Land of Fire. Hidden Leaf Village.
After the devastation of the Third Great Ninja War, the people of Konoha had hoped for peace—an era of calm where bloodshed was a memory. But on this night, shrouded in fire and blood, that fragile dream shattered.
"ROAR!!"
A monstrous beast loomed within the village—its nine tails, ablaze like pillars of crimson flame, lashed through the night like serpentine dragons, stirring gales and chaos with every sweep. Its eyes burned with a feral, otherworldly red.
The Nine-Tails.
Beneath its feet lay charred ruins of homes and the mangled, blood-soaked corpses of countless shinobi.
Konoha's ninja, tiny as ants before the monstrous fox, hurled themselves at it without hesitation. Their bravery was admirable, but futile. Against such overwhelming power, even a thousand lives wouldn't make a dent.
They were trying to shake a mountain—with the wings of a mayfly.
"Hold the line! Just hang on until the Fourth Hokage arrives!" a Chūnin, blood streaming from countless wounds, cried hoarsely as he stared down the beast.
Boom!
Next to him, a comrade who had just leapt toward the Nine-Tails was swatted from the air and crushed into the earth—a lifeless, broken body.
And yet, that Chūnin's eyes still burned with hope—hope that their shining sun, the Fourth Hokage, would soon arrive and lead them through this nightmarish battlefield.
Meanwhile, somewhere else in the village, a lightning-fast clash was about to erupt.
Shhhk—clink...!
Amid a quiet field, the soft clatter of chains echoed. A man in a swirling spiral mask had wrapped heavy chains around the arms of a blond-haired shinobi, pulling them taut, as if he'd already secured his prey.
But—swish!
In that instant, the blond vanished.
The masked man's expression remained hidden, but the Sharingan visible through his mask twitched faintly.
His eye tracked the blond's new position—now standing beside a special kunai embedded in the ground. Those piercing blue eyes glinted with calm focus as they locked onto his opponent.
That man... was the Fourth Hokage of the Hidden Leaf—Minato Namikaze.
Minato's brow creased. Even now, his mind raced, analyzing everything he had observed about the masked intruder who had attacked the village during Kushina's labor.
"My physical attacks don't affect him. But to strike, he has to become tangible… which means that's the moment he's vulnerable. Attacking equals risk for him. Judging by how he released the Nine-Tails, he's also trying to end this quickly..."
His thoughts sharpened.
Minato made his move.
"In the end, it all comes down to speed!"
The masked man welcomed the charge. He'd already gathered all the intel he needed on the Fourth Hokage. In his mind, Minato was already caught—cornered in a trap.
Their distance shrank. Five meters... three meters...
Minato hurled a special Flying Thunder God kunai directly at the masked man's head.
The kunai sailed closer—and passed straight through.
VMMM—
In the very next breath, Minato's hand began spinning a brilliant, sky-blue Rasengan.
He was already within striking range.
"This battle… is mine."
The masked man's hand reached for Minato's shoulder. He was mere inches from contact. With a single touch, he could drag Minato into his dimension—ending this, ending everything.
SWISH!
But in that split-second, Minato vanished.
"Rasengan!!"
BOOM!
With an explosive crash that shattered the ground, the Rasengan slammed into the masked man's back. The very kunai Minato had thrown earlier was now only inches away—revealing how he'd used it to teleport.
"Damn it... he jumped through that kunai just now?"
The masked man finally realized—he'd underestimated Minato's Flying Thunder God Jutsu. He'd never imagined it could be used like that.
Minato's piercing blue eyes met his once more, calm and unshakable.
"This... is Flying Thunder God: Second Stage."
He snatched the whirling kunai from the air.
The ground quaked. Dust and rock flew.
...
"You truly are the Fourth Hokage. You even managed to wound me—and break the Nine-Tails free of my control…"
"But the Nine-Tails will be mine again. I am the one who will unify the world. And I have more than enough ways to make that happen."
With that declaration, space twisted around him—and he vanished.
Minato stared ahead, his expression darkening.
"He... wasn't lying."
