Rescue Successful

On the way back, Hyuga Soji and Minato Namikaze ran into Uchiha Homura and the Anbu pursuit squad he was leading.

Soji explained the current situation to them.

"This makes things difficult. Since that's the case, we can only split up into teams of two and search separately," the Anbu squad captain suggested.

Everyone nodded. They had lost the enemy's trail, and the Land of Fire was so vast that finding them would be like looking for a needle in a haystack.

After confirming the teams, everyone split up and began a carpet search.

Soji was still paired with Minato.

"Searching like this without any leads is hopeless. I just hope we can find them before the enemy leaves the Land of Fire. Otherwise, there really won't be anything we can do." Soji sighed helplessly.

"Don't worry, we'll find a way. If even we give up on Uzumaki, wouldn't she be even more hopeless?" Minato smiled as he comforted Soji instead.

"Minato, you really are always this optimistic." Influenced by Minato's mood, Soji felt much better as well.

"If optimism can't solve something, can pessimism do any better? Next, we'll be relying on your Byakugan, Soji."

"Yeah. Don't worry, I'll do my best."

From then on, Soji kept using his Byakugan to observe the surroundings from time to time, hoping to find some important clue.

Suddenly, Minato Namikaze stopped and dropped down below.

Soji paused, then followed him to Minato's side.

"What is it, Minato? Did you find a new clue?"

Minato did not answer. Instead, he picked up a small clump of red hair from the ground and held it up before Soji's eyes.

"This is?" Seeing that lock of beautiful red hair, Soji could not help asking excitedly.

"If I'm right, Uzumaki must have secretly left this behind as a clue while the enemy wasn't paying attention. Now, we just need to follow the trail of red hair." Minato smiled confidently.

Soji had not expected Minato to spot such a tiny clue that even he, with the Byakugan, had missed. The two of them really did have the look of a married couple.

Soji really wanted to make that joke in his heart, but time waited for no one.

So, he immediately activated his Byakugan and searched for more red hair in the surrounding area. Sure enough, he found another clump of red hair on the ground not far ahead to the left.

"Found it, Minato. Let's go." Soji spoke excitedly.

At the same time, he did not forget to send a signal to notify the Anbu squad, Uchiha Homura, and the others.

Sure enough, as they pursued, Soji's Byakugan would occasionally spot red hair left in conspicuous places on the ground.

The pursuit had continued from after school the previous afternoon until the pale light of dawn appeared on the horizon the next morning.

The two Cloud Hidden Elite Shinobi who had abducted Kushina Uzumaki had also neared the border of the Land of Fire. Once they left the Land of Fire, the sky would be the limit and the sea wide enough for fish to leap.

Both of them were filled with joy.

Not only because they would be safe, but also because if they completed this mission, they would certainly receive Lord Raikage's reward upon returning to Kumogakure!

As for the Cloud Hidden Elite Shinobi left behind to cover their retreat, the two had long since subconsciously forgotten him. After all, with one fewer person to share the credit, they would get more for themselves!

Meanwhile, Kushina Uzumaki was gradually falling into despair.

From the conversation between the two Kumogakure elite shinobi, she had learned that the border of the Land of Fire was less than a thousand meters ahead.

In one minute at most, they would leave the Land of Fire.

Once they crossed it, an endless abyss awaited Kushina Uzumaki!

Sure enough, her red hair could not bring her good luck. On her very first day of school, she had not only been mocked and bullied by her classmates, but had then been kidnapped as well.

Kushina Uzumaki closed her eyes in pain.

Just as Kushina Uzumaki waited for fate to pass judgment on her—

Just as the two Kumogakure elite shinobi imagined their bright futures—

The two Kumogakure elite shinobi suddenly seemed to catch their feet on some transparent threads. Immediately afterward, both lost their balance and fell forward.

The ninja carrying Kushina Uzumaki instinctively flung the girl in his arms away.

"Not good." The two Kumogakure elite shinobi realized something was wrong.

"A trap!" Both had the same thought.

Both reached out to grab Kushina Uzumaki, but their unbalanced bodies prevented them from doing so immediately.

With a whoosh, a figure flashed past their eyes and snatched away the prey they had worked so hard to abduct from Konoha.

The newcomer had dazzling short blond hair and sky-blue eyes. A warm smile rested at the corner of his lips as he looked at the little girl in his arms.

It was none other than Minato Namikaze.

Ever since Soji and Minato had followed the trail Kushina Uzumaki left behind, they had finally caught up to the kidnappers.

However, when they caught up to them, neither rushed in impulsively to seize Kushina. After thinking it over, they had decided to circle ahead and set up an ambush.

At that moment, both were glad that they had been paired with each other rather than Uchiha Homura, who would have charged in headfirst on impulse.

As for Uchiha Homura, Soji felt that he might be somewhat like Obito Uchiha before his descent into darkness.

He was prone to letting his feelings influence him and acting impulsively.

Still, Soji and Minato, including the Ino-Shika-Cho trio, did not dislike getting along with an Uchiha like that.

Uchiha Homura might have been impulsive, but he valued relationships. Though he possessed the Uchiha Clan's pride, he did not look down his nose at the friends close to him.

Even toward ordinary classmates, Uchiha Homura did not look down on them.

He respected the strong, but he did not despise the weak.

Over the past two years, their classmates had more or less become familiar with Uchiha Homura's temperament. They no longer clashed with him as tensely as they had at the start of school, and would even occasionally tease one another.

That was getting off topic. When Soji and Minato decided to set an ambush, they discussed the location and ultimately chose a spot one thousand meters before the border!

