XX-level Hokage

"Mmm!" Naruto swayed slightly and smiled as he listened to Kushina's words. "I love you!" Kushina said softly yet firmly.

At this moment, Kushina's eyes were already slightly red. She knew herself, so she understood the weight of emotion in those words.

When Naruto heard this, he was first incredulous, then at a loss, swaying his body, and slightly nervous. No one had ever said this to him before.

Kushina knew what kind of life Naruto had lived in the past. She reached out and hugged Naruto, whispering, "I love you!"

Kushina Uzumaki watched the two embracing, her past self and her child. To witness this scene was enough for Kushina Uzumaki; she had no other desires.

Just as Kushina was about to say something more, Kurama made another move. All three of them looked outside at the same time.

The Nine-Tails' three tails had broken free of their restraints, and it now wanted to forcefully activate the Tailed Beast Ball.

“It seems I have to go back first. I can’t control the sealing chains here,” Kushina said.

"Although there's still a lot I want to say, let's take care of this guy first," Kushina Uzumaki said softly. "Then, I'm going!" Naruto stood up, raised his fist, and said with unwavering determination.

Just as Kushina was about to return to reality, Uzumaki Kushina gently hugged her and whispered in her ear: "You've experienced things I've never experienced, so you'll have different thoughts than me. Don't hesitate too much, live according to your own ideas. And, I'm entrusting Naruto to you."

Hearing Kushina's words, Kushina was first puzzled, then surprised, and then felt a sense of relief.

Under Mashiro's double offensive, Kushina has basically succumbed, but she still adheres to the principles that belong to "Uzumaki Kushina". Although Mashiro has told her many times that she can live her own life, she still feels burdened.

Now, through her own guidance, she is finally able to face her own life.

"Don't worry, I am you, and you are me. No matter how I change, Naruto will always be our child," Kushina said firmly.

Then, with Kushina watching him go, Naruto disappeared into this space, while Naruto awoke in the spiritual space.

He felt incredibly at ease; at this moment, there was no flaw in his heart.

As Naruto awoke, Kurama accelerated its creation process, but Kushina and Uzumaki Kushina simultaneously exerted their power.

The golden sealing chains struck again, grabbing the Nine-Tails' tail and disrupting the creation of the tailed beast. "Damn Kushina!!" the Nine-Tails roared madly.

The Nine-Tails could barely handle one of Kushina's sealing chains, but for some reason, two Kushina's sealing chains suddenly appeared. "Aaaaaah!" Naruto shouted.

Then, the Nine-Tails' chakra within Naruto began to transform, and his training became gentler. In the real world, Naruto's tailed beast form returned to normal.

"I can't suppress the Nine-Tails' chakra for much longer. Let's end it now," Kushina Uzumaki said to Naruto. She was originally a portion of Minato's chakra left in Naruto's body, and she had already used up half of it.

"Multiple Shadow Clone Technique"

Naruto formed hand seals, and dozens of clones appeared.

"Damn brat!" The Nine-Tails relentlessly tore at the sealing chains binding its body, each chain snapping and rapidly regenerating. "One strike, you bastard!"

Dozens of Narutos charged at Kurama simultaneously, forming pairs and unleashing Rasengans. "Take this! A super-multi-Rasengan combo!"

Naruto activated Sage Mode again, and the Rasengan quickly grew larger, transforming into the Sage Art: Great Ball Rasengan.

Dozens of Sage Art: Greatsword Rasengans simultaneously hurtled towards the Nine-Tails. "Sage Art: Super Celestial Rasengan Multi-Shot!"

The powerful attack slammed into Kurama, sending the entire fox flying. Just as it landed, Naruto charged in again. "One more attack! Sage Art: Super Giant Rasengan!"

Naruto held the giant Rasengan to Kurama's face, feeling the immense energy contained within. Kurama could hardly believe it. "What's going on with this?"

While Naruto was slapping Kurama's face with a giant Rasengan, the other shadow clones pulled on Kurama's tail, drawing its chakra out of its body. A huge, orange-yellow, fox-like mass of chakra detached from Kurama's body.

"Great! We've extracted the Nine-Tails' chakra!" Kushina Uzumaki exclaimed excitedly.

The chakra entered Naruto's body. Nine-Tails Chakra Mode activated.

"This is the Nine-Tails..." Naruto muttered to himself, looking at his new form.

The Nine-Tails got up from the ground, looking incredibly thin after losing a large amount of chakra.

"Naruto, you have completely enraged me." It looked at Naruto and said fiercely. Then, the Nine-Tails condensed a Tailed Beast Ball once again.

"You still have such great power? You're really amazing." Naruto couldn't believe his eyes as he watched Kurama's actions.

