RADG: Chapter 180: Angry Namikaze Minato

Perhaps it was because he heard Yami’s cheering, but that punch just now was only the beginning.

Naruto’s fists continued raining down on Minato. With every punch, his tears fell, along with his anguished questions:

“Why!”

“Why did you seal that monster inside me!”

“Why did you and Mom abandon me!”

“The adults in the village are cold to me, I can’t make any friends at all, so I just wanted everyone to acknowledge me!”

“When you released that Forbidden Technique, why didn’t you think about me?! I really don’t want to be your son!”

Minato stared blankly at Naruto, feeling the tears on his face, even forgetting about the pain in his body for a moment.

The amount of information in those words was too much.

Naruto’s situation was completely different from what he had imagined. Not only did he not receive the treatment he deserved, he was even targeted?

Perhaps he had let it all out. Naruto landed a final punch on Namikaze Minato’s chest, then stood up and wiped his tears and snot.

Namikaze Minato rubbed his chest and slowly stood up, speaking with effort, “Naruto, I’m sorry I made you go through all that. My chakra only awakens when the seal breaks to the seventh tail, and is released when the eighth tail breaks.”

“I don’t know anything about the outside world. Can you tell me in more detail what happened over these years?”

Minato tried his best to calm Naruto’s emotions, hoping to understand the situation more clearly.

Fortunately, after venting, Naruto had calmed down quite a bit and began to tell him about his experiences.

When he heard that rumors about Naruto being the Nine Tails' jinchūriki had spread throughout the village, but only a few people knew he was the son of the Fourth Hokage, Minato’s fist clenched tightly.

As a former Hokage, he instantly understood the intention of Sarutobi Hiruzen and the rest of the high-level officials.

Naruto was pushed out as a scapegoat, giving the villagers who had lost loved ones and homes a target to hate, reducing the blame on the higher-ups.

If it had been publicly known that Naruto was the son of the Hokage, then the village would have had to treat him as the son of a hero. The villagers would never be allowed to direct their hatred at him so casually.

But even though he understood the logic behind Hiruzen’s actions, that didn’t mean Minato could just accept it.

Instead, he became even angrier.

You didn’t want to be blamed, so you let my son take it all instead?

In the original timeline, Minato didn’t dwell on these things much. The situation was too urgent—Pain was attacking from the outside, the Nine Tails inside—and Naruto had already found companions and was being recognized more and more. Stirring up hate at that time would’ve served no purpose.

But now, Naruto had clearly expressed his resentment. How could he remain calm?

For the first time, Minato regretted not letting Hiruzen perform the Reaper Death Seal himself. Why did he only think of Kushina's death? There was no point in him surviving.

“Naruto, I’m sorry.”

Minato pulled Naruto into a hug. Naruto, who had just finished speaking, couldn’t hold back his tears anymore. Minato’s nose also turned sour as he said, “I wasn’t a qualified father.”

“I originally wanted the Nine Tails to be your helper and protective charm during your childhood, but I didn’t expect... I didn’t expect you to suffer so much.”

“This is all my fault.”

Minato’s body had started becoming faint.

He was just a chakra remnant, and as long as he remained active, his chakra would continuously be consumed.

If possible, he really wanted to stay with Naruto for a little longer.

But unfortunately, Naruto noticed his body becoming transparent and suddenly felt reluctant to part.

At that moment, Yami appeared.

He placed his hand on Minato’s shoulder, and a steady stream of chakra flowed in to help him maintain his form.

Transferring one’s chakra into someone else’s body to maintain it was a technique only top-tier medical ninja could perform.

“Thank you, Yami-kun.”

Minato expressed his gratitude.

“Thanks, Yami-nii.” Naruto also quickly gave his thanks.

“You’re welcome.” Yami retracted his hand and said, “Fourth, one of the higher-ups who spread those rumors is my old man. Consider this an apology for him. I’ll help you stay for a while longer.”

“I should be the one thanking you for taking care of Naruto all these years.”

Minato shook his head repeatedly, “If you hadn’t warned the villagers on Naruto’s behalf, his life would have been even more painful. You also helped him become a fine ninja. If I were still alive, I’d definitely treat you to a drink.”

“It’s fine.”

Yami grinned, “I’ll just pour a couple of bottles at your grave when the time comes.”

Minato’s mouth twitched.

Naruto was also happy at this moment. No matter what, being able to feel fatherly love for the first time in a long while and having Minato stay a little longer was good enough.

However, Naruto hadn’t forgotten what Yami said earlier. He asked, “Yami-nii, didn’t you come here for something too… to find the Fourth?”

Minato’s eyes dimmed slightly, but he looked at Yami.

