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

Chapter 233 A Family of Four

His gaze swept over everyone present, finally landing on Uchiha Hikaru, and he asked, "Hikaru, what is the exact number and rank distribution of the registered Star Ninja Army professional ninjas?"

Uchiha Hikaru had already memorized the data and immediately reported clearly: "The original Hoshigakure had a base of 264 people. After several years of training, absorbing wandering ninjas, and incorporating some small country ninja clans, the total number of registered professional ninjas is now 452. Among them, there are 334 genin, 89 chunin, 20 special jonin, and 9 jonin."

Her voice was steady, carrying a hint of the competence of a commander.

After listening to Uchiha Hikaru's report on the current situation of the Star Ninja Army, Menma quickly made a mental calculation.

Four hundred and fifty-two registered professional ninjas—this number is already impressive for a newly emerging nation, but it is still insufficient in the face of the potential Fourth Shinobi World War, which could see a combined ninja army of tens of thousands.

Mianma was quickly calculating in his mind.

Once deployed, the chakra-powered armor will bring revolutionary improvements.

Those 334 genin will collectively rise to the level of chunin; 89 chunin will be comparable to special jonin in combat power; and those 20 special jonin will be able to briefly unleash combat power comparable to jonin!

As for the existing nine Jonin, although the chakra-powered armor provides relatively limited direct enhancement to them, it can still improve their sustained combat capabilities and survivability.

This is a technology powerful enough to change the balance of power in the entire ninja world!

"Very good." Menma's voice came through the mask, issuing various instructions: "Order the Research Department to expand the production scale of chakra-powered armor to the fullest extent while ensuring quality. Allocate resources to prioritize the needs of production line expansion and technical worker training."

He then turned to Kisame Hoshigaki, who stood like a statue to the side: "Kisame, you are in charge of selecting a group of elites with firm will and outstanding strength from the Star Ninja Army to supplement the Anbu. At the same time, select a group of experienced veterans from the existing Anbu personnel and reorganize them back into the Star Ninja Army to serve as instructors."

"This training team, directly led by Guang, has the primary task of comprehensively improving the basic combat capabilities, tactical skills, and teamwork abilities of ordinary ninjas in the Star Ninja Army. We cannot allow our soldiers to become overly reliant on equipment and neglect their own fundamentals."

"Yes, sir!" Kisame Hoshigaki responded in a low voice, a hint of excitement showing on his shark-like face. He was very interested in selecting and training elites.

Menma's gaze then turned to the calmly listening Vanilla Uzumaki: "Vanilla, you are responsible for selecting a group of the most outstanding, loyal, and determined ordinary people from the grassroots police force. They will form a special 'Special Police Experimental Unit,' and will be the first to be equipped with 'Chakra Type 1' powered armor."

"Then, according to the standards of genin, no, even more rigorously, we will conduct comprehensive military training for them. I want to see what kind of combat power a force composed entirely of ordinary people equipped with chakra-powered armor can achieve."

"Understood, sir. I will immediately formulate a detailed selection and training plan." Vanilla Uzumaki pushed up her glasses and calmly accepted the order.

This mission is of great significance, as it relates to a new direction for the future expansion of the Star Kingdom's manpower.

It is necessary not only to summarize how long it takes for ordinary people who have received training to reach the combat power of ordinary genin after being equipped with chakra-powered armor, but also to determine what kind of ordinary people are suitable to be equipped with chakra-powered armor.

The group obeyed and left, leaving the experimental site empty once again.

Menma and Uchiha Hikaru also left the research area, walking towards home in the evening sunset.

The setting sun stretched their shadows very long.

Uchiha Hikaru turned his head slightly, looking at Menma beside him who had removed his Three-Eyed Fox mask, revealing his handsome profile. After hesitating for a moment, he asked, "Menma, who exactly was that guy who attacked us last time?"

"And those puppets he controlled, those eyes... they gave me a very strange and powerful feeling. Were they... the eyes of the legendary Sage of Six Paths?"

