Naruto SI: Kaito Red Lightnin Chapter 210
When they finally reached the gates of the Hyūga compound, they slipped inside, the quiet guards offering them a knowing glance but saying nothing. Together, they continued until they stood before Hotaru's home.
Kaito turned to her, his usual composure softened by the silver light. "I had a great time, ya know."
Hotaru nodded, her voice calm but her cheeks faintly pink. "Yeah… me too."
Kaito scratched the back of his head, a sheepish grin tugging at his lips. "So… you think we should go out again?"
Hotaru's gaze flickered up at him, and she nodded once, firmly.
Relief eased into his grin. "Good. Well… I'll go now. Good night, Hotaru."
Just as he turned to leave, Hotaru's hand tugged gently at his sleeve. Before he could react, she leaned up on her toes and pressed a soft kiss to his cheek.
His breath caught, eyes widening as she quickly stepped back, her face flushed. Without a word, she retreated into her home, sliding the door shut behind her.
Kaito stood there frozen for a moment, a hand slowly lifting to touch the spot where her lips had brushed.
Then, a grin broke across his face, wide and unrestrained.
With a body flickering he blurred and he vanished into the night, the warmth of that fleeting kiss still lingering on his skin.
…
The morning sun poured through the windows, filling the Uzumaki household with a warm glow. The scent of sizzling oil and fresh-cut vegetables drifted from the kitchen. Kushina stood at the counter, knife in hand, rhythmically slicing green onions into neat piles.
Kaito strolled in, a hand running through his red hair as he hummed a tune under his breath, a grin stretched wide across his face as soon as he spotted his mother. "Good morning, Mom."
Kushina looked up and smiled. "Good morning to you too, Kai-kun."
Reaching next to her, Kaito leaned down and pressed a quick kiss to her cheek.
Kushina blinked in surprise before breaking into a giggle. "And what's this about, ya know?"
Kaito crossed to the pitcher of water and poured himself a cup. "Hey, what? I just felt like giving you a kiss, you know. Am I not allowed to do that?" he asked playfully before gulping down the drink.
Kushina giggled again, setting her knife aside for a moment. "Of course you can give me all the kisses you want, ya know." She turned back to the vegetables, but her eyes flicked toward him curiously. "Still… you seem awfully chipper this morning. Wonder what's got you grinning like that."
Kaito smirked, tilting his head. "It's a surprise, Mom."
Kushina narrowed her eyes and leaned on the counter, lips quirking. "Ohhh, a surprise, is it? Don't tell me… did Hotaru-chan kiss you again?" She wiggled her eyebrows mischievously.
"Mom," Kaito groaned, rubbing his face. "You'll never let me live that down, will you?"
"Of course not," Kushina said proudly, laughing as she tossed the onions into the sizzling pan and reached for a head of cabbage.
It had been five days since that first date, and Kaito still remembered coming home to find Kushina practically glowing she had been waiting for him at the porch. She'd noticed the lip mark on his cheek before he'd even taken off his sandals. He hadn't even realized it was there. That grin of hers had lasted the entire night as she grilled him for hours, prying every detail she could. Naruto said it was yaky while Karin had jumped in saying it was so romantic.
Kushina had eventually offered him "serious advice," telling him not to rush but not to wait too long either.
Kaito sighed, shaking his head at the memory. "Well, anyway, I'm off, Mom. Got something to do."
Kushina blinked, knife pausing mid-slice. "What? Already? At least wait for breakfast! I'm not even done cooking yet."
Kaito slipped the empty cup into the sink, still wearing that annoyingly wide grin. "No time, Mom. I'll just eat some of the food I've got sealed, ya know." He patted the pouch at his hip and started toward the door.
Kushina wiped her hands on her apron and followed him out of the kitchen. "Are you sure you can't wait? I can whip something up real quick, ya know."
Kaito sat down on the porch, sliding his sandals on. He shook his head. "It's fine, Mom. Don't wait for me for lunch either—I won't be back till later, ya know."
