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

A muffled thud, like a god from the heavens letting out a burp, resounded from the swollen, frog-like belly of the Three-Tailed Isobu.

Immediately afterwards, the enormous tailed beast shuddered violently, its huge single eye widening in shock, revealing a terrifying expression that was almost as vivid as a human's.

Its massive body tilted backward uncontrollably, and from its gaping maw, a wisp of smoke carrying an ominous purple hue rose, emitting a... burnt seafood smell.

The Tailed Beast Ball, which had been forcibly forced back into its body by the Vajra Staff, underwent a magnificent internal explosion within its body.

The raging waves on the sea gradually subsided, and the whole world fell into an eerie silence.

On the shore, the four members of the Hidden Mist Village team responsible for recording had completely given up on thinking.

"Clatter".

Hozuki Kaigetsu's specially made ink brush slipped from his stiff fingers, fell onto the scroll, and spread into a helpless blot of ink.

His mouth was agape, even his signature shark teeth looked somewhat dazed, and a question kept echoing in his mind: Was what he just did... even possible?

That's a Tailed Beast Ball!

Mei Terumi's breath almost stopped. Her emerald eyes, half-hidden by her slightly curly long hair, reflected Hiruzen Sarutobi's calm yet cruel figure.

On the scroll in her hand, the hastily written words stopped at "Lord Hokage, it seems he has mastered some kind of..."

I can't write any more on this line.

Only Yagura Karatachi, this mature-beyond-his-years elder, forced himself to analyze the situation from a leader's perspective after the initial shock.

He wrote his new conclusion on the scroll, his hand trembling.

"Conclusion: Resistance is futile. Long live Konoha! Long live the Hokage!"

After writing this sentence, he felt a chill run deep into his bones.

The only character with a different art style is Hozuki Shio.

She sniffed hard, taking in the peculiar burnt smell in the air, and then earnestly drew a sea turtle with its shell cracked from being roasted in her notebook, marking it with a big X.

"A failed product,"

She muttered to herself, "The heat wasn't controlled properly, the meat inside is definitely overcooked, what a waste of such a large piece of meat."

In the center of the battlefield, the massive body of the Three-Tailed Isobu stood frozen in place, its huge single eye fixed on Hiruzen Sarutobi, but the savagery and destruction within it were gone, replaced by a fear that only a primary school student would show when meeting the headmaster.

It dared not move, not even a fraction of a second.

Hiruzen Sarutobi stretched out his hand, and the colossal pillar connecting the sky and the sea instantly shrank, turning back into an ordinary black staff, which fell back into his hand.

He patted the buzzing Ruyi Wand, which seemed to be boasting, as if he had just dusted off his clothes. His composure was as if he had just casually swatted a noisy fly.

Then, he turned around, his gaze passing over the sea and landing on the shortest figure on the shore.

"Alright, it's willing to have a proper talk now."

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Hiruzen Sarutobi's voice remained gentle, showing no trace of the feat he had just accomplished by "smothering a Tailed Beast Ball with a single blow."

"Come here, Yagura."

It was like a teacher calling roll in class—calm, yet carrying an undeniable authority.

Yagura Karatachi shuddered. Under the watchful, yet slightly sympathetic, gazes of Hozuki Kaigetsu and Terumi Mei, he took a deep breath and began to walk.

The distance from the assault boat to the edge of the barrier is no more than a hundred meters.

But Yagura felt as if he had lived a whole life.

Every step felt like walking on clouds, stepping on my own worldview that had been completely crushed and reshaped.

He could feel the gazes of his companions behind him, and the fearful look from the giant tailed beast, but what suffocated him most was the calm back of the man in front of him.

He came up behind Hiruzen Sarutobi, bowed his head respectfully, and didn't even dare to look at the legendary tailed beast.

"Lord Hokage."

Hiruzen Sarutobi didn't turn around, but simply asked, "What do you think is the key to a perfect Jinchuriki?"

Yagura was taken aback; Elder Yuanshi had asked him the same question before.

His answer at the time was a strong will and sealing techniques.

But now, that answer seems so ridiculous.

He hesitated for a moment, then whispered, "Is it... power? Overwhelming power?"

"Suppression and exploitation are the most basic forms of exploitation."

Hiruzen Sarutobi shook his head and finally turned around, his deep eyes staring directly into Yagura's pupils, as if trying to see right through him.

"My question is, what is it that you want this power for?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi's tone was calm, yet it struck Yagura's heart like a heavy hammer.

For what?

Countless images flashed through Yagura's mind in an instant.

The endless fighting in the Blood Mist Village, the cold corpses of comrades during their graduation exams, the weary and helpless eyes of Elder Yuan Shi, the towering flames lit by the Kaguya clan on the night of the coup... It was a world shrouded in despair and madness, where everyone struggled in the dark mire.

Power is for surviving in this hell. It's for revenge, for killing all those who oppose you.

This was his only answer in the past.

But then, new images appeared.

Konoha's grand blueprint depicts reservoirs, dams, and tidal power stations.

The miracle of Kakashi and Obito using ninjutsu to grow green shoots on a saline-alkali land. The scene of the Akimichi clan's chef grilling thick slices of pork belly around a campfire, sizzling with oil and releasing an irresistible aroma...

It was a new world he never dared to dream of, a world full of hope and laughter.

Yagura's breathing became rapid. He remembered Kaguya's resentment when Honebami was crushed, and the almost tearful happiness on the faces of the Kirigakure villagers when they drank their first sip of vegetable soup.

Two futures collided fiercely in his mind.

In the end, all the images were frozen on the grand barbecue feast of the previous night.

Everyone, whether they were Konoha ninjas or Kirigakure villagers, gathered around the campfire and laughed loudly.

Without further hesitation, Yagura suddenly raised his head, and his rare purple eyes burst forth with an unprecedented brilliance.

He answered solemnly, emphasizing each word:

"I want the power to propel the future you've shown me, a future where everyone can laugh!"

This answer sounds somewhat comical, even somewhat naive.

As soon as he finished speaking, Hozuki Shio's eyes lit up suddenly, and for the first time, her gaze towards Yagura carried a hint of recognition.

This kid's got it!

Hiruzen Sarutobi's smile grew even gentler.

He nodded in satisfaction.

This is the answer he wanted.

"very good."

Because he knew that this was a boy's purest and most genuine wish, born from the bottom of his heart, after he had abandoned all grand narratives and false slogans.

Hiruzen Sarutobi extended a hand and gently placed it on Yagura's head.

Then, he raised his other hand and, from a distance of several meters, pressed it against the massive head of the Three-Tailed Isobu.

"Then, go and experience your new companion."

hum-

An unimaginably vast amount of chakra, like a golden bridge, surged from Hiruzen Sarutobi's palm, connecting the tiny human on one end and the enormous tailed beast on the other.

It was neither a forced injection nor a brutal plunder.

Hiruzen Sarutobi's unique forbidden technique for communication and resonance was activated at this moment.