Twisted Fate, Hiashi's Recommendation!

Gently soothing Kushina's emotions, Minato could feel that her life force was still draining away. He realized there was no time to waste.

The Hyuga Clan elites struggling against the Tailed Beast had nearly exhausted themselves during their brief standoff with the Nine-Tails. Seeing Minato rise and approach, the Nine-Tails' struggles grew increasingly violent.

Staring at the Nine-Tails, Minato rapidly formed hand seals. In an instant, black runes emerged from the ground beneath the Nine-Tails, wrapping around it and forcibly dragging it toward Kushina's abdomen.

With every inch the Nine-Tails drew closer to Kushina, its body shrank drastically.

"Damn it!!"

"Are you trying to seal me again!?"

The Nine-Tails roared and struggled, but its resistance only brought wave after wave of attacks from the three giant Toads guarding nearby.

In the end, the Nine-Tails turned into a ball of dark crimson Chakra. Wrapped in black sealing runes and golden Chains, it was drawn into Kushina's lower abdomen and vanished.

The Tailed Beast's immense Chakra disappeared from the forest.

Having completed the Eight Trigrams Seal, Minato hurried to Kushina's side. As he checked her condition, he also kept watch over the seal.

The result surprised him somewhat. Beneath the Eight Trigrams Seal, the Tailed Beast's Chakra was not leaking out. It seemed that as long as Kushina did not experience excessively intense emotional fluctuations, the Tailed Beast's seal would not pose a problem for the time being.

For Minato, this was already enough.

They would still have time afterward to carefully study a better sealing method.

At the same time, the Chakra rapidly draining from Kushina stopped flowing out the moment the Tailed Beast was sealed back inside her.

Perhaps because she was exhausted, Kushina gently took Minato's hand. Then she peacefully closed her eyes and fell into a deep sleep.

"Kushina?"

Minato called out worriedly. Hiashi, standing nearby, comforted him at just the right moment.

"Don't worry. She's only fallen asleep. She must be too exhausted."

"Her Chakra is gradually stabilizing. She should be fine."

Hiashi's Byakugan could see the flow of Chakra within the human body. Normally, a ninja only truly died once the Chakra in their body had been completely depleted.

Given Kushina's current condition, she was most likely out of danger.

Hearing that, Minato nodded lightly. Then, as if recalling something, he turned to Shinichi, gently patted him on the shoulder, and said with deep gratitude, "Shinichi..."

"Thank you. Our whole family owes you our lives!"

Minato spoke those words from the bottom of his heart. If not for Shinichi, Minato would never have known that simply sealing the Tailed Beast back inside could save Kushina's life. If Shinichi had not stopped him in time, he might have already used the Reaper Death Seal to seal the Nine-Tails.

If events had truly unfolded as Shinichi had assumed, then after Minato's death, without his protection, it was hard to say whether Kushina and Naruto could have survived safely under the threat of Obito Uchiha.

Konoha itself might even have been dragged back into brutal war after losing its young Hokage.

No matter how one looked at it, the information Shinichi had provided and the help he had given had benefited Minato's entire family.

Minato would remember this debt of gratitude.

"Minato-sensei, you're being too formal."

Seeing that Kushina-sensei's condition had stabilized, Shinichi Hyuga finally showed a faint smile. The way he addressed Minato also returned to its usual closeness.

Through this incident, Shinichi had vaguely grasped the scent of fate. Though things had taken a few twists and turns, his efforts had not been in vain.

The altered fate of Minato and Kushina filled Shinichi with confidence in the future.

Naruto's life and experiences might undergo earth-shaking changes because of him, but Shinichi believed Naruto would still grow into a powerful man.

Asura's soul would guide this child of destiny to heights beyond the reach of ordinary people.

In fact, under Minato and Kushina's guidance, Naruto might have an even higher ceiling. The Tailed Beast's power was indeed an important source of support for Naruto, but as a member of the Uzumaki Clan, he would never lack Chakra. What he had always lacked were ways to use it.

The Naruto of the future probably would not have to rely only on the Rasengan to fight powerful enemies...

As the dust settled, Hiruzen Sarutobi finally arrived belatedly with his direct Anbu. Looking at the wrecked battlefield and the Hyuga Clan members collapsed on the ground from exhaustion, a sharp glint flashed through Hiruzen's eyes.

The Hyuga... had actually reached the battlefield before him?

And judging by the situation, the Tailed Beast seemed to have already been dealt with?

Hiruzen's gaze quickly fell on Minato and Kushina. In a flash, he appeared beside Minato, glanced at the sleeping Kushina, and urgently asked, "Minato, the Nine-Tails..."

Hiruzen wanted to understand what had happened and how it had ended, but Minato had no mind to explain so much to the Third Hokage right now. Shaking his head lightly, he replied, "I'll explain the details to you later."

"Right now, I need to take Kushina and Naruto to the hospital first."

"Lady Biwako is safe. The Anbu at the Cave should report the specifics to you soon."

"I'll take my leave for now."

Minato's thoughts were entirely on his wife and child. Seeing the exhaustion on Minato's face, the Third Hokage nodded and did not press further.

But Shinichi noticed Hiruzen's gaze repeatedly drifting toward Kushina. It seemed he found it strange that Kushina was still alive.

After the Nine-Tails' rampage, Shinichi Hyuga would probably officially enter the sight of Konoha's High-Ranking Officials...

But...

It didn't matter!

He had now mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique. Though he was nowhere near as skilled as Minato, he at least had the strength to protect himself.

Besides, he was Hyuga Hiashi's son. No matter what thoughts the village higher-ups had about him, they could not possibly threaten his safety.

Compared to the scheming within the village, Shinichi was more worried about Obito Uchiha. He did not know whether the other side had noticed him.

But... perhaps this was not something he needed to worry about.

When Minato Namikaze attacked Obito Uchiha, he had left a Flying Thunder God Mark on him. If Obito could not remove that mark, he likely would not dare show himself in Konoha again.

After this incident, Minato would also become extremely wary of Obito. Before long, that man would become a wanted rogue ninja of Konoha.

Hiruzen Sarutobi did not leave after Minato's departure. Instead, he went over to Hiashi and began speaking with him warmly.

Through his words, he subtly probed into what had happened here.

Facing the Third Hokage, Hiashi did not conceal much, but neither did he intend to explain in detail. He merely said in broad terms that the enemy had been driven back, the Fourth Hokage had sealed the Tailed Beast back into Kushina's body, and the crisis had been resolved.

The key information was there, but the lack of details kept the Third Hokage from noticing Shinichi.

As the Third Hokage and his Anbu departed one after another, Hyuga Hiashi came to Shinichi's side. He gently patted Shinichi on the head and praised him.

"Shinichi, well done!"

"With this, the connection between us and the Fourth Hokage will be unbreakable!"

Hiashi was delighted. Their clan had gained a great deal from this incident.

Shinichi neither agreed nor disagreed. An unbreakable connection? This was nothing yet.

Twenty years from now, their relationship with the Fourth Hokage would be a true blood alliance. When the Nine-Tails' rebellion was settled, they would all be counted together...

"Shinichi, I believe you've already witnessed the cruelty of the ninja world."

"I want to recommend you for Special Jonin. Once you've matured a little more, you'll take part in some combat missions."

"Although you are from the Main Family, a ninja must ultimately grow through trials of blood and sweat."

"I heard that Fugaku Uchiha's son was taken to the battlefield as early as age four. They say that child performed exceptionally well."

"I hope you won't lose to him!"