I Am Uzumaki Menma

Chapter 318 318 Yin Nine-Tails: Impossible! Absolutely Impossible!

Star City, early morning.

Sunlight streamed down onto the clean, wide streets.

A stark contrast to the desolate poverty of the Land of Wind, this new city built upon the former capital of Land of Bears was brimming with vitality and order.

Towering spires and buildings with a technological aesthetic stood in orderly clusters. The streets were lined with shady trees, and even a meticulously planned waterway system ran through the city, bringing a touch of coolness.

Pedestrians walked briskly, yet their expressions were calm. The air was filled with a thriving, upwardly mobile energy.

In the Hyuga Clan's residential area, inside a typical residence blending traditional Japanese and modern styles.

Hizashi put down the newspaper in his hand and sighed softly.

The front-page headline was an urgent announcement about the Land of Wind's declaration of war and the Land of Stars entering a 'preparatory war mobilization state'.

The shadow of war had finally fallen upon this land he had chosen to settle in.

"Father, when can I graduate from the Ninja Academy?" The crisp voice of Neji, sitting across from him, broke the quiet at the breakfast table as he put down his bowl and chopsticks.

At just seven years old, he was exceptionally talented and had experienced the Night of Betrayal. His Byakugan already showed a sharp edge. The Academy's curriculum was far too elementary for him.

He yearned for real combat, to prove his worth.

Hizashi looked at his son's determined white eyes, a complex mix of emotions in his heart.

He put down the newspaper, his tone gentle but firm. "Soon, Neji. The situation is changing. Perhaps... sooner than you think."

He didn't want his young son to bear the cruelty of war too early, but as members of the Hyuga Clan's branch family who had escaped the 'cage', war was the fastest path to growth and the quickest way for their Hyuga Clan to integrate into the Land of Stars.

After bidding farewell to his wife and child and stepping outside, Hizashi took a deep breath of the cool morning air.

The Hyuga Clan's compound faced the Uchiha clan's across the street. This deliberately arranged layout seemed to metaphorically represent a certain subtle balance and competition.

"Hizashi-senpai." A slightly tired yet still clear voice came from beside him.

Hizashi turned to see Shisui approaching quickly.

Shisui was wearing the dark blue uniform of the Star Ninja Police Force, over the standard Jonin flak jacket. He had noticeable dark circles under his eyes, but his gaze remained sharp and focused.

"Oh, it's you, Shisui." Hizashi nodded slightly, and the two naturally fell into step beside each other, heading towards the central administrative building.

"You look like you were up late again last night? The pressure must be high since the preparatory mobilization order was issued."

Shisui rubbed the space between his eyebrows and gave a wry smile. "That's an understatement... Maintaining order in the provinces, increasing patrols, monitoring suspicious individuals, cooperating with intelligence to screen for potential spies, and having to draft personnel to supplement the border patrols... There's just too much." (T/N: Changing County to Province.)

"Indeed. After all, the police department of the Land of Stars isn't just managing one village." As Deputy Chief of the Police Department, Hizashi felt a twitch in his temple just thinking about the scope of the department's authority.

Initially, he and Shisui had thought they were only managing the Star City. Only after starting did they realize how massive and complex the internal security of a nation of over sixteen million people was.

The affairs handled by the Konoha's Military Police Force were like a tiny sesame seed compared to those of the Land of Stars' Police Department.

Shisui chuckled, then his voice lowered, tinged with worry. "Hizashi-senpai, I have a very bad feeling about this... This probably isn't just a preparatory mobilization. Real war might be coming very soon."

The two walked in silence for a while.

They were both Ninja who had experienced the Third Great Ninja War, having witnessed its brutality and ruthlessness firsthand.

That oppressive feeling before the storm was all too familiar.

In the emergency conference room on the top floor of the administrative building, the atmosphere was so heavy it was almost suffocating.

A high-level meeting deciding the fate of the Land of Stars was being held here.

