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

Chapter 210 Menma's Ambition, A New Era for Ninjas!

Menma led Kushina into the living room of Naruto's apartment.

A scent mixed with expired food and long-standing loneliness wafted over, causing Kushina to hold her breath instantly.

The living room was small and cluttered.

An old wooden table was piled with empty milk cartons and instant noodle containers, some of which still contained dried sauce and noodle crumbs.

It attracted several flies, which buzzed and hovered around it.

A few pieces of clothing that had been taken off were scattered in the corner.

The kitchen was in an even worse state, with unwashed dishes piled up in the sink, grease and food scraps covering the stove, and the trash can overflowing.

Kushina's heart felt as if it were being gripped tightly by an icy hand.

She staggered to the table, picked up an empty milk carton with trembling hands, turned it over, and saw that the expiration date had long passed.

She picked up another instant noodle cup. The pungent smell of the cheap seasoning packet mixed with the rancid smell of the overnight soup made her stomach, which had been resurrected, churn.

"Naruto... just eat this much..." Kushina's voice was dry and hoarse, with a heavy sob in it.

She couldn't imagine how Naruto lived in that cold, dirty house day after day.

Her gaze fell on the armrest of the sofa, where a worn-out red scarf was draped.

The scarf's yarn was worn and pilling, the color had faded to white, and some of the edges were even coming undone.

Kushina walked over and carefully picked up the scarf as if it were a rare treasure.

A cold, rough texture came through, and it seemed to still retain a trace of Naruto's aura.

She clutched the scarf tightly to her chest, her cold cheeks pressed against the rough wool. Her body, covered in grime, could not shed tears, but the excruciating pain made her tremble all over.

Menma stood silently to the side, his azure eyes sweeping over the filthy apartment without offering any comment, but a hint of anger flashed deep within his eyes.

Meanwhile, at Konoha Park.

The afternoon sun in winter carried a false warmth, sparsely sprinkling on the snow-covered slides and swings.

There weren't many children in the park; most were bundled up by their parents and playing in a sheltered pavilion.

"Brother Menma! Higher! Higher!" Naruto's excited shouts broke the park's quietness.

He was wearing a faded orange jacket, his little face was red from the cold, but he was radiating pure joy as he sat on a swing, kicking his two short legs with all his might.

Behind him, a numb shadow clone was slowly pushing him.

"Be careful, I won't be responsible if you fall." The shadow clone Menma said in a calm tone, but the way he pushed the swing was just the right amount of force, making Naruto swing even higher.

"I won't fall! I'm going to be the Hokage!" Naruto shouted triumphantly, his blond hair bouncing in the sunlight.

"When I become Hokage, I'll make sure everyone recognizes me! Menma-san, I'll treat you to the best Ichiraku Ramen then! A hundred bowls!"

The shadow clone's numb face seemed to twitch at the corner of its mouth, but it didn't respond to the "hundred bowls" comment.

After playing for a while, Mianma gradually stopped pushing the swing, took out a bag of potato chips from his pocket and handed it over: "Here you go."

"Wow! Thank you, Brother Menma!" Naruto cheered as he took the package, eagerly tore it open, and started munching away, his cheeks bulging like a happy little squirrel.

Only in front of Menma could he temporarily forget the omnipresent cold gazes and harsh words.

Just as Naruto was enjoying his meal, a "woman" wearing a dark green cotton-padded jacket and carrying a simple fruit basket walked over somewhat awkwardly.

Her face was pale with illness, but her eyes were unusually gentle as she looked at the two boys.

“Two…two little brothers,” Kushina’s voice was a little nervous as she tried to make her tone sound natural.

"Would you like to... buy some fruit? It's very fresh..." She handed the fruit basket forward, where bright red apples and golden oranges gleamed enticingly, and several plump, juicy peaches stood out prominently.

When Naruto saw a stranger approaching, he almost reflexively shrank his neck, stopped chewing, and a hint of wariness and unease flashed in his blue eyes. His little hands instinctively gripped the swing ropes.

He was used to being driven away and disliked, and instinctively felt afraid of strangers who approached him.

The shadow clone, Mianma, glanced at the woman, his gaze fixed on the fruit basket she was carrying, and then naturally asked, "How much are the peaches?"

"Huh? Oh... It's... It's very cheap..." Kushina didn't expect the shadow clone to ask the price, and she pointed to the biggest peach in a fluster.

