Rumors Abound, Azure Dragon's Composure and Tsunade's Anger

Pfft--!!!

He coughed up a large mouthful of blood, with fragments of internal organs mixed in! A tearing pain came from his Rinnegan, and his vision instantly turned blood red! The terrifying backlash from forcibly absorbing the Nine-Tails' Chakra, coupled with the massive consumption of using a heaven-defying Eye Power, instantly pushed him to the brink of collapse! The phantom of the Wood Release Buddha Statue behind him could no longer be maintained, and with a mournful cry of unwillingness, it collapsed into countless points of light!

Losing the suppression of the Buddha Statue, the completely crazed Nine-Tails let out an even more violent roar! Although it had lost some Chakra (absorbed by Duanmu Ci to save Kushina), its ferocity increased instead of decreasing! It changed its target, and its scarlet beast eyes locked onto Duanmu Ci, who was on his last breath and falling from mid-air! Its giant claw of destruction, filled with boundless hate, slammed down! It wanted to completely crush this human who had heavily injured it and stolen its Power!

"Duanmu--!!!" Tsunade screamed in despair! She wanted to rush over, regardless of everything!

Minato's eyes were also bloodshot, but he was too far away, and his Chakra was exhausted!

Just at this critical moment!

"Summoning Technique: Frog Mouth Bind Technique!"

Jiraiya's roar rang out! A huge, bumpy, purplish-red Frog stomach wall appeared out of nowhere, like a giant meat pocket, instantly enveloping and binding the Nine-Tails' giant claw that was slamming towards Duanmu Ci! Although it was torn apart by the Nine-Tails' great Strength in just a moment, this precious moment was enough for a golden figure to flash by!

"Flying Thunder God Technique!"

Minato used the last bit of his Chakra to activate the Flying Thunder God Technique, appearing next to the falling Duanmu Ci, grabbing him, and teleporting again, narrowly avoiding the Nine-Tails' subsequent attack, landing on the roof where Tsunade and Kushina were.

"Duanmu!" Tsunade immediately pounced on him, her hands erupting with the most concentrated green Medical Chakra, pressing it against Duanmu Ci's almost shattered chest, tears falling like beads off a string. "Hold on! Please, hold on!"

Duanmu Ci lay in Tsunade's arms, covered in blood, his Rinnegan tightly closed, his breath weak to the extreme, his Life Force like a candle in the wind. The inside of his Body was a mess from the Nine-Tails' Chakra impact, his meridians were broken, his internal organs were damaged, and more seriously, there was the excessive overdraft of Eye Power and the Soul Damage from the mental impact of the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path. He had paid an unimaginable price to save Kushina!

And losing Duanmu Ci, the greatest threat, the Nine-Tails' destruction was even more unrestrained! Jiraiya, the Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi who had arrived (he had been dealing with disasters in other areas), and many Konoha Ninja could only desperately resist, using their lives to slow down the Nine-Tails' destructive pace, but the casualties were extremely heavy! Konohagakure was being turned into scorched earth inch by inch!

In the ruins, the Masked Man (Obito) struggled to stand up. He looked at Duanmu Ci, who was in an unknown state of life and death on the distant roof, Kushina who was protected by Tsunade and Minato (although she was saved, she was extremely weak and had lost the Nine-Tails), and the Nine-Tails that was still destroying everything crazily. The expression under his mask was twisted and complex.

"Duanmu Ci... you once again... changed fate..." His voice was full of resentment, but also carried a hint of indescribable confusion. "Saved Kushina... but Konoha... will still be destroyed! This is... the punishment for you people who are immersed in false peace! In the Purgatory of Hate... repent!"

He knew that his injuries were not light, and the Nine-Tails was completely out of control, so staying any longer would be too risky. He took a deep look in Duanmu Ci's direction, especially at those tightly closed Rinnegan, and Obito's figure slowly disappeared in the distorted Spatial Vortex.

