The Chase

"We got her. Move!"

"Konoha's nothing special."

The Kirigakure Ninja carried the bound Kushina as they hurried through the night, still finding time to mock Konoha along the way.

In their eyes, a Bloodline Limit user with no one to protect her wasn't worth making a big fuss over.

It wasn't as if Konoha would overturn a freshly signed Treaty for her. Forcing the issue might even offend the Cloud Village and break the stalemate on the battlefield.

The Cloud Village already had the advantage of time, place, and people on its side. Their position was enough to tip the scales toward victory, no matter how the other side tried to threaten or tempt them.

So what did it matter if they took a little "war trophy" along the way, as long as they didn't cause too much of a stir? Once they brought this Uzumaki back to the Cloud Village, Konoha would have no choice but to swallow the insult.

Bound hand and foot, Kushina was still stubbornly defiant. No matter how the Cloud Ninja threatened or tempted her, she didn't utter a word, instead searching for a chance to escape.

But she hadn't yet graduated from the Ninja Academy, and against three adult Cloud Ninja, her struggles were utterly futile. Black Skin Athlete was no one to underestimate.

Now Kushina could only hope that the village would discover what had happened soon and send someone to rescue her.

Yet for some reason, all she could think about was that "Little Blondie." His image kept surfacing in her mind, impossible to shake.

Inside Konoha.

After escorting Kushina home, Namikaze Minato felt a faint unease, as though something was about to slip away from him.

He rarely felt this way, yet he couldn't figure out why. While he anxiously searched for an explanation, he suddenly saw a large number of Anbu Ninja darting through the village, apparently searching for something.

Watching the Ninja weave through the village streets and alleys, Namikaze Minato suddenly remembered that the last time he'd had this instinct was when his parents had left on a mission and never returned.

He spun around and jogged back to Kushina's house. It was pitch-dark inside, as if she'd gone to bed long ago.

The silence inside was unnerving. Driven by his unease, Namikaze Minato stepped forward and knocked on the door.

"Creak—"

The moment his hand touched the door, it swung open on its own.

"Kushina?"

Namikaze Minato called tentatively, but there was no answer from inside. He could even hear his voice echo faintly.

He walked in slowly and found the place in disarray, clearly the scene of a recent struggle. It looked as if several people had been there.

"Could the Anbu have taken Kushina away?"

"Don't be stupid. If the Anbu had done it, would they have let Kushina put up a fight?" A calm voice sounded beside Namikaze Minato.

"Who's there... Brother Yoru? What are you doing here?"

"I saw you hadn't gone home, then noticed you'd come back to Kushina's place. I figured you were going to confess, so I came to watch."

"I wasn't—"

"Enough. If I'm not mistaken, Kushina was taken advantage of the chaos. If we don't hurry after her, she'll have two kids by the time she reaches the Cloud Village."

Namikaze Yoru cut off Minato's explanation. That one short sentence set Minato's nerves on edge.

"There's a strand of Kushina's red hair she pulled out." Minato quickly calmed down and keenly spotted the clue. "They went this way."

Namikaze Yoru nodded. It seemed that once his younger clanmate Minato calmed down and stopped overthinking, he was exceptionally reliable. Yoru didn't even need to point anything out.

The two followed the trail of red hair until they reached the village border, where they found a number of Anbu Ninja still searching.

"What do we do?" Namikaze Minato was still thinking of a plan when he saw Namikaze Yoru stride straight toward them