Ninja Ice House

Chapter 568 First acquaintance

As Jiraiya's last disciple, Naruto Uzumaki received unprecedented care from an elder, akin to fatherly love. His feelings were undoubtedly complex and sincere.

During this period of preparation, it was in principle that unrelated outsiders should not disturb Jiraiya's condition while he was bedridden, but after his persistent pleading, Tsunade still allowed him to visit twice.

Initially, Naruto Uzumaki was not among the frontline personnel tasked with the mission to awaken Jiraiya. However, Karin was later asked to participate as a secondary support role after being prompted by her father, Fukusugi Bokusui.

Naruto Uzumaki was truly dedicated to coming here and seeing with his own eyes whether there was any hope of saving the "Perverted Sage" who had been unconscious and even on the verge of death. He not only pleaded with Tsunade, but even shamelessly asked Karin, with whom he didn't usually interact much, for help.

Karin was actually happy to see this happen. In principle, the Furusugi clan and the people led by Karin were only to provide strategies and support, while the main force should still be the Konoha ninja.

Unfortunately, Konoha Village is indeed short of skilled fighters during this period, especially in this mission, where it is impossible for fighters such as Kakashi Hatake, Might Guy, and Asuma Sarutobi to be the main force.

The reason is simple: at the time of the selection of the Fourth Hokage, most of the new generation of geniuses of Konoha Village, such as Teams 7, 8, and 10, had not yet been born, and even if they had been born, they were still infants crying for milk.

When Nara Shikamaru, Inuzuka Kiba, and the others entered the dream space, they didn't find anyone whose appearance matched theirs at all. At most, they looked somewhat familiar, like when they bumped into Uchiha Mikoto and asked her a few questions casually.

However, Kakashi Hatake, Might Guy, and the others are no longer young. This generation, who have been through the baptism of the battlefield, ranges in age from twelve or thirteen to fifteen or sixteen. They look very similar to their counterparts in the real world who are close to thirty. Anyone who is familiar with them can easily tell that the two are the same person if they observe carefully.

Using a transformation technique to make oneself appear more mature would be fine, but the real problem is that someone might recognize both as "true forms," ​​which would be a bad thing and could significantly hinder future actions.

Therefore, older, more capable, and experienced teachers are not necessarily the best fit to appear in public; it is better for them to provide assistance discreetly.

Walking with my companions through the once familiar yet slightly different Konoha Village felt like revisiting my childhood.

"This should be a plaza or park. I remember playing games here with everyone. When it got dark, everyone was called home by their families for dinner, but I played on the seesaw and swings for a while. We only went home when it got dark and no one was around..."

“It’s different, Naruto…”

Nara Shikamaru said in a calm tone,

"We weren't even born yet. In less than a year, the terrifying Nine-Tails will attack the village, and everything beneath our feet will be razed to the ground by the Tailed Beast Ball..."

Then rebuild it, making it look like the familiar appearance of Naruto Uzumaki, Shikamaru Nara, and others.

Whenever a major event occurs, the overall layout of Konoha Village will undergo some changes, more or less.

The two most recent major incidents were the "Nine-Tails' attack on the village" and the "Night of the Uchiha Clan Massacre." The former had a wide impact, with almost every family in mourning, while the latter caused significant, targeted damage, burning key areas to ashes with no survivors.

The new generation of Konoha ninjas have hardly ever seen what this former Konoha village looked like in the dream space. Only those who have consulted important archives left by the village have some understanding of the past layout.

The "Night of the Uchiha Clan Massacre" was man-made, and the destruction was limited to a certain area. It was only due to the instigation and guidance of certain "interested individuals" that the damage overflowed, which in turn caused previously indifferent bystanders to take advantage of the situation, thus extending the impact of this event beyond the Uchiha clan's territory. In contrast, the "Nine-Tails' attack on the village" was essentially a natural disaster. Apart from the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, and the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, who were able to effectively resist it, there was basically no one who could directly confront it. As many as came, they all died. Most of the sacrifices were to buy time, one after another, to prevent the Nine-Tails from causing too much harm to the unarmed villagers.

No amount of attack will help; it's basically the same as building a "human wall" and having to keep plugging the loopholes.

Even so, the natural overflow of the Nine-Tails' chakra and power is too much for weaker ordinary people to withstand.

In fact, the reason why the Nine-Tails suffered such a tragic fate on the night of its attack on the village was not only because the Nine-Tails was released in Konoha and then controlled by humans to wreak havoc, but also because the most mobile "Yellow Flash" Minato Namikaze was restrained and had to fight against the "Masked Strange Man" who also mastered space-time ninjutsu.

As for why Minato Namikaze still chose to perish together with the Nine-Tails even though the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, could effectively control it, Furuya Kosugi gave his subordinates and advisors a deduction task within the clan, and the result was quite unexpected.

In principle, even a Kage-level powerhouse would not be at a disadvantage when facing one of the nine tailed beasts, even the Nine-Tails. Even Minato Namikaze, who had only been Hokage for a short time and was more skilled in assassin-style mobile support and killing, would not be unable to deal with the Nine-Tails.

