This time the two little guys blamed Kakashi wrongly again.
In the past, he would either arrive on time or be an hour or two late, and then he would be able to make up all kinds of outrageous excuses to get away with it without blushing or getting nervous.
But today is different.
Although Kakashi was still late today, it was not his usual dawdling behavior.
In fact, he got up earlier than usual.
Early in the morning, he was fully alert and headed straight to the Hokage Building.
At the door of the Hokage's office on the top floor, he raised his hand and knocked on the door without hesitation.
"Come in." An old and majestic voice came from inside.
Kakashi pushed the door open.
The morning light shines into the office through the windows, and one can clearly see the statues of successive Hokage on the Hokage Rock and the thriving streets of Konoha Village in the distance.
Behind the desk, there sat an old man smoking an old-fashioned pipe who looked like the kind grandfather next door.
It is none other than the current supreme ruler of Konoha Village, the Third Hokage Sarutobi Hiruzen, who is known as the "Professor of Ninjutsu" and is proficient in all ninjutsu.
When Kakashi appeared, a hint of surprise flashed in Sarutobi Hiruzen's eyes.
He put down the document in his hand, raised his head and looked through the curling smoke at one of his most capable subordinates, and asked in a gentle voice: "Oh? It's Kakashi. You came here so early, what's the matter?"
Sarutobi was a little confused.
Logically speaking, Kakashi should lead Team 7 to carry out the most basic commissioned mission today.
He should have been staying with the three little disciples at this time, so why did he suddenly come here?
Kakashi didn't say hello. His expression was extremely stern, even unusually solemn.
He walked to the desk and said solemnly, "Sander, excuse me for interrupting you. I have encountered some... strange and unexplainable situations, and I need to report to you immediately."
Sarutobi Hiruzen looked at Kakashi's unprecedented solemn expression and couldn't help but feel a chill in his heart.
He knew Kakashi's character.
Normally this guy seems lazy and careless, but in fact he is very careful and observant, and he would never lose his composure for no reason.
Something that Kakashi could describe as "weird" must be very serious.
"Sit down and talk slowly, Kakashi."
Sarutobi Hiruzen pointed at the chair in front of the desk and motioned him to sit down. At the same time, he put his pipe aside and became more focused. "What happened? Don't worry, tell me slowly."
Kakashi sat down as he was told, thought for a moment and organized his words, then reported to the Third Hokage in detail all the incredible things he had experienced in the past two nights.
"…This is what happened."
Kakashi said in a low and solemn voice: "Since the night before yesterday, my two subordinates Uchiha Sasuke and Haruno Sakura and I have been forced into a dim space like a cinema every night after we fall asleep. In that space, we are unable to move, nor can we use most ninjutsu. We can only watch the Uzumaki Naruto's dream played on the huge screen in front of us like an audience."
"Watch... Naruto's dream?" Sarutobi Hiruzen frowned upon hearing this, his eyes full of disbelief, "Is there such a thing?"
"Yes." Kakashi nodded solemnly, "Moreover, the contents of the dreams we three saw were exactly the same. Afterwards, I checked carefully with Sasuke and Sakura, and it was proven that this was not our individual hallucinations, but real experiences shared by many people. But the strange thing is that Naruto himself was unaware of this. After he woke up, he only remembered that he had some... uh, dreams that were more in line with his personality."
Sarutobi Hiruzen fell silent.
He took a deep puff from his pipe, his brows furrowed even tighter, as if he was trying to digest this incredible information.
Forcefully pulling multiple people's consciousness into the same shared space...playing the dreams of specific people...and the people being played back are completely unaware...
This... is simply like a fairy tale!
But, the one who said this was Kakashi.
The Hatake Kakashi who has been gifted, calm and rational since childhood, has made great achievements and is deeply trusted by him.
Sarutobi Hiruzen knew Kakashi very well. He would never speak nonsense, let alone joke about his disciple and the mission.
Then, what Kakashi said was true.
"What exactly is the content of the dream?" Sarutobi Hiruzen asked in a serious tone.
What he was most worried about was whether the mastermind behind this had done something to Naruto through his dreams, or was trying to find out the secret of the Nine-Tails?
Kakashi stiffened slightly when he heard this.
Here comes the most critical question.
The scenes from last night's dream flashed through his mind involuntarily.
Senior Kushina's gentle smile, Teacher Minato's warm eyes, that warm home that seemed unreal...
And the unprecedented expression of happiness on Naruto's face, which made him cry... and Sakura's innocent and childish comments...
Kakashi's throat moved, his heart was in turmoil.
"What should I say? Should I tell the Third Hokage directly that we saw the Yondaime couple appear alive in Naruto's dream? We saw the house that had been sealed for a long time? We saw Minato-sensei personally teaching Naruto the Rasengan?"
After weighing the pros and cons, Kakashi took a deep breath, raised his head and met Sarutobi Hiruzen's sharp gaze, and spoke as calmly as possible, omitting the most sensitive part:
"The content of the dream... was quite bizarre. Naruto imagined that he defeated Sasuke, became the strongest member of Team 7, was confessed to by Sakura, and was deeply loved by the villagers... In short, these were all... somewhat absurd and ridiculous dreams that suited his age."
Kakashi paused, then added: "Although the content of the dream seems harmless and even a little funny, the ability to forcibly pull other people's consciousness into a shared dream space is extremely strange and dangerous. Moreover, the other party's target is obviously Naruto! I'm worried..."