Kushina rested her hands on her hips, frowning. "Why are you in such a hurry? Did Tsuna-nee call for you? Or is it a mission?"
Standing, Kaito tightened the straps of his sandals and flashed her another grin. "No, it's not a mission. Just something I need to take care of, ya know."
Her eyes narrowed. "You're not sneaking off to see Hotaru, are you? Did you two plan another date?"
Kaito chuckled, shaking his head. "Like I said—it's a surprise, Mom. And no, I'm not going to see Hotaru. I'll be back later, ya know." He leaned in, gave her another quick kiss on the cheek, and vanished in a blink of teleportation.
Kushina stood frozen at the door, apron strings brushing against her legs. "Huh. What's got him in such a good mood today, ya know?"
A thought struck her, and her expression twisted into shock. "Wait—could it be that?" Her face paled, then she shook her head furiously. "No, no, what am I thinking? Kai-kun respects Hotaru-chan too much. He'd never take advantage of her."
Still, the worry didn't fade completely. She folded her arms, brows knitting. "But… just to be safe, I should talk to him about the birds and the bees later. Always better to be safe, ya know." She groaned dramatically. "I'm way too young to be a grandma."
Then, just as quickly, her face lit up, and she hugged herself with a squeal. "But if those two had kids, they'd be so cute, ya know!"
…
At the outskirts of Konoha, inside Kaito's secluded lab, the quiet was broken only by the scratching of a brush against parchment. One of Kaito's clones sat hunched at a desk, scribbling down calculations and sealing formulas onto a long scroll. Beside him, sprawled comfortably across a large cushion, Kurama's chibi form lazed about, his tails swishing idly. His front paws were crossed, chin resting atop them, ears flicking every now and then.
On the far side of the room, another clone in a white lab coat hovered near the bed where the restrained White Zetsu lay. His brows were knitted as he stared at the tablet in his hands, tapping the edge against his palm in irritation.
The stillness broke with the faint whoosh as Kaito teleported into the room.
The lab-coat clone looked over his shoulder. "Oh, hey, boss."
The one at the desk didn't even glance up, as his pencil kept moving across the scroll.
Kurama cracked open one eye, peered at Kaito for a second, then shut it again with a huff.
Kaito nodded in greeting and walked over to the lab coat clone with the tablet. "So, how's it going?"
The clone frowned and scratched his cheek. "That's the problem, ya know. It's been stuck at ninety-eight percent since last night. Not a single point of progress."
Kaito's own brows furrowed as he took the tablet. "It hasn't moved at all?"
"Not even a flicker," the clone said, rubbing the back of his head. "The estimated time's still ticking down, but the bar hasn't budged. Do you think something went wrong?"
Kaito stared at the glowing display for a moment, then shook his head. "I don't know… but let's not jump to conclusions, ya know. We've still got twenty minutes before the timer runs out. If nothing changes by then, that's when we start panicking." He handed the tablet back.
The clone exhaled, shoulders dropping a little. "Yeah, fair point. Honestly, I swear it's like it freezes up on purpose whenever we're watching. Creepy thing." He placed the tablet back onto its stand.
Kaito smirked faintly. "Then don't watch it. Go do something else—we'll check again in twenty minutes."
"Right, boss." The clone gave a half-hearted salute before stepping away from the bed.
With that handled for the moment, Kaito turned and made his way to the desk. Kurama's tails were still swishing lazily.
"Morning, Kurama-san," Kaito greeted, his voice calm.
Kurama snorted, not even bothering to open his eyes. His tail swishing lazily..
Kaito turned to the clone bent over the scroll. "So, how's it coming along?"
The clone blinked, then looked up with a small start. "Oh, hey, boss. Didn't even notice you were here." He covered it with a yawn, rubbing at his eyes.
Kaito raised an eyebrow. "Well? How's the seal?"
The clone leaned back in the chair with a shrug. "Same as yesterday, I guess. We still have the leaking issue. You'd think putting two existing seals together would be simple, but nope. It's a nightmare." His tone was flat, and the dark circles under his eyes betrayed how long he'd been at it.
