed Naruto's clone shoulder to shoulder, he saw a clearly amused expression flicker across the clone's face.
"Damn it…"
A flash of humiliation crossed Sasuke's eyes. He kept walking.
A short while later, Sasuke circled back to the original intersection—just in time to see his clone approaching at an unhurried pace.
He was about to signal it with a hand gesture when, not far behind the clone, a pink figure suddenly appeared—forcing Sasuke to stop.
Sasuke's face darkened.
His clone was unbelievably careless—to have been tailed this far by Sakura Haruno, a girl, without noticing.
…No. It wasn't just his clone. It meant he was still too weak.
Thinking of the expression on Naruto's clone earlier, Sasuke silently swore this would never happen again.
He stepped out, flashed a quick hand sign toward his clone, then—expression blank—walked onto one of the other roads branching from the intersection.
The clone's gaze sharpened. It immediately followed.
Back at Naruto's home, he had only just set lunch on the table when the Third Hokage arrived, right on schedule.
Today was the day Naruto received his monthly living stipend.
"Naruto, this is this month's allowance. Try not to waste it," the Third Hokage said with a genial smile, producing an envelope and setting it on the table.
"Thank you, Hokage-sama!"
After thanking him, Naruto casually opened the drawer beneath the table and slipped the envelope inside.
"Hm…" The Third Hokage fell silent for a moment, then suddenly asked, "Naruto… do you want to know about your origins?"
Naruto's heart tightened—but his face showed pain instead.
"When you taught me to read, you told me… a long time ago, the village was attacked by the Nine-Tails." Naruto's voice grew softer. "My parents—like many others—died in that disaster."
A glint passed through the Third Hokage's eyes. Naruto remembered it clearly: he had said those exact words before.
But the Hokage pressed on. "Don't you want to know who your parents were? What kind of people they were?"
Naruto lowered his head. After a long silence, he finally said, "And what would it change? They won't come back to life."
The Third Hokage's gaze turned heavy. He nodded, then spoke gently, as if consoling him.
"Don't be sad. Remember—everyone in the village is your family."
Naruto looked up, hope shining in his eyes. "Thank you, Hokage-sama. I'll remember."
A kindly smile spread across the Third Hokage's face. "Eat up. Iruka told me you've been doing well lately—but you still need to work harder."
Mount Myōboku.
At the same time the Third Hokage delivered Naruto's stipend, Fukasaku hopped into the great hall where the Great Toad Sage slept. After glancing up at the massive figure enthroned above, he slapped a palm to the ground.
Poof!
Smoke billowed, and Jiraiya appeared.
Fukasaku bounced up onto the stone platform beside the Great Toad Sage's body and shouted, "Great Elder! I've summoned Jiraiya!"
The Great Toad Sage's eyes opened a sliver. "Ah… Jiraiya has arrived, has he?"
"Yes." Jiraiya walked several steps forward to stand below the stone dais. His expression was grave. "Great Toad Sage… has a new prophecy been revealed?"
The Great Toad Sage lifted his lids a fraction more. "Jiraiya… Priestess Shion has already told you the prophecy concerning your own fate. Why do you still insist on going to the Land of Rain?"
Jiraiya's face dimmed. "I know. But I need to confirm it with my own eyes. I need to know what my students went through… why they became what they are."
The Great Toad Sage's eyelids drooped again, offering no reply. After a moment, his voice came slow and deep.
"The seal you reinforced around the Dragon Vein has been broken again—by Mukade. If you do not stop him, the future of the shinobi world will fall completely into ruin."
Jiraiya frowned.
When he first arrived at Lōran, he'd noticed this Mukade researching the seal around the Dragon Vein. But Mukade acted in shadows—and was cowardly to the extreme. He never showed his true body. Every confrontation was with puppets.
Because of Konoha's alliance with Sunagakure, Jiraiya couldn't make too conspicuous a move. And the ancient kingdom of Lōran was already destroyed—now merely ruins within the Land of Wind—so exposing his identity would be even more dangerous.
"I'll go reset the seal immediately!"
"Wait."
Jiraiya paused, about to release the Reverse Summoning Technique, and stiffened. "Great Toad Sage… do you have further instructions?"
The Great Toad Sage opened his eyes again.
"You must never go to the Land of Rain in this lifetime. The answer to your doubts about those three students can be found in Konoha."
"But before that… you must stop Mukade from breaking the Dragon Vein's seal."
"What?!" Jiraiya's pupils shrank.
Between Tsunade's assignment and Shion's prophecy, he'd spent over three months gathering intelligence on Akatsuki.
Now, hearing that the answer he sought was in Konoha… an ominous feeling surged in his chest.
Naruto's home, Konoha.
Naruto's real body sat shirtless on a stool. A Shadow Clone in front of him spread its hand—five fingers each igniting with chakra flames of different natures: Wind, Fire, Water, Earth, and Lightning.
"Five Elements Unsealing! Release!"
Poof!
The clone disappeared.
Inside the sealed space, Kurama's voice immediately sounded. "Sealing and unsealing like this all the time… what a pain."
Naruto smiled faintly. "Can't be helped. It's all for what comes later. Did you see that? The Third Hokage came probing again today—trying to see whether I'm still obsessed with the truth of my past."
"Hmph." Kurama's tail swished. "Humans really are complicated creatures."
(End of Chapter)
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