(Give Power Stones so we can take this to top of leaderboard again)
Without a doubt, the Third Hokage—Hiruzen Sarutobi was flattering and currying favor with the white-bearded masked man—Ren.
Because for Hiruzen, even if you killed him, he still wouldn't believe Uchiha Madara was alive.
Back then, he had personally seen Madara's corpse.
So if both masked men claimed to be Madara…
Hiruzen would obviously rather praise the one who had helped Konoha suppress the Nine-Tails.
You say you're Madara? Fine. I'll call you Madara.
One simple rule:
As long as you're happy, you can say whatever you want.
At that moment, Hiruzen was already imagining how he'd "recruit" this monster and fold him into Konoha.
"Uh…"
Beside him, Namikaze Minato looked genuinely surprised.
This was the first time he'd ever heard the Third Hokage grovel so shamelessly—so shamelessly he'd point at a deer and call it Madara without blinking.
Far away, the evacuated shinobi were even worse.
They believed it.
"So that's Uchiha Madara…"
"No wonder suppressing the Nine-Tails looked like chopping vegetables."
"You…!"
Up in the air, Obito almost exploded.
This was supposed to be his night.
His "dance."
His moment to control the Nine-Tails and crush Konoha's spirit.
So why was all the spotlight stolen by the white-bearded masked freak?
Was this some kind of personal humiliation?
Then—
Ren turned his head, looked at Hiruzen with cold contempt, and spoke with open mockery.
"The way you act like a lapdog is disgusting."
Silence.
Absolute, suffocating silence.
The entire scene froze.
Every shinobi's face tightened with disbelief.
Everything about this man screamed "Konoha's side."
He'd suppressed the Nine-Tails.
He'd saved lives.
And yet—
he just publicly slapped the Third Hokage in the face and called him a lapdog.
Hiruzen's expression turned ugly.
He'd been played.
Played in front of everyone.
"Tch. Boring."
Ren didn't even spare him a second glance.
His gaze slid to the Nine-Tails, whose head was still hanging low.
"I beat you so hard your illusion got forcibly undone," Ren said flatly. "So now… go ahead. Smash Konoha however you like."
"Hmph."
The Nine-Tails glared at him, snorting through massive nostrils.
The meaning was painfully obvious:
You think I'm stupid? If I rampage, you'll just beat me down again.
I'm not falling for it.
"Move."
Ren's voice dropped into a threat.
"If you don't, I'll 'take care' of you again."
Whoosh.
Before anyone could react—
Ren vanished.
Just like that.
Gone.
Leaving behind:
a baffled Nine-Tails,
a stunned Obito,
a furious, humiliated Hiruzen,
and a crowd of shinobi whose faith had been punched full of holes.
They'd thought the white-bearded masked man was Konoha's ally.
Turns out he wasn't an ally at all.
If anything, what he'd done was more psychologically brutal than Obito's attack.
"Damn it…"
Minato's body tensed—he almost chased.
Then he stopped.
He couldn't leave.
The Nine-Tails was still here.
And so was the spiral-masked man.
"ROAAAR—!!"
The moment the Nine-Tails realized the monster who'd suppressed it was truly gone, it erupted with joy.
A terrifying wave of chakra blasted outward.
Its nine tails rose and began to whip through the air again.
"Finally…!"
"I can finally stand up!"
BOOM—!!
The Nine-Tails hauled itself out of the crater, chakra surging—and fired a Bijūdama (Tailed Beast Bomb) straight at Konoha.
"Damn it!"
Minato gritted his teeth, flicked a glance at Obito—who still didn't move—then shot forward anyway.
In the next instant, the bomb struck a specially marked Flying Thunder God kunai and vanished.
A second later—
A deafening explosion roared from outside the village.
Minato had teleported the blast away.
"Again!"
The Nine-Tails didn't care.
It was too excited, too free, too drunk on destruction.
It launched four more Bijūdama, firing them in four directions toward Konoha.
"Minato! It's on you!"
Hiruzen's face twisted as he shouted, voice loud enough for everyone to hear.
"If you don't stop a fully enraged Nine-Tails, Konoha will be destroyed! As Hokage—you should step forward!"
"I know what I have to do…"
Minato's eyes hardened.
Resolve—cold and final—settled into his gaze.
Yes.
A Hokage protects the village.
Even if it meant sacrificing his "small family" to save Konoha's "greater family."
◇ BONUS & SUPPORT ◇
◇ 1 bonus chapter for every 10 reviews — drop a comment!
◇ 1 bonus chapter for every 100 Power Stones.
◇ Read 60 chapters ahead on P@treon → patreon.com/StrawHatStudios