Tsunade, listening from the side, couldn't help but want to refute this concept of the "greater good."
But seeing Jiraiya's extremely solemn expression and Naruto's earnest, if slightly confused, listening posture, she ultimately swallowed her words.
Now was not the time to argue over ideals.
However, contrary to their expectations, Naruto did not sink into deeper pain or philosophical contemplation.
After a brief silence, he forcefully wiped the tears from his face, sniffled, and whispered in a tone full of deep grievance yet remarkably straightforward:
"I don't care about responsibility or not..."
"All I know is that he made me live alone all these years..."
"When I see him... I just want to punch him!"
These words were childish and willful, yet they were filled with the most genuine emotions of a child.
The grievance of being abandoned, the desire to vent anger toward his "irresponsible" father.
Jiraiya was stunned when he heard this, and then a smile appeared on his face—a smile of relief mixed with a hint of sorrow.
He offered no criticism or lecture; instead, he nodded vigorously and spoke as if making a promise:
"Good!"
"The day you meet him, I'll hold him down for you so you can land a solid punch!"
This unconventional response was precisely the most effective way to accept and guide Naruto's current emotions.
It neither denied Minato's greatness nor invalidated Naruto's pain.
Instead, in a near-joking manner, it allowed Naruto to "hate" and express his dissatisfaction.
Tsunade, watching the exchange between the master and disciple, was completely stunned. She blinked, unable to process what had happened.
This... this solved it?
The scene she had anticipated—Naruto collapsing, turning dark, or falling into a prolonged psychological shadow—did not materialize.
This child, with his almost brute simplicity, reduced the dilemma that even she found unsolvable into a simple family conflict: "Son wants to punch his deadbeat dad"?
It just became a family conflict?
This child's mindset... is too good, isn't it?
Or perhaps his nerves were just too thick... or was his heart inherently this pure and resilient?
She had worried for so long for nothing!
While speechless, Tsunade secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Looking at Naruto's profile, which, though still showing grievance, had regained vitality thanks to the childish notion of "wanting to punch his dad," Tsunade felt a mix of emotions.
Such a good... such a pure child... He didn't dwell on the torment of "Why me?" nor did he resent the world's unfairness.
His spirit was like the clearest water.
But... how could someone like this possibly want to destroy the world later on?
Tsunade found it impossible to connect the simple, kind Naruto before her with the Uzumaki Naruto on the heavenly screen, who coldly declared the destruction of the world and treated the Five Kage as nothing.
Tsunade felt an overwhelming sense of absurdity surge through her heart.
Following that was an uncontrollable, towering rage directed at the culprits responsible for all of this!
She cursed directly in her mind, targeting her retired teacher:
"Old Man! And Danzo! And all the bastards who tacitly allowed this to happen! Open your eyes and look!"
"Look at this child! Look at his heart!"
"He should have grown up happily under his parents' love, as the son of a hero! He possesses the most precious and cleanest soul!"
"Just what cruel methods... how did you trample, isolate, and oppress him year after year..."
"To forcibly turn such an uncut gem into the future 'world destroyer' who wants to annihilate everything?"
This immense contrast sent a chill down Tsunade's spine.
She couldn't imagine what profound despair and betrayal, what unbearable resentment, this simple child would have to endure to be driven to such an extreme.
The future shown on the heavenly screen, rather than being a prophecy, was a bloody accusation against Konoha's old order!
It was the harshest condemnation of the failure of them, the so-called "elders"!
Thinking of this, the look Tsunade gave Naruto, besides the previous sense of responsibility and slight helplessness, now held an unshakable determination.
"I absolutely forbid it!"
"I will never allow that future to happen!"
"As long as I am the Hokage, as long as I still draw breath, I will never let this child be forced onto that path of desperation again!"
"What Konoha owes him, she can no longer repay."
"But at the very least, she must give him a future filled with sunshine and bonds, not... an abyss leading to destruction."
"Hey, brat." Tsunade composed herself and called out in her distinctively rough voice, interrupting Naruto and Jiraiya's absurd discussion about "the most satisfying way to punch Minato."
Naruto and Jiraiya simultaneously turned their heads to look at her.
Tsunade looked at Naruto, her tone brooking no argument:
"As for wanting to punch your dad..." Tsunade glanced at Jiraiya, "You two can sort that out yourselves when you meet in the Pure Land!"
Jiraiya and Naruto's expressions changed; she was basically wishing death upon them!
Tsunade met Naruto's gaze, her voice clear and powerful:
"Naruto, listen up. All the grievances you've suffered and the injustices you've faced over the years are the mistakes committed by the old Konoha and its former high-ranking officials! This is a fact that cannot be ignored or erased!"
Her tone carried undisguised criticism:
"To this day, I can't understand what the Old Man and his group were thinking! Hiding your identity as the son of the Fourth Hokage, the descendant of a hero, yet only letting the infamy of the 'Demon Fox' accompany you as you grew up! This is simply idiotic! It's criminal!"
Changing tack, her voice suddenly rose, carrying the authority and dominance of the new Hokage, along with a promise that was uniquely hers—overbearing yet tender:
"But, things are different now!"
"I am the Hokage now!"
"Therefore, starting today—no, starting this very moment! I will restore everything you deserve! I will let all of Konoha, all of the Ninja World, know your true identity!"
"You, Uzumaki Naruto, are the son of the hero Minato Namikaze and Uzumaki Kushina! You will never have to live under shadows and infamy again!"
"From now on, you will stand tall for me and live openly and honestly in the sunlight!"
These words, like a solemn oath, were like the most brilliant sunshine, instantly driving away all the gloom that had accumulated in Naruto's heart over the years!
He stared blankly at the impressive, golden-haired Hokage hag before him, watching her express outrage on his behalf and make such a resolute promise.
A huge wave of happiness and emotion, like a warm current, instantly flooded his heart and breached his final defenses.
Tears surged out again, but this time, they were not tears of sadness.
He grinned, revealing an incredibly bright, slightly goofy smile complete with snot bubbles, yet his tears flowed even harder.
He couldn't say anything, only nod heavily, again and again!
"Mhm!!"