What have you all protected?

"Phew, almost let him get away."

"Master Minato, counting this Narita Daisaku, that makes five Kumogakure ninjas killed in total, right?"

Namikaze Minato: "..."

Almost? That's more like 'almost by a mile,' isn't it!

Narita Daisaku had already been beaten to the brink of death and lost an arm; if he had been hell-bent on fleeing, he would have been unable to effectively stop the bleeding from his severed limb.

Even if he were fast enough to escape Master Minato's immediate pursuit, he would eventually succumb to blood loss, his will blurring and his body weakening until he was caught and finished off.

If he had tried to multitask and stop the bleeding while running, he would never have escaped Namikaze Minato's pursuit.

Master Minato was confident he could have caught up to Narita Daisaku within ten seconds and cut him down on the spot; this was a pure case of kill-stealing.

Of course, one could also say that Uchiha Mai was concerned for his mentor and possessed a strong spirit of teamwork.

Eh, we're all on the same team, why split hairs? It's just one kill.

Regardless, Namikaze Minato was still pleased that Uchiha Mai had managed to finish off the opponent.

Originally, Namikaze Minato's expectation for Uchiha Mai was simply to hold off one chunin so that he could fight more easily.

Uchiha Mai had exceeded his mission parameters, not only killing a Kumogakure chunin but also having the spare capacity to swoop in for the kill.

This level of strength was already no worse than Kakashi.

With the battle over, the two gathered the enemy corpses, looted them, and cleared the battlefield.

Looting corpses was a good habit; one might just find mission logs, intelligence reports, or codebooks on them.

The value of these items to Konoha far exceeded many A-rank ninjutsu scrolls.

"By the way, Mai, the move you shouted earlier was 100th Style: Demon Burner, right?" Master Minato asked, rummaging through the bodies, suddenly recalling a very important question.

Crap!

Uchiha Mai jolted. He had been too caught up in the heat of the moment and had forgotten Master Minato was right beside him, blurting out the move's true name.

Namikaze Minato's gaze was somewhat resentful as he muttered, "I remember the name of this move being much cooler."

Mai, you've disappointed me. I didn't think you were that kind of person; you've broken the promise between us.

"It's an abbreviation, just an abbreviation." Uchiha Mai wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.

Previously, with Master Minato's "help," he had developed 100th Style: Demon Burner. At the time, Master Minato had been in a dramatic mood, dying to give the move a convoluted, chuunibyou name.

Fortunately, Uchiha Mai had been prepared and had preemptively thrown out an even longer, more chuunibyou name to brush him off.

To be honest, aside from being a bit too chuunibyou and a bit too much of a mouthful, the name Master Minato came up with wasn't bad—it was actually quite catchy.

However, ninja research suggested that a ninja's power came from chakra, which was a fusion of spiritual and physical energy.

Shouting the name of a technique during battle, or letting out a few grunts, could clearly boost morale and strengthen one's will, providing a slight increase in combat effectiveness.

Uchiha Mai didn't want to one day be cutting someone down and shout a name so ridiculously long and awkward that he ended up laughing at himself first.

I'm not actually a chuunibyou; my chuunibyou is just my protective camouflage.

"An abbreviation? Then repeat the full name for me. If you can't, I'm going to have to give this move a very cool name myself."

Master Minato muttered again; he held a deep obsession with that cool name Uchiha Mai had come up with that day and had kept it firmly in his heart.

"Mai Style Ancient Martial Arts: Scorching Crimson: Super Fierce Fire Dotō: Rising Dragon Finishing Move 100th Style: Demon Burner." Uchiha Mai blurted it out, thankful he still remembered it.

Only then was Namikaze Minato satisfied. He patted Uchiha Mai on the shoulder and encouraged him, "It seems you weren't lying to me."

"Mai, for a name this cool and full of killing intent, you should try to shout the full name whenever you use it. Who knows, you might scare the enemy out of their wits before you even land the move."

More like make the enemy laugh themselves to death.

Wait, that actually sounds like a strategy. Stand-up comedy plus sound-based ninjutsu or genjutsu—is there potential there?

"Yes, yes." Uchiha Mai nodded repeatedly.

After looting the bodies and cleaning up the battlefield, Master Minato took out a Storage Scroll and tossed all five corpses inside.

Within Konoha, there were ninjas with secret techniques capable of reading the memories of the deceased. Although one could only retrieve fragmented information after brain death, it was better than nothing.

Furthermore, the corpses of enemy ninjas had more research value than those of civilians and could be put to waste-recycling use.

After finishing everything, Master Minato led Uchiha Mai back the way they came. Because they were concerned for Tsunade's safety, their return speed was no slower than when they were chasing the enemy.

And because they were worried about Tsunade's Hemophobia flaring up again, the two specifically sought out a small river along the way to scrub the bloodstains off each other and change into fresh clothes.

When they returned to the starting point, the two were stunned to see Tsunade and the others by the side of the road.

Tsunade, Might Guy, Kakashi, and Toad Takumi were sitting in a circle playing poker, with black circles drawn on each of their faces (and the toad's).

Tsunade had the most, about forty or fifty; because her face was too small to fit them all, they even extended onto her neck.

Might Guy and Toad Takumi were next, with about twenty each, while Kakashi had the fewest, only four or five.

"Kakashi, Might Guy, Takumi!"

Namikaze Minato's expression shifted, and he sternly reprimanded them, "Didn't I tell you to protect Lady Tsunade's safety? What exactly have you been protecting? You haven't protected anything at all!"

"If anything were to happen to Lady Tsunade, we would have to pay with our lives to atone for it."

"I am terribly sorry, Minato-sensei!"

"It is my dereliction of duty. Please, Lord Minato, punish me."

The two men and the toad were overcome with shame, bowing their heads to admit their fault.

"Minato, it was I who asked them to play cards with me."

Tsunade tossed her hand of terrible cards onto the pile, stood up with one hand on her hip, and glared at Minato with a face covered in ink-drawn circles. "Do not be too hard on them."

"I have rested for quite a while, my Hemophobia has subsided, and my sensory abilities have fully recovered. If an enemy had approached, there is no way I wouldn't have known. Besides, I could have wiped them all out in one move just now. If you hadn't suddenly intervened and killed one of the enemy ninja, there wouldn't have been so much trouble."

Minato: "..."

I was the one in the way. I'll get out of here immediately.

"Ahem, in any case, let this be the last time." Master Minato blushed slightly and gave a light cough to hide his embarrassment.

"Since Lord Minato has returned, I can rest easy and head back to Mount Myoboku. I take my leave."

Toad Takumi clutched his sword, bowed, and dispelled the Summoning Jutsu to return to Mount Myoboku.

"Little Minato, why are you back so soon? Have the enemies already been dealt with?" Tsunade finally remembered the matter at hand.

Decadent as she might be, Tsunade knew full well what a disastrous impact it would have on Konoha if word of her Hemophobia were to spread.