When Naruto finished his ramen and returned home, it wasn’t even seven yet.
He planned to take a shower and then go to sleep.
The daily check-in wouldn’t refresh until after midnight, so there was no need for Naruto to hurry over to see the Nine-Tails.
But just as he was about to open the door—
“Hm?”
Naruto frowned.
Something was wrong.
There seemed to be someone inside.
The intruder had concealed their presence extremely well, but Naruto could still sense them.
His hand stopped in midair.
“Who could it be?”
It definitely wasn’t some petty thief.
The other party was clearly a ninja.
It wasn’t the ANBU either.
If an ANBU member deliberately concealed themselves, Naruto probably wouldn’t be able to detect anything at all.
The reason he had been able to sense them before was largely because the ANBU hadn’t taken him seriously.
Why would they need to conceal their presence with absolute concentration when they were monitoring a six-year-old kid?
Otherwise…
Forget his current Chunin Template.
Even if he had reached the Jonin Template, he might not necessarily be able to detect these ANBU who specialized in moving through the shadows.
The person inside wasn’t ANBU.
Then who could it be?
“The Uchiha?”
Naruto frowned even more, but quickly dismissed the thought.
The Uchiha Clan had indeed once planned to capture him and release the Nine-Tails to fight against Konoha.
But Uchiha Fugaku, the clan leader himself, had suppressed that plan.
Before his death, the man had chosen to sacrifice himself for his sons and abandon the clan.
So whoever had come here couldn’t be an Uchiha.
Besides, the Uchiha wouldn’t hide inside his house and wait for him like this.
That would be way too sneaky.
“If it’s Konohamaru… he should still just be a little seedling.”
Naruto raised an eyebrow.
Then there was nothing to worry about.
Could it be a ninja from another village?
Unless he had been watching a fake version of the anime, that was impossible.
At the same time, Naruto once again felt that intangible gaze land on him.
Only for an instant.
But there was no doubt about it.
The Third Hokage was watching him again.
“The person inside isn’t ANBU, but they definitely have something to do with the Third Hokage.”
Things were getting strange.
Naruto simply pretended not to notice anything and opened the door.
He would find out soon enough.
But the moment the door opened—
“Leaf Hurricane!”
A figure with a bowl-shaped haircut suddenly appeared and shouted.
Then a massive size-43 foot shot straight toward Naruto’s face!
Naruto’s dead-fish eyes didn’t change in the slightest.
He simply looked at the uninvited guest inside his house as if he were looking at an idiot.
“Huh?
He didn’t even flinch?”
The bowl-haired man stood on one leg and scratched his head, looking rather confused.
He had spent the entire afternoon preparing his opening move.
Why hadn’t it had any effect?
“…Hello.”
Naruto was speechless.
He knew the person in front of him.
He was also very familiar with him.
Might Guy.
The representative of Konoha’s Strong Fist style.
A peak taijutsu specialist.
A man who would nearly kick his way into the finale of the entire story later on.
There was no need to worry about why he had appeared in his house for now.
Naruto only wanted to get this strange guy out of here…
“Y-You… hello…”
Guy withdrew his enormous foot and looked at Naruto’s completely calm expression, feeling somewhat awkward.
“The door is over there.
I’m going to sleep.
Make yourself at home.”
“Uh, okay… Sorry to bother you.”
Guy silently walked out of the room.
As Naruto closed the door, he could still see Guy giving him a ninety-degree bow.
“What a strange guy…”
Naruto sat down in his chair.
He could sense that Guy hadn’t left.
He closed his eyes and carefully sensed his surroundings.
That mysterious gaze was still appearing and disappearing intermittently.
The Third Hokage was still spying on him.
Then there was no doubt about it…
The guy outside had been sent by the Third Hokage.
So how was Naruto supposed to act now?
Should he panic and look frightened?
Or grab a weapon and pretend to be on guard?
Forget it…
There was no point showing off in front of an old master of acting.
His expressionless face simply wasn’t suited for acting.
“Ding!
Successful act of slacking.”
“Salted-Fish Treasury income: 30 Lazing Points.”
Naruto took a sip of water, kicked off his shoes, and flopped straight onto the bed.
He could roughly guess why Might Guy had appeared.
It probably had something to do with him beating Sasuke.
But he genuinely couldn’t figure out why it was Guy.
Shouldn’t it have been Kakashi?
Oh, right.
Kakashi was still the elite killer of the ANBU at this point.
Cold and ruthless, feared by enemies, and apparently respected—or perhaps feared—even by his comrades.
“Oh… I see.”
Naruto raised an eyebrow.
He more or less understood the Third Hokage’s objective now.
That old man seemed to be trying to bring back the Naruto he remembered from the past.
…
“Third Hokage-sama, this…”
“I told you before.
This child is not simple, Kakashi.”
Inside the Hokage’s office, the Third Hokage and Kakashi stood around the crystal ball.
The image within it showed Naruto already lying on his bed.
Then the scene changed.
Might Guy was standing outside.
“This guy…”
The corner of Kakashi’s eye twitched.
He knew that posture all too well.
Guy was preparing to stand there until dawn.
“Don’t worry, Kakashi.”
The Third Hokage took a puff of his pipe, seemingly seeing straight through Kakashi’s thoughts.
“Although Guy can be somewhat… single-minded at times, his enthusiasm is quite infectious.”
“Naruto should be able to feel it soon enough.”
Kakashi sighed.
The teacher’s child…
His heart was filled with complicated emotions.
Ever since those two had died in battle, he had never seen their child.
But today, after finally meeting him…
This was a clever child.
He had inherited his teacher’s calmness and intelligence completely.
He had probably noticed Guy’s belt.
Or perhaps he had identified Guy as a Konoha ninja from his strange shout.
Either way, his composure was remarkable.
After everything that had happened, he could still calmly go to sleep.
An ordinary six-year-old kid would probably have been scared senseless on the spot.
At that moment, the crystal ball’s image shifted back to Naruto.
The shabby furniture.
The simple little house.
A trace of guilt flashed through Kakashi’s eyes.
Although he knew the Third Hokage must have had his reasons for arranging things this way…
Still…
“Don’t think too much about it, Kakashi.”
The Third Hokage spoke again in an unhurried voice.
“I understand how you feel.
Indeed, from my perspective, you would be the most suitable person to guide this child.”
“But, Kakashi…”
The Third Hokage shut off the crystal ball and looked toward Kakashi.
His seemingly cloudy eyes carried a probing gaze.
“Do you really think that you’re ready now?”