Naruto, my father's name is Uchiha Madara.

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Kushina asked in confusion, "Why is it so quiet today? Are you asleep?"

Nine-Tailed Fox lazily flicked its tail, glanced at the empty head with its scarlet beast eyes, and snorted: "Stop shouting, he can't hear you, and he won't answer you anytime soon."

"what happened?"

Kushina became even more curious: "Did something happen to Mr. Madara? Does he... also need to sleep?"

In her mind, would someone of Madara Uchiha's caliber need to hibernate in his soul state?

Chapter 297 Madara's Dream, A Scene from the Future

In response to Kushina's question, Minato gently took over and explained, "Kushina, the thing is... Madara's situation is rather special."

His tone carried a hint of solemnity and gratitude.

"Although Mr. Madara exists here in a spirit state, he has controlled Naruto's body to engage in high-intensity battles on many occasions in critical moments."

"Especially when we fought Urashiki in the Snow Country, the three of us working together couldn't get the better of him."

"It was probably that one time that caused a huge loss to the essence of the soul."

Minato looked at the empty area with a complicated expression: "This kind of loss needs to be slowly replenished and repaired through deep slumber."

"So every now and then, Mr. Ban will enter this dormant period."

"This time... it must be the aftereffects of that attack that time."

Upon hearing this, Kushina's teasing expression vanished, replaced by deep emotion and gratitude: "So...so that's how it is..."

“Every time he possessed someone, it was when Naruto was in the most danger… He…”

She suddenly realized that the Uchiha ancestor, who always had a cold face, spoke harshly, and regarded all living beings as pawns, was...

They don't seem as cold and ruthless as they appear on the surface.

This silent protection warmed her heart as a mother.

"Hmph, he's barely a reliable old tsundere, I suppose." Kurama, unusually, didn't disagree and snorted, acknowledging Madara's efforts.

Silence fell temporarily within the consciousness space, with only Naruto and Misaki's nonsensical conversation outside serving as background noise.

Deep within Ban's dream:

While the outside world and the realm of consciousness were discussing his hibernation, Madara's soul was immersed in a bizarre yet incredibly real and vivid dream.

The dream begins in a chaotic yet familiar battlefield.

Smoke filled the air, and shouts of battle shook the heavens as a massive ninja alliance clashed with a vast army of brown monsters.

At the heart of the dream's perspective is a self that is both familiar and strange to him—

That version of myself, summoned by the Impure World Reincarnation and possessing the Rinnegan!

This should be the battlefield that Naruto will call the Fourth Shinobi World War!

At that moment, a strange and warm light suddenly enveloped the "self" resurrected through the Impure World Reincarnation.

Immediately afterwards, the cracks on his body that represented his immortal body disappeared at a speed visible to the naked eye!

The flesh and blood became plump and full of life again!

"The Impure World Reincarnation... disappeared? Or was it resurrected?"

Upon seeing this, Madara couldn't help but let out a sound of surprise and uncertainty, then he saw the eyes of "himself": "The Rinnegan... is it also dissipating?"

Immediately afterwards, the dream scenes switched rapidly!

The resurrected "self" broke free from the Myojinmon restraints of Hashirama Senju with absolute power.

Like a god of war, he wreaked havoc among the Allied Shinobi Forces, engaging in earth-shattering battles with the Tailed Beasts!

Then, through a strange, pale-faced fellow, he retrieved his own true Rinnegan!

Then, "self" unleashed a terrifying attack so powerful that it was incomprehensible and even the Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan could not detect it.

They instantly defeated all the tailed beasts!

The climax of the dream is approaching—

"I" conjured up a gigantic, hideous golem that looked like a withered tree trunk!

The golem opened its mouth wide and let out a silent roar, and a powerful suction force began to pull the fallen tailed beasts!

"The Demonic Statue of the Heretic...?"

Ban looked at the enormous creature and spontaneously called out its name!

This left Madara feeling intensely confused: "Gedo Mazo? How do I know that name?"

He was certain that it was on the stone tablet in the Uchiha clan's secret chamber.

Even during the long years he traveled through the ninja world after leaving Konoha, he never saw or heard any concrete record of the "Gedo Mazo"!

The name just came out of his mouth as if it were instinct!

The dream continues: one tailed beast after another is forcibly absorbed by the Gedo Mazo—the Eight-Tails, the Seven-Tails, the Six-Tails…

In the end, only the largest, ferocious, roaring golden nine-tailed fox remained on the field!

