(Naruto - Age 4)
"Naruto, I cannot allow you to attend the ninja academy."
Naruto's face crumpled with confusion.
"Why not?"
Hiruzen ruffled Naruto's hair.
"I'm sorry, Naruto. Maybe I can let you join someday soon—but not today."
---
Naruto shuffled along aimlessly.
Suddenly, he turned around and saw a man whose head and one eye were wrapped in bandages, his right arm bound in a cloth sling.
He came to a stop beside Naruto.
"Grandpa won't let me become a ninja. I don't know why..."
"Do you really want to be a ninja?"
Naruto beamed a bright smile.
"I want to become the strongest ninja in history!"
A faint smirk tugged at the man's lips.
"I can train you to become an elite ninja."
Naruto excitedly grabbed the man.
"Thank you, thank you! Can I really become a ninja?"
The man pushed Naruto away.
"Kid, the first rule of being a ninja is to never show your emotions."
Naruto lowered his head and nodded.
"Yeah... I don't even know your name..."
The man turned around, gesturing for Naruto to follow.
"You may call me Danzo."
---
**(Naruto - Age 7)**
An unknown boy crashed heavily onto the ground, groaning, blood all over his face. Standing above him was a blond boy who exhaled in relief—the fight was finally over.
The blond boy slowly stood up, sighed, then reached behind his mouth and pulled out a molar tooth before tossing it onto the floor. This wasn't the first time he'd lost a tooth here—it always grew back.
As he walked into the hall, he met their instructor.
"Hey, Grandpa Danzo… good to see you."
Danzo smiled slightly and gestured for Naruto to walk with him.
"I have a mission for you. This time, it's solo."
They weren't especially close. Naruto understood all too well that Danzo saw him only as a tool—a weapon to protect Konoha.
"This mission would be suicide for anyone else. Even for you, I believe it will be challenging."
Danzo led Naruto to the armory.
"You will infiltrate the Land of Rice. Reports say a new village is emerging."
Naruto quickly suited up in gear resembling Anbu armor and fastened his chest plate.
"Understood, Lord Danzo."
Danzo continued.
"You must locate this village and report everything you discover back to me."
"Understood, Lord Danzo."
**(One Year Later – Border between the Land of Fire and Land of Rice)**
An explosion caught Jiraiya's attention.
Jiraiya immediately gave chase to a shadowy figure emerging from the smoke. He hid within the shadows of trees, speeding forward until he found the ninja motionless on the ground, utterly exhausted.
Looking down at the blond boy, Jiraiya muttered.
"...So young, already out on missions like this..."
Jiraiya didn't touch the boy's mask. He saw the leaf insignia upon it.
He lifted the boy into his arms and made his way toward Konoha.
Jiraiya laid the boy down in Sarutobi's office and ordered the Anbu to leave.
"Teacher Sarutobi, while investigating Otogakure, I found this blond-haired kid."
"I haven't sent anyone to the Land of Rice. This Anbu isn't under my command. I would never allow a child this young into ANBU ranks—not after Itachi."
Sarutobi stood up and walked toward the masked boy. He squinted at the kanji mark beside the Konoha symbol on the boy's forehead protector:
"Danzo... again?"
Sarutobi bent down and removed the mask.
The sight nearly stopped his heart.
"Naruto Uzumaki!"
Jiraiya rushed over and looked down at the boy:
"Sweet mother of pearl! He looks just like Minato! Wait... Sarutobi, is this Minato's child?"
Sarutobi exhaled and composed himself slightly:
"Yes, Jiraiya. This is his child. It must've been Danzo who took him."
Jiraiya's face darkened with rage.
"Danzo turned Minato Namikaze's son into a killing machine. I'll..."
"Jiraiya, wait! The council wants him to undergo Danzo's training. If this leaks, they'll take his side. You and I are the only ones who know about this."
"They won't talk—they're all branded with seals."
Sarutobi nodded:
"I know. Then instead of using him to get close to Danzo, why don't we remove him entirely?"
Seeing Jiraiya's confusion, he explained further:
"Danzo won't make any moves to retrieve him, no matter how valuable the jinchuriki is to him. All we need to do is monitor and seal Naruto."
Jiraiya nodded in agreement:
"A memory seal? Chakra seal? What exactly should we seal?"
"Seal *everything*."
Jiraiya's eyes widened.
Sarutobi stood up:
"His mind and body have been conditioned for combat by Danzo. Since he was able to take on missions already, he must be jonin-level already. Seal everything. If we only seal his memories, he'll still be far stronger than other students. Even without all his techniques and memories, with just academy-level skills alone, he could easily kill any other student."
"So what do you plan to do?"
Sarutobi picked up the boy:
"I'll enroll him in the academy. I'm undermining the council's influence."
Jiraiya followed Sarutobi downstairs to begin sealing the blond boy.
[Ninja Art: Shadow Clone Technique!]
[Memory Sealing Jutsu]
[Chakra Sealing Seal]
**(Four years later)**
Iruka wore a startled expression. Naruto Uzumaki—from his class. He had just witnessed this bottom-of-the-class student summon an almost endless army of shadow clones and defeat Mizuki.
Naruto stood beside the groaning, defeated Mizuki, beaming sheepishly at Iruka:
"Heh... Did I maybe go a bit too far?"
Iruka smiled and called Naruto over:
"I have something for you, Naruto. Close your eyes."
Naruto obeyed, feeling the forehead protector settle across his brow.
"Okay, now open your eyes."
"Congratulations, Naruto. You've graduated!"
---
**(Six Months Later — Konoha Under Attack)**
Naruto groaned, clutching his side, and sat up, staring at the manic Sand ninja.
Gaara bared his teeth in a feral grin:
"You're still weak, Naruto!"
Sasuke looked worse off than Naruto. Black markings had spread across the right side of his body.
"Run, Naruto! Take Sakura and get out of here. I'll handle this guy."
Naruto glanced toward Sakura, pinned against a tree trunk by Gaara's sand.
He stood, wiping blood from his lips. Looking down at Sasuke he said,
"Don't worry, Sasuke. I'm not gonna lose."
Naruto quickly formed several hand seals and slammed his palm onto the branch. In a puff of smoke, a small orange frog appeared.
"Hey! I'm Gamakichi! Got any candy?"
Naruto scowled.
"What's wrong with you stupid frogs? I never get anyone useful!"
The little frog hopped onto Naruto's head and blew a kiss.
"Don't you like me?"
Gaara had seen enough of this.
[Sunagakure Shuriken]!
Naruto threw himself in front of Gamakichi. He flew backward and crashed into a branch. Gamakichi watched him with concern.
Gaara mocked him.
"See now, Naruto! You only get truly strong when you fight for yourself! Leave your friends behind and run!"
Naruto silently set Gamakichi down and turned to face Gaara.
Gaara launched another wave of shuriken that struck Naruto directly, sending him flying.
Naruto immediately stood back up.
"What is this feeling? I feel stronger... like it doesn't hurt at all..."
Suddenly, a surge of blue chakra erupted from Naruto's body, and he fell to the ground clutching his head, howling in pain.
---
[Mind World]
The Nine-Tails growled in boredom.
Ever since Naruto's memories and abilities were sealed away, there hadn't been much action.
It crept slowly from its cage, careful not to trigger the Four Symbols Seal.
It gave an evil grin.
"Welcome back, kid…"
---
Naruto suddenly stood up, glancing around. He clenched his fists and stretched his legs.
He looked like a completely different person. He stared at Gaara calmly—without fear, anger, interest, or any other emotion.
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