Konoha: Naruto's abnormal life choices

"Boom!"

Thunder rumbled across the sky as the cold wind swept through, lashing at his battered body.

Gradually, the rain began to fall.

A single drop landed in Gekkō Hayate's eye. He stared up at the gray sky, unmoving, as memories of his life flashed through his mind like a lantern spinning in the dark.

"A deathbed montage, huh?" he murmured.

Raindrops seeped into his wounds and mingled with the blood. The icy sting made him want to clench his teeth, but he no longer had the strength to even try.

He was going to die.

"What a shame... I never got to marry Yugao. I wonder if she's still alive…"

Hayate whispered softly, his voice nearly lost in the rain. As he lay there in the growing pool of blood, unmoving, a yellow-haired boy suddenly appeared beside him.

Before he could say a word, Naruto Uzumaki beat him to it.

"I saved Yugao," Naruto said flatly.

Hearing that, Hayate exhaled in relief, trying to speak—but Naruto cut him off again.

"As for Yugao's future, don't worry. You're a hero who died protecting Konoha. The village will honor your sacrifice and take care of your family."

Gekkō Hayate: "I… I think I'm still—"

"I'll take care of Yugao for you," Naruto continued calmly.

If Hayate hadn't been injured and near death, he would've gotten up just to kick Naruto and yell at him for interrupting a dying man's last words.

But Naruto just looked at him with soft eyes and added gently, "I'll take care of your wife."

"…???"

No, wait, I think I can still be saved!

If someone uses some healing jutsu, I might make it!

With everything he had, Hayate summoned a final cry: "Save me!"

But Naruto didn't seem to hear it. He kept talking to himself.

"You couldn't make her happy in this life… so let me. I'll marry her for you. You can rest in peace."

Hayate's heart nearly stopped from sheer frustration. His breath quickened as he watched Naruto's "grateful" expression. Raising a trembling hand, he whispered one final word:

"Baka…"

"Thank you for your compliment," Naruto said with a proud grin. He gently reached down and closed Hayate's eyelids.

He was gone—dead in a pool of blood and rainwater.

If Naruto had known any healing techniques… if the system reward hadn't been so utterly stupid… maybe Hayate could've survived.

But now it was too late.

[Ding! Congratulations to the host for completing Option 2. Reward acquired: (Talent · Widow)]

Soon after, the war reached its end.

Only then did Sunagakure realize that the man they believed was their Kazekage was actually Konoha's traitor, Orochimaru.

The real Kazekage had been killed by Orochimaru long before.

When the truth came out, the Sand Shinobi were devastated. They had risked everything for a lie—they were nothing more than pawns.

Maki, now representing Sunagakure, surrendered to Konoha and helped their forces hunt down the last remaining Sound Ninja.

As for the final battle—Sarutobi Hiruzen, the Third Hokage, gave his life in combat against Orochimaru. He sealed Orochimaru's arms and died in the process.

Everyone thought Jiraiya would chase Orochimaru down and finish him, but instead, he stayed behind—to maintain order and prevent further chaos.

The invasion of Konoha was over within half a day, leaving behind an enormous death toll.

During the tally of the dead, the Yamanaka clan made a shocking discovery: they couldn't find the heirs of the Ino-Shika-Cho trio.

When he heard the news, Yamanaka Inoichi nearly collapsed.

"Ino…" he whispered, eyes glistening. As a father, the pain struck him like a blade through the heart.

Unable to bear the grief, he delegated the accounting to the clan elders and took sick leave, returning home to mourn.

Ironically, just as he was grieving, Ino herself was crawling out of a pit—alongside Shikamaru and Choji.

The three of them were caked in mud, disheveled and drenched, looking like they'd just climbed out of a swamp.

"I'll never forgive that bastard Naruto!" Choji growled. "From now on, I'm not giving him a single bite of my food!"

Shikamaru nodded. "Seriously. That guy buried us for hours, and then his shadow clone disappeared. What the hell?"

Choji blinked and suddenly frowned. "Wait. If the clone disappeared, then maybe something happened to Naruto?"

Ino paused, looking troubled for a moment.

But then she remembered how Naruto had unhesitatingly knocked her out earlier. Her eyes stung and her lips trembled as she muttered, "If he dies, then good riddance…"

The three trudged toward the tower. They didn't encounter a single enemy, and within half an hour, they reached the edge of the tower area.

There, they saw a crowd of Konoha ninjas. One of them was Shikamaru's father—Nara Shikaku.

Shocked to see him there, the three rushed over. Shikaku turned pale at the sight of them, then rushed forward and gave Shikamaru a hug.

"Shikamaru… Thank the gods, you're alive."

"…What?"

None of them understood why he was acting like they'd been declared dead.

Only after hearing Shikaku explain the whole situation did they realize what had happened while they were buried in that forest.

It turned out that Naruto had hidden them so well that even Konoha's own search parties had missed them.

That evening, they walked out of the Forest of Death with the Nara team, still completely stunned by everything that had happened.

The whole world had changed.

As they walked, Shikamaru rubbed his chin and muttered, "Maybe… we should thank Naruto this time."

Choji and Ino looked at him like he'd lost his mind.

"We got ambushed, buried alive, and abandoned," Choji grumbled. "What's there to thank him for?"

"But don't you think the timing was too perfect?" Shikamaru countered. "He buried us right before the war began. It feels too calculated to be coincidence."

"…You think he did it on purpose?" Ino asked, blinking.

Shikamaru nodded. "He's been our friend for years. Why would he suddenly attack us for no reason?"

He scratched his head and frowned. "Unless—unless Naruto was worried. About you, Ino. Maybe he wanted to keep you safe."

"W-Worried about me…?" Ino whispered, visibly shaken.

Choji blinked. "Come to think of it, that makes sense. You two were always together. Maybe he really was trying to protect you."

Was Naruto… trying to protect me?

Ino's heart skipped. It all seemed to line up too well.

Suddenly, Choji slapped his forehead. "Oh no! That shadow clone Naruto left to protect us—it vanished. What if something really happened to him?"

Ino froze. Panic overtook her.

Without a word, she ran to the nearest Konoha shinobi. "Where's Naruto Uzumaki?! Have you seen him?!"

One of the team had just come from the hospital. "I saw him at Konoha Hospital not long ago."

Ino turned pale. Without hesitation, she sprinted toward the hospital.

"Ino, wait! We're coming too!" Shikamaru and Choji shouted, chasing after her.

Inside Konoha Hospital

A cool breeze fluttered through the room, rustling Naruto Uzumaki's messy blond hair. His bangs, too long, tickled his eyebrows.

He pushed them back, rubbed his eyes, and turned toward the woman beside him.

"Sister Yugao, don't cry," Naruto said gently. "Brother Hayate asked me to take care of you. So… please eat something, at least a little."