Despite the Nine-Tails' desperate resistance, its claws dug deep into the earth, creating long furrows.

But it still couldn't withstand the terrifying suction force of the Gedo Mazo originating from its source!

Finally, with a roar of resentment, the Nine-Tails' massive chakra body was completely torn from Naruto's body.

It was swallowed into the mouth of the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path!

And that blond-haired, blue-eyed boy who fought alongside Kurama—Naruto Uzumaki.

He was flung away like a puppet with its strings cut, and crashed heavily to the ground.

The azure light in his eyes dimmed rapidly, and the breath of life became as faint as a candle flickering in the wind, as if it would be extinguished completely at any moment...

"Naruto!!!"

Outside the dream, the dormant soul of Ban let out a silent roar!

An indescribable, chilling panic and rage instantly gripped him!

He even forgot that it was just a dream and instinctively rushed over!

The intense mental fluctuations and emotional shocks forcibly pulled Madara's soul out of its deep dormancy!

Within the space of consciousness:

Madara suddenly opened his eyes, and surprisingly, a trace of lingering fear and...panic remained in his scarlet Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan.

He instinctively covered his forehead, his brows furrowed, as if he were enduring some kind of pain or confusion.

This sudden turn of events startled Minato, Kushina, and Kurama!

"Mr. Ban?"

Minato was the first to react, asking with concern, "What's wrong? Why did you wake up so suddenly? Did something happen?"

He noticed the extreme instability of Ban's soul state.

Ban took a deep breath, trying to calm the intense emotional turmoil and the throbbing deep within his soul brought about by the dream.

He looked around and confirmed that he had returned to the familiar space of consciousness, where the silly boy outside was still jumping around and making the female client angry.

He lowered his hand, his eyes regaining their usual coldness and depth.

But his voice carried a barely perceptible hoarseness and weariness: "How long... have I been asleep?"

Minato estimated the time: "This time it's relatively short, from entering deep hibernation until now, it's only been a few hours."

Madara's gaze pierced through the barrier of space, glancing at Naruto, who was still having a suffocating cross-server chat with Misaki outside.

I confirmed that the kid was alive and well, so full of life he could piss a cow off.

The inexplicable panic that had welled up in his heart slowly subsided, and he couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief, saying softly, "...That's good."

But that dream, so real and with such a tragic ending that it made his heart tremble, was like a cold relief, deeply etched into the depths of his soul.

Gedo Mazo...absorbing the Tailed Beasts...Naruto's Death...

Do these fragmented images and information foreshadow the future, or are they merely chaotic delusions resulting from the excessive depletion of his soul?

Madara Uchiha's Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan slowly rotated, as he fell into deeper contemplation.

Meanwhile, outside, Naruto remained completely unaware of what was happening inside his body, and was enthusiastically discussing with Misaki which shop in Tanabata had the best value for money when it came to three-colored dumplings.

Chapter 298 Facing Reality, Mr. Naruto is Really Gentle

The second day's journey, compared to the "cross-server chat" and the turmoil in my inner world on the first day, seemed exceptionally... uneventful.

The sun was still shining brightly, and the road was still smooth, but it seemed too peaceful.

Konohamaru kicked at the pebbles on the road listlessly, muttering, "So boring..."

"Didn't they say that C-rank missions might involve encountering bandits? How come we haven't seen a single one? Were they all scared away by Naruto's 'killing aura' yesterday?"

The fierce battle he had imagined did not occur.

Meng Huang was more attentive; she frowned slightly.

He whispered to Udon, "Udon, don't you think... something's a little strange?"

"When I passed by that thicket just now, I thought I heard something fall down inside, and a very faint groan..."

"But Naruto-sensei doesn't seem to have noticed at all?"

Udon sniffed, tried hard to recall, and said slowly, "Hmm... I think so..."

"Furthermore, Naruto-sensei left for a while earlier, saying he was going to... um... 'take care of some business'... and came back very quickly."

The protagonist they were talking about, Naruto, was walking at the front of the convoy with a relaxed expression, even humming an off-key tune.

Only he himself knew why the journey had been so "peaceful".

About half an hour ago, his senses had already detected a dozen or so bandits lying in ambush in the bushes ahead.

To avoid trouble, to avoid fighting, to avoid—