Faced with the attacks of three Kage Level ninjas, the Masked Man, despite possessing the Sharingan with its Space-Time Ninjutsu, slowly began to fall into a disadvantageous position. It wasn't that he wasn't strong enough, but rather that his opponents were stronger than him.
Konoha is currently at its most glorious, with geniuses emerging one after another, no less than during the time of Hashirama Senju. The only reason Hashirama Senju was so powerful was because he was too Hashirama Senju, which led to the great war that Ninja World Senju. Hashirama Senju was strong, Konoha's current strength lies in its overall power. The fact that they can single-handedly withstand the combined attack of the other four villages speaks volumes about Konoha's current strength.
Seeing the Masked Man losing ground, Black Zetsu, lurking in the shadows, grew restless. With Karot absent, Konoha was practically at his mercy. He hadn't expected Konoha to still possess so many ninja without Karot, a fact that presented unimaginable variables for his plans. He wouldn't allow the Masked Man to be harmed in Konoha; this was Madara Uchiha's chosen contingency plan. If he perished here, he wouldn't be able to explain himself when Madara Uchiha awoke. A man as obsessive as Madara Uchiha was extremely rare. He had waited countless hours to find such a suitable candidate, and he couldn't allow failure.
"Come out!"
Black Zetsu summoned his army of White Zetsu; this was the only method he had left. As Kaguya's third child, he did not inherit her talent and power, and could only rely on deception and a lack of conscience to raise up Kaguya White Zetsu, these fearless cannon fodder.
Countless White Zetsu emerged from the ground. This scene startled Minato and the others. The White Zetsu appeared without warning, naturally taking them by surprise. Konoha's defenses seemed utterly ineffective in the face of the enemy.
Emerging from underground, the White Zetsu launched their attack without uttering a word. They employed no fancy Ninjutsu, only hard-fought battles, perfectly serving as cannon fodder.
Minato and his companions were also masters in this area, each attack resulting in the death of a White Zetsu. Minato's Flying Thunder God was particularly adept at this, and in the blink of an eye, he had taken down more White Zetsu than Shisui and Fugaku. He truly lived up to his name Yellow Flash.
However, the White Zetsu seemed endless; after one was dealt with, more would appear. At this moment, Shisui and Fugaku no longer concealed themselves and directly activated Susanoo. Two giants of different colors appeared on the battlefield. Wielding katana, they swung them at the White Zetsu cannon fodder, severing limbs wherever they went. They were completely invincible.
"You two are very good."
The Masked Man glared at Shisui and Fugaku through gritted teeth. He couldn't understand why these two Susanoo, hadn't rebelled against the village or sought to dominate the Ninja World. If they knew Masked Man thoughts, they would scoff at him. Two Kage Level ninjas trying to fight Konoha? Had they lost their minds? And then there was this guy named Karot. If he dared to rebel, Karot would teach him a lesson.
The Masked Man reluctantly began his retreat, knowing that the appearance of the White Zetsu was intended to buy him time. Masked Man understood this perfectly, and the moment the White Zetsu appeared, he had already devised his escape plan.
"Don't run."
Minato discovered the Masked Man's plan, but he was already surrounded by White Zetsu. Shisui and Fukushi were in no different situation. The three could only watch helplessly as the culprit of the Konoha riot calmly left.
After the Masked Man left, the three vented their anger on White Zetsu. White Zetsu never imagined that he would one day become someone else's punching bag. If they had any thoughts or ideas, they would have given the Masked Man a good scolding, but unfortunately, they didn't.
With Black Zetsu gone, White Zetsu also lost its inexhaustible power and was quickly dealt with by Minato and the others.
Fugaku stopped Minato, who was trying to chase after the Masked Man.
"Minato, don't pursue a cornered enemy. Your most important task now is to go and check on Kushina."
Fugaku's words were like a wake-up call for Minato, bringing him to his senses. The Tailed Beast had been extracted from Kushina's body, and her life force would slowly diminish over time. He couldn't imagine how he would survive without Kushina.
Minato activated the mark on Kushina's body, causing her to disappear before everyone's eyes.
Just as Shisui was about to leave, Fugaku called him back.
"Shisui, you know that Masked Man, right?"
Although it was phrased as an inquiry, the words were filled with certainty.
"Clan Head, knowing more about these things will not do you any good."
Shisui certainly knew who the Masked Man was. As Shisui said, the less he knew, the better for Fugaku. Shisui would not allow anyone to ruin Karot and Orochimaru's plans. This was also a way for Shisui to protect Fugaku. Although Fugaku was not a good Clan Head, he was the rightful Clan Head for the Uchiha Clan at this stage. He could not step down yet, as Itachi had not yet grown up.
After saying that, Shisui also left the scene.
At this moment, Fugaku felt utterly defeated. The ninja he had chosen had not obeyed him, and his son was slowly showing signs of becoming distant from him.
"Well."
After a sigh, Fugaku also left the place. After the three of them left, a group of Anbu Ninja appeared at the scene. They began to clean up the White Zetsu's body. Throughout the entire process, they did not make a sound and remained completely silent. It was clear that they were very skilled at this kind of work.
"Kushina, are you alright?"
As soon as Minato appeared, he saw Kushina, who was pale and looked completely different from her usual energetic self, appearing as if she were on her deathbed.
"Minato, you've arrived."
With Kushina called out Minato's name. The Nine-Tails had been extracted from her body, and she had only been able to hold on until now thanks to the vigorous life force of the Uzumaki Clan.
"I am coming."
Minato's eyes reddened, and he grasped Kushina's hands with both of his.
"Tsunade-sama, is there any way you can help Kushina?"
Minato pleaded with Tsunade.
"The first option is to reseal the Nine-Tails back into Kushina's body, allowing Nine-Tails to provide Kushina with life energy. However, given Kushina's current condition, she is unable to perform any Sealing Jutsu. The second option is to find something else to provide Kushina with life energy."
"Both of these are ultimately about replenishing Kushina's dwindling vitality."
Tsunade's words put Minato in a difficult position. Although it was possible to reseal the Nine-Tails, dealing with the Nine-Tails was already difficult enough, let alone resealing it. Without overwhelming strength, how could it be easy to seal a wary Nine-Tails?