During the Third Shinobi World War, Minato Namikaze single-handedly defeated the "AB" duo from Kumogakure under extremely unfavorable circumstances. He then almost single-handedly turned the tide of the battle at Kannabi Bridge before turning back to save Kakashi Hatake and Rin Nohara. However, Obito Uchiha was still captured due to the deliberate manipulation of Madara Uchiha and Zetsu.

With such strength, it's simply unbelievable that Minato Namikaze couldn't defeat the Nine-Tails, even though it was controlled by Obito Uchiha and couldn't unleash its full fighting potential.

The real problem is that the Nine-Tails is unleashing its destructive power indiscriminately in the heart of Konoha. One Tailed Beast Ball can reduce a village to ruins and wipe out the entire population.

One detail to note is that when a Tailed Beast Ball was aimed directly at the Hokage Rock, Minato Namikaze put everything aside and used up a huge amount of chakra and energy to transfer the Tailed Beast Ball to another location. This was probably the maximum effort he could exert with the Flying Thunder God Technique.

Was it Minato Namikaze who was wasting his chakra by going to great lengths to protect the Hokage Rock, a symbol of Konoha Village?

Innocent!

In the layout of Konoha Village, several important areas are heavily guarded, and the Hokage Rock is no exception. The most important reason for this is that the area beneath the Hokage Rock is Konoha Village's last refuge. On the night of the Nine-Tails' attack on the village, most of the elderly, women, children, and future hope were near the Hokage Rock. If that Tailed Beast Ball had not been moved, the blow to Konoha Village would have been almost fatal.

This is like when the enemy has breached the high ground and is about to level the fountain. There's no longer any question of whether it's worth it or not. The most important thing is to kill the enemy as quickly as possible at all costs and preserve hope for the future.

With the Sannin either absent from the village or unable to intervene, Hiruzen Sarutobi and Minato Namikaze were indeed confident they could reseal the Nine-Tails with the support of skilled Anbu members and a group of Konoha Jonin. However, Konoha, having become a battlefield, would likely be removed from the list of the "Five Great Ninja Villages."

With Jiraiya and Tsunade at their peak, and the next generation of geniuses still capable, the first choice for either Hiruzen Sarutobi or Minato Namikaze as Hokage and village chief would definitely be to reseal the Nine-Tails as quickly as possible, recover its fighting power, and preserve the possibility of the Nine-Tails becoming a Jinchūriki. Killing the Nine-Tails was not even an option.

If we kill it this time, it will be a real problem if it revives next time and we have to find it again.

Using the forbidden technique, Reaper Death Seal, in a suicidal manner, might seem like losing a Hokage is a waste or even frustrating, but for Konoha, it's actually a very worthwhile choice. The vast majority of Jonin and the next generation of geniuses in the current real world survived because of this decision.

As it turns out, while the death of the Fourth Hokage was indeed embarrassing in the short term, it gave Konoha Village hope to return to its former glory in the long run.

Of course, only the Hidden Leaf Village, with its abundance of talent, has the luxury to do this. The Hidden Sand Village, the Hidden Mist Village, and the Hidden Stone Village would never dare to do so. Under the same conditions, they would definitely choose to preserve the "Five Kage" level masters. This is the source of their confidence in standing firm, because if one dies, one less will be lost. Who knows how many years it will be before a top genius appears again, or even whether they will have the ability to cultivate such a talent.

Look at Konoha's staunch ally, Sunagakure. To protect Gaara, even Chiyo, their pillar of strength, was willing to sacrifice herself. This shows that different "cards" mean different "strategies".

Given the experience and wisdom of the Konoha Village leadership, Nara Shikaku and his son Nara Shikamaru, with their sharp minds, must certainly understand this point; they simply couldn't say it to Uzumaki Naruto outright.

Just as the group was reminiscing about the past, a gentle and warm voice came from behind them.

"Which squad are you from? Loitering around in a place like this at this hour is frightening the kids in the neighborhood. Do you know that we've been reported for having unfamiliar faces loitering around?"

Seeing the sudden alertness of the young ninjas, the newcomer took a step back and waved his hand, saying:

"Sorry, it's a habit I developed after returning from the battlefield—I always like to appear behind other people. I've been told off several times already."

"Uh, the Fourth Hokage?"

"I dare not accept such an honor. Although I am one of the candidates and the young people support me, the position of the Fourth Hokage still requires everyone's consensus."

Minato Namikaze quickly waved his hand and smiled modestly. It has to be said that the "Golden Flash," who is hailed as the "Little Sun," truly deserves to be called the most outstanding genius of the era and a rising hope for the future. At just over twenty years old, he is already one of the most powerful ninjas in the world.

In a few years, when he's nearing his peak around thirty, he might not be inferior to the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju, and could even be slightly stronger.

Many people once regarded him as the young man with the best chance of getting close to the "God of Shinobi" Hashirama Senju. He truly deserved the title. No wonder Jiraiya had high hopes for him in the early days and regarded him as the rightful "Child of Destiny" after Nagato, who had the power of the Rinnegan, died.

