Chapter 54: The Melancholy of Minato Namikaze
"Ha…"
"What's wrong, Minato? Didn't you finally get to work with your good brother?"
"…Huh? Oh—it's you, Kushina."
Minato sighed as the familiar fiery voice echoed behind him. For a moment, he'd thought it was someone else. With Kushina, things were always… intense.
Inside Ichiraku Ramen, the blond young man known as Konoha's Yellow Flash sat slumped at the counter, his expression melancholic. Behind him, the fiery redhead gave him a sharp slap on the back.
"What's with that face? You said you liked my hair and my looks when we first met, but now you're acting all cold. What's this supposed to mean? Catch the fish and just throw it back? Getting tired of me already?"
"You—what are you talking about! When did I say I caught you? We haven't even confirmed our relationship yet! I told you—I want to wait until I become Hokage!"
Kushina folded her arms, pouting, eyes flashing. "And how long is that supposed to take? Am I gonna turn into a widow before that happens? If you're a man, be decisive! Or what—if Aizen becomes Hokage first, should I just marry him instead?"
"…Where do you even come up with this stuff?" Minato groaned.
Still… it really was his fault this time.
Kushina's lips pressed into a thin line, but when she saw Minato's embarrassed expression, her anger softened. She dragged a stool next to him and sat down, quietly stirring the air with her chopsticks.
"So? What's the real reason? You're not happy to see me? It's rare for us to have time together."
"I am happy," Minato said, smiling weakly, "but honestly… I'm just not in the mood right now."
Kushina's pout deepened. "Hmph."
Minato sighed again, staring blankly at the now-empty ramen bowl in front of him. His reflection shimmered in the broth's last traces.
He had just received the news: he was being reassigned—removed from Aizen's Guard.
The world around them was shifting too fast. Every new report felt like a lightning strike, shaking the foundations of what they believed.
The Third Kazekage, dead in an instant. The legendary White Fang, gone overnight. The Sand and Rock Villages, bitter enemies for years, suddenly united. The proud Cloud Village sending emissaries to bow and negotiate peace, forming a defensive pact with the Mist Village.
It was chaos—change on a scale no one could have predicted.
In response, the Third Hokage had convened an emergency council the previous night. Every Jonin and Chunin had been summoned to the Hokage's chamber. What they heard there shocked them all.
Konoha would soon dismantle its clan hierarchy and sectarian divisions, uniting all skilled shinobi under one banner of research and warfare. Specialists in every field would collaborate on the mass development of ninjutsu.
With the combined might of the Blut Arterie and Blut Vene, they would dominate the battlefield—not through politics, but through pure, overwhelming force.
When Minato first heard this, his immediate reaction had been disbelief. "What kind of nonsense is this? Since when did Konoha plan to wipe out the rest of the world in one stroke?"
That remark earned him a long night locked inside the Propaganda Department, where the situation was "clarified" in excruciating detail.
By dawn, he finally understood.
This wasn't a sudden whim by the Hokage—it had all been "foreseen." Every failure, every odd decision, every sudden turn of events had been part of the Third Hokage's grand design.
The crisis in the Land of Water. The chaos within Konoha. Even the recent public testing of Kakashi's Blut Vene— All of it, they said, had been planned.
Minato was told he didn't need to think too hard about long-term consequences. All he needed to remember was that the Hokage's will was absolute. The Hokage was reliable—just like Aizen Sosuke.
If you didn't trust the Hokage, then you trusted Aizen. And if Aizen said everything was fine—then everything was fine.
By the time he was released, exhausted and half-dazed, an ANBU messenger was already waiting for him.
He was to leave Aizen's Guard effective immediately and report to his new post: the Konoha Ninjutsu Research Institute.
His new assignment was to study and develop the theory and application of Space-Time Ninjutsu. It was a critical position—highly confidential, requiring isolation for long stretches of work. But it came with privileges and comfort. After all, one could only serve the village when one's needs were met.
By all accounts, it was a promotion. Safe, respected, and essential.
And yet… Minato couldn't help but feel an emptiness gnawing at his chest.
How could he replace what he had lost—the camaraderie, the guidance, the strange, compelling presence of Aizen Sosuke?
Even Kushina's warmth couldn't quite fill that space.
He stared into his empty ramen bowl again, sighing softly.
Brother Aizen… you really left a hole behind.
He smiled faintly. Even if it's Kushina… it's hard to compare the two of you.
Bah, bah, bah—what am I even thinking?
