Chapter 74: Three Lifetimes of Reincarnation (Three chapters combined, including a bonus chapter...)
Ignoring the complex gazes around him, a mixture of gratitude, fear, and suspicion, Yan Sheng walked straight toward Kushina Uzumaki. His steps were steady, his eyes calm, as if he were simply doing something perfectly natural.
However, his action instantly triggered the tense nerves of all the Konoha ninja present.
"stop!"
"What do you intend to do to Lady Kushina?!"
"Stop him!"
The slight gratitude that had just arisen from his defeat of the Nine-Tails was immediately overshadowed by a strong distrust of the "unknown Uchiha".
The ninjas formed an encirclement. Although they knew they were outnumbered, protecting the Jinchuriki (even though the Nine-Tails had left) and the Hokage's wife—or even if neither of them were Jinchuriki—was their duty as long as they were from Konoha. They could not back down.
With a flash of golden light, Minato Namikaze appeared in front of Kushina using the Flying Thunder God Technique, firmly protecting her behind him. He gripped a specially made kunai tightly in his hand, his azure eyes filled with seriousness and vigilance. Although his tone remained polite, his distance and defensiveness were evident.
"Your Excellency, thank you for your help in defeating the Nine-Tails."
Yan Sheng stopped in his tracks, looking at the Konoha members who seemed to be facing a formidable enemy, then glanced at Kushina behind Minato, whose aura was growing weaker and weaker, and calmly stated a fact:
"If we don't save her now, she'll die."
However, this statement did not dispel everyone's doubts; instead, it made the atmosphere even more tense.
No one believed him. A stranger of unknown origin, terrifying strength, and belonging to the Uchiha clan, who had just experienced a disaster caused by the Uchiha (Obito), who could guarantee that he didn't have ulterior motives? Perhaps his treatment of Kushina was a pretense, and his real intention was to take the opportunity to leave some kind of contingency plan on Kushina.
It's normal for Konoha to react this way. Yan Sheng understands this wariness stemming from trauma and the unknown, which is why he has no intention of forcibly rescuing someone in this situation. That would only cause unnecessary conflict and waste the time he didn't intend to waste anyway.
So, under everyone's watchful eyes, Yan Sheng said nothing more, but simply took half a step back as instructed. The meaning of this action was clear—fine, I won't save you, you can do it yourselves.
Seeing his action, Minato Namikaze secretly breathed a sigh of relief, then turned to the arriving medical team and urgently said, "Quick! Take Kushina to get her treated!"
The medical team rushed forward and carefully placed Kushina, who was already in a semi-comatose state, on a stretcher, and quickly retreated towards Konoha Hospital.
Next, everyone's attention focused on Yan Sheng again. How should they deal with this mysterious and powerful Uchiha? Is he friend or foe? Why is he here? A series of questions lingered in everyone's minds.
Several ANBU captains looked at Minato Namikaze, awaiting the Hokage's orders. Should they try to control him, or...?
Yan Sheng was too lazy to engage in pointless explanations. Except for the first world, which he spent several months on because there was no other way, he always solved problems in the most direct and efficient way in the subsequent worlds.
His gaze once again met Minato Namikaze's blue eyes, which were filled with inquiry and vigilance.
The next moment, Yan Sheng's Mangekyou Sharingan slightly rotated.
Minato Namikaze felt a blur before his eyes and inwardly cried out, "Oh no! I've been hit by a genjutsu!" The next second, a massive, complex, and highly compressed stream of information, like a flood bursting its banks, forcibly flooded into his consciousness.
From the outside, the Fourth Hokage only swayed very slightly and his eyes were momentarily dazed; the whole process took less than a second.
However, in Minato Namikaze's mental world, time seemed to be stretched out infinitely.
He "saw" that the masked man was actually Obito Uchiha, the truth behind Obito's actions, what he would do in the future, the deception surrounding the "Eye of the Moon Plan," and Kokushibo's own purpose of "coming from another world to resolve the crisis"...
These pieces of information were as clear and profound as a brand, allowing Minato Namikaze to instantly understand the truth behind the many strange occurrences of the night, and to realize that the mysterious Uchiha in front of him was not the mastermind behind this disaster; on the contrary, he had come with some kind of goodwill.
