Konoha, Hokage Tower
Inside the Hokage Tower, the air was thick with tension.
"Hiruzen, you must hand over the Jinchuriki," Danzo Shimura stated, his one visible eye fixed unwaveringly on the Third Hokage. The ownership of Naruto Uzumaki was, once again, the point of contention.
"Absolutely not, Danzo," Hiruzen countered, his voice firm. "The boy will not be turned over to Root."
"Do you doubt my ability to control him? To mold him into the perfect weapon for Konoha?" Danzo pressed, leaning forward slightly, his posture radiating coiled intensity.
"No," Hiruzen sighed, meeting Danzo's gaze squarely. "It's precisely because I know what you're capable of." Decades of rivalry and reluctant alliance had taught him exactly how far his old friend would go for power. Danzo craved the Hokage title, and the Jinchuriki was a potent means to that end.
This wasn't the first time Danzo had made this demand. Hiruzen didn't doubt Danzo could turn Naruto into an emotionless tool, just like the agents under his command. But giving Danzo control over the Nine-Tails, the strongest of the tailed beasts, was tantamount to handing him the keys to the village itself.
"I've allowed you leeway with members of the Yamanaka and Aburame clans for your... training initiatives," Hiruzen conceded, his tone hardening. "But the Jinchuriki is off-limits. Don't ask again." He paused, drawing on his pipe. "He needs to grow, to understand the Will of Fire."
"The Will of Fire..." Danzo scoffed, disdain twisting his lips. He opened his mouth to argue further, but stopped as two figures flickered into existence simultaneously.
One flickered before Hiruzen, clad in the standard Anbu gear bearing the Hokage's direct command sigil. The other appeared before Danzo, wearing the subtly different, blank-masked uniform of Root. They whispered urgent reports to their respective masters.
Danzo's visible eye widened almost imperceptibly as he listened. Before he could react, Hiruzen slammed his hand down on the desk.
"Let's discuss something more important Danzo! So you have met with couple of my Anbu members and tried to spy on my guards," The Third Hokage's voice was low, trembling with fury. His usually calm eyes were narrowed into dangerous slits. "You dared interfere with my Anbu? And manipulated the villagers again... after what happened last time? After what you promised me? Did you forget my warning?" He took a deep, steadying breath, the anger barely contained. "How dare you!?"
His voice regained its iron authority. "Effective immediately, Elder Danzo requires a period of... rest. For health reasons." He paused, letting the weight of his words sink in. "Konoha's Root division is hereby sealed, pending review."
"Hiruzen, you can't!" Danzo shot to his feet, his face contorted. "Everything I do is for Konoha's strength! The Jinchuriki's potential can only be fully realized under my methods! Ninja are tools-emotions are weaknesses!"
"I said," Hiruzen cut him off, his voice leaving no room for argument, "Root is sealed. And you are confined to your residence. Or have you forgotten who the Hokage is?"
"You will regret this, Hiruzen," Danzo snarled, his face a mask of fury. He turned sharply and stormed out of the office, leaving a heavy silence in his wake. Once again, the issue of Naruto had driven a wedge between them.
'Damn Hiruzen... Damn Uchiha...' Danzo seethed inwardly as he stalked through the halls. 'The Jinchuriki will be mine.'
---
Meanwhile, far from the political storms brewing in the Hokage Tower, Naruto sat peacefully on the grassy outskirts of the Forest of Death, his usual training spot.
"Ki," Goku's voice resonated calmly in his mind. "It's the energy inside everything. The life force sleeping in all things."
"Humans, animals, plants... even rocks and water, in a way. If it exists, it has Ki."
"You can't see it, not usually. But it's there. Feel it."
"Quiet your mind, kid. Focus inward. Sense that flow, that power flowing deep inside you and everything around you."
"Now... gently... guide it."
Naruto sat cross-legged on the grass, eyes closed, following Goku's instructions.
