After listening to Byakuya's words, Kushina fell into silence.
She couldn't understand why he was revealing his plan against the Third Hokage to her, nor why he had chosen to imprison her here after saving her. But one thing was clear, when facing Byakuya, she had no power to choose.
Whether she opposed his plan or not, Byakuya would go through with his scheme to make Hiruzen suffer. Any resistance or protest would be meaningless.
As for the promise of making Naruto the Fifth Hokage, Kushina couldn't deny that it tempted her.
If Naruto could become Hokage, it meant he had earned the recognition of everyone in the village. That was something good for Naruto, something she couldn't bring herself to refuse.
After a moment of contemplation, Kushina looked at Byakuya and asked, "You've said so much, what exactly do you want me to do?"
Byakuya glanced at her and replied, "You don't need to do anything. Just return to Konoha at the designated time, take on the role of the Hokage's widow, and present the evidence I've prepared against Hiruzen Sarutobi."
Before she could respond, he handed her a scroll filled with text. Kushina took it, scanning its contents, her expression quickly turning strange.
The information inside all pertained to the Third Hokage. They were real events that had occurred, but the way they were described… was utterly outrageous.
For example, it claimed that when the Second Hokage appointed Hiruzen as his successor, Hiruzen had already anticipated his master's thoughts and had deliberately stayed behind to cover the retreat, gaining the Second Hokage's trust through self-sacrifice.
Another section alleged that when Konoha's White Fang had a chance to become Hokage, Hiruzen manipulated public opinion to force him into suicide.
It even accused Hiruzen of deliberately delaying his response during the Nine-Tails' attack, issuing orders that kept the Uchiha Clan from intervening, and intentionally putting Kushina and Minato in mortal danger.
And during the Uchiha Massacre… it claimed that Hiruzen had personally ordered Itachi to slaughter his own clan.
After finishing the scroll, Kushina's expression had turned grim. "Byakuya, where did you get all this so-called evidence? Is any of it even true?"
Byakuya met her gaze, satisfied with her reaction. "Some of it is true. Some of it is speculation. But whether Hiruzen really did all these things… that doesn't matter anymore. It's because regardless of what the truth was, the outcome is what it is now."
Kushina scoffed, then narrowed her eyes at him. "That's rich coming from you. There are plenty of mysteries about you as well. For example, why were you in Konoha the night I gave birth to Naruto? And why did you only reveal yourself after Minato sacrificed himself along with the Nine-Tails?"
Byakuya sighed and said, "Kushina-nee, have you forgotten? I'm not a Konoha shinobi. I had no reason to help Konoha fend off its enemies. The only reason I even saved you was because we're from the same clan. If not for the Nine-Tails' attack weakening Konoha, how else would Amegakure have risen so quickly?"
Kushina was briefly stunned by his bluntness, then let out a quiet sigh.
Byakuya wasn't wrong. While Konoha and Amegakure had a friendly relationship, that was only because of Minato's ties with Yahiko and the others. Between their villages, there was no guarantee of eternal friendship, especially considering Konoha's history with Kumogakure.
Minato's warm welcome to Yahiko back then had simply been a political maneuver to secure an alliance with Amegakure.
Then, Byakuya dropped a bombshell. "Besides… the Nine-Tails' attack was an internal matter of Konoha. Why would an outsider like me interfere?"
"Internal matter?"
Kushina frowned, staring at him. "What do you mean by that?! Are you saying the masked man who attacked Konoha was connected to the village? Wasn't he Madara Uchiha, the one who defected decades ago?"
Byakuya shook his head. "That masked man was not Madara Uchiha. He was a shinobi of Konoha, someone you knew quite well. The first time I fought him, I was so shocked that I actually thought he was the real Madara."
"A Konoha shinobi that I knew?"
Kushina murmured to herself before listing names. "Was it Mikoto? Fugaku? Or some other Uchiha jonin? But none of them had awakened the Mangekyō, they couldn't have beaten Minato."
Byakuya smirked. "Think carefully. Who was the Uchiha you were closest to?"
A horrible suspicion crept into Kushina's mind. She hesitated before finally whispering, "…Byakuya, you don't mean to tell me that it was Obito, do you?"
Byakuya nodded.