The oppressive and eerie feeling that the Rinnegan gave her remains vivid in her memory to this day.

Menma, with his hands in his pockets and a leisurely pace, sighed softly upon hearing this and explained, "His name is Uzumaki Nagato. He is a remnant of the Uzumaki clan who was lost to the outside world. In a sense, he is also a pitiful person. His life has been almost entirely lived under the deception and manipulation of others."

He paused, organizing his thoughts: "The four puppets that came last time are known as the 'Six Paths of Pain.' Their predecessors were the core members of the first 'Akatsuki' organization. That organization was originally founded by Nagato and his two close friends—Yahiko and Konan—with the initial goal of bringing peace to the Land of Rain, which was suffering from war."

Uchiha Hikaru listened quietly, a flicker of emotion passing through his crimson eyes.

Is it an organization established for the sake of peace in a war-torn country?
This reminded her of some distant memories.

“But,” Menma’s tone turned cold, “their ideals were crushed by Hanzo and Danzo working together. Yahiko died in that conspiracy. And afterwards, a guy hiding in the shadows—”

"It's that masked man who called himself 'Uchiha Madara' last time, Uchiha Obito."

"He attacked the first Akatsuki members, leading Nagato to believe that Hanzo had colluded with Konoha to kill Yahiko and his comrades, thus forging a temporary cooperation with him. The bodies of the Six Paths of Pain were made from the remains of Yahiko and other deceased Akatsuki members."

"As for those eyes," Menma confirmed Hikaru's guess, "they are indeed the Rinnegan of the Sage of Six Paths. But Nagato didn't awaken them on his own; someone else transplanted them into him when he was young. They used the Uzumaki clan's vast chakra and life force to nurture these eyes that didn't originally belong to him."

“Transplantation?” Uchiha Hikaru keenly caught the word, her delicate brows furrowing slightly. “Those eyes… I always felt that they seemed to have some kind of deep connection with the Sharingan?”

Menma gave her an approving look: "Your perception is very sharp."

"That's right. Theoretically, the Rinnegan can evolve from the Sharingan. And the pair on Nagato's body belonged to the real Uchiha Madara. He finally awakened these legendary eyes after fusing with Hashirama Senju's cells in his later years."

"Evolution?" Uchiha Hikaru asked incredulously, "Uchiha Madara?"

"Nagato is very strong, but it seems... compared to that masked man from last time, um, Obito Uchiha, right? There doesn't seem to be a significant gap between them? Obito only has the Mangekyou Sharingan."

“Because Nagato isn’t at his peak right now,” Menma explained. “His physical body has become emaciated and his life force severely depleted due to the long-term excessive chakra extraction to power the Gedo Mazo. Furthermore, in the battle that destroyed Akatsuki, his legs were blown off by explosive tags, rendering him unable to move freely and only able to control the Pain puppets. Even so, with his Rinnegan and Uzumaki clan physique, he remains one of the strongest ninjas in the world. Of course…”

Mianma paused, then said with absolute confidence, "This ranking has to exclude the two of us."

Upon hearing this, Uchiha Hikaru's lips curled into a barely perceptible smile. Then, recalling the details of the battle, he commented, "However, his fighting style feels very... um..."

She couldn't find the right words for a moment.

“Very ‘simple,’ or rather ‘rough,’ right?” Menma replied with a smile, hitting the nail on the head.

"After all, Nagato had not undergone systematic and formal ninja training. The power he gained from the Rinnegan was too sudden and overwhelming, which made many of his tactics and techniques very direct, even clumsy. He relied more on the various strange and powerful abilities of the Rinnegan and the immortality of the Six Paths of Pain to numerically overwhelm his opponents. He was a typical 'stronger than the weaker' type."

As he spoke, Menma seemed to recall something amusing and muttered under his breath, "Speaking of which, Nagato's best record seems to have been achieved after he was controlled by Kabuto using the Impure World Reincarnation... As for his own skill level..."