—If the other party did not deceive him.
When Minato Namikaze refocused his gaze, the look in his eyes towards Mikatsu had undergone a complete transformation. The previous wariness and hostility hadn't entirely vanished, but were now mixed with shock, realization, and a sense of heaviness.
"Lord Hokage?" The ANBU captain, seeing Minato remain silent, asked in a low voice.
Minato Namikaze took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the turmoil within him. His face regained its usual gentleness and composure, and he spoke with an undeniable determination:
"Everyone, thank you for your hard work. I know this Uchiha friend of mine. I'll have a private talk with him later." He paused, looked around, and instructed, "Please go and help clean up the damage caused by the Nine-Tails immediately. Prioritize rescuing the wounded, calming the public, and maintaining order. Leave this to me."
Everyone was stunned.
"Know"? "Friend"?
When did the Fourth Hokage meet such a powerful Uchiha friend?
However, due to their unwavering trust in the Fourth Hokage and the authority of his orders, despite their doubts, everyone responded in unison, "Yes!"
They quickly dispersed and threw themselves into the emergency work after the disaster, but their eyes would still involuntarily drift to the two figures left behind alone.
After everyone else had left, only the two of them remained in the area that had just experienced the catastrophe. The night wind blew, carrying with it the smell of burning and lingering dust.
The moonlight, like water, shone on Konoha, casting a cool, silvery glow on the ruins destroyed by the Nine-Tails.
Minato Namikaze looked at the indifferent man before him. The moonlight outlined his sharply defined profile, giving him a detached and aloof air. He simply stood there, without any deliberate display of power, yet a chilling aura emanated from him—a quiet authority born from long-held positions of power and the ability to decide life and death.
Minato took a deep breath, suppressing the overwhelming amount of information that had just flooded his mind, enough to overturn his understanding, as well as the heartache and anger brought on by his wife's critical condition. A sharp light gathered in his azure eyes, and his tone was more serious and heavy than ever before:
“Now, we can have a proper talk. This… 'guest' from afar.”
He deliberately emphasized the word "guest," both to clarify the other party's self-identification and to leave room for caution.
Whether the person before us is friend or foe remains to be seen, but the power he has displayed and the information he possesses are already an existence that Konoha, and even the entire ninja world, cannot ignore.
However, this place, which had just experienced a great battle and was in ruins, was certainly not a suitable place for in-depth discussions. Minato Namikaze was about to speak, inviting Mikatsu to move to the Hokage's office or a meeting room to talk.
Yan Sheng suddenly moved, or rather, disappeared from his spot. The next second, he appeared a dozen meters away in the shadow of a seemingly ordinary bush.
Then, under Minato Namikaze's astonished gaze, Yan Sheng expressionlessly reached out and grabbed at the empty void.
His palm seemed to pierce through some invisible barrier, his fingertips swirling with faint energy fluctuations belonging to the Rinnegan. Then, he pulled hard—
"Sizzle!"
A sound like tearing cloth rang out, and the space rippled violently like water.
A figure dressed in a black robe and wearing a swirling, one-eyed mask was forcibly "pulled" out of that distorted space.
The power of rules contained within the Rinnegan surpasses that of Obito's Mangekyou Sharingan, specifically Kamui. Faced with absolute spatial hierarchy suppression, Kamui's prized intangibility and other-dimensional concealment were easily broken, like child's play.
Caught off guard, Obito was pulled so hard he stumbled and nearly fell to the ground. His single eye beneath the mask was filled with shock and disbelief: "?!"
His Kamui has never failed! Even Minato Namikaze's Flying Thunder God Technique could only keep up with his speed at most, and could not forcibly drag him out of the other dimension like this! Who is this man?
What shocked Obito even more was that Minato Namikaze looked at him and, in a heavy, complex tone, filled with heartache and unwavering certainty, called out the name of the past that Obito had long since abandoned:
"Obito?"
This call was like a thunderclap in Obito's ears.
How did he know?!
Obito's expression beneath the mask changed drastically. He believed his disguise was flawless, and his plan had been progressing smoothly. How could Minato Namikaze have seen through his disguise? And this Uchiha who suddenly appeared, whose strength was outrageously powerful, and who could even break his Kamui... who exactly was he? Why had he never seen him in the clan, nor had Madara ever mentioned him?
