Gento walked along the road toward Kushina's house, still thinking about how he should bring up inviting her.
Over the years, the relationship between the two of them had already become close enough, yet that final thin layer had never been pierced.
Every time they met, there was always something in the way Kushina looked at him, but whenever he tried to take a step further, she would choose to avoid it.
As he was thinking, a burst of commotion suddenly came from up ahead.
"Get lost!"
"Don't come near us!"
"My mom said you're the demon fox's child! You're not allowed to play with us!"
Gento's brows furrowed as he quickened his pace and turned the corner.
At the entrance of the alley, a group of children had gathered, the older ones around seven or eight, the younger ones only four or five.
They surrounded a small boy in an orange tracksuit, pushing and shoving him while shouting insults.
The child had fallen onto the ground, his knees scraped and bleeding.
His clothes were covered in dirt, his blond hair messy, and his small face smeared with dust.
Yet he bit his lip, stubbornly refusing to cry out.
The blond boy was none other than Naruto Uzumaki.
Gento's gaze turned cold.
"Get back to your mom already!"
A chubby boy stepped forward and shoved Naruto hard.
Naruto's back slammed into the wall, the pain making him shrink slightly.
He lifted his head, those bright blue eyes filled with confusion and grievance, yet he still said stubbornly:
"My mom isn't a demon fox!"
"Pah!"
Another child spat at him.
"You don't even have a dad! You're a kid nobody wants!"
Naruto froze.
"That's not true! I have a dad…"
Naruto opened his mouth, only to suddenly realize he couldn't say who his father was.
His mother never mentioned it, and the Third Grandpa wouldn't let him ask.
Every time he tried, his mother would change the subject.
Tears welled up in his eyes, and he bit his lip hard, desperately holding them back.
Seeing him like this, the surrounding children laughed even louder.
Someone picked up a small stone, weighing it in their hand as if about to throw it.
Several others followed suit, bending down to pick up bits of gravel from the ground and hurling them at Naruto.
"Get out of Leaf with your demon fox mother!"
"Get out!"
A small stone struck Naruto's shoulder. His body trembled, yet he still held his head high without making a sound.
The others continued throwing stones at him.
At that moment, Gento's figure flashed, appearing in front of Naruto and catching every single stone.
Immediately, he grabbed the back of the chubby boy's collar and threw him straight out.
The chubby boy landed hard on his backside.
"Ow! Who was that?!"
He turned his head and saw Gento's cold, stern face, instantly too frightened to speak.
Gento ignored him, only sweeping a cold glance over the remaining children.
The children felt their legs go weak, the stones in their hands dropping to the ground with clatters as they backed away repeatedly.
"Scram."
Gento's voice was icy.
The chubby boy scrambled away in a panic.
The other children also scattered, running off in an instant until the place was completely empty.
Only then did the adults at the alley entrance finally speak up.
Several villagers stood there; some with their arms crossed, others wearing expressions as if watching a show.
"Kids are just playing around. You're not seriously going to hold it against children, are you?"
A woman said in a sarcastic tone.
"Exactly. That kid is the demon fox's child anyway. It's not like they said anything wrong."
Another middle-aged man chimed in, even spitting on the ground.
Gento glanced at them and said calmly:
"Playing around? A group beating one person is playing around?"
He paused, a cold smile curling at the corner of his lips:
"Then next time, I'll have the Uchiha clan's children go 'play around' with your kids too. How about that?"
The villagers' expressions changed at once.
Only then did they notice the fan emblem on Gento's clothes.
That was the symbol of the Uchiha clan!
Their faces turned pale.
They had heard that the Uchiha clan possessed formidable combat strength.
Even the Leaf Police Force ninja who often bullied them would act respectfully and keep their distance when facing the Uchiha.
If his earlier words had angered the Uchiha…
"Um… we have some things to do…"
The woman forced an awkward smile, pulling her child away.
The others didn't dare linger either, hurriedly dragging their children off, their footsteps fading in disorder at the end of the alley.
Gento withdrew his gaze and shook his head.
These troublesome villagers of the Hidden Leaf Village were truly foolish beyond saving.
Minato had given his life to protect them, to protect this village.
And now his orphaned son was being bullied by their children.
They weren't worthy of even a shred of sympathy.
He turned around and looked at Naruto in the corner.
Naruto's bright blue eyes lit up instantly.
"Uncle Gento!"
He immediately recognized this uncle who often visited his home.
Whenever Uncle Gento came, his mom would smile very happily.
When Uncle Gento visited, he would also bring a lot of things.
For the next few days, his mom would make him lots of delicious food.
He spread his small arms and threw himself into Gento's embrace, his little head rubbing hard against his chest.