In their brief exchange, Minato had glimpsed the truth: this man was dangerous. His jutsu were formidable—but his ambition and cunning were far more terrifying.
This man would bring disaster upon the ninja world.
But Minato had more pressing matters.
Flash!
With a shimmer of golden light, he vanished again.
When he reappeared atop the Hokage Monument, the view struck him like a blade—his village, torn and burning. Corpses of his comrades littered the streets.
The Third Hokage had managed to drive the Nine-Tails out of the village, but at over fifty, his strength was waning fast.
Even the strongest shinobi couldn't escape time's erosion.
The Nine-Tails opened its maw. Massive chakra condensed into a black sphere—preparing to unleash a Tailed Beast Bomb.
If it fired, the damage would be irreversible.
"Damn it… it's using that again?!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi crouched low, wheezing, unwilling to fall—but his body had reached its limits.
"Summoning Jutsu!"
In the sky above the Nine-Tails, a massive shadow dropped from the clouds.
BOOM!
Gamabunta, the mighty toad chief of Mount Myōboku, landed squarely atop the Nine-Tails. The forming Tailed Beast Bomb shattered under the impact.
"It's the Fourth Hokage!"
Wounded Konoha shinobi looked up to see the blond figure standing tall on Gamabunta's head. Their faces lit up with hope.
"I am the one who will unify the world…"
The masked man's words echoed in Minato's mind, gnawing at his resolve.
"I'm sorry... Kushina." Minato's heart ached. The decision he'd made earlier—he knew she would never approve.
But it was too late to turn back now.
Beneath Gamabunta, the Nine-Tails once again began gathering chakra.
"Hold him down—just for a bit!" Minato called to Gamabunta.
The toad groaned. "Even for me, that's a tall order…"
The Nine-Tails was a beast of immense power. Outside of the legendary First Hokage, no one had ever truly suppressed it.
But the Tailed Beast Bomb was forming again—and this time, Konoha might not survive.
Just before it launched, the Nine-Tails vanished—along with Minato.
"He... teleported it, and himself?" Hiruzen muttered as the surrounding shinobi stared, stunned.
BOOM!
In the distant mountains, a massive explosion tore through the forest.
"There… that's where he went…"
...
Far from the village, deep in the woods, the Nine-Tails was now pinned to the earth by glowing red chakra chains. A red-haired woman stood firm—her chakra perfectly suppressing the beast.
"I'll drag the Nine-Tails back inside me and go down with it. That'll delay its return for a while. My remaining chakra can manage that much."
Kushina looked up at Minato, her beautiful face calm—yet resolute.
And then... she smiled.
"All this time... thank you."
Minato, for all his strength, couldn't hold back. He regretted it—this choice. Because once again, it would hurt her.
"Kushina… you made me the Fourth Hokage. You made me your husband… you made me Naruto's father. All these things… should have been me…"
His words trembled. Tears welled in his sky-blue eyes.
Kushina kept smiling. "Minato, don't say that. I'm happy... to have your love. And today... is our baby's birthday."
"If I could live… all I'd want… is for the three of us to be together. There's nothing in this world more precious than that."
Her smile was gentle. But Minato's heart twisted in pain.
"I wish… I could see Naruto grow up…" she added. Still smiling—but there was a sorrow in her voice that words could never capture.
"Kushina, you don't have to die with the Nine-Tails. I'll seal your chakra into Naruto. That way… you'll see him again."
"And the Nine-Tails… I'll handle it. But I'm not a Jinchūriki. The only sealing technique I can use is... the Reaper Death Seal!"
Minato wiped his tears. He couldn't ignore her final wish. He couldn't abandon his village.
"But that jutsu... it'll kill you!" Kushina's eyes widened in horror.
The Reaper Death Seal—an ultimate jutsu that claimed the life of its user.
Yet when she looked into Minato's eyes, his decision was already carved in stone.
"I can only seal half of the Nine-Tails. Such a massive chakra can't be fully sealed—not even for balance's sake."
Minato had always dreamed of becoming Hokage. And now, at the very end, he was still fighting for his village.
