Naruto: Starting with Tsunade

Chapter 374 Naruto, look me in the eyes!

"I'm sorry, Captain..."

Yashiro knelt on the ground, his head touching the ground, his voice full of apology.

The other Uchiha members bombarded him with questions: "Hachika, what exactly is going on?"

After much back and forth, the guy finally confessed... Aokiji raised his chin: "Tell me, what exactly happened?"

Yashiro raised his face, tears of regret welling in his eyes, and told everyone everything from his first encounter with the masked man to how the man had instigated him to launch a coup.

Although the villagers were dissatisfied with the village and launching a coup was a logical step, they were ultimately very unhappy about being deliberately misled.

Fugaku frowned and scolded, "Yashiro, are you confused...?"

Yashiro felt deeply ashamed. He was almost fifty years old. With snot and tears streaming down his face, he said, "I'm sorry, Captain. I was confused for a moment and listened to slander. Please punish me. I would be willing to die."

Aokiji snorted coldly: "What a clever scheme. If our Uchiha clan had actually found his way, facing a village like this, the Uchiha clan would have been completely wiped out and swallowed up by the river of history. What would become of our eyes after we die...?"

Aokiji didn't say the last part explicitly, but everyone knew without thinking what their eyes would look like after death, and their bodies trembled involuntarily.

The Uchiha are a proud ninja clan, unafraid of any challenge, but that doesn't mean they're stupid. When they learned that the two top ninjas in their clan were traitors, challenging the village would have been tantamount to suicide for them.

"How dare they extend their reach to our Uchiha clan? They're courting death."

The furious voice was filled with intense killing intent, and Aokiji's scarlet eyes were filled with a cold, chilling light that would make anyone shudder just by looking at them.

But at this moment, it felt incredibly warm to the Uchiha members, giving them a strong sense of security.

After learning the truth about the massacre, the Uchiha clan is now closely united around Aokiji, achieving an unprecedented level of cohesion that even Madara Uchiha at his peak could not match.

"Rest assured, as long as I, Aokiji, am alive, anyone who wants to harm my people will have to get past me first."

He was as ruthless as winter towards his enemies, but as gentle as spring towards his clansmen. The Uchiha were deeply moved by his words and vowed to be loyal to Lord Aokiji, even if it meant going through fire and water.

After taking the oath before his clansmen, Aokiji concluded, "Apart from those who went out to keep watch earlier, none of you are allowed to reveal what was said today."

"clear."

"Very well, dismissed."

"Yes."

Everyone responded in unison and then stood up.

Originally, for safety reasons, Lord Aokiji didn't need to tell them about this.

But they still told them, which showed that Aokiji didn't consider him an outsider. Everyone secretly vowed to keep their mouths shut.

"Oh, right, there's one more thing."

"Yes, Lord Aokiji, please speak."

"Next, I will have Fugaku convene a meeting where I plan to disband the Konoha Police Force. I'm informing you all beforehand."

"Hi, Lord Aokiji, I thought something was wrong. Don't worry, this kind of thing... uh, what did you just say!?"

"Disband the Konoha Police Force."

"W-what?!"

……

……

The mansion, inside a room.

Aokiji and Fugaku sat facing each other on the ground.

Fugaku looked apologetic: "I'm sorry, I've troubled you with Itachi's matter..."

Aokiji gave him a reassuring smile: "Itachi, he's just gone astray. I'll make him see the light."

"It's my fault for not disciplining them properly..."

Fugaku sighed with shame: "As expected, you will still be the clan leader."

This time, Aokiji didn't refuse and readily agreed: "Okay..."

If his own son becomes a traitor and even plans to massacre his fellow clansmen, Fugaku has no face to continue being the clan leader, even if everyone still agrees.

Moreover, now that all the clansmen follow Aokiji's lead, Fugaku's influence is not as strong as before, so it would be difficult for him to continue serving.

Fugaku was somewhat surprised: "I thought you would refuse again this time."

"I'd like to, but if you continue in this role, I imagine you'll feel a lot of pressure."

Fugaku breathed a sigh of relief: "Now I can finally step back from the position of clan leader."

Aokiji said with a wry smile, "You're relieved, but I'm suffering."

Fugaku said somewhat impatiently, "Then let's abdicate at this meeting."

"You're really in a hurry."

"This position was originally meant for you. I've held it long enough. It's time for you to take a good rest."

"There's really nothing I can do..."

"Would you like to stay for dinner tonight?"

"Next time. This mother and daughter from the Whirlpool Village have just arrived and are probably still adjusting. I'll help them integrate first."

"You really care about this."

"After all, I received a lot of care from Grandma Mito in the past, and I originally wanted to take good care of her. Who knew that such an accident would happen? I can only place this filial piety on her clansmen who are scattered all over the world."

"Oh well……"

Fugaku said with some regret.

"Then I'll be going now..." Aokiji stood up, preparing to leave, and before leaving, added, "Oh, by the way, I have something to ask you."