"Uncle Gento! They… they said… said my mom is a demon fox…"
Naruto could no longer hold it in. Tears fell patter after patter, yet he still tried desperately not to make a sound, his shoulders trembling.
Gento's heart softened. He reached out and rubbed that messy blond hair.
"Your mom isn't a monster."
He gently picked Naruto up and patted the dirt off his back.
Naruto lay against his shoulder, sniffling as he spoke softly:
"Uncle… I want to eat ramen…"
Gento couldn't help but smile, pinching his little cheek:
"Alright, I'll take you to eat ramen."
Holding Naruto, he walked forward:
"But first, we'll go home so your mom can change you into clean clothes."
Naruto nodded vigorously, his small hands tightly wrapping around Gento's neck.
...
There was a knock on Kushina's door.
She quickly walked to the entrance. The moment she pulled the door open, the smile on her face froze.
Gento stood at the doorway, holding Naruto in his arms.
Naruto's dirty little face, his scraped knees, the red mark at the corner of his eye, and his clothes covered in mud; all of it fell into her sight.
Kushina's expression changed in a blink.
"Naruto, you're hurt? What happened!"
Her voice trembled a little as she reached out to take him.
Naruto looked at her.
A bright smile suddenly blossomed across his small face:
"Mom, I'm fine!"
"The dirt on me is from when I fell while playing."
Kushina's hand froze in midair.
She looked at her son's smiling face, at the way he forced himself to appear relaxed, and her throat felt as if something was lodged in it.
She said nothing, only reaching out to take Naruto and pulling him tightly into her arms.
Nestled in his mother's embrace, Naruto clung to her shoulder and muttered:
"Mom… Uncle Gento said he's going to take me to eat ramen…"
Kushina lowered her head, gently brushing her cheek against his forehead, her voice trembling slightly:
"Alright, Mom knows."
She set Naruto down and said softly:
"Naruto, go wash your face and change into clean clothes first, okay?"
Naruto nodded and obediently ran into the house.
After quite a while, she took a deep breath, turned around, and forced a smile onto her face:
"Gento-kun, thank you for bringing Naruto back."
The smile was too forced; Gento could tell at a glance that she was barely holding herself together.
A trace of discomfort stirred in his heart.
He knew that something like this was certainly not the first time for Kushina.
It might even be happening once every few days.
She was raising Naruto alone, facing the villagers' cold looks while taking care of her child, constantly worrying that Naruto would be wronged.
Every time Naruto was bullied outside, he would come back and pretend nothing had happened, smiling at her as if everything were fine.
That kind of helplessness… Gento could imagine it.
Not to mention, she herself had gone through the same thing when she was young.
As the orphan of the Uzumaki clan, as the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, she had grown up under cold stares and isolation.
Every bit of grievance Naruto suffered now, she could feel as if it were her own.
"Come in first."
Kushina stepped aside to let him in.
Gento followed her into the house and sat down in the living room.
The house was kept very clean.
The furnishings were simple.
An old tea table, a few floor cushions.
On the table were Naruto's scribbled drawings.
A crooked Hokage Rock, and three small figures holding hands.
Kushina brought over a cup of tea and set it in front of him before sitting down across from him.
She lowered her head and remained silent for quite a while.
"Does Naruto… go through this often?"
Gento asked softly.
Kushina nodded.
"Every few days."
"Sometimes people throw stones at him, sometimes they curse at him, sometimes… they chase him down and beat him."
She lifted her head and looked toward the inner room, her eyes filled with heartache:
"But he never tells me."
"Every time he comes back, he secretly washes his dirty clothes, hides his wounds, and then smiles at me and says, 'Mom, I'm fine'…"
Kushina's voice grew softer and softer.
After a moment of silence, Gento finally asked the question he had been wanting to ask all along:
"What exactly is going on? Why are the villagers treating Naruto like this?"
Under his influence, Naruto was no longer a Jinchuriki.
As the child of the hero Minato, he should have been welcomed by everyone.
Kushina remained silent for a long time before finally speaking:
"The Third Hokage doesn't allow me to say that Naruto is Minato's son."
She raised her head and looked at Gento, her eyes reddening:
"He said that to protect Naruto, his identity cannot be made public. He said that if people knew he was the Fourth Hokage's son, it would be dangerous."
"So the villagers don't know that Naruto is Minato's child."
"And I don't know who leaked the news that I'm a Jinchuriki."
"They're afraid of me, they hate me, so they vent all those emotions onto Naruto."
Gento immediately said:
"You shouldn't bear all of this alone."
"I came today because there's something I want to talk to you about."
...
If you want to support, please consider Patreon, and read advanced chapters! Your support keeps this series going! [Patreon.com/RedZTL]