Two days later.
Looking at the distance where Gaara could barely talk with Haku and the others, struggling to keep up with them, Shinji casually asked Minato beside him.
"That kid's fate is already sealed. Even if he survives, he can't escape it. That raccoon is probably very important to those people, right? If you don't want to cause a conflict, have you really thought about what to do with that kid?"
Minato remained silent. Indeed, as Mr. Anli said, even if Gaara survives now, he likely won't have a good outcome.
Minato knew very well how important Shukaku was to Sunagakure. Without Shukaku, the Fourth Kazekage, Rasa, might already be planning a war!
After all, Sunagakure's policy had always been, "If I can't live well, then no one else should!"
For example, during the Third Shinobi World War, after being attacked by Iwagakure, they immediately split their forces and directly attacked Konoha!
Although part of the reason was an old woman's personal grudge against Konoha, overall, Sunagakure's attitude towards Konoha was always, "No matter who attacks us, we must make sure Konoha suffers too."
If they lost Shukaku, it's impossible for them not to cause trouble.
The only way to keep them temporarily stable would be to return the One-Tail Jinchuriki, but...
The thought of this child returning only to face death at the hands of his own father made Minato hesitant and uneasy.
For Minato, who had been instilled with the Will of Fire since childhood, maintaining the balance between the great shinobi villages was necessary. If one village lost a tailed beast, it would create a significant imbalance, leading to war.
Should he send him back?
Minato looked at Gaara, who had fallen trying to keep up with Karin but didn't cry or make a fuss. Instead, he got up with Haku's help, a complex expression on his face.
"I've never been to that Sunagakure place. How about we go check it out?"
Hearing Shinji's suggestion, Minato's heart skipped a beat.
He quickly tried to dissuade him.
"Let's not. That place is full of sand, with nothing good to eat, drink, or play with! We should avoid going there, Mr. Anli... ha ha ha..."
Shinji, knowing what Minato was thinking, didn't expose him. Instead, he rested his chin on his hand, casting his gaze back to the children playing.
Watching Shinji, Minato had a sudden flash of inspiration, recalling Shinji's attitude towards children they encountered on the road.
"Mr. Anli, do you have a way to restore Gaara's health? If he can recover, he could be accepted back by Sunagakure..."
"Huh?" Shinji frowned, showing a bit of displeasure. "Why should I save a kid who has nothing to do with me? Even if war breaks out, what does it matter to me? It'd be better if all humans died."
Though his words were ruthless, Minato heard another meaning—Shinji did have a way to restore Gaara's health!
"Mr. Anli, I recall we had a bet before..." Minato said seriously.
"Didn't you lose that bet? I still haven't decided what to make you do."
Shinji was a bit speechless. The bet was about whether Konan would come back to Shinji, and Minato lost, thus owing a still undecided favor.
"How about I owe you another favor!"
Shinji: ...
Is this guy a bit off in the head?
With a wave of his hand, Shinji said nonchalantly, "Sure, but are you sure you can repay it?"
"I've already decided to follow you loyally, Mr. Anli, and serve you faithfully!"
"I gave you your life, didn't I? Serving me is just expected."
Minato: ...
So you always considered me your servant?
Do you believe I won't cry right now?
"Fine, I'll think about the favor later."
After saying this, Shinji casually took out a small white porcelain bottle from his system space.
Minato was not surprised by Shinji's ability to produce items out of thin air, but he was shocked by the pure and immense yet gentle life force he sensed from the bottle!
"Ah, wrong one."
Just as Minato was about to take it, he hesitated, thinking Shinji might be doing this on purpose.
"This will do. Using that one is wasteful."
Looking at the two gems that indeed seemed to hold immense power, Minato pondered.
"Maybe we should use the first one. I feel like it might be more effective."
"I said it's wasteful. This is enough."
With that, Shinji called Gaara over.
"Little Wig (fake hair), come here for a moment."
Hearing the call, Gaara, who was playing with Karin, turned and walked over slowly.
"It's not a wig; it's Gaara."
Seeing Gaara seriously correcting him, Shinji suddenly thought that without the "love" mark on his forehead, Gaara looked a lot like a certain hero.
Especially with the lock of white hair left from the tailed beast extraction—much like the hero's iconic white hair.
"Little Wig, swallow this."
Without much thought, Gaara took the red gem Shinji handed him.
"It's not a wig; it's Gaara."
After correcting him again, Gaara immediately put the hard-looking red gem into his mouth and began to swallow it with difficulty.
Seeing Gaara struggle to swallow the gem, Minato wanted to ask if this was the right method, but he didn't dare to.
After several attempts, Gaara finally swallowed the gem. Shinji then held another green gem to Gaara's chest.
"Release—"
As soon as he spoke, the gem emitted a dazzling green light, attracting the attention of the three children who then ran over.
Watching Gaara now able to keep up with the others, playing and laughing like a normal child, Minato showed a fatherly smile.
"Is he... your son?"
Hearing this, Minato's smile froze.
Mr. Anli, can't I just be happy for him recovering without him being my son?
Speaking of which, Naruto...
"Didn't you say your son is starting school soon? Don't you want to go see him?"
Minato's mind raced, sensing something off.
Would Mr. Anli really let me see Naruto out of kindness?
"Let's go see him then. We're not too busy. You can see your son, and I'll do some sightseeing."
"No need to do this just for me!"
Minato raised his hand to refuse, looking as if he didn't deserve such a favor.
"It's not about doing it for you. Don't you want to see your son?"
Are you really letting me see my son? What if you get upset and destroy Konoha?
Minato kept these thoughts to himself, maintaining a calm expression.
For Minato, even if he dies, he belongs to Konoha. He can't bring such a dangerous person back!
One wrong move, and Konoha could be annihilated. He would be the greatest sinner in Konoha's history!
"What are you thinking about? I'm not someone who kills indiscriminately."
Sure, you're not indiscriminate, but no one can stop you when you do kill!
"Really, there's no need! These kids need proper guidance now. I trust Lady Tsunade and the Third Hokage will educate Naruto well! As parents, we should unconditionally trust our children, right?"
"Do you really believe that?"
Shinji smirked. Believing in your child unconditionally when they're so young is just brainless.
What do you believe in when they're that young? Besides trusting they're a boy, what else is there to believe in?
"Doesn't it make sense?" Minato was confused.
"Don't you know that a child's worldview and values are shaped by their environment? For example, a child raised by bandits will have the values of bandits, thinking they can take whatever they want."