[ It honestly never occurred to him that Astoria might be lying, evident by the flash of surprise that passes Minato's face and fades as quickly as it comes, as if he doesn't quite want to believe it, even if the possibility is very high. ]

I hope she is... Why else would somebody expend so much energy to bring in a bunch of people, just to kill them off a few days later...?

[ Is this a philosopher's stone thing, Astoria? please don't ]