Before anyone else could speak, Nara Shikamaru naturally stepped forward and replied:

“I’m from the Nara family, and that’s the Hyuga over there…”

"Oh, indeed, this little guy has quite the presence. This one... no curse mark, and he's even from the main branch of the family, that's rare. Inuzuka and Aburame, and this one... a bit unfamiliar..."

Because they were all wearing Konoha Village headbands, and it was obvious that they weren't fake.

To be honest, it's quite normal for a few unfamiliar "colleagues" to suddenly appear in Konoha Village. Even the next Hokage wouldn't dare to match the names and appearances of all the ninjas.

The Root organization, practically an internal "black box," was managed so tightly by Danzo Shimura that it was virtually airtight; the Uchiha clan, obedient to orders but not to orders, were doing their own thing, having a great time "stirring things up" within the Security Department; the Hyuga clan, secluded and self-sufficient, wouldn't even want to be ninjas if they weren't truly forced to hide, preferring to live a secluded life...

These are just the biggest troublemakers. Even the Senju clan, which has nominally disbanded and changed its name but still maintains close ties with the village and still wields considerable influence, would not be surprised to suddenly have a few "official" ninjas emerge.

Smaller ninja clans and groups lack the strength and influence to do so. However, within the almost self-contained systems of second-tier ninjas such as medical ninjas, barrier teams, and sealing teams, there are some illegitimate and unclear quotas that are privately awarded.

"Oh, those are from the orphanage, and there are some war orphans too..."

"I see, I understand."

Nara Shikamaru was only halfway through speaking when Namikaze Minato began to fill in the blanks in his mind.

It's not that Nara Shikamaru intentionally misled people, nor that Namikaze Minato was overthinking things. Rather, it's because the Third Shinobi World War had just ended, which was the time when war orphans from the previous two Shinobi World Wars were being taken in and growing up. In the past two years, Konoha's orphanages had also taken in many homeless children.

Many institutions and organizations with a certain degree of autonomy within the village like to select some usable personnel from orphanages. Even some small and medium-sized ninja clans like to "hire" some teenagers, train them, and turn them into help.

During this period, almost every month a group of children, more or less, entered Konoha Village under various pretexts. Minato Namikaze mistakenly thought that the teenagers in front of him were in a similar situation.

"A visit is fine, but don't arouse suspicion from the surrounding residents. You are all quite familiar with the ninja clan members in the area, so you need to explain things clearly to these newcomers who are unfamiliar with the village's rules. By the way, there seems to be some personnel change at the orphanage. I heard that Elder Danzo has been there a few times..."

"You're talking about Yakushi Nonou, right? We don't know much about adults' affairs, you can ask her yourself..."

"Understood! I have other things to do, so I won't ask any more questions..."

The fact that he can say that name proves that he is indeed one of their own; otherwise, no one would know what Minato Namikaze was testing.

Just as Minato Namikaze was about to leave, he suddenly saw a boy looking at him with complicated emotions. The boy's bright blond hair looked so much like his own when he was a child, and even his face shape was somewhat similar.

"How should I address you? If I weren't certain I didn't know you, I would have thought you were a long-lost relative of mine!"

"My name is Naruto..."

"Do you remember your last name?"

Thinking the other person was a war orphan, Minato Namikaze asked in a friendly manner, not knowing where this sudden concern came from.

"swirl……"

“Eh? My wife also has the surname Uzumaki, that’s… quite rare. She’s very likely a distant relative. However… blonde hair, not red, it’s hard to say, after all these years, the remnants of the Land of Whirlpools are very rare…”

More than a decade ago, Konoha Village had made a serious search for them, but unfortunately, the valuable members of the Uzumaki clan were divided up by several major ninja villages, and the rest either died or fled, hiding their identities and wandering in all directions, making it virtually impossible to find them again.

"Once you've settled in, you can come visit me. We haven't heard from anyone back home in a long time. My wife might be very happy if you come..."

"Yes! Thank you..."

Wanting to say more, but not knowing where to begin, Naruto Uzumaki felt a mix of emotions upon realizing that the person in front of him was very likely his father, whom he had never met.

If he hadn't been concerned that talking too much would affect the plan to save the "lustful immortal," he might have already lost control.

After exchanging a few more pleasantries, Minato Namikaze, who had only come temporarily, left. Whether it was just a casual visit or a whim, the encounter was over.

Once peace returned, Nara Shikamaru comforted Uzumaki Naruto:

"You...know he is..."

Naruto Uzumaki shook his head and said:

I shouldn't have known!

"All right!"

To be honest, Naruto Uzumaki is just carefree, not stupid. He can think things through on his own, but without evidence or solid proof, there's no need for him to shout it from the rooftops.

Having barely shaken off the title of "monster," the Fourth Hokage, the "perfect Hokage" in the hearts of most Konoha villagers, is not someone Naruto Uzumaki can "troll."

"The most urgent task is to find a breakthrough as soon as possible to wake up the 'lustful immortal.' As for here..."

That "big brother" did fulfill all of his father's expectations when he was a child, but in the end, it wasn't real; it was just a projection of Jiraiya's dream space.