Chapter 178: Konoha Year 59, Birth of Ashura

"When did you get this?" Tsunade asked as she picked up a fluffy sleeve cover.

"It's well-made. The little turtle on it is so cute."

"It was a gift from someone. Sensei, don't you remember? My subordinate, the one who's quite skilled with a sword, Saki Hyuga..."

"Oh." The blonde woman placed the fluffy sleeve cover back down.

"Huh? Sensei, why did you put it on the ground?"

"My hands are clumsy." Tsunade replied with a blank expression. "After all, I can't even use a sword."

"Hahaha..." Yuto laughed heartily, doubling over as he handed the sleeve cover to Tsunade.

"Just kidding, Sensei. I made it myself, for you."

After speaking, he picked up a shovel leaning against the wall and began to clear the snow, one scoop at a time.

It was February, and Konoha was blanketed in silver-white snow. The snow reflected the moonlight, making it surprisingly dazzling, causing Yuto's eyes to ache. Eighty days ago, this right eye had been transplanted, and everything seemed normal at first, but after the first erosion, it became somewhat fragile.

By the time the pain subsided, the snow in the courtyard was almost cleared. Yuto turned around to see the blonde woman flicking the head of the little turtle.

"Let's go, Sensei."

"Okay, okay." Tsunade smiled, folding the sleeve cover neatly and placing it on the top shelf of the wardrobe before taking out a burgundy coat and draping it over herself.

Yuto and Tsunade locked the gate of the Senju Clan's compound, walking down the street and stepping on the snow as they headed towards the central area of Konoha.

The closer they got to their destination, the denser the chakra became. Yuto's gaze swept across the street corners and alleys. Although he didn't see anyone, he knew that these places must be guarded by the Anbu.

Finally, the two of them arrived at the residence of Minato and Kushina, a cozy two-story house.

"Oh, it's Yuto-kun and Tsunade-sama. Come in quickly." Kushina, with her half-white and half-red hair, opened the door and welcomed Yuto and Tsunade inside.

Minato peeked out from the kitchen, holding a spatula.

"Make yourselves at home, Yuto-kun. I've prepared your favorite grilled fish. Tsunade-sama, there's a barrel of sake on the table for you. I just brought it back from Mount Myoboku this morning."

The blonde woman sank into the sofa and couldn't help but say, "Jiraiya, is so lucky to have taught such a disciple like you."

"Yuto-kun is also excellent." Minato's cheerful voice came from the kitchen.

"He's the only young shinobi in the village who can make me feel pressured."

"Hahaha, Minato, you've become quite eloquent since you became Hokage... Huh? Kushina, sit down. Let Yuto handle the tea."

Yuto obediently stood up, taking the tea set and hot water from Kushina's hands.

"Kushina-senpai, although it's unlikely for a female shinobi to miscarry, a year ago, when the Nine-Tails' chakra rampaged, it depleted a lot of your vitality. It's best to rest more during this time."

Tsunade pulled Kushina to sit down, gently stroking her half-red, half-white hair.

Yuto skillfully poured the tea, his gaze occasionally drifting to Kushina's flat stomach, but in the next second, he nonchalantly looked away, showing no sign of anything unusual.

Just like in the original story, Kushina became pregnant at the beginning of Konoha Year 59.

What she was carrying in her womb was the legendary Child of Prophecy, the Seventh Hokage, and the reincarnation of Ashura's chakra—Naruto Uzumaki!

However, unlike the original story, Kushina's pregnancy was almost common knowledge in Konoha.

A year ago, Madara triggered the eye powers in the Nine-Tails, causing Kushina, as the jinchuriki, to lose control. In the moment she partially transformed into the tailed beast, she killed and seriously injured hundreds of Konoha shinobi.

This incident caused quite a stir. Killing comrades has always been despised by all the major shinobi villages, but Kushina was, after all, the wife of the Fourth Hokage. Moreover, after the Yamanaka Clan's examination confirmed that she indeed lost consciousness during the tailed beast's rampage, the voices calling for "Kushina Uzumaki to be banished from the village" gradually died down after continuous reassurances and explanations.

