Naruto: The Strongest Suiton User

Chapter 11: The Secret of the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox

Late at night.

The brilliant starlight cast a faint glow over Konoha after dark. Without the hustle and bustle of a city, the perfectly silent Konoha was more like a large, quiet village at this moment. Only the occasional meow or bark could be heard, along with the footsteps of ninja with less-than-perfect Body Flicker skills shuttling across the rooftops.

Sakura lay on her bed, staring blankly at the crescent moon outside her window.

She was having a little trouble sleeping.

At this time, according to the original plot, Naruto should have already gotten his hands on the Scroll of Seals, right? The Hokage really worked hard to deliver the scroll to Naruto, even pretending to be defeated by the Sexy Jutsu.

Next up, after defeating Mizuki, will be the great, heartfelt confession between Iruka and Naruto. Sakura felt a little itch of curiosity; it was a real shame she couldn't be there in person to watch. And the ninjutsu recorded in the Scroll of Seals also made Sakura a little expectant. However, Sakura knew very well that she could only stay at home. Taking a stroll outside at night during this sensitive time would probably land her on the Anbu's surveillance blacklist.

As a fresh academy graduate who couldn't remember the night patrol routes and didn't have a concealment jutsu that could hide her presence and make her seem like a rock, no matter how alluring the Scroll of Seals was, Sakura didn't dare to get interested...

However, some things have a way of finding you the more you try to avoid them.

Thump! Iruka-sensei, dressed in a black ninja outfit, suddenly appeared on Sakura's windowsill, giving her a fright. She quickly scrambled out of bed.

"Eh?! Iruka-sensei?!"

"Great, Sakura, you're not asleep! Don't change your clothes, that'll do! We'll talk on the way!"

Iruka-sensei grabbed Sakura, who was still in her pajamas, with one hand and said as he leaped out the window.

You don't have to say anything, I know everything perfectly well, Sakura complained silently in her heart. At this moment, however, she had no choice but to go out in her pink polka-dot pajamas. The impatient Iruka had dragged her out without even letting her put on slippers. Now, Sakura had to use her chakra-infused water to form pads under her small, bare feet to serve as shoes. This method of movement was much faster than ordinary leaping.

The whole world isn't in a hurry, only you are. Sakura grumbled under her breath as she followed Iruka-sensei, leaping across the rooftops. Luckily, Iruka didn't hear her.

But going out barefoot... Sakura felt a strange feeling in her heart, as if she had lost a great deal of her dignity.

Wait, running around barefoot like this... aren't I just a kunoichi wild child?

Iruka didn't hear her internal monologue and was still leading the way while explaining, "...In short, we have to find Naruto as fast as possible right now. So, do you know where he's most likely to be?"

Got it. You guys can't find him, so you're starting to investigate the suspect's social connections one by one! Sakura, still in a state of internal complaint, almost let those words slip out.

"Understood. Hmm... the place Naruto is most likely to be is a small forest where we often go to train. But it's also very large, so we'll have to search for his specific location."

The two of them soon arrived in front of a forest outside the village that stretched as far as the eye could see.

"Is this the 'small' forest you were talking about?" Looking at the area Sakura was gesturing to, Iruka said through gritted teeth, putting special emphasis on the word "small." "Whatever, we'll split up and search. Fire a signal immediately if you find him!"

"Okay, Sensei, please be careful!"

"You too! If you can't find him, regroup here! Move out!"

Sakura immediately began searching to the north, while Iruka turned and headed south. The moment he turned, Sakura's fingers twitched slightly, and a small ball of water quietly attached itself to the back of Iruka's neck. Don't underestimate its small amount; that was the ultrapure water Sakura had painstakingly created. In the past year, Sakura had only produced that little bit. In order to protect Iruka and watch the show, she had used up a small half of her entire stock.

In truth, Sakura could already sense Naruto's chakra. That familiar and enormous chakra source was as clear as a bright lamp in the night to Sakura, who was very sensitive to chakra.

But as a spectator, not an actor, I can't interfere with the script! Iruka's sincere acknowledgment is also very important for Naruto. Let the plot unfold smoothly.

Sakura was nonchalantly searching the empty little forest when she suddenly felt a faint, almost imperceptible sensation of being watched. Sakura's mind tensed. There was no one around here. Who was watching? It must be the Third Hokage's Telescope Jutsu!

Sensing that she had caught the Hokage's attention, Sakura had no choice but to abandon her plan of blatantly slacking off and sent out a shadow clone to speed up the search.

