Land of Fire, Konohagakure.
Tsunade, the Fifth Hokage, stood in a ward at Konoha Hospital, her face clouded with gloom as she looked down at Jiraiya. He lay there, battered and covered in wounds, trapped in a deep coma with no telling when he might wake.
As the greatest medical ninja in the shinobi world, she was certain that while Jiraiya's life had been saved, he would be unable to participate in any form of combat for the foreseeable future.
Konoha had lost a vital commander and pillar of strength.
However, no matter how difficult life became, one had to persevere. Especially as the Kage of a village; the more dire the situation, the stronger she had to be. If even she collapsed, who would be left to stand up and save Konoha?
Kakashi, who had lost his Sharingan?
Or that blond brat who spent every day shouting about becoming Hokage?
Just as Tsunade felt at her wit's end regarding the worsening situation, an Anbu ninja suddenly appeared out of thin air, reporting in a low voice: "Hokage-sama! The intel brought back by Jiraiya-sama has been decrypted. Please have a look."
"Oh? That fast!"
Tsunade was visibly surprised. She quickly took the report and scanned it.
What she saw sent a chill down her spine. Setting aside everything else, the singular goal of collecting Tailed Beasts to resurrect the legendary Ten-Tails was enough to make her heart tremble with dread. Furthermore, the terrifying abilities of Nagato's Rinnegan and the bizarre, overwhelming power of the Six Paths of Pain were threats that the currently understaffed Konoha simply wasn't equipped to handle.
But before Tsunade could even process the shock of this intel, another ninja entered the room, reporting with a grim expression: "Hokage-sama! Sasuke Uchiha is heading this way with a large contingent of Orochimaru's remnants. They are coming with aggressive intent; it's highly likely they plan to declare war on us."
"What?! That damn brat! Of all the times!" Tsunade clenched her fists in fury.
If this hadn't been a hospital room, she certainly would have smashed something to vent her inner frustration.
"How many of them are there?" Kakashi asked, rubbing his forehead with a sense of helplessness.
"About a hundred. Many are high-level officers. Also, there are rumors circulating that Sasuke Uchiha killed Orochimaru. This implies his eyes may have already evolved to the level of the Mangekyō Sharingan," the ninja replied, dumping all available intelligence at once.
"Mangekyō Sharingan again... this is going to be troublesome!" Kakashi instinctively touched the black eye patch on his face.
Since Obito had reclaimed the Kamui Sharingan, Kakashi had transitioned from a frontline combatant to more of a desk-bound role. Since the Fifth Hokage wasn't exactly the type to have patience for mountains of paperwork, he had been pushed forward to take the heat.
Just as Tsunade was about to arrange countermeasures, Naruto Uzumaki burst in from outside, shouting impatiently: "Kakashi-sensei! Granny Tsunade! I heard Sasuke is coming back! Is it true?"
"Heh, yeah. And he's brought over a hundred of Orochimaru's subordinates with him. Get ready, Naruto; perhaps only you can stop him," Kakashi answered with a wry smile.
If it weren't for the fact that losing his eye had significantly diminished his combat power, he would have been more than willing to stop his own disciple personally.
"Don't worry! I'll definitely stop him!" Naruto promised solemnly.
"Forget it. You stay in the village and don't go anywhere. Sasuke likely possesses the legendary Mangekyō Sharingan. If he takes control of the Nine-Tails, you won't just fail to stop him, you'll become his accomplice."
Tsunade decisively shut down the blond boy who was itching for a fight. In her eyes, sending the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki to face a Mangekyō Sharingan was essentially handing the enemy more firepower. The destruction caused by the Nine-Tails going on a rampage would undoubtedly be far worse than anything Sasuke could do personally.
Present-day Konoha wasn't as wealthy as it used to be. As the territory controlled by the Daimyo and nobles of the Land of Fire shrank, the village's funding and budget became increasingly strained. If they had to undergo another round of reconstruction, they might not even be able to pay out death benefits to shinobi families.
"Dammit! Just give me one chance! Granny Tsunade! I swear, I can stop Sasuke!" Naruto roared in frustration.
Due to Allen's influence, the changes in this world were happening much faster and more violently than in the original timeline, so much so that the protagonist had barely any time to grow. Furthermore, with Mount Myōboku completely sealed off and Jiraiya in a coma after his fight with Nagato, Naruto had lost all opportunity to learn Sage Mode.
"No! As Hokage, I cannot expose the village to such danger, nor can I make any decision I'm not certain of. Naruto Uzumaki, are you still a ninja of Konoha? If so, follow your orders," Tsunade said, using her authority to pressure him.
She knew that for a thick-headed and stubborn kid like him, ordinary methods wouldn't work; he might even try to sneak away. The thought of the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki being controlled by the Mangekyō and going on a killing spree in Konoha made her shudder.
One had to remember that current Konoha lacked a Fourth Hokage like Minato Namikaze, who mastered the Flying Raijin Technique. If things went south, the entire village could vanish.
Unquestionably, Naruto's identity as a Konoha ninja was his Achilles' heel, and he eventually chose to obey, albeit indignantly. However, he didn't give up; he hid in the shadows, patiently waiting for an opening. Once the fighting spilled into the surroundings, he planned to jump out and face his former comrade, perhaps even persuading him to let go of his hatred and return to the warm, happy days of Team 7.
It must be said that Naruto was incredibly naïve, the greatest "ideological salesman" in the shinobi world, always trying to force his values on others. In the original story, if someone disagreed with him, he would beat them into submission with his fists and then force them to agree. After all, the shinobi world is a place where "might makes right."
Tsunade, unaware of Naruto's inner thoughts, immediately declared a state of war for the village. The Barrier Team activated all defensive seals, and civilians, the elderly, and children were ordered to evacuate to shelters.
The village buzzed with activity. For the first time since the Nine-Tails incident over a decade ago, Konoha was facing a foreign invasion. Many residents and merchants wore expressions of terror, and some began to curse Danzo and Root.
Following the Konoha Crush incident, the truth behind the Uchiha Massacre had been made public. Everyone knew that if it weren't for Danzo's selfishness, things would never have spiraled so out of control. Now, the fact that the last Uchiha wanted to settle the score with Konoha was completely logical; no one could find fault in his reasoning.