Do You Want to Become a Jinchuriki? (Two-in-One)

In September, the weather in Konoha had begun to turn chilly. That morning, a thin layer of mist still clung to the village gates. Far off on the horizon, a group of people were making their way toward them.

"Quick, notify the elders! The Third Hokage is back!"

The ninja on guard at Konoha soon identified the group in the distance. The Third Hokage had completed the handoff with his three students and returned to Konoha with his personal Anbu and Uzumaki Kuming.

"I'm back~"

Before long, the group arrived outside Konoha's gates.

Though he hadn't been away for long, for some reason, seeing the familiar gates before him filled Kuming with a sense of calm. He really hadn't liked those days out in the wilderness, and the few days he'd spent at Genmyoji had been a trial, too.

"Uzumaki Kuming, go on home by yourself. Don't make your family worry."

Hiruzen Sarutobi looked at Kuming's wistful expression, a faint smile appearing on his face. He waved a hand, signaling that Kuming could leave.

"Lord Hokage, I'll be going, then!"

During his time at Genmyoji, Kuming had spent most of his time in the Medical Corps, so he hadn't had many chances to see the Third Hokage. It wasn't as if he felt any particular bond with him. They'd met a few times, that was all.

At the Third Hokage's instruction, Kuming eagerly ran into Konoha and soon disappeared at the end of the street.

"Come on. Back to the office."

Not long after Uzumaki Kuming left, the Third Hokage headed for the Hokage Building with the Anbu. Iwagakure had been making increasingly large moves, and war was drawing closer to Konoha. He needed to start preparing supplies in case war broke out.

But for five-year-old Kuming, the threat of war had no real impact yet. The first thing he wanted to do after returning to Konoha was visit his older sister and Grandma Mito. They were the two people in this world he couldn't bear to lose.

"Grandma Mito, Sis, I'm home!"

At the entrance to the compound, Kuming knocked on the door and shouted inside. After a long while, the tightly shut door opened, revealing a sleepy face.

"Sis!"

Kuming happily called out to Kushina, who had opened the door.

"Kuming?"

"You're finally back!"

Kushina Uzumaki stared at Kuming in surprise, then rubbed her eyes. Once she was sure that the boy before her really was her little brother, she let out a shriek and pulled him into her arms.

""

"Yeah, I'm back."

Kushina Uzumaki's intense reaction left Kuming at a loss. After a moment, he replied softly.

"Kuming, come on. Grandma Mito said that if you came back, I should bring you to see her right away."

After hugging Kuming for a long while, Kushina seemed to remember something. She immediately took his hand and hurried toward Mito's room.

""

"Aren't you even going to ask if I ran into danger or got hurt while I was away?"

"Is this sister of mine even real?"

Kuming was still enjoying Kushina's embrace when she suddenly pulled him along. He felt speechless and grumbled to himself.

Before long, Kushina had led Kuming to the door of Mito's room. It was open. They had barely arrived when Mito's voice came from inside.

"Is that Kuming back? Kushina, let him come in."

As soon as Mito finished speaking, Kushina gently nudged Kuming from behind, signaling for him to go in. The happiness she'd shown at seeing her little brother was gone now; a trace of worry had appeared on her face.

"What happened?"

Kuming was puzzled, but didn't ask. He glanced back at Kushina, stepped over the threshold, and entered Mito's room.

"Kuming, you're back. Come here and let Grandma have a good look at you."

The room was very dim. The windows all seemed to be covered, and the only light came from a single candle. On the tatami in the middle of the room lay a futon. The slight rise beneath it showed that Mito hadn't gotten up yet.

The candlelight fell across Mito's face. She was propped up in bed, wearing only a thin robe. Deep weariness showed on her face.

"Grandma Mito, what's wrong? Are you sick?"

Kuming hadn't been able to see clearly from the doorway. But once he entered and his eyes adjusted to the light, he saw Mito's condition.

Unlike before, Mito now had wrinkles clearly visible beneath the deep weariness on her face.

"Wrinkles? How is that possible?"

"Grandma Mito, what's wrong?"

It was normal for other elderly people to have wrinkles when they were seventy or eighty. But Mito having them wasn't normal. With the Yin Seal, Uzumaki Mito had plenty of Chakra to maintain her youthful appearance. Until now, she had always looked like she was in her twenties.

Judging by her face alone, no one could have guessed Mito's true age. But now she had wrinkles, and when Kuming got a good look at her, he realized she looked to be in her forties.

"Don't worry. Sit down."

Mito knew what had surprised Kuming. Smiling, she patted the tatami beside her and gestured for him to sit.

"Grandma, what's going on?" Kuming pressed, still worried.

"Let Grandma have a look. How did you come back with so many injuries?"

"It must have been hard. You even had to release the Yin Seal. Did you run into a powerful enemy?"

Uzumaki Mito didn't answer Kuming's question. Instead, she reached out and gently placed her hand on his back. Warmth flowed from her palm into his body, and a soft glow appeared around her hand. The wounds on Kuming's back began healing at a visible speed.

At Genmyoji, the Medical Corps ninja had only treated Kuming's wounds with ordinary medical methods. In this era, hardly anyone knew proper Medical Ninjutsu, and those few who did worked at Konoha General Hospital. They wouldn't be sent to the front lines.

