The Future God

Although the massive explosion destroyed the arms depot, it also kicked over a hornet's nest.

The entire Amegakure erupted into chaos. Alarms shrilled through the rainy night, and countless Rain ninja carrying torches sealed off every major road, making escape exceptionally difficult.

"We can't go this way, either."

At a fork in a dim, damp sewer, Uchiha Fugaku withdrew his probing gaze, his expression dark.

"The patrols ahead all have summoned beasts with them. That lunatic Hanzō actually pulled the troops from the outer defenses back here."

"After all, we blew up what matters most to him."

Nishikawa Tetsu leaned against a moss-covered wall and glanced at the map in his hand.

After the intense exertion and mental strain, all three of them were badly exhausted.

"With this many patrols, there's no way we can leave the village directly," Nishikawa Tetsu analyzed calmly. "The most dangerous places are the safest. The upper district and the exits are definitely guarded by heavy forces right now. The slums we passed through earlier, on the other hand, are difficult to search because of their complex terrain and dense population."

"We have to go back there?" Uchiha Fugaku frowned, clearly remembering the stench and filth.

"If we don't go back, we'll have to play hide-and-seek with Hanzō in the sewers." Namikaze Minato gave a wry smile.

"Listen to Tetsu, Senior Fugaku."

In a dark corner of the sewer, Nishikawa Tetsu held a stinking clump of mud and looked at Uchiha Fugaku.

"Senior Fugaku, just a little more." Nishikawa Tetsu pointed at Fugaku's battered but still clean cheek. "Here, and your neck, too. You're much too clean. Anyone can tell you're a well-fed ninja."

Fugaku leaned stiffly against the wall, his brows knotted as he stared at the clump of mud. His body instinctively recoiled. "...Do I really have to smear it on my face? I've already put up with the clothes."

"You have to. Hanzō's dogs have sharp noses." Before Nishikawa Tetsu could make a move, Namikaze Minato had already cheerfully reached into the mud pit.

"Senior, if you can't bring yourself to do it, I'll help!" Minato's face was already smeared with soot, leaving only a row of white teeth visible. He looked both ridiculous and sincere.

"Don't touch me!" Fugaku swatted Minato's hand away in disgust, then took a deep breath as if preparing to make a life-or-death decision.

He closed his eyes. His expression was more solemn than it would have been facing a massive army.

"I'll do it myself."

Fugaku grabbed a handful of muck and smeared it over his own face. He even mussed up his hair until it looked like a bird's nest to make the disguise more convincing.

When he finished, he opened his eyes and found Minato and Tetsu both struggling to hold back their laughter.

"If you want to laugh, then laugh," Fugaku said crossly, his face a mess of mud. "But I'm adding this to that 'barbecue bill,' too. If you two don't eat until you're stuffed, you're not leaving the barbecue place."

"Yes, sir, Captain." Minato saluted, trying not to laugh.

Half an hour later.

They avoided several search parties and slipped into a half-collapsed, abandoned shrine.

It stood on the edge of the slums. Towering banana leaves concealed its ruined walls, making it a natural shelter.

"We're safe for now."

Uchiha Fugaku breathed a sigh of relief and was just about to find somewhere to sit and recover his Chakra.

"Who's there?!"

He whipped around, instantly drawing the Kunai in his hand. His Sharingan fixed on the space behind a broken stone statue in the corner of the shrine.

"Come out! Or die!"

Killing intent filled the shrine in an instant.

Namikaze Minato and Nishikawa Tetsu also quickly readied themselves for battle. At a time like this, any unexpected incident could expose their whereabouts.

"D-don't kill us!"

A childish voice, tinged with stubbornness, came from behind the statue.

Then three small figures shakily emerged.

They were children.

The one in front was an orange-haired boy. Though he was as skinny as a monkey, he gripped a rusty dagger tightly and stood protectively in front of the other two, his eyes fierce.

Behind him was a little girl with pale blue hair, clutching the boy's clothes in terror.

At the very back stood a quiet boy with bright red hair and bangs long enough to cover his eyes.

"Kids?"

Uchiha Fugaku paused. The killing intent in his eyes didn't fade; if anything, he grew more wary.

"Orphans from Amegakure? Why are you here?"

"This is our home!" The orange-haired boy shouted through clenched teeth. Though his legs trembled, he didn't budge an inch.

"Get out! We found this place first!"

"Hah? Your home?" Fugaku sneered and started forward, intending to scare them away.

"Wait, Senior."

Nishikawa Tetsu, who had been silent until then, suddenly reached out to stop Fugaku.

His gaze passed over the orange-haired boy and the blue-haired girl, then fixed on the red-haired boy.

Especially on that distinctive red hair of the Uzumaki Clan.

Yahiko, Konan, Nagato.

Nishikawa Tetsu's heart gave a sudden thump.

He hadn't expected to meet these three people, capable of changing the future of the Shinobi World, while on the run at this point in time.

