Naruto: I'm in Konoha, my name is Uzumaki Menma

Chapter 336 Showing Minato the Treatment of a Hero's Son

On the other side, in the deepest part of the underground city of Loulan.

The place was filled with rich purple chakra, and the air was filled with intense chakra energy fluctuations and the cold aura of metal.

Countless purple optical cables made of dragon vein chakra extended from the ground like the roots of a giant tree, connecting the various precision instruments that were densely packed and constantly flashing around the room, emitting a low hum.

In the very center of the room was a raised platform upon which sat a bed made of an unidentified metal.

At this moment, lying on the bed is a slightly overweight middle-aged man dressed in white desert noble attire.

His eyes were closed, and several thin purple chakra ducts were connected to his forehead. Faint purple patterns flowed on the surface of his skin.

It was An Lushan, the current de facto ruler of the Loulan Kingdom.

Or rather, it is a "centipede" from another parallel universe that arrived here through the dragon vein!
At this moment, An Lushan's tightly closed eyelids trembled slightly, and he suddenly opened them!

His pupils were also flashing with a purple light that originated from the same source as the dragon vein chakra!
Through the chakra link network established with the humanoid combat puppets scattered throughout the city, the battle footage that had just taken place in the Tower Forest area had been transmitted into his mind via chakra data streams.

He saw Naruto, the blond-haired, blue-eyed boy who shone like a little sun, and he also saw the familiar black-haired boy.

“Shura…” An Lushan’s dry lips moved slowly as he uttered the name that had once terrified him. His voice was a mixture of fear, resentment, and a hint of excitement at finally finding his target.

"So you really have... come to this time and space too..."

Ever since he was accidentally transported here from his original timeline by taking advantage of the dragon vein's rampage, Centipede has been using the alias An Lushan and has been lying low in Loulan.

While using the power of the dragon vein to become a minister of Loulan, rapidly developing Loulan's puppet technology and gradually taking control of Loulan, he was also desperately gathering information about Shura.

He wanted to nip Shura in the bud before he could grow up.

However, no matter what methods he used or how much effort he expended, he could not find any information about Shura.

It was as if the man who stirred up trouble in his world didn't exist at all!
This puzzled An Lushan greatly, who wondered if the baby had not yet been born.

This also made An Lushan more vigilant.

“However…” An Lushan’s eyes gleamed with a purple light, his sinister expression almost overflowing: “I wasn’t entirely unprepared!”

He slowly sat up from the metal bed, and as he moved, the purple chakra conduit automatically detached.

An Lushan revealed a ferocious, confident smile.

"I have already transformed the entire city of Loulan into an impregnable war fortress! The city is stockpiled with tens of thousands of the latest combat puppets! Their energy cores are directly connected to the dragon veins, giving them near-infinite combat power! These technologies... are all the essence 'borrowed' from your Star Kingdom!"

He seemed to be showing off to an imaginary enemy in the air.

As he spoke, An Lushan reached out and pressed a red button on the control panel beside the bed.

click-

ka ka ka-

Suddenly, the smooth wall on one side of the secret room slid open to both sides, revealing a hidden compartment.

A figure slowly emerged from the darkness.

That was another "An Lushan"!
They had the same slightly chubby figure, wore the same white clothes, and even their facial expressions were remarkably similar.

However, upon closer inspection, one can see that there are subtle seams at the joints, and the eyes lack true liveliness.

This is an extremely sophisticated puppet!
An Lushan looked at the puppet, his smile growing even more smug, even tinged with madness: "And this! A clone puppet created using another 'me' I found in this time and space, combined with the latest puppet technology and dragon vein chakra! It possesses almost the same combat awareness and chakra manipulation ability as me!"

He clenched his fist, purple chakra faintly rising around him, his tone filled with an unwavering ambition: "As long as I completely destroy you here, Shura! Then no one will be able to stop me from using the power of the Dragon Vein to dominate the entire ninja world! Hahahaha—!!"

