Chapter 113: Meeting Naruto

"Why?" Sasuke was puzzled. What did Natsuro mean by not refusing to help him?

"Because, if I run into him, you might not get the chance to take revenge yourself," Natsuro said with a confident smile.

Natsuro reflected on Itachi's abilities and felt that he had a natural advantage over him. With his god-like vision, he almost didn't need to open his eyes in battle, effectively countering visual-based genjutsu and sealing off the Sharingan's genjutsu techniques.

As for Itachi's trump cards, such as Susanoo, it was indeed a problem, but maintaining it consumed a massive amount of chakra. Natsuro had the Flying Thunder God Technique so he could outlast Susanoo. As for Amaterasu, it would be a different story if he could get close to Natsuro.

Then there were ninjutsu techniques. It would come down to whose techniques were stronger, and considering Itachi's chakra capacity…

Without the Sharingan, Itachi's strength would dramatically decrease, possibly even less than Kakashi's.

Natsuro thought he had the upper hand. It was a matter of wearing out Itachi—like how Itachi countered Orochimaru, Natsuro would counter him. But Itachi might have allies…

Natsuro considered Kisame Hoshigaki, who was often with Itachi. Kisame might be even more challenging for him, potentially beyond his current capabilities.

Sasuke was stunned by Natsuro's words. If it were in the past, he would have argued fiercely, but now… he strangely believed him.

Natsuro was somewhat surprised that Sasuke didn't refute him. Previously, Sasuke would have countered strongly. It seemed Sasuke's mindset had changed.

"I'll keep that in mind," Sasuke finally nodded, his eyes reflecting complexity.

"Good," Natsuro smiled. The original Sasuke had a tragic fate. After the night of the massacre, he had a difficult bond with Naruto, which was later ruined by Orochimaru, and then guided by his brother on what he believed was the 'right' path…

Now, many things might be unchangeable, but Natsuro hoped Sasuke would have a better future and contribute during the Fourth War.

"By the way, it's best if we don't stay here. This place can't handle your attacks anymore," Natsuro said, looking at the crater left by the explosions.

Sasuke glanced at the marks left by the exploding tags and nodded. Then, he suddenly turned and said, "Natsuro, could you come to my training field in the future?"

"Huh?" Natsuro paused, then smiled and nodded, "Sure."

"Then it's a promise!" Sasuke said, leaving without looking back, but Natsuro noticed a smile at the corner of his mouth.

"Wait a moment," Natsuro suddenly called out.

"Hm?" Sasuke turned back, puzzled.

"Here's something for you. Take good care of it." Natsuro tossed Sasuke what appeared to be an ordinary kunai.

Sasuke took it and felt that, although it looked like an ordinary kunai, it was much heavier and had some techniques inscribed on the handle.

"I'll keep it safe," Sasuke said, carefully placing the kunai into his pouch before leaving.

Natsuro watched Sasuke's retreating figure, thinking that Sasuke's experiences and gains today were probably beyond what he had in years…

With Sasuke's matter resolved, it was time to focus on Naruto.

Natsuro sighed, considering that Naruto's situation was actually more troublesome than Sasuke's. To help him, he needed to consult the Third Hokage. Adjusting the sealing techniques could be done discreetly, but what he was about to do could not be hidden.

He needed to gain the Third Hokage's consent first. However, it shouldn't be too difficult. The Third Hokage had seen Naruto using the Nine-Tails' power and, at that time, seemed surprised but not overly concerned.

Perhaps he hadn't had the chance to worry yet…

Natsuro tapped his forehead. If he could be certain of being able to suppress Kaguya Otsutsuki with one hand in the future, he wouldn't need to do this. Unfortunately, he wasn't sure, and it seemed unlikely, so helping Naruto and Sasuke was the right choice.

Although it wasn't necessary by the original plot, Natsuro still wanted to change something.

Thinking about the later stages and the powerful enemies, Natsuro shook his head. It was still a long way off, and he didn't know how much he could grow. No need to worry about it yet.

With that thought, he set off toward the Hokage's office.

...

In fact, persuading the Third Hokage wasn't too difficult.

Natsuro first explained his intentions to the Third Hokage and then began the detailed explanation and proof in the Hokage's serious gaze.

