Within the two-story house belonging to Menma in Konoha Village, Menma and Kushina appeared silently.
Menma wore his signature black tracksuit, his spiky black hair looking sharp and lively.
He glanced around his training room.
"Mom, a little disguise." Menma said, pointing to Kushina's grayish complexion and striking red hair.
Kushina nodded, forming hand seals.
After a ripple of Chakra, her red hair turned into an inconspicuous dark brown. The fine black cracks on her face were also somewhat concealed. Her skin tone was adjusted to resemble that of an ordinary woman, though her gray eyes couldn't be completely eliminated, making her look slightly tired and weathered.
Dressed in a simple, deep green padded jacket, she looked like an ordinary, somewhat sickly woman with a pale complexion.
Pushing open the front door, the winter chill of Konoha Village immediately swept in, carrying the noise of the street.
It wasn't mealtime or the weekend. The servants who worked in the house had already finished their duties and gone home for the day.
Konoha hadn't seen snow yet. The sunlight was bright but offered little warmth.
The two walked along the streets of Konoha Village, and Kushina looked around curiously.
There were quite a few pedestrians, bundled in heavy winter clothes, hurrying along.
The rebuilt streets of Konoha Village seemed slightly wider than Kushina remembered, and the shops had updated their signs, but the familiar atmosphere of daily life and the unique tension of a Ninja Village remained.
Menma walked naturally half a step behind Kushina, like a young man accompanying his mother.
His voice, not loud, reached Kushina's ears clearly: "After the Nine-Tails Attack, many surviving Ninja claimed to have seen the pattern of the Sharingan in the Nine-Tails' out-of-control eyes."
Menma's gaze swept over the members of the Konoha's Military Police Force patrolling the streets. The Uchiha Clan's fan crest on their uniform armbands was clearly visible.
"The rumor spread through the village like wildfire. And at that time, Shimura Danzo, who was commanding Root's operations, used the pretext of 'maintaining order and preventing the Uchiha's power from controlling the Nine-Tails' to forcefully prevent the Uchiha Clan from participating in the direct battle to suppress the Nine-Tails, only allowing them to be responsible for evacuating and relocating villagers."
Kushina's steps faltered slightly. Behind her sunglasses, her pupils constricted.
"As a result…" Menma's voice held a trace of cold mockery, "in the eyes of the villagers, the Sharingan appeared in the Nine-Tails' eyes, and the Uchiha Clan 'coincidentally' didn't appear on the most brutal battlefield... The seeds of suspicion and resentment were sown just like that. Over the years, the rumors have never died down."
He raised his hand and pointed towards the outskirts of the village: "Now, the Uchiha Clan's compound has been relocated to the most remote corner of the village. The conflicts between the Konoha's Military Police Force and the villagers are growing increasingly intense. The Uchiha Clan is now nearly isolated within Konoha Village."
His gaze swept over a street corner where two men dressed as ordinary villagers, but with sharp eyes and a cold aura, stood silently watching the street.
Their eyes lingered particularly on the patrolling Uchiha police officers. They're clearly Root's informants.
Kushina listened in silence, her hands tightening imperceptibly inside her sleeves.
The Konoha in her memory, which, while not perfect, was largely harmonious, seemed now veiled by an invisible crack.
The two continued walking along the street.
Turning a corner, the massive Hokage Rock came into view.
The First, the Second, the Third... and next to the Third, the young stone face of Minato looked down upon all of Konoha Village.
Kushina's steps halted abruptly.
She tilted her head back, staring fixedly at Minato's statue.
The morning light outlined the handsome contours of the stone face. That familiar visage seemed to transcend life and death.
Her reincarnated body couldn't feel a heartbeat, but that deep longing and agony gripped her soul.
Her grayish face, under the disguise, didn't show much expression, but her body trembled slightly. The hem of her dark green padded jacket swayed gently in the cold wind.
Menma didn't hurry her, simply standing quietly by her side.
Just then, Menma's gaze moved past the crowd and fixed on a point across the street.
"He's here."
Kushina snapped back to attention, following Menma's gaze eagerly.
She saw a small, thin figure walking alone on the sidewalk across the street.
His shockingly bright blond hair was like a stubbornly burning little flame, exceptionally conspicuous against the gray winter backdrop.
He wore an old orange jacket with a red scarf around his neck. His small face was flushed red from the cold, his hands shoved in his pockets, head bowed, kicking a small pebble on the roadside.
His lonely shadow was stretched long by the winter sun.
It was Naruto!
Her child!
Kushina almost lost control and rushed over!
However, just as she took a slight step, wanting to get closer to Naruto, the hushed whispers of the people around her reached her ears.
"Tch, that demon fox is out again." A woman carrying a shopping basket frowned, pulling her companion aside deliberately. Her voice wasn't loud, but it carried clearly.
"Hokage-sama is too soft-hearted. A monster like that should be driven out of the village!"
