Hiruzen Sarutobi stood in his home with a grave expression and spoke quietly to his wife, Biwako Sarutobi:
"Kushina will be giving birth tonight. I've already arranged for the Barrier Team to set up the barrier. Sorry for the trouble, but please take her there."
Biwako nodded.
"Don't worry. I'll leave the outer guards to you. With me inside, nothing will go wrong."
Hiruzen nodded slightly, giving her a trusting look.
Biwako was an experienced medical ninja. He could rest easy leaving this to her.
Before long, Biwako arrived at Kushina's home and took her away.
The two walked along the road toward the barrier site.
Suddenly, Kushina's eyes lit up as she spotted a familiar figure.
"Mikoto!"
She hurried over and found Uchiha Mikoto holding a baby in her arms.
"Oh? So cute!"
Kushina leaned closer, her eyes curving into crescents.
"Is it a girl?"
Mikoto smiled with her lips pressed together and shook her head.
"No, he's a boy."
"What's his name?"
"Sasuke."
Biwako, standing beside them, teased:
"Oh? The same name as the Third's father."
Mikoto nodded, her gentle voice carrying a hint of hope.
"Yes. Fugaku hopes he'll become a ninja as outstanding as the Third's father someday."
As she spoke, she looked at Kushina's swollen belly and said softly:
"Speaking of which, Kushina, you're due soon too, aren't you? Have you decided on a name?"
Kushina immediately perked up, an excited smile spreading across her face.
"We have! Naruto!"
As she spoke, she reached out and gently stroked little Sasuke's head, her voice gentle yet earnest.
"He'll be classmates with Sasuke someday, so you two had better get along."
The moment she finished, her expression suddenly changed, and she covered her face dramatically.
"Speaking of which, doesn't giving birth hurt terribly?!"
At the sight, Mikoto couldn't help covering her mouth and laughing.
"Well, who would've thought even the Red-Hot Habanero Kushina had something she was afraid of? What a surprise."
As their conversation grew livelier, Biwako cleared her throat and took Kushina by the arm.
"Time to go, Kushina!"
As she was pulled along, Kushina still remembered to turn back and wave at Mikoto.
Once they were some distance away, Biwako's expression grew serious, and she spoke quietly:
"Your delivery is a village secret. You can't linger even if you run into someone you know. Understand?"
Kushina stuck out her tongue, rubbing her head with an embarrassed smile.
"I know. Sorry, sorry."
Meanwhile, Mikoto took Sasuke to find Fugaku, who was on patrol.
The moment Fugaku saw Mikoto, his face hardened, and he scolded her:
"Why are you here?! Didn't the clan head order everyone in the clan to evacuate outside the village?"
Hearing this, Mikoto immediately said with a hurt expression:
"I... I sensed something big would happen tonight. I was a little worried about you, so I brought Sasuke to see you..."
Fugaku glanced at Sasuke in Mikoto's arms, and his gaze gradually softened.
Then his face hardened again as he addressed Mikoto:
"I can also feel that the atmosphere in the village is very wrong right now. I'm afraid something big is about to happen."
"Hurry and take Sasuke back to the others. The clan head is protecting them there. It's safe!"
Hearing this, Mikoto could only reluctantly bid Fugaku farewell.
"Then please be careful here in the village!"
Meanwhile, inside the Hokage's Office.
Minato Namikaze sat at his desk and looked at Kakashi, who had just entered, with a warm smile.
"Kakashi, thank you for all your hard work protecting Kushina during her pregnancy."
Kakashi paused slightly and looked up at him.
"But... isn't it still too early?"
Minato nodded.
"Yes. During Kushina's delivery, the Anbu directly under the Third will take over guard duty."
Hearing this, Kakashi answered calmly:
"Understood. Then I'll report back to the Anbu and continue carrying out missions."
Minato smiled and waved a hand.
"There's no need to rush. Take some time off first."
Kakashi said nothing more. He simply nodded, turned, and left the office.
Then he went alone to Konoha Cemetery.
Reaching Rin Nohara's grave, he crouched down, removed the withered bouquet, and replaced it with the fresh flowers he had brought.
