As "Minato Namikaze" silently celebrated the success of his bluff—or rather, his borrowed thunder and name—the Leaf squad leader behind him could only stare dumbfounded. His mouth hung open as he watched the utterly ridiculous scene of the Hidden Cloud infiltration team—who moments earlier had been ruthlessly driving him to death's door—now scrambling away like terrified animals, thanking the Fourth Hokage like grateful pilgrims paying homage.
They… stopped fighting? Just like that? They left?!
The sudden shift was so dramatic it left the young squad leader's mind reeling. He couldn't even voice his disbelief, thanks to his missing tongue. All he could do was stare at Minato's back, eyes wide with awe and confusion, as his chakra gradually returned from the healing.
Wait… was this all just a performance? Some kind of orchestrated act between them?
"What is it? Is there something on my face?"
Turning around, the disguised Naruto caught the stunned gaze directed at him. Guilt twinged in his chest. Had the squad leader figured it out?
Just in case, he subtly used his sensory ability to probe for hostility—but found none. Relieved, he relaxed, smiled warmly, and—mimicking the gentle tone of the father he idolized—spoke softly.
"Sorry I was late. You've been through a lot. I'm really sorry. How are your wounds? Can you feel your body?"
The Fourth Hokage… is apologizing… to me?
The warmth of his voice melted away all suspicion. The near-death trauma, the helplessness, the terror—it all came crashing down in a flood of overwhelming gratitude. Tears welled in his eyes, and he nodded as hard as he could, unable to stop the emotion surging through him.
Stupid. What was I thinking?! This is the Golden Flash—the Fourth Hokage! Why would someone like him put on a show for someone like me? Of course those Cloud shinobi ran. They knew they didn't stand a chance. That was the smartest move they could've made!
…Of course, what the now-devoted squad leader didn't know was that this "Hokage" was putting on a show. A rather convincing one at that. He'd just been part of the audience.
After all, to fool the enemy, you often had to fool your allies too.
He seems stable enough now…
Seeing the enthusiastic nodding, Naruto sighed inwardly with relief. The chakra from the Uzumaki Clan had clearly worked its magic—the boy's vitals had stabilized, and Naruto's sensory field confirmed the Cloud team had fully retreated. He could finally let his guard down.
Still… why won't he talk? Don't tell me he's just starstruck…
As if in answer, a high-pitched, childlike voice called out from behind.
"That would be because of this."
Both Naruto and the squad leader turned toward the sound.
There, standing in the open, was a small child with a solemn expression far too serious for his age.
It was another of Naruto's shadow clones—this one in his true form, having rushed over the moment it received the memory transfer from its counterpart.
A child? Out here in this wilderness? This is an unguarded forest crawling with wild beasts! How could a kid just wander this far? And… he got past the traps without setting them off?
Whatever shock the squad leader thought he'd already endured, it wasn't over.
Because the Fourth Hokage—his personal hero, his miracle made flesh—waved casually at the child and grinned.
"Yo! Took you long enough. I was about to fall apart!"
With a full personality flip, the dignified, godlike "Minato" suddenly sounded like a teenager goofing around.
"You found out why he couldn't talk?"
"Tch, serves you right for running in here without backup like some wannabe hero. You're lucky you didn't get wrecked instead. Also, can you please mind your behavior? You're supposed to be the Fourth Hokage, remember?"
The second clone rolled his eyes at the ridiculous display, then walked over and pressed a hand to his "father's" body, transferring some of his chakra to stabilize the disguise.
He also opened his other hand to reveal a bloodied, barely-living tongue.
"Here. Found the reason. His tongue was cut out. Of course he can't talk."
"Can't I catch a break…?" Naruto muttered under his breath, then immediately froze when his clone shot him a deadly glare.
Clearing his throat awkwardly, he quickly resumed the calm, composed demeanor of the Golden Flash. While filtering the donated chakra into a purer, non-elemental form for easier healing, he glanced at the severed tongue still glowing faintly with vitality.
"…They cut out his tongue? What kind of monster…? If I'd known, I wouldn't have let them walk away so easily."
"Tch. That's rich coming from you. You could barely stay standing. You weren't letting them go—you couldn't stop them."
Still grumbling, the second clone crouched beside the stunned squad leader, who looked like his soul had left his body. Before the boy could react, Naruto deftly slipped the half-healed tongue back into place, aligning it with precision, then triggered the regenerative chakra sealed inside.
It wasn't perfect, but it worked.
And it was enough.
"Wait—what—what are you doing?! Don't touch my tong—my… tongue?"
The squad leader blinked. The pain was still there, but now… so was his tongue.
"I… I can speak again…?"
He touched his lips. He moved his tongue. It worked.
That was the final straw.
He slumped, staring blankly into space.
First, the Fourth Hokage returned from the dead.
Then, the Fourth Hokage was scolded by a literal child.
And now, his own hopelessly severed tongue had been reattached with casual ease.
He let out a weak, stunned laugh.
"Haha… this is a dream. It has to be a dream. There's no way reality works like this… yup. Definitely dreaming."
"Poor kid," one clone muttered with a sigh. "You scared him into a breakdown with that act."
"You fix the tongue, you take responsibility," said "Minato," smirking slyly.
"If I didn't have to bail out your reckless self, I wouldn't have to fix anything," the clone snapped. "Honestly…"
He took a breath, glancing back at the now-gaping squad leader.
"Hey, you should avoid talking too much. It's not fully healed yet. Also… what's your name? I can't keep calling you 'hey you' on the way to the hospital."
"…Good point. I never asked either," added the "Minato" clone, suddenly wondering whether to flee to the main body or just teleport out the moment this mess ended.
"M-my name?"
The squad leader blinked, trying to gather his thoughts. After a pause, he straightened slightly and replied without hesitation:
"Reporting to Lord Fourth Hokage! My name is Ibiki!"
"Oh, Ibiki, huh? That's a solid—wait."
Both clones froze.
They looked at each other.
They blinked.
"…Did you just say Ibiki?"
"Is your full name… Morino Ibiki?"
"Y-yes! That's me, Lord Fourth! Do you know me somehow?"
"…Oh. Crap."
"…Oh hell."
Ibiki: "D-did I say something wrong…? Did I upset the Fourth Hokage…?" [Shivers, thoroughly confused.jpg]