Kushina's eyes widened in disbelief, and she immediately shook her head. "No way…! That's impossible! Obito was kind and gentle, there's no way he would have attacked Minato. He wasn't strong enough to fight him, either!"
Byakuya's voice was calm. "Nothing is impossible. Obito awakened the Sharingan to protect Kakashi. After witnessing the brutality of the shinobi world, it wouldn't be surprising if he awakened the Mangekyō as well."
Byakuya then raised a finger before explaining,
"At first, I doubted my own conclusions too. But after I heard about Nohara Rin's death… I wasn't surprised anymore. For someone like Obito, who had been starved of love since childhood, losing the person he loved most… would inevitably break him.
As for how he fought Minato, well, let me put it this way: the first time I came to Konoha, I already possessed the strength to rival the Five Kage."
Kushina fell silent. She now believed him. But she still couldn't understand why. Why would Obito attack her? Why would he attack the village?
She had always treated him like a younger brother. Sure, she'd scolded him now and then, but that was just because of his mischievous nature.
Byakuya seemed to read her thoughts and continued, "You're wondering why Obito would betray Konoha? I wondered the same thing. But now, I have the answer. Obito's goal is to collect all the Tailed Beasts and resurrect the legendary Ten-Tails. He wants to become the second Sage of the Six Paths. Only then can he bring Rin back to life and create a world of eternal peace."
Kushina was stunned. "He's trying to bring Rin back… and bring peace to the world?"
She fell into deep thought before shaking her head. "No matter his reasons, attacking the village just to resurrect Rin is unacceptable. I can't forgive him for that."
Kushina then turned towards Byakuya, "But if you know he's hunting the Tailed Beasts, why don't you stop him?"
Byakuya smirked. "Amegakure doesn't have any Tailed Beasts. Why would I interfere? Every beast he captures weakens the Five Great Nations. The more they suffer, the stronger Amegakure becomes. Unless Konoha submits to me, I have no reason to stop him. That's why I need you to expose Hiruzen's crimes and take control of Konoha on my behalf. Do you accept our deal?"
Kushina remained silent for a long time before finally nodding.
After reading the evidence, she had begun to doubt the Third Hokage. Maybe he had started with good intentions, but the results had been disastrous. Under his rule, Konoha had fallen from its former glory into decline. If working with Byakuya meant removing Hiruzen from power, then that was ideal.
As for whether she would continue cooperating with Byakuya after returning to Konoha… she would weigh her options then. Even if she became his puppet, at least she and Naruto could be reunited.
Seeing her agreement, Byakuya was satisfied. Now, he could begin preparing for his move on Konoha. If he succeeded in taking over Konoha, the next phase of his plan would begin. The Five Great Nations, the Nine Tailed Beasts, he would claim them all.
---
Time passed quickly, and soon, it was time for Naruto and Sasuke to graduate.
After the ceremony, the two were assigned to Kakashi's team. Neither of them were surprised.
Both were top students in their class, and they had long been acquainted with Kakashi. Becoming his students was only natural.
What did surprise them, however, was that Sakura was assigned to their team as well. Her physical skills weren't particularly strong, but her academic performance was outstanding.
The three top-ranking students in their class being assigned to the same team made them question the fairness of the team distribution. However, Naruto was already used to it. There were no real rules when it came to ninja team assignments, ultimately, the Third Hokage had the final say.
From as far back as he could remember, Naruto had already experienced the highs and lows of human nature. He knew that beneath Konoha's seemingly bright and prosperous exterior, a deep darkness lurked.
Upon arriving at the training ground, Naruto and Sasuke greeted Kakashi.
Unlike usual, Kakashi seemed more serious this time. He glanced at Naruto and Sasuke before speaking in a formal tone.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Kakashi, a jōnin of Konoha. Let's start with introductions."
Hearing this, Naruto and Sasuke exchanged skeptical looks but still obediently followed the instructions.
"I'm Naruto Uzumaki. I like eating ramen, and my dream is to earn everyone's acknowledgment and become the Hokage of this village. I don't like arrogant people."
Sasuke glanced at Naruto, then said, "I'm Sasuke Uchiha. There's nothing I particularly like. My goal is to become stronger than the Hokage and kill… nevermind."
