In the living room, under the quiet veil of night, the two sat side by side.
It was late, and turning on the lights would draw unnecessary attention, so they left the room dark.
Only the moonlight slipped through the window, illuminating their faces as they looked at one another.
"You just said… we didn't have a good time in Konoha… You were here during the day?" Kushina asked softly.
She started to rise, intending to pour him a glass of water, but Obito raised his hand and gestured that it wasn't necessary. She hesitated, then gave up.
"That's right," he admitted casually. "I happened to see you when you went out earlier today."
Kushina blinked in surprise.
"I was shocked to see how badly things were going for you… so I followed you all the way. Sorry," Obito said, openly admitting it without hesitation.
"They…"
Kushina parted her lips, but no words came out. Should she curse the villagers?
She should.
But… were they truly at fault?
The Nine-Tails had erupted from her body.
Her chest tightened. For once, she didn't know where her anger belonged.
Obito didn't seem to mind her silence. He continued in his even tone.
"Originally, I wondered why would the family of the Fourth Hokage still be treated this way?"
"Then I looked into it… and found something interesting."
Kushina instantly leaned forward, anxious at the mention of herself and her son. "What is it?"
"Tell me, do you remember when these ridiculous rumors first started?" Obito asked instead of answering directly.
She frowned, thinking carefully. "…I think it was about two months after the Nine-Tails went berserk."
"And it spread throughout the village in just two or three days, didn't it?"
"That's right." She nodded, then froze as her expression shifted.
Even with her slower temperament, Obito's reminder made her realize the problem.
He smirked faintly. "Exactly. That's one of the interesting parts."
"There are two major doubts when it comes to the timing and speed of these rumors."
He leaned back slightly, his lips curving upward.
"First of all… if these rumors really came from the villagers themselves, then they came far too late."
"Think about it. Time heals everything."
"The first few days after losing someone dear… that's when grief cuts deepest. That's when people lose their senses, lash out, or do something reckless."
"But as time passes, grief dulls. People calm down. They return to reason."
"Two months is more than enough for even the most extreme emotions to cool down."
He gave a low chuckle. "Hell, these same villagers even forgave the Cloud Village in a heartbeat welcomed them like heroes."
"So tell me, would they really suddenly start hating you after all that time?"
"In other words… if the rumors had truly started with the villagers, the slander against you should've appeared within days of the Nine-Tails incident, not months later."
He let the words hang in the air, pausing to glance at Kushina's conflicted face giving her time to process the implications.
After a moment of silence, Obito slowly spoke:
"The second point is the speed of propagation."
"If this rumor was really started by a single villager, spreading it across all of Konoha by simple word of mouth… two or three days wouldn't be nearly enough."
"This rumor spread too fast."
After all, Konoha might be called a "village," but in scale it was closer to a city.
"Therefore, for such rumors to blanket Konoha in just two or three days, it would require a large group deliberately pushing it into every corner of the village."
Obito's gaze sharpened as he looked calmly at Kushina.
"And in Konoha, there are only two people who both have the means and the motives… while still avoiding direct suspicion."
"Sarutobi Hiruzen and Shimura Danzō."
His voice was calm, but the weight of his words hung heavily in the air.
"Kushina… it seems the higher-ups of Konoha never intended for you to live in peace."
"Who do you think it was?"
Obito's tone was serious now, carefully planting seeds of doubt.
Even if he didn't plan on killing Naruto, he could at least throw obstacles in Konoha's path. And this wasn't just baseless slander the higher-ups really were prime suspects.
In the original story, Naruto had suffered the same fate. Supposedly, the information about his Jinchūriki identity had been "classified" for his protection.
Yet somehow every villager knew. Rumors painted him as a demon fox, spread openly and unchecked.
Did the higher-ups think everyone was an idiot? A child could connect the dots, if a boy was constantly called "the demon fox," then he was obviously the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki.
Hearing Obito's reasoning, Kushina's face darkened. Before her anger could spiral, Obito reached out and pulled her gently by the waist.
Her body trembled, but she didn't pull away. After a heavy silence, she asked quietly:
"You said both of them have motives… then what are their motives?"
Obito's tone was light, but the meaning was sharp. "It's simple. All of it revolves around Naruto. To be precise, the power of the Jinchūriki."
"Na–Naruto?!" Kushina gasped aloud before quickly covering her mouth with both hands. She realized she had slipped.
"That's right." Obito nodded knowingly. "Words are terrifying."
"Rumors… once they're repeated enough, over enough time… even if they start as baseless lies, they settle into people's hearts as truth."
"Once Naruto can't endure the pressure and lashes out or worse, if the Nine-Tails erupts again then he'll be branded as unstable. An uncontrollable Jinchūriki, dangerous to Konoha itself."
