Back in the heart of Konoha, chaos still reigned.
It had only been minutes since the Nine-Tails appeared, but the devastation it wrought was already beyond belief. Entire blocks were reduced to rubble. The death toll was rising by the second.
Over a hundred shinobi had fallen—many of them Chūnin and Jōnin. And countless villagers were caught in the destruction, helpless against the wrath of a tailed beast. Their only crime? Being in the wrong place at the wrong time.
The defenders of Konohagakure fought with valor, throwing themselves into the fray without hesitation. Their sacrifice bought precious seconds, drawing the beast's attention away from the main village.
It was just enough time for the Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, to arrive.
With a roar, he summoned the Monkey King, Enma, who transformed into his signature adamantine staff. Sarutobi struck with practiced precision, slamming the staff against the Nine-Tails' face and pushing the beast back just enough to force it out of the village's center.
But it was only a stopgap.
The Nine-Tails' massive body barely staggered, its skin unbroken. Sarutobi's attacks were like raindrops striking a mountain—annoying, but far from dangerous.
And then it began to gather energy again.
In its gaping maw, a spinning mass of dark chakra began to swirl—the Tailed Beast Ball.
If that attack landed within the village, there would be no Konoha left to protect.
But just as the sphere neared completion—
Flash.
A golden streak blazed across the battlefield, faster than the eye could follow.
The Fourth Hokage had returned.
Minato Namikaze, the Yellow Flash of Konoha, moved like a phantom, placing summoning seals mid-air and bringing forth Gamabunta, the massive toad chief, in a single hand sign.
"Hold him!" Minato shouted.
Gamabunta leapt into the air, slamming his giant blade across the Nine-Tails' face, stunning the beast long enough for Minato to vanish once again.
He reappeared in front of the forming Tailed Beast Ball, and without hesitation, performed a complex series of hand signs.
A moment later, both the Nine-Tails and its attack vanished in a shimmering ripple of space-time.
Miles away, an explosion tore through an empty valley—lighting up the night like a second sun.
Minato had saved the village again.
But at what cost?
High above the battlefield, Kai floated quietly beside Senju Hashirama and Tobirama, watching the events unfold below.
"He's nearing his limit," Kai said calmly.
The two former Hokage didn't need a sensor-type to tell them that. Minato's chakra was dangerously low. His breaths were ragged, his steps sluggish.
"Transferring the Nine-Tails twice... and that massive Tailed Beast Ball," Tobirama muttered. "Even I couldn't have done it."
"That's the cost of being a Hokage," Hashirama murmured. "He's not just fighting. He's protecting."
Down below, Minato reappeared beside Kushina, who was barely clinging to consciousness.
The red-haired kunoichi had just given birth and had the Nine-Tails torn from her body. Yet somehow, she remained standing, supported by nothing but willpower and the strength of her Uzumaki blood.
"Watergate..." she whispered weakly.
Golden chains burst from her back—Adamantine Sealing Chains—and wrapped themselves around the weakened Nine-Tails in the distance, binding it in place with a shuddering thud.
Even like this, she could still restrain a Tailed Beast.
Minato stepped closer, holding baby Naruto tightly in his arms. The child had begun to cry, awakened by the shaking earth and his mother's presence.
Kushina turned her head slowly.
"So this... is our son," she said softly. Her voice was hoarse, but her smile was pure.
"Yes," Minato whispered. "His name is Naruto."
Kushina let out a breathless chuckle. "You gave him the name we picked... Thank you."
She stared up at the sky. "It's almost like the stars are watching with us. Today's his birthday... and maybe... our last day too."
Minato gritted his teeth, shaking his head.
"No. I won't let it end like this."
He stepped forward.
"Kushina... I'm going to seal the Nine-Tails inside Naruto."
Kushina's eyes widened.
"Minato! He's just a baby! You know what it means to be a Jinchūriki!"
"I do," Minato said quietly. "Which is why I'll seal only half."
He looked down at his son.
"I'll use the Shiki Fūjin to seal the Yin half into myself. That way, I can keep it locked away forever. The other half—the Yang half—I'll seal into Naruto using the Eight Trigrams Seal."
"You're using the Reaper Death Seal!?" Kushina cried. "You'll die!"
"I know."
"Then why—!?"
"If I don't... if we both die here... then Konoha will lose its Jinchūriki and its Hokage."
"The balance will crumble. The other great nations will seize the opportunity. The wars will return."
He looked at Kushina, voice trembling.
"And Naruto will grow up in a world worse than the one we knew."
Kushina's lip quivered. Her chains shuddered but held.
"Even if we disappear," Minato said, "we can still leave something behind."
"I'll seal part of your chakra into Naruto too. So one day... you can meet him again."
Kushina choked back a sob.
"Why... why are you always like this? You keep saving everyone... and never yourself..."
Minato smiled gently.
"It's the only way I know."
Not far away, Tobirama had gone completely still.
"This... this idiot is using Shiki Fūjin voluntarily?"
Hashirama frowned, watching the scene with heavy eyes.
"He's doing it for the village... and for his family."
"That's not an excuse to throw your life away!" Tobirama snapped. "There are dozens of sealing methods! Kushina still has strength left! Use her chains and finish the job! He doesn't need to die!"
Hashirama glanced toward Kai. "Is this... really how it ends?"
Kai didn't answer.
But the look in his eyes said it all.
Tobirama clenched his fists. "It's suicide! For love!"
"That's what it is," Hashirama said quietly. "A man choosing to die... so the people he loves can live."
"That's not how a Hokage should think."
"Isn't it?" Hashirama turned. "Aren't we the ones who said the Hokage must be the one to carry all the burdens?"
Tobirama fell silent.
Kai finally spoke. "Minato isn't just doing this for the village. He's doing it for Kushina. So that she doesn't have to die alone. So that her chakra can live on. So that Naruto can one day know her face."
"You think it's foolish. But to him... it's the only choice that makes sense."
There was a long silence.
Then Tobirama muttered, "Still foolish."
But this time, he didn't sound angry.
In the clearing below, Minato stood in front of the bound Nine-Tails, baby Naruto cradled in one arm. His free hand glowed with sealing script as he prepared the ritual.
Behind him, Kushina fell to her knees, her chains still holding.
"Don't let him grow up alone..." she whispered.
Minato nodded. "I won't."
He turned to the beast.
The Nine-Tails roared, struggling, but it was too late.
Minato thrust his palm forward.
"Shiki Fūjin!"
A ghastly presence surged around him—the form of the Reaper, its blade gleaming, its hollow eyes locked onto the Nine-Tails.
"Half of your chakra... comes with me."
The seal activated.
The Nine-Tails screamed.
Up above, Hashirama exhaled slowly.
"I never thought I'd see a sacrifice like this again."
Tobirama looked away.
Kai turned to them both.
"It's time."
He snapped his fingers.
The world began to blur.
"Wait, you're sending us back already?" Tobirama asked.
"No," Kai replied. "We're going to the next chapter of this world's future."
"You've seen their sacrifice. Now it's time you see what it led to."