Minato Namikaze walked across the street, pushed aside the curtain, and entered the ramen shop.
Under the dim yellow light, her red hair was particularly striking.
He slowed his steps, looking at his wife, a smile unconsciously forming on his lips.
"Is this all you're eating?"
Uzumaki Kushina was slurping noodles, her mouth still stained with green onions and soup.
"Minato!"
"Come sit down! Teuchi's ramen is the best!"
Her voice was full of energy, and as she ate her noodles, she called out to Minato Namikaze.
"I just love eating it! It's the best in the whole world!" Kushina replied seriously, holding her bowl and showing it off like a treasure.
Teuchi, from behind the counter, poked his head out, a proud look on his face.
"Fourth Hokage, Miss Kushina is a true expert. Her tongue doesn't lie."
"My ramen is definitely the most delicious in Konoha... no, in the entire Land of Fire!"
Minato Namikaze chuckled. The frustration that had weighed on his heart for days was now softened by the lively, down-to-earth atmosphere.
He took off his Hokage robe, carefully folded it, and placed it aside, then sat next to Kushina.
"Then I'll have a bowl too, the same as hers."
"Alright! Please wait a moment!"
Soon, a steaming bowl of ramen was served, with a creamy white broth and a fragrant aroma.
Minato Namikaze stirred his noodles, but his mind seemed to wander.
"What's wrong?" Kushina picked up a piece of char siu and, without asking, placed it in his bowl. "Try this. Uncle stewed it especially tender today. It melts in your mouth!"
He took a bite. It was indeed delicious, but his thoughts still drifted.
He just quietly watched Kushina.
Watching her narrow her eyes, taking a bite of noodles, then a sip of soup, eating with great satisfaction.
That pure joy made a pang of guilt rise in his heart.
After finishing their ramen, the two walked side by side on their way home.
It was late, and the streets were empty.
The moonlight spilled down, casting long shadows of the two.
Kushina hummed an off-key tune, her steps light, but after a few steps, she noticed the person beside her was unusually silent.
Minato Namikaze walked beside her. The smile on his face had disappeared at some point, a hint of worry clouding his features.
Kushina stopped, looking up at him.
"Minato."
"Hm?"
"You have something on your mind, don't you?"
Kushina's eyes sparkled in the moonlight.
She reached out and gently smoothed Minato's furrowed brow.
"I've heard about what's been happening in the village recently."
"The daimyo's matter must be very difficult for you, right?"
Minato Namikaze fell silent.
He didn't want to bring these troubles to Kushina.
He only wanted her to always be as carefree and happy as she was when she was eating ramen just now.
"It's nothing, just some village matters..."
"Minato Namikaze!"
Kushina interrupted him, her tone more serious than ever.
"We're husband and wife, aren't we?"
"Your troubles are my troubles. I won't allow you to bear them alone, understand?"
Looking at her insistent gaze, the softest part of Minato Namikaze's heart was touched, and he finally sighed helplessly.
"Alright."
He explained in detail the two decisions from the daimyo manor and the severe internal division they had caused in the village.
From the genius training program to the selection of the Twelve Guardian Shinobi.
From the enthusiasm of the Uchiha to the despair of the two advisor elders.
His voice grew increasingly low, filled with a sense of powerlessness.
"Konoha... is being torn apart. The Will of Fire I was so proud of is being corrupted by money and power."
"I don't know what to do to stop all of this."
"As Hokage, I feel like a puppet with my hands and feet tied, only able to watch the village slide into an unknown abyss."
After speaking, he irritably ran his hands through his hair, his face filled with pain.
For days, this problem had tormented him, making him restless.
Kushina listened quietly, without interrupting.
Only after he finished did she ask seriously, "Minato, what exactly are we protecting Konoha for?"
Minato Namikaze was startled.
"Of course, it's to protect everyone in the village, to guard our shared home."
"Then..." Kushina asked again, "Now, is the life of most people in the village getting better or worse?"
This question left Minato Namikaze speechless.
He remembered the excited, flushed faces of those civilian shinobi when they received their first extra subsidy.
He remembered the joy of those small families spreading the news, celebrating their children having a better future.
"But the village's autonomy... the Hokage's authority is being weakened!"
Kushina didn't let him avoid the question, pressing on. "Are those shinobi clans wrong?"
"They want their family to be stronger. They want their children to have a better future. Is that wrong?"
Minato Namikaze shook his head with difficulty.
"What about those civilian shinobi?"
"Are they wrong too? They don't want to spend their whole lives doing D-rank missions. They want to become stronger, to make a name for themselves, to earn more money, and to give their families a good life. Is that wrong too?"
Minato Namikaze shook his head again.
He couldn't argue against it.
Because it wasn't wrong at all.
"I can understand." He closed his eyes in pain. "But they've all forgotten that everyone used to fight for Konoha as a collective! Was the selfless dedication of the Will of Fire wrong?"
"That's because there were no other options before!"
Kushina's voice suddenly rose, exceptionally clear in the quiet night.
"Before, all resources were controlled by the Hokage and a few large families, so of course they could only fight for the village."
"Because if they didn't, they wouldn't get anything! That's not dedication—that's having no choice!"
"Now, the daimyo has given them another choice, a choice that allows them to live a better life through their own efforts!"
"Everyone is striving for a better place. Why should we stop them?"
Minato Namikaze's mind was in chaos.
Every word from Kushina struck hard at the beliefs he had held since childhood.
The things he had always upheld—the Hokage's responsibility and Konoha's traditions—were crumbling and shattering piece by piece.
Seeing the lingering confusion and pain on her husband's face, Kushina's heart ached. She stretched out her arms, gently embracing him.
Her cheek rested against his broad, warm chest. Her voice became incredibly gentle, yet full of strength.
"Minato."
"Don't forget."
"You were once a civilian shinobi too!"
Boom!
This sentence, like a clap of thunder, exploded in Minato Namikaze's mind!
He froze, his body trembling violently.
Yes.
He had forgotten.
How could he have forgotten?
He had forgotten that he too was once the most ordinary civilian, desperately taking missions to save money for a C-rank ninjutsu scroll, eating only the cheapest military rations for a whole month straight.
He had also hidden in the corner of the training ground, enviously watching the shinobi from the great families.
They possessed innate bloodline limits, seemingly endless resources, and could effortlessly learn the ninjutsu he yearned for but couldn't obtain.
He had reached where he was today thanks to the Third Hokage's recognition, Jiraiya-sensei's guidance, and his own extraordinary genius and a hundredfold effort.
But in the village, how many people could have his luck and genius?
More people just struggled at the bottom, never touching the edge of their dreams throughout their lives.
The daimyo's appearance gave them a chance.
A chance he too had once yearned for immensely.
He had always stood from the Hokage's perspective, high above the clouds, thinking about how to maintain the village's balance and traditions.
Yet he had forgotten that, for the shinobi struggling at the bottom, this so-called balance was itself the greatest injustice.
Was the Konoha he wanted to protect truly the Konoha that everyone in the village desired?
Under the clear moonlight.
Minato Namikaze's gaze shifted from confusion, to struggle, and finally, to clarity and determination.
He slowly lowered his head and held his wife tightly.
Kushina's smile returned, still gentle.
"Kushina."
"Thank you."
His voice was gentle and firm, no longer confused.
"I... know what to do now."
"For a... Konoha that truly belongs to everyone."