Complaints About the Third Hokage

"I've finally come out!"

After roaring, it came before Naruto Uzumaki.

"What are you trying to do?"

Kushina regained her senses, instinctively shielding Naruto Uzumaki behind her, looking at the Nine-Tails with a vigilant expression.

The Nine-Tails ignored Kushina, manifesting a half-body phantom behind it, and encouraged Naruto Uzumaki, "Come on, how much Nine-Tails Chakra you can obtain depends on your own ability."

"I will do my best."

Naruto Uzumaki stepped past Kushina and arrived in front of the Nine-Tails.

A phantom appeared behind him, playing tug-of-war with the Nine-Tails' phantom—no, it should be called a one-sided extraction, as the Nine-Tails offered no resistance at all.

Kushina hesitated, "They are..."

Minato smiled, "They are very good friends."

The tug-of-war ended.

The Nine-Tails lay on the ground, gaunt and emaciated, its eyes vacant as if it had been played until it broke.

A slightly excited voice drifted over.

"Is this the power of a Tailed Beast..."

The Nine-Tails slowly turned its head, looking at Naruto Uzumaki, who was cloaked in a Chakra Cloak, and said weakly.

"Naruto Uzumaki, you guy, you didn't hold back at all..."

Naruto Uzumaki waved his hand, saying casually, "Why be polite? This is a testament to our friendship."

"...At least leave me some!"

Naruto Uzumaki felt slightly awkward, "Uh... then I'll stuff some back in."

After returning a portion of the Nine-Tails Chakra, the Nine-Tails finally caught its breath.

"Naruto Uzumaki..."

It was Kushina's call.

Naruto Uzumaki looked back and was slightly stunned.

"You... is your time up?"

Minato's and Kushina's bodies gradually began to glow, becoming transparent and illusory.

After all, they were only strands of chakra, similar to a Shadow Clone, and could not remain for long.

Kushina hugged Naruto Uzumaki tightly, tears streaming down her face uncontrollably.

"Naruto Uzumaki, Mom hates to leave you... but Mom is out of time. Naruto Uzumaki, remember what Mom is about to say."

"Don't be a picky eater, eat plenty of food, and grow up quickly; go to bed on time every day... eh? Eh? What is going on..."

The affectionate farewell was suddenly interrupted.

Kushina was stunned.

Under the continuous input of Nine-Tails Chakra, her illusory body stabilized.

"Nine-Tails Chakra can sustain existence."

Having read the manga, Naruto Uzumaki understood this clearly.

The Nine-Tails was very special; it could replenish chakra for anyone, not just its Jinchuriki.

As for whether it could replenish chakra for someone like Kushina, who was in a state similar to a Shadow Clone...

Naruto Uzumaki hadn't been sure before.

But now, it seemed the answer was yes.

Hearing that she could stay for a long time to accompany her son, Kushina hugged Naruto Uzumaki tightly in joy.

"Naruto Uzumaki really couldn't bear to let Mom go either!"

Naruto Uzumaki, being hugged, felt a bit embarrassed inside.

To my shame, actually, I just couldn't bear to lose the ninjutsu.

Mother and son embraced, a touching scene.

Only...

"Could you not forget about me?"

Minato, whose body was about to dissipate, raised his hand in protest.

A quarter of an hour later.

The family of three finished their simple chat.

"The main consumption is provided by the Nine-Tails Chakra. Although my own chakra is also flowing away, the speed has become very slow. Roughly... there will be no problem for three years."

Minato closed his eyes, carefully sensing the consumption of his chakra to estimate how long he could remain within Naruto Uzumaki.

"Only three years? That's too short!"

Greedy for more, Kushina wanted to stay by her son's side for a lifetime.

"Three years isn't short. By then, Naruto will be close to graduating. Besides, Kushina... you are from the Uzumaki Clan; your chakra is stronger, so you should be able to stay longer than I can."

Minato smiled, soothing Kushina.

Every extra day they had was a blessing; having gained three full years, what more could they ask for?

The couple chatted for a while before turning their attention back to Naruto.

Naruto was currently fist-bumping Kurama, completing the final step of becoming a perfect Jinchuriki—achieving mutual understanding!

Minato said with gratification, "It seems the Third Hokage did not fail our request and has raised Naruto to be quite outstanding..."

Kushina huffed, "I suppose that old man has a shred of conscience and didn't let our sacrifice go to waste."

The couple had sacrificed their lives for Konoha without asking for anything in return, but at the very least, the child they left behind should have been treated well.

If they couldn't even manage that, it would be truly heartless.

Surely there couldn't be anyone in Konoha that heartless, right?

Surely not, surely not, there couldn't really be someone who...

The Third Hokage and the villagers: That's right, it was us.

The couple remained unaware of the shady maneuvers happening in Konoha.

They were very satisfied with Naruto's growth; if there was one thing to complain about, it was that Naruto refused to call them Mom and Dad.

But that wasn't a big problem!

The child had said he just couldn't bring himself to say it yet, and they believed that as they spent more time together and grew more familiar, he would definitely call them that.

After achieving mutual understanding, the relationship between Naruto and Kurama improved, and the boy and the fox chatted with ease.

Suddenly, Naruto noticed the Nine-Tails lying on the surface of the water.

"I'll change it back..."

Having had the experience once before, Naruto was familiar with the process.

Under the influence of the Rinnegan's ocular technique, the surrounding environment shifted back into a grassy plain.

Minato and Kushina walked over, their faces filled with shock.

"I was wondering how the Sealing Space turned into a grassy plain; so that's how it happened... Naruto, I didn't get a chance to ask earlier, what is going on with your eyes?"

Naruto touched his eyes and pondered, "This is a type of Kekkei Genkai ocular technique. The name... I think you might have heard of it. It's called the Rinnegan..."

Outside, the students in the classroom had long since been cleared out, and the Sealing Squad stationed nearby remained on high alert.

The Third Hokage hurried over.

Looking at Naruto, who was sleeping on the desk, the Third Hokage lit his pipe and smoked, his brow furrowing deeper with every puff.

Everything had been fine, so why did the Nine-Tails Chakra leak? He had checked the seal beforehand; there shouldn't have been any issues...

"Iruka, was there anything unusual before Naruto fell asleep in class?"

The Third Hokage questioned the person who had been present when the incident occurred.

Iruka frowned as he recalled the event, then shook his head with a bitter smile.

"I'm sorry, Lord Hokage, I didn't notice anything unusual. Naruto was the same as always; he listened to the lesson, and then he fell asleep."

He was confused too; he had been in the middle of teaching.

The Nine-Tails Chakra had suddenly leaked, and the terrifying aura that spread had nearly scared him out of his wits.

Iruka was fine, but only just.

Many of the children in the class had actually lost control of their bladders, crying and calling for their mothers.

Even some of the children from the ninja clans who were bolder, like Shikamaru and Shino, couldn't help but turn pale and tremble.

Fear was one thing, but the physiological reaction was something they truly couldn't control.

It wasn't just their class; nearby classrooms, the floors above and below—the entire Ninja Academy had been affected.

The scene at the time had been as chaotic as it could possibly be.

Fortunately, the Anbu arrived in time to evacuate everyone.

Now, the Ninja Academy had suspended classes, and the students had returned home to celebrate their survival with their families.

And then, inevitably, the families began cursing the Demon Fox brat.

"That hateful Demon Fox, that monster, why doesn't he just die? He almost killed our children again..."

This further extended into complaints against the Third Hokage.