"Naruto, wake up. Breakfast’s ready!"
Naruto slowly opened his eyes and looked at Uchiha Izumi, who was standing beside his bed, trying to wake him.
Yes...
He had been forced into living with someone.
Sleeping in was no longer an option.
After their encounter by the Naka River, they hadn’t seen each other again for quite some time.
Naruto had originally assumed Konoha’s higher-ups had warned Izumi to stay away from him.
But to his surprise...
More than a month later, the Third Hokage personally arrived at his apartment—with Izumi, who had already become a Genin.
Under the noble excuse of "finding someone to take care of Naruto’s daily life," she was moved into his apartment.
The already cramped home now had another bed squeezed inside.
Fortunately...
Izumi didn’t spend every waking moment watching him.
She accepted D-rank missions every day to earn extra money.
She never left the village.
But every evening, she always came home.
Having someone take care of him sounded wonderful.
But...
Both Naruto and Minato felt a shadow hanging over the arrangement.
Because Hiruzen had tainted their relationship from the very beginning.
While eating breakfast, Izumi said,
"Naruto, the Hidden Cloud delegation is arriving today to sign the peace treaty with Konoha."
"I accepted a mission to help maintain order."
"I’ll probably be home late tonight."
"There’s food in the refrigerator."
"If you get hungry, cook something for yourself, okay?"
Naruto’s eyes flickered.
He looked up and nodded.
"Okay."
Putting aside the fact that Hiruzen had arranged everything...
Izumi moving in wasn’t entirely a bad thing.
Someone took care of the housework.
He no longer had to worry about meals.
And every day...
She brought back all kinds of interesting stories about what was happening around Konoha.
"Oh, and don’t wander around over the next few days."
Thinking of Naruto’s identity, Izumi reminded him once again.
Naruto waved dismissively.
"I know."
"You’re so naggy."
"Eh?!"
"You actually think I’m nagging now?"
Izumi clutched her chest dramatically, looking as though she had suffered an emotional blow.
Her eyes even began watering pitifully.
Naruto rested his chin on one hand...
And stared at her expressionlessly.
Stare—
"...Tch."
"You’re no fun at all."
Seeing the look that clearly said, Please continue your performance...
Izumi pinched his now much chubbier cheeks in annoyance.
Satisfied, she dusted off her hands.
"Alright."
"I’m heading out."
"Go, go."
Naruto replied lazily, like a salted fish.
Izumi couldn’t help feeling that the past few months had been surreal.
She had lost her closest friend, Uchiha Itachi.
Soon afterward...
It felt as though even her own clan had abandoned her.
Clan members who once greeted her now deliberately avoided her.
Then...
She unexpectedly caught the Third Hokage’s attention.
She was allowed to graduate from the Academy early.
She even received personal guidance from the famous Kakashi Hatake on how to properly use her Sharingan.
Finally...
She was assigned to care for Naruto.
Only then did she learn he was the Nine-Tails’ Jinchūriki...
And finally understand the importance of a Tailed Beast.
Everything...
Had started because she was an Uchiha...
Who happened to come into contact with the Nine-Tails’ Jinchūriki.
Did she regret approaching Naruto that day?
No.
Because...
She still had a choice.
If she refused the mission...
If she simply stopped seeing Naruto...
Then, after enough time had passed...
Perhaps the clan would stop avoiding her.
Perhaps she and Itachi could slowly repair their friendship.
But...
She chose not to refuse.
She didn’t reject the assignment in the hope of restoring those relationships.
Because...
The clan...
And Itachi...
Had both abandoned her the moment things became inconvenient.
Shouldn’t a good clan explain the situation and help her weigh the pros and cons?
Shouldn’t a true friend help her find another path?
Instead...
They said nothing.
They simply abandoned her to protect themselves.
Since they had already cast her aside...
She refused to beg for acceptance.
She had a choice.
The clan had a choice.
Itachi had a choice.
But...
Some people never had one.
Naruto had become a Jinchūriki the moment he was born.
A container...
Created solely to imprison the Nine-Tails.
Always at risk of having his mind eroded by the beast sealed within him.
Forced to endure the hatred of the entire village.
The more she thought about it...
The more sorry she felt for him.
So after learning the truth...
She accepted the assignment without hesitation.
To care for Naruto...
And protect his mind from being consumed by the Nine-Tails.
Of course...
The Third Hokage never called it a surveillance mission.
Instead...
He gave it a much kinder—and far more meaningful—name.
Combined with Izumi’s naturally gentle heart and strong sense of justice...
She had been completely won over by his words.
That afternoon...
As Naruto sat around the apartment with nothing to do...
Cheers suddenly echoed throughout Konoha.
"The Hidden Cloud delegation has arrived..."
His thoughts stirred.
Activating the Kagura Mind’s Eye...
He immediately scanned his surroundings.
"Only one ANBU..."
"Watching from the house across the street."
After pinpointing the guard’s location...
Naruto entered the bathroom and formed a hand seal.
Shadow Clone Technique!
A clone appeared.
At the exact same moment...
The real Naruto activated the Flying Thunder God Technique...
And vanished instantly.
The Shadow Clone remained inside the bathroom for a while before walking back into the living room...
Where it sat absentmindedly as if nothing had happened.
Elsewhere...
Disguised as an ordinary child...
Naruto blended into the crowd lining the streets.
Watching the Hidden Cloud delegation receive Konoha’s enthusiastic welcome...
Minato sighed inside the sealing space.
"So..."
"Has the war finally come to an end?"
His voice was filled with emotion.
The Third Shinobi World War had effectively ended in Year 47.
Only scattered border skirmishes had continued afterward.
The greatest obstacle...
Had always been post-war reparations.
Neither side was willing to compromise.
Large-scale battles were impossible.
Yet negotiations kept failing.
So...
Both villages continued provoking one another along the borders while waiting for the other side to make concessions.
Minato had never imagined...
That stalemate would last another four years.
"Probably."
"Who knows?"
Naruto replied inwardly.
Whether peace would truly last...
No one could say.
After all...
There was always the possibility that one of the envoys might die tonight.
Kurama narrowed his eyes.
Knowing Naruto as well as he did...
He sensed something beneath those words.
"Naruto..."
"You’re not thinking of killing one of the envoys just to keep the war going..."
"...Are you?"
"No."
"I’m not."
"Stop making things up."
Naruto immediately felt speechless.
Somehow...
Kurama had accidentally guessed half of what he was thinking.
Thinking Naruto was worried about his feelings...
Minato spoke gently.
"Naruto..."
"You don’t need to worry about me."
"If there’s something you want to do..."
"Then do it."
"..."
Naruto was completely speechless this time.
Minato’s trust genuinely touched him.
But...
He really had no intention of killing the envoy.
Then...
A new thought quietly surfaced in his mind.
...Should I give things a little push instead?