Goku's instructions were simple, perhaps overly so. If Naruto had only the words to go by, he might never have grasped it. But having Goku within the seal was different. Goku could sense Naruto's internal energy directly, guiding his awareness towards the feeling, nudging him in the right direction.
Naruto sat cross-legged, eyes closed, sinking into the meditation state Goku had taught him. Mind empty. Distractions fading. Just stillness, and the quiet instruction echoing within. He focused solely on that inner search, feeling his way through sensation and intuition.
Time stretched, unmarked. The sun climbed, arced, and dipped below the trees. Days blurred into one another.
Naruto remained motionless, his breathing slow and even, like an old monk lost in contemplation. He seemed both present and absent, blending into the sounds and stillness of the forest edge.
"Captain?" An Anbu operative perched silently in a nearby tree, wearing an owl mask, murmured to his partner. "The target hasn't moved in days. Should we report anything?" He gestured towards Naruto's still form.
The Anbu captain, wearing a fox mask, shook his head slightly. "No abnormalities observed. Standard procedure is to monitor unless there's immediate danger or deviation." He paused. "And his name is Naruto Uzumaki."
"Yes, Captain."
The fox-masked captain continued watching the boy. 'Sensei's son...' he thought silently. 'There's definitely something extraordinary about him.' This was a new Anbu team assigned to Naruto following the incident on the main street, they had no ties to the previous watchers. Who were made to take 'extra training', Anbu weren't meant to have opinions, if they failed again then they would be 'retired'. Peaceful retirement is only allowed for those Anbu who successfully complete missions.
A few small birds, emboldened by Naruto's stillness, chirped and fluttered down, landing tentatively on his shoulders. Naruto didn't react. The birds seemed to accept him as part of the landscape. One even briefly considered his spiky blond hair as a potential nesting site before apparently deciding it lacked structural integrity.
The sun finally vanished, replaced by a sliver of moon hanging in the darkening sky.
Slowly, Naruto opened his eyes. For a moment, his gaze seemed distant, ethereal, holding a clarity untouched by the world. Then, a spark ignited within them, a flicker of understanding, and his focus sharpened.
He looked down at his own hands, flexing his fingers, a look of profound disbelief spreading across his face.
'I felt it,' he whispered, his voice rough from disuse. 'Is this... Ki?'
A faint, warm current hummed beneath his skin, a feeling entirely new yet somehow familiar, controllable. He could direct it, shift it, almost as easily as flexing a muscle.
"Incredible," Goku's voice held genuine surprise. "To grasp it this quickly... Took me ages to get the hang of Ki back at Kami's Lookout." A familiar note of complaint crept in. "Seems you've got a real knack for this Ki stuff, little guy. If only your physical training showed the same talent." He sounded almost eager. "Maybe fighting you will be interesting someday after all."
Naruto knew Goku wasn't exaggerating. Mastering Ki had taken Goku years, and even prodigies like Vegeta had struggled initially. For Naruto to sense and manipulate it, even crudely, within a week... it was astounding.
"Guess everyone's got their own talents," Naruto muttered, stretching stiffly. 'I wish the seal would pass on, Saiyan genes too... Sadly, it is made for Kurama and I don't think I am getting anything from Goku. Wait… Some of Sensei's Ki is leaking through! That's why I had easier time sensing Ki!' he added silently.
*RUMBLE...*
Just as he stood up, intending to shake out his cramped muscles, his stomach let out a deafening roar. A wave of profound exhaustion washed over him.
"Whoa... How long was I out here?" He felt utterly drained, and ravenous. "I'm starving..."
"Let's see... one... two... six... four... about seven days, give or take," Goku calculated, managing to get the number right despite mixing up the order.
Naruto groaned. "Seven days? No wonder. I feel like I could eat a whole cow."
"Just one?" Goku sounded genuinely unimpressed. "Your appetite's still pretty weak, little guy."
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