"Sorry, Rin. I haven't come to see you all this time."
He spoke softly, his voice low.
"I haven't forgotten you. Not for a moment."
After a pause, he spoke again:
"There's something... I can't say much about it yet, but I want to tell you now."
He raised his head and gazed at the gravestone, his eyes somewhat forlorn.
"Minato-sensei's child will be born tonight."
"They... are being born in a time of peace. If only we'd been born a few years later too..."
Before finishing, he let out a quiet sigh.
"I'll go tell Obito too. I'm leaving, Rin."
He rose, turned, and left.
After he had gone some distance, a black figure slowly emerged from the shadows.
The man wore a mask and a black cloak as he stood before Rin's grave.
He looked at the fresh bouquet Kakashi had just placed on the ground and fell silent for a moment.
Then, in anger, he flung Kakashi's flowers away, scattering them across the ground.
Dusk had fully fallen.
Firelight shone brightly within the barrier.
Minato Namikaze stood to one side, his gaze fixed ahead.
His wife, Kushina Uzumaki, lay on the delivery bed, her face pale and drenched in sweat.
Labor had begun.
Minato kept his hand pressed against the seal on her abdomen, his expression tense.
He was still thinking about the "intruder" Uchiha Xuantou had mentioned earlier.
But so far, there had been no sign of anything unusual at Konoha's barrier, among the Anbu on the perimeter, or at the barrier here.
It seemed he really had been raising a false alarm. Kushina should be able to deliver safely.
"Aah!"
Kushina's cry of pain interrupted Minato's thoughts.
"It hurts!!!"
She clenched her teeth, veins bulging on her forehead as her entire body trembled.
Minato's face was full of worry, and beads of sweat formed on his forehead too.
"Um... th-this is the first time I've seen Kushina... cry out in pain like this. Is... is she really all right?"
Focused on delivering the baby, Biwako replied without looking up:
"She's fine! Focus on watching the seal. Don't get distracted!"
"Aah!!!"
Kushina let out another cry of pain.
Minato spoke again, worried:
"But... Kushina, she..."
Biwako frowned, her tone growing sterner.
"As the Fourth Hokage, you shouldn't get so flustered when something happens."
Minato gritted his teeth, closed his mouth, and continued focusing his attention on the seal.
Just then, a violent fluctuation suddenly came from the seal.
Minato's heart tightened. He hurriedly increased his chakra output, forcibly suppressing that restless power.
Kushina's cries of pain gradually grew hoarse.
Suddenly.
"Waaah!"
A loud infant's cry rang out.
Biwako wrapped the baby in swaddling cloth, a smile appearing on her face.
"The baby's here!"
A shudder ran through Minato, and his eyes instantly reddened.
His voice trembled with excitement.
"Thank goodness... thank goodness! From today on, I... I'm a father!"
Holding Naruto, Biwako gently placed him before Kushina.
Kushina weakly opened her eyes and looked at that tiny face, a gentle smile rising at the corners of her lips.
"Naruto..."
Biwako soon picked the child up again and spoke softly to Kushina:
"All right, get some proper rest now."
Minato walked to Kushina's side and took her hand, his voice choked with emotion.
"Kushina... thank you for everything. Thank you."
He paused, then continued quietly:
"I know you're exhausted after just giving birth, but please hold on a little longer. I need to get the Nine-Tails under control first."
As he spoke, he pressed his hand against the seal on her abdomen again.
Just as he was about to channel his chakra.
"Aah!"
A scream came from behind him.
Minato whipped his head around.
His pupils abruptly contracted.
"Lady Biwako!"
Biwako and another medical ninja lay in a pool of blood.
Kunai had pierced their bodies, and they had already stopped breathing.
And Naruto, who should have been lying in his swaddling cloth, was now held hostage in the arms of a masked man.
The Masked Man slowly spoke, his voice low and icy:
"Fourth Hokage Minato, step away from the jinchūriki immediately."
"Otherwise..."
He lightly pressed the kunai in his hand against Naruto's face.
"This child has only one minute left to live!"