"Heh heh~"
Danzo only gave a slight chuckle, then leaned on his cane and walked off down the corridor.
"Trying to act like some reclusive sage—but you just don't have the presence for it."
Naruto's eyes followed Danzo's retreating figure, but his mind was more focused on the alert flashing before him.
"System Update in Progress..."
"Spatial Module Upgrade Initiated!"
"Authority Allocation Upgrade Initiated!"
"Synchronization Function Upgrade Imminent!"
"Soul Harvest Function Unlocked!"
"Puppet Reanimation Function Coming Soon!"
"Update Details as Follows—"
"Current Data Completion: 95%"
"Authority Upgrade: Uzumaki Naruto — Level 5: Lord of the World!"
Naruto's heart stirred. Just from Danzo alone, he was only 5% short of becoming a Level 6 World Lord.
Was this what you'd call… doing good without leaving your name?
Still, why did the new permissions only unlock Soul Harvest at Level 5? And what about all those other upgrades—what did they really mean?
"No time to dive into the patch notes right now. I still have to get through this little act with the Third Hokage. Just stick to the plan I came up with before coming here."
Thoughts flashed like lightning through his mind. Naruto adjusted his expression slightly and reached for the office door—only for the voices of the Tailed Beasts to ring out in his seal.
"Naruto! We've been forcibly ejected!"
"We can't get back in!"
"And the upgrade timer says twenty-four hours!"
Without stopping his movement, Naruto's consciousness briefly reached into the seal space.
Kurama immediately swept its tail around, blocking both Isobu and Matatabi from view.
"Lord Hokage!"
Naruto stepped into the office and quickly bowed in front of the Third's desk.
"Hm? Naruto, you seem in quite a rush. Weren't you just standing at the—huh?"
The Third trailed off in surprise as Naruto suddenly turned around and walked back to the door… then gently closed it behind him.
What's he doing now?
Puzzled, the Hokage watched as Naruto turned back around, a serious expression on his face, and once again walked up and bowed.
The Third chuckled. "Naruto, what's all this about?"
Naruto looked up, clearly a bit annoyed. "Lord Hokage, Kakashi-senpai is playing favorites!"
"Oh?"
The Third raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean by that? How exactly is he being unfair?"
Naruto let out a long sigh. "Kakashi-senpai gives private lessons to Sasuke and Sakura. He's already taught them lots of jutsu. I finally mastered walking on water and went to ask for a new technique, but he told me he still hasn't prepared anything for me!"
"Up until now, the only jutsu I've learned since graduating was a D-rank Body Flicker I picked up from a teammate!"
The Third's eyes glinted. Hearing Naruto use the word 'teammate', his smile grew warmer.
"I see. So, what kind of jutsu has Kakashi been teaching them?"
Naruto's expression dimmed. "On our very first mission, Kakashi-senpai taught them the B-rank Shadow Clone Technique—the one you personally gave me. And besides Body Flicker, Sasuke already knows multiple Fire Release techniques. Sakura's learned two Water Release jutsu and even one Earth Release jutsu."
The Third chuckled gently. "So just because of that, you think Kakashi is biased? And you came to complain to me?"
"This isn't just a complaint! Everything I said is true!"
Naruto stared at the Hokage, eyes wide. "I'm starting to think Mizuki was right—Kakashi-senpai clearly has something against me! Otherwise, why is the treatment so different when we're in the same team?"
"Heh heh…"
The Third Hokage slowly shook his head. "Naruto, I think you're misunderstanding him. Kakashi handed in updated reports on each of you just a few days ago. I assure you, he doesn't have any bias against you. In fact, I know exactly why he hasn't taught you new jutsu yet."
Naruto raised a suspicious eyebrow. "Then why?"
"Have you tested your chakra nature?"
Naruto frowned. "Yeah… I only have Lightning Release. Sasuke and Sakura both have two chakra natures."
The Third nodded. "Let's ignore Sakura for now and talk about Sasuke. He has Fire and Lightning chakra, right?"
Naruto nodded again.
"So why do you think Kakashi only taught him Fire Release and not Lightning?"
Naruto paused. "Now that I think about it… Kakashi-senpai did say he hasn't prepared a suitable Lightning Release technique for me."
"Exactly."
The Hokage stepped forward and gently patted Naruto on the shoulder with a smile. "You misjudged Kakashi."
"…Yeah, I guess I did."
Naruto's face shifted into something awkward, but then he looked up hopefully.
"Then, Lord Hokage—could you train me?"
"You must have some Lightning Release jutsu I can learn!"
Cough cough.
The Third scratched his cheek. "I do have some Lightning Release techniques suitable for you…"
Naruto's face lit up.
"…But I can't teach you right now."
That joy vanished in an instant. Naruto frowned. "Why not?"
"Because you're no longer a student at the Ninja Academy. You're now a full-fledged shinobi—Kakashi's subordinate. He's your appointed jonin instructor. Unless he gives permission, no one else is allowed to oversee your training."
The Hokage returned to his seat and continued, "Even I, as Hokage, would need his approval before I can instruct you."
"These are rules everyone in the shinobi world has to follow. Do you understand?"
Moments later, Naruto exited the Hokage's office.
"Why'd you waste so much time talking to that old man?"
Kurama's tone was laced with boredom. Inside the seal, Isobu and Matatabi were still pinned under its tail.
Naruto chuckled. "If I hadn't talked so much, would the Third Hokage really believe Kakashi is that obedient?"
At the same time, the Hokage stepped over to the window, smiling.
"Hayate."
"Lord Hokage!"
Hayate Gekkō appeared just outside the balcony.
"Tell Kakashi to come see me."
"Yes, sir!"
About ten minutes later, Hayate found Kakashi by the memorial stone.
That Night – The Land of Snow, Research Facility
The sky glittered with a blanket of stars.
Inside a lab, Naruto sat before a display screen, staring intently.
BOOM!
A burst of fire appeared on the monitor, and the entire lab began to shake. When the rumbling subsided, Naruto sent a Shadow Clone via Flying Thunder God to handle the aftermath.
"Hah. As expected, Fire chakra is much easier to inject into Wind Style: Rasengan."
He turned to another monitor, which showed a vast training area filled with hundreds of Naruto clones, each holding a Rasengan.
"Didn't think Earth Release chakra would be even harder to combine with Rasengan than Wind Release…"
With that thought, Naruto stood up, transformed into another identity, and teleported to a different lab.
"You're here, my lord!"
The lab supervisor immediately stood up upon spotting him.
"Professor Ichikawa, how many Byakugan have you cloned? How long until we get a mature sample?"
Naruto approached a large cultivation tank where a worker stood on a ladder, pouring pale green nutrient solution from above.
Fwoosh—
In an instant, the once-clear liquid inside turned murky and cloudy.
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