Chapter 297: Hiruzen Sarutobi’s Methods

"Damn it!"

Boom!

The immense chakra within Tsunade erupted violently, instantly shattering the illusion. All the scenes around them collapsed into nothingness.

Breathing heavily, Tsunade struggled to calm the turbulent emotions in her heart before looking at Uchiha Ren.

"That blond kid… is he Kushina's child?"

Ren nodded.

"That's right. That child is indeed the son of Minato and Kushina."

After a pause, he added quietly:

"Minato and Kushina entrusted everything to Hiruzen Sarutobi. They hoped their son—Uzumaki Naruto—would grow up as the child of a hero, receiving the village's care and protection."

"Unfortunately… reality turned out to be the complete opposite."

"Naruto?!" Jiraiya froze in shock.

"You said that child's name is Naruto?"

"Yes." Ren nodded again.

"You were actually the one who named him."

"Although it was just a name you casually came up with while eating ramen, you wrote it into one of your novels."

"Minato liked the name very much."

"So he gave it to his son."

Crack.

Jiraiya's fists tightened until his knuckles turned white.

His heart felt as if it were bleeding.

Now he understood why the future version of himself would become completely disillusioned with Hiruzen.

That was the orphaned son of his own disciple, Minato Namikaze!

At that moment, Orochimaru suddenly spoke.

"It seems the villagers don't know that Naruto is the Fourth Hokage's son."

"They only know that he's the Nine-Tails' jinchūriki."

"Is there a reason for that?"

Ren glanced at Jiraiya before explaining.

"Someone once asked Hiruzen the same question."

"His explanation was that the Fourth Hokage had many enemies, and revealing Naruto's identity might expose him to retaliation."

Jiraiya raised an eyebrow.

He opened his mouth to respond—

But no words came out.

On the surface, Hiruzen's explanation sounded reasonable.

But in reality, it didn't hold up.

Throughout the shinobi world, the identities of powerful figures' children were often public knowledge.

Sarutobi Shinnosuke and Sarutobi Asuma, sons of the Third HokageTsunade, granddaughter of Hashirama SenjuA, son of the Third RaikageKitsuchi, son of Ōnoki, the Third Tsuchikage

These were all widely known.

The children of a Kage might face greater risks—

But they also received far greater protection and resources.

And if someone dared assassinate a Kage's child within their own village, it would be the greatest humiliation imaginable.

The village would retaliate with overwhelming vengeance.

Under those circumstances, the likelihood of such attacks was extremely low.

Moreover—

Even if Naruto's identity had to remain hidden for safety, there was no reason to hide his treatment.

Konoha was full of influential families.

Arranging a comfortable life for one child would have been effortless for Hiruzen.

The most ridiculous part was this:

From a strategic perspective, the Nine-Tails' jinchūriki was far more important than the child of a Hokage.

A Hokage's heir carried mostly symbolic significance.

But a tailed beast jinchūriki was literally a strategic weapon of the village.

If enemy villages had the opportunity, they would absolutely attempt to eliminate such a threat.

Yet somehow—

Naruto's identity as the Fourth Hokage's son was hidden perfectly.

But his identity as the Nine-Tails' host became known to everyone.

What kind of logic was that?

Ren continued calmly:

"Personally, I find that explanation completely ridiculous."

"The son of the Fourth Hokage couldn't even get enough food or proper clothing."

"He suffered from long-term malnutrition and was noticeably shorter than other children his age."

"Every day he endured cold stares and curses from the villagers."

"Meanwhile…"

"The Third Hokage's grandson, Konohamaru Sarutobi, enjoyed admiration from the villagers as the Hokage's beloved grandson."

"He even received one-on-one elite ninja tutoring."

Ren's voice dripped with sarcasm.

"So tell me…"

"Does the man who served as Hokage for only one year somehow have more enemies than the man who ruled the village for decades?"

"When you compare the two situations…"

"What kind of person Hiruzen Sarutobi really is becomes obvious."

His words carried naked mockery.

Both Tsunade and Jiraiya, as Hiruzen's students, couldn't help but blush with embarrassment.

"Wait!"

Suddenly Tsunade seemed to realize something.

She looked at Ren.

"Why would the old man do something like this?"

"He had no grudge against Minato."

"There was no reason for him to target Minato's son."

"And raising a child doesn't cost much money."

"No matter how greedy he is, he wouldn't be stingy over something like that."

Jiraiya also looked toward Ren, waiting for an answer.

After all—

Hiruzen had no apparent reason to harm Naruto.

Ren shook his head.

"You're both still too naïve."

"In truth, this all begins with Shimura Danzō."

"Danzō?!"

Tsunade and Jiraiya exchanged uneasy glances.

Whenever that name appeared—

Nothing good ever followed.

Ren continued:

"In Danzō's eyes, identity means nothing."

"He didn't care whose orphan Naruto was."

"To him, Naruto was simply the Nine-Tails' jinchūriki."

"So after Minato and Kushina died, Danzō proposed taking Naruto into Root."

"He wanted to train him into the ultimate human weapon."

Jiraiya and Tsunade clenched their fists simultaneously.

They wanted nothing more than to beat Danzō senseless.

"That damned Danzō! Nothing good ever happens around him!"

Ren ignored their anger and continued calmly.

"But Hiruzen rejected that proposal."

"He arranged for Naruto to be cared for by a caretaker."

"And when Naruto turned three years old, he allowed him to begin living independently."

Jiraiya frowned.

"At least the old man wasn't completely hopeless."

"But letting a three-year-old live alone…"

"Isn't that far too early?"

Ren waved his hand dismissively.

"Don't misunderstand."

"Hiruzen didn't reject Danzō's proposal because he thought it was wrong."

Jiraiya's eyes widened.

"What do you mean by that?"

Ren explained slowly:

"Once Naruto began living alone…"

"Rumors about the Nine-Tails demon fox suddenly spread throughout the village."

"And the rumors pointed directly at Naruto."

"So Naruto was isolated by the entire village."

"He lived every day surrounded by hunger, cold, and curses."

"And right at that moment…"

"The Third Hokage appeared beside him."

"As a kind, grandfatherly figure."

"He showed Naruto warmth and kindness."

"From that point on…"

"Hiruzen Sarutobi naturally became Naruto's only support."

"His only friend."

"His only elder."

"His only family."

Ren's gaze grew colder.

"Hiruzen's methods were far more sophisticated than Danzō's."

"The reason he rejected Danzō's plan…"

"Was simply because he didn't want the Nine-Tails jinchūriki—"

"Such a powerful weapon—"

"To fall into someone else's hands."

◇ BONUS & SUPPORT ◇

◇ 1 bonus chapter for every 10 reviews — drop a comment!

◇ 1 bonus chapter for every 100 Power Stones.

◇ Read 70+ chapters ahead on P@treon → /Sagamaster789