"When that happens, Naruto will no longer be allowed to live among the villagers."
Obito's eyes narrowed. "And that's when Danzo will make his move. He'll step forward, claiming the boy must be entrusted to him for the village's safety, of course."
"But once inside Root… Naruto wouldn't be a child anymore. He'd be reduced to a weapon. A tool for Danzo's personal army."
"This is Danzo's motive."
Kushina clenched her fists so tightly her nails dug into her palms.
"…And what about the Third Hokage?"
"He's a smart politician."
Obito smiled faintly, then answered in a calm tone.
"Just imagine this, Kushina: if Naruto grows up in this kind of environment… everyone around him cold and distant, no friends by his side, only you. Of course he'd be lonely."
"Family love is strong, but it can't replace friendship."
"And at that moment if Sarutobi Hiruzen steps in with the image of a kind, gentle old man, offering Naruto warmth… then in Naruto's heart, he becomes a beacon of light."
"And who is that man? The Hokage."
"From then on, Naruto would throw his life away for Konoha without hesitation."
Obito's eyes narrowed, his tone meaningful. "Kushina… doesn't this sound familiar?"
As he said this, his hand slid lower, stroking her soft curves with deliberate ease.
"What do you mean?" Kushina ignored his shameless touch, her expression tightening as she asked, stunned.
"Think about it," Obito pressed, fingers digging slightly as if to punctuate his words.
"Who was the last Nine-Tails' Jinchūriki?"
Kushina's eyes widened. Her face drained of color. The memories of her own arrival in Konoha, the way things had played out back then, suddenly overlapped with what Obito was describing.
"No way! That… that has to be a coincidence!" she protested, shaking her head firmly.
"I don't doubt coincidences," Obito said smoothly.
"But if you look at it the way I do… the picture becomes much clearer. Or maybe, Kushina… you simply don't want to face it?"
He leaned closer, his voice lowering.
"Back then, you were living in the Uzumaki compound under Mito's protection."
"So how do you explain it? How did the Cloud shinobi slip past the Hokage's guards, past the eyes and ears of an entire village filled with ninja, and kidnap you all the way to the border?"
"And tell me, Kushina, out of all the Hokage, Jōnin, and Chūnin… why was Minato the only one who discovered you were missing? Isn't that incredible?"
Kushina's breath caught. Her face turned pale, lips parting as though she'd been struck by lightning.
Obito gave her a moment, then continued mercilessly:
"There's only one explanation. Konoha didn't just calculate against you… they calculated Minato as well. Both of you were pawns."
"As for why Minato, simple. They saw how deeply he cared for you."
"The ending was perfect, wasn't it? Kushina and Minato fall in love. No lies, no false feelings. A genuine bond."
"And a woman bound by love will stay in Konoha without hesitation, raise her child here, tie her life to the village's future."
"Unless there was an accident, you'd never leave."
"And that… is exactly what the higher-ups of Konoha wanted."
Obito stopped talking, his expression calm, his gaze unreadable.
At the same time, his hand moved deliberately, sliding Kushina's panties aside and pressing a finger inside her.
Kushina, still stunned from his words, jolted at the sudden intrusion.
Her cheeks flared red as she shot him a glare, but her body trembled instead of resisting.
The room fell silent again, save for the faint, wet sounds of his fingers moving in and out of her.
Time passed like this until, at last, Kushina spoke between shallow breaths.
"My past… I don't want to talk about it anymore."
Her voice was low, almost trembling, but her words were firm.
"The most important thing for me now is Naruto."
She raised her head slowly, eyes locking on Obito's. She no longer paid any attention to the movement of his fingers, focusing instead on his answer.
"Tell me, between Danzō and the Third Hokage… who do you think is more suspicious?"
"What do you think?" Obito asked rhetorically, his tone calm but pressing.
Kushina bit her lip, hesitated, then whispered,
"…If I have to say… it's Danzo!"
"Yes. Half right." Obito nodded without hesitation.
"What do you mean?" Kushina tilted her head uncertainly, leaning closer to his shoulder.
Her breaths came shallow and quick as his fingers moved faster inside her, stealing the steadiness from her voice.
"It means," Obito said lightly, "that they both had a hand in it. Danzo is the main culprit. Hiruzen… the accomplice."
"This… how is that possible?" Kushina's eyes widened. "The Third Hokage promised me, just a few days ago, that he would issue an order to stop people from calling Naruto a demon fox!"
For a moment, her voice carried a desperate trace of hope.
But Obito only sneered. His second finger slid inside her suddenly, making her gasp in surprise as his words cut her illusion apart.
"Heh. And what's the difference between a belated decree and a rumor already spread?"
--
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