However, this incident completely exposed Kushina's identity as both the Hokage's wife and the Nine-Tails' jinchuriki. No matter how they tried to keep it under wraps, the information couldn't be contained. Given how much attention she attracted, her pregnancy also became known to the villagers.

Worried about his wife's safety, Minato decisively deployed a large number of shinobi to protect her. The Anbu put in the most effort, with five squad captains rotating shifts. Seeing this level of protection, the security on the day of her delivery, nine months later, would undoubtedly be even tighter.

Logically, with Minato and the Anbu around, Kushina's delivery night should have been foolproof. Unfortunately… Obito, with his Kamui, could always achieve the impossible.

After pouring the tea, Yuto nestled into the sofa, listening to the whispered conversation between Tsunade and Kushina, and closed his eyes, feigning sleep.

"Lady Tsunade, why don't you find someone?"

"I'm already in my thirties. My grave is halfway dug. I don't want to find a companion."

"Huh? But your skin is super smooth and super white, not a single wrinkle, and your hair is long and beautiful. You look younger than me... It's just that you're, well, bigger than me. Hehe."

Yuto, who was pretending to nap, smiled. If they were elsewhere, he would definitely have mischievously pinched the blonde woman.

But in front of Kushina, both Yuto and Tsunade maintained a distance, acting like traditional master and student, as proper as could be.

After all, Kushina was a married woman with experience in such matters and could easily sense the subtle, ambiguous tension in the air.

If they were at the Senju Clan compound, Yuto and Tsunade would have had no such reservations. After all, Shizune wouldn't notice anything. A fifteen-year-old girl, always carrying that little pig around, what would she understand?

…

After having dinner at Minato's house, the master and student duo stayed for quite a while. They didn't leave until around ten at night.

Yuto and Tsunade walked back slowly. At the gate of the Senju Clan compound, they saw Shizune carrying some things inside.

"Tsunade-sama, Yuto-san, where did you go?" The girl pouted, looking a bit unhappy.

"I was about to go to the mission office and issue a missing person report."

"Oh, Shizune, being petty isn't good for a young girl's development~" Tsunade nonchalantly flicked away her disciple's mischievous hand and stepped forward to examine the pile of items. "From the Hyuga Clan?"

"Yes, a girl named Saki Hyuga brought them over, saying it was on behalf of the clan and the clan head Hiashi... By the way, Yuto-san, are you close to her?"

"Saki?" Yuto's tone was casual as he gave the standard answer.

"She's one of my subordinates, but we aren't close. There's nothing noteworthy about her, so I don't have a strong impression."

"Really?" Shizune frowned, pulling out a small trinket from her pocket and handing it to Yuto.

"She even made you a sachet."

"..." Yuto tossed it onto a package as if handling a hot potato.

"Stop talking. Move the stuff inside; it's quite cold out here."

…

"Sensei, I'm leaving. I have a mission. It'll take about five days." Late at night, Yuto lightly knocked on Tsunade's door.

"Go." The blonde woman's voice was lazy, not particularly inclined to deal with her student.

Yuto touched his nose, didn't linger, put on his Anbu mask, and turned to leave the Senju Clan compound, exiting Konoha's gates.

He passed through the dense forest and into the countryside, heading north.

Yuto maintained his pace until the sun rose and set again, leaving the Land of Fire and entering foreign territory.

He removed all his Konoha gear and donned a black robe and a hannya mask, then continued forward.

Upon reaching the designated location, Yuto stamped his foot, shattering the ground beneath him. He jumped into the revealed fissure and walked for a long time in the dimness.

Suddenly, he stopped.

In front of Yuto stood a man wearing a single-eyed mask, with the chakra of both Senju and Uchiha swirling around him. The three tomoe in his exposed right eye slowly rotated.

—Uchiha Obito!