And beneath that red-haired boy's long bangs were the eyes of the legendary Sage of Six Paths—the Rinnegan.

"They're just three wandering orphans, Senior," Nishikawa Tetsu said quietly, his tone calm.

"If we kill them or drive them away, we'll make enough noise to attract the patrols. Better to let them stay here. They can keep an eye on what's happening outside for us."

"Tetsu's right." Seeing the three emaciated, drenched children, who looked about his own age, Namikaze Minato felt his suppressed sympathy well up again.

He crouched down, put away his Kunai, and gave them as gentle a smile as he could manage.

"Don't be afraid. We're not here to take your territory. We just need somewhere to shelter from the rain."

"Liar! Who would believe a word from a great nation's ninja?" Yahiko kept his dagger raised, like a cat with its fur standing on end.

"You blew up that big building just now, didn't you? I saw you! You're bad people!"

"We're not exactly good people."

Nishikawa Tetsu stepped forward and took three blocks of ration bars and a bottle of water from his backpack.

Ignoring the dagger in Yahiko's hand, he placed the food on the stone slab in front of the three children.

"But this is real."

The aroma of food immediately reached the noses of the three starving children.

Grrr.

Someone's stomach growled.

Yahiko swallowed. The fierce look in his eyes crumbled in an instant at the sight of the food.

But he still eyed Nishikawa Tetsu warily and didn't move.

"It's not poisoned."

Nishikawa Tetsu broke off a small piece and ate it himself, then shrugged.

"You're not worth poisoning."

The words were harsh, but they made Yahiko lower his guard.

"Eat!"

Yahiko snatched up the ration bars and handed them to Konan and Nagato first. Only then did he start wolfing down his own.

Watching the three emaciated children eat like starving wolves, Namikaze Minato sighed, unable to hide his distress.

Uchiha Fugaku leaned against the doorway, standing guard as he watched coldly. "Giving them food is a waste. In this country, they won't survive the winter."

"That's not necessarily true."

Nishikawa Tetsu said the words meaningfully.

He walked up to the red-haired boy—Nagato.

Nagato ate slowly, his head lowered. His red hair hung like a curtain, covering most of his face.

"Your hair is beautiful."

Nishikawa Tetsu spoke suddenly.

Nagato stiffened, stopping mid-bite.

Ever since he was little, his red hair had brought him nothing but mockery and bullying.

He slowly raised his head. Through a gap in his bangs, a pair of pale purple eyes with concentric rings flashed in the shadows.

It lasted only an instant, but Nishikawa Tetsu saw them clearly.

Just as I thought—the Rinnegan. That old bastard Madara moved fast.

Nishikawa Tetsu was shaken to the core, but showed nothing on his face.

He took a piece of candy from his Ninja Tool Pouch. He had bought it in Konoha and originally intended to use it for a quick boost of energy.

"Here."

Nishikawa Tetsu offered the candy to Nagato.

Nagato hesitated, then reached out with a grubby little hand and took it.

"Thank you..." His voice was as faint as a mosquito's buzz.

"You're welcome." Looking at the boy with the eyes of a god, Nishikawa Tetsu lowered his voice and spoke so quietly that only the two of them could hear. "Protect your eyes, and protect the people beside you. In this cruel world, that's the only thing that can keep you alive."

Nagato abruptly raised his head and looked at Nishikawa Tetsu in confusion.

He didn't understand why this stranger would say something like that, but he could tell that Nishikawa Tetsu meant it.

"All right, break's over."

Half an hour later, the sounds of the search outside gradually faded.

Uchiha Fugaku stood up. "We're leaving. We need to move farther out while it's dark."

The three of them gathered their gear and prepared to leave.

Just before they went, Yahiko suddenly called out to them.

"Hey! Konoha ninja!"

Yahiko wiped the crumbs from his mouth. His eyes shone with something called ambition.

"One day, I'll change this weeping country! I'll make it so it never rains in the Land of Rain again! Then I won't have to steal your bread!"

Uchiha Fugaku scoffed disdainfully. "Dream on."

Namikaze Minato looked back with a smile. "Good luck. I'll be waiting for that day."

As for Nishikawa Tetsu, he only looked deeply at the three children.

"You won't change a country by shouting slogans, or with a rusty dagger."

Nishikawa Tetsu pointed at his head. "If you want to change the world, survive first, then read a few books."

With that, the three of them disappeared into the rain.

Inside the shrine, Yahiko clenched his fists and watched in silence for a long time as they vanished.

Nagato, meanwhile, clutched the candy tightly. For the first time, an unusual light appeared in his purple eyes.

In the rain.

"Tetsu, why did you say all that to those kids?" Minato asked as he ran.

"I felt like it," Nishikawa Tetsu replied.

"Watch out! A strong Chakra signature ahead!"

Uchiha Fugaku's voice suddenly interrupted Nishikawa Tetsu's thoughts.

"It looks like Hanzō's Elite Guard!"