Naruto: The Nine-Tails' Legacy

"'The Adventures of Princess Gale'?"

Naruto, Sasuke, and Hinata stared at the stack of videotapes Kakashi handed them before exchanging confused glances.

Kakashi casually explained:

"The objective of this mission is to escort the lead actress starring in the 'Adventures of Princess Gale' movie series safely to the Land of Snow so filming can continue."

"This commission actually came to Konoha quite some time ago, but various issues caused delays…"

"And…"

Kakashi scratched his cheek.

"The client currently isn't inside the village anymore. We'll need to travel for quite a while starting tomorrow."

"So while you still have free time today, watch the tapes first and familiarize yourselves with the client."

"Tomorrow morning, six o'clock."

"Meet at the village gate and prepare to depart."

The moment he finished speaking, Kakashi vanished through Body Flicker.

His movements looked incredibly agile.

Not remotely like someone injured.

Even the cane he used earlier to fake his injuries had vanished somewhere.

"Video tapes…"

Naruto blinked blankly.

"How are we supposed to watch these?"

This version of Naruto spent his childhood constantly training instead of wandering around Konoha.

As a result, he knew almost nothing about newer entertainment trends.

Thus, he could only look toward Hinata helplessly.

"Um…"

Hinata also looked completely lost.

"My family is pretty traditional. We don't really interact with these kinds of things…"

"Hmph."

Sasuke suddenly snorted.

Then he casually grabbed all the tapes before turning around confidently.

"Wait…"

Naruto looked surprised.

"Does your house have a video player?"

"Why would I own something like that?"

Sasuke shoved both hands into his pockets and glanced backward.

Without the medicine patches still stuck across his face, he'd probably look unbelievably cool right now.

"Kakashi-sensei said it's a movie."

"So we'll just go watch it at the cinema."

"That sounds expensive…"

Hinata's innocent question immediately made Naruto realize something was wrong.

Unfortunately—

Before he could stop her—

Sasuke already proudly puffed out his chest and shook a heavy money pouch.

"This contains the rent Naruto just paid me."

"More than enough."

"Dammit…"

This was probably one of the rare moments Naruto genuinely looked powerless and heartbroken before Sasuke.

"Naruto-kun…"

Hinata hurriedly pulled out her own hidden savings.

"I'll pay for your ticket—"

"Thanks, Hinata!"

Naruto instantly grabbed her tiny hands gratefully.

"When the mission rewards come in, I'll definitely pay you back!"

Naturally, that only made Hinata even happier.

... Originally, I was planning to pay for everyone myself.

Forget it.

I'll just secretly reserve an extra private room later.

Sasuke silently sighed inwardly.

He had no intention of ruining the atmosphere like some clueless idiot.

Meanwhile—

Elsewhere—

Kakashi had already returned to the Hokage's office, where the Third Hokage was waiting for him.

"The Land of Snow…"

Hiruzen slowly exhaled smoke from his pipe.

"Back when you were still in ANBU, you already submitted reports suggesting hidden forces there capable of threatening the Land of Fire."

"When that client originally approached Konoha, you claimed they intentionally concealed certain dangerous information about the Land of Snow."

"So based on your intelligence, the village temporarily shelved the mission."

The Third Hokage looked directly toward Kakashi.

"And now that you personally approached them…"

"They simply accepted?"

"Yes."

Kakashi nodded calmly.

"After all, for a fallen princess reduced to earning money through acting together with her attendants…"

"They don't really have better options."

"Honestly, even if I hadn't approached them first, I suspect they would've eventually returned to Konoha or another hidden village to request protection anyway."

The Third Hokage remained silent for a while.

Then he slowly stood and patted Kakashi's uninjured shoulder.

"Handle things however you think is best."

"I trust your judgment."

"Yes."

Ever since the Kirigakure incident, Kakashi had clearly sensed the Third Hokage's trust toward him reaching astonishing levels.

Of course, Hiruzen trusted him before too.

But this felt completely different.

Now, Kakashi almost felt as though no matter what he chose to do—

As long as it didn't directly harm Konoha—

The Third Hokage would fully support him.

Even his earlier request to hand an A-rank mission's acceptance choice over to Naruto had been approved.

And Hiruzen was usually extremely conservative regarding rules.

It almost feels like the Third Hokage is projecting his expectations for someone else onto me…

Kakashi thought silently.

"There's one more matter."

Kakashi hesitated slightly before continuing.

"During this mission, I intend to observe Naruto Uzumaki's performance as thoroughly as possible."

"And if…"

Kakashi's visible eye sharpened.

"If his performance meets expectations…"

"I'd like to recommend him for a special promotion directly to Chūnin."

"With his current abilities, as long as his real combat performance proves excellent…"

"There's absolutely no reason for him to waste time remaining a Genin."

"..."

The Third Hokage fell silent.

Waste time.

Those words alone already explained everything.

As the youngest Chūnin in Konoha's history, Kakashi understood better than anyone that true leadership and tactical development for shinobi only began at Chūnin level.

Genin merely graduated after learning basic techniques at the Academy.

Chūnin, however, were chosen through public examinations and real evaluation.

The difference between the two—and their importance to the village—was obvious.

Since Naruto wished to become a Hokage surpassing all previous Hokage—

Then Kakashi, who once swore his vows before the Memorial Stone, would use the most reasonable methods possible to help Naruto walk that path.

The current Naruto deserved that much.

Still—

Both Kakashi and the Third Hokage shared the exact same thought internally.

Neither of them truly understood what Minato Namikaze left behind for Naruto to become this outstanding.

And if possible—

It would be best to keep Naruto hidden as Konoha's trump card for now.

Of course—

Neither of them could possibly imagine that the true key behind everything was actually Kurama himself.

"I'll make the final decision after reviewing the mission report."

Once the Third Hokage spoke those words, Kakashi quietly excused himself.

"Even an A-rank mission…"

Hiruzen slowly looked upward toward the portraits of previous Hokage hanging around the office after Kakashi left.

"And yet, in your judgment, Kakashi…"

"Current Naruto can already handle such missions without pressure…"

Eventually, the Third Hokage's gaze stopped upon the portrait of the handsome blond Fourth Hokage.

"Minato…"

"If it truly is you…"

"You chose to reveal yourself to Hiashi instead of me all these years…"

"Then in the end…"

Hiruzen quietly closed his eyes.

"You really were dissatisfied with me… weren't you?"

Meanwhile—

Two days later—

Within a small village not far from Konoha—

"I refuse!"

The female lead actress—still wearing her bloodstained costume and makeup from filming—glared furiously.

Although her voice still carried youthful traces, her expression radiated completely uncompromising determination.

Nearby, the director waiting for the scene to finish frowned slightly.

"Didn't we already agree to film the final battle scenes first?"

"Why are we suddenly changing plans and going to the Land of Snow?"

"I absolutely will not return to that place!"

"Yukie Fujikaze-sama…"

A crew member quickly explained nervously.

"Wasn't this proposal made by your manager and approved by you?"

"My manager?"

The actress playing Princess Gale—whose real name was Koyuki Kazahana—looked genuinely shocked.

"I never even heard him mention…"

"Where's Sandayū?!"

Asama Sandayū—

Koyuki's manager.

A refined middle-aged man wearing glasses.

At this exact moment, he stood outside smiling brightly while greeting Naruto's group, who had just arrived from Konoha to begin the escort mission.

"We've been waiting forever for you!"

"Come, come!"

"I'll explain how we're going to convince… ah no…"

Sandayū coughed awkwardly.

"I mean, persuade our princess to head toward the Land of Snow."

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