He lowered his gaze to their baby—Naruto—peacefully sleeping in his arms.
"The other half of the Nine-Tails… I'll seal inside Naruto. With the Eight Trigrams Seal."
Kushina's expression darkened. This was the one thing she couldn't accept.
"I know what you want to say. But Jiraiya-sensei talked about a coming revolution—and the disasters it might bring…"
"Tonight, I confirmed two things. First, the masked man who attacked you will one day plunge the entire shinobi world into chaos. Second, the one who'll stop him... is this child. Naruto will carry that future. I don't know why—I just believe it."
Kushina couldn't find the words.
At that moment, the Third Hokage arrived outside the barrier she had erected.
"Kushina, but—" she tried to protest again.
But Minato had already laid Naruto gently on the ground. He stood.
His hands began weaving seals.
She recognized them instantly.
Ram – Boar – Goat – Hare – Dog – Rat – Bird – Horse – Ram…
Clap!
A sharp crack echoed.
Behind Minato, spiritual energy erupted—taking shape as a grim, blade-wielding Shinigami.
He looked at Kushina and the Third.
And then he spoke.
"Believe in this child. He's our son."
This was Minato's final gift—to fulfill her wish. And the price… was his own life.
Kushina stared at the looming death god, her emotions a tangled storm.
"I'll seal your chakra into Naruto, so you can see him again someday. When he tries to control the Nine-Tails… lend him your strength."
Minato felt a strange calm settle over him. He had honored her wish… but he knew he'd hurt her again.
"Because Naruto is our son… I don't want him to bear such a burden!" Kushina's voice cracked. Tears streamed from her eyes.
She wanted to see Naruto grow up too. But not like this. Not at the cost of Minato's life.
"Why does it have to be the Reaper Death Seal...? Just so I can see Naruto, just for a moment? Why throw your life away for that? I want you to be there—for him, for his whole life! Why?!"
"Don't sacrifice Naruto for balance—and don't sacrifice yourself… for me!" she cried.
Kushina's breath grew ragged. Her strength was fading fast. But her fury, her grief, her heartbreak—they overwhelmed her.
Minato… had always agreed with her. But now—
"Abandoning our country and village... is no different from abandoning our child," Minato whispered. "You of all people should know what it means… to live without a homeland."
"We're ninja. All of us."
"And besides… if I'm alive, I could never win against you anyway."
Minato smiled—gentle, warm, just like in her memories.
And Kushina… broke.
"Ahhh!!!"
Kushina let out an anguished roar, her fiery red hair rapidly fading to a lighter hue as an overwhelming surge of chakra exploded from deep within her!
Boom!
As a descendant of the Uzumaki clan, even with her life hanging by a thread, the sheer force of her chakra was enough to shake the world.
The Third Hokage and the others were forced to retreat under the sudden pressure of the chakra storm. Even the Shinigami—visible only to the caster and slowly fading away—was forcibly held in place by the sheer might of it.
"Raaagh!"
From the Shinigami's location, another roar echoed out, accompanied by a chakra presence even stronger than Kushina's.
It was the Nine-Tails.
Even with only half its body present, the beast thrashed in defiance. It would not allow itself to be sealed away in the belly of the Shinigami, trapped for all eternity alongside the Fourth Hokage!
Two monstrous forces of chakra collided, shaking the very air. The shockwave swept over Minato's soul, just as it was about to be devoured by the Shinigami.
"Kushina!" Minato's soul was already fading, consciousness slipping away—but that chakra… he would never forget it.
And now, he found himself caught between those two devastating auras, helpless to resist.
"That… is that the Fourth Hokage's soul!?"
The Third Hokage and the others turned sharply. In the heart of the swirling chakra, they could actually see it—Minato's soul, flickering like a candle in a storm, trapped between the colliding forces of red and malevolence.
Buzz...
And then, space itself began to warp—twisting unnaturally until a black dot the size of a fingernail formed in midair.
Whoosh!
Minato's soul was drawn toward it, and in the blink of an eye, it vanished into that tiny point—swallowed whole—disappearing completely from their sight and their senses...