They were not afraid of a direct confrontation.

Both possessed strength no weaker than a Chunin's. If the two enemy ninja were about as strong as the one they had encountered earlier—

Then at best, they would only be around the level of Special Jonin, not much stronger than them.

A Special Jonin was still a fair distance from a proper Jonin, at most a notch stronger than an ordinary Chunin.

But they should not forget that Soji possessed the Byakugan bloodline limit, while Minato's teacher was Jiraiya, the current inheritor of Mount Myōboku. Anything Jiraiya casually gave him was beyond what these Special Jonin with no particular strengths could compare to.

What the two feared was that if they acted rashly and failed to defeat their opponents immediately, they might drive them into a desperate corner. If that led them to harm Kushina Uzumaki's life, it would be bad.

And this ambush location, right before the border of the Land of Fire, would make it easy for the enemy to lower their guard because they were so close to accomplishing their goal.

Sure enough, just as the two had expected, the kidnappers relaxed their vigilance toward their surroundings due to the joy of imminent success.

Using that opening, Soji and Minato successfully rescued Kushina Uzumaki at the very first opportunity.

Just ahead of where the two kidnappers were about to fall, the earth suddenly collapsed, revealing sharpened wooden stakes below that gleamed with cold light.

"Ah!"

Seeing this, the two Kumogakure elite shinobi knew that if they fell in, even if they did not die, they would be seriously injured.

So they forcibly twisted their bodies away from the pit and rolled to either side.

But the consequence was that both strained the muscles and bones in their legs.

This would greatly reduce the speed of the two Kumogakure elite shinobi in the upcoming fight.

That was precisely the second objective of Soji and Minato's ambush.

Their first task was to rescue Kushina Uzumaki.

Their second task was to leave none of the kidnappers behind.

As Konoha Ninja, this was their duty, even if they had not yet graduated from the Ninja Academy!

"Uzumaki, it's all right now. You're safe." Holding the soft body in his arms, Minato Namikaze spoke happily.

At that moment, Minato Namikaze had arrived first and saved the girl he had fallen for at first sight. His feelings could no longer be described by joy alone.

Hearing the gentle voice beside her ear, Kushina Uzumaki slowly opened her eyes, which had been shut tightly in despair.

The first thing she saw was a smiling face.

That smile made Kushina Uzumaki feel at ease.

Then there was his blond hair, like a ray of sunlight amid despair, bringing her hope.

His sky-blue eyes shone brightly, as soothing as the sky itself.

"Who are you? How did you find me?"

Kushina Uzumaki only knew that the person before her should be one of her classmates.

After all, she had seen him at the Ninja Academy today, though she did not know his name.

His blond hair and her red hair were both so conspicuous amid a crowd.

Though he looked handsome and seemed quite popular in class—

Kushina Uzumaki's first impression of Minato Namikaze had actually been poor.

She thought he looked overly delicate and untrustworthy, like a very boring person.

Most importantly, did he think she had not noticed?

Minato Namikaze had been smiling at her throughout class as well.

Although she felt it was not mockery, it had still made her uncomfortable.

She had originally planned to find a chance tomorrow to beat Minato up, just like she had beaten up the other children.

"My name is Minato Namikaze. I came to save you. Your red hair is beautiful, Uzumaki. I really like it, so I found you." Minato spoke very seriously. He did not want the girl before him to think he was teasing her.

With a swish, Kushina Uzumaki's face instantly turned red.

"R-Really? Is my hair really beautiful?" Kushina Uzumaki could not help tugging at the long red hair hanging over her chest as she asked haltingly.

"Mm, I'm absolutely not lying to you." Minato's smile was as bright as sunshine.

"I believe you!"

At that moment, Kushina Uzumaki's feelings toward her red hair suddenly changed from initial disgust to the beginning of fondness.

She was glad that someone liked her red hair, that it had made someone notice her, and that someone had followed the clues she left behind to find her!

The two silently gazed at each other!

At that moment, Kushina Uzumaki's favorability toward Minato shot straight to the maximum!

"Ahem, you two, shouldn't you pay attention to the situation? The enemies in front of us still haven't been dealt with. If you want to get affectionate, you'll have plenty of time after we get back." Soji had no choice but to interrupt their tender gaze.

Swish, swish.

At the sound of his voice, Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki's faces both burned red like ripe apples.

Then they awkwardly turned their heads away at the same time to hide their embarrassment, though their eyes could not help sneaking glances at each other.

Soji's fists clenched. Enough already! Don't rub your romance in my face like this!

There were still two enemies staring at the three of them from up ahead.

"Oh, right, Uzumaki, let me introduce you. This is Hyuga Soji, my good friend. Thanks to his Byakugan, we were able to find you." Coming back to his senses, Minato quickly introduced Soji to Kushina Uzumaki.

"Thank you for coming to save me." Upon hearing that he was her other savior, Kushina Uzumaki hurriedly thanked him.

"You only need to thank Minato. After all, even with my Byakugan activated, I didn't spot the red-hair markers you left behind. Minato was the one with sharp enough eyes to spot them at a glance." Soji spoke indifferently, while also giving the two a little extra push toward each other.

Sure enough, the gratitude and affection in Kushina Uzumaki's eyes as she looked at Minato Namikaze rose once again. If it had already been maxed out before, now it had broken past the limit.

If Kushina Uzumaki had still held even the slightest doubt about Minato saying that he liked her red hair, now she completely believed him!

Having someone who liked her red hair felt wonderful!