Worse still, this person easily dealt with the Nine-Tails, and the Nine-Tails will soon be resealed back into Kushina's body, so his plan to capture the Nine-Tails will have failed!
In an instant, alarm bells rang in Obito's mind. The situation was completely out of his control, making him uneasy.
"Let go!" Obito shouted fiercely, his chakra surging wildly as he tried to unleash Kamui again to break free of his restraints.
However, Yan Sheng's hand, gripping his clothes, remained firmly in place like an iron clamp. Furthermore, an incredibly powerful ocular force pressed down on him, making it difficult for him to even activate his Sharingan.
"How is this possible!" Obito was horrified.
Yan Sheng was too lazy to waste words with him. With a slight thought, several chains radiating a pale golden light and formed from pure chakra appeared out of thin air and wrapped around Obito's limbs and torso.
—The Vajra Lockdown.
Although it was far less massive and powerful than when the Ten-Tails was sealed on the battlefield of the Fourth Shinobi World War, it was more than enough to restrain Obito Uchiha, who had lost his spatial advantage and was in a state of mental chaos.
The golden chains, like a leech, firmly locked Obito's movements, while a powerful sealing force seeped in, suppressing the flow of chakra within Obito's body, preventing him from even using the most basic substitution technique.
Obito struggled violently, but under the constraints of the Adamantine Sealing Chains and the absolute power of Yan Sheng, his resistance seemed so pale and powerless. He was like a flying insect caught in a spider's web, the more he struggled, the tighter he was entangled.
Minato Namikaze looked at the masked man, who was tightly bound by golden chains and was still struggling in vain, and his feelings were extremely complicated.
Despite having learned the truth from the information Yan Sheng had given him, the shock of personally confirming that the culprit who instigated the Nine-Tails' rampage, caused countless deaths and injuries, and nearly destroyed the village was actually his former sunny and kind student, Uchiha Obito, who was thought to have sacrificed himself, still left him feeling suffocated with heartache and anger.
He stepped forward, his gaze sharp as a knife, as if trying to pierce through the mask and look directly into Obito's eyes: "Obito, is it really you...? Why?"
The question of Minato Namikaze echoed in the night wind, carrying an immense weight of sorrow.
Behind this question lie countless lost lives, the devastation suffered by the village, the uncertain fate of Kushina, and the heart-wrenching question of why the kind boy from our memories had fallen to such a state.
However, all that answered him was Obito's heavy breathing and the gaze from the Sharingan beneath the mask, a gaze filled with madness and resentment.
Obito gritted his teeth, remaining silent. What use was explanation now? Rin was dead; this illusory world held no value whatsoever! The Eye of the Moon Plan was the only truth!
Minato Namikaze looked at the silent Obito, and the last shred of hope in his heart shattered completely. He closed his eyes briefly, and when he opened them again, his eyes were filled with a cold, resolute determination. No matter what Obito had gone through, the crimes he had committed could not be erased.
“It seems we need a quieter place to handle these matters,” Minato said in a deep voice, turning his gaze to Yan Sheng. “Sir, please come with me.”
Yan Sheng nodded slightly, indicating his agreement. With a casual lift, the Adamantine Chains binding Obito pulled the struggling Obito up like a puppet, suspending him beside him.
Seeing this, Minato Namikaze no longer hesitated. He formed hand seals and unleashed the Flying Thunder God Technique. Golden chakra light enveloped the three of them, space distorted, and in the next moment, they vanished from their spot.
The Hokage Building, underground interrogation room.
This place is filled with powerful sealing barriers, isolating it from the outside world.
Minato Namikaze dismissed his attendants, leaving only himself, Yan Sheng, and the masked man whose identity had been confirmed.
Prior to this, Minato had urgently confirmed that Kushina had been transferred to the intensive care unit and was receiving intensive care from the top medical team. The Nine-Tails had also been sealed back into her body, and her condition was temporarily stable, at least her life was safe. This put him at ease, allowing him to focus more on the current predicament.