“It’s nothing serious.”

Yami stated his purpose, “I just want to learn the Sage Art of Mount Myōboku. Fourth, you should have mastered the training method, right?”

Minato nodded, “Although I’m not very proficient in using Sage Mode, I do know the training method.”

But then, he kindly reminded him, “Yami-kun, the process of learning Sage Mode is extremely dangerous.”

“If you want to master it, you still have to go to Mount Myōboku. There, you can use toad oil to assist in sensing natural energy, and there’s also Fukasaku-sama, who can help disperse the excess natural energy if you lose control.”

“Both Jiraiya-sensei and I trained under his guidance.”

“I came to you precisely because I don’t want any connection to Mount Myōboku.”

Yami cut off Minato’s further persuasion. “Jiraiya has been indoctrinated. The most important meaning of his life isn’t to live, but to find that so-called child of prophecy the toads talked about.”

“Besides, he and I have very different philosophies. He tried to make me learn the Third’s ideals, so I kicked him out of the village.”

“Oh, right.”

Yami suddenly looked at Naruto, “He wanted to take Naruto with him when he left the village, but I refused. You’re not mad, are you?”

“Why would I be?”

Minato smiled, “Jiraiya-sensei… is a good person, but he’s too obsessed with some things.”

“Both you and he are excellent mentors. It’s Naruto’s fortune to have either of you guiding him.”

Minato knew about the so-called child of prophecy, but he didn’t believe in it.

A person’s fate could be predicted, but more importantly, it depended on the choices made at crucial moments. If one followed a set path too rigidly, they would naturally walk into the prophecy.

That’s not living, but becoming a tool.

After hearing about Naruto’s hardships, Minato no longer wanted his son to be some destined child. “He just wanted Naruto to live safely and happily.”

So, following Yami—the strong and decisive Hokage—was the best choice.

Just from Naruto’s few sentences, Minato had already figured out Yami’s personality.

Strong, domineering, decisive, and not very patient.

He’d be a nightmare as an enemy and not very relaxing as a comrade either.

Minato said, “I’ll teach you Mount Myōboku’s Sage Mode now. Yami-kun, you must be careful.”

“Don’t worry. I’ve already mastered the Sage Arts from the other two Sacred Lands. There’s no danger.”

Hearing that, Minato finally felt relieved and began to pass on the training method.

After noting everything down, Yami injected some chakra into Minato again and re-sealed him. He then told Naruto:

“Naruto, you need to learn how to actively enter this space as soon as possible. Even if I can supply chakra, his source is finite. One day, it’ll run out. You have to be mentally prepared.”

“I understand, Yami-nii.” Naruto nodded solemnly.

The next day.

Hokage’s office.

Two girls stood in front of Yami, both in the same situation.

One was the Kazekage’s daughter. The other was the Tsuchikage’s daughter. Not only did they share similar backgrounds, but they also shared the same fate—both were detained by him and were destined to become future bed companions.

But…

“It’s not good to just sit around at home all day. I’m not going to feed you for nothing.” Yami looked at the two girls with disdain.

Temari couldn’t help but retort, “I don’t eat that much! How could I eat you out of money?”

Yami raised an eyebrow. “Temari, haven’t you noticed that you’re quite a bit chubbier than when you first came to Konoha?”

This struck like a bolt of lightning, and Temari froze in place.

Chubby? She got fatter?

Kurotsuchi also subtly glanced down at her own legs.

It did seem… a bit thicker.

Although they weren’t restricted in their movements, they had stayed at Yami’s residence during this period and rarely went out—mostly because they didn’t know what to do even if they did go out.

They were captives, after all. It wasn’t like they felt motivated to train or move around. Every day was just eating and sleeping. Of course they gained weight.

Soon after, Hinata and Yugao were summoned. Yami announced:

“Yugao, Hinata and the other two will be under your command. Treat them as regular shinobi and have them carry out missions.”

Yugao nodded in acknowledgment.

She had grown tired of Anbu work anyway. Going on missions like a regular ninja was a nice change of pace.

Kurotsuchi hadn’t expected that they’d be allowed out of the village to do missions, and asked, “Aren’t you afraid I’ll run away?”

“Really?”

Yami didn’t get mad, just looked surprised. “That’s great. If you run, I’ll have a reason to completely destroy Iwagakure.”

Temari and Kurotsuchi’s faces went pale. Any thoughts of escape vanished instantly.

This bastard really had no good intentions. He didn’t even want to let their villages go!

No, even if they died for Konoha, they couldn’t run.

Temari and Kurotsuchi looked at each other, and silently reached the same understanding, nodding in unison.

(To be continued.)