"Hmm, what is it?"

Who is the current Jinchuriki of the Five-Tails?

"...The man from Iwagakure Village."

"Okay, I understand. Thank you..."

"Aokiji, you wouldn't...?"

Aokiji smiled slightly: "I'm just trying to slowly take back what I've lost..."

After saying goodbye to Fugaku, Aokiji planned to head towards Karin's side, as it wouldn't be good to keep using shadow clones to accompany them.

While passing through the park, I inadvertently caught a glimpse of a little boy sitting alone on a swing. Because he had blond hair, I couldn't help but glance at him a second time. He was looking down, appearing somewhat lonely.

Huh?

Aokiji noticed six faint marks on his face.

There is only one person in the entire village with this characteristic, and with a little guessing, you can guess the name of this person—Naruto Uzumaki.

Aokiji smiled and slowly walked towards him.

Sitting on the swing with his eyes downcast, Naruto was slightly startled when he realized someone was walking towards him. He looked up and saw a white-haired, blue-eyed boy walking towards him with a warm smile on his face.

"Little brother, what are you doing here? Aren't you going to the ninja academy?"

Aokiji remembered that at this point in time, the children should still be in school, and Naruto was of school age. So there was only one possibility for him to be here.

This kid skipped school.

Naruto looked at the older brother in front of him with curiosity. It was the first time he had ever seen someone smile at him like that.

Is it because they don't know themselves?

No, that's impossible.

In a sense, he was as well-known in the village as the Hokage; there was no one in the village who didn't know him.

Aokiji asked, "What's your name?"

Naruto: ...

This person really doesn't recognize themselves.

Naruto hesitated for a moment, then answered truthfully, "My name is Uzumaki Naruto."

After speaking, he secretly sized up the other person. He must have remembered something after hearing his name, because the older brother in front of him was now pretending to be thinking.

Sigh, when people remember their information, they'll probably immediately show a look of disgust.

Naruto looked on sadly.

He was used to this kind of thing.

Because the villagers considered him to be the reincarnation of the fox spirit that destroyed the village six years ago, he had been treated coldly ever since he could remember.

Aokiji seemed to remember something, clenched his fist into a hammer, and gently tapped it on his outstretched palm: "Oh, no wonder this surname sounds so familiar. Isn't this the same surname as my girl Whirlpool?"

"What a coincidence! How about coming over to my house as a guest?"

"W-what?"

This answer far exceeded Naruto's expectations.

For a moment, he was stunned.

What? This person isn't afraid of me?

And he even invited me to his house?

This can't be a dream, can it?

Naruto wore a puzzled expression.

Suddenly, he remembered something.

Wait, he just said vortex?

Is there anyone else in this village with this surname besides him?

Naruto was filled with curiosity: "What did you mean by your surname being Uzumaki?"

Aokiji asked, puzzled, "What's wrong? Is it strange to have the surname 'Uzumaki'?"

"No, it's just..."

Naruto became hesitant and stammering.

He craved recognition so much that he was overjoyed to hear that someone in the village shared his surname. But at the same time, he was also afraid that the person with the same surname would hate him just like everyone else after learning about his origins.

Thinking about this, Naruto decided to give up. He shook his head and refused, at least this way he would still have something to look forward to.

Why?

"Mom said, don't go to unfamiliar houses."

As Naruto said those words, a bitter feeling welled up inside him.

Aokiji asked, "How old are you?"

"Six years old."

Did you attend a ninja academy?

"have."

"Oh, then we're not strangers anymore."

"???"

Aokiji laughed and said, "In a few days, I'll send the woman to the ninja academy. Maybe you and she will even be classmates."

Naruto was taken aback.

Wait, daughter???

Naruto stared at Aokiji's youthful face, his eyes practically popping out of their sockets in bewilderment.

The other person looks to be no more than twelve or thirteen years old, how could he possibly have a daughter the same age as him?

Naruto said, "Although I am very young and don't understand a lot, it doesn't mean I'm an idiot."

Please, even if you're making up a reason, at least come up with a plausible one.

Does this person think I'm some kind of idiot with no intelligence?

Suddenly, Naruto seemed to realize something, and his heart sank.

He got it.

The other person was making fun of him.

Naruto's expression was exactly what Aokiji had expected. He smiled and said, "Naruto, could you look me in the eye for a second?"

Naruto couldn't keep up with Aokiji's pace and looked confused.

Just then, he suddenly noticed that the other person's eyes had changed, turning blood red, with three tomoe twisting out from near the pupils.

He didn't understand what was going on, and his eyes just went blank.

Da da da……

Stepping on the water's surface created a gentle ripple.

Aokiji raised his face and looked at the huge cage in front of him, where he could see an orange beast of the same size being imprisoned.

"It's been a long time, Nine-Tails."

As if it had heard this, the sleeping orange beast reacted, slowly opening its eyes. Through the iron bars, it saw a boy with white hair and red eyes looking at it with a mocking smile.

(End of this chapter)