Military Deterrence

At this moment, Uzumaki Menma emerged from the seal space, slowly opening his eyes. He cast a glance at Kakashi, who was holding him, before scanning his surroundings.

Seeing Menma wake up, Kakashi hurriedly asked with concern, "Menma, are you alright? Is anything bothering you?"

Hearing this, Jiraiya immediately turned around, while Might Guy, Asuma, Kurenai Yuhi, and Hiruzen Sarutobi all stepped forward.

"Menma, are you okay?" Kurenai Yuhi looked at Menma with a face full of heartache.

"I'm fine, I feel great." Menma shook his head in response. He then signaled for Kakashi to put him down and continued, "After releasing the resentment that had been pent up in my heart for so long, I truly feel much lighter."

Menma surveyed the area as if on patrol, spotting many familiar faces—the very same people who had been the loudest in their clamor earlier. When these individuals met Menma's gaze, some began to dodge his eyes, though a few hot-headed youths still stared at him blankly.

"You look quite unconvinced, don't you? I'll give you a chance; if you can take me down, I'll admit you're impressive." Menma wore a look of utter indifference.

How could those hot-headed youths endure such provocation? They rushed forward one after another. Seeing this, Kakashi, Might Guy, Asuma, and Kurenai Yuhi immediately blocked their path.

"What do you think you're doing to a child!" Kakashi stared at the approaching group and barked.

"You grown men bullying a child—what kind of behavior is this?" Kurenai Yuhi looked at the crowd and said.

"If you want to bully my student, you'll have to get past me first," Might Guy declared, showing no sign of weakness.

"Although I really don't want to resort to violence, if you insist on harming this child, I won't be polite either." Asuma drew his chakra blade, and chakra began to condense upon it.

Seeing this, Menma's heart was filled with warmth. This was the feeling of being protected. He looked at their backs, his heart overflowing with emotion.

"Teacher Kakashi, Teacher Guy, Aunt Kurenai, Uncle Asuma, please don't stop them. This is a conflict between them and me, Naruto, and Kurama. We want to resolve it ourselves." After saying this, Menma walked in front of the four of them.

Inside the seal space, Kurama saw this and chuckled, "This brat, he actually treats me like a person."

"Since you have such a problem with me, Naruto, and Kurama, we'll give you a chance to vent." Menma looked at the few who had stepped forward with great interest.

Kakashi and the others were very confused by this, but they all noted Menma's words. Kurama? Is that the name of the Nine-Tails... They pondered to themselves, feeling a sense of trepidation.

"Then... let's begin." As soon as Menma finished speaking, he clapped his fists together. Instantly, he was enveloped in dark golden chakra, entering the Nine-Tails Chakra Mode.

Had it not been for the restrictions of the seal, Menma would likely have attacked in his perfect Jinchuriki form.

Next, Menma closed his eyes and condensed chakra in his hands. Before long, a Rasengan appeared, and it continued to grow larger and larger, showing no signs of stopping.

The Rasengan grew until it was more than ten times the size of Menma's body before it finally ceased.

"Ultra-Big Ball Rasengan!" Menma held the Rasengan high, looking at the group with a playful expression: "Are you coming one by one, or all at once?"

Seeing this, those men broke out in a cold sweat, paralyzed by fear and unable to speak, staring blankly at Menma.

Menma looked at the men standing frozen in place and suddenly felt bored.

"Bullies who fear the strong and prey on the weak—is that all you can do besides talk big? If I used a Tailed Beast Ball, would you be so scared you'd wet your pants and kneel on the ground begging for mercy?" The massive Rasengan in Menma's hand gradually dissipated. He crossed his arms and sneered at the hot-headed youths.

It wasn't just those few; everyone present was shocked. Kakashi and the others looked at Menma with bewildered eyes, unable to comprehend how he had achieved such a feat in such a short time. They knew clearly that if that Rasengan had truly landed, the blast radius would have been immense, and those men would likely have been reduced to dust.

However, they were secretly relieved that Menma had only used it as a show of force to scare them; otherwise, the situation would have been impossible to salvage.

Jiraiya, witnessing this, felt a jolt in his heart. Looking at Menma's back, he couldn't help but wonder if Menma was the Child of Prophecy mentioned by the Great Toad Sage.

Hiruzen Sarutobi watched everything quietly. If Menma had truly attacked, he intended to intervene. However, he understood Menma's character well enough to know he wasn't the type to hold a grudge.

"I will emphasize this one more time: my brother and I only want to live quietly. We don't expect your sympathy, and I don't need your apologies. If you want to apologize, apologize to my brother, Naruto. As the sons of the Fourth Hokage, we owe you nothing!" When Menma mentioned the Fourth Hokage, he emphasized his tone as if declaring something, his gaze sweeping over the crowd once more.

Hiruzen Sarutobi was taken aback; he hadn't expected Menma to say such a thing.

Kakashi and the others didn't think much of it, believing that only by speaking clearly would these people understand how they should behave.

At this moment, someone unknown spoke up: "They are the murderers who killed the Fourth Hokage."

The villagers remained silent, turning their heads toward the source of the voice and instinctively clearing a space.

