Touching her abdomen with chakra-infused fingertips, the seal hidden beneath Kushina's clothes suddenly activated. Her clothes around her abdomen tore apart as various golden chakra chains flew out.
The chains flew at an incredible speed toward Kurama, quickly spreading around her enormous frame.
Seeing the golden chakra chains flying toward her, Kurama whimpered for a moment and accepted her fate. She remained still, allowing the chains to encircle her enormous Nine-Tailed Fox body.
In no time, the golden chakra chains enveloped her entire frame, holding her in place. Moments later, her form shrank as she was drawn inside Kushina, along with the golden chains.
Meanwhile, seeing that Kurama, the Nine-Tailed Fox, had returned inside her seal, Kushina sighed in relief. She then turned to look at Minato lying on the ground with their baby beside him.
Realizing there were still problems at hand, she quickly ran over.
"Minato, are you okay?" Kneeling beside him, Kushina clasped his face with both hands and asked worriedly.
A moment later, she still received no response as Minato's eyes remained closed and he breathed silently.
Realizing that Minato had indeed passed out, Kushina held his face and gave him a quick, loving kiss on the lips.
"I'll handle the rest while you're still out, okay?"
Glancing at Minato's sleeping figure, Kushina couldn't resist giving him another quick kiss on the lips. She then turned toward their baby, who was lying beside him, sleeping peacefully, unaware of the danger that had transpired.
She grab the baby with both hands and held it to her bosom. Her gaze are fixed at the baby's cute sleeping face.
"So adorable, I should name you Naruto. I'm sure your father would like it too," Kushina said lovingly.
"You have your father's hair... and those unique whiskers on your face, how cute." She gently touched the baby's face, noting the three whisker marks on each side.
In the distance, illuminated by the bright moonlight, the figure of an old man in black battle armor with two long bands fluttering behind him could be seen. This old man, still holding his weapon Enma, remained ready for any fight.
As Hiruzen approached where Kushina was sitting, he realized there were no threats and unsummoned his battle weapon Enma, which vanished with a popping sound and a puff of smoke.
"Pow!"
Kushina, lovingly holding baby Naruto in her arms, turned her head to look over her shoulder upon hearing the popping sound. She saw Hiruzen standing there, his hands already behind his back.
"Hiruzen, you're here," Kushina said, confirming the figure of the old man in the moonlight.
"Hmm. I'm here," Hiruzen nodded, stopping in his tracks and looking around.
"I don't see the Nine-Tailed Fox. What happened to it?" Hiruzen asked, scanning the area.
"The Nine-Tailed Fox is under control and has been sealed back inside me," Kushina responded, gazing at Hiruzen. After a moment, she turned her attention back to baby Naruto and hummed softly.
Walking toward Kushina and stopping beside her, Hiruzen looked at Minato, who was lying on the ground with his eyes closed.
"What happened to Minato? Is he alright?" Hiruzen asked in an elderly voice. From what he could see, there were no noticeable injuries on Minato's body, only a small scratch on his cloak.
"He passed out, probably from expending too much chakra," Kushina responded, gazing at Minato's sleeping face.
Hiruzen nodded, understanding the situation. He then looked at the baby in Kushina's arms.
"A boy? What is his name?" Hiruzen asked, glancing at the baby and noticing the unique whisker marks on both sides of his face.
"Naruto. It's an adorable name, right?" Kushina responded with a smile.
Hiruzen slightly narrowed his eyes but quickly changed his expression. "Yes, Naruto is a wonderful name. It suits him well. This old man likes it too."
Hearing Hiruzen's words, Kushina nodded in approval. She then turned her gaze to him.
"I thought so. So, what brings you here? Is there something you need to tell me?"
Hiruzen looked into Kushina's purple eyes. After pondering for a moment, he said, "The damage to the village is immense. Many houses have turned to rubble, and many villagers and their loved ones have died at the hands of the rampaging Nine-Tailed Fox."