He explained that what Konoha needed wasn't a Nine-Tails jinchūriki who could go berserk at any moment, but a jinchūriki who could control the Nine-Tails' power. He cited the examples of the previous Nine-Tails jinchūriki, Mito Uzumaki and Kushina Uzumaki.

Neither Mito nor Kushina had been jinchūriki who could go berserk at any time. The Third Hokage understood this, but he was concerned that Naruto was still too weak. If Naruto were stronger, the Third Hokage would be more willing to let him gradually learn to control the Nine-Tails' power, ideally under Jiraiya's guidance.

This was expected by Natsuro. After all, a Hokage, especially one who had witnessed the era of Mito Uzumaki, would understand these principles. It was just that with the sudden death, many things hadn't been properly arranged.

Once the Third Hokage's position was confirmed, proving Natsuro's capabilities was relatively simple.

He first demonstrated his sealing techniques, using the Eight Trigrams Seal and the Four Symbols Seal. While not as good as the Fourth Hokage, his skills were sufficient to prove he could reseal the Nine-Tails if it went berserk, provided the original seal was still in place.

Next, Natsuro requested to leave his Flying Thunder God mark and pre-sealing techniques on Naruto. This way, if Naruto went berserk, he would be able to approach him immediately and reseal the Nine-Tails.

After he finished explaining his plan, the Third Hokage pondered deeply for a long time, considering the feasibility of the proposal, before finally agreeing.

As Natsuro said, having Naruto master the Nine-Tails' power early would be beneficial for Konoha, not only adding strength but also reducing potential threats.

Most importantly, the Third Hokage trusted Natsuro's abilities, which was crucial.

Indeed, with Natsuro having mastered the Eight Trigrams Seal, the Four Symbols Seal, and possessing the Flying Thunder God Technique, leaving a mark on Naruto would be sufficiently secure as long as the original seal wasn't completely lifted.

The Third Hokage was most reassured that Natsuro approached the problem from Konoha's perspective. However, he advised he to be careful not to reveal too much.

Natsuro acknowledged this, knowing that while the Third Hokage might agree, others, especially Danzo, would not.

In Danzo's view, a method that was slow and risky was too troublesome. He would prefer to take direct control and tame the Nine-Tails himself.

Natsuro felt that the other advisors would likely agree too, as the plan he proposed was very solid. Failure would mean returning to the old ways, but success would be a significant improvement, so the likelihood of agreement was high.

..

On the agreed day, he arrived at the familiar house.

"Natsuro, welcome!" Naruto's eyes lit up. "You finally came! I've been waiting for you. You said you'd teach me how to use the Shadow Clone Technique for training!"

"Hmm, don't be so impatient. There's plenty of time," Natsuro said.

"Yeah…" Naruto thought about it and stopped pestering him. He could still sense the cold aura around him, though it was much less than before.

Naruto couldn't help but share his recent exam experience with Natsuro. He almost got eliminated but managed to pass the test administered by the very late teacher.

Natsuro listened quietly and nodded. Both Sasuke and Naruto were now stronger than in the original story. Sasuke was already diligent in the original, and now with the additional tomoe, he had become even stronger.

Naruto, on the other hand, was much stronger than in the original. His stamina likely astonished even Kakashi, though Kakashi wouldn't have much trouble given the strength disparity.

"So, Natsuro, what's the method for using the Shadow Clone Technique?" Naruto finally asked, unable to hold back any longer.

"Well, when I arrived, I left a note at the door with some content on it. Now you make a shadow clone, get it to memorize what's on the note, and then dismiss the clone to see what happens," Natsuro explained. Trying to explain verbally would be too troublesome, as he had found out from past experiences attempting to teach Naruto Natheoretical knowledge.

Instead of memorizing with his brain, Naruto was better off learning through practice.

"What's the use of this?" Naruto asked, puzzled, but he still created a shadow clone to follow Natsuro's instructions.

As Naruto worked on it, Natsuro leaned back in his chair and waited.

Soon, he saw Naruto's face turn red as he glared at him.

"Natsuro! I didn't voluntarily kiss that arrogant guy!!"

Natsuro grinned and said, "I took a photo, you know~"

Naruto's eyes widened in shock.

"Forget that for now, haven't you realized how you knew the information on the note? You haven't actually seen it yourself as you are aware" Natsuro said with a smile.

Naruto was stunned. How did he know without having seen the note?

Slowly, Naruto's eyes lit up...

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