"There isn't much chakra left…"
Naruto froze for a moment, then looked at Minato Namikaze and fell into deep thought.
The Minato in front of him was nothing more than a chakra remnant. The fact that it had lasted this long was already a miracle—running out of chakra and dissipating now was completely normal.
Of course, in theory, both Naruto and Kurama could replenish Minato's chakra and keep him around longer.
As if he had seen right through Naruto's thoughts, Minato shook his head slightly.
"Keeping a chakra remnant in this world for so long is already greedy enough. Now that I've seen you—and the village—gradually getting better… I don't want to keep lingering like a ghost."
Before the trip to Kusagakure, Minato had still been worried about Konoha's future.
But after hearing Naruto, Jiraiya, and Tsunade's conversation, that last bit of worry had finally disappeared.
Neither the village… nor Naruto… needed a dead man to keep interfering.
After a moment of silence, Naruto spoke seriously,
"I respect your decision. But… we might meet again someday. Don't forget—there are still techniques like Reanimation in this world."
Minato's expression turned serious.
The Reanimation Technique was indeed troublesome. Even at half strength, resurrected shinobi could cause massive chaos.
But then—
Wait…
Minato suddenly realized something.
There was still another half of the Nine-Tails sealed inside the Shinigami.
After letting out a quiet sigh, Minato said,
"That version of me… isn't the same as this one. If you ever go after the other half of Kurama, be careful of Flying Thunder God."
After saying that, Minato calmly explained his usual combat habits, tricks, and tactics.
Naruto simply nodded.
"…Thanks."
Minato paused for a moment, then smiled and shook his head.
"No need to thank me. The power of the Nine-Tails was yours to begin with."
"…Maybe separating it back then was a mistake."
"But seeing you find your own path… that's enough for me."
There wasn't much else to say between two men like them.
After a few simple words, Minato quietly stepped back into the corner.
At that moment, Kurama came over, grinning.
"So? What did Minato tell you? Did he secretly ask you to build him a custom deck? Heh… typical Hokage, always scheming."
Naruto rolled his eyes.
"No. He's leaving."
"…He talked about the other half of you before going."
"Leaving?" Kurama's brain lagged for a second before it hit him. His tone dropped slightly.
"…So his chakra's finally running out."
"Humans really are fragile. Whether it's their bodies or their chakra… they're like candles in the wind."
Then he added casually,
"But seriously, you're not going to top him up? One more player isn't a bad thing."
Naruto's expression turned cold.
"He refused."
"The Fourth Hokage is still as selfless as ever. Why can't he just be a little selfish for once? Think about himself… about his family."
"Being a hero… is it really that great?"
"Being Hokage… is it really worth chasing after other people's recognition?"
"I'm not becoming Hokage."
"I'm not becoming a hero either."
"I'll be a dictator who does whatever the hell I want… and a tyrant who doesn't give a damn about others."
The atmosphere in the sealed space instantly turned heavy.
Kurama quietly retreated back into his cage.
From long experience, he knew—
This was not the time to say anything.
Naruto also realized something was off with his mood.
Was it because of Minato?
…He didn't know.
After calming himself down, Naruto exited the sealed space and stared out at the endless sea through the window, his expression distant.
Nearby, Karin noticed his strange mood.
She wanted to ask what was wrong…
But in the end, she held back.
Instead, her curiosity about Naruto only deepened.
Isn't Mianma-sama supposed to be some big, powerful leader…?
Then why does he sometimes look… just like me?
Yeah… must be my imagination.
...
A few days later, Naruto and Karin finally arrived in the Land of Whirlpool.
The scenery of the Land of Fire had been beautiful—but it was never truly his territory.
Here, in the Land of Whirlpool and the Land of Waves—
He held absolute military and political power.
As soon as they landed on the island, a patrolling ninja recognized Naruto and hurried over to greet him.
Naruto simply nodded and continued walking inward with Karin.
Watching their backs, the ninja hesitated for a moment, confused about Karin's identity.
But then he noticed her bright red hair.
…and immediately understood.
So that's it. Mianma-sama went out to find surviving Uzumaki clan members.
After walking a bit further, Karin finally couldn't hold back her curiosity.
"Mianma-sama… you really are the leader of Uzushio Village?"
"I thought you were just bluffing before…"
"…And how old are you, anyway?"
Naruto twitched slightly.
Probably younger than you…
But he didn't say it out loud.
Instead, he brought her straight into Uzushio Village.
First stop—the Uzumaki office.
He introduced her to the key personnel, registered her identity, and handled all the formalities.
After that, the two headed toward the Uzumaki Shrine.
Minato's departure still left a faint weight on Naruto's mind.
But life didn't stop.
He had an entire village to run—tens of thousands of people depending on him.
There was no room for slacking.
Whether it was technological development or infrastructure, everything required constant oversight—even if it meant using shadow clones.
But right now, the most important thing—
Was Karin.
He needed to introduce her to the clan's old patriarch.
Those reckless Uchiha like Shisui were fine as combat instructors.
But when it came to medical ninjutsu or sealing techniques?
They were useless.
For medical knowledge, they could only rely on trades with Orochimaru or exchanges with Konoha.
But sealing techniques—
That was pure Uzumaki territory.
Only the old patriarch could teach that.
And after what happened with the Fourth Hokage, Naruto knew one thing clearly—
The old patriarch wouldn't live forever.
They needed a successor.
And Karin… was the perfect candidate.
From what Naruto remembered, Karin had incredible vitality and chakra—perfect for combat.
But ironically…
She had zero real talent for fighting.
Compared to running around killing people, she was far better suited for research and teaching.
Honestly?
She was practically born for it.
When they arrived, they saw Uzumaki Ashina… casually messing around with a corpse.
Naruto didn't even blink. He just pushed Karin forward.
"This is the old patriarch of the Uzumaki clan. Your future teacher."
"Besides attending the ninja academy, you'll also be studying sealing techniques under him."
Ashina noticed Karin's red hair and immediately broke into a wide grin.
"Don't worry, Naruto. I won't treat her badly."
"I didn't expect you to go out to train in sage arts and come back with such a big gain."
"Finally… we don't have to worry about the Uzumaki lineage disappearing."
Naruto looked at him, slightly speechless.
"With Nagato and me around, the Uzumaki lineage isn't going anywhere."
Ashina snorted.
"You two? Orthodox Uzumaki?"
"Since when do proper Uzumaki run around causing chaos and turning the ninja world upside down?"
"You two are lunatics. Just like Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha."
Naruto waved him off impatiently.
"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Just don't play favorites."
"Karin goes through the same training I did. No shortcuts."
Seeing Ashina instantly switch into a doting-grandfather mode, Naruto could only sigh.
Well… at least Karin's future was secure.
The old man would definitely teach her properly.
After leaving behind notes on sage training and some future plans, Naruto finally turned and walked out of the Uzumaki Shrine.
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