Moonlit Maiden Carrying

The moon hung high in the night sky, casting a dim, ghostly glow.

Several figures darted swiftly through the dense forest.

Not far beyond the village, Uchiha Yuzuru spotted scattered strands of red hair on the ground.

He picked up several strands and tucked them into his clothes, then sneered at the chaotic footprints below.

Even genin who had just graduated from the Ninja Academy knew how to conceal their true intentions and avoid being tracked.

Yet these ninja who had abducted Konoha's future Jinchuriki had not taken even the slightest measure to hide their trail.

What a clumsy performance.

Uchiha Yuzuru did not collect all the broken strands. Instead, he casually gathered the hair on the ground together, making it even more conspicuous.

For the plan to be flawless, Minato Namikaze had to be able to track down Kushina just like in the original story.

Following them all the way, it soon became the latter half of the night. By then, they were already dozens of li away from Konoha.

Feeling that the time was right, Uchiha Yuzuru no longer concealed his presence and sprinted toward them.

Moments after he revealed himself, three masked ninja blocked his path.

"Stop! No passage beyond this point!"

The leading ninja stared coldly at Uchiha Yuzuru, a trace of surprise flashing through his eyes. "Uchiha Yuzuru, why are you here?"

Without waiting for Uchiha Yuzuru to answer, he continued coldly, "You left the village in the middle of the night. Do you have a secret order from Hokage-sama?"

Uchiha Yuzuru shook his head. "No."

The Anbu ninja said expressionlessly, "Leaving the village without orders is considered desertion. Since we found you, come with us."

At that, Uchiha Yuzuru's lips curled into a faint smile. "What made you think you were the ones who found me?"

As soon as he spoke, his previously black eyes turned into Crimson Red Mangekyō Sharingan.

The leading Anbu ninja froze for a moment, then his expression changed drastically. "Don't look into his eyes!"

Though he did not know why Uchiha Yuzuru's eyes were not ordinary tomoe Sharingan, that did not prevent him from making the most appropriate judgment.

"Too late. It's already too late."

The moment Uchiha Yuzuru finished speaking, the Anbu Squad Leader watched the two subordinates behind him drive their longswords into each other's chests.

"Damn it, Genjutsu?"

"When did it..."

Seeing his two subordinates die instantly, the Anbu Squad Leader immediately retreated and reached into his clothes, pulling out a Signal Flare.

At the same time, Uchiha Yuzuru had already arrived in front of him.

The Anbu ninja could only abandon his original action for the moment and swing his blade at Uchiha Yuzuru.

But in the next second, his eyes abruptly widened.

Uchiha Yuzuru before him seemed like a phantom, and his attack passed straight through Uchiha Yuzuru's body.

The Anbu ninja was horrified. He desperately swung his longsword, repeatedly slashing at Uchiha Yuzuru's approaching body.

Yet every strike missed without exception.

"Are you just auto-attacking, little bro?"

Uchiha Yuzuru stepped before the Anbu ninja and raised a hand to seize his throat.

The Anbu ninja's eyes widened in terror. "He's solid? How is that possible?!"

His attacks had clearly passed through Uchiha Yuzuru's body as if he were an illusion!

Uchiha Yuzuru did not answer. He merely tightened his right hand slightly. "Night has fallen. Fade away quietly."

With a crisp crack, Uchiha Yuzuru snapped the Anbu ninja's neck.

"Too easy..."

Uchiha Yuzuru nodded in satisfaction.

Without intelligence, Kamui was truly absurdly useful.

The Anbu were all Elite Ninja, and a Squad Leader capable of leading a team possessed at least the strength of a Special Jonin.

Yet even with such a lineup, they could not even release a signal to call for help in front of him.

"No wonder the stronger an Uchiha becomes, the more obsessive they become. This terrifying power... even I, who know the plot, am starting to feel like I should stop eating beef."

Uchiha Yuzuru calmed himself and carefully transferred the corpses of the three Anbu ninja into the Kamui Dimension.

To gain a foothold in the Shinobi World, he had to possess at least an Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan.

Otherwise, no matter how powerful Dual Kamui was, there would always come a day when his Dojutsu Power ran dry.

For now, his primary objective still had to be developing the clan. He absolutely could not let his guard down.

After giving it some brief thought, Uchiha Yuzuru vanished once more.

Kushina Uzumaki's legs gave out, and she collapsed onto the ground.

The tall ninja behind her immediately kicked her. "Quit playing dead and get up!"

"If it weren't for your Special chakra and the fact that you have some use, I'd have chopped you up already!"

With that, he grabbed the rope binding Kushina Uzumaki's hands behind her back and hauled her upright.

Kushina Uzumaki looked at the three tall ninja closely following beside her and silently tossed strands of her broken hair onto the ground.

Please, someone has to find me!

Just as Kushina Uzumaki prayed inwardly, the three ninja who had kidnapped her suddenly stopped.