"This... fifty taels each is fine..." The price is ridiculously low.

"Give me two." The shadow clone with pockmarked face took out one hundred taels and handed them over.

Kushina quickly took the money, carefully picked out the two largest and reddest peaches from the fruit basket, wiped them carefully with a clean cloth, and then handed them to the shadow clone Menma.

The shadow clone Menma took the peach, kept one for himself, and stuffed the other into the hand of Naruto, who was still somewhat dazed.

"Here, it's for you."

Naruto stared blankly at the big, red peach in his hand, which exuded a sweet fragrance, and then looked up at the unfamiliar "auntie" in front of him.

Unlike the others, she didn't look at him with disgust. Instead, her eyes seemed to hold something he couldn't understand, but something warm.
Moreover, Brother Mianma gave him the biggest peach to eat!
The overwhelming joy instantly overwhelmed Naruto's vigilance and unease.

A bright, even slightly silly smile bloomed on his little face, and his blue eyes sparkled like a small lake filled with sunlight.

"Thank you, Auntie! Thank you, Brother Mianma!" he said loudly, his voice filled with pure joy.

That "Thank you, Auntie" was like an arrow with barbs, piercing Kushina's heart.

Her pale hands clenched tightly under the fruit basket. She forced a smile, her voice trembling slightly, "You're welcome...eat it...it's very sweet..."

Naruto nodded vigorously, eagerly hugged the big peach, and took a big bite. The sweet juice immediately filled his mouth, and he squinted his eyes happily.

The shadow clone, Menma, glanced at the sky and said to Naruto, "It's getting late, we should head back."

Although Naruto was a little reluctant, he obediently nodded and said, "Okay! Goodbye, Auntie!"

Clutching a half-eaten peach, he skipped and hopped along with Mianma, running away towards the apartment. His golden hair danced in the sunset like a tiny flame.

As Naruto and Menma's figures disappeared into the park, Kushina's tense body suddenly relaxed, and her ashen complexion and the tear stains and scraps of paper at the corners of her eyes reappeared.

She gazed greedily in the direction Naruto and Menma had left, as if she wanted to etch that small figure into her soul forever.

The original body of Masa silently emerged from behind the bushes in the park and came to Kushina's side.

"Thank you..." Kushina's voice was terribly hoarse. She turned her head and looked deeply into her eldest son beside her with her gray eyes, which were filled with indescribable gratitude and complicated pain.

"Thank you... for taking care of Naruto all this time... for giving him... at least a little warmth."

Menma's gaze fell on the street corner where Naruto had disappeared in the distance:

"After all, he is my younger brother."

As night fell, Konoha Village was illuminated by lights, but they could not dispel the coldness and disappointment that had settled deep in Kushina's heart.

Menma led her back to an open area where she could see the Hokage Rock.

The massive stone sculpture stood silently in the night, the water gate's head appearing somewhat blurry in the shadows.

Kushina wrapped her cotton-padded coat tighter and looked up at her husband's statue. Her impure body felt no cold, but her heart was colder than the winter night.

What she witnessed firsthand in Konoha was a place shrouded in suspicion, indifference, and gossip, a place cruelly neglected by the orphans of heroes.

All of this was far removed from the vibrant village she remembered, a village that, while having its share of conflicts, was generally united.

Is this the place that Shuimen protected with his life?

A deep sense of disappointment gripped her soul, followed by a wavering of her past choices. Was sacrificing herself and her child for the village truly worth it?
If... if they had made other choices back then, would Naruto and Menma have been spared all this suffering?

"Mom, it's time to go back." A hand was placed on Kushina's shoulder, and Menma's voice sounded beside her.

Kushina took one last deep look at Minato's statue, as if she wanted to imprint all her questions and resentment onto the stone.

The two then disappeared into the winter night of Konoha.

Star City, Menma's mansion courtyard.

On the veranda, Kushina removed her dark green cotton-padded coat and illusion disguise, revealing her withered body and cracked face reborn through Edo Tensei.

She stood silently by the veranda, gazing at the night view, so different from that of Konoha.

The administrative and military districts are situated on higher ground, allowing Kushina to see directly from her courtyard the distant lights of countless homes, which, like a galaxy fallen to earth, are dazzling, vibrant, and full of life.

The lampposts, like glowing ribbons, connect the towering modern buildings.

Even on a winter night, the streets are still bustling with traffic, and the lively sounds of the commercial district can be faintly heard in the distance.