Perhaps because he hadn't slept all night, Minato Namikaze shook his head, trying to shake away the muddled thoughts swirling in his mind.
"As expected, something must have happened."
Kushina's voice softened. She reached out, running her fingers through Minato's golden hair, her fiery gaze flickering with concern.
Compared to a few years ago, they had both changed—grown stronger, busier, burdened with new responsibilities. Yet the bond between them remained unshaken. They were still each other's light—two hearts quietly entwined amid the chaos of the shinobi world.
The only thing that could make Minato this distraught, to the point where he didn't even want to talk, had to be something tied to the village. Kushina knew that better than anyone. After all, she once dreamed of becoming the first female Hokage herself.
She leaned closer and exhaled softly. "…So, what happened?"
"Yes."
"Is it something you can't tell me?"
"Yes."
"Is it something that will affect our future?"
"Yes."
"Then let's get married."
"…Huh? Huh?!"
"What's so surprising about that?" she said, raising an eyebrow. "We may be young, but we're already of legal age, aren't we?"
"Isn't the legal age still twenty?"
"You mean you want me to wait and let other girls compete for you while I'm still young?"
"No, no… definitely not!"
Minato waved his hands frantically, breaking into a cold sweat as Kushina flashed a deceptively sweet smile and cracked her knuckles.
But to his own surprise, beneath the embarrassment, he didn't actually feel shocked. After all, he had loved Kushina for a long time. Their bond was steady, real, and strong.
Aizen had teased him countless times before—half joking, half serious—calling himself Minato's emotional trash bin whenever Minato came to him for advice about Kushina. But deep down, Aizen knew: Minato never had a second choice. He never even considered one.
And just as Kushina understood Minato's earnest, steady heart—Minato understood Kushina's bold, straightforward spirit.
"Did something happen to you too?" he asked quietly.
Kushina nodded. "Yeah. I'm in the same situation. I've been given a classified mission… one I can't talk about. I don't even know what the future looks like anymore."
Her eyes softened, and she clasped Minato's hands. "That's why—even if it's a little sudden—I want to make things clear between us. Is that so wrong?"
"Not wrong," Minato said hesitantly, "but… isn't this a bit too hasty?"
"There's nothing hasty about it," Kushina replied firmly. "We're shinobi. Our lives could end tomorrow. Just being able to love and marry each other in this world is already a blessing."
Her grip on his hand tightened. The "spicy red pepper" of Konoha looked up at her golden-haired lover and smiled brightly.
"Compared to those who never even get the chance to be together, we're already lucky. And I can feel it—something terrible is coming to the ninja world. That's why I want to be certain about us. Even if it's just to give myself a little peace of mind."
"People who aren't destined to be together…" Minato murmured.
"Even Lady Tsunade of the Legendary Sannin—the greatest medical ninja alive—has moments where she can't save the ones she loves."
"…Yeah."
Minato didn't want to imagine it, but he understood what she meant. He'd heard enough about Jiraiya's quiet heartbreak, and he'd learned from Aizen that the life of a shinobi was an endless dance with tragedy.
Pain, loss, and sacrifice were constants in their world. In comparison, what he had with Kushina was a fleeting miracle.
"So," Kushina said with a radiant grin, "Minato—let's get married."
She squeezed his hands, her voice unwavering, her eyes blazing with determination.
"No matter if you're poor or rich, Hokage or not, even if our ending is tragic—I believe marrying you will never be a mistake."
"…Normally, that's something I'm supposed to say, isn't it?" Minato muttered helplessly.
"Who told you to keep acting like such a shy, indecisive boy?" she teased, smirking. "Since you won't take the initiative, I have to."
"…." "…."
They stared at each other for a long moment—then burst into laughter.
From behind the counter, Teuchi, the owner of Ichiraku Ramen, smiled helplessly.
The young couple hadn't even ordered yet, but seeing two shinobi laugh together amid so much uncertainty—it was a small, comforting sight for him.
However, just as the warmth between them reached its peak, a dry, childlike voice came from behind.
"Ah, the guy following Aizen."
The curtain of Ichiraku lifted. A small boy with white hair and emotionless eyes stepped inside.
"Getting married? Congratulations. You don't have to come anymore. But if you need wedding gifts or anything, ask Aizen. I don't have stuff like that."
Kushina blinked. "Aizen-sama's adopted son… what are you doing here?"
Minato turned, his expression darkening for the first time that day.
The usually gentle and radiant Minato looked at the pale-haired child with open irritation.
"…Why are you here, brat?"
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