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An Uchiha shinobi returned with a report: the meeting was about the next Hokage. The moment Fugaku Uchiha heard this, his face went pale.
The news was simply too sudden. He had no mental preparation whatsoever. His heart skipped a beat.
The most qualified candidate for the next Hokage was Qianyu.
If Qianyu became the Fifth Hokage, it would all be over. It was time to risk everything, to tear it all down and start over.
Fugaku's voice tightened, betraying his nerves. "So… the next Hokage… has it been decided?"
"It's been confirmed. The Third Hokage will resume the position."
The next Hokage would be Hiruzen Sarutobi. Fugaku let out a heavy, relieved sigh.
Even though Hiruzen didn't trust the Uchiha clan, it was infinitely better than Qianyu—who hated the Uchiha—taking the hat.
Fugaku wiped his forehead. His hand came away damp with cold sweat. He'd really been terrified.
…
Three days later, in the Konoha hospital.
Miyuki Uzumaki cradled the infant Naruto in her arms. He had just finished feeding and had fallen asleep. She rocked him gently.
Looking at Naruto's sleeping face, a smile instinctively touched Miyuki's lips. But when her gaze fell to the child's tiny stomach, her eyes clouded over with a deep, heavy gloom.
Her mind was flooded with the memory. Minato Namikaze taking Naruto from her arms. Applying the Eight Trigrams Seal. Forcing the Nine-Tails into her son's tiny body.
Miyuki stroked Naruto's cheek tenderly. "I'm sorry, Naruto. Mommy didn't protect you well enough. I'm so sorry…"
She pressed her cheek against his. Silent tears slid from her eyes.
A knock sounded on the hospital room door.
Miyuki quickly wiped her tears. "Come in."
The door opened. It was Qianyu, helping a very-pregnant Kushina Uzumaki inside.
"Hey, Miyuki!" Kushina's voice was bright and cheerful as usual. "We're here to see you and the little guy!"
Miyuki managed a strained smile. "Welcome."
Qianyu carefully guided Kushina to a chair by the bedside and helped her sit.
Kushina leaned forward, peeking at the baby in Miyuki's arms. She reached out and gently poked Naruto's cheek, grinning. "He's just so adorable."
"Thank you," Miyuki said softly. After a pause, she asked, "Kushina, your due date must be close now, right?"
Kushina nodded. "Mm-hmm! About twenty days left, they say. Once little Cang M is born, he and Naruto are definitely going to be best friends!"
Miyuki pressed her lips together and didn't respond.
Kushina looked around the room curiously. "Hey, where's Minato? Shouldn't he be—"
"Kushina."
Qianyu cut her off, his tone sharp.
He hadn't told Kushina about Minato's situation yet. And looking at Miyuki… she probably still blamed Minato for what happened.
Kushina shot a confused glance at Qianyu. He met her eyes and gave a firm, almost imperceptible shake of his head.
Kushina caught on immediately. Something was wrong. She quickly changed the subject, trying to chat with Miyuki.
But it was obvious Miyuki wasn't really in the mood to talk. Sensing the strained atmosphere, Kushina said gently, "Miyuki, we should let you rest. I'll come visit again soon."
Miyuki nodded. "Okay. See you next time, Kushina."
Qianyu helped Kushina to her feet. "Get some rest, Miyuki," he said. "If you need anything, send someone for us. We'll take our leave."
He carefully guided Kushina out of the room.
Watching how Qianyu fussed over Kushina, shielding her with every step, Miyuki whispered to herself, "I really envy you, Kushina."
She looked down at Naruto in her arms again. Her eyes slowly hardened with a new resolve.
…
Once they were back home, Kushina turned to Qianyu immediately. "Qianyu. What happened to Minato?"
Qianyu nodded. "He's still unconscious from the Nine-Tails' rampage. They don't know when he'll wake up. Because of that, the Third, Hiruzen Sarutobi, has retaken the Hokage position."
Kushina's brow furrowed. "There's more, isn't there? If it was just that, you wouldn't have stopped me from asking. And Miyuki… she seemed off. The way she looked at Naruto… it was full of guilt."
Qianyu sighed. "I was worried it would upset you. Affect the baby. I planned to tell you the details after Cang M was born. But since you're asking… I'll tell you. You have to promise me you'll stay calm."
He knew Kushina's temper all too well. He was genuinely afraid she'd fly into a rage.
Kushina took several deep, deliberate breaths. "Okay. I'm ready. Tell me."
Qianyu explained. "Minato split the Nine-Tails' chakra. He sealed one half inside Miyuki. The other half… he sealed inside Naruto."
"What?!"
Kushina shot up from her seat, fury flashing in her eyes. Qianyu was faster, gently but firmly pressing her back down.
A cold sweat broke out on his back. "Ancestors, please stay calm! Think about Cang M!"
Kushina was breathing heavily, anger radiating from her. Qianyu kept a steadying hand on her back, rubbing gentle circles to help her calm down.
"Why?" she demanded, her voice tight. "Why would he do that?!"
Qianyu thought for a moment. "First… because he was the Hokage."
"So what?!" Kushina snapped. "Being Hokage means sacrificing your own child to be a jinchuriki? If he was the Hokage, why didn't he seal it in himself?!" She forced herself to take another breath. "You said 'first.' What's the second reason?"
She was trying, really trying, to hold it together.
Seeing she wasn't about to explode, Qianyu continued. "The second reason was his teacher, Jiraiya."
"Lord Jiraiya?" Kushina was confused. "He's not even in the village. What does he have to do with this?"
Qianyu explained. "There's an old toad on Mount Myōboku that can see the future. It once gave Jiraiya a prophecy, saying the Child of Prophecy would be born among his students. That this child would possess power to shake the world, and could bring about unprecedented peace… or total destruction.
"Jiraiya believed Minato's child might be that Child of Prophecy. That Naruto would be the savior of the shinobi world.
"Minato believed him. So he decided to seal half of the Nine-Tails inside Naruto."
Kushina stared at him, bewildered. "Seeing the future? Child of Prophecy? Saving the world? Minato sealed the Nine-Tails into Naruto because of some ridiculous story from Lord Jiraiya? That's insane!"
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