The night was as black as ink. Minato returned home after finishing his discussion with the Third Hokage and the others. A trace of weariness showed in his eyes, along with a hint of helplessness that was hard to detect.
He hadn't expected the Third Hokage to invite Danzo and the other two advisors over today.
Although he was now Konoha's current Hokage, he was still constrained in many matters. Danzo in particular had proposed using Root as the place where Kushina would give birth.
At the thought of that, even Minato's expression changed. He knew better than anyone what kind of place Root was. If Kushina really went there, she might never make it back out.
Naturally, he refused the unreasonable demand. In the end, at the Third Hokage's suggestion, they settled on a secluded location outside Konoha for the birth, and had already sent Anbu there to make preparations.
After returning home, Minato didn't go straight to the bedroom. Instead, he headed for another room in the courtyard.
At that moment, Naraku, who had been lying in bed, seemed to sense something and abruptly opened his eyes.
He got up and opened the door. A handsome figure stood outside in the moonlight. It was Minato.
"Naraku," Minato said warmly.
The two of them were in perfect sync. Neither seemed surprised by the other's presence.
They entered the room together and sat across from each other at a small table.
Outside the room, an unfamiliar jutsu formation flickered faintly.
"You activated a barrier formation?" Minato's expression grew solemn as he sensed the disturbance.
For the Uzumaki Clan, who specialized in Sealing Jutsu, mastering this kind of formation was no difficult task. Of course, Kushina had set it up beforehand; Naraku only needed to activate it.
Kushina had taught Naraku every Sealing Jutsu without holding anything back. But since he hadn't learned to mold chakra yet, he hadn't actually used any of them.
"Minato, do you believe in rebirth?"
Minato had just composed himself, but those words instantly stunned him. An incredulous expression crossed his face. Still, as the Hokage of a village, he quickly regained his composure.
"If I remember correctly, you once went on a mission involving Rōran. You must have met the future Naruto there," Naraku said, not giving him much time to prepare.
He was taking a gamble—a gamble that Minato hadn't sealed away those memories.
Before this conversation, Naraku had thought it over for a long time. In the end, he decided to reveal some things to Minato. After all, he was too weak right now. Even though he knew the plot, he had no way to change anything.
So he had given himself the identity of someone reborn from the future.
Minato had only just calmed down, but at those words, he could no longer keep his composure. His formerly gentle face turned stern as he scrutinized Naraku. Doubts filled his mind. How could he possibly know about this?
Naraku hadn't guessed wrong. Minato had indeed kept his memories of Rōran, but he was the only one who knew about them. He hadn't even told Kushina.
Although he was puzzled, he didn't say anything. He knew Naraku still had more to tell him.
Minato's reaction made Naraku breathe a quiet sigh of relief. Looks like my gamble paid off.
Naraku had learned about this from a Sealing Jutsu that could seal memories. Though that technique could seal memories, it could only seal someone else's.
It was the only memory-sealing technique recorded among the Uzumaki Clan's Sealing Jutsu, so he'd guessed that Minato had probably retained his memories of the future Naruto.
"On the day my sister gives birth, someone calling himself Madara Uchiha will show up. He'll take advantage of the weakened seal after she gives birth and release the Nine-Tails."
"To protect the village, you and my sister will die beneath the Nine-Tails' claws. Before you die, you'll use the Dead Demon Consuming Seal to seal the Nine-Tails inside the newborn Naruto."
"Danzo will capture me and take me to Root. He'll place a seal on me and control me for years."
"Many years later, I'll finally manage to escape from there."
Aside from what had happened to him, Naraku followed the original plot in everything he said, all to make Minato believe him.
"The Nine-Tails, Madara Uchiha, and Danzo!"
Minato showed no surprise when he heard that he would die in battle.
The moment he'd seen Naruto in Rōran, he'd recognized him as his son. And from the fact that Naruto didn't know who he was, he'd guessed a few things. He simply didn't want to disrupt the future, so he'd kept it all to himself.
But things were different now. If he alone were to die, he could have reluctantly accepted it. But now that he knew Kushina would also die in battle and Naraku would be taken by Danzo, his expression steadily darkened.
By now, he completely believed Naraku. Not only did Naraku know about his encounter with the future Naruto, but the Dead Demon Consuming Seal was a technique Minato had only recently learned. He hadn't even had the chance to tell Kushina about it!
More importantly, what Naraku had just described was the worst-case scenario Minato himself had imagined. The difference was that Minato had thought he would be the only one to die, leaving Kushina to raise Naraku and Naruto.
"Madara Uchiha? Wasn't he killed by the First Hokage long ago?" Minato asked after composing himself a little.
Naraku shook his head. "I'm not sure about that. My memories from after being reborn aren't complete. It's also possible that I didn't uncover the truth in the future."
Although he knew that the so-called Madara was really Obito in disguise, he didn't plan to tell Minato that now. Otherwise, explaining it would lead to a whole mess of trouble.
There was another reason, too: he didn't want to reveal too much about the future. Just as Minato feared, the future was full of unknowns. If too much changed, Naraku would lose many of the advantages he had from knowing the plot.
Still, there were some things he had to do.
Seeing Naraku shake his head, Minato fell into thought. He didn't know much about a legendary figure like Madara Uchiha, but he'd heard plenty of stories about him.
He was the Ninja Asura who could stand alongside the God of Shinobi.
The room fell silent as Minato mulled over what Naraku had just told him.
Naraku didn't say anything else. Because he was so young, there was little he could do beyond this.
He had tried to stop Kushina and Minato from getting married before, but in the end, he had failed.
They might not have noticed the figure that had appeared outside the room.
Knock! Knock!
Someone rapped on the door, followed immediately by Kushina's voice. "Naraku, are you still awake? Come out and chat with your big sister!"
Kushina, who had been worrying about Naraku, hadn't been able to sleep either.
"Minato, let's go out," Naraku said.
"Sure."
As soon as he finished speaking, Minato stood up, a warm smile returning to his face.
Naraku opened the door, and the three of them chatted in the room until well past midnight. A long-missed smile appeared on Naraku's face.
We have to protect all of this. Minato and Naraku thought the same thing.