Chapter 376: Kushina Takes Action
As expected, unexpected events in reality always come one after another—it's rare for everything to go exactly as planned.
However... Li Yao revealed a confident gaze.
Everything still depended on whether he, Li Yao, wanted to continue playing this game.
Although Minato's spiritual form was gone, Li Yao could easily replicate an identical one.
With his mastery of the Perfect Transformation Technique, he could even replicate souls. Naturally, a spiritual form was no challenge.
He could easily create a Minato spiritual form to enter Naruto's sealed space, prevent Naruto from fully turning into the Nine-Tails, counsel him as his father, and even reveal some secrets about the people behind the scenes. All of this was within Li Yao's power.
So now, the real question was whether Li Yao wanted to continue the game.
"Let's keep going!"
After thinking it over, Li Yao decided to step in and help Naruto suppress the Nine-Tails. After all, the game had come this far—it would be a shame to give up now.
"Hmm... looks like I don't need to step in anymore!"
Li Yao was slightly surprised, then smiled.
On the Chibaku Tensei sphere, the Nine-Tails—now fully emerged with all nine tails—was roaring with excitement about his rebirth.
How many years had it been!
At last, the Nine-Tails could roam free!
Ever since he had been captured by the First Hokage, he had been sealed inside jinchūriki hosts. After decades of confinement, he was finally free today—he couldn't be more thrilled.
And then... clang clang clang!
From the Chibaku Tensei, golden chakra chains burst out from the ground, piercing the Nine-Tails' head and tails, dragging him back toward Naruto's body inside the Chibaku Tensei.
"Kushina!!!"
The Nine-Tails' furious roar echoed across the land. He recognized the golden chakra chains—they belonged to his previous jinchūriki, Uzumaki Kushina, Naruto's mother.
"Argh..."
The Nine-Tails yanked hard against the Adamantine Sealing Chains, but the seal was too powerful. Since he hadn't fully taken over Naruto's body yet, he couldn't unleash his full strength and was unable to resist.
Clang!
The golden chakra chains were pulled taut but remained unbreakably strong. The Nine-Tails' massive body was being slowly dragged back into Naruto's body.
"No!!!"
With a final anguished and unwilling roar, the Nine-Tails' enormous form was pulled back into the Chibaku Tensei, disappearing into Naruto's body.
At this moment...
Inside Naruto's seal space.
The sealing talisman on the gate holding back the Nine-Tails had been restored by Kushina. The Nine-Tails was now bound again by the Adamantine Sealing Chains, completely immobilized, forced to watch helplessly as Kushina resealed him.
"Damn it!!!"
"Even in death you still play me like this!!"
"Kushina!"
Filled with resentment and rage, the Nine-Tails had nowhere to vent. The light of freedom he had waited for over decades had been snuffed out again. His hatred toward Kushina would never fade.
"Mark my words, Kushina!"
"I won't let that brat live in peace. One day, I'll completely take over his body and kill him."
The Nine-Tails glared at Kushina with chilling malice. He knew this woman could only appear once—she could only save Naruto this one time.
Next time, no one would stop him from regaining his freedom.
"Naruto!"
Ignoring the Nine-Tails' curses, Kushina didn't even spare him a glance. Her time was precious, and she wouldn't waste a second of it on the Nine-Tails.
Looking at the grown-up Naruto, her heart was filled with joy.
Handsome!
So handsome!
As expected of the son of her and Minato—he was incredibly handsome. He must be very popular with girls at school. She was sure he had already found someone he liked.
"You are...?"
Naruto, now back to his senses, felt a strange sense of warmth and familiarity when he looked at Kushina, but also confusion.
Who was she?
Why was she here?
"Kushina, I—"
Snap!
Kushina snapped her fingers, immediately shifting them into Naruto's mental space, where the Nine-Tails couldn't interfere.
Naruto's mental space, just like his personality, was warm and welcoming—like a rainbow-colored field of grass.
Here, Naruto felt completely at peace. But the identity of the woman in front of him still puzzled him.
"Umm..."
Just as Naruto opened his mouth to speak, Kushina couldn't hold back her longing any longer. She suddenly leapt forward, hugging Naruto tightly, tears falling uncontrollably from her eyes.
Naruto stood frozen. The warmth of the woman's embrace was unlike anything he'd ever felt before. Somehow, that warmth made tears start to flow from his own eyes without him realizing it.
He gently wrapped his arms around her and, without thinking, the word "Mom" escaped his lips.
"Naruto!"
Kushina joyfully let go of Naruto, her face beaming. "Son, you... what did you just call me?"
Son!!!
Naruto looked at the woman in front of him in shock and asked back, "What did you just call me?"
"What the heck!" Kushina said, as if it were no big deal. "I thought your dad had already told you... Wait."
Suddenly, Kushina furrowed her brow. Logically, her appearance should've been triggered when Naruto voluntarily broke the seal to control the Nine-Tails' chakra—not when the Nine-Tails went on a rampage.
Dealing with the Nine-Tails losing control should've been Minato's job.
But now, because the seal had been broken and the Nine-Tails emerged, Kushina had been forced to come out early.
"This isn't good!"
Kushina instantly realized something might've happened to Minato and quickly tried to sense his spiritual presence.
"What's going on?"
Upon sensing, Kushina immediately noticed something wrong inside Naruto—part of his memory had been sealed.
Her expression changed. She immediately began undoing the memory seal.
"As expected of Kushina!"
Through the sealing chakra he left on Naruto, Li Yao could sense the situation inside his body. He was surprised that Kushina was able to lift the memory seal he had placed on Naruto.
Still, it was just a small surprise.
After all, his sealing technique mainly excelled in chakra control. Being undone by a sealing master of the Uzumaki clan like Kushina was understandable.
"All right, now just wait for Naruto to arrive."
Li Yao smiled and relaxed.
Though an unexpected event had occurred and Minato was gone, Kushina's appearance would serve the same purpose.
The only uncertainty now was whether Naruto, with the memories of his time in the ancient kingdom of Rōran, would cause any time-related distortions in this world.
As Li Yao pondered this, he carefully observed the world's subtle changes.
Inside Naruto's mental space, the now fully aware Naruto had learned that he was the son of the Fourth Hokage.
After a touching and heartwarming conversation, Naruto and Kushina finally reunited as mother and son.
Kushina also learned that Minato's spiritual form had appeared but was destroyed by a terrifying enemy.
"That bastard!"
Kushina cursed Li Yao, who had destroyed Minato's spiritual form, but soon felt relieved that Naruto was safe.
"Thankfully, that guy can't enter this world!"
Kushina was glad the one who defeated Minato couldn't come to this world. Otherwise, things would get very messy. She knew well how strong Minato was—anyone capable of defeating him was sure to be dangerous.
(END CHAPTER)
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