The attendees comprised the current core leadership of the Land of Stars:

Kanon, Hikari, Oyashiro En, Kisame, Shisui, Hizashi, Miroku, Nono, Gotta, Yosei, and several other heads of important departments.

But the most striking figure was the man with brilliant golden hair and a gentle, handsome face sitting to the right of the head seat: Namikaze Minato.

"Everyone, please take your seats quickly." Minato's warm smile dispelled a bit of the tension.

"Yes, Minato-sama!" Shisui, Hizashi, and the others who had just entered bowed slightly to Minato.

For the high-ranking members of the Land of Stars, the special status of this reanimated Fourth Hokage as a sort of 'retired emperor' was no longer a secret.

Especially for Shisui and Hizashi. After the initial shock, they couldn't help but speculate about Shura's true identity.

However, out of reverence for Shura, everyone maintained a tacit silence, never broaching the topic.

When Menma was not in the Star City, most daily administrative affairs were actually handled by Minato.

Initially, Minato thought it would be like his time as Hokage in Konoha, with his main focus on Ninja Missions and village defense.

However, when he truly began dealing with the comprehensive governance of a nation with over sixteen million people and an expanding territory, he deeply experienced its weight and complexity.

Every day, just reviewing the piles of documents submitted from the various provinces and government departments was immense, covering politics, economics, military, diplomacy, civil affairs, and more.

Fortunately, the Land of Stars had a far more efficient and professional administrative system than the era of Ninja Villages. The Administrative Department and its subordinate branches could handle the vast majority of daily affairs. What reached him were mostly major issues involving strategic decisions, usually accompanied by detailed analysis reports and multiple contingency plans, greatly easing his decision-making pressure.

Even so, Minato often felt the weight of his responsibility.

When encountering matters with wide-ranging, profound implications that even he found difficult to weigh quickly, he could only choose to temporarily set them aside, leaving them to the shadow clones Menma had left behind or waiting for Menma's return to decide personally.

Minato had once asked Menma why he didn't use more shadow clones for administrative work, since his clones were spread throughout the nation.

Menma had replied, 'Of course, it's so Dad can understand the differences between this country and others better. And we can't have shadow clones handle everything, right? What if I'm not around?'

This experience of 'acting as ruler' gave Minato a new, deeper understanding of governing a nation.

Now, as Minato watched Kanon at the head seat and listened to her clear, calm voice announce, "The Land of Wind has formally declared war on our Land of Stars," he instinctively frowned.

War... that word carried too many heavy memories for him.

He had personally experienced the brutality of the Second Great Ninja War and had led Konoha's defense and counterattacks during the Third.

He had witnessed countless Ninja and civilians lose their lives in the flames of war, homes turned to scorched earth, and how the chain of hatred linked one ring to the next.

Deep down, he held a natural wariness and aversion to war.

What worried him more was whether this conflict between the Land of Wind and the Land of Stars would, like the Land of Rain in the past, become a massive powder keg, ultimately igniting a Fourth Great Ninja War that would sweep across the entire ninja world.

"According to Shura-sama's latest command," Kanon's voice pulled Minato from his thoughts, "The Land of Stars is now formally entering a state of total war!"

Her voice echoed in the silent conference room, each word carrying immense weight.

"All registered Ninja, as well as quasi-military personnel like the Police Force, will be fully mobilized and placed under the unified command and dispatch of the Military Minister, Uchiha Hikari. The national economy, civil affairs, and all other aspects will simultaneously transition to a wartime control track."

Then, Kanon picked up a prepared document and began reading the specific wartime decrees item by item:

"One: Implement a unified grain control and rationing system, prioritizing the supply for the military and the production of important strategic materials."

"Two: Restrict all non-essential entry and exit activities effective immediately. Strengthen border control."

"Three: All Chakra Storage Devices domestically will be subject to wartime rationing, prioritizing use for defensive barriers, communication networks, and military purposes."

