Soon, the people of the Shinobi World witnessed the beginning of the Nine-Tails Incident.
Inside a secluded delivery room, candles burned brightly.
The Fourth Hokage, Namikaze Minato, dressed in casual clothes, held a newborn baby in his arms.
His face bore the joy of a first-time father as he looked down at the tiny, wrinkled life in his arms, his eyes full of tenderness as if it was the most precious treasure in the world.
Beside him, a weakened Uzumaki Kushina watched the father and son with happiness in her eyes. Though her face was covered in sweat, she radiated the glow of motherhood.
Minato gently placed the swaddled baby Naruto next to Kushina and was about to turn around to reinforce the Nine-Tails' seal, which had loosened due to childbirth, when suddenlyāan anomaly occurred.
Two bodies fell from above without any warning.
Thud! Thud!
The dull sound of them hitting the ground was especially jarring in the quiet delivery room.
Hiruzen, watching the Sky Screen, trembled all over, his pupils contracting violently. The pipe in his hand fell to the ground with a clatter, sending sparks flying.
Because he was shocked to discover that one of them was his wife, Sarutobi Biwako. He never imagined that the first casualty of the Nine-Tails Incident was his own wife!
On the screen, Minato's gaze, filled with shock and anger, snapped toward the entrance. A man in a black robe and a mask had appeared unnoticed.
And in his armsā¦ he was holding the newborn Naruto!
"Fourth Hokage."
"Step away from the Jinchuriki immediately."
"Otherwise, this child's life ends here."
Obito's emotionless voice came from behind his mask, and when he saw that Minato made no move, he quickly lost patience.
"It seems you need a reminder."
Before his voice had even faded, he actually tossed baby Naruto upward. The swaddled infant spun mid-air, his wrinkled little face still bearing the innocence of a newborn.
The kunai in Obito's hand gleamed coldly as he stabbed it mercilessly toward the falling Naruto.
"Naruto!!"
From the hospital bed, Kushina let out a heart-wrenching scream.
In the nick of time, Minato's figure vanished into thin air. With unbelievable speed, he caught the falling Naruto safely.
At the same time, his other hand moved like lightning, instantly unwrapping the baby's swaddling clothes and flinging a baby outfit covered in explosive tags far away.
BOOM!!!
The violent explosion instantly consumed everything.
Flames soared into the sky, and shockwaves surged.
By the time the people of the Shinobi World watching the Sky Screen realized what had happened, Minato had already used the Flying Raijin to relocate the blast site.
"Whoaā¦ so this is the fastest shinobi in the world?!"
[Little did Naruto know that his "uncle" had once 'exploded' him as a child. I wonder how Minato and Kushina felt when Naruto later forbade anyone from laughing at Mr. Simp.]
---
[Konoha, Year 60]
When Kushina's cry of "Naruto!" echoed from the screen, the Naruto of the present froze on the spot. His mind went blank, and he could no longer hear any sounds around him.
Only that cry of "Naruto" reverberated in his mind for a long time.
'Momā¦ that was Mom's voice. My mom!'
Just as Sasuke and the others began to worry, they saw Naruto cover his face with his arm.
Sensing something wrong, Sasuke turned his head to look at Naruto. "Heyā¦ Narutoā¦"
But before he could finish, he froze, seeing Naruto covering his face with his arm, his shoulders trembling slightly.
After a moment, Sasuke heard Naruto whisper, so soft it was almost inaudible.
"Momā¦ Dad!"
Sakura's eyes also turned red.
While Kakashi remained silent, saying nothing. To be honest, he regretted not having found the right moment earlier to tell Naruto about his parents.
'But, Sensei, Kushina-senpaiā¦ Naruto has finally seen you.'
At some point, Jiraiya had also already arrived.
He stood not far away, watching the boy who was hiding his face behind his hand. He, too, said nothing.
But deep down, he couldn't stop sighing.
---
[Hokage Office]
Hiruzen took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down from the scene of his wife's death.
He looked at the Sky Screen, his thoughts a whirlwind.
"So that's it. The target was Kushina, and Minato fell for a diversionary tactic."
"Butā¦ the time and place of Kushina's delivery were highest secrets in the village! Apart from a very few people, there was absolutely no way it could have been leaked. Who could it be?"
Tsunade, standing nearby, said in a heavy voice, "Could it beā¦ DanzÅ?"
Hiruzen thought for a moment, then slowly shook his head.
"No, it probably wasn't him."
"Although that man is almost crazy about wanting to be Hokage, he would never go this far. Deep down, he still cares about the village."
Tsunade let out a snort. "That's not necessarily true."
She crossed her arms over her chest.
"But whoever it is, this Simp guy knows too much. He was able to infiltrate the delivery room, kill the guards, and pinpoint Kushina's exact locationā¦"
"Old man, this person is definitely someone from inside the village."
Hiruzen fell silent.
Because he knew Tsunade was right. If the Sky Screen hadn't already revealed certain things, he would probably still be blaming the Uchiha.
But who could it be? As he thought it over, doubt began to creep into Hiruzen's heart.
---
[Konoha, Year 50 Ā· Hokage Office]
Minato and Kushina stared at the Sky Screen, dumbfounded.
Kushina's voice was full of disbelief, "According to this Sky Screen, Naruto actually defends this guy in the future?"
The corner of Minato's mouth also twitched slightly, "So it seemsā¦"
No way?
This childā¦ how was he raised to turn out like this?
The two exchanged a glance, both seeing the same resolve in each other's eyes. If they survived this crisis, they were definitely going to teach Naruto properly.
Let him know that this so-called "uncle" almost killed him as a baby.
Butā¦
A doubt lingered in Minato's mind. According to the Sky Screen, this guy had some kind of relationship with Naruto?
Thenā¦ did he have a relationship with himself or Kushina as well?
Regardless, the matter of "exploding" Naruto was something best left in the futureāor rather, better if it never happened at all.
But what puzzled him even more was another question.
As the wife of the Hokage and the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, the date and location of Kushina's delivery in the future would have been Konoha's highest guarded secret.
How did this guy know?
A cold glint flashed in Minato's eyes. "Could there be a traitor?"
Kushina's expression also turned grim. "Minato, what are you saying?"
"The only people who could know this information are those at Konoha's very core."
"So once the Sky Screen's broadcast ends, we can begin the investigation."
*****
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