Chapter 91: The Weight of a Legacy
Uzumaki Mito's sharp intellect, honed over a lifetime of political and spiritual warfare, pieced together Kagenori's intent in an instant. He wasn't just searching for a random survivor; he was hunting for a specific Uzumaki orphan to serve as a sacrificial lamb, a replacement vessel to spare Kushina from the beast's gnawing hatred. And he was here to secure her support for when that day came.
She did not immediately agree. She understood the monumental difficulty of his task. Even if he succeeded, convincing Konoha to discard a perfectly trained, loyal kunoichi like Kushina for an unknown variable would be a political nightmare. And, she had to admit to herself, she was not certain she would support it.
For years, she had poured her knowledge into Kushina. Every sealing technique, every lesson in chakra control, had been tailored toward one ultimate purpose: to contain the Nine-Tails. To throw all that preparation away on an untrained, unknown individual would be to invite catastrophe. A Jinchuriki who could not control their tenant was a walking cataclysm, a disaster that could level the village and kill thousands.
She remained silent, her expression a conflicted tapestry of duty, affection, and cold pragmatism.
Watching her hesitation, Kagenori felt a cold certainty settle in his chest. He had been a fool to hope. He had watched Mito dote on Kushina for years, had seen the genuine warmth between them, and he had allowed himself to believe that maternal affection might outweigh cold, national interest.
He had guessed wrong.
His expression cooled, the brief warmth from his day with Kushina completely extinguished. "My apologies for disturbing you so late, Lady Mito," he said, his voice devoid of its earlier respect. "Please forget my initial request. It was… presumptuous. However, I have a second request to make, one that should not cause you any difficulty."
Uzumaki Mito gave a slight, wary nod.
"Starting tomorrow," Kagenori stated, his tone leaving no room for debate, "Kushina will live with me."
Mito's eyes widened in shock. "You wish to separate her from me?"
"I wish for her to stop being a disturbance to your rest," Kagenori corrected, his words carefully chosen to inflict maximum distance. "Kushina is vibrant and loud. You need your peace. Furthermore, she is not your daughter, but merely a clanswoman. She has imposed on your hospitality for long enough; it is impolite to continue. I will assume responsibility for her care from now on. You have my word that I will protect her with my life."
A bitter smile touched Uzumaki Mito's lips. "In your eyes, Kagenori, is that all we are? Merely clansmen? I have loved that girl as my own these many years."
"But that does not change the fact that she is not," Kagenori replied, his voice like shards of ice. "Your only child is Lady Tsunade. Kushina was brought to Konoha for one purpose: to be a vessel. You took her in to mold her into that vessel. Any affection that grew from that… was merely a byproduct of your duty."
His words were a brutal, surgical strike, laying bare the ugly truth at the heart of their relationship. Uzumaki Mito seemed to shrink, the lines on her face deepening with a pain that was not entirely physical.
"Kagenori," she said, her voice gaining a sharp, defensive edge. "No matter what you think of me, or my motives, my love for Kushina is real. You are not me. You do not get to dictate the truth of my heart. And becoming the Jinchuriki may not be the curse you believe it to be! With the Uzumaki physique and the sealing arts I have taught her, Kushina can master the Nine-Tails! Its power can become her strength!"
Kagenori met her gaze, his own utterly calm and disbelieving. He had considered that path—of letting Kushina tame the beast. But the system's insistent warnings of a fixed future, of a "Child of Prophecy" who would inevitably require the Nine-Tails' power, made it a fantasy. In that destined narrative, Kushina was not the master of the fox; she was the sacrifice that would grant it to another. Her fate as the Jinchuriki was a death sentence.
"I have not denied your feelings," Kagenori said, his tone shifting to one of cold finality. "You have been a good guardian. Kushina is who she is today because of you. You have done enough. It is time for you to rest. Leave the rest to me. I will take care of her. So, I ask you again, Lady Mito. Please agree to my request."
Uzumaki Mito rubbed her temples, a profound weariness seeming to crush her. "Why, Kagenori? Why must you fight this so vehemently? She is the best candidate! The safest choice for Konoha!"
"Everyone believes that," Kagenori shot back, his voice rising for the first time, laced with a bitter scorn. "Everyone, including the woman she sees as her only family, believes she is the 'best candidate.' But has anyone ever asked her? Who would willingly become a prison for a monster, to live with a bomb inside them that could explode at any moment, for a village that sees them as a tool?"
Uzumaki Mito flinched, her arguments dying in her throat. She had no rebuttal. She had never asked. It had always been a foregone conclusion.
"Just as you said, Lady Mito," Kagenori concluded, his voice dropping back to a deadly calm. "Kushina has grown up. There are some things she cannot choose. But there are others she can. I will come for her tomorrow."
He offered a shallow, perfunctory bow, then turned and left, closing the door on the woman who had been Kushina's anchor for so long.
Out on the dark, quiet street, Kagenori walked with a heavy scowl, his mood blacker than the night around him. Uzumaki Mito's support would have been the key. Her endorsement of a replacement would have swayed the Hokage and the council. Now, that path was closed.
Her claim of loving Kushina felt like the ultimate hypocrisy. In the end, for Uzumaki Mito, as for Sarutobi and Danzo, Konoha's stability trumped everything—even the life of the girl she called her own. He thought of the history Orochimaru had shared with him, of the fall of the Uzumaki clan. Konoha's staunchest allies, the practitioners of the very Will of Fire the village espoused, had been besieged and annihilated while Konoha stood by, offering no aid, only a watchful, passive eye. The village consumed its protectors when they were no longer convenient.
It was a pattern. And Kagenori would be damned before he let Kushina become the next sacrifice in Konoha's endless, hungry machine.