They returned to the central building with Kurama in tow. Naruto, still whimpering, was being thoroughly teased by an ecstatic Kushina, who pinched his cheeks and ruffled his golden hair.
"Hehehe! Not only do I have a handsome son, but a beautiful daughter too! This is amazing!" she laughed.
Minato stood nearby, a beaming smile on his face. He'd heard Naruto's account and didn't have many doubts. After all, the golden hair and features so similar to Kushina's were explanation enough.
However, as soon as he saw Menma return, he turned away to greet him, not asking any more questions about Naruto. Instead, his concern was focused on his other son.
"Menma, are you alright?" Minato asked, his voice tinged with worry. "Separating Naruto from Kurama and releasing that much power... you really don't take care of yourself."
"I'm fine," Menma waved him off, turning to walk toward Nagato and the others, who were waiting silently.
Nagato had already left his wheelchair, standing supported by Konan. Seeing Menma approach, he coughed weakly and spoke first.
"Zabuza has already explained everything," Nagato said. "We all accept this Kurama chakra restriction."
Menma nodded. "It's a restriction, but also a miraculous power possessed only by a jinchuriki. For example, Nagato, with the Kurama chakra I bestowed upon you, your body can last at least twenty more years."
"Twenty years?!" Konan's face lit up with surprise. She knew Nagato's body better than anyone. Constantly squeezing out chakra to supply the Gedo Mazo and the Six Paths of Pain, he was already extremely weak. Let alone twenty years—if he could live another ten or eight, she would be incredibly grateful.
Nagato was stunned as well, before he could even ask a question.
Four chakra fox tails emerged from behind Menma. In an instant, they surrounded Nagato, Konan, Kakashi, and Yamato. Then, massive amounts of Kurama chakra surged forth.
The next moment, golden-red Tailed Beast Cloaks and gigantic fox tails manifested on the four of them.
"Whoa! What a feeling!" Yamato exclaimed first. He felt his power was inexhaustible.
Kakashi sensed it briefly and remarked, "Just that tail alone holds hundreds of times more chakra than I currently possess. No wonder it's the strongest Nine-Tails."
Hearing the praise, Kurama—sitting idly to the side—immediately lowered its head and gave Kakashi an appreciative look. If it weren't for the crowd, it would definitely tell Kakashi just how powerful it was among the tailed beasts.
Konan didn't pay much attention to her own situation, her gaze fixed anxiously on Nagato. At that moment, all the fox tails surrounding the others retracted, except for the one encircling Nagato, which continued to channel power. If Nagato's skeletal body hadn't been gradually filling out and swelling, and his cheeks hadn't grown rounder, Konan would have panicked.
As Nagato completely returned to his normal human form, the black rods on his back shattered and dissolved into nothingness. The fox tail encircling him finally retracted.
"His body... he really recovered!" Nagato gasped. His former weakness and depletion vanished, replaced by a surge of raw power. His face filled with disbelief and excitement.
Standing beside him, Konan was even more excited, pointing at his legs. "Nagato! Your leg injuries are healed too!"
Nagato quickly looked down. His previously mottled, atrophied legs were completely restored. He could stand and walk without support. After pacing back and forth several steps, he finally accepted that he had said goodbye to his wheelchair.
"I never imagined Kurama chakra would have such a powerful restorative effect," Nagato said, his voice shaking. "Now it seems that even without the Rinnegan, Leader, I stand no chance against Kurama's power alone."
Convinced, Nagato felt even more strongly that Menma was the legendary Child of Prophecy. Only Menma could bring true change to the shinobi world.
"Perhaps," Menma replied, shaking his head, not intending to discuss the matter further.
However, Nagato seemed to remember something and spoke again. "By the way, Leader, I have some confidential information about Akatsuki to report. Actually, the true founder isn't me, but a masked man who calls himself Obito Uchiha. He hides behind the scenes, never showing his true face. And Zetsu in the organization is actually one of that masked man's subordinates."
Nagato recounted the matter of Obito and Black Zetsu while observing Menma's expression. Seeing that Menma didn't change his expression, he immediately made a guess. Sure enough, Menma's next sentence confirmed it.
"I've already met the masked man you mentioned," Menma said calmly. "He's not Obito, but Obito Uchiha—an old acquaintance of Kakashi's. However, Black Zetsu beside him does have some connection to Madara Uchiha..."
"Obito Uchiha?!" Kakashi exclaimed in surprise. He hadn't expected to hear that name from Menma, let alone learn that he was an old acquaintance.
"No. Obito clearly died at the Battle of Kannabi Bridge. I saw it with my own eyes!" Kakashi insisted.
Minato, standing nearby, spoke thoughtfully, "After the war, I went back to look for Obito's body, but I couldn't find it. If he wasn't taken away by the enemy, then there's a high probability that Obito didn't die."
Menma glanced at Kakashi, his voice calm. "He was saved by Madara Uchiha, who was about to die of old age. After recovering from his injuries, when he came to find you, he saw you kill Rin Nohara. Provoked, he activated his Mangekyou Sharingan and wiped out all the enemies."
"You even know all this?" Seeing how detailed Menma's explanation was, Kakashi began to believe him.
"That's right. It wasn't my Sharingan to begin with. To be able to activate that legendary Mangekyō Sharingan, it must mean Obito didn't die," Menma reasoned.
"But why didn't he come back?" Kakashi asked, his voice heavy. "Was it because of Rin?"
Menma didn't bother to explain further, simply giving Kakashi an address. "He's hiding in the Mountain Graveyard. You'll have a chance to meet him later."
"The Mountain Graveyard..." Kakashi silently memorized the name. He didn't think Menma had any reason to deceive him, so it was most likely true.
Kakashi fell silent, but Minato spoke again, his expression complex. "Menma, that masked man who calls himself Madara—the masked man of the Nine-Tails' Night—is he Obito?"
Menma looked at his father expressionlessly. "You already have the answer in your heart, don't you?"
The complexity on Minato's face twisted into heartache and helplessness. He glanced at Kushina in the distance, whose smile never wavered, and sighed deeply.
"Don't tell your mother about this," Minato said quietly. "She treated Obito like a younger brother back then. If she knew, she would be heartbroken."
Menma nodded indifferently. "These things aren't important. Next, we will declare war on Konoha and issue a surrender ultimatum to everyone in the village. We will accept the surrender of one person for the head of Hiruzen Sarutobi, or for the lives of ten Konoha villagers. Those who refuse to surrender will be killed without mercy!"
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