He looked at Yan Sheng again, his tone solemn: "Sir, thank you for subduing Obito and providing crucial information. However, this matter is of great importance. Regarding the Eye of the Moon project you mentioned, and your own origins... I still need to verify further."
As the Hokage, he cannot completely believe a piece of spiritual information of unknown origin; that would be irresponsible to the village.
Yan Sheng had anticipated this, and instead of answering directly, he turned his gaze to the bound Obito.
“Verification is simple,” he said calmly. “Let him tell you.”
As soon as he finished speaking, Yan Sheng's Sharingan started spinning again, and a pure and powerful ocular force enveloped Obito.
Obito froze, feeling his will being eroded and suppressed by an irresistible force. He tried to resist, but against the absolute power of the Rinnegan, his resistance was like a mantis trying to stop a chariot.
Why... is there such a big difference?! They're both kaleidoscopes, after all.
Obito was completely baffled. He didn't realize that he had misunderstood a fundamental fact: Mikasa's eyes weren't Sharingan, but Rinnegan. And not just one pair, but two and a half pairs (his main eye was still evolving).
"What are you doing?!" Obito's voice was tinged with shock and anger.
"I'm just asking you to be 'honest' for now." Yan Sheng's tone was completely flat.
Minato Namikaze held his breath, knowing the crucial moment had arrived.
Yan Sheng began asking questions, his voice cold and clear:
"Your name".
"Uchiha...Obito..." Obito struggled, but his mouth uncontrollably uttered the truth.
"Was it you who released and controlled the Nine-Tails to attack Konoha tonight?"
"yes..."
"Is your goal to carry out the so-called 'Eye of the Moon Project'?"
"yes..."
Each question struck Minato Namikaze like a hammer blow. Especially when Obito, under Kokushi's persistent questioning, mentioned core concepts such as "creating a world with Rin" and "Infinite Tsukuyomi," Minato finally believed the truth of Kokushi's information.
Finally, when the despondent Obito questioned him about why he was always a step late, Minato lowered his eyelashes. He, who never revealed his true emotions, could only hide them in this way at this moment. This shows how much Obito's words affected him, so much so that his mind was shaken and he could not suppress them.
The interrogation (or rather, the one-sided extraction of information) lasted for some time.
When Yan Sheng withdrew his eye power, Obito collapsed into a chair as if he had collapsed from exhaustion. His face under the mask was deathly pale, and his single eye was filled with humiliation and even deeper resentment.
Minato Namikaze remained silent for a moment, processing this shocking truth. The last trace of doubt vanished from his gaze as he looked at Yan Sheng, replaced by a profound gratitude.
“I understand. Thank you again, Lord Yan Sheng.” Minato said solemnly. “If you hadn’t appeared in time and exposed all of this, Konoha and even the entire ninja world would probably have fallen into an unimaginable abyss.”
Yan Sheng shook his head, not caring about the gratitude.
“It’s just a matter of mutual benefit.” He paused, then looked at Minato Namikaze. “Now, what do you plan to do with him?”
Minato Namikaze turned his gaze to Obito, his expression complex.
Obito's crimes deserved his death. But he was, after all, his student, and his downfall was related to him...
Finally, taking a deep breath, Minato Namikaze made a difficult decision: "Obito must be tried and punished for his crimes. But before that, we need to get more detailed information from him about the Eye of the Moon Project. This will take time, and it will also require... some extraordinary measures."
He looked at Yan Sheng: "Lord Yan Sheng, before that, could you please maintain the seal on Obito for the time being? I am worried that ordinary sealing techniques cannot restrain his Kamui."
"Sure," Yan Sheng agreed readily.
"Furthermore," Minato Namikaze hesitated for a moment before speaking, "regarding your origins from another world, and the potential threat from the Otsutsuki clan in the future... I hope to have a more in-depth discussion with you at the appropriate time. This concerns the future of the entire world."
Yan Sheng glanced at Minato Namikaze and nodded: "Okay."
His promise put Minato Namikaze at ease.
However, Yan Sheng's next words were like a bucket of cold water, instantly diminishing the slight sense of relief he had just felt.
“However,” Yan Sheng’s tone remained flat, “my time in this realm is limited.”