Kaito frowned. "You look worn out. I'll take over for a while. Dispel yourself, ya know. Thank you for your hard work."
The clone grumbled something under his breath before dissolving into smoke, flooding Kaito's mind with his memories.
Kaito sighed heavily as he sank into the now vacant chair. He rubbed his chin, replaying the clone's progress in his head. After a moment, he rolled the scroll closed and set it neatly on the shelf. "I'll work on it later."
A low voice suddenly broke the silence. "What are you working on?"
Kaito jumped slightly and turned, surprised to see Kurama peeking at him with one eye half-open. "Huh?"
Kurama closed his eye again, as if he hadn't asked at all.
Realizing, Kaito let out a small chuckle. "Oh, the seal? That's a project I've been putting together. It's meant to revive a jinchūriki after their tailed beast is extracted—and teleport them to safety."
He reached into his pouch and pulled out another scroll, unrolling it carefully across the desk. As his brush hovered above the parchment, he glanced back at Kurama. "You want something to eat? I've got takoyaki, okonomiyaki, ramen, donburi, katsu curry, even taiyaki."
Kurama cracked open his eye again, staring. "Why?"
Kaito blinked. "Huh? Thought you'd be hungry, ya know."
Kurama let out a low growl. "I didn't mean that. I meant—why are you working on that seal?"
Kaito leaned back in his chair, tapping the brush against the rim of the ink pot before setting it aside. "Oh, that, eh? Well…" He exhaled slowly. "Gaara and Fū—they're around Naruto's age. Kids, ya know. And I've met Utakata and Yugito. They're not bad people either. Yugito's a bit… unhinged, but that's what happens when you're raised on propaganda as a kid." He shrugged, then unsealed a small spread of food—still steaming as if freshly made. A plate of okonomiyaki and two bowls of chicken karaage donburi appeared on the table.
He slid one bowl in front of Kurama, laying a pair of chopsticks on top. "Mom made it, ya know. It's good."
Kurama narrowed his eyes at the bowl, sniffing faintly, but didn't say anything as Kaito helped himself.
Taking a bite of karaage and rice, Kaito spoke between mouthfuls. "If I'm not wrong, Fū might actually be younger than Naruto. Nine, maybe? And Gaara's right around the same age. They're still kids, ya know."
His expression grew thoughtful. "And then you have Yugito and Utakata. They're only a little older than me. I just… don't like the idea of people being used as sacrifices." He shoveled another spoonful of rice into his mouth, chewing slowly.
Kurama finally sat up, grabbing the chopsticks with surprising dexterity. He picked up the bowl and began to eat, speaking around a mouthful of karaage. "Tch. Don't try to be a savior. You'll always fail. You can't save everyone."
Kaito blinked, his lips quirking despite the seriousness of the words. "You know, it's still weird seeing you use chopsticks."
Kurama froze mid-bite and shot him a glare. Then, deliberately, he took another mouthful, ignoring the comment.
Kaito chuckled softly, shaking his head. "And I'm not trying to be a savior, ya know. I just… don't know what'll happen if I let them die. Too much has already changed." His tone dropped lower, more serious. "Take Gaara, for example. In the original timeline, he was revived by an elder who gave her life after Shukaku was extracted. But I can't be sure that'll happen here. Things are shifting."
He rubbed his temple with a sigh. "If Gaara doesn't become Kazekage in this timeline, the Hidden Sand is doomed. His siblings aren't nearly at his level. Temari comes closest, but even then, it's a huge gap. And she ends up in Konoha, married to my sensei's son." Kaito groaned, dragging a hand down his face. "Urgh… if that plays out, Suna could very well collapse."
He glanced down and found Kurama already finished with his bowl, sprawled back on the cushion with his tails flicking lazily. laying his head back atop his paw,
Kaito blinked. "Huh — so fast."
Kurama snorted, opening a single eye. "Do you even know where the jinchūriki are, or are you just making plans for fun?"
