Naruto: Lost to Hinata on Purpose, and Now Everything's a Mess

Hearing what Riku said, Kakashi frowned. "Then we can only seal the curse mark, at best."

Riku glanced at him and replied calmly, "No, this kind of curse mark can't be sealed by conventional means. The seal draws from natural energy—chakra can't restrict it at all."

"At most, it can be suppressed. When Sasuke is calm, he can hold it back. But once his emotions flare up, or he uses too much chakra, it'll definitely reactivate."

"That said... if Sasuke can survive the influence of the curse mark, he could gain much greater power."

"However, when the curse mark activates, it causes intense pain and damages the body significantly. After all, it's driven by natural energy."

Natural energy and the human body are fundamentally incompatible unless one possesses the necessary spiritual fortitude and physical chakra to balance it out.

But achieving that balance would be akin to Sage Mode chakra—something incredibly difficult, and likely far beyond Sasuke's current abilities.

So Riku chose not to elaborate further.

Converting the natural energy in the curse mark into Sage Chakra carries immense risk. A single misstep could result in death.

Even the curse mark, created with Orochimaru's assistance, still causes searing pain from time to time. Attempting to refine that into Sage Chakra without proper mastery guarantees death.

Even Orochimaru himself hasn't mastered it.

Kakashi didn't fully grasp this concept—he barely understood what "natural energy" even meant.

Minato Namikaze had once mentioned it to him, but he hadn't paid it much mind at the time.

"In that case," Kakashi said, "we can only temporarily suppress the curse mark. At the very least, Sasuke needs to avoid using chakra recklessly like before, or he'll lose control entirely."

Riku nodded. "That's not a problem."

Meanwhile, the match in the arena had concluded. Kakashi looked at Gaara and frowned. "This guy's tactics are brutal."

Riku observed Lee lying on the ground and Guy rushing over to check on him. He commented calmly, "It can't be helped. As long as the match isn't officially stopped, anything goes. But Kakashi-sensei, don't you think the power he's using is a little... strange?"

Kakashi paused. He scrutinized Gaara for a while but didn't see anything particularly unusual. Sunagakure ninjas often used sand in combat.

Though none carried an entire gourd like Gaara.

Still, Riku didn't go into detail.

"I don't know what exactly it is," Riku continued. "But something about it feels... wrong. There's a terrifying force inside him. His sand is unnatural. I suspect it's a unique kekkei genkai or a secret clan technique."

Kakashi thought Riku might say more, but from his perspective, it wasn't unusual. As the son of the Fourth Kazekage, Gaara having a kekkei genkai or secret jutsu made perfect sense.

Riku, however, remained silent. Kakashi hadn't yet realized that Gaara was actually a Jinchūriki.

But Riku chose not to name it outright. He didn't want to alter the course of the Chūnin Exams in any way.

It was better to let things unfold as they should.

If Hiruzen were to fall during the invasion, Tsunade would likely become Hokage. That would be far easier for Riku to navigate than having Hiruzen remain in power.

At least under Tsunade, he wouldn't have to constantly be on guard.

Her leadership was more progressive—and less politically complicated.

So Riku had no interest in interfering with the exam's outcome.

The exams continued for another half day before drawing to a close. Everyone—except for Riku—had gone through intense battles and hard-fought victories.

Standing quietly in the crowd, Riku appeared unbothered. After the Third Hokage announced the schedule for the finals, his eyes lingered on Riku for a long moment.

Hiruzen was under a lot of pressure now. Orochimaru had resurfaced, and his true intentions were still unknown. It was highly likely that his plan would bring serious destruction to Konoha.

From Hiruzen's perspective, Riku's strength could become a crucial asset to the village.

Currently, Konoha had very few true Jōnin-level shinobi.

Besides Kakashi, there was Asuma, Guy, Kurenai, and Yamato. Only these five were considered active and competent Jōnin.

The others were either clan leaders who had retired, or special Jōnin with narrow specialties.

Many others were loyal to Danzo and couldn't be relied upon in a crisis.

Hiruzen knew full well that with Orochimaru's power, even he might not be able to stop him. Having someone like Riku on their side—someone with Jōnin-level ability—would be a huge advantage.

He hoped Riku would use this crisis as a stepping stone for growth. Only now did Hiruzen realize how damaging Minato Namikaze's death had been for Konoha.

In a way, he and Kakashi both shared the same wish—that Riku could become a shinobi like Minato, one capable of bearing the burden of Konoha's future.

Right now, Konoha's strongest Jōnin was Kakashi—but even he couldn't contend with someone as dangerous as Orochimaru.

As for Tsunade and Jiraiya? Their whereabouts were unknown.

Jiraiya might still be reliable, but Tsunade was incapacitated by her hemophobia. She wouldn't be able to fight effectively at all.

That's why the Third Hokage placed so much hope in Riku—perhaps even more than he had in Kakashi.

Because at this moment, Riku was the only one who could potentially rise to Kage-level strength in the near future.

If all went well, Riku might reach the level Minato had attained when he became Hokage.

After all, he had already mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique.

That jutsu alone placed him leagues ahead of others—and if he continued on this path, he could reach Kage-level within five years.

The plan was simple: have Kakashi become the Fifth Hokage, and let Riku serve as his deputy. After a few years of experience, Riku could naturally succeed him as the Sixth Hokage.

Riku was, after all, Kakashi's disciple—and could be considered part of his lineage.

If Hiruzen were younger, he would never have thought this way. But now, at sixty-nine years old, he had no choice but to consider Konoha's long-term future.

If in a few years, the village still hadn't cultivated a Kage-level shinobi, Konoha would be in danger.

Even if they survived Orochimaru's attack, other villages might start to circle like vultures.

Kakashi's growth had plateaued. At his age, he should be at his peak—but he was still just an Elite Jōnin. Outstanding, yes—but far from Kage-level.

He might be able to fend off a few other villages, but could he hold together a fractured village from within?

Even that was uncertain.

That's why Hiruzen had been nurturing Kakashi for years but never allowed him to take on the role of Fifth Hokage.

It wasn't like during the Third Great Ninja War, when Minato had become Hokage in his twenties. Back then, Minato had already reached Kage-level strength and had won great renown through battlefield exploits.

Even so, the pressure from Konoha's internal factions had been intense.

Kakashi would have it far worse.

But Riku gave Hiruzen hope.

He felt that Riku had a real chance of reaching Kage-level strength at the same age Minato had.

And with his mastery of the Flying Thunder God Technique, that hope seemed well-founded.

As long as Kakashi first took up the mantle of Hokage and Riku followed as his right-hand man, everything would fall into place naturally.

Because Riku was part of Kakashi's legacy—and the future of the village.

Hiruzen, no longer young, had to think carefully about what would become of Konoha in the years to come.

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