Naruto then touched his stomach and manually activated the Four Symbols Seal. A massive wooden lock appeared out of thin air, pinning the Nine-Tails to the ground. The Tailed Beast Ball shattered as a result.

"This is... the Six Paths'?!" Kurama exclaimed in disbelief as it looked at the red chains that had bound it.

Then a huge cage appeared, sealing the Nine-Tails inside once more. "Remember this, Naruto." Seeing that struggle was futile, the Nine-Tails closed its eyes.

"I'm sorry, Kurama, I won't do anything to you. Wait a moment." Naruto said apologetically, looking at Kurama's miserable state.

Naruto closed his eyes and entered the golden space once more. "Great, Naruto!" Kushina Uzumaki exclaimed with immense joy.

"I seem to have realized something now," Naruto said, and he gripped Kushina's hand tightly.

"I went to Minato's place with peace of mind." Kushina Uzumaki said slowly. Naruto's eyes dimmed slightly.

"Before I leave, there's something I need to make clear to you," Kushina Uzumaki suddenly said. Naruto looked up at Kushina Uzumaki, waiting for her to continue.

"Naruto, that happened 16 years ago, before you were born. I'm going to tell you the truth," Kushina Uzumaki said earnestly. "The truth from 16 years ago?" Naruto was somewhat puzzled by what she meant.

"I am the previous Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, let's start from here," Kushina Uzumaki said.

"Mom, you're the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki?!" This was the first time Naruto had heard this. He had asked many people about his parents before, but no one had ever mentioned this.

"That's right. To talk about sixteen years ago, I need to tell you about my background first. I was chosen as the second Nine-Tails Jinchuriki. To be honest, in order to..."

"I was brought to Konoha from the Land of Whirlpools after becoming the Nine-Tails' Jinchūriki." Kushina Uzumaki nodded and said.

"Why, why must my mother from a foreign land become the Nine-Tails' Jinchūriki?" Naruto asked, utterly bewildered. (Author's Note)

When the Five Kage fought Madara, was Mashiro just holding back or actually fighting?

Chapter 177: The White Zetsu Cart

"But I am from a foreign country. However, the Land of Fire and the Land of Whirlpools, the Hidden Leaf Village and the Whirlpool Village have a very deep connection. The Ute clan of the Hidden Leaf Village and the Uzumaki clan of the Whirlpool Village are actually distant relatives by blood. Because of their extremely long lifespan, the Whirlpool Village is also known as the Longevity Village. Our clan is good at sealing techniques and we all have a bit of a fiery temper. The Four Symbols Seal on your abdomen also originated from the ninjutsu of our village."

"Many of your father's sealing techniques were taught to you by me, Naruto. The symbol on your back is the symbol of the Uzumaki Village ninja. Most Konoha ninja uniforms have this symbol, which has been used to this day as a symbol of friendship," Kushina Uzumaki said slowly.

"Uzushiogakure?" For Naruto, this was a name that had only been mentioned once in the books during his time at the Ninja Academy.

"It has now disappeared. During the war, the power of the seal was feared, the village was attacked and ultimately destroyed, and those who survived went into hiding."

"Our identities have been scattered to other places," said Uzumaki Kuna, sounding somewhat dejected.

"Even so, why do you want to..." Naruto was still a little confused.

"In Uzumaki Village, it seems I was born with powerful chakra capable of sealing the Nine-Tails' power. My previous Nine-Tails Jinchuriki was Lady Mito Uzumaki, the wife of the First Hokage, Hashirama. When Lady Mito was nearing the end of her life, I was brought here and became the Nine-Tails' vessel," Kushina Uzumaki said.

"This is treating people like tools!" Naruto was furious about it.

"When I was brought here, I was unaware of the truth. After learning the truth, I was really shocked. This matter was kept secret, and only a very few high-ranking people, including the Third Hokage, knew about it. Even the Sannin did not know. The pressure and loneliness of becoming a Jinchuriki overwhelmed me."

"But Lady Mito, the former Jinchūriki, invited me. She advised me to fill the vessel with love, so that even as the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki, I could find happiness," Kushina Uzumaki said with a smile.

"Mom, are you happy as a Jinchūriki?" Naruto asked.

Kushina Uzumaki pondered her life and chuckled softly. "Hmm!"

Naruto then started crying.

"Seriously, Naruto, why are you crying?" Kushina Uzumaki said, stroking Naruto's head.

Naruto suddenly stopped crying, as if he had thought of something, and said, "The truth about the Nine-Tails' attack on Konoha sixteen years ago." Many people had told him that what happened back then was not ordinary.

Kushina Uzumaki's expression also turned serious. She said, "The story of what happened back then begins with a masked man. Sixteen years ago, a mysterious masked man controlled the Nine-Tails to attack Konoha, but before that, the Nine-Tails had been sealed inside me."