Under the moonlight, she looked up and saw a long-haired boy standing straight upon a branch ahead. His black eyes met hers.

"Don't be afraid. I'm here."

Seeing his face with its faint smile, Kushina Uzumaki's eyes instantly reddened. "Yuzuru..."

Although they were the same age, the moment she saw Uchiha Yuzuru, Kushina Uzumaki inexplicably felt completely safe.

Her long-tense nerves and vigilance suddenly loosened.

"Kill that brat!"

The three ninja wearing Kumogakure forehead protectors immediately charged at Uchiha Yuzuru.

Uchiha Yuzuru drew his longsword, his Crimson Red three-tomoe Sharingan carrying an eerie hue beneath the night sky.

Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique!

Earth Style: Earth Wall!

A fireball several meters wide crashed violently into the enormous earthen wall. The three Cloud Ninja hid behind it and silently waited for the smoke and dust to clear.

But at that moment, one of the Cloud Ninja suddenly let out a terrified scream.

The other two Cloud Ninja turned to look, only to see their companion clutching the back of his neck. His eyes were full of terror as blood continuously spurted through the gaps between his fingers.

"Did he use the collision between the Fire Release and Earth Release to conceal the sound of the Shuriken?"

"But even so, from that angle... how did he do it?!"

They had clearly been hiding behind the earthen wall. How had the Shuriken flown from behind them through such a blind spot?

"End this quickly."

Having lost one companion at the very first exchange, the remaining two Cloud Ninja felt an overwhelming sense of danger.

They exchanged glances, then charged at Uchiha Yuzuru simultaneously.

"Useless."

Uchiha Yuzuru neither dodged nor avoided them, instead rushing forward at equally incredible speed.

These Cloud Ninja were not particularly strong. Even without using the Mangekyō Sharingan's power, Uchiha Yuzuru could deal with them effortlessly.

He was like a butterfly dancing through the air, elegantly evading the encirclement of the two Cloud Ninja.

The dynamic vision granted by his three-tomoe Sharingan allowed him to see through the Cloud Ninja's attacks with ease.

Every time Uchiha Yuzuru struck, a spray of blood mist followed.

He had no intention of leaving survivors. If this really was Hiruzen Sarutobi's scheme, he definitely would not get any useful information from these three Cloud Ninja.

And if it was not Hiruzen Sarutobi's arrangement, then he had even less reason to let them live.

Because through this incident, he intended to make Kushina completely lose faith in Konoha's Higher-ups.

A moment later.

Uchiha Yuzuru shook the droplets of blood from his blade, sheathed it, and walked over to Kushina Uzumaki.

"Kushina, you weren't hurt, were you?"

"I'm fine. Thank you for saving me, Yuzuru."

Taking a deep breath, Kushina Uzumaki said sincerely, "Yuzuru, you're amazing. You defeated those enemies so easily."

That battle had been far too spectacular. The three Cloud Ninja who had made her despair had been utterly helpless before Uchiha Yuzuru.

They were clearly classmates from the same year.

Yuzuru...

When had he become so strong?

"I told you I would become strong." Uchiha Yuzuru spoke calmly. "If even trash like that could hinder me, then I would be nothing special."

"And I will absolutely not stop here!"

Sensing the confidence in Uchiha Yuzuru's voice, Kushina Uzumaki stood there in a daze.

The words Uchiha Yuzuru had once said to her that day resurfaced in her mind without her realizing it...

Strange... why is my heart beating so fast?

While Kushina Uzumaki was lost in thought, Uchiha Yuzuru untied the ropes around her. "Can you still walk?"

Kushina Uzumaki nodded. "Yes."

But after taking only two steps, Kushina Uzumaki stumbled.

If Uchiha Yuzuru had not grabbed her arm in time, she would likely have fallen hard to the ground.

Seeing the look Uchiha Yuzuru gave her, Kushina Uzumaki's little face reddened. She lowered her head and explained, "I'm just a little exhausted. I'm fine."

Hearing that, Uchiha Yuzuru sighed helplessly. "Good grief. What a stubborn girl."

"But in your condition, you won't make it back to Konoha before dawn."

With that, he directly lifted Kushina Uzumaki into a bridal carry.

"Ah! Yuzuru, you..."

"Shh!" Once Kushina Uzumaki fell silent, Uchiha Yuzuru said, "Be quiet. I'll take you back."

Kushina Uzumaki bit her lip, then finally rested her head silently against Uchiha Yuzuru's chest.

At that moment, a blond, spiky-haired boy appeared in a flash.

Seeing Kushina Uzumaki in Uchiha Yuzuru's arms, Minato Namikaze froze for a moment. "Was I too late?"

"No, you came at just the right time." Uchiha Yuzuru's lips curved faintly as he said to Minato Namikaze, "I'll take Kushina back first. Minato, take care of the bodies of these three Cloud Ninja."

Without waiting for Minato Namikaze to answer, Uchiha Yuzuru carried Kushina Uzumaki away beneath the moonlight.