On the outskirts of Konoha Village, the wide Naka River andered along the village's edge, flowing through dense forests before eventually rging into the distant sea.
Amidst these woods, several small streams dotted the landscape, adding a touch of liveliness to the lush greenery.
nma, Naruto, and Big Sis Hinata ran all the way before stopping by a small river.
"This is my secret base!" Naruto excitedly introduced the place to nma and Hinata.
nma glanced around. The clearing, about the size of a basketball court, was surrounded by dense forests, overgrown with weeds, and in the center lay a long-extinguished campfire.
Hollow logs hung from the surrounding trees, and small pebbles the size of fingertips were scattered on the ground. It seed Naruto often trained here.
Naruto rummaged through a hollow tree trunk and pulled out three makeshift fishing rods… simple sticks tied with fishing line and a small nail as a hook.
"nma, Hinata, pick one!" Naruto enthusiastically handed the rods to them.
"Then I'll take this one." nma said, grabbing the one closest to him.
Big Sis Hinata did the sa, choosing one at random.
Instead of rushing to fish, the three began searching for worms under a withered tree.
"Byakugan!" Big Sis Hinata whispered, veins bulging around her eyes as her vision penetrated the soil, accurately pinpointing the worms' locations.
Following her guidance, nma and Naruto flipped over a rotten log, and then, using sticks, they began digging into the soft earth beneath.
"Wow! So many worms!" Naruto exclaid in delight.
Back when he searched for worms alone, he could barely find any even after digging for ages. It was only after much trial and error that he learned worms preferred the soft soil beneath decaying wood.
nma gave Big Sis Hinata a thumbs-up in appreciation.
The three then moved to the riverbank, each picking a spot to sit, baiting their hooks with worms, and casting their lines.
Under the shade of the trees, the clear river flowed gently as the three children fished and chatted.
nma deliberately began telling fairy tales he had learned in his childhood from two lifetis ago, captivating Naruto and Big Sis Hinata so much that they nearly missed the fish biting their hooks.
Naruto fumbled as he yanked his rod up, only to find a fish no bigger than his palm. Disappointed, he tossed it into a small makeshift pond they had built by the riverbank before baiting his hook again and casting it back into the water, eager to hear more of nma's stories.
"Back in the war-torn era of the past, there was a country with a law stating that anyone who ransod a fellow citizen enslaved abroad would receive compensation from the state. One day, a man nad Zigong ransod a citizen but refused the compensation. When his teacher, Confucius, learned of this, he criticized him instead." nma recounted the story of [Zigong Ransoming a Slave] to Naruto.
"Why?" Naruto asked, his small face filled with confusion.
'The person had been rescued, and Zigong didn't take the compensation, saving the country money. Wasn't that a win-win?'
nma patiently explained, "Because Zigong's action was based on personal morality. By refusing compensation, he achieved his own small righteousness, but in doing so, he inadvertently raised the cost and standard of doing good. If Zigong didn't accept the state's compensation, then in the future, if others ransod citizens and asked for compensation, they would be criticized for 'not being selfless enough'. This is called moral coercion."
nma analyzed it for Naruto bit by bit: "You can't impose your own standards on others and expect them to act the sa way. That only elevates morality to a level where only a select few can afford to do good, discouraging ordinary people from performing acts of kindness."
"In the end, doing good becos a burden. Who would want to do it then?"
"Morality is ant to restrain oneself, not to coerce others." nma concluded: "If good deeds beco a burden, fewer and fewer people will be willing to do them."
Naruto nodded, sowhat understanding but not entirely.
Seeing this, nma didn't press further, only hoping he would rember the story.
Then, nma went on to tell Naruto a few more fables.
Ti passed quietly, and the three of them caught several fish one after another, eventually starting a fire to roast them.
Naruto eagerly volunteered to treat nma and Big Sis Hinata to his self-proclaid 'grilled fish feast', only to get slapped in the face by a fish's tail, making nma and Big Sis Hinata burst into laughter.
Naruto wasn't annoyed either. He scratched his head and started laughing too.
These leisurely monts of playing with peers his own age were sothing Naruto cherished deeply.
On a big tree not far away, Ko silently kept watch over Hinata from the shadows. Seeing the three begin to eat their grilled fish, he pulled out so dried rations from his pocket and began chewing quietly.
Suddenly, a faint rustling sound ca from beside him.
He turned his head and realized that, at so point, a small old man with slightly spiky hair and a goatee, dressed in casual clothes, had appeared to his right.
Ko imdiately set down his rice ball, his entire body tensing.
"Relax." Hiruzen gave him a kindly smile, like any ordinary grandpa from the neighborhood.
"Hokage-sama!" Ko recognized Hiruzen, who also served as the Principal of the Ninja Academy, and though surprised, he remained respectful.
He just couldn't understand why Hiruzen would appear here.
"I'm going to see the children. You should take a break too." After saying that, Hiruzen leapt down from the tree.
"Yes, Hokage-sama!" Ko bowed slightly but remained vigilant, standing quietly on the branch as he watched Hiruzen approach the three children.
Big Sis Hinata keenly noticed the movent and looked up at the approaching old man.
In fact, nma had already noticed Hiruzen's arrival long ago but pretended not to, continuing to eat his grilled fish. Only when Big Sis Hinata looked up did he follow her gaze.
Naruto, who had been focused on eating, also noticed sothing was off and turned to look in the sa direction.
"Huh? Who are you, grandpa?" Naruto had never encountered anyone else in his secret base before.
"Ah, I'm just an old man passing by." Hiruzen chuckled as he slowly walked closer, slightly surprised by Big Sis Hinata's alertness and sharp instincts.
'That boy called nma reacted a bit slower than Hinata, but he still seed like a promising kid.'
Today, Hiruzen had deliberately chosen not to wear his Hokage's robes or hat, wanting to approach the children as an ordinary old man.
But he clearly didn't know Hinata well.
Just as Hiruzen reached the campfire where the three children sat and was about to strike up a conversation-
Hinata pursed her lips and dropped a bombshell: "Hey, isn't this the Old Geezer Third Hokage?"
"Pufftt-"
Hiruzen nearly coughed up blood on the spot.
'Wait, wasn't this Hyuga girl supposed to be a shy, introverted kid?!' Hiruzen was stunned.
Up in the tree, Ko facepald with a sigh.
"Well, let introduce to you. The Third Hokage of our village." Hinata waved her grilled fish lazily, gesturing at nma and Naruto.
"The Hokage!!!" Naruto's eyes instantly sparkled with awe and admiration.
In his mind, the Hokage is the strongest person alive!
anwhile, nma continued eating his grilled fish calmly before picking up a skewer and offering it to Hiruzen: "Grandpa, do you want so?"
Looking at the child's sincere eyes and the grilled fish being handed to him, Hiruzen suddenly found these three kids utterly fascinating.
With a hearty laugh, he accepted the fish and sat down by the campfire.
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