Kushina's hands were bound as three Kumogakure ninja escorted her forward.
"Once we get out of this forest, we'll be out of Konoha," one of them said, letting out a slight sigh of relief.
"But… Aisei and the others…" another muttered, clenching his teeth.
To capture this genin with special chakra, some of their comrades had deliberately drawn Konoha's attention.
Now that they hadn't regrouped—
They were likely dead.
After all, they had abducted her from within Konoha itself.
This operation had deployed considerable force.
Their mission—
Was to bring Kushina back to Kumogakure.
For the sake of a single genin—
They had sacrificed two jonin.
"Completing the mission is what matters most," the leader said coldly.
At that moment, Kushina—exhausted from resisting—collapsed to the ground.
"Hey! Get up!!"
The ninja behind her yanked the rope, dragging her back to her feet.
As she stood—
She secretly dropped a few strands of her red hair onto the ground.
Please… let someone find me…
Even though she didn't belong to this village—
She still hoped someone would come to save her.
Silently, she continued walking.
But hope—
Felt distant.
…
"This is Kushina's hair."
Minato was the first to spot the red strands hidden in the grass.
"Nawaki, looks like you care a lot about Kushina," Nawaki teased. "You recognized it instantly."
"Idiot."
Arin punched Nawaki on the head.
"There are only two redheads in Konoha. If Lady Mito were kidnapped, how many people do you think would be mobilized?"
Not to mention—
Kidnapping Mito would require absurd force.
And if it succeeded—
The entire village would be in chaos.
Arin had already scanned the situation with his Byakugan.
Two jonin.
Three special jonin.
The two jonin had caused disturbances in Konoha to divert attention.
The three special jonin—
Were escorting Kushina.
Those two jonin had already been captured.
But they had successfully diverted Konoha's focus.
No one had even noticed Kushina's disappearance.
After all—
She was only a backup jinchūriki.
Important—
But not important enough for full-scale attention.
If Arin hadn't seen those jonin get captured—
He wouldn't have bothered chasing these three.
At most—
15,000 experience.
"Ugh…"
Arin sighed.
"Why are you sighing?" Nawaki asked.
Among the three—
Only Minato hadn't locked onto the targets.
For Arin—
They were already doomed.
"Just three special jonin… barely worth anything," Arin muttered.
"True," Nawaki nodded. "No threat at all."
Even Minato could handle them easily.
"Let's hurry and save her," Minato said anxiously. "I'll go ahead."
Suddenly—
Arin hooked an arm around his shoulder and said in a low voice,
"Kid… trying to steal my kills?"
Minato immediately felt a chill.
"I just want to save Kushina!"
"Fine. Go."
Arin waved him off.
Minato dashed forward without hesitation.
Arin raised a bow in his hand.
Nawaki rolled his eyes.
He knew it.
Arin had an obsession with landing the final blow.
Flaming arrows formed on the bowstring.
With Byakugan—
He locked onto the three Kumogakure ninja far in the distance.
…
The three Kumogakure ninja continued escorting Kushina.
Then—
"Found you."
A voice drew their attention.
They turned—
To see Minato, smiling brightly.
Kushina, exhausted, continued walking forward unconsciously.
"Sorry," Minato said seriously, "but I'm taking my companion back."
"Just a brat."
The three ninja relaxed slightly.
"So you think you can take her from us?"
One of them grinned and stepped forward.
Whoosh—
A blue-black flash lit up Minato's body—
And pierced straight through the ninja.
Ignoring the pain, he shouted—
"Flame… Demon!!!"
BOOM!!!
A violent explosion engulfed him.
Nothing remained—
Not even flesh.
Only ashes drifted down.
"Flame Demon!!!"
The other two turned pale, shouting in terror as they leapt away.
But—
They were too slow.
Two blue-black arrows struck them instantly.
BOOM! BOOM!
The explosions echoed.
Kushina turned her head.
Under the blue-black glow—
Minato stood there, holding a kunai, his expression serious.
That moment—
Felt eternal.
"DAMN IT!!! STOP SHOWING OFF YOUR ROMANCE!!!"
Whoosh—
Minato sensed danger behind him.
An arrow—
Aimed straight at him.
Luckily, it wasn't as fast as the previous ones.
He dodged in time.
Catching Kushina as she collapsed, he leapt into a tree.
BOOM! BOOM!
Two arrows exploded on the ground below.
Nawaki, who arrived late, muttered,
"…Feels like you just helped Minato."
"I was trying to kill him!!" Arin snapped, glaring.
His eyes practically burning as he looked at Minato.
One day—
He'd burn both of them.
"Arin-brother, Kushina seems badly injured," Minato said urgently.
Arin glanced at him, then walked over.
"She is pretty badly hurt."
He placed a hand on Kushina's abdomen.
Kuma Palm.
A paw-shaped bubble emerged from her back, rapidly expanding.
"What is that?" Nawaki and Minato stared in confusion.
"Something good."
Arin smiled.
"Go ahead—touch it."
This felt suspicious.
But curiosity won.
Both of them reached in.
Their eyes widened—
Their bodies jolted.
"IT HURTS!!!" ×2
Their screams echoed through the forest.
Satisfied—
Arin walked over to the scorched ground and collected the drops.
[Fighting Server Invitation: Can randomly summon an NPC from that server]
"Even special jonin drop this?"
He checked the rest and picked out two useful items:
A Water Breathing sword form
A Stone Breathing sword form
Not bad.
A decent haul.
✨ Bonus Chapter Goals ✨
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100 Power Stones = 1 Bonus Chapter
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