Minato Namikaze: "..." He didn't need to take such a big breath to say that.
Yan Sheng was not lying. The moment he defeated the Nine-Tails, rendering it powerless, and assisted Minato Namikaze in capturing the culprit, Obito Uchiha, the cold and vast flow of information from the planetary consciousness of this world resounded in his mind:
[Mission to stop the Nine-Tailed Fox's rampage is complete.]
[Duration of stay: Three months. You may choose to leave this world at any time during this period.]
The pattern was exactly the same as the previous four worlds, so Yan Sheng was not surprised at all; he was used to it.
After a brief moment of surprise and deliberation, Minato Namikaze's signature warm and reassuring smile returned. But behind that smile lay a newfound resolve and decisiveness befitting a Hokage.
Minato Namikaze was a man of great stature; he could tell that Yan Sheng wasn't trying to take advantage of the situation, but rather that he genuinely had limited time.
Fortunately, he never regarded Yan Sheng as his only lifeline, nor did he place all his hopes on this outsider.
— Having reached his current position step by step through his own efforts without any backing, Minato Namikaze understands the principle that "in the end, one must rely on oneself" more deeply than anyone else.
Foreign aid is valuable, but internal strength is fundamental.
“Okay, I understand.” Minato looked at Yan Sheng with a calm and firm gaze. “I won’t keep you waiting too long.”
Yan Sheng remained noncommittal in response to Minato Namikaze's answer. He admired this pragmatic and self-reliant attitude. Working with someone like that would save a lot of unnecessary trouble.
Of course, Yan Sheng's willingness to stay in this realm and provide assistance was not purely out of goodwill.
Firstly, he believed in Minato Namikaze's abilities.
Secondly, it relates to his own core interest—merit and virtue.
If all goes well, and he can obtain the merit of "preventing the Otsutsuki from destroying the world" in this world again, he will have accumulated enough merit points.
Therefore, he is willing to dedicate three months to this field.
......
The reconstruction of Konoha is proceeding rapidly under the coordination of the Fourth Hokage.
Minato Namikaze also considered the issue of Yan Sheng's resettlement carefully—he consulted Yan Sheng in advance about whether he was willing to make contact with the Uchiha clan or live in their clan's territory.
Yan Sheng's answer was clear: "No need."
Minato Namikaze acknowledged the offer and then presented a solution: he tidied up a vacant property next to his own house and offered it to Yan Sheng for temporary accommodation.
This house is conveniently located, in a quiet environment, and more importantly, it's just a wall away from the Hokage's residence. This arrangement may seem casual, but it actually carries a deeper meaning. It facilitates communication and cooperation, and also implies an unspoken message of "observing from nearby."
Yan Sheng accepted it calmly.
In a way, it could be considered a succession of master and apprentice.
In the previous world, Yan Sheng lived next door to Uchiha Obito... Although the causes and processes were completely different, the results were surprisingly similar.
Kushina Uzumaki's recovery process was extremely slow and difficult.
When Obito forcibly extracted the Nine-Tails from her body, he nearly destroyed her life force—a devastating blow capable of killing anyone. Although the Nine-Tails was later resealed, saving her life, its essence was severely damaged. Complete healing would require a long period of careful recuperation, and she might never fully recover.
Due to extreme physical weakness and the effects of medication, Kushina was unable to breastfeed her newborn son.
Somehow the news got out, and soon, something heartwarming happened to both Kushina and Minato—many breastfeeding mothers in the village spontaneously organized themselves, carefully collected their breast milk, preserved it properly, and sent it to the Hokage's house.
"Lady Kushina, please accept this!"
"The Fourth Hokage sacrificed so much for the village; this is just a small token of our appreciation."
"I hope Naruto grows up healthy!"
Looking at those bottles of milk filled with kindness and care, Kushina was moved to tears.
The popularity of the Fourth Hokage and his wife in Konoha is evident.
Minato Namikaze, the first commoner to become Hokage since the founding of Konoha, based on his own outstanding achievements and abilities rather than his family background, serves as a role model and source of hope for many ordinary ninjas and villagers. His kindness, fairness, and strength earned him widespread recognition and respect.
Kushina, although a Jinchūriki, was the wife of the highly respected First Hokage, Mito Uzumaki.
