Despite his confusion regarding the Nine-Tails' words, Minato decided to follow the flow.
After all, he was currently in a state akin to a lingering soul infused with chakra; he had no way to confront the strongest Tailed Beast head-on. His attempts to communicate with Naruto had already failed, so his only recourse was to grasp the reality of the situation first.
Without a moment's hesitation, the Fourth Hokage locked onto the person he knew best in the crowd, his disciple, Kakashi, as well as Tsunade, one of the Sannin. He flew directly toward them to demand an answer.
"Is this... what is happening here?"
"Sensei? You're alive!" Kakashi's hands were trembling slightly with sheer emotion.
His short life had been nothing short of a tragedy. First, as a young child, he watched his father forced into suicide by rumors and vitriol. Then, as a youth, he lost his two most precious companions. Finally, both his mentor and his mentor's wife perished during the Nine-Tails' rampage.
To put it bluntly, he was the textbook definition of a "Lone Star of Calamity." It was no wonder he had fallen into darkness for so long, even catching the eye of a man like Danzo.
Now, seeing his teacher seemingly returned from the dead, the emotions he had suppressed for over a decade finally erupted.
"No, I am indeed dead. What you see now is merely a conscious entity condensed from a lingering soul and chakra. My time is limited, so keep it brief. If we cannot awaken Naruto's consciousness, things will take a turn for the absolute worst."
Minato clearly had no time for nostalgia. His eyes, fixed on the Nine-Tails, were filled with agonizing worry. As a father, his greatest wish was to liberate Naruto from his self-imposed isolation.
Interestingly, every Konoha ninja present, including Tsunade, wore an expression of profound shame.
Anyone with a shred of decency would never agree that the decisions made by the Third Hokage, Danzo, and the two councilors were intended to "protect" the orphan of the Fourth. Even if they needed to hide the identity of the new Jinchuriki, they should have at least provided for his basic needs.
But what had those old fossils done? They hadn't even issued him a basic living allowance!
Furthermore, they allowed rumors to spread, causing the villagers to loathe and isolate the son of their hero.
Moreover, Konoha's high-ranking officials had plenty of descendants, none of whom were forced into such anonymity. Take the Third Hokage: his son Asuma left the village in his youth to serve as one of the Guardian Shinobi Twelve for the Daimyo, and his grandson Konohamaru ran rampant through the village pulling pranks without a care.
Why was there such a blatant double standard when it came to Naruto?
Sensing the shift in the atmosphere, Minato realized his son's rampage likely stemmed from the village leadership's decisions after his death. He turned his gaze toward Tsunade.
Knowing she had to provide an explanation, Tsunade sighed helplessly and recounted everything that had transpired in the village since the Nine-Tails' attack.
As he listened to how the village he gave his life for had treated Naruto, even the even-tempered Minato grew livid. He gritted his teeth and questioned, "Was this the Third's idea, or Danzo's?"
"I'm sorry, I don't know. Both my teacher, the Third, and Danzo are dead. The two councilors have likely just been killed by Sasuke Uchiha as well. There is no one left who knows exactly what happened back then or why they arranged things this way for Naruto," Tsunade replied with a bitter smile.
Normally bold and straightforward, she didn't even have the courage to meet his eyes. Sometimes, she felt that Konoha becoming like this proved Allen was right, that the village had long since lost its reason for existing.
"Fine. I understand. It seems Naruto suffered a shock so severe he felt the entire world had betrayed him. He chose to sever all ties with the outside world and hand his body over to the Nine-Tails. Now, we must awaken him. Gather his best friends and companions..."
Before the fuming Minato could finish his sentence, Obito, wearing his mask and Akatsuki uniform, suddenly cut into the battlefield. With a single glance, he turned the strongest Tailed Beast into his personal pet.
As the Nine-Tails' eyes shifted into the shape of the Sharingan, everyone who remembered the tragedy of years ago was plunged into terror and despair.
"Forgive me, but the Nine-Tails belongs to us now."
Obito immediately activated his Mangekyō ability, warping himself and the Nine-Tails into the Kamui dimension.
"No!!!!"
Minato attempted to give chase using the Flying Raijin Technique, but the activation speed of the dual Mangekyō Sharingan far surpassed any other space-time ninjutsu. In the blink of an eye, they vanished without a trace.
Silence fell over the battlefield. Though the threat of the Nine-Tails was gone, no one was smiling. Minato, in particular, had hoped to use this chance to speak with his son, but in the end, he had achieved nothing.
Without the protection of the sealing power, his chakra began to dissipate at an extreme rate. In a matter of minutes, he would leave this world forever.
…
On the other side, Obito did not linger. He brought the Nine-Tails and its Jinchuriki directly before Allen.
"Here. The Nine-Tails you wanted."
"Well done. It seems we are only missing the Eight-Tails and the Three-Tails. The mission to collect all nine Tailed Beasts is nearing completion."
Allen looked at the unconscious Naruto lying on the ground, a satisfied smile playing on his lips.
"Be cautious, especially now. Do you know who I just saw? The Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze. He seems to have left something like a soul or chakra remnant within the seal," Obito reminded him meaningfully.
Allen, however, remained unbothered, spreading his hands with a chuckle. "And? It's just a lingering shred of a soul. Even if he appeared in the flesh, he couldn't change anything. Besides, I have better plans for Naruto's future."
"Better plans?" Obito caught the keyword instantly.
"Indeed. You might not know this, but Sasuke is actually the chakra reincarnation of Indra, the eldest son of the Sage of the Six Paths. Naruto is the reincarnation of the younger son, Asura. In a sense, they are both children of destiny, burdened by a fate that has been entangled for a thousand years. With a little training and guidance, they will both become invaluable assets in the final war."
Allen made no effort to hide his intentions. After this rampage, it was virtually certain that Naruto would never return to Konoha.
Lies and deception had stripped the boy of his trust in the village and his acquaintances. Combined with the fact that he had killed so many Konoha ninja while out of control, a transformation, both psychological and physical, was inevitable.
At this moment, whoever could offer him the truth and the secrets of the world would be the one he sided with.
"Indra and Asura? The two sons of the Sage of the Six Paths?" Obito's mouth hung open in surprise.
"It's a long story. If you're interested, I can tell it to you slowly. By the way, Madara and Hashirama happened to be the previous reincarnations as well."
As he finished speaking, Allen extended a finger and pressed it lightly against the strangely shaped seal on Naruto's belly, sensing the half of the Nine-Tails' chakra contained within.
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