But noticing the civilians gathering around, Uchiha Mikoto felt a flicker of confusion.
"Did… news from the front come back?" she asked softly.
"Is there any word about Minato?"
Beside her, Uzumaki Kushina suddenly looked up, eyes widening. Without saying a word, she immediately ran forward.
"Wait—!" Mikoto started to call out, but...
She stopped.
The moment Kushina came into view, Mikoto noticed it.
The civilians' gazes changed.
Resentment.
Hatred.
In the past, because of Kushina's identity as the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki, the villagers had always kept their distance. Fear, discomfort—yes. But never like this.
Never eyes that looked as if they wanted to kill her.
"…What happened?" Mikoto murmured, a bad feeling rising in her chest.
She didn't hesitate any longer and quickly followed.
"Kushina!"
By the time she caught up, Kushina was already standing there, head lowered, lips trembling as she muttered to herself.
"Impossible… this is impossible…"
When Mikoto's eyes fell upon the report posted in front of the crowd, she finally understood.
Namikaze Minato.
Konoha's shining prodigy.
The young genius everyone believed might one day become Hokage.
Now...
He had become Konoha's sinner.
According to the report, Minato's command mistake had caused the Konoha forces assigned to the Kumogakure front to suffer near-total annihilation.
"…There has to be some mistake!" Kushina's voice cracked.
"Minato—how could he do something like this?!"
Her mind felt dizzy, her thoughts refusing to connect.
"How is it impossible?! Namikaze Minato is a criminal!"
"You're his girlfriend—don't act innocent!"
"A demon fox and a sinner—get out of Konoha!"
At last, someone shouted what the others had been holding back.
"You—!"
Kushina's eyes snapped up, chakra surging violently. The oppressive pressure of the Nine-Tails flared, forcing many civilians to instinctively stumble back.
But not all of them retreated.
An elderly man stared at her, eyes filled with grief and hatred.
"If you have the guts, then kill me!" he shouted.
"My son died because of Namikaze Minato—kill me too!"
"And my brother was there!"
"If you're so powerful, then kill us all!"
One voice after another rose, each word like a blade.
The fury in Kushina's eyes slowly faded, clarity returning in a painful rush.
"I…" She opened her mouth, but no words came out.
Those eyes—those looks of loss and hatred—made her feel as though needles were piercing her skin.
In the end, it was Mikoto who stepped forward, pulling her away.
"Kushina. Let's leave. Now."
If they stayed any longer, things would truly spiral out of control.
They couldn't…
They couldn't slaughter civilians.
Kushina let herself be dragged away, her body numb.
Only when they reached a quiet place did her strength finally give out. She dropped to her knees.
"What happened…?" she whispered.
"What happened to Minato…?"
Suddenly, as if making up her mind, she stood up.
"No. I'm going to the front lines. I'm going to find Minato."
"Kushina!" Mikoto hurriedly stopped her.
Her identity wasn't something to joke about.
Anyone else could go but Kushina absolutely couldn't.
"Mikoto!" Kushina shouted, tears brimming in her eyes.
"Let me go! If I stay in Konoha like this… I don't know what I'll do!"
"I—"
Mikoto didn't know how to respond.
And then...
A calm, flat voice cut in.
"You're not going anywhere."
Kushina turned.
Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura stood in front of her, expressions unreadable.
"In matters of war," Koharu said coolly, "the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki cannot leave the village. That is the rule."
Though often dismissed as useless elders, they were not merely decorations.
They had received the battlefield report as well.
And knowing Minato was Kushina's lover, they had come immediately—fully aware she would try to rush to the front.
Fortunately, they were in time.
"I don't care!" Kushina glared at them, chakra flaring again.
"I'll go anyway! Try and stop me!"
Like Tsunade, Kushina had never taken these two "wise elders" seriously.
In terms of strength, even together, they weren't her match.
Yet faced with her murderous aura, Koharu and Homura remained calm.
"You can go," Koharu said evenly.
"But Namikaze Minato's fate will be sealed."
Kushina froze.
The killing intent vanished instantly.
This...
This was her weakness.
Minato was the one person in all of Konoha she cared about most.
"You should understand," Homura continued coldly.
"His current position is already one step away from being labeled a traitor."
At this point, Minato was already Konoha's sinner.
Calling him a deserter wouldn't even raise suspicion.
"I…"
After a long silence, Kushina finally lowered her head.
"…I'll stay."
Koharu and Homura exchanged a glance and nodded.
As long as the Nine-Tails was stabilized, everything else was secondary.
"Wait." Kushina suddenly looked up.
"Can you… keep Minato safe?"
Whether he was guilty or not didn't matter to her.
She just wanted him alive.
If it were anyone else, the two elders would have already left.
But this situation was different.
"Don't worry," Koharu replied calmly.
They knew Minato was Jiraiya's beloved student, carefully "trained" by Hiruzen Sarutobi.
As long as those two were alive, Minato wouldn't be discarded so easily.
"…That's enough."
Only then did Kushina feel a little relief.
She watched as Koharu and Homura turned and left without another word.
This news didn't only shake them.
It also reached Jiraiya.
"Minato…!"
Disbelief filled his voice.
Just days ago, Minato had stood before him with confidence, saying that if he defeated Kumogakure, he would have a real chance to compete for Hokage.
That confident smile—
Even Jiraiya had been infected by it.
And now?
In just a few days, Minato had fallen from hero to sinner.
"No... this can't continue" Jiraiya clenched his fists.
"I have to see him."
Minato was still young.
His life had been smooth...too smooth.
Jiraiya feared that this blow might crush him.
"I'm going to the front!"
"Wait—Jiraiya-sama!"
The moment he said he was heading toward the Kumogakure battlefield, the surrounding ninja immediately stood up.
"This is a time of war!"
"The situation at the front still needs you!"
"Don't forget... there are barely any of their ninja left!"
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