Minato Namikaze had a very sunny disposition.
He was the first to express his gratitude to Ino for'saving his life'.
"Miss Yamanaka, thank you for your help. I'm truly overjoyed to be back. You look so young and promising. Counting from Lady Tsunade, we should be considered senior and junior disciples, right? I'll just call you Ino."
He smiled very gently.
Ino chuckled, "Fourth Hokage, you flatter me. The senior and junior disciple titles are fine, but I'm worried Kakashi-sensei might feel awkward."
Kakashi rolled his eyes from a distance.
Minato laughed heartily, "Haha, no problem, Junior Disciple Ino, we'll just address each other as we see fit."
"Alright, Senior Disciple Minato."
The seniority here was particularly confusing now. In the blink of an eye, Ino had become an elder, making Kakashi and Obito her grand-disciples. Further down, Sasuke and Sakura's seniority would be like grandchildren.
Minato exchanged pleasantries with Tsunade, Shikaku, Ino, and Shizune, but didn't say much to Kakashi. The relationship between master and disciple was like father and son; there was no need for many words in this situation. A simple nod was enough to acknowledge each other.
Minato was ten years older than Kakashi. Now, the 27-year-old Kakashi was actually older than Minato, who passed away at 24.
Minato was still a soul body and couldn't maintain human form for long. Ino left him a self-made Soul Nurturing Wood for him to rest.
The others left one by one. Shikaku whispered a few words to Minato at the end. He nodded slightly, then looked at Jiraiya: "Sensei, please stay."
Only after Orochimaru also left with a sinister smile did he voice his thoughts: "Shikaku hopes I won't disrupt the Village's stability, and I completely agree with that."
Jiraiya frowned deeply: "Minato…"
"Sensei, please listen to me," Minato said. "I'm already dead. If news of my resurrection gets out, it will definitely cause huge waves. At that time, the various Ninja Villages will have an excuse to attack us."
Jiraiya's eyes widened: "If they dare to come, we dare to fight!"
Minato smiled: "Sensei is doing very well now. Kakashi and the others have also grown up. The Village's future will only get better. I don't think the Village needs the Fourth Hokage. Let the Fourth Hokage live on in people's memories."
He added, "For you, it might have been over ten years, but for me, just a second ago, I was still with Kushina sealing the Nine-Tailed. To be honest, I'm a bit disoriented. I've been thinking about this, and Shikaku's reminder also confirmed my thoughts. Sensei, you are the most suitable Hokage."
"But Naruto still needs you!"
Minato raised a hand, saying very seriously, "As Hokage, I couldn't protect my son, but as a Ninja, I think I can protect him. The Akatsuki Organization is a formidable enemy. That Masked Man you mentioned who can use the Kamui Sharingan—I keep feeling his movements are familiar, as if he… as if he's someone I know."
He spoke somewhat vaguely, not entirely certain.
At the time he faced the Masked Man, it coincided with Uzumaki Kushina giving birth, and the Nine-Tailed was causing trouble in the Village. He had to protect the mother and child, and it was late at night. Even though he was known for his calm mind and keen observation skills, he truly didn't have the presence of mind to think deeply at that moment.
By the time everything settled, he was already dead.
Now, 'awakening' and reflecting, he could still detect some clues.
Many personal habits, movements, and tones of voice are very clear in the eyes of acquaintances.
Jiraiya asked, "Who do you think the Masked Man is?"
The words were on the tip of Minato Namikaze's tongue, but he swallowed them back: "I'm not sure. After I'm revived, I will investigate the clues and find out his true identity."
He also wanted to ask about Yin Kurama. In his memory, he should have sealed it within his body, but now he only had a bit of Nine-Tailed Beast Chakra, and no Yin Kurama at all.
Where did it go?
Was it in his corpse, did it go directly to Naruto, or did it dissipate?
He didn't know how to ask, as no one had experience with death. He could only ponder it later.
Orochimaru hadn't contacted Kabuto and didn't know where those few had gone. His most trusted subordinate was still Kimimaro, but now Kimimaro was blooming underground. So, he helped Konoha contact Guren, the Crystal Release Female Ninja.
Guren was quite strong and had once been one of Orochimaru's reincarnation vessels. She possessed a Bloodline Limit, Crystal Release, and was ostensibly an Otogakure Ninja serving Gen'yūmaru.
Guren would act as an inside agent to help Konoha execute the Sunagakure Collapse Plan, and conveniently shift some of the blame to Otogakure.
Konoha was secretly researching Chiyo's data. As an old rival, Tsunade thumped her chest, declaring that no one understood Chiyo better than her.
Jiraiya quietly muttered a few words: Chiyo's true rival was Hanzou; who did Tsunade think she was? He was then sent flying by Tsunade's right hook.
Chiyo's Ten Puppet Collection of Chikamatsu was an S-rank Puppet Technique. If Shisui's Kotoamatsukami didn't hit, or he didn't have the opportunity to use it, and Konoha decided to assault, then Chakra Blades, capable of severing Chakra threads, would be indispensable.
From Asuma's suggestion to the Konoha Ninja Tool Division taking on the task, it had been over two months to modify and manufacture simple Chakra Blades, but a group of conservative old men hadn't developed any results.
Jiraiya could only order custom-made Chakra Blades at a high price.
Considering the high probability of going to war with Hidden Sand Village in the future and facing an endless army of puppets, Ino felt she also needed to prepare a Chakra Blade.
Since Jiraiya offered for the Village to cover all expenses, she immediately went to the Land of Iron.
She found the samurai, Tatewaki, with whom she had a brief encounter in This Country.
This samurai had been poisoned by Sasori, and she had helped to cure him.
"Uncle Tatewaki, long time no see."
"Heh heh, actually it hasn't been that long. Miss Yamanaka, are you here for something?"
Tatewaki wasn't good at small talk, so he quickly got straight to the point after a few words.
The Land of Iron was a country of samurai. There were no Ninja here, at least not in public. The rulers of the country were a group of samurai who used Chakra.
Ino wasn't wearing a forehead protector; she had disguised herself as a traveler to blend in.
She said, "I heard that the Land of Iron has many skilled craftsmen. I want to forge a weapon."
Konoha Ninja only knew how to kill people with Ninjutsu, Taijutsu, and Genjutsu. People like Shikaku and Shikamaru, who occasionally played shogi, were considered cultured.
The Village simply couldn't find skilled blacksmiths, so she could only come to the Land of Iron.
"Forge a weapon? That's easy. Come on, I have a friend who is a very famous master craftsman in the Land of Iron."
Tatewaki's friend was definitely not Obito. Half a day later, he brought Ino to a blacksmith named Shitan.
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