Naruto: Starting as the Third Hokage with Tears in His Eyes

Their opponent, Hozuki Shio, is a completely different character.

She remained silent, sitting quietly in front of the small mountain of food, feeding herself pieces of roasted meat and shrimp with almost mechanical precision and efficiency.

Its movements were slow but never stopped, like an emotionless eating machine, with the food in front of it decreasing at a visible rate.

That focus and dedication put unprecedented pressure on Asuma and Obito, those two loud and boisterous guys.

"Lin! Lin! Look! tide is amazing!"

While fighting hard for the ball, Obito didn't forget to show off in front of his crush, saying, "But I'll surpass her soon!"

Nohara Rin smiled helplessly and handed her a glass of water.

"Eat slowly, take some soil with you, don't choke."

Another corner of the beach stands out from the hustle and bustle.

Sarutobi Shinnosuke and Hatake Kakashi sat side by side on a rock, calmly observing the farce unfolding over there.

"Completely lacking in tactical awareness."

Shinnosuke commented expressionlessly, "The food is unevenly distributed, the eating rhythm is chaotic, and the physical strength is consumed too quickly."

"Well..."

Kakashi lazily propped his chin up, his one eye half-open and half-closed. "Obito... well, Obito is still the same Obito. Being able to turn eating into a disaster is a talent in itself."

"Shut up! Kakashi! I heard you!"

Obito, whose ears were frighteningly sharp, suddenly turned around and roared.

As a result of a moment of distraction, Asma swiftly forked away the largest piece of meat from his plate.

"Ah—! My flesh!"

Obito's screams echoed across the beach.

Kakashi sighed silently, turned his head away, as if he couldn't bear to look anymore.

Hiruzen Sarutobi held a cup of barley tea, watching all of this with a smile.

He ignored the commotion over there and walked to the rocks, waving to his two sons.

"Asuma, Shinnosuke, walk with me for a bit."

"oh!"

Asma immediately dropped his chopsticks, wiped the grease from the corner of his mouth, and ran over excitedly.

Shinnosuke silently got up, brushed off imaginary sand from his clothes, and quietly followed behind his father.

The father and his two sons strolled on the soft sand, the waves gently lapping against the shore and churning up white foam.

"Father! Today went so smoothly!"

Asuma waved his arms excitedly, "Those guys' earth-遁 (earth-遁 is a type of magic that allows one to create earth-based structures) is amazing, they're like bulldozers! Tomorrow we can start laying the steel frame for the dam! I've studied the blueprints, that structure..."

"The foundation needs secondary reinforcement."

"In addition, there were loopholes in the nighttime security during construction, so I have readjusted the patrol routes of the Dark Side and the Kaguya Clan."

Asuma's excitement was instantly choked back. He turned and glared at his clueless brother: "Can't you let me finish?!"

Looking at his two sons, who had very different personalities but were shining in their own ways, Hiruzen Sarutobi felt an indescribable sense of pride and satisfaction.

In the distance, Hozuki Kaigetsu silently watched the backs of the Hokage and his two sons.

He watched the Konoha ninjas scrambling and fighting over a few pieces of roasted meat, the Kirigakure villagers gathered around the campfire with happy faces, and then he looked at the Anbu captain in the distance, who, though cold-faced, always stayed by his father's side, and the boy gesticulating wildly and talking about something.

At that moment, he suddenly understood.

The "Three-Year Revitalization and Development Plan for Wuyin Village" in his hand, which he had poured countless efforts into, included fisheries, industry, trade, and the future... But only now did he truly understand what the ultimate goal of all these plans was.

It's not about making Kirigakure stronger, nor is it about acquiring more wealth.

It was for the sake of what was happening right now.

So that the villagers can cheer for a piece of grilled meat on the beach without any worries, and so that families can take a leisurely stroll along the beach like this after a day's work.

Behind Hiruzen Sarutobi's unfathomable power lies the kind of happiness that is so ordinary it's almost laughable.

This realization washed over him like a tsunami, leaving him with no more confusion about the future.

On the beach, Hiruzen Sarutobi stopped in his tracks.

He made a seemingly casual glance at Shinnosuke, who was not far away.

Shinnosuke's eyes remained unchanged, but Hiruzen clearly understood the silent report from those calm eyes.

—The source of the unusual chakra on the uninhabited island in the southeast has been identified and sealed off.

The target activity level is stable.

The scene is being monitored by a covert team; you are welcome to handle it personally.

That was the Three-Tails, which had been abandoned by Kirigakure for many years and regarded as a huge problem.

The tacit understanding between father and son has long transcended words.

Hiruzen nodded almost imperceptibly, preparing to turn around.

Just then, a staggering figure emerged step by step from the darkness beyond the reach of the campfire's light.

All the ninjas who were playing around fell silent instantly, and the members of the Anbu almost simultaneously placed their hands on the hilts of their swords at their waists.

The person who arrived was none other than Kaguya Honebami, who should have been sent to a labor camp in the mine.

He dragged his still-unrecovered body, wrapped in bandages from head to toe, his face as pale as paper.

Amidst everyone's wary gazes, he walked straight up to Hiruzen Sarutobi.

Then, under everyone's shocked gaze, this once arrogant and overbearing inheritor of the Corpse Bone Pulse used all his strength to bend over deeply, so deeply that his forehead almost touched the sand.

A perfect, impeccable 90-degree bow.

"Hokage... sir."

Kaguya Honebami's voice was hoarse, like two stones rubbing together.

He raised his head, and those pale white eyes, which had once been filled with nothing but madness and tyranny, now burned with a new kind of reverence.

"We...the Kaguya clan wish to learn the art of construction."

"I want to build the tallest tower for this village with my own hands."

Hiruzen Sarutobi looked at him calmly, as if he had expected this scene.

He didn't answer immediately, his gaze passing over Kaguya Honebami's shoulder and looking towards the uninhabited island in the southeast, which was now just a blurry outline in the night.

The darkness there was much deeper than the night in Kirigakure.