"I did run into some trouble, but I got through it safely."

Kuming brushed the matter aside, then asked, "By the way, Grandma, what happened to your face?"

"You child..."

Seeing that Kuming wouldn't stop asking about her, Mito could only sigh helplessly. Once his wounds had fully healed, she withdrew her hand. Kuming didn't notice that after Mito finished using Medical Ninjutsu, another wrinkle had appeared on her face.

"I called you here in such a hurry because there's something I need to tell you. I've already spoken to Kushina, and now I want to hear what you think."

Mito drew her hands back beneath the futon and looked at Kuming with a serious expression.

"What is it? Go ahead." Seeing Mito turn serious, Kuming straightened up and lowered his head slightly.

"Do you know why you and your sister came to Konoha back then?"

"What I'm about to tell you is related to that."

Mito paused after speaking. Kuming's expression stiffened, as though he had guessed what she was going to say. Mito paid no attention to his reaction and continued:

"Kuming, do you know about the Tailed Beasts?"

"The Tailed Beasts are monsters made entirely of Chakra. They possessed immense power and once caused great destruction in the human world. So Hashirama and Madara joined forces to capture them all."

"At the end of the Warring States Period, my husband, the First, Hashirama Senju, brought an end to the chaos. To balance the military power of the great nations, he distributed the Nine Tailed Beasts he had gathered among them."

"To wield the power of the Tailed Beasts, each nation sealed one inside a person. Anyone with a Tailed Beast sealed inside them was known as a Jinchuriki."

As Mito spoke, she saw the understanding dawn on Kuming's face.

"With your sensory abilities, you must have sensed it long ago, right?"

"Our Konoha Village has a Jinchuriki, too. That Jinchuriki is me."

"Several years ago, I sensed that my end was near, so I had Monkey send ninja to the Uzumaki Clan to find a suitable host for the Tailed Beast. Your sister Kushina came to Konoha for that reason."

"But I never expected Kushina to have a younger brother, and for you to come to Konoha with her."

"Kuming, your Chakra nature is very similar to your sister's. It can suppress Tailed Beast Chakra."

"In other words, like your sister, you meet the requirements to become a Jinchuriki."

"Kuming, I know you're clever, and I've never treated you like an ordinary child. With your intelligence, you should understand what becoming a Jinchuriki would mean."

"If you became a Jinchuriki, you would lose your freedom completely. You might never be able to leave the village again, and because of the Tailed Beast, enemy villages might send assassins after you one after another. Even people in the village would see you as an outsider, and your old friends might leave you."

"Tell me, do you want to become a Jinchuriki?"

After speaking, Mito quietly watched Kuming, waiting for his answer. Mito's words had already sent Kuming's thoughts into turmoil.

"Did I hear that right? She actually asked if I wanted to become a Jinchuriki?"

Kuming's surprise lasted only an instant. Then he began thinking about why Mito had asked him that.

"Grandma Mito, how much longer can you keep the Tailed Beast sealed?"

Kuming didn't answer her question directly. He had already made up his mind. If there was anything he hoped to change in this world, he hadn't changed a thing so far. But now he had a chance to influence who became the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, and he wasn't about to let it slip away.

"Hmm? Not much longer. Probably just a little while," Mito said casually. She didn't know what the child before her was thinking.

"I want to become the Jinchuriki. If sealing the Tailed Beast comes with all sorts of hardship and danger, and it has to be one of us two siblings, then I want to bear it instead of my sister."

Kuming's gaze grew resolute. Sealing the Nine-Tails would be risky, but he saw it as an opportunity—a chance to completely change the future.

"I see. You really haven't disappointed me. Your sister gave me the exact same answer."

"You're such a good child."

Hearing Kuming's answer, the worry in Uzumaki Mito's heart eased. If Kuming had refused to become a Jinchuriki, she might have thought differently of him. A child willing to take on greater risks and responsibilities for his family was always endearing.

But Mito had no idea that Kuming hadn't even considered the risks of becoming a Jinchuriki. He was only thinking about the chance to gain control over the Nine-Tails' power and protect himself better.

"I understand how you feel. I'll carefully consider what you and your sister have said."

"By the way, congratulations on passing the Ninja Academy entrance exam. What would you like for lunch? I'll have someone make it for you."

Having received the answer she wanted, Mito smiled warmly.

"Anything's fine, as long as it's not a Military Ration Pill. I've had enough of those over the past few days."

Seeing Mito smile, Kuming knew he really had a chance to become a Jinchuriki. In high spirits, he immediately turned playful.

"All right, I understand. I'll have someone prepare it."

"You've only just gotten back, so after lunch, take a good bath and get some rest. Tomorrow I'll help you reconstruct the Yin Seal."

"Once the Yin Seal is reconstructed, be careful. You can't use Chakra again, or the seal will collapse."

"Go on, find your sister. I need to sleep a little longer, too. The older you get, the more you sleep."

Uzumaki Mito gently patted Kuming on the back as she spoke.

"Thank you, Grandma. Get some rest."

After speaking, Uzumaki Kuming stood up and blew out the candle. Then he carefully left the room, closing the door behind him.

But Kuming didn't know that by the time he closed the door, Mito had already vanished from the room.