Because of this, Menma's attack held absolutely zero mercy.
While inflicting critical damage on Naruto, his secondary objective was to casually slaughter the Myōboku toad in the process.
A flash of cold steel bloomed.
Killing intent spiked at point-blank range.
The moment the blade entered his vision, Menma's strike was already upon him. As the terrifying, icy aura washed over him, Fukasaku's body instinctively locked up.
It was a situation where he physically couldn't react in time.
It's too late! Am I going to die here?!
That was the final thought that flashed through Fukasaku's mind.
Death seemed imminent.
But at the very last microsecond...
"Release!"
Seizing that microscopic window of time, Naruto ignored the agonizing pain tearing through his abdomen and formed a single hand seal.
He forcefully canceled the Summoning Jutsu.
Poof!
The next second, Fukasaku vanished in a cloud of white smoke.
With his secondary target suddenly gone, Menma's blade hesitated for a fraction of a second. But less than half a second later, the horizontal slash continued its deadly arc.
Squelch!
Menma intentionally adjusted the angle of the blade slightly.
Deliberately avoiding a fatal spot.
The Sword of the Thunder God plunged deep into Naruto's shoulder. The sickening sound of tearing flesh and grinding bone echoed out.
Blood sprayed violently into the air.
!?
Another wave of tearing agony hit Naruto.
His face contorted once more in raw, twisting pain.
Immediately after, the Adamantine Sealing Chains coiled tighter, completely binding Naruto's body and rendering him utterly incapable of resistance.
"At the very end, instead of trying to escape yourself, you prioritized sending that old toad away? That's something only you would do, my foolish little brother," Menma said.
His voice was flat as he looked down at Naruto, who had dropped out of Sage Mode and was now pale and gasping for breath.
Naruto was still Naruto.
Even if his surname had changed from Uzumaki to Namikaze.
The core of who he was remained exactly the same.
Menma didn't even know how to describe it anymore. Perhaps this was just the inevitable result of being the vessel for Asura's chakra.
"Cough, cough... I lost this time," Naruto wheezed. "No, maybe I never had the right or the ability to win in the first place. You call me foolish? Maybe I am. But this is my ninja way and my conviction, Brother."
He paused, struggling for breath, before continuing. "Even though I don't know exactly what you're trying to do... and I know I have no right to criticize you... in these final moments, I still want to ask you: please, spare the village."
"At least the ordinary villagers... they didn't know the truth, did they? Let me bear all the hatred. I'm willing to accept any punishment, as long as it extinguishes the anger in your heart. Don't take revenge on the Leaf, okay? At the very least... it's still our home. It's the village Mom and Dad gave their lives to protect. I'm begging you."
Naruto believed he had reached the end of his life.
In his eyes, Menma wouldn't show him any mercy.
Just like the brutal killing intent Menma had shown at the Valley of the End, now that Naruto was captured and completely defenseless, he was fully prepared to die.
He only hoped that his death might awaken Menma—that it might spark even a tiny shred of mercy, and that his blood could wash away the hatred of the past.
Naruto's desperate, agonizing plea...
His near-begging words...
When they reached Menma's ears, Menma only felt a profound sense of absurdity.
Even today, his brother still believed that his defection and his actions were driven solely by the hatred of his past suffering in the Leaf.
True, that was the initial, fundamental catalyst.
But it was only one reason. It wasn't the only reason.
To usher in true rebirth through destruction—that was what Menma intended to do. Taking revenge on the Leaf? In the beginning, it might have been his primary goal. But now, it was just an incidental side objective in his 'main quest'.
"Don't take revenge on the Leaf? Naruto, just like I said from the very beginning, you will never understand me. We will never walk the same path. And frankly, I never expected us to."
"Using your blood to wash away hatred? Only you could utter something so incredibly stupid. The Leaf rotted away a long time ago. Just like this world—it's dark, filthy, and needs to be cleansed."
Menma stared coldly at Naruto, his tone freezing.
Had Naruto grown?
The answer was yes.
Whether in mindset, awareness, or personal strength, the current Naruto was vastly different from the boy he was over a year ago. But some things, carved deep into his bones, simply couldn't be changed. The original story proved that perfectly.
For example, Naruto's dream—inherited from Jiraiya—of building a world where people truly understood one another.
From beginning to end, Naruto never abandoned that ideal, always firmly believing he could achieve it.
Yet, Naruto's ideals and methods...
Put bluntly, were just a repetition of the exact same path Hashirama Senju had walked decades earlier. The only addition was that Naruto managed to connect his heart with the Tailed Beasts.
But just like the "peace" of Hashirama's era only existed because Hashirama was alive and terrifyingly strong...
The peace achieved after the final battle in the original story was solely built on the foundation that Naruto and Sasuke were still alive.
Was that kind of peace truly born because people understood each other? Or was it because they were terrified of Naruto and Sasuke's god-like power?
It was almost certainly the latter.
Even if, during that brief window, the Great Nations did understand each other and maintain a peaceful stance...
The long, bloody history of humanity has already proven an unchanging philosophical truth: humans are creatures that never learn their lesson. Repeating past mistakes is humanity's oldest tradition.
No matter how profound the lesson...
Time will always slowly erode the memory of it.
This was exactly why Menma had always found Naruto's convictions and ideals incredibly laughable. Back in his previous life, during his teenage years, Naruto had actually been his favorite anime character.
That hadn't changed until he reached adulthood.
It wasn't that Menma wanted to view the world and the future through a dark, cynical lens. But compared to naive, hot-blooded justice...
Menma preferred to place his faith in the path of realism.
At the very least, that path seemed more logical and held far more practical meaning.
"Why? Why does it have to be so cruel? So bloody? The ordinary people are innocent! Menma, you need to calm down. Don't let the hatred control you... I... cough, cough..."
Hearing Menma's words, Naruto panicked. He tried to keep speaking.
But the movement pulled at his wounds, sending a fresh spike of agony through his nerves. His face contorted again, and the metallic taste of blood filled his mouth before he violently coughed up a mouthful of crimson.
His aura weakened significantly.