By the time Houka and the others returned to the small island, most of the traces of it having been submerged by seawater had already disappeared.
But the moment Houka set foot on the island, he sensed something was wrong.
Under the Chakra Sensory Technique, the chakra signature of Fu, the Seven-Tails Jinchuriki, had vanished. So had the chakra signatures of Hozuki Suigetsu and Uchiha Sasuke!
"Minato, you're back."
As Kushina came out to greet them, her smiling eyes immediately fell on Naruto.
Golden hair, blue eyes, and whisker marks on both cheeks—he looked exactly like he had when he was born!
"Kushina, I'm back." Minato Namikaze smiled as he pulled Naruto over. "This is Naruto, our child."
Naruto stared blankly at the red-haired woman before him. "So my mom was this pretty."
"Naruto!"
Overcome with emotion, Kushina lunged forward and wrapped Naruto tightly in her arms. Before long, she began to sob.
Naruto had initially wanted to comfort her, but Kushina quickly threw off his rhythm, and he ended up bawling right along with her.
"This is so moving!!"
Guy was getting restless beside them. Seeing this, Minato Namikaze hurried over to change the subject, lest the man do something embarrassing again.
"Kushina, did Itachi and Kisame Hoshigaki from Akatsuki come here?" Minato Namikaze asked.
Kushina wiped away her tears and nodded. "Yes. Kisame Hoshigaki snatched Kaede away. As for Itachi, he died after his final battle with Sasuke. His body has already been sealed in ice by Haku."
Houka's heart skipped a beat, and he hurriedly asked, "Where's Sasuke?"
Kushina shook her head. "After Kisame Hoshigaki took Kaede, Karin and I went after him. Sasuke left this place during that time, so I don't know where he went."
Houka gave a bitter smile. That guy... he hadn't gone