With Mito Uzumaki announcing it to the public, the villagers all understood that Kushina was a guardian who had inherited a heavy responsibility and sacrifice. In addition, she was cheerful, enthusiastic, helpful, and kind, so naturally no one had any prejudice against her, and everyone liked her very much.
Thus, the most popular Naruto couple was born. √
***
As the great benefactor who saved her, her child, and the village, Kushina had a very good impression of Mitsukatsu. Now that they were neighbors, her warm and cheerful personality couldn't be contained, and she repeatedly invited Mitsukatsu to her home for meals, wanting to personally cook to express her gratitude.
Yan Sheng is naturally quiet and his first reaction to such lively social activities is to refuse them. He prefers to be alone or to engage in purposeful communication.
However, Kushina's invitation was not a mere polite formality. Her enthusiasm was like warm sunshine, sincere and frank, without being overly clingy or pressuresome. She was keenly aware of Kokushiro's aloofness, but she did not back down because of it. Instead, she persuaded him with an even more sincere attitude and reasons that were hard to refuse.
After declining several times, seeing Kushina's determined look that said "I'll keep inviting you until you agree," and Minato's slightly apologetic yet expectant gaze beside her, Yan Sheng remained silent for a moment before finally agreeing.
"good."
To prepare for the thank-you banquet, Kushina got up early the next morning, just as dawn was breaking.
After seeing Minato off, she got ready to go. It was already eight o'clock in the morning. She gently placed the still-sleeping little Naruto in the stroller and then excitedly pushed the stroller out to buy groceries.
As she walked along the streets that were gradually coming back to life, villagers greeted her warmly.
"Lady Kushina, are you feeling better? Please get plenty of rest!"
"Oh my, this must be little Naruto! He's so cute, his eyebrows and eyes are like the Fourth Hokage's, and his hair color is so beautiful!"
"Lady Kushina, I have three children, all of whom are healthy and chubby. If you have any questions about raising children, please feel free to ask me anytime!"
Kushina responded to each one with a smile, her face radiant with happiness. When she arrived at the market, the vendors recognized her and offered her the best prices, even insisting on giving her extra vegetables.
"I can't accept this..."
"Please accept this, Lady Kushina! The Fourth Hokage and you have worked hard for the village!"
Both are Jinchūriki, so why is there such a huge difference in treatment between them? The root cause lies in the transparency of information and the groundwork laid by their predecessors.
When Mito Uzumaki, the wife of the First Hokage, served as a Jinchūriki, her powerful strength, kind heart, and high prestige had already made the identity of a Jinchūriki synonymous with "the guardian of the village."
Later, when she personally transferred the seal to Kushina, it was done publicly and solemnly, witnessed and endorsed by all the village's leaders.
The villagers knew the importance of the Jinchūriki's sacrifice, so they naturally only had respect and affection for Kushina, rather than fear and rejection.
Naruto suffers malice because of the trauma caused by the Nine-Tails' attack and the higher-ups' concealment of the truth, which leads to the public's pain of losing loved ones and their anger being directed at him as the vessel for the Nine-Tails.
......
The shopping process went exceptionally smoothly, and Kushina quickly bought all the ingredients she needed, ready to go home satisfied.
"Kushina!"
A gentle female voice came from behind. Kushina turned around and saw her friend Uchiha Mikoto smiling as she walked towards her.
Mikoto is the wife of Fugaku Uchiha, the current head of the Uchiha clan, and the two have a very close personal relationship.
"Mikoto!" Kushina responded happily.
Mikoto walked to the stroller, bent down, and looked gently at Naruto inside, who was smacking his lips: "This must be little Naruto, so cute."
"Yes, I'll say it!" Kushina habitually uttered her catchphrase, her face radiating maternal glow.
“It looks more like Minato,” Mikoto said with a smile.
"Right! I think so too, her hair and eyes are just like Minato's!" Kushina's tone carried a hint of "complaint," but was mostly sweet.
"Thinking of having another one? Maybe the next one will be just like you," Mikoto joked.
"I just gave birth, so I'm not thinking about having a second child yet." Kushina quickly waved her hand, then asked with concern, "But you, Mikoto, how's your youngest son, Sasuke? Is he easier to take care of than Itachi was?"
