"Don't be afraid, I'm not your enemy," Kaito said calmly as he stepped out from the shadows.

Kushina remained wary, her eyes still alert.

"I told you already—I'm not after you, or the Nine-Tails inside you," Kaito added, his tone composed.

"Who are you?" Kushina wiped away her tears and questioned him, suddenly gripping a kunai in her hand.

"I know Tsunade and Minato Namikaze. I've fought the elite Sand shinobi near the borders between the Land of Wind and the Land of Earth," Kaito explained carefully.

Kushina narrowed her eyes, studying his outfit more closely. "Wait… Are you the one Minato mentioned? The one Tsunade's supposedly engaged to?"

"I'm Kaito," he corrected with a frown. "And I'm not Tsunade's fiancé."

"Tch, who are you trying to fool?" she scoffed. "Everyone in Konoha knows about you spanking Lady Tsunade—it's already made its way around the whole ninja world."

A vein pulsed on Kaito's forehead. Damn that Shikaku. I'm definitely going to deal with him later…

Kushina tilted her head. "So, what are you doing in the ruins of my homeland? Trying to steal Uzumaki sealing techniques?"

"You're overthinking things," Kaito said, shaking his head. "The ninja world's in the middle of the Third Great Ninja War. I just came here to find peace and quiet."

"Peace and quiet? You could've gone to Konoha for that. With your ties to Tsunade, the Hokage would definitely allow you in," she challenged.

"I'm not interested," Kaito said with a sneer. "If I went to Konoha, who knows how Hiruzen Sarutobi and his scheming clique would try to get rid of me."

Kushina's expression darkened. "So Minato was right. You really don't like Konoha."

"It's not Konoha I hate. It's those behind-the-scenes manipulators like Hiruzen who only think about power," Kaito replied unfazed.

"Do you even know what happened after you took down the Sand leaders and left?" Kushina said, her voice heavy. "Rasa and the rest pressed forward without opposition. They advanced twenty miles into the Land of Fire. All our border commanders—except Minato—were captured."

"In order to retrieve them, the Hokage had to trade a massive amount of resources. Now Minato and the others are holding the line in the Land of Wind. We can only talk through summoning techniques!" she said bitterly.

Kaito paused, thoughtful. So, my actions shifted the course of history again.

Looking at her, he sighed. "You wouldn't understand. It's better that you don't know the full picture."

After a moment of silence, he asked, "Today… is it the anniversary of the fall of Uzushiogakure?"

"Yeah," Kushina's expression softened into sorrow.

"I'll offer some chrysanthemums too. I'm... somewhat connected to the Uzumaki clan," Kaito said, stepping forward and gently scooping a handful of flowers from her basket. He tossed them into the air, then bowed three times.

"You say you're related to us? Who exactly are you?" she asked, a mix of suspicion and curiosity in her voice.

"Doesn't matter. Once you're done paying your respects, you should head back. You snuck out, right? Konoha's probably already looking for you."

Kaito suddenly paused, then gave her a serious look. "Do you want to know the truth behind the fall of Uzushiogakure?"

Kushina blinked in surprise. "The truth? We were surrounded and destroyed by three of the great nations. What other reason could there be?"

"There's definitely more to it."

Kaito didn't wait for her to question further. "The truth starts with Konoha."

Kushina frowned. "Why is Konoha always at the center of these things?"

"Do you want to hear this or not?" Kaito asked, annoyed.

"Fine, fine, go on," she said, gritting her teeth.

If anyone who knew Kushina well saw her now, they'd be shocked. This wasn't the same hot-headed, quick-tempered girl they were familiar with.

"Let's talk about two things first—Konoha's barrier network, and the Senju clan."

Before she could interject, he warned, "Say another word and I'll stop talking."

Kushina immediately covered her mouth.

"First—Konoha's barrier. Everyone knows your Uzumaki clan handled all the village's barrier seals when Konoha was founded. It wasn't a big deal during the reigns of Hashirama and Tobirama, since the Senju and Uzumaki were close. They trusted each other."

"But things changed after Hiruzen Sarutobi became Hokage. The village barrier system is Konoha's first line of defense. You could even call it the village's lifeline. How could someone like him be comfortable knowing it was in the hands of outsiders?"

"Back then, the Senju clan still had major influence. That alone was a threat to Hiruzen's authority. He saw them—and by extension, the Uzumaki—as obstacles."

"So he started undermining both clans. The Uzumaki were the first to go."

"Why? Two reasons: one, without the Uzumaki, the Senju would lose their strongest allies; two, Hiruzen wanted your sealing techniques for himself. Controlling the barrier meant controlling the village."

"When the Uzumaki clan was besieged by three major nations… have you ever wondered how they all knew exactly how dangerous your sealing arts were? Or why they acted together?"

"The Land of Lightning and the Land of Water attacking makes sense—they're close. But the Land of Earth? Why would they cross such a distance to attack a small, isolated village like yours?"

"And why did Konoha's reinforcements arrive only after the village was nearly wiped out? Doesn't that sound suspicious to you?"

Kushina faltered, her lips parting slightly.

"The Hokage was dealing with the Land of Wind and the Land of Earth back then!" she said, but her tone lacked conviction.

"Hah," Kaito chuckled coldly. "At that time, Konoha was the strongest military power in the ninja world. The foundation left by the First and Second Hokage was enough for them to take on all four other villages at once—and still hold their own."

---

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