Kaito scratched his head sheepishly. "Well… kinda. I'm not sure how I'm supposed to actually reach them though," slumping in his seat. "Matatabi and Gyūki's hosts are in Kumo, and we're not exactly on good terms. The last time I met Yugito, I had to seal off her access to Matatabi. That stunt forced Kumo to come crawling to Konoha to try and undo it."
He sighed. "And then there's the Raikage. I… might've injured him. Promised I'd kill him if we ever met again. Pretty sure I messed up his right arm, too. But it's not like he didn't ask for it—he tried to kidnap Mom and the others, and he said it to my face."
Kaito rubbed the back of his head, exhaling. "Then there's Son Gokū and Kokuō's jinchūriki. Both are in Iwagakure. Good luck to me getting in touch with them. Isobu's still reforming, so I'd have to wait until he fully reformed before go looking for him."
He drummed his fingers against the desk. "Saiken's host is a toss-up. In the other timeline, Utakata defected from Kiri. I don't know if that's happened here. Since Yagura was overthrown much earlier in this timeline, so things may have changed. If he's still in Kiri, then maybe I can ask Mei for a meeting. I think she'd let me."
"As for Chōmei's host, Fū…" Kaito trailed off, frowning. "She should be in Takigakure. But I've got no idea how to even get in contact with her. And then there's Gaara. Shukaku's jinchūriki. He'll be the easiest to reach—he'd be coming to Konoha for the Chūnin Exams the same year Naruto takes them."
Kurama lay his head back down, tails swishing slowly against the cushion. His voice came out steady, almost lazy. "Well, I've spoken with the others. They agreed… all except that damn tanuki and Isobu."
Kaito nodded, leaning back in his chair. "Well, let's hope they can convince their jinchūriki to give me their chakra, ya know."
Kurama's eyes remained shut, his tails swaying idly. "What about me?"
Kaito blinked. "…Huh?"
Kurama cracked one eye open, fixing him with a sharp look. "The Akatsuki need all the tailed beasts' chakra if they want to revive the Ten-Tails. That means they'll come for mine too. Your plan is to seal me back into Minato, so he'll be strong enough to fight that bastard Madara. Especially if the old man doesn't hand out those Six Paths powers again. Which means… extracting my other half from your brother is the only way."
Kaito's lips pressed into a thin line. He shook his head slightly. "Well… actually, they don't need all of your chakra to revive the Ten-Tails. Only some of it, ya know."
Kurama's tails stilled. Both eyes opened now, glowing with suspicion. "What do you mean? Don't they need all of my chakra to bring the beast back?"
Kaito rubbed his face, exhaling slowly. "No. You see, in the other timeline, you weren't extracted from Naruto at first. Obito still managed to revive the ten tails. He used a small piece of your chakra taken from the Gold and Silver Brothers."
Kurama's eyes narrowed sharply. "Those jokers? How the hell did they get my chakra?"
Kaito gave a helpless shrug. "Apparently, they tried to capture you once. You swallowed them whole, but they survived by eating your stomach lining." He winced, scratching his cheek. "After you spat them out, they somehow ended up with your chakra. During the Fourth Shinobi War, they were revived with Edo Tensei as part of the Edo Tensei army. They were later sealed, and Obito fed their sealed body to the Gedo Mazo. That was enough to bring back the Ten-Tails… though it wasn't at full power."
Kurama let out a long, annoyed growl. "Tch. Figures."
Kaito tapped the scroll on the desk. "That's partly why I'm working on this seal. The idea is to keep about ten percent of each tailed beast's chakra stored separately — the part with their consciousness. That way, even if the Akatsuki succeeds, only your chakra goes into the Ten-Tails, and you all would still survive."
Kurama's gaze lingered on him, unreadable.
Kaito swallowed the last bite of his rice, then set the bowl down with a sigh. "But… there's a problem with that, ya know."
Kurama raised an eyebrow. "And what's that?"
Kaito leaned back, rubbing his temples. "I don't know if Naruto will meet the Rikudō Sennin if I do this."
Kurama tilted his head lazily. "And why's that?"