Mikoto, who didn't bring her son with her today, had a happy and slightly proud smile on her face: "Sasuke is very well-behaved. Although he's a little more lively than Itachi was when he was a child... overall, he rarely causes us any trouble."
Upon hearing this, Kushina immediately showed an envious expression: "That's so nice... My little Naruto is so hard to take care of, especially at night. He always needs to be carried and we have to stand up and walk around for him to be quiet. It's exhausting for Minato and me."
......
Kushina's brief chat with her friend Uchiha Mikoto on the street made her feel exceptionally bright, as if she were being bathed in the warm spring sunshine.
She pushed the stroller, humming an off-key, energetic melody, and walked briskly home.
As evening fell, Minato Namikaze finished his busy day of official duties and dragged his slightly tired but still upright body home.
As soon as he opened the door, an enticing aroma of food wafted towards him, dispelling the slight weariness between his brows.
He followed the aroma to the kitchen door and saw his wife, Kushina, wearing an apron and busy at the stove. Her long red hair was casually tied back, and her profile looked gentle and focused under the light.
A warm feeling welled up in Minato's eyes. He quietly stepped forward and gently embraced his wife's waist from behind.
Kushina stiffened slightly at first, but then, sensing the familiar chakra and aura, she immediately relaxed, leaned back, and said reproachfully, "You're back? You scared me! The last dish will be ready soon, hurry up and go next door to call Mr. Mikukatsu over for dinner!"
Minato lowered his head and gently sniffed her hair, replying with a smile, "Okay, I'll go right now. Thank you for your trouble, Kushina."
The atmosphere at dinner was much more harmonious than I had expected.
Although Yan Sheng was not talkative, he was very polite and his eating was extremely elegant and composed. The way he held his chopsticks, his habit of chewing without making a sound, and the way he seemed to be ingrained in his bones—a respectful yet slightly aloof attitude towards food—all secretly amazed the observant Kushina.
She couldn't help but recall some nobles she had met together when she was serving under Lord Mito in her early years.
Those nobles also paid attention to etiquette, but it always carried a hint of deliberate ostentation and affectation, making people feel uncomfortable. Yan Sheng's elegance, on the other hand, was a natural quality, aloof and self-possessed, like a high mountain stream, which not only did not annoy people, but also inspired admiration.
The more Kushina looked at him, the more she felt that this Mr. Yan Sheng was definitely not from an ordinary background. Ordinary Uchiha clan members, even those from the clan head's lineage, rarely possessed such an air of refinement that seemed to have been cultivated over a hundred years.
Looking at Yan Sheng's quiet profile as he ate, and then at her son Naruto waving his little hands in the stroller beside her, a thought suddenly flashed through Kushina's mind like lightning, and she almost blurted it out:
"Yan Sheng, how about you become my son's godfather? What do you say?"
"Pfft—!" Minato Namikaze, who was drinking soup, choked and coughed at his wife's earth-shattering suggestion. His handsome face instantly turned red, and he awkwardly picked up a napkin to wipe it off.
It's no wonder that Kushina would make such outrageous remarks.
Minato Namikaze, for various reasons, has not yet revealed the true origins of Yan Sheng or the specific details of Obito's capture to his wife.
Therefore, in Kushina's mind, Kokushiro was a powerful and trustworthy Uchiha friend whom her husband had met while traveling abroad. Now, he had just returned to Konoha and had come to her aid in her time of crisis.
Of course, Kushina was not without her doubts.
She and Minato were childhood sweethearts, and she knew her husband's social circle inside and out. She had no recollection of Minato having such a uniquely charismatic and unfathomably powerful Uchiha friend. However, out of her unwavering trust in her husband and the genuine life-saving grace of Michikatsu, she chose to accept this version of events.
More importantly, through these few days of observation, Kushina had an excellent impression of Yan Sheng. He was powerful but did not bully the weak, and aloof but polite. In particular, his aura, as pure and noble as the bright moon, made Kushina instinctively feel close to and admire him.
She has a straightforward and enthusiastic personality, and she admires people who are pure of heart and consistent in their words and deeds.