Sarutobi Hiruzen listened quietly without interrupting.
He noticed that Kakashi's eyes flickered and hesitated for a moment when he described his dream.
Based on his understanding of Kakashi, there must be some reservations.
However, he did not expose it on the spot.
Sarutobi Hiruzen picked up the pipe again and took two puffs. He narrowed his eyes under the curling smoke, and a gleam of light flashed across his sharp eyes.
After a moment's silence, Sarutobi Hiruzen asked, "This phenomenon... even your Sharingan can't see any clues at all?"
Kakashi shook his head and answered firmly, "Yes. From the moment I entered that space, I have been observing with my Sharingan open. But no matter the surrounding environment or the images on the screen, there is no trace of chakra flow, nor any signs of illusion. I tried to use the substitution technique and the instant body technique, but both failed. It seems... that space itself has some special rules that block our abilities."
He continued, "After completing the mission last night, I went to the Anbu archives and looked up all the records on illusions, spiritual mysticism, space-time barriers, and even forbidden techniques such as dreams and souls... but found nothing. No known technique can explain the situation we are facing."
"So... I have no choice but to ask for advice from the Hokage-sama who is the 'Professor of Ninjutsu'."
After hearing this, Sarutobi Hiruzen fell into deeper thought.
He held a pipe in his mouth, his brows were furrowed, and his cloudy eyes flashed with deep thought.
The phenomenon described by Kakashi was indeed beyond his understanding.
Forcefully pulling multiple people's consciousness into a shared dream space...playing the dreams of specific people...even the Sharingan can't see through it...
He used all his life's knowledge to search through all the records about ninjutsu, forbidden techniques, and even ancient legends in his mind...
I have never heard of it before.
"Could it be... some unprecedented bloodline limit? Or... a spiritual secret technique that is more bizarre than illusion? Or... some lost power related to the Six Paths Sage era?"
One guess after another flashed through Sarutobi Hiruzen's mind, but he denied them one by one.
Even this "Ninjutsu Professor" couldn't help but feel helpless at this moment.
After a long while, Sarutobi Hiruzen slowly opened his mouth and said solemnly: "...It is indeed very bizarre. I have never heard of such a technique in my life."
He took a deep puff of cigarette, exhaled a cloud of thick and heavy smoke, and his eyes suddenly became sharp: "So, what about Naruto? From what you said, he seems to be completely unaware of it. Has he shown any abnormalities in the past two days? For example, mental depression? Chakra disorder? Or... because the content of the dream has affected his emotions and behavior?"
This is his biggest concern.
No matter what the purpose of that mysterious existence is, as long as Naruto himself is safe, there is still room for improvement.
Kakashi immediately replied: "No. Naruto is fine!"
He thought for a moment and added, "Except that... probably because I had a good dream, my emotions have been a little more excited than usual these two days, there is nothing unusual. My chakra is stable and my mental state is also very good."
This was also what puzzled Kakashi.
That mysterious being...what exactly does he want to do?
"I see..." Upon hearing this, Sarutobi Hiruzen's brows relaxed slightly and he breathed a sigh of relief.
As long as Naruto is safe, it's fine.
He fell into deep thought again.
This matter reveals too much weirdness and unknowns. It is indeed not advisable to act rashly before clarifying the other party's background and intentions.
After a moment, Sarutobi Hiruzen made up his mind and said in a firm tone: "Kakashi, this matter is very serious. Since no obvious malicious intent has been found for the time being, and the other party's target seems to be only locked on Naruto...you should not make it public for now."
"You continue to lead Team 7 to carry out daily tasks, but you must closely observe Naruto's every move in secret, and whether the dream theater will appear again or any new changes will occur. Remember, wait and see, and don't alert the enemy."
"As for the investigation..." Sarutobi Hiruzen's eyes flashed with a gleam of light, "Leave it to me. I will use all my strength to find out what is going on behind the scenes."
"Yes! Lord Sandaime!" Kakashi immediately obeyed the order after hearing it.
Although he was unable to get a clear answer from the Sandaime, having the Hokage personally involved in the investigation was much better than him making blind guesses on his own.
He stood up and prepared to leave.
However, just as he reached the door and his hand was about to touch the door handle——
"Wait a minute, Kakashi."
Sarutobi Hiruzen suddenly called out to stop him.
Kakashi stopped when he heard the voice and turned around.
He saw that Sarutobi Hiruzen had stood up and walked to the window at some point, with his back to him, staring at the huge statue of the Fourth Hokage on the Hokage Rock outside the window. His back looked a bit desolate and solemn.
Sarutobi slowly flicked the ashes from his pipe, then turned around, narrowed his eyes, and said seriously:
"Kakashi, what I just said, 'Don't tell anyone,' is not a suggestion, but an order! Remember, this matter must not be known to anyone other than you and me! Especially... about those disturbing 'images' you saw in your dream!"
Sarutobi Hiruzen didn't know what Kakashi was hiding, but he could feel that that was the crux of the problem.
"After returning, immediately issue a gag order to Uchiha Sasuke and Haruno Sakura, and tell them to completely forget what happened during these two nights! Don't mention it to anyone, and don't leak a single word!"
"Konoha Village... looks peaceful now, but actually there are undercurrents. Once someone with ulterior motives knows about this, they might take advantage of it and do something that is detrimental to Naruto and the village!"