"Four: Implement curfews around major cities and important facilities. Specific times will be announced by local security departments."

"Five: Fully activate all underground civil defense facilities. Formulate detailed public evacuation and shelter plans."

"Six: All domestic news dissemination organizations, including newspapers, radio, and television, must have one hundred percent of their content reviewed by the Propaganda Division of the Administrative Department. Temporarily restrict the proportion of non-military social and civil news reports."

"Seven: Activate the highest counter-espionage contingency plan. Anbu and Police Forces will conduct joint operations to severely crack down on all infiltration and sabotage activities by hostile forces."

…

One decree after another was clearly stated, outlining a grim picture of total war.

The expressions of all the ministers present were extremely grave, but there was also a thirst for military merit, especially among the recently-joined Uchiha and Hyuga Clans.

Since its founding, the Land of Stars had experienced military actions like annexing neighboring small countries and exterminating the Yukigakure.

But the scale and intensity of those battles were completely incomparable to the upcoming total war with one of the Five Great Nations, the Land of Wind.

This was the first true test of a great nation war since the country's founding!

After listening to this series of decrees, the worry in Minato's heart deepened.

These measures were undoubtedly meant to concentrate the nation's strength to face the war, but they would also massively impact the lives of ordinary citizens and could even cause social unrest.

He couldn't help but speak up, a trace of barely perceptible urgency in his voice:

"Kanon... Men... Cough... Shura-sama, how long until he returns?"

During this over a year of 'acting as ruler', Minato had personally witnessed the Land of Stars' miraculous rise.

Especially after annexing the Land of Marsh, Land of Darkness, and Land of Snow, he saw how those commoners, once impoverished under noble oppression and displaced by war, were allocated their own land in this new nation, freed from heavy taxes, their lives visibly improving at a rapid pace.

The entire country was filled with a thriving vitality, a sense of hope belonging to the vast majority of ordinary people that he had never felt, even in Konoha.

This nation, forged by his son's own hands, and the new atmosphere it displayed… breaking the old order, pursuing equality and development, had deeply moved both him and Kushina.

From initial shock and confusion, to gradual understanding and acceptance, and now, a strong desire welled up from the depths of Minato's heart.

He wanted to protect this country, to protect this hard-won, hopeful vision.

Hikari took over, explaining, "Minato-sama, Shura-sama is currently still in the Sea of Death within the Land of Wind. He is there suppressing the Ten-Tails. It was because of this that he encountered the elite force sent by Sunagakure, leading to the conflict and subsequently Sunagakure's declaration of war."

"Ten-Tails?!"

This unfamiliar term exploded like thunder in the meeting room!

Everyone present, including Minato, showed expressions of astonishment and confusion.

Those present either hailed from great Ninja Villages or were widely knowledgeable, so they naturally knew the Tailed Beasts were considered the ultimate weapons of the villages.

But common knowledge stated there were only Tailed Beasts from One-Tail to Nine-Tails. What was this suddenly emerging 'Ten-Tails'?

Minato's shock was especially deep!

Because sealed within him was half of the Nine-Tails' Chakra… the Yin Nine-Tails!

He almost immediately felt the violently fluctuating emotions of the Yin Nine-Tails in his mental world!

'Impossible! Absolutely impossible!' The roar from behind the seal gate exploded in Minato's mind. The massive fox face was filled with disbelief and a near-panicked rage. 'The Ten-Tails died long ago! It can't possibly reappear! Nonsense!!'

Minato forcibly suppressed the shockwaves in his heart and urgently asked in his consciousness: 'Kurama, did the Ten-Tails truly exist?'

'...' The Yin Nine-Tails was silent for a moment, then roared even more violently: 'That thing existed a thousand years ago, even older than the Sage of Six Paths! But... but it was already...'

Its words cut off abruptly, as if realizing it had said too much, then changed tack, emphasizing fiercely: 'Anyway, it died long ago! Vanished completely! How could it appear now?!'