He shook his head, the unspoken message clear.

Although Uchiha Hikaru didn't fully understand the strange terms "powerful brick-throwing" and "skill level," he understood what Menma meant and couldn't help but smile.

As they chatted and laughed, the two had already arrived at their doorstep.

Warm light shone through the window, and the enticing aroma of food wafted through the air.

Uchiha Hikari suddenly stopped, a rare blush and nervousness appearing on her face. She tugged at Menma's sleeve and whispered, "Um... Menma, your mother is still at home... I... I think I'll go back to my own home first..."

The thought of having dinner with Menma's mother, Aunt Kushina, who seemed gentle but always gave off a slightly fierce vibe, made her feel completely flustered. Menma, however, took her slightly cool hand in return, his grip gentle yet firm.

He looked into her slightly flustered eyes and smiled, "What are you afraid of? We'll be living together anyway. Come on, today is a good day to formally introduce you to a new family member."

“New…family?” Uchiha Hikaru blinked, her nervousness replaced by curiosity, and let Menma lead her through the door.

As he changed his shoes in the entryway, Menma, following his understanding of family etiquette, naturally announced, "We're back!"

Uchiha Hikaru paused for a moment, looked at Menma's profile, and followed suit, saying in a slightly awkward but clear tone, "I...we're back."

This feeling of being waited for and having to report when you get home is both unfamiliar and slightly heartwarming to her, who has been an orphan since childhood and was later sealed away for hundreds of years.

"Oh my, you're back just in time!" Kushina, wearing a green apron, poked her head out of the kitchen with a warm smile on her face. "Go wash your hands and get ready, the food will be ready soon!"

“Okay, Mom/Aunt Kushina,” the two replied.

While washing his hands in the restroom, Uchiha Hikaru looked at his slightly flushed cheeks in the mirror, took a deep breath, and tried to appear more composed.

When they entered the restaurant, several delicious-looking dishes were already laid out on the table.

At the table, a handsome man with bright blond hair was sitting reading a newspaper.

Hearing footsteps, he put down his newspaper, looked up, and revealed a pair of gentle gray eyes and a warm, welcoming smile.

"Welcome home," Minato Namikaze said with a smile, his gaze gently falling on the two of them, lingering especially on Uchiha Hikaru for a moment.

Menma pulled the somewhat stiff Uchiha Hikari to sit down opposite Minato, and then introduced her: "Hikari, this is my father, Namikaze Minato."

Then he said to Minato, "Dad, this is Uchiha Hikaru."

Uchiha Hikaru looked at Minato's face, which bore a resemblance to Menma's but was more mature and gentle. His heart pounded, and he subconsciously bowed slightly, his voice trembling as he asked, "Hello... Dad... Dad?"

As soon as the words left her mouth, she realized what she had said and blushed deeply, wishing she could disappear into the ground.

Minato was slightly taken aback at first, then a look of understanding and a deeper gentleness flashed in his eyes. He responded very naturally, "Yes. Hikaru, is that right? I often hear Menma and Kushina mention you. Thank you for always being there for Menma. This child... we owe him so much. We'll have to trouble you to take care of him in the future."

His sincere tone, imbued with the loving kindness of an elder, skillfully defused Guang's awkwardness.

Uchiha Hikaru quickly waved his hand and hurriedly explained, "No, no! I should be thanking Menma! He freed me from the long seal and gave me a new place to belong. I... I found a new meaning in life!"

Her words were somewhat incoherent, yet filled with genuine emotion.

At that moment, Kushina came over with a steaming bowl of miso soup, carefully placed it in the center of the table, then took off her apron, sat down next to Minato, and said with a smile, "Alright, alright, all the dishes are served, everyone please start eating! We're all family, so don't be so polite!"

A family of four... or rather, a family reunited in this peculiar way, all clasped their hands together, following the proper dining etiquette.