After hearing Naruto and Sasuke's introductions, Sakura spoke up.
"I'm Sakura. There are a lot of things I like! My dream is to find someone I love and marry them~. I don't like people who don't know their limits."
After listening to her, Kakashi nodded.
He already knew about Naruto and Sasuke's backgrounds since his mission was to protect his sensei's son and the last heir of the Uchiha. Sakura, on the other hand, was an ordinary girl from a civilian family, making her stand out as the most "normal" one among them.
Was it really a good idea to assign a regular girl to this team? Or was the Third Hokage deliberately placing a female member in Team 7, hoping that Naruto and Sasuke would compete over her, pushing them to grow stronger through rivalry?
This method might have worked in other teams.
But were Naruto and Sasuke the type to fight over a girl? Did the Third really think these two would get jealous over Sakura?
After the introductions, Kakashi habitually took out two bells and was about to explain the bell test when Naruto and Sasuke cut him off.
"Kakashi-sensei, do we really have to do this? You already know our strength."
Kakashi raised his brow slightly and said, "I know your abilities, but the bell test is a tradition of the village. Could you at least show some respect for me as your jōnin instructor?"
Kakashi chuckled, "It seems I'll have to teach you both a lesson today, so you learn the importance of respecting your teacher."
Hearing that, Naruto and Sasuke exchanged glances.
They weren't trying to disrespect Kakashi; they just didn't want to waste time on something so trivial. But since Kakashi was serious about it, they didn't mind testing their progress against him.
After forming the Seal of Confrontation, Naruto and Sasuke launched their attack.
Unlike in the original timeline, Kakashi wasn't foolish enough to handicap himself by standing still or restricting his movements. The moment Naruto and Sasuke rushed at him, he immediately switched to defense.
"Rasengan!"
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Jutsu!"
As the two finished their hand seals, Rasengan and a large fireball shot toward Kakashi.
Kakashi wasn't a taijutsu specialist like Guy, nor did he possess the Hyūga clan's ability to block ninjutsu with sheer physical skill.
Sensing the power of the Rasengan and the heat of the incoming fireball, he swiftly dodged, sidestepping both attacks. But before he could catch his breath, Naruto and Sasuke had already closed in, launching a coordinated taijutsu assault.
Not daring to let his guard down, Kakashi blocked Naruto's frontal strike while counterattacking Sasuke with a punch, sending him flying backward.
Sasuke tumbled several meters before getting back up, unfazed. He clenched his fists tightly, yanking on the steel wire wrapped around Kakashi's body, intending to slice him in half.
With a loud snap, Kakashi's body was severed at the waist.
The scene unfolded before Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura.
As a fresh graduate from the Academy, Sakura had never witnessed such a gruesome sight. Her entire body trembled violently, and she could barely hold onto the kunai in her hand. She stood there in shock, completely frozen, not knowing what to do.
Naruto and Sasuke, however, remained unfazed.
Seeing Kakashi's body split apart, Naruto immediately used sensory abilities to scan the area, while Sasuke activated his Sharingan.
After searching the surroundings and failing to locate Kakashi's chakra, they called out, "Kakashi-sensei, stop hiding. This level of combat should be nothing to you."
A moment later, Kakashi stepped out from the nearby bushes, looking at the two with a calm expression.
"You still saw through it, huh? I thought I could fool you twice with the same trick."
"Kakashi-sensei, don't underestimate us. The same jutsu doesn't work on an Uchiha twice, that's the power of the Sharingan." Sasuke smirked coldly, gripping his kunai and charging at Kakashi.
In his mind, this was his chance, if he could defeat Kakashi here, he'd be one step closer to challenging Itachi.
Kakashi remained motionless, then casually lifted his forehead protector, revealing his own Sharingan.
"You're not the only one with a Sharingan, Sasuke," he said, activating a genjutsu.
Sasuke's body stiffened, and he collapsed onto the ground. Ignoring Sasuke, Kakashi swiftly formed hand seals, electricity crackling in his palm as he swung his arm backward.
With a burst of lightning, Naruto was struck and sent crashing into the ground.
With Naruto and Sasuke both incapacitated, Kakashi turned his attention to the last remaining opponent, Sakura.
It didn't take much effort to render her unable to fight.