Trust Me

The murky water flowed slowly and overflowed.

"Slap! Slap!..."

The hurried footsteps shattered the silence of the water, and the figures of the boys running with all their might were reflected on the dim surface.

"Minato, this can't go on! Those guys are heading towards Black Tail Mountain. If Black Tail Mountain falls, we'll lose this war."

Otoha shouted loudly.

Neither he nor Minato had participated in any direct combat since morning, so their stamina was well-preserved, and they had enough strength to talk loudly while running.

Given the current intense battle, the sensory ninjas responsible for relaying orders at the command post are practically brain-damaged from exhaustion. It's quite fortunate that these two are still in their current state.

······

Otoha heard every word Minato said, but he didn't know how to respond. Could the two of them salvage the already collapsing situation? He had no idea.

He witnessed firsthand how the Jonin hiding around Kushina were single-handedly stopped by the towering Stone Ninja. There were no reinforcements on Black Tail Mountain either. It seemed that there were only a few Konoha Ninja on the vast plain west of Black Tail Mountain, and they were no match for the combined forces of Sand and Stone Ninja Jonin who were charging in like wolves.

"Minato?"

Otoha's voice was solemn.

"There's nothing I can do, nothing I can do."

The dejected tone was unusual, Otoha stared wide-eyed in disbelief at Minato's bitter Minato.

"The difference in strength... the enemy has too many of them." Minato glanced at Kushina, who was half-asleep and perched on his shoulder, his face bitter. "They Jonin too many Jonin, and most importantly, we have no way to stop the Tailed Beast..."

Minato was confident he could handle a Jonin, even if he couldn't defeat the enemy, he could still buy time. However, the Flying Thunder God Technique was good at fighting people, but it was no match for the massive Tailed Beast. The Jonin Flying Thunder God Technique itself didn't have any killing power, and he had never mastered Ninjutsu that could deal with Tailed Beast.

No solution!

If he were alone, Minato would not fear death. But with Kushina on his shoulder, exhausted and on the verge of fainting, she became a shackle binding him, preventing him from acting according to his will.

"... Is there no other way?" Otoha's voice was dejected, the black Tomoe in his crimson eyes swirling rapidly. "Minato, take Kushina and leave!"

"Otoha, what do you want to do?"

"My sister is still on the battlefield. If I, as her older brother, were to leave the battlefield first... I would never be able to hold my head up high again." Otoha said with a faint smile on his face. Suddenly, he changed direction and turned back along the route he had come from.

The Uchiha Clan has no cowards who fear death. Rather than fleeing in panic, they would rather fall on the way of the charge, even if it only buys Minato and Kushina a few more seconds. That would be worth it!

"Otoha!"

"Otoha!!"

"Hateful······"

Minato's handsome face was filled with anxiety as he watched helplessly as Otoha's figure disappeared from his sight.

"Hmph, Minato Namikaze, right? You and the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki come with me."

Suddenly, the ground beneath his feet trembled, and a figure darted out, startling Minato so much that he gripped his trident kunai Kunai. He only breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the person's appearance clearly. It was Dan Katō, one of the high-ranking members of the Konoha army, and also the Jonin instructor of Katsuki and Otome. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that he was an acquaintance.

As Dan Katō appeared, six more people followed, standing behind him. They were all dressed in Anbu uniforms and wearing animal-face masks.

"Go with you? Where to?"

Minato put away his Kunai, lifted Kushina who was sliding down his back, and asked.

"... Retreat, leave Black Tail Mountain, and return to the village." Dan glanced at Minato. He also recognized this disciple of Jiraiya, one of the most active and talented young men in the army, who had repeatedly made meritorious contributions. He had seen Minato's name frequently on the merit list.

Looking at the excessively young Minato, Dan sighed softly. He didn't know if Katsuki was still alive, nor did he know the current situation of Nawaki and Otome. Just sniping the stealthy enemies had almost exhausted his energy.

"You mean... you mean... run away?" Minato gritted his teeth and still managed to utter the particularly unpleasant word 'run away'.

Although Minato knew very well that retreating was the right decision, the fall of Black Tail Mountain was certainly a setback, but if the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki were also lost, that would be a truly terrible event! However, the depression in his heart could not be shaken off. He could not just retreat in such a sorry state, abandoning his comrades.

"That's right!" Duan replied calmly. He didn't have much time to waste. He wasn't sure how long the boost from the Ration Pills would last.

This is the first time I've taken such a large dose of Ration Pills.

"I won't stop you from doing whatever you want. My only orders are to evacuate with the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki," Dan said directly, waving his hand. The masked female Anbu behind him walked to Minato's side and extended her hand.

Gently, he lowered Kushina from his back and slowly offered her to the woman for massage.

"Smack!"

Kushina suddenly moved, shaking off Minato and the female Anbu's hands, and stood up.

"Kushina, you didn't..."

"Minato, Minato, I sense it! It's Katsuki! Katsuki's Chakra fluctuations are approaching!!"

The girl jumped excitedly, grabbed Minato's shoulders, her face flushed as if she were drunk, almost matching her fiery red hair.

"You mean Katsuki? Kushina, are you sure? Although it's a bit of a downer, I have to say that your current state... well, it's not very good. Could it be your... imagination?" Minato stammered, sweating profusely as he spoke.

After he finished speaking, he looked at Kushina with extremely uneasy eyes, afraid that Kushina would go berserk if she was provoked.

It wasn't that he didn't trust Kushina, but rather that Kushina was in a truly terrible state. She didn't react at all to the appearance of Dan and the others, let alone Katsuki, who wasn't even sure if he was alive or dead. Perhaps all of this was just a hallucination that Kushina was experiencing due to extreme exhaustion.

However, Kushina's reaction was unexpected.

"It's true, Minato! You don't need to be so careful. Don't worry, I'm just too tired, I'm not crazy yet!" Kushina shouted, her eyes burning with fire. "There's no mistake, it's definitely Katsuki's Chakra, moving this way from the southwest."