"Kid." Yuto chuckled softly, not taking Obito seriously at all, "Where's your master?"

"Moon God..." Obito murmured, turning to walk into the darkness, "Madara is just ahead."

Yuto followed behind Obito. He had accumulated many of the God's Masks, enough to support prolonged combat, so he had nothing to fear.

The path was dim, and perhaps because it was too quiet, Obito suddenly spoke, "Moon God, have you heard? The Nine-Tails Jinchuriki is pregnant... She is expected to give birth in October."

"I know. Kid, do you have something to say?"

"Do you want the Nine-Tails?" Obito paused, his voice echoing eerily in the hollow underground, "People always say you're the strongest shinobi in the world today, but no matter how powerful someone is, they can still be tempted by the power of the tailed beasts... I'll release the beast, and you can take it. What do you think?"

"Bold idea, kid. Is this your plan, or Madara's?"

"After today, I will be Madara."

"Hahahaha..." Yuto laughed as he held his forehead, "An attractive idea, but..." He applied slight pressure with his fingers, and the mask inside his faceplate fell off, sticking to his forehead:

"But, when speaking to a senior, you must use respectful language, kid."

Boom!

The moment the God's Mask mode activated, Yuto was already in front of Obito.

His right hand, surrounded by repulsive force, grabbed towards Obito, the powerful strike passing through Obito's chest as if hitting nothing but air.

"Huh..." Yuto feigned surprise, "Space-time ninjutsu?"

"That's right!" Obito gave a disdainful look. A chain, emerging unnoticed from his sleeve, circled in the air, restricting Yuto's movements. At the same time, Obito reached out with one hand, touching the edge of the Hannya Mask in the blink of an eye.

'It was so easy...' Obito felt a surge of joy in his heart, but in the next moment, the joy behind the mask froze abruptly.

Although Yuto's punch hadn't landed, his chakra, after entering the air, had somehow retracted and charged forward again, like a fish swimming into the shinobi's chakra pathways, striking Obito's back just before his hand touched Yuto's body.

—Extreme Heaven!

"Uwaa!" Obito screamed in pain. Unable to phase out in time, he was sent flying, crashing into the rock wall and embedding deeply into the ground with a rumbling sound.

Information is the lifeblood of a shinobi. Theoretically, Yuto had an informational advantage over any enemy he faced.

"Consider that a warning." Yuto casually toyed with the chain, continuing to walk forward, "Next time you see me, don't hold your head too high, and remember to use respectful language... Hmm? Still not coming out to lead the way?"

The sound of falling rocks came from behind, and Obito, spitting blood, appeared, silently approaching Yuto.

"Moon God, you're indeed powerful." He swallowed the blood in his mouth, speaking calmly as if nothing had happened, "What about my proposal? Have you considered it?"

'What an obsessive guy...' Yuto thought to himself, instinctively closing his right eye.

This foreign object felt out of place in the God's Mask mode. When the Ōtsutsuki chakra faded, it caused excruciating pain, but Yuto had already endured the Caged Bird's corrosion many times, raising his pain tolerance.

The real torment, however, was something else.

When the Half-Awakened Tenseigan faded, the stabbing pain returned, and the Caged Bird reappeared on Yuto's forehead.

The fresh air that could only be felt in the God's Mask mode vanished once more.

Yuto clenched his fist, struggling to control his fingers, fearing he might unconsciously take out another mask to attach to his forehead.

Once you experience things like "freedom" and "dignity," they become addictive.

No matter how many masks he had, he couldn't possibly maintain the Half-Awakened Tenseigan state forever. And could he really deceive the Caged Bird forever with this eye replacement method? After all, the right eye he transplanted didn't hurt suddenly at first.

Besides, even if he could bury his head in the sand for a lifetime, would the life of an ostrich really be meaningful?

'What an obsessive guy...' Yuto thought and sighed again in his heart.

After a moment, his indifferent voice echoed through the underground world, resonating through the Hannya Mask, "Alright."

(End of Chapter)