Check out the village.
Hearing Kakashi’s suggestion, Mirai’s expression turned serious.
What was happening in the village?
He had been staying at home these past few days and hadn’t gone out.
He turned his head and looked toward Konoha outside the courtyard.
His vision shifted as if countless twisted lines connected the entire world.
Within these lines, various individual entities radiated outwards.
The bioelectric fields.
Mirai’s unique sensory ability.
When the Root ambushed him earlier, it was through this bioelectric field sensing ability that he discovered them in advance.
“There are many unfamiliar bioelectric fields nearby…”
Mirai’s eyes grew more serious.
It seemed necessary to find out what was happening.
…
Konoha Streets
Villagers gathered at an alley entrance, chattering away with expressions full of disgust.
“That demon fox, why isn’t he dead yet!”
“Exactly! He’s the reason the Fourth Hokage and his wife died!”
“And so many villagers too! How can the Third Hokage tolerate such a demon fox in Konoha!”
“If I were that demon fox, I’d be ashamed and kill myself, to spare all those glares!”
…
The filthy curses flowed endlessly as if they wanted to vent all their disgust.
The greatest evils of humanity were laid bare in this moment.
They didn’t notice a figure slowly walking past them.
A fruit vendor picked out the rotten fruit from his stall, his face full of disdain as he threw it into the trash bin.
“It’s all because of that demon fox, making my fruits rot more recently, such bad luck!”
“Right, when will that demon fox die?”
The same scene occurred throughout the street.
You could hear curses directed at the demon fox every few steps.
Venomous and cruel!
Mirai walked silently by.
Using the Transformation Jutsu to appear as someone else, he looked like another passerby.
But his hands couldn’t help but clench.
He finally understood Naruto’s abnormal behavior.
He looked up, gazing at the village in front of him.
The midday sun was warm and comfortable, but he felt a bone-chilling coldness.
Countless twisted malice, like dark smoke, rose above the village, converging into a hideous smiling face.
Swish!
Kakashi jumped down from a nearby tree.
Before he could speak, a cold voice interrupted him.
“When did this start?”
Kakashi’s expression stiffened slightly.
Then he composed himself.
Knowing Mirai well, he realized that this time, he was furious.
“It started the day before yesterday. At that time, it was just small-scale rumors. From yesterday, it began to escalate, and by today, it has spread throughout the entire village…”
Kakashi didn’t continue.
Although rumors about Naruto being the demon fox had always existed, they had never escalated this dramatically!
This scene reminded him of deeply buried memories.
That unwillingly touched past.
Mirai’s eyes narrowed gradually.
Rumors on such a large scale, if not driven by someone, he wouldn’t believe it even if beaten to death.
This familiar scene reminded him of a long-ago event.
Sakumo Hatake, Kakashi’s father, the White Fang of Konoha.
He was a ninja even the Sannin respected.
But after a failed mission, he was condemned by nearly the entire village.
Facing such pressure, Sakumo’s spirit collapsed, and he ended his life with his White Fang short sword that had killed countless enemies.
The situation back then was very similar to now.
It felt like an invisible hand was pushing the wave behind the scenes, subtly guiding public opinion.
Mirai was very aware of the power of public opinion.
In his previous life as an overworked corporate employee, he had seen many cases of people committing suicide due to cyberbullying.
This kind of village-wide bullying was even more terrifying than cyber bullying!
On the way back, Mirai’s eyes were cold.
The only one who could guide the villagers’ opinions and profit from this…
It seemed to be just one person.
“Demon fox! Go die!”
A sudden curse interrupted his thoughts.
Looking over, he saw four or five children clutching stones, smashing them hard at Naruto’s window.
Crash!
The window glass shattered into pieces.
The stones flew into the room, smashing items inside with clinking sounds.
“Where did these brats come from!”
Kakashi scolded and rushed over.
“Run!”
The children who had been throwing stones just a second ago were so frightened that they immediately dropped their rocks and scattered like birds and beasts.
Mirai didn’t choose to be entangled with those children. He quickly rushed to the second floor, to Naruto’s room.
Opening the door, he saw the room was a mess from the thrown stones and cold wind blowing through the broken window.
Naruto was curled up in the corner of the bed, covered with a blanket, only his golden hair exposed.
Mirai reached out his hand.
As his fingertips touched Naruto’s hair, the boy’s body trembled and shrank more profoundly into the blanket.
“Don’t hit me, I’m not the demon fox!”
Mirai’s fingers stopped in mid-air, feeling a pang of sorrow.
Then, he gently placed his hand, stroking Naruto’s golden hair.
“Naruto, it’s me.”
“Uncle.”
Naruto peeked out from the blanket, his eyes red and swollen from crying.
“Am I really the demon fox…”
He looked up, his pure blue eyes filled with longing and grievance.
“Why does everyone call me the demon fox? What did I do wrong?”
Mirai gently ruffled his golden hair.
“Silly nephew, you are not the demon fox.”
“Uncle will prove it to you.”
…
Almost simultaneously in a secluded alley.
Two Root members knelt on one knee, reporting to the figure in the shadows.
“Lord Danzo, as you instructed, everything has been done.”
The face in the shadows slowly lifted, a sinister smile making the scarred left side look even more ferocious.
“Well done.”
Using public opinion to attack Naruto was the perfect method of revenge he came up with.
Mirai was powerful. Using force would likely result in a repeat of last time.
But public opinion was different.
Once you grasp the weak spot, taking someone down becomes very simple.
And Naruto was Mirai’s weak spot.
Stirring up a storm of public opinion was a well-practiced tactic for Danzo and Root.
Years ago, on a similar afternoon, he had used the same method to drive Sakumo Hatake to death.
Now, it was just a repeat.
Danzo’s ugly face grew even more sinister with a smile.
Now, he just needed to wait for the results.
In the center of the storm of public opinion, what would Mirai do?
“My Lord, there’s a situation!”
A sudden report interrupted his thoughts.
“What, has Mirai made a move?”
“No, it’s the Uchiha.”
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