"The Moon Eye Plan... needs to be revised... those eyes... must be obtained..."

With Obito's disappearance, the Nine-Tails completely became an unowned Disaster Beast, continuing its destruction. But without Obito's secret guidance, its actions became pure and chaotic.

Just as Konoha was about to completely Collapse!

"Fourth Hokage!" Hiruzen Sarutobi roared at Minato, who was holding Duanmu Ci and protecting Kushina, covered in blood and with his hair standing on end: "Seal it! Use that technique! This is the only way!"

Minato looked at his beloved wife Kushina, who was unconscious and on her last breath in his arms, then looked at the Nine-Tails rampaging madly in the ruins, causing countless casualties, and finally his gaze fell on Duanmu Ci in Tsunade's arms, who had paid a terrible price to save his wife, and whose life and death were unknown... Great pain and determination intertwined in his eyes.

He gently put Kushina down, placing one last kiss on her pale forehead. Then, he stood up, his azure eyes filled only with the absolute will to protect the village and his loved ones! He began to form hand seals, and an ancient, Forbidden, deathly technique emerged around him!

"Reaper Death Seal... Please, Third Hokage... take care of Naruto... and... Kushina... and Duanmu-kun..."

The golden flash, with unwavering determination, rushed towards the World Annihilation Nine-Tails Fox! The final seal was about to begin! And the price was the Fourth Hokage Minato Namikaze's young life!

Under the Blood Moon, Konoha was crying, and a Hero was falling. Duanmu Ci had gambled with his Rinnegan and his life, forcibly rewriting Kushina's certain death, but he had also dragged himself and the entire Konoha into a more tragic and unknown future vortex. The Guardian of Taoyuan Village fell in a pool of blood, and his Legend and Calamity had only just begun...

Before Konoha's dawn had completely dispelled the mist, an unusual undercurrent was already surging through the streets. The tranquility of Taoyuan Village was broken, not by the swords of external enemies, but by the Suspicion and Malice deep within people's hearts.

"Have you heard? Those Orphans in Taoyuan Village aren't going there to enjoy themselves at all! Duanmu-sama... Duanmu Ci is using them for terrible Experiments!"

"Yeah, I've heard that too! They say it's to study his strange Wood Release, and he needs the Life Force of living people!"

"No wonder those children rarely come out after they go in, they're being locked up!"

"And those magical Medicines, they work so well, could they be made with some... Forbidden things?"

"I knew it, how could one person have such strong Medical Ninjutsu and that terrifying Power at the same time, there must be something wrong!"

Rumors spread like a Plague among the Konoha Villagers, fermenting and twisting. Fear and Doubt replaced the previous admiration for the "Konoha Azure Dragon" and the longing for the "Taoyuan Village" paradise. Some civilians who had originally planned to send their children to the Taoyuan Village orphanage, or wanted to seek medical treatment, became hesitant, even shying away. At the Entrance of Taoyuan Village, the gazes cast were no longer all gratitude and curiosity, but more scrutiny and Fear.

The news reached the core area of Taoyuan Village as soon as possible.

"Bastard!" Tsunade slammed her fist on the brand new Wooden Desk, the solid wood instantly filled with spider web-like cracks. Her golden hair moved without wind, and her eyes burned with raging Anger. "Danzo! It must be that rat in the gutter! If he can't win with fair means, he uses this kind of underhanded Slander!"

Shizune looked at the furious Tsunade with concern, and then looked at Duanmu Ci, who was standing by the window, silently looking in the direction outside the village. "Duanmu-sama, the rumors outside are very bad now, and some Villagers are even gathering at the Entrance outside the village, pointing and whispering... Should we explain?"

Duanmu Ci turned around, his face not showing much Anger, only a deep calmness, like the Sea Surface before a Storm. The passive perception of the Rinnegan allowed him to clearly "hear" those malicious speculations and fearful whispers, but deep in his eyes, there was an icy Cold Glint.