A warm, bustling, and hopeful atmosphere swept over her, creating a stark contrast to the cold and oppressive Konoha she had just left.

"Menma..." Kushina's voice rang out in the silent courtyard, carrying a heavy tone: "Your ambition... must be very great, right?"

She turned around, her gray, earth-stained eyes meeting the calm, deep blue eyes of the boy beside her: "To build such a nation... to gather such power... what you want to do is far more than just to live in seclusion."

Mianma met her mother's gaze without looking away.

He walked to the edge of the corridor and stood side by side with Kushina, both gazing at the brightly lit city that belonged to him.

The night breeze ruffled his black, tousled hair, making the young man's handsome profile appear exceptionally deep in the light and shadow.

“Ambition?” Menma’s voice was deep and clear.

"I just... want to end this chaotic era."

He raised his hand, pointing to the distant, dazzling city of stars, or perhaps to the vast, war-torn ninja world: "Ninja clans stand side by side, the five great nations are locked in a power struggle, and smaller nations are on the verge of collapse... Hatred is like a plague, passed down through generations in killing and betrayal, without end. Every brief period of peace is merely the prelude to the next, even larger war."

His tone carried a vision far ahead of his time: "I want to break all of this. To make the ninja world have only one country, one unified will. To make all ninjas belong to one ninja village and act under one system. To reduce those pointless hatreds and wars caused by region, clan, and country to a minimum."

He paused, his gaze becoming even more profound, as if piercing through the bustling night scene before him: "Then... concentrate all the power and wisdom of humanity, no longer wasting time killing each other, but developing together. Let chakra no longer be merely a tool for killing, let ninjutsu... serve the survival and prosperity of all humanity."

Kushina listened quietly, her resurrected face filled with shock.

Unify the ninja world?

What an astonishing and extraordinary ambition!
This is even grander and more radical than the original plan established by the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju, when he founded Konoha and divided the land into Tailed Beasts!
Looking at her son's calm yet incredibly determined profile, she felt for the first time so clearly that the little baby who never cried or fussed had grown into a giant capable of stirring up the entire ninja world.

"This...this is too..." Kushina couldn't find the right words to describe the shock she felt.

"You find it unbelievable?" Menma turned his head, a faint smile playing on his lips, a hint of youthful slyness in his expression. "Want to see for yourself... another way the power of the ninja is used in this new era?"

Kushina was still immersed in the overwhelming wave of "unifying the ninja world," and upon hearing this, she subconsciously nodded, her eyes filled with intense curiosity.

A new era application of ninjas?
Her education at the Konoha Ninja Academy and her life experiences of over twenty years left her puzzled.

Besides fighting and missions, what else can ninjas do?
Menma reached out and gently grasped Kushina's cold wrist.

The next moment, the two disappeared into the corridor!
The slight dizziness from the spatial shift subsided, and a biting mountain wind, carrying snowflakes, rushed towards me.

Kushina found herself standing on a steep, hillside platform.

Beneath our feet lies a bottomless, dark canyon, and in our ears comes a deafening roar, like ten thousand horses galloping!

That was the sound of a rushing river roaring and crashing through a narrow channel.

She instinctively pulled her cloak tighter around herself and looked ahead. The sight before her made her hold her breath, her gray eyes widening to their limit in shock!
The Youhe Canyon becomes exceptionally wide here.

The steep mountain walls on both sides, as if cleaved by a giant axe, are now illuminated as bright as day by countless dazzling lights!

The mountainside on their side of the canyon was being massively leveled and reshaped; an unimaginably huge project was underway!

At the entrance to the canyon, a huge metal sign with flashing lights stands: [Star Kingdom First Construction Group - Youhe Dam Project Command].

As far as the eye can see, there is a dense yet orderly flow of people and machinery, like ants!

On a gentle slope near the riverbank, a dozen ninjas dressed in Star Ninja vests were forming a large circle.

They pressed their hands to the ground, their chakra surging throughout their bodies, and chanted in unison: "Earth Release: Earth Tremor Core!"

Rumble!
With a dull, loud thud, the large swathes of rock ahead seemed to be manipulated by an invisible giant hand, and began to rise, sink, and be shaped in a regular manner!
Hard rock, under their combined efforts, became as soft as mud, and was shaped into the solid foundation and diversion channel required for the huge dam!
Another team of Water Release ninjas stood on a makeshift platform, forming hand seals towards the surging current of the Nether River below: "Water Release: Water Wall Technique!"