In her opinion, having such a strong, reliable, and virtuous person as her son's godfather was the best thing ever!
A brief silence fell over the dining table. Yan Sheng's chopsticks paused slightly in mid-air. He raised his eyes, his deep gaze falling on Kushina, whose face was filled with expectation and pure joy, before glancing at Minato Namikaze, who stood beside him with his hands clasped together as if to say "reject now."
He put down his chopsticks, elegantly wiped the corners of his mouth with a napkin, his movements still unhurried.
Then he said, "This is not appropriate." His voice was cold and clear, like a mountain stream, leaving no room for negotiation. "I have no intention of establishing contact with anyone."
The reason for the refusal was simple. He was merely a passerby in this world, destined to leave in three months at most, and the so-called "godparent" relationship meant nothing to him.
Furthermore, that's just his nature.
Rejected so decisively, Kushina's bright eyes immediately dimmed, and a hint of disappointment flashed across her face. But she was a cheerful person and not one to argue unnecessarily. She quickly adjusted her mindset and said with a touch of apology, "Ah... I'm sorry, Mr. Yan Sheng, I was too impulsive! Please just pretend I didn't say anything!" She scratched her head, somewhat embarrassed.
Minato Namikaze secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
However, just as the atmosphere was about to return to normal, Yan Sheng suddenly spoke again—he looked at Kushina, perhaps because he thought the Hokage's wife was of good character, or perhaps he suddenly realized that relying solely on Minato Namikaze to deal with the future Otsutsuki crisis was ultimately limited, and no matter how reliable he was, he couldn't "create something out of thin air".
He calmly turned his gaze to the baby Naruto playing in the stroller beside him, and casually dropped a bombshell: "Your son, and Uchiha Sasuke, the son of the Uchiha clan patriarch, will undergo unexpected changes if they get together."
"Pfft, cough cough cough!" Minato Namikaze choked on his own saliva this time, coughing even more violently than before, his handsome face turning red.
Kushina froze completely, her chopsticks clattering onto the table, her mouth agape in disbelief, countless unbelievable thoughts flashing through her mind.
A union... a union?! Is that what she meant?! Two boys?!
"Huh?!" The couple exclaimed in unison, their faces filled with shock and bewilderment.
Seeing their overly intense reaction, Yan Sheng belatedly realized that his wording might have been ambiguous in this context. He frowned slightly and added, "I meant, their chakra combined."
He paused, as if organizing his thoughts for more precise language: "These two children have a very deep connection."
Upon hearing this, Minato's expression immediately turned serious. Kushina, however, still looked confused and pressed for details, asking, "Origins? What origins do you mean?"
“It would be too verbose to explain in detail. Let me put it simply.” His gaze swept over the couple. “In their first lives, these two children were the two sons of the Sage of Six Paths; they were brothers. In their second lives, one was Madara Uchiha, and the other was Hashirama Senju.”
Minato Namikaze: "!!!"
Kushina: "(⊙⊙)!"
The sheer volume of information left the couple speechless.
The Sage of Six Paths? Isn't that a figure from mythology? Madara Uchiha and the First Hokage?! Their son... is he a reincarnation?!
Yan Sheng seemed oblivious to their shock and continued in his calm tone, "And in the third life, he became your child, and the child of the Uchiha clan chief."
He paused slightly, and considering the level of acceptance, added, "Of course, you don't have to consider them the same person. The reincarnation theory is more about the continuation of chakra nature and destiny; the essence of their souls is already an independent individual. They are Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha, nothing more."
“However,” he changed the subject, “that quality originating from the depths of their souls has not changed. Therefore, if their chakra can achieve some degree of combination and resonance in the future, it may be possible to unleash the power of the Six Paths.”
After the words were spoken, a long silence fell over the living room. Only little Naruto, oblivious to everything, gnawed on his little fist and made "ah ah" sounds.
Minato Namikaze and Kushina were processing this shocking secret when their gazes simultaneously fell on their son in the stroller, their expressions becoming incredibly complex.
That being said—but! They couldn't help but feel the absurdity of having given birth to the first one! It was terrifying!
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Author's Note: Minato, Kushina, and I are here! Oh my god! We've given birth to the First Hokage!
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