Minato's Old Home

Minato Namikaze's old home stood on a quiet street on Konoha's east side.

The courtyard wall was low. A pruned tree stood by the gate, but years without care had left its branches hanging over the wall into the alley. The seal on the wooden door had been half torn away, and the lock showed signs of being forced.

Naruto stood before the door.

It wasn't far from the shabby apartment where he lived.

Just two streets away on foot.

For six years, he had passed nearby every day without knowing his parents had left him a home here.

Kakashi stood beside him, his head lowered.

"After Minato-sensei died, the Hokage Office sealed this place. As his students, we weren't allowed to enter without permission."

Naruto looked at him.

"Have you been here?"

Kakashi fell silent.

"I came to the door."

"But you didn't go in?"

"No."

Naruto asked no more.

He raised a hand and pushed the door open.

The hinges creaked dryly. Fallen leaves covered the courtyard, and moss grew on the stone lantern. Several windowpanes inside were torn. Sunlight slanted through the gaps, revealing dust in the air.

This was no carefully preserved hero's home.

It looked more like a forgotten, empty house.

Naruto stepped into the entryway.

There were fresh footprints on the floor.

Someone had come last night. More than one person.

Nine-Tails Chakra spread from beneath his feet, following the footprints and lingering scents deeper into the house.

The living room was sparsely furnished.

A picture frame sat on the table.

It lay facedown.

Naruto turned it over.

The photograph showed a young Minato and Kushina. Minato wore a gentle smile, while Kushina rested a hand on his shoulder, her red hair like fire.

Someone had tampered with the corner of the photograph.

A slip of paper was tucked behind it.

Naruto pulled it out.

On it was a line in Minato's handwriting:

"Naruto's first birthday present is hidden on the third shelf in the study."

Naruto's fingers went still.

A birthday present.

In six years, the original Naruto had never really celebrated a birthday.

To many in Konoha, October tenth marked the anniversary of the Nine-Tails' Attack. It was a day of disaster.

No one had told him it was his birthday, too.

Kakashi saw the note and stiffened.

Jiraiya, following behind them, looked grim as well.

Naruto put the note away and headed for the study.

The study door had been pried open.

The bookshelves inside were orderly, but several books had been knocked over. A hidden compartment behind the third shelf had already been opened, and half its contents were gone.

A small box remained inside.

Naruto took it out.

The box held a tiny baby's wristband embroidered with a spiral pattern, along with a wooden tag carved with an early version of a Flying Thunder God Formula.

On the back of the tag was written:

"Let Naruto play with this when he turns one. Don't let Kushina find out I carved the formula early."

It was signed Minato.

The Nine-Tails snorted in the Sealing Space.

"That blond brat had some nerve, carving a Flying Thunder God toy for a baby."

Naruto didn't laugh.

There was room beside the box for something else.

It had been taken.

Kakashi examined the edges of the compartment.

"It was opened last night, but the old seal on it had been disturbed before that."

Jiraiya crouched and ran his fingers along the compartment's bottom.

"At least twice. Once six years ago, and once last night."

Naruto asked, "What's missing?"

Kakashi searched through the study records and soon found a list in Minato's handwritten notes.

"Three birthday presents."

"The wristband, the wooden tag, and a Sealing Safety Bell."

The Sealing Safety Bell was gone.

Jiraiya frowned. "What's a Sealing Safety Bell?"

Kakashi turned a page.

"A small sealing device Minato-sensei designed for a baby to wear. It would sound an alert when hostile Chakra approached and briefly raise a protective barrier."

Jiraiya's expression changed.

"If Naruto had been wearing it back then..."

No one finished the thought.

If Naruto had worn that bell as a child, it might have recorded the villagers approaching to bully him, the ANBU watching him, and Root making contact.

And now it was gone.

Naruto put away the wristband and wooden tag.

He walked farther into the house.

The bedroom still looked as it had years ago.

A crib stood by the window beneath a dust cover. Beside it lay a little red outfit with Naruto's name embroidered on the collar.

Someone had searched the wardrobe.

Clothes lay scattered across the floor.

They hadn't been looking for money.

They had been looking for something.

Naruto stood beside the crib and touched the little outfit.

The fabric had aged, yet it was better preserved than anything he had worn in all those years.

For six years, he had worn secondhand-store castoffs.

His own new clothes had been locked away in his parents' old home.

Kakashi's breathing grew uneven.

"Naruto..."

Naruto didn't turn around.

"Search."

Kakashi nodded at once.

He and Jiraiya split up to inspect the remaining seals in the house.

Naruto went to the backyard.

There was a small training ground there, with several Flying Thunder God practice lines carved into the earth. In one corner stood a wooden post half-buried in soil, fresh scratches on its surface.

Someone had lingered here last night.

Naruto pressed his hand against the post.

A system prompt sounded.

[Residual seal records detected.]

[Replay the most recent activation?]

Naruto's gaze sharpened.

"Replay it."

The Flying Thunder God traces on the post lit up.

A blurry scene appeared before Naruto's eyes.

At night, a masked figure entered the backyard, holding the missing Sealing Safety Bell. The bell gave a soft chime, then cast several flickering images.

They showed young Naruto being shoved down by villagers, watched and recorded by ANBU, and approached by Root.

The bell had recorded it all.

The masked figure muttered something.

"Just as I thought. This thing can't be allowed to remain."

Then the figure tucked the bell away. Before leaving, they marked the post with a black residue.

Naruto withdrew his hand.

"The Sealing Safety Bell recorded what happened to me over the years."

Jiraiya and Kakashi hurried over together.

Kakashi's voice was strained. "Who took it?"

Naruto looked at the black mark on the post.

"I don't know."

"But whoever it was didn't go far last night."

Nine-Tails Chakra followed the black residue, pointing toward a place outside the old home.

Not the Hokage Building.

Not the Advisor Residence.

Konoha Hospital.

Jiraiya's expression changed.

"The hospital?"

Naruto headed for the door.

"Who's there?"

Kakashi answered at once. "People injured last night, the Root remnants being treated before transfer, and... Utatane Koharu."

Naruto's eyes turned cold.

"She still hasn't settled her debt."