A short while later, in another part of the forest.

"Naruto, give me the scroll! It's useless in your hands... Let me tell you the truth!" Mizuki, who had just defeated Iruka, was spouting nonsense at Naruto.

"—Twelve years ago, a nine-tailed demon fox attacked the village... Many people were sacrificed to seal the demon fox away. Do you know what it was sealed into? Do you know about the unwritten rule in the village?"

Sakura arrived just in time to hear this part after finishing her search of the northern area.

She landed silently behind Mizuki and gestured for Naruto not to make a sound, then quietly closed in on Mizuki's back.

"And that is... the rule that we must never mention that you are the demon fox!" Mizuki, still excitedly spreading his lies, had no idea that Sakura had already gotten behind him.

"Since when do I know about this bullshit rule?!" Sakura kicked Mizuki from behind, sending him flying!

"Sakura! Y-you, when did you get here?" Iruka, lying injured on the ground, asked in a bit of a panic, afraid that his student had been affected by Mizuki's words.

Sakura gave Iruka a sidelong glance. You should worry about yourself first. Although no vital spots were hit, are you really okay after losing so much blood?

But Naruto seemed to believe it a little. To the villagers, the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki and the Nine-Tails were one and the same, and their attitude lent some credibility to Mizuki's words.

Sakura frowned and said impatiently, "Naruto, don't listen to his nonsense!"

"Haha! Naruto, you know best in your heart whether I'm talking nonsense or not! Aren't you curious? Why does everyone hate you? Because you are the one who killed Iruka's parents, destroyed our village, and was sealed by the Hokage you admire most—the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox!"

Mizuki, lying on the ground like a defeated dog, laughed maniacally!

"Don't say any more!" Iruka shouted in pain. Although what Mizuki said was problematic, it was true that Naruto had always been treated as the Nine-Tails and hated by the villagers. This bloody fact was something he couldn't refute!

"You don't get it at all, do you? The truth is, Iruka... he hates you to death! And Haruno Sakura, now that she knows your identity, can't possibly be your friend anymore!"

"Sakura! Iruka-sensei!" Naruto's eyes were filled with a confusion that couldn't accept the explosive news!

Taking this opportunity, Mizuki threw a giant shuriken at Naruto!

Thunk! It was the sound of metal piercing flesh! Iruka, who had been lying on the ground, summoned strength from nowhere, struggled to his feet, and blocked the shuriken with his own body!

Blood splattered everywhere, drenching Naruto.

"Uzumaki Naruto is an excellent student whom I acknowledge, not the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox you speak of!" Iruka said through gritted teeth, word by word!

From Naruto's perspective, Iruka, who had risked his life to stand in front of him, had a hunched back that suddenly seemed so tall. The confusion in his eyes vanished, and his heart, which had been full of cracks, felt as if it were being warmly enveloped by something.

And on the other side—

"I say, that stinky mouth of yours, what world's fantasy are you spouting!?" Sakura rushed forward in an instant, delivering a full-power uppercut that sent the completely defenseless Mizuki flying into the air—

"Uzumaki Naruto is a friend I acknowledge—"

Stepping on the chakra-water at the soles of her feet, Sakura shot upwards after him—

"To think you'd call him the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox—"

Turning her body sideways, she delivered a whip kick. The air itself seemed to whistle faintly under the force of the blow as it struck Mizuki's body—

"Let my right hand shatter that ridiculous fantasy of yours!"

Mizuki fell to the ground, half-dead.

"Naruto." Landing on the ground, Sakura said with her back to him, without turning her head. Some things had to be made clear so that no resentment would remain.

"Twelve years ago, the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox wreaked havoc, and countless people lost their lives. In order to protect the village, Lord Fourth Hokage sacrificed his own life, using a baby's body as a prison to seal the demon fox inside."

"Lord Fourth Hokage and that baby are the heroes who saved everyone, including me and Iruka-sensei. Afterwards, as the price for using such a powerful sealing jutsu, Lord Fourth Hokage lost his life. And the baby, who had lost his parents, sealed the demon fox, yet was mistaken by the world as the incarnation of the demon fox and has grown up to this day."

"That baby from back then," Sakura turned around. By this point, Naruto already knew the answer. "is now my friend, and his name is—"

"U...zu...ma...ki... Na...ru...to!"

In that moment, Naruto's tears fell like rain.