"Make sure you and your brother live well together. I'm not very good at this, but you need to study hard and master ninjutsu. Still, everyone has things they're not good at. If your studies don't go well, you don't have to be discouraged. Respect your teachers and seniors at the Academy. There's one more important thing: the Three Prohibitions of ninjutsu..."
"First, don't borrow money carelessly. Remember to save the pay you earn from missions. You can't drink alcohol until you're twenty, and drinking too much is bad for your health, so be sensible. Then there's the prohibition against women. Mom's a woman, so I don't really understand that one. Anyway, there are only men and women in this world, and sooner or later you'll become interested in women. I just worry you'll get tangled up with some strange woman. Find someone as wonderful as your mom." As she spoke, Kushina and Minato smiled.
"One more thing: when it comes to the Three Prohibitions, be careful. You especially need to watch out for your teacher, Jiraiya. As for everything else... your brother, Yin Xiang, will teach you. Naruto... from now on, you'll face plenty of heartbreak and pain... Keep your own pace... and hold on to your dreams. Then make them come true. You have to... believe in yourself."
As Kushina spoke, tears rolled down her cheeks. "There's so much... so, so much I still want to tell you... I still want to live with you... I love you..."
"I'm sorry, Minato... I got carried away talking all by myself..."
"It's all right." Minato shook his head. "Naruto... what I wanted to tell you is the same as what your talkative mother said..." After speaking, Minato closed his eyes and used the Eight Trigrams Sealing Style as his final act.
The other half of the Nine-Tails entered Naruto's body, and Minato and Kushina's bodies fell to the ground.
The barrier came down, allowing the Third Hokage and the others to enter. The Third Hokage was the first to pick Yin Xiang up off the ground, while the other ninja ran to Minato, Kushina, and Naruto.
"Dad... Mom..." Yin Xiang had fainted, but he had already come to think of Minato and Kushina as his real parents.
Three days later...
"Yin Xiang, you must keep Naruto's situation secret, too," the Third Hokage told Yin Xiang, who sat on the sofa across from him. Yin Xiang kept his head lowered, staring at the floor. His eyes were red, and it was impossible to tell how long he'd been crying.
"Dad and Mom did so much for the village, and now you want me to hide that Naruto is their son," Yin Xiang said without looking up. "As their child, how can you ask me to do that?"
"To maintain the balance of power among the Tailed Beasts and prevent the villages from starting a war, we need to announce Naruto's identity as the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki. You're smart enough to understand that." The Third Hokage wasn't treating Yin Xiang like a child at all.
"Because I understand, I know even better that everyone in the village now knows Naruto is the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki. After the Nine-Tails attacked the village, the villagers' hatred of it will all be directed at Naruto. He'll be shunned by the villagers his whole life."
"Why can't you tell them what really happened?" Yin Xiang raised his head and shouted at the Third Hokage.
"Listen carefully, Yin Xiang." The Third Hokage took a long drag on his pipe and looked at him.
"You heard it yourself: Naruto is the Child of Prophecy. If the village reveals who he is and lets him grow up sheltered, he won't be able to shoulder the responsibility. I'm doing this to toughen him up."
"'When Heaven is about to place a great responsibility on a man, it first hardens his resolve and wears out his body,' is that it?" Yin Xiang understood a little better.
"Oh?" The Third Hokage paused. "That's a good way to put it. Since you understand, you need to cooperate. Never see Naruto."
"No way!" Yin Xiang never expected the Third Hokage to make such a demand. He would never agree.
"You must not see him unless there's no other choice."
"No. Not only will I keep seeing Naruto, I'll go to the Ninja Academy with him and be in the same class." Yin Xiang jumped off the sofa and faced the Third Hokage without fear.
"Then I'll have no choice but to lock you up." Danzo's voice came from behind Yin Xiang. The door behind him opened, and Danzo walked in.
"..." Yin Xiang turned around. The man looked dangerous.
As he spoke, Danzo reached out to grab Yin Xiang.
"Wait." The Third Hokage spoke. Danzo's hand stopped in midair, and the two men faced each other.
"I understand. I won't see him," Yin Xiang said at once, realizing what was going on.
"Hmph." Danzo had nothing more to say, so he turned and left.
"Why did you give in so suddenly?" The Third Hokage looked at Yin Xiang with a smile.
"Lord Danzo must know about the Insoro Clan. He wants to take me and control me so I'll use my foresight for him. You want to control me, too, so I'll use it for you—or, rather, for Konoha, so the village can prepare for trouble before it happens. Better to give in to you than fall into Lord Danzo's hands."
The Third Hokage couldn't even take another puff of his pipe. He stared blankly at the child before him, amazed by how clever he was.
"I didn't realize you were this smart," the Third Hokage said to Yin Xiang.
"What are you going to do with me now?" Yin Xiang asked.
"Go home. When the time comes, I'll make arrangements."
"What about Naruto?"
"The Konoha Orphanage."
"...I understand." Yin Xiang turned and left.
"This child... Could he already be able to see the future?" The Third Hokage watched him leave and wondered silently. "He's never even met Danzo. How does he know who he is?"
After leaving the Hokage's office, Yin Xiang didn't go straight home. Instead, he went to Minato and Kushina's grave and knelt before it.
"Dad, Mom, I'm sorry." Yin Xiang wiped the gravestone with his hand. "I can't see Naruto or take good care of him for you. We'll meet again someday. When we do, I'll apologize to you in person."
"Yin Xiang, you should go home now." Kakashi's voice came from behind him, and a hand rested on his small shoulder.
"Big Brother Kakashi." Yin Xiang turned around and saw Kakashi wearing a mask. "You've got a face covering and a mask on. Doesn't your face get stuffy?"
Kakashi didn't say anything. He simply reached up and took off his mask.
"Big Brother Kakashi!" Yin Xiang ran over and hugged him, though he could only reach Kakashi's thigh. "What do I do, Big Brother Kakashi? I'm an orphan again."
"I'll take care of you from now on." Kakashi placed a hand on Yin Xiang's head. Kakashi was still very young himself, but he had willingly taken on the responsibility of caring for Yin Xiang.
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