"Exactly! Who knows when he might go crazy again? The Fourth Hokage probably died because of him-"
"Stay away, stay away. What bad luck!"
One malicious, fear-filled whisper after another, like poisoned needles, pierced Kushina's heart densely!
She froze mid-step, staring in disbelief at these villagers she and Minato had fought to the death to protect.
As Naruto passed by, the villagers around him quickened their steps as if avoiding the plague, creating distance. The looks they cast his way were filled with undisguised disgust and fear.
Naruto seemed long accustomed to all of this.
He kept his head down, kicking the pebble, but his small shoulders seemed to hunch even tighter.
Just then, Naruto stopped in front of a small stall selling steaming oden and roasted sweet potatoes.
The enticing aroma drifted on the cold wind.
He tilted his small face up, his blue eyes fixed longingly on the fish cakes rolling in the pot and the fragrant sweet potatoes on the grill. His small hand subconsciously patted his empty pocket.
"Hey! Brat!" The burly stall owner immediately scowled, waving his tongs as if shooing a fly, his voice rough and full of disgust, "What are you staring at? No money? Then get lost! Don't block my business! You bring bad luck!"
Naruto flinched at the sudden scolding.
He jerked his head down, like a frightened little animal, turned quickly, and ran off. His small figure swiftly disappeared into the crowd around the corner, leaving only a panicked figure retreating.
"Naruto..." Kushina instinctively reached out a hand, only grasping a handful of cold air.
She stood frozen in place, her reanimated body trembling violently. Her grayish complexion beneath the disguise seemed even paler.
Though her gray eyes couldn't shed real tears, the area around them began to silently, steadily shed tiny flakes of gray-white paper dust!
Like broken teardrops, they swirled in the cold wind before settling silently on the ground.
Menma stood silently beside her. He reached out and gently placed a hand on Kushina's shoulder, which was shaking with extreme anger and heartache.
He could feel the Nine-Tails' Chakra churning beneath that cold shell, almost breaking through its restraints.
The two followed silently in the direction Naruto had disappeared, trailing from a distance.
Kushina's footsteps were heavy, as if filled with lead.
She witnessed firsthand the various acts of malice Naruto encountered.
A grocery store owner slammed his shutters closed with a 'snap' as Naruto approached the window.
Several children bundled in thick padded jackets, held by their parents, were quickly pulled away under their parents' stern gazes and tugs.
One slightly older boy even turned back, made a face, and shouted, "Monster!"
A Chunin wearing a flak jacket, walking hurriedly, visibly frowned upon seeing Naruto approaching. His steps subtly shifted, putting at least three meters of distance between them. His eyes held a cold scrutiny and alienation.
An invisible wall built of fear, hatred, and rumors completely isolated that small, golden-haired figure from the crowd, from warmth and kindness.
"Why..." Kushina's voice was choked with grief and indignation pushed to the limit. She grabbed Menma's arm sharply, her fingers digging into his sleeve with force. "Where is Third Hokage-sama?! Where is Kakashi?! Where is Jiraiya-sama?! What about Minato's subordinates?! Why... why is no one looking after him?! Why has no one stepped forward... to stop these vicious rumors?! Just letting Naruto grow up alone in a place like this?!"
She was like an injured lioness, letting out a cry of maternal grief.
Menma held Kushina's hand. His sapphire blue eyes looked towards the Hokage Rock. His voice was low: "The Third Hokage... he gave Naruto a place to live. He sends him a living allowance every month."
Menma's gaze swept over the two faintly visible Root's informants in the shadows of the street corner: "But certain people are fanning the flames behind the scenes, making the demon fox rumor a poisonous thorn rooted in the villagers' hearts. I'm not sure why the Third Hokage hasn't debunked the rumors. As for Jiraiya and Kakashi..."
Menma sighed: "Jiraiya left the village long ago. Kakashi is drowning in his own darkness. How much energy could he spare to illuminate another child also shrouded in darkness? Besides, they aren't Naruto's blood relatives. Without explicit orders from the Third Hokage, whether it's Jiraiya, Kakashi, or even Fugaku, Mikoto, or Father's former subordinates... rashly approaching the [Demon Fox] would only invite more suspicion and criticism."
Kushina listened, her body shaking even more violently. The falling paper dust seemed to increase.
She watched Naruto's small figure finally disappear into the secluded alley leading to his cold apartment. That door shut out all the malice from the outside world, but it also shut out all warmth.
"How could Konoha become like this-" Kushina's voice was filled with despair and heartbreak. She looked up at the distant statue of Minato on the Hokage Rock, feeling an immense sense of irony.
The village she and her husband had given their lives to protect was treating their child so cruelly.
Compared to Menma, who was taken by the mysterious masked man… though trapped in a Genjutsu World for fifteen years, that world had a complete family that gave him affection and warmth, allowing him to grow up properly.
While Naruto, under the care of the Third Hokage, had to endure such rumors and malice.
Kushina couldn't imagine how strong little Naruto had to be to survive in such a hostile environment!