The man who had spoken suddenly felt a chill down his spine. With a "whoosh," Menma appeared instantly behind him. A dark golden chakra arm suddenly extended from Menma's back, grabbing the man by the throat.

"Do you also wish to dance?" The cold, chilling aura of the Nine-Tails radiated from Menma, making the surrounding villagers tremble with fear.

With another "whoosh," Menma dragged the man before Hiruzen Sarutobi. After dropping him, he exited the Nine-Tails Chakra Mode.

"Third Hokage-grandfather, I leave this person to you. In the Nine-Tails Chakra Mode, I can sense a person's malice. This man is filled with malice toward me, Naruto, and Kurama, and I also discovered he harbors malice toward you as well." Menma brushed the dust off his clothes and said nonchalantly.

"Very well, I understand." Hiruzen Sarutobi did not doubt Menma's words. Once he finished speaking, he arranged for the Anbu to take the man to the intelligence department, intending to interrogate him for his identity.

Afterward, Menma deactivated the Nine-Tails Chakra Mode. The moment he did, he felt his head grow heavy and collapsed straight to the ground. Kakashi and the others were horrified and rushed over to check on him.

"How is Menma? Is he alright?" Jiraiya asked, holding the still-unconscious Naruto.

"His breathing is steady, so it shouldn't be anything serious. It's likely due to exhaustion or excessive chakra consumption. We can't rule out the aftereffects of the Nine-Tails going berserk," Kakashi analyzed after checking Menma's pulse and breathing.

"Regardless, let's get Naruto and Menma to the hospital first," Kurenai Yuhi suggested.

Kakashi agreed, immediately picking up Menma, and the group rushed toward the hospital.

At the Konoha hospital, after the doctor examined both of them, he looked at Kakashi and the others and said, "Neither child has any major issues. Uzumaki Naruto is suffering from psychological trauma, combined with recent exhaustion and today's outburst; his internal chakra is chaotic, and he may need a day or two to wake up. Uzumaki Menma's condition is better; he simply exhausted too much chakra suddenly. I suggest taking him home to recuperate. Neither is in any serious danger."

The doctor left the ward after speaking, and hearing his words, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

"It's a good thing Naruto and Menma are fine, otherwise I would have gone to find Danzo to demand an explanation," Jiraiya said, clenching his fists with a hint of anger as he looked at the two lying on the hospital beds.

"Find Danzo?" Kurenai Yuhi asked, looking at Jiraiya in confusion.

"You might not know, but the man Menma caught today was from the Root. I don't believe he would have come to stir up trouble without Danzo's orders!" Jiraiya explained.

The group suddenly realized the truth, fully believing Jiraiya's words.

"Let's take them back first." After saying this, Jiraiya prepared to pick up Naruto.

Suddenly, Kurenai Yuhi ran over to block him, saying, "Lord Jiraiya, be gentle." With that, Kurenai Yuhi picked up Naruto and walked out.

Seeing this, the others were at a loss, exchanging bewildered glances. Afterward, Jiraiya had no choice but to pick up Menma and head toward the door.

Not long after, the group arrived at the entrance of Naruto and Menma's home. Seeing the shattered balloons and rubber balls scattered across the yard, Jiraiya felt a sense of relief. After witnessing Menma use the Rasengan, he had already guessed a few things.

The others looked at the mess on the ground, thinking the two little ones had been playing quite wildly. Were they throwing water balloons at each other? And who was the sore loser who resorted to throwing rubber balls? The group fell into deep thought.

Kakashi stepped forward, took the key from Menma's pocket to open the door, then went upstairs to place both boys on the bed in Naruto's room. After tucking them in, he began to look around.

"Looking at the layout of Naruto's room, you can tell he has a carefree personality. The room is quite messy, and besides the photo of Minato and his wife on the wall, there are a few posters." The group quietly left the room, closed the door, and went to Menma's room.

They found the layout of Menma's room quite interesting. Upon entering, they saw a floor coat rack standing by the window, with Minato's Hokage robe hanging on it. The five large characters for "Fourth Hokage" were facing the foot of the bed, so that Menma could see them the moment he woke up in the morning.

Next to the coat rack was a desk. On the right side of the desk sat a small, homemade wooden stand, from which a replica of Minato's Flying Thunder God kunai was suspended. To the left was a small bookshelf, and next to the desk lamp was a pen holder. In the center of the desk lay Minato's Ninja Book, and beside it was a small notebook, though it was unclear what was recorded inside.

Kakashi picked up the notebook and discovered it contained details on how Minato handled matters during missions, as well as notes on problems encountered during the development of the Rasengan.

"So meticulous; he truly is the child of my teacher," Kakashi sighed.

"This is a child chasing his dreams with his father as his goal," Asuma said, looking around the room before glancing at the small notebook in Kakashi's hand.

When Kakashi set the notebook down, he was suddenly drawn to a book on the shelf and couldn't help but pick it up.

"Isn't this my Icha Icha Paradise? I never expected Menma to be a fan of my books, hahahaha..." Seeing the book, Jiraiya couldn't help but burst into laughter.