Maniacal laughter echoed endlessly in the secret chamber filled with dragon vein chakra.

……

On the other side, on the high tower platform.

When Ma said, "I am the eldest son of the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze," the atmosphere on the platform froze to the extreme.

Even the usually composed Minato was deeply moved at this moment, and fine beads of cold sweat appeared on his forehead.

Akimichi Choza and Aburame Shii looked at each other, seeing the same shock and bewilderment in each other's eyes.

The eldest son of the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze?

However, they recalled the fragmented information they had gathered while investigating Loulan and the legend of the dragon vein.

There are rumors about dragon veins possibly having the ability to interfere with spacetime.

If all of this is true, then it seems not impossible that these two teenagers come from the "future."

However… the future Fourth Hokage doesn’t seem to be quite…

"N-Nii-san?" Naruto was so shocked by Menma's words that he was somewhat incoherent.

His eyes widened as he stared intently at Menma's face, which bore a striking resemblance to his own, his mind in turmoil.

But soon, he shook his head violently and retorted loudly:
"No! This is impossible! The Fourth Hokage... he sacrificed himself to protect the village! The current Hokage of Konoha is the Fifth Hokage, Tsunade! I... I've never heard of having an older brother!"

Menma looked at Naruto's excited yet confused expression and gave him a complex smile that was a mixture of helplessness and tenderness.

“My foolish little brother…” He gently shook his head, his tone carrying a guiding patience.
"Haven't you fully realized it by now?"

He raised his hand and pointed to the towering, futuristic towers around him, then to the distant, faintly visible edge of the desert, and slowly said:

"This is not the time and space you are familiar with. This is... the 47th year of Konoha. The era before the outbreak of the Third Shinobi World War."

"Konoha...47th year?!" Naruto shuddered violently, as if he had been doused with ice water, and abruptly turned to look at Minato Namikaze beside him.

Minato met Naruto's probing gaze, nodded with a complex expression, confirming Menma's statement: "He's right. It is indeed the 47th year of Konoha. I am Namikaze Minato, a Jonin of Konoha, and the current Hokage of Konoha is the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi."

Upon confirming this, Naruto felt a sudden dizziness.

Travel through time?

Could it be the power of the dragon vein?

Naruto recalled the last scene he saw before he lost consciousness: the dragon vein chakra that the centipede had unsealed devoured him and Yamato.

Minato refocused his gaze on Menma, his eyes filled with solemnity and inquiry.

He slowly uttered the question that had been nagging at him: "If you truly come from the future, then everything you've done since arriving in this time and space—"

“Helping the Akatsuki organization in the Land of Rain, changing the landscape of Amegakure, and even potentially causing the death of Hanzo of the Salamander... these actions undoubtedly drastically altered the course of history in this timeline.”

"Aren't you... worried about the serious consequences? Aren't you worried about disrupting or even destroying your 'future'?"

This is precisely what Minato has always been concerned about.

After initially confirming Naruto's possible identity, he chose to remain silent and observe, precisely because of his concerns about the stability of spacetime.

He couldn't understand why Menma, who also came from the "future," acted so recklessly.

Faced with Minato's questioning, Menma simply spread his hands indifferently, shrugged, and spoke as casually as if discussing the weather:
"It's very simple. Because the results of my verification show that Naruto and I do not come from the 'future' of your timeline. We come from a different 'parallel future timeline' that runs parallel to your world."

He used an analogy: "Like different branches from the same big tree, they may look similar, but the direction of their growth, the sunlight and rain they experience, and even the fruit they bear may be completely different. Our time and space is another storyline independent of your timeline."

Upon hearing this, Minato's eyes flashed with a hint of realization, and he nodded solemnly.

As a genius proficient in space-time ninjutsu, he understands the possibility of the concept of "parallel universes" better than ordinary people.

Only this explanation can make sense of why Menma and Naruto appeared, and why Menma didn't seem worried about changing "history".

