A storm on the horizon

Beside a lamppost beneath the falling snow, little Naruto slowly opened his eyes and instinctively blurted out the words he had left unsaid:

"You're... huh?"

Looking around at the familiar scenery, little Naruto rubbed his head in confusion.

After a while, he looked down doubtfully at his perfectly intact clothes and the red scarf still wrapped snugly around his neck, then muttered groggily, "Was it a dream?"

There were no towering bars before him, no enormous Demon Fox behind them, only his familiar surroundings.

That dream felt so real, like it happened right in front of me. And unlike a normal dream, I still remember it so clearly.

But he was only a child. He simply assumed he really had fallen asleep beneath the lamppost and got up to head home. Suddenly, he seemed to notice something and let out a puzzled sound.

"That's weird. It's snowing today, so why isn't it cold at all?" Naruto rubbed his palms together. Gone was the redness the cold had left on them every day before; all he felt was a cozy warmth spreading through his body.

That made him very happy, and a satisfied smile spread across his face. Only then did he remember why he was here—

I just took that strange little girl with the White Eyes home. Did I really fall asleep by the road just because I walked a little farther?

Guess my body's a bit too weak. Should I get something to eat tomorrow... oh, right, I don't have any money. Maybe I should find something to eat outside...

Little Naruto walked away, lost in thought, completely unaware that a Konoha Ninja wearing a forehead protector had appeared a short distance behind him and was idly opening a Notebook to record:

"...The target stood dazed in place for three minutes, during which unusual Chakra fluctuations occurred. Reasonable grounds to suspect a sense of deprivation after visiting the Hyuga Estate. Recommend providing some supplies to foster goodwill..."

After hastily jotting down a few lines, the Konoha Ninja closed the Notebook and vanished with the Body Flicker Technique, leaving not even a footprint on the ground.

A perfect tail.

Unfortunately, two pairs of eyes had witnessed it all.

"Well? That's how your own son Naruto is treated in the village, Fourth Hokage Minato Namikaze. Oh, you can work out that he's only three right now, can't you?" The Nine-Tails lay on the ground and yawned lazily, watching Minato Namikaze's dark expression outside the bars.

"All of this is merely a Genjutsu you created, an attempt to make me lose my composure and release you... That's what I should think, but I can't lie to myself. Everything you've said is probably true."

Minato Namikaze stood there for a moment before slowly exhaling and speaking.

"Lying is a human talent. I have no interest in such tedious hypocrisy," the Nine-Tails replied.

Minato Namikaze's azure eyes inspected his own body, around which an uncontrollable torrent of nine-tails chakra swirled.

Although it was still the eerie red Chakra he knew so well, he felt none of the pervasive malice and impulsiveness it had carried when Kushina was alive.

"I'm still in the Sealing, after all. I can only share this much power." As though reading Minato's thoughts, the Nine-Tails continued, "But for that body of yours, this Chakra is enough to sustain your soul for a long time."

"Why?" Minato Namikaze asked.

"Hmph." The Nine-Tails did not answer directly, instead recalling the past.

That small figure who had once lived all alone in the village, that boy who had done nothing wrong yet received nothing but cold stares, that fool whom others had constantly exploited in order to control the Nine-Tails...

Naruto, who had only learned the truth of his own birth after saving everyone, should never have had to endure that.

"I don't know how to teach people ninjutsu. Isn't it better to let you teach your own child?" The Nine-Tails offered a perfunctory excuse. Although Minato Namikaze could tell there were other reasons, there was nothing he could do if the Nine-Tails refused to explain.

Besides, just as the Nine-Tails had said, being able to watch Naruto in this form, and even find ways to guide him as he grew, was an acceptable outcome for Minato Namikaze, who had died too soon with guilt weighing on his heart.

"Then why didn't you let Naruto actually undo your seal?" Minato Namikaze changed the subject.

"Not yet." The Nine-Tails concealed nothing in answering this question, a trace of wariness showing in those enormous fox eyes. "Once the Sealing is undone, my Chakra will be beyond Naruto's ability to control. And if my Chakra is detected... the person who attacked you before will act again. As for Konoha as it is now, I wouldn't say it could help us much."

"That masked man? Madara Uchiha?" Minato Namikaze asked gravely.

"No. Madara is dead. That man is your student, Obito Uchiha." The Nine-Tails' words sent towering waves crashing through Minato Namikaze's heart. Never in his wildest dreams had he imagined hearing Obito's name here.

"That's impossible!"

"Hmph, don't get worked up. I'll tell you everything." The Nine-Tails watched Minato Namikaze, knowing that he was still on his guard, but did not care.

Although the Nine-Tails did not know why he had returned to life in this era, recalling the threat of the Ōtsutsuki sent a chill through him despite his long years as a tailed beast.

Yet stronger than the fear in the Nine-Tails' heart was a pride that refused to concede defeat—so what if they're the Ōtsutsuki Clan? Naruto and I defeated the godlike Ōtsutsuki Isshiki together. Before, they lurked in the shadows. But now that I have another chance, I can change everything and trample the entire Ōtsutsuki Clan underfoot!

Meanwhile, at the Konoha Hokage Office.

"Hmm, I understand. Thank you for your hard work." Listening to his subordinate's report, the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, took a long pull on his pipe. His somewhat aged face relaxed. "A child's jealousy or envy is a kind of negative emotion, too. It merely stirred up a little of the Nine-Tails' Chakra and caused it to leak. There's no need to make a fuss."

"Yes, sir." The Konoha Ninja who had been following Naruto stood respectfully before the Hokage and raised no objection to Sarutobi's reply. "Then I'll return to my mission..."

"Oh, there's no hurry." The Third Hokage rose from his office chair and waved a hand with a genial smile. "You won't need to continue that mission. Go get some rest. I'm going out for some fresh air."

With that, the Third Hokage slowly walked out of the room with his hands behind his back, leaving the Chunin standing there alone.

After a while, the Konoha Chunin sighed, took the Notebook from inside his clothes, and held it out behind him.

A hand reached out of the darkness and took the Notebook. A voice tinged with a faint sigh sounded before the ninja. “Sarutobi has already discovered your identity. Return to 'Root.' You no longer need to concern yourself with the Nine-Tails.”

"Yes, sir." The Konoha Chunin's reply remained as brief as before.

The night gradually deepened, and as its occupants left, the once brightly lit Hokage Office was swallowed entirely by darkness.