Mastermind of the Akatsuki

After sending Naruto home, the Third Hokage hurriedly returned to the Hokage Tower.

As Hokage, he didn't have much time to waste on Naruto there were many orphans in the village that needed care, and Naruto was just one of the more special cases.

He also needed to focus on maintaining the balance of power.

After granting several Jonin slots to the Hyuga clan, he initially intended to appease them while subtly inciting conflict between the Hyuga and Uchiha clans, letting them argue over who was the strongest bloodline clan.

However, he didn't expect the Hyuga clan to become so inflated with ambition that they set their sights on various departments, thinking they could forcefully become advisory elders due to their number of Jonin, and even colluded with Danzo in secret.

If Danzo and the Hyuga clan really reached an agreement, his position as Hokage would be in grave danger.

Although he had once been the Hokage of the village, his current identity was merely acting Hokage. If the Jonin united to impeach him, he risked being forced to abdicate.

He wasn't attached to the power of Hokage, but he absolutely couldn't let Danzo take the position.

After the Third Hokage left, Black Zetsu first sensed the positions of the Anbu around, then transformed into a spore and landed on Naruto's shoulder.

He planned to use the Spore Technique to secretly influence Naruto.

Previously, Black Zetsu had doubted Naruto's identity as Ashura, but after today's observations, he was completely certain that Naruto was indeed the reincarnation of Ashura.

Only Ashura's reincarnation could have such an optimistic mindset as it was difficult for others to achieve this.

Naruto lay on the one-and-a-half-meter-high window sill, tilting his head to look at the scenery outside. The moonlit sky illuminated the four Hokage statues quietly resting on the cliff.

The time spent with Grandpa Hokage was enjoyable, but in an instant, he was alone again.

Living alone was very free but also incredibly lonely. If only there was someone to talk to, he truly felt the need for a friend.

At that moment, a voice suddenly called out to Naruto, "Hey, you little brat over there, what are you doing?"

Naruto jumped in surprise, looking around fearfully and asking, "Who are you? Where are you? Are you a ghost or a devil? What do you want?"

"I'm right here, on your desk."

"On my desk?" Naruto went over to the desk and saw nothing but a kunai pendant.

He picked up the pendant and cautiously asked, "Are you in this kunai pendant?"

Black Zetsu nodded and said, "Be gentle with me since I don't want to be scratched or chipped. But you, little brat, do have some fate with me since you've awakened me."

"Awakened you? Are you very old?" Naruto probed.

"Of course! I've been living in this pendant for hundreds of years since you can respectfully call me Black Old," Black Zetsu replied.

"Black Old?" After a pause, Naruto pulled up a chair and sat down at the desk, saying, "Why are you in this kunai pendant? Did you encounter some enemies?"

"My story could take three days and nights to tell…"

Black Zetsu's cold snort echoed in Naruto's ears, which piqued Naruto's interest and made him want to dig deeper.

"I have time so, you can continue, Grandpa!"

Faced with Naruto's endless curiosity, Black Zetsu felt a sweat break out, but he could only grit his teeth and fabricate a legendary story for Naruto.

While fabricating the story, even Black Zetsu felt that it had some significant holes.

But he had no choice since this was the method that Byakuya provided him: to approach Naruto with the guise of a kind, gentle old man and gradually influence him step by step. Moreover, Byakuya's approach was entirely different from the way he had manipulated Indra since it was a whole different strategy.

An hour later, Naruto was so exhausted that he could barely keep his eyes open. After wishing Black Zetsu goodnight, he collapsed onto his bed and fell into a deep sleep.

Seeing this, Black Zetsu let out a sigh of relief.

Although he had manipulated more than a dozen Indras, he had only done so after they had grown up since this was the first time, he was nurturing one from childhood. He had never encountered a curious child like Naruto.

Nearby, an Anbu watching from a tree frowned.

Before falling asleep, Naruto had been talking to himself for several minutes. While it was common for children to go through a phase of talking to themselves, the duration seemed a bit excessive.

This strange phenomenon had to be reported to the Hokage since any little matter concerning a Jinchuriki in the village was significant and could not be overlooked.

---

The next morning, Naruto saw the Third Hokage again.

The Third Hokage arrived carrying snacks and milk. After checking around Naruto's home, he noticed the uniquely designed kunai pendant.

Such small trinkets were common in Konoha, but the Third Hokage still took the time to examine it thoroughly. After confirming that the kunai pendant was fine, he pretended to leave Naruto's house.

Upon hearing Naruto talking to the pendant, he turned back.

After confirming once more that the kunai pendant was alright, the Third Hokage sighed softly in relief and finally left.

Naruto's self-talk wasn't due to any ninja acting in secret since it was genuinely a result of his loneliness. It seemed he needed to arrange a few friends for Naruto, and the two boys from the Inuzuka clan would be good candidates.

After the Third Hokage left, Naruto said to Black Zetsu, "Oldman Black, how come Hokage Grandpa didn't discover you? Weren't you hiding in this kunai pendant?"

Black Zetsu scoffed and replied, "Heh! How could a mere Kage-level shinobi detect me! But your Hokage Grandpa does seem to care about you. He came to check on you yesterday and again today."

Naruto didn't catch the implication in Black Zetsu's words and nodded, saying, "Hokage Grandpa has always been good to me since he just doesn't have much time because he's busy with work."

"But he checked on you yesterday and again today since that's indeed a bit strange."

"Is Hokage Grandpa not usually very busy?"

Seeing Naruto lost in thought, Black Zetsu chuckled and said, "Maybe he really is too busy with his duties. But your Hokage Grandpa is so good to you since you should repay him well in the future."

"Of course! I will definitely repay Hokage Grandpa."

After a pause, Naruto said to Black Zetsu, "But let's not talk about Hokage Grandpa. You still haven't finished the story you started yesterday since those ninja stories are so interesting and fun!"

"Those aren't just stories since they are things, I have witnessed myself!"

"Things from hundreds of years ago are all pretty much the same since anyway, I'm just listening casually since it doesn't really relate to me."