Upon hearing that the Sealing Technique Scroll had been taken by Naruto, the first thought that came to Hiruzen Sarutobi was—*Could it have been under Aburame Shigeo's instructions?*
Such a thought wasn't entirely baseless.
After all, Shigeo had just returned to the village the day before, and now Naruto had stolen the Sealing Scroll. If this was merely a coincidence, it was far too coincidental to ignore.
Even so, Hiruzen refrained from jumping to conclusions before the facts were clear.
Since Naruto was still just a student at the Ninja Academy, Hiruzen called a meeting with the academy's teachers and informed them of the situation.
The news stirred up an uproar.
"Lord Hokage, we cannot dismiss this as mere mischief this time!"
"The Sealing Scroll contains dangerous techniques sealed away by the First Hokage. If misused…"
"If it were to leave the village, this could turn into a major crisis!"
Hiruzen nodded slightly, puffing on his pipe as he listened to their concerns.
"Understood. Go and bring Naruto back immediately!"
"Yes, Lord Hokage!"
With that, the teachers responded in unison and vanished using the Body Flicker Technique.
---
As Naruto's homeroom teacher, Iruka Umino was particularly anxious.
The loss of the Sealing Scroll was no trivial matter. To prevent Naruto from facing severe punishment, Iruka was determined to retrieve the scroll before anyone else.
He scoured the village high and low but found no trace of Naruto, forcing him to expand his search to the outskirts.
Thankfully, his perseverance paid off. Exhausted, Iruka finally found Naruto resting in a forest outside the village.
"Hey… Naruto!"
Calling out to him, Iruka's voice trembled, as did his entire body.
It was sheer exhaustion.
Naruto, spotting Iruka, awkwardly scratched the back of his head and gave a sheepish grin.
"Hehehe… You found me, huh? And I've only just learned one jutsu!"
*Practicing jutsu here?*
Iruka was taken aback. Before he could respond, Naruto beamed excitedly.
"Uh… Iruka-sensei! Let me show you this amazing jutsu! After you see it, you *have* to let me graduate, okay? If I master the scroll's jutsu, I'll definitely pass, right?"
During the previous graduation exam, Naruto had failed due to his poor Clone Technique performance.
Iruka never imagined that Naruto would go so far as to steal the Sealing Scroll just to graduate—and possibly under someone's influence! His eyes widened in shock.
"Who… Who told you to do this?"
"Of course, it was Mizuki-sensei!"
Naruto replied confidently, pointing to the massive scroll strapped to his back.
"The scroll's location and even this place… it was all Mizuki-sensei's idea!"
Before Naruto could finish speaking, the sound of kunai slicing through the air filled the forest.
Acting on instinct, Iruka shoved Naruto aside and intercepted the incoming kunai, dodging most of them but still taking a hit to his leg.
A familiar voice rang out from the trees.
"Didn't expect you to track him down here, Iruka."
Iruka winced in pain and looked up to see Mizuki perched on a branch, smirking.
"So that's how it is…" Iruka muttered, finally piecing everything together.
Ignoring Iruka, Mizuki turned to Naruto with a sinister tone.
"Naruto, hand over the scroll!"
"What… What's going on here?"
Naruto, confused and panicking, looked at Iruka for guidance, overwhelmed by the chaos.
Grimacing through the pain, Iruka pulled the kunai from his leg and glared at Mizuki.
"Naruto, no matter what, you must not hand over that scroll! It's sealed with forbidden techniques and is far too dangerous. Mizuki manipulated you to get his hands on it!"
Hearing this, Naruto's expression darkened, and he glared at Mizuki.
Mizuki, however, remained unfazed.
"Naruto, don't let him fool you. Iruka's just afraid of what you'll become if you use that scroll."
"What are you talking about, Mizuki?" Iruka retorted, clutching his wounded leg and shouting at Naruto. "Don't believe him, Naruto!"
---
Naruto was frozen in place, overwhelmed and unsure of whom to trust.
Mizuki seized the moment to drop a devastating truth.
"Let me tell you the real reason, Naruto. Twelve years ago, after *that* incident, the village established a rule—a rule meant to hide a secret from you, Uzumaki Naruto…"
Naruto's eyes widened in disbelief. "A rule… just for me? What kind of secret?"
"Stop, Mizuki!" Iruka roared, desperate to silence him.
But Mizuki pressed on, his voice dripping with hatred.
"The rule is this: no one is allowed to tell you that your true identity is the Nine-Tailed Fox. You, Naruto, are the monster that killed Iruka's parents and wreaked havoc on the village!"
---
Naruto froze in shock, his mind reeling from the revelation.
The weight of Mizuki's words crushed him, leaving him dazed and vulnerable.
Yet Mizuki wasn't finished.
"You've been lied to your whole life. Haven't you ever wondered why everyone hates you? No one will ever acknowledge you—not even Iruka. He despises you just like the rest of us!"
As he spoke, Mizuki drew a massive Fūma Shuriken and hurled it straight at Naruto.
"Now die, Naruto!"
Naruto collapsed to the ground in terror, his face pale as the enormous shuriken hurtled toward him.
"Naruto, get down!" Iruka shouted and shielded Naruto with his own body.
But the expected pain never came.
Confused, Iruka turned to see a man in a red-hooded cloak and dark sunglasses standing behind him, holding Mizuki's shuriken.
"Shigeo-sama?" Iruka gasped. "Why are you here?"
"Because I'm the captain of the Konoha Military Police Force."
Aburame Shigeo smirked and snapped his fingers.
"Come out."
At his command, dozens of ninja in Konoha police uniforms emerged from the surrounding forest, surrounding Mizuki.
With a serious expression, Shigeo addressed Mizuki.
"Mizuki-sensei, under my authority as captain of the Konoha Military Police Force, you are hereby under arrest for theft of the Sealing Scroll, assaulting Iruka, and attempted murder of the Fourth Hokage's son, Uzumaki Naruto."
"What?!" Mizuki exclaimed in disbelief, pointing at Naruto. "He's the Nine-Tails, not the Fourth's son!"
"I'm under no obligation to explain anything to you," Shigeo replied coolly, adjusting his sunglasses.
"You have two choices: surrender and confess everything, or face immediate execution. Choose wisely."
---
*(Chapter End)*