"You are the jinchuriki, Kushina. Many people might suspect you were behind the attack. Even though many of the shinobi who fought the Nine-Tailed Fox saw its eyes with the Sharingan, it's hard to place all the blame on the Uchiha since you are still alive."
"Even as Minato's wife, the Fourth Hokage, you can't avoid suspicion. But as the jinchuriki of Konoha, people won't take it too far.
"However..." Hiruzen continued, looking at the baby in Kushina's arms, "your son may have a hard time living in the future."
Upon hearing Hiruzen's last statement, Kushina turned her gaze to Naruto. "That's not going to happen. They can blame me for their losses, but if they do anything to my son, they're crossing the line," Kushina said firmly, her eyes on Naruto.
Hiruzen nodded after hearing Kushina's words. He then pondered for a moment before saying, "What happened? I initially expected your birth to proceed smoothly."
"But the sudden appearance of the Nine-Tailed Fox caused tremendous destruction in the village and claimed many lives. Is there a specific reason it appeared so suddenly? Tell me, Kushina, what happened after you gave birth?" Hiruzen asked.
Hearing Hiruzen's questions, Kushina did not respond immediately. She took her time, deeply pondering and sorting through all the valuable information she could recall.
Hearing Hiruzen's questions, Kushina did not respond immediately. She took her time, deeply reflecting and organizing the valuable information she could recall.
After a moment, she began, "My birth was proceeding smoothly inside the cave. However, after all was done, a mysterious man in a black cloak with a mask covering his face suddenly appeared."
"The masked man claimed to be 'Madara Uchiha,' who was supposed to have died decades ago. We were so shocked by the revelation that we couldn't react in time. He then took Naruto hostage to confront Minato and draw him away from me."
"He took advantage of my weakened state and forcibly extracted the Nine-Tailed Fox from within me, destroying the cave in the process. Thankfully, Minato returned just in time to rescue me before the cave fully collapsed."
"After that, I was left alone with Naruto here. Minato disappeared again, and then a massive explosion sound far away. That explosion must have been caused by the Nine-Tailed Fox's Tailed Beast Bomb."
"A while later, Minato appeared here with the Nine-Tailed Fox beneath his feet. He looked impressive with the fox at his feet and his cloak fluttering in the wind. Then—"
"Alright, that's enough."
Hiruzen interrupted Kushina's narration and closed his eyes, pondering on what she had said.
Kushina observed Hiruzen's pondering expression with a hint of dissatisfaction before turning her gaze back to Naruto.
After a moment, Hiruzen spoke again, "So the Nine-Tailed Fox was controlled by the mysterious masked man who claimed to be Madara Uchiha."
"But how is that possible? Madara Uchiha died decades ago in the Valley of the End. Moreover, only someone of Madara's strength could summon the Nine-Tailed Fox to the heart of the village."
"Impossible... it's just impossible..." Hiruzen muttered, rubbing his forehead with his aged hands and closing his eyes tightly. He was overwhelmed with disbelief and a headache from the revelations.
"It must be someone else. Yes, it has to be someone pretending to be Madara Uchiha," Hiruzen insisted, unable to accept that Madara Uchiha could still be alive.
"Probably," a voice agreed.
Hiruzen, upon hearing the voice, turned his gaze back to Kushina, remaining silent and waiting for her to continue.
After a moment, Kushina spoke again, "The masked man had a unique power that differs from what we know of Madara Uchiha. So it must be someone else."
"Yes, it must be," Hiruzen agreed, accepting this explanation as the only plausible truth for now.
After a prolonged silence, Hiruzen took a deep breath and glanced at the dawn sky.
"It's already dawn. You should return to the village and rest for the day. I'll carry Minato back," Hiruzen said.
Kushina nodded, standing up with baby Naruto cradled in her arms.
Hiruzen then walked over to Minato and began to remove his cloak.
Seeing this, Kushina was confused and said angrily, "What are you doing?"