Thank you, Naruto, Minato thought, sending the silent gratitude toward his unborn son.
The more tactical planning Minato conducted with the veterans, the more he realized the sheer, overwhelming caliber of the forces Naruto had unified in the future.
The Third Tsuchikage, A, Obito Uchiha, Yakushi Kabuto, Dodai, and Killer B—these were apex predators, men of exceptional, lethal skill.
Minato pragmatically admitted to himself that he lacked the sheer charisma required to forge an alliance out of such hardened enemies.
Naruto had done the impossible.
“The logic is sound,” Obito said, breaking Minato’s train of thought.
The Uchiha frowned, looking at Kabuto.
“But why go through the effort of modifying the Reaper Death Seal?
Why not just execute the full jutsu to seal the Otsutsuki completely, have Orochimaru cut the Shinigami’s stomach open to retrieve the caster’s soul, and then use the Kinjutsu to revive the caster?”
In Obito’s mind, reversing death wasn’t a complex hurdle anymore.
A single Kinjutsu could fix the casualty.
Kabuto pushed his glasses up his nose and leveled a dry, flat stare at the Uchiha.
“Because the physiological cost is astronomical.
Even if you are only reviving a single operative who just died, the Kinjutsu consumes an astonishing volume of chakra, directly cannibalizing the caster’s life force.
It is a catastrophic tactical trade.
We do not need to orchestrate pointless sacrifices when simply sealing their hands neutralizes the threat.”
Obito considered the math for a second, then gave a short nod of concession.
Having finalized their tactical doctrine, Minato and Kabuto parted ways outside the Uchiha compound.
Without the physical Hashirama cell samples, Kabuto could not initiate the transplant surgery, so he instructed Obito to remain on strict bed rest while he returned to the orphanage.
Minato took the rooftops back to his own home.
The following morning, the legendary slug princess, Tsunade Senju, and her apprentice, Shizune, officially crossed the gates back into Konoha.
Their first destination was the Hokage Tower.
Hiruzen Sarutobi sat waiting for them in his office.
The Third Hokage had expedited the Anbu search protocols for Tsunade for two highly classified reasons.
First, he needed her to accompany Minato to the Hidden Sand.
Second, he needed her to immediately construct and command a specialized, high-tier wartime medical division.
Tsunade accepted the commission without a second thought.
Hiruzen hadn’t briefed her on the exact nature of the Otsutsuki threat—he had deferred that explanation to Minato—but Tsunade had lived through the Fourth Shinobi World War.
She knew that the violence awaiting them would dwarf the current border skirmishes.
The first three Shinobi World Wars were bloody, but they were fought by mortals.
The end of the Fourth War had been an apocalyptic meat grinder.
Reanimated Madara Uchiha, Six Paths Obito, Six Paths Madara, Kaguya Otsutsuki—any single one of those god-tier combatants could have casually wiped the Five Great Villages off the map.
Against monsters of that caliber, the Five Kage had been reduced to absolute fodder.
If the new enemies were supposedly even more terrifying than Kaguya, to the point that Naruto had burned his soul to trigger a temporal reversion, Tsunade felt a heavy, suffocating dread settle in her chest.
Was a war of that scale something she could even survive?
The sheer gap in power was paralyzing.
Her jaw clenched.
Her only option was to violently accelerate her own training and build a medical infrastructure capable of keeping the vanguard breathing.
Stepping out of the Hokage’s office, Tsunade turned to Shizune.
Because Shizune also possessed the future memories, she completely understood the stakes.
Tsunade ordered her apprentice to immediately begin headhunting elite candidates for the new medical division.
With logistics delegated, Tsunade headed straight for Minato’s neighborhood.
Minato had risen before dawn.
He prepared a nutrient-dense breakfast, gently woke Kushina, and served her the meal.
Afterward, he meticulously cleaned and organized the two-story house.
He absolutely refused to let his pregnant wife handle any domestic chores, which meant the house had grown a bit cluttered over the past few days of his intense training schedule.
Just as he finished wiping down the counters, a sharp knock echoed from the front door.
Minato washed his hands, dried them on a towel, and walked to the entryway.
He pulled the door open.
His eyes widened slightly in surprise.
He immediately straightened his posture and offered a respectful bow.
“Good morning, Lady Tsunade.”
He stepped aside, holding the door open to let the Sannin inside.
“Hello, Minato,” Tsunade said, her amber eyes scanning the interior of the house.
“It has been a long time.”
Tsunade didn’t know the future Fourth Hokage very well.
After the agonizing deaths of her lover, Dan Kato, and her little brother, Nawaki, she had abandoned Konoha.
She had heard the rumors of the legendary Yellow Flash and his ascension to the Hokage seat in her future memories, but she hadn’t actually returned to the village until decades later, when Jiraiya and a loudmouth blonde genin tracked her down.
“Lady Tsunade?
Is that really you?”
Kushina’s voice rang out from the kitchen.
A second later, the red-haired kunoichi practically sprinted into the hallway.
She lunged forward, grabbing both of Tsunade’s hands with a beaming, ecstatic smile.
“Why didn’t you send word that you were coming back?!” Kushina scolded playfully.
“I would have met you at the gates!”
Tsunade’s hardened features instantly melted.
She shared a deep, familial bond with the Uzumaki girl.
Tsunade’s grandmother was Mito Uzumaki, the first Nine-Tails Jinchuriki.
When Konoha initially brought Kushina to the village to succeed Mito as the vessel, the terrified, displaced young girl had lived in Tsunade’s home.
Tsunade let out a warm laugh.
She reached out and affectionately patted Kushina’s bright red hair.
“I just crossed the gates this morning.
I came to see you the second I finished my briefing.
Look at you.
You are about to become a mother, but you still act like a little girl.” Tsunade’s eyes dropped to Kushina’s stomach.
“Come to Konoha Hospital this afternoon.
I am giving you a comprehensive prenatal exam.”
Kushina dragged Tsunade by the hands into the living room, forcing the Sannin to sit down on the sofa.
“Now that you’re back, you aren’t leaving again, are you?”
“I’m staying,” Tsunade confirmed, leaning back against the cushions.
“I won’t be leaving anytime soon.
The Third Hokage ordered me to assemble an emergency wartime medical division.”
Kushina’s eyes widened.
“What about your hemophobia?
Is your fear of blood cured?”
“Yes,” Tsunade said, a small, fierce smile touching her lips.
“It’s completely gone.”
“How?” Kushina asked, leaning forward eagerly.
Minato stepped into the living room, leaning against the doorframe.
He was just as curious.
In the mental briefing, Naruto had intentionally skipped over the details of how he cured the Sannin.
Naruto had been unconscious during the climax of that specific battle, and furthermore, the boy despised bragging about his own heroics.
He had simply stated that he and Jiraiya had convinced Tsunade to take the Hokage hat.
Tsunade reached out.
She gently rested her palm against Kushina’s flat stomach.
Her eyes softened with an immense, profound gratitude.
“I was cured thanks to the child growing right here,” Tsunade said softly.
Minato and Kushina exchanged a completely baffled look.
“What does curing your phobia have to do with Naruto?” Minato asked, his brow furrowing.
“Everything,” Tsunade replied.
She pulled her hand back and folded them in her lap.
Taking a slow, steadying breath, she began to recount the brutal battle against Orochimaru, the desperate wager over a necklace, and the impossible courage of a genin who refused to die.