"Parallel...spacetime?" Naruto listened to the increasingly profound conversation between the two, feeling that his brain had completely turned into mush. He scratched his golden hair vigorously, his face clearly showing that he "didn't understand at all".

"What are you talking about? Parallel futures? Different tree branches?"

Then, he looked at Mianma again:

"You say you're my brother... But in the world where I grew up, no one ever told me I had a brother! Neither the Third Hokage nor the Perverted Sage ever mentioned it! What's going on?" Minato also cast a questioning glance; he was just as curious.

If Menma is a visitor from a parallel universe, then what exactly happened in Menma's universe?
Menma looked into Naruto's clear yet confused blue eyes and sighed softly.

He thought for a moment and decided to answer their questions in a more intuitive way.

Menma raised his right hand, made a fist, and then turned the fist towards Minato and Naruto.

"Words are sometimes inadequate. So, why not see it for yourself?"

His gaze swept over the two of them: "Take a look and see what happened in the 'parallel future' I came from after Minato Namikaze became the Fourth Hokage, and how it differs from Naruto's world."

Naruto hadn't fully grasped the meaning of the action yet. He hadn't reconciled with Kurama and hadn't shared his memories through fist bumps, but Minato almost immediately raised his right fist as well.

As a father, he longs to understand the past and future his child might experience; as a ninja, he needs to determine the truthfulness of Menma's words and what exactly happened to 'the future Konoha'.

Seeing Minato's actions, Naruto, though confused, instinctively clenched his fist and raised it with a hint of curiosity and anticipation.

Three fists, belonging to the father, the elder brother, and the younger brother respectively, gently pressed together.

next moment--

As if a switch had been flipped, a silent torrent instantly swept through Minato and Naruto's consciousness!
Menma did not fully reveal the core secrets of the "Limited Tsukuyomi World" or his own complete origins; these were among his deepest secrets.

He used the power of the secret treasure "The Book of Crimson Moon" that he possessed, combined with some real memories, to weave a "scene" like an immersive movie, which he then transmitted to Minato and Naruto.

In an instant, Minato and Naruto's consciousness were drawn into a narrative torrent constructed of light and shadow.

First, there was the Nine-Tails' rampage.

A delivery room with soft lighting, yet subtly exuding a tense atmosphere.

On the bed, Kushina Uzumaki was pale and exhausted, but she exuded the tenderness and satisfaction of becoming a new mother. There were two swaddled babies beside her, and Minato Namikaze was holding one of the children with joy and clumsiness, his face beaming with immense happiness.

However, this warmth was instantly shattered!
A mysterious figure wearing a tiger-striped mask that only reveals one Sharingan eye appears out of nowhere, kills Sarutobi Biwako, who was responsible for delivering the baby, and another female medical ninja, and steals a baby with lightning speed!
Minato wanted to take the child back, but hesitated because he was also holding another child in his arms.

The masked man then used the baby as a hostage to pressure Minato, after which a massive explosion occurred inside the delivery room!

Minato made a quick decision, using the Flying Thunder God Technique to teleport away with the baby in his arms.

The scene shifts, and Minato hurriedly places the baby in a secluded safe house, his face filled with anxiety and determination, before activating the Flying Thunder God Technique to return.

Meanwhile, the masked man had already kidnapped the weakened Kushina and another child.

Immediately following was a terrifying scene above Konoha Village: the Nine-Tailed Fox suddenly appeared, letting out a deafening roar as it rampaged through the village, each swipe of its claws and tail bringing destruction.

Countless ninjas rushed forward, one after another, but none could stop them.

Minato used his superb Flying Thunder God Technique to fight and contend with the masked man, ultimately defeating him.

But the crisis has not been resolved.

The Nine-Tails' rampage continued, but Minato arrived at the crucial moment and used the Flying Thunder God Technique to teleport it out of the village.

In order to seal the Nine-Tails, Minato held the dying Kushina and the baby Naruto.

The couple looked at each other, their eyes filled with reluctance to part and endless love.