Kaito leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. "In the other timeline, Naruto only met the Sage after you were extracted from him by Madara. He was in a near-death state. Same for Sasuke—they were both on the verge when Hagoromo appeared."
Kurama's tails flicked once. "So you're saying… if my other half doesn't get pulled out of Naruto, he might never meet the old man at all."
Kaito nodded grimly. "Right. And this would all be happening earlier in the timeline, too. There's no guarantee Hagoromo shows up, ya know."
He pointed to the seal spread across the desk. "That's why I'm making this. It creates the illusion of a full extraction, while actually keeping the bijū intact. It'll push Naruto close enough to death to trigger Hagoromo, then stabilize him with my Life Pulse Regeneration seal. That way, he's never in real danger."
Kurama studied him for a long moment before giving a slow nod.
Kaito leaned back with a sigh. "I just hope we can take Obito down fast, and that Dad can handle Madara before he tries sealing the Ten-Tails into himself. With your help, he can probably beat revived Madara with the Rinnegan and Sage Mode. But Jūbidara? I don't think he could win that fight. If it comes to that, we're doomed unless Naruto and Sasuke get Hagoromo's power-ups."
His jaw tightened as he added quietly, "And then… there's the whole other can of worms that is Isshiki."
Just then, "Boss!" Kaito's clones called out, eyes glued to the tablet in his hands. "It hit one hundred—download complete!"
Kaito was at his side in an instant, snatching the tablet to confirm. The Karma progress bar glowed at the far end—100%.
He exhaled slowly, steadying his nerves. "Alright… let's give it another ten minutes, ya know. Make sure it holds."
The room fell silent but tense, every second dragging. Ten minutes later, the numbers remained steady. Still complete.
Kaito nodded. "Good. Time to finish this."
He stepped to the bedside and pressed his palm against the Karma etched on the white Zetsu's chest. Chakra surged, activating the seal.
The Karma pattern spread like wildfire, black lines racing across the Zetsu's pale body before flaring into a glowing blue.
The body jerked violently as the paralysis seals shattered. A guttural, distorted scream tore from its throat as it thrashed against the bed, steam pouring from its skin.
The markings thickened, wrapping the Zetsu completely. The shack filled with the hiss of steam, the air growing heavy and hot.
Then, with a sudden flash, the scream reached a breaking point before suddenly cutting off. The black shell peeled away.
When the steam finally thinned, a man lay where the Zetsu had been. Blonde hair plastered to his head, skin slick with sweat, chest heaving.
Minato Namikaze gasped for air, sitting up abruptly and whipping his head around, eyes wild and disoriented.
Kaito stood frozen at the bedside, watching as his father's gaze settled on him—and the clone holding the tablet nearby.
"K… Kaito?" Minato rasped, voice hoarse.
The real Kaito's grin split wide, relief breaking through. "Yeah, Dad. It's me."
Minato's breathing slowed as he looked down at his own hands—trembling, pale, but alive. Naked skin, sweat rolling down his chest, but alive. "…Did it work?"
Kaito glanced at his clone.
The clone scrolled through the data, nodding firmly. "Yeah. It worked. Readings are stable—everything checks out."
Kaito grabbed a bottle of water, uncapped it, and held it to Minato's lips. "Here. Take a sip."
Minato drank deeply, draining it in one go.
Kaito set the bottle aside. "How do you feel?"
Minato flexed his fingers, rotated his wrists, then drew in a deep breath. A faint smile ghosted his lips. "Strange… I can feel my blood rushing again. My body feels… stronger."
Kaito rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Hmmm. It could be the Zetsu body. Might've enhanced your physique somehow. I think something similar happened with Orochimaru when he used them as hosts."
Minato looked up sharply. "Orochimaru-san knows about Karma?"
Kaito shook his head. "No. This is something else. A long story."
He reached to the side and picked up folded clothes, holding them out. "Here, Dad. Get dressed. We've got a lot to catch up on. My clone will keep running tests in the meantime, just to make sure the Karma worked properly."
Minato nodded, taking the clothes with steadying hands. He rose from the bed, still unsteady but gaining strength with each breath.
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