"I'm gonna start now."

Dinner began in a slightly subtle but generally warm atmosphere.

Minato ate the home-cooked meal made by Kushina, a dish he hadn't tasted in a long time. Although he had lost his sense of taste due to the Edo Tensei, the warmth of the meal brought a sense of satisfaction and nostalgia to his gray eyes.

While eating, he casually asked Menma some questions about the development of the Star Country, including the ninja training system, the deployment plan for new equipment, and... what he was most concerned about.

“Menma,” Minato put down his chopsticks, his expression becoming slightly serious, “Your mother and I… ran into Orochimaru a few days ago.”

Mianma paused for a moment while picking up food with his chopsticks, then quickly resumed his normal movements and nodded: "Yes, I guessed it. His lab is indeed quite conspicuous."

“You harbored Orochimaru, and even Hiruko…” Minato carefully chose his words, his brows furrowing slightly.

“I understand they possess extraordinary talent, but… given their dangerousness and the crimes they’ve committed in the past, are you truly confident you can completely control them? Can you ensure their research won’t spiral out of control again and harm innocent people?”

Mianma put down his chopsticks and looked directly at his father.

He knew that this was Minato's deepest concern as a father and as the former Hokage.

“Father,” Menma’s voice was calm and confident: “The development of the Star Kingdom has been on the right track. Our strength and development potential far exceed your imagination. Even if the five great powers immediately form an alliance to attack, we may not necessarily lose. At the very least, we can make them pay an unbearable price.”

He then changed the subject, returning to Orochimaru's question: "As for Orochimaru and Hiruko... you're right, they are indeed dangerous. But the question is, if I don't take them in, will they stop their research?"

"They will only hide in darker corners and develop their forbidden techniques in a more extreme and unchecked way. At that time, no one will be able to stop them, and no one will know what even more terrible things they will do for their experiments. The lives of civilians and ordinary ninjas are of no value to them."

"Now, they're right under my nose, adhering to the bottom line I've set. I can suppress them, guide them, and confine their research directions and achievements within a controllable, even beneficial, scope. Many of their research areas, such as biotechnology, bloodline limits, the nature of chakra, and new energy sources..."

"It is highly feasible and valuable in itself; the key lies in how it is used. I can guarantee that these resources will ultimately be used for construction, healthcare, and enhancing national strength, rather than for pointless killing and destruction."

Menma took a kunai from Uchiha Hikaru's ninja tool pouch and twirled it deftly between his fingers: "Like this kunai, it can be used to kill, hunt for food, carve tools, or even save lives in times of crisis. The only difference lies in the person using it. Just because a kunai can kill, does that mean we should kill all the craftsmen who can make kunai and ban all research and production of ironware?"

Minato listened quietly to his son's argument, a complex light flickering in his gray eyes.

He had to admit that Mianma's perspective was more macroscopic and more pragmatic, typical of a ruler.

He simply...couldn't completely shake off his apprehension about the nature of those two people.

Finally, he sighed softly and said, "What you said makes sense. Perhaps... my past identity and experiences have made me too cautious. I just hope... you can always stay in control and prevent them from doing anything that crosses the line of humanity."

“I will, Father. Please don’t worry,” Menma solemnly promised.

The atmosphere relaxed again in the latter part of dinner.

Menma and Minato discussed more about the governance and technological development of the Land of Stars, while Uchiha Hikaru and Kushina ate their meal quietly, occasionally exchanging a few words in hushed tones.

As Uchiha Hikaru looked at the scene before him, listened to the gentle conversation around him, and felt the warm lights and steam from the food in the restaurant, the desolate land in his heart that had been frozen for hundreds of years seemed to be infused with a warm current and was quietly melting.

Is this...the feeling of home?

She lowered her head, concealing the slight moisture welling up in her eyes, but the corners of her mouth involuntarily curved upwards into a shallow smile.

(End of this chapter)