It was no longer an offensive water escape technique, but rather several massive walls of water that were precisely guided and diverted!
The raging river was forcibly restrained and tamed, flowing into two wide artificial waterways that had just been dug and reinforced by earth-elemental ninjas, according to the planned route, thus freeing up valuable dry land for the main dam construction area!

The massive crane boom hummed as it precisely lifted precast reinforced concrete components, the size of houses, into their designated positions.

Wearing orange reflective vests and hard hats, the workers moved like worker ants among the steel skeletons and concrete jungles, and the welding sparks twinkled like stars in the night.

The deafening sounds of pile driving, the roar of machinery, the whistles of the commanders, and the commands from the loudspeakers intertwined to form a breathtaking "construction symphony"!
What Kushina found even more incredible was that ninjas and ordinary people were not separated here, but worked closely together!

An experienced engineer, holding blueprints, was explaining the mechanical requirements for the next stage of bedrock reinforcement to a young ninja who had just finished using Earth Release and was sweating profusely.

The ninja listened attentively, nodding occasionally, and offered suggestions for adjusting chakra output.

Several workers pushed a cart loaded with building materials, which were easily transported to a higher place by a wind-style ninja using "Wind Release: Airflow Manipulation".

You can even see several medical ninjas moving around the construction site, ready to provide quick treatment to workers who accidentally get hurt.

Here, the extraordinary power of ninjas is no longer a weapon for reaping lives, but a great tool for moving mountains, filling seas, and transforming nature!

It is the core engine driving the project forward at high speed!

"This is the canyon area in the upper reaches of the Youhe River. Winter is the dry season, with the smallest water flow, making it the most suitable time for the foundation construction of such large-scale water conservancy projects." Menma's voice rang in Kushina's ears, drowning out the roar of the canyon.

He pointed to the outline of the massive dam below, brightly lit and rapidly "growing" in the canyon like a steel behemoth, his tone calm yet carrying a sense of power to control the future.

"The direct involvement of Earth Release and Water Release ninjas has changed the traditional engineering process that required lengthy blasting and excavation. Their power has increased the construction speed by more than 300%, or even more." Menma's gaze swept over the ninjas who were altering the terrain amidst the chakra light.

"Once this dam is completed, its generators will be able to stably supply the electricity needs of a massive city with a population of one million. This will make electricity no longer a privilege reserved for large cities and a few ninja villages, but a source of light for every ordinary family."

He paused, then pointed to the vast plains slumbering in the night, faintly visible downstream of the canyon:

"More importantly, the dam's enormous reservoir capacity, combined with a sophisticated irrigation system, will provide stable and abundant agricultural water for thousands of square kilometers of plains downstream. With guaranteed harvests regardless of drought or flood, grain production will be fundamentally guaranteed. Sufficient food supplies will ensure social stability and enable the development of more industries."

Kushina stood blankly in the biting mountain wind, gazing at the magnificent construction site below, brightly lit and bustling with activity.

The deafening roar of machinery and the chakra fluctuations from ninja techniques struck her heart, frozen by the coldness and cruelty of Konoha, like the most powerful drumbeats.

She never imagined that ninjas could be used in this way.
She witnessed firsthand another possibility for the power of ninjas beyond the battlefield: creation, construction, and a power capable of changing the face of the world! A power that benefits all living beings!
This was completely different from what she had known about the ninja career and the deep-seated problems in Konoha that she had witnessed!

Mianma's words echoed in her mind: "End the war," "Unify the will," "Concentrate the strength," and "Develop together."

These concepts, which were originally grand and elusive, have now become incredibly clear and real in the face of this magnificent landscape that moves mountains and tames rivers!
She slowly turned her head, her gray eyes, clouded with grime, gazing intently at her son beside her, whose face was calm yet whose gaze seemed to pierce through to the future.

That young face didn't have Minato's warm, sunny smile, but it possessed a deeper, more resolute confidence that was enough to bear the future of the entire ninja world.

The cold wind in the canyon whipped her red hair and cloak, making them flutter loudly.

In the distance, the outline of the dam, illuminated by countless lights, resembles a giant dragon about to awaken, lying across the Youhe River and between the canyons.

She felt a faint sense of anticipation for the new era of ninjas that Menma had described—a time without wars between nations and ninja villages, where everyone lived in harmony.

(End of this chapter)