The Yin Nine-Tails' words were three parts truth, seven parts falsehood.

It omitted the core secret that the Nine Tailed Beasts were all separated from the Ten-Tails, only vaguely mentioning the Ten-Tails' ancient origins and 'death'.

After all, its relationship with Minato, while much improved from the beginning, was far from the level of complete trust seen in the original Fourth Great Ninja War, where they could cooperate fully against enemies, even allowing Minato to use the Nine-Tails Chakra Mode.

The Yin Nine-Tails was instinctively wary, unwilling to reveal too many secrets concerning the origin of the Tailed Beasts.

However, even this equivocal, half-true information was enough to send Minato's mind reeling!

'A thousand years ago?'

'Older than the Sage of Six Paths, the founder of Ninshu?'

'How did Menma learn of this terrifying existence, which left almost no trace even in legend?'

'Not only did he know, he was actually trying to capture it?!'

Minato knew his son had many secrets, but this was too much...

Just as the atmosphere in the conference room became abnormally oppressive due to the words 'Ten-Tails', the internal telephone on the desk in front of Kanon suddenly rang, breaking the silence.

Kanon immediately picked up the receiver. "Uzumaki Kanon speaking."

A respectful report came from the other end.

As Kanon listened, the grave expression on her face eased slightly. She put down the receiver, her gaze sweeping over those present, her voice carrying a note of relief:

"Everyone, I've just received a report from the police department in the military district..."

She paused, then announced:

"Shura-sama has returned."

The meeting was immediately adjourned.

All high-level personnel, led by Kanon and Hikari, quickly left the administrative building and headed for the nearby military district.

In front of the grand main gate of the military district, constructed from sturdy rock and metal, the guarding Star Ninjas stood tall, their eyes filled with reverence and fervor for the one about to arrive.

Menma's figure stood there.

He still wore his black robe with red trim, his expression calm, as if he had just completed an ordinary trip.

And in his arms, he held a red-haired boy with heavy dark circles, currently looking around uneasily… Gaara.

By his side stood two women.

One was Shizune, holding a pink-and-white pig, looking somewhat nervous and curious.

The other was Tsunade, with her striking golden hair and impressive figure, examining the surrounding unique, functional, and futuristic buildings with undisguised curiosity and scrutiny.

Menma was speaking to Tsunade. "Then we'll part ways here. The Star City is quite large. You're free to look around, as long as you avoid military restricted zones and other clearly designated off-limits areas. However, due to the recent situation, a curfew might be implemented. It should return to normal in a few days after matters are dealt with."

His tone was flat, seemingly unwilling to let the war overly disrupt the nation's normal operation and vitality.

In his heart, he already had a plan to end this war quickly, and was even considering how to make the Land of Wind pay for this provocation, perhaps by ceding some territory.

Just then, Kanon, Minato, Hikari, Shisui, Hizashi, and the other leaders of the Land of Stars had arrived at the main gate.

"Shura-sama!" Led by Kanon and Hikari, everyone bowed deeply to Menma, their attitude extremely respectful.

Hikari's gaze first fell on Gaara in Menma's arms, a flicker of confusion in her eyes.

But when her gaze turned to the golden-haired, excessively busty, strikingly beautiful woman beside Menma, an undisguised hostility instantly surged from her!

Her Sharingan activated unconsciously, the three tomoes even spinning slightly faster!

'Who was this woman?'

'Why was she with Menma?!'

However, Tsunade's shock at this moment was a hundred times stronger than Hikari's!

She could understand Shisui and Hizashi being here, but she couldn't comprehend the golden-haired figure in the crowd!

Her gaze, as if drawn by a magnet, was fixed fixedly on that familiar yet unfamiliar, gentle and handsome face, and that signature brilliant golden hair...

"Th-the Fourth... Fourth Hokage-sama?!!" Shizune couldn't control her exclamation.