They used sealing techniques: the Corpse Demon Sealing Technique and the Eight Trigrams Sealing Technique.

The enormous Nine-Tails was forcibly torn apart and split. One half, along with Minato's soul, was devoured by the Shinigami, while the other half was sealed into the baby's body.

As the light faded, Minato and Kushina's life force extinguished like a candle flickering in the wind. With their last strength, they left behind words of love and blessing for the infant in their arms...

"Mom..." Naruto murmured unconsciously off-screen, tears streaming uncontrollably down his dusty face.

He stared intently at Kushina's gentle yet strong face in the image, as if trying to imprint the face of this mother, whom he had never met but who had given him life and made sacrifices, deep into his soul.

"This is...my mother..."

Minato, standing to the side, was also deeply moved, his mind immersed in this "future."

He saw his own and Kushina's sacrifice, he saw the baby crying in its swaddling clothes after the Nine-Tails was sealed away, and he saw another child whose fate was uncertain after being taken away by the masked man...

An indescribable heaviness and sorrow almost suffocated him.

The scene changes, and we arrive at the Konoha Orphanage.

Sunlight streamed through the windows into the slightly worn room, where children were playing.

In the corner, a little boy of about two or three years old stood out.

He had half-gold and half-black hair and was playing with building blocks by himself, completely out of place with the lively atmosphere around him.

The kind-hearted orphanage director, Yakushi Nono, walked over, squatted down, and gently spoke to him, curiously touching his hair, which was gradually turning pure black.

Minato and Naruto both recognized the withdrawn child. His features were very similar to those of young Naruto, yet there were some differences; his demeanor was more calm or even aloof.

This is... the child who was taken away by that mysterious person?

Pockmarks on the face in childhood?
In the shadows behind Menma, unnoticed by anyone, a small, dark red fox phantom with lively eyes quietly emerged.

The scene shifts to Menma's mental world, which is not a dark sewer but a vast grassland. The dark red Nine-Tails acts as a playmate and mentor, accompanying young Menma, teaching him to control chakra, and playing with him.

As a result, Menma, at only three or four years old, demonstrated amazing chakra control and learning ability, mastering many basic and even advanced ninjutsu.

"The Nine-Tails? Another Nine-Tails?" Minato and Naruto were both shocked.

Based on the sealing scene we just saw, half of the Nine-Tails should have been sealed inside Minato and taken away by the Shinigami, while the other half was sealed inside Naruto.

Then where did this dark red nine-tailed fox that accompanied Menma's growth and seemed to be completely under his control come from?

The chakra it exuded was completely different from the one that ravaged Konoha.

Time passed, within Konoha Village.

Young Naruto begins to live on his own.

As he walked down the street, he was met not with curiosity, but with disgust, fear, and eyes that he wanted to avoid.

The shop owner, upon seeing him, would immediately put up a "Sold Out" sign; children would be hastily pulled away by adults; whispers would slither into his ears like venomous snakes.

"Look, that's the child..."

"The monster that killed the Fourth Hokage..."

"Stay away from him, he's a nine-tailed fox!"

"I really don't understand why they're still letting him stay in the village..."

Little Naruto walked alone on the empty street, his head down, clutching the hem of his tattered clothes tightly. His figure was desolate.

As Minato watched this scene, his heart felt as if it were being gripped tightly by an invisible hand, and the pain almost suffocated him.

Why is this happening?

My child...

Why am I being treated like this after sacrificing the children I wanted to protect?
The village...didn't it keep its promise?

A mixture of anger, sadness, and deep self-blame surged within him.

As for Naruto himself, looking at the lonely and weak version of himself in the "image," his eyes were filled with complex emotions.

These memories were all too familiar to him; they were practically his daily routine during his childhood.

Seeing it again still makes me sad, but more than that, I feel a numbness that comes with habit, and a subtle concern for my father's reaction at that moment.

However, what happened next brought a turning point.

(End of this chapter)