"Then why?" Naruto was just wondering when he suddenly realized something.

"That masked man somehow learned that the only chance for a Jinchuriki's seal to weaken a Tailed Beast was to seize that opportunity and take the Nine-Tails," Kushina Uzumaki continued.

"When is the only chance to weaken the seal?" Naruto asked, completely unaware of the answer.

"During childbirth," Kushina Uzumaki said, forcing herself to remain calm. Hearing those three words, Naruto's tears fell.

"During the ten months from pregnancy to childbirth, female Jinchuriki transfer the sealing power to the child in their womb, thus weakening the seal on the Tailed Beasts," Kushina Uzumaki continued.

"In other words," Naruto said, tears streaming down his face, having roughly guessed what had happened. "Sixteen years ago, on October 10th..."

Kushina Uzumaki recounted the events of the Nine-Tails' attack to Naruto. (This is, in my opinion, the most exciting part of the entire Naruto series.)

"I'm sorry for making you our vessel for the Nine-Tails, for burdening you with our responsibilities, for not being able to live with you, for not being able to give you more love. Thank goodness there's another me alive who can take care of you," Kushina Uzumaki said, wiping away her tears with remorse.

"No need to thank me. It's true I suffered a lot as a Jinchuriki in the past, but I don't hate my parents," Naruto said. Hearing Naruto's words, Kushina looked up at him, a strange light flickering in her eyes.

"Of course, to be honest, I don't really understand what fatherly and motherly love are. My parents weren't around when I was young, so I only had a vague feeling. Now I understand..."

"Yes, Mom and Dad were willing to give up their lives for me. I understand that before I became the vessel for the Nine-Tails, you poured your love into me. So I am very happy, and I am proud to be Mom and Dad's child." Naruto said proudly, patting his chest.

"Minato, did you hear that? This child understands our thoughts." Kushina Uzumaki, tears streaming down her face, hugged Naruto, silently saying, "Naruto, thank you for making me a mother, and thank you for making Minato a father. It's so kind of you to come into our lives as a child."

As Kushina spoke, her body turned into specks of light and disappeared into Naruto's arms.

Naruto, tears streaming down his face, felt the warmth of this love that was about to end. After Kushina Uzumaki completely disappeared, Naruto left the spiritual space.

In the real world, Naruto gently opened his eyes and then hugged Kushina tightly.

Kushina understood that Uzumaki Kushina had disappeared, and she stroked Naruto's hair, gently comforting him.

"How did it go? Did it work?" Killer Bee asked. Naruto smiled and gave a thumbs-up.

"Sometimes I really don't understand why Jinchuriki exist." Mashiro said softly, looking at the chapter on Tailed Beasts in the history of the ninja world in her hand.

"Isn't it because the ninja villages want to control the power of the tailed beasts?" Haku said softly.

At this moment, Mashiro and Izumi are in the villa's library. Mashiro is holding Shiro in her arms, while Izumi is sitting next to Mashiro, holding a book about tea ceremony.

"But the question is, do the ninja villages really control the power of the tailed beasts? Leaving aside Killer Bee and Naruto, who became perfect Jinchuriki, most Jinchuriki can only control a portion of the tailed beast's power. Even if they are stronger than ordinary ninjas, they won't be ridiculously strong. Not to mention that most Jinchuriki don't have a good relationship with their own villages," Mashiro said softly.

"That must be for the sake of power, as a powerful weapon that can destroy everything in its path," Quan said, putting down the book in his hand.

That makes some sense, but it's still not clear enough. Most ninja villages don't have a high opinion of Jinchuriki, nor do they pour any training resources into them. They treat them more as tools than weapons. After all, weapons need to be cherished, but tools can be easily replaced and discarded. "Mashiro said.

“Jinchūriki are indeed tragic figures. No matter what the future holds, their childhoods are gloomy, and this gloom will accompany them for a long time,” Izumi said softly.

"What do you think should be done with the Tailed Beasts?" Izumi asked softly, looking at Mashiro.

“You should know.” Mashiro patted Izumi’s head and said. “Could it be, to make batteries?” Izumi said with a light laugh.

"That's right. The chakra of the tailed beasts is so vast, and it can regenerate. In that case, it's like a giant, renewable battery, with immense uses." Mashiro said with a light laugh.

"Perhaps only you in the entire world of deception would think this way, turning the tailed beasts into batteries," Izumi said with a touch of melancholy.

“It’s definitely not just me. It’s just that, apart from me, the others who thought of it didn’t have the ability to do it.” Mashiro said, stroking Shiro’s face.

Just then, "knock knock knock."

Tayuya's voice came through.

"Master, Sister Xiao Nan asked me to remind you not to skip the meeting. There's a video conference with the Five Kage today, and she and Sister Samui can't attend on your behalf."