“These two really are…”
Sarutobi Hiruzen puffed on his pipe and exhaled a cloud of smoke.
A crystal ball sat in front of him, its surface displaying the figures of two people.
ShihōinNaraku and Hatake Kakashi.
Hiruzen was using the Telescope Technique to observe the two of them.
He had often used this technique in the past to monitor the entire Konoha.
Originally, Hiruzen had temporarily assigned Naraku and Kakashi to serve as Naruto’s bodyguards because he wanted to observe their performances and decide who would ultimately become Naruto’s instructor, as well as who would become the candidate for Hokage.
But after taking a look now, neither of them seemed reliable.
Naraku was leaning against the tree trunk.
Judging from his bored expression, he clearly wasn’t taking the mission seriously at all.
Kakashi was even worse.
His mind had long since wandered off somewhere.
Others might not be able to tell, but Sarutobi Hiruzen understood Kakashi’s state of mind at a glance.
At this moment, Hiruzen was even considering eliminating both of them from consideration.
“Naraku not taking it seriously is one thing, but Kakashi’s problem…”
Hiruzen worriedly set his pipe aside.
After all these years, Hatake Kakashi still hadn’t moved on from his past.
That was a serious problem.
Even without considering the Hokage candidate issue, Kakashi’s current state of mind was actually inadequate for an ordinary jōnin.
“Sigh.
They each have their strengths and weaknesses.
Let’s see how things develop…”
ShihōinNaraku and Hatake Kakashi were both hidden among the dense branches of a large tree, making them completely invisible from outside.
Leaning against the trunk, Naraku occasionally glanced at Naruto, who was dozing in the school corridor, while all sorts of random thoughts wandered through his mind.
But then he became thoroughly speechless.
Hatake Kakashi was still trapped in his gloomy state and hadn’t managed to pull himself out.
“Enough already.”
“Hey, Kakashi!”
Naraku lightly stepped on the tree trunk beneath his feet.
The slight shaking finally snapped Kakashi out of his daze.
“I know what happened back then hit you hard, but so many years have passed.
You still haven’t recovered.
You really can’t keep going like this!”
Kakashi looked at Naraku’s serious expression.
He knew that he couldn’t continue drowning himself in memories of the past, but this wasn’t something that could simply be overcome through sheer willpower.
“Enough.
Stop moping around.
The Ninja Academy is already letting out.”
Naraku and Kakashi watched as the school bell rang.
The children ran out of the academy laughing and playing, making the scene lively and cheerful.
The adults waiting outside gradually picked up their own children.
However, most of them deliberately avoided the area where Uzumaki Naruto was standing.
They spoke spiteful words and instructed their children not to play with Naruto.
The Ninja Academy gradually became quiet.
Naruto watched as one adult after another came to take their children home.
He could only walk home alone.
Looking at that solitary figure beneath the setting sun, Naraku frowned slightly and followed after him with Kakashi.
“Gulp…”
Naruto looked toward a street stall billowing with steam and filled with an enticing aroma.
He couldn’t help swallowing.
He then reached into his pocket.
The handful of coins jingling inside immediately made him give up on the idea.
“Forget it.
I don’t even like this stuff.
I’ve got plenty of ramen at home.
I like ramen.”
As if trying to convince himself, Naruto desperately attempted to shift his gaze away.
Unfortunately, the drool about to spill from the corner of his mouth betrayed him.
The owner of the food stall quickly noticed him.
A look of intense disgust and rejection fell upon Naruto, causing his expression to darken.
He immediately turned around and ran away.
“He should have money.”
ShihōinNaraku and Hatake Kakashi stood in front of the food stall.
Kakashi had naturally witnessed what had just happened, but he was somewhat puzzled.
The village should have been providing Naruto with living expenses.
“Didn’t you see the look in the stall owner’s eyes?
Besides, he probably doesn’t have any money right now.”
“No money?”
Kakashi was confused.
But without needing Naraku to explain, he quickly realized the problem.
Indeed, Konoha provided Naruto with living expenses every month.
Regardless of his other identity, simply being the orphan of the Fourth Hokage meant that no one would dare embezzle that money.
And the person responsible for delivering Naruto’s living expenses was Sarutobi Hiruzen himself.
At the beginning of every month, Hiruzen would visit Naruto and give him his living expenses.
But the problem was—
How old was Naruto?
He didn’t understand money.
He didn’t know how to save.
Once he received his allowance, it wouldn’t take long before he had barely a few coins left.
That was simply how a normal child behaved.
As Naruto grew up and became a shinobi, he eventually became capable of saving money.
At least until Jiraiya came along and blew his savings on alcohol.
Naruto ran home, ate a simple bowl of instant ramen, and then immediately slipped back outside without staying at home.
That apartment was simply too quiet.
Whenever Naruto stayed there, he felt lonely.
Only by going outside could he feel that there were other people in the world.
Even if those people frequently looked at him with hatred, disgust, and rejection.
“Click…”
ShihōinNaraku and Hatake Kakashi pushed open the door and entered Naruto’s messy apartment.
Random objects were scattered everywhere.
The bedding hadn’t been properly folded.
A cup of instant ramen that had just been eaten contained nothing but the remaining broth.
The chaotic scene filled their vision.
This was Uzumaki Naruto’s home.
“A little ridiculous, but he’s only twelve.
It’s understandable.”
Naraku looked around the room.
The apartment wasn’t large, but to be fair, it actually had most of the basic necessities of life.
It even had a refrigerator.
Kakashi silently looked at everything around him.
He then stepped forward and casually picked up the empty milk bottle sitting on the table.
At a glance, he noticed the problem.
“What is it?”
“This milk has expired…”
Naraku froze.
Then he suddenly remembered that he had seen this scene somewhere before.
“The Third Hokage has gone too far.”
Naraku opened the refrigerator and looked at the shelves packed with milk.
“Uzumaki Naruto’s life shouldn’t be like this.”
“This is because Uzumaki Naruto’s identity is extremely important!”
Sarutobi Hiruzen appeared while puffing on his pipe.
He slowly walked into the room.
“The Nine-Tails Jinchūriki cannot be allowed to have any problems!”
ShihōinNaraku looked at Hiruzen with obvious disagreement.
He pointed toward the state of the room.
“Besides being the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki, Uzumaki Naruto is also the son of the Fourth Hokage.”
“The descendant of someone who sacrificed his life for the village shouldn’t have to suffer like this.”
Sarutobi Hiruzen’s expression gradually became solemn.
He didn’t say anything more.
The three of them fell silent.
To be honest, ShihōinNaraku simply couldn’t understand the way everyone in the shinobi world viewed jinchūriki.
They treated these people as weapons, yet refused to treat them properly.
They allowed jinchūriki to suffer bullying, hatred, and rejection.
It was simply incomprehensible.
Jinchūriki were already dangerous enough.
Yet they deliberately pushed them to their limits, practically begging the tailed beasts to rampage.
From ShihōinNaraku’s perspective, a jinchūriki losing control was an entirely normal reaction.
After all, if you treated someone like that, it would be strange if they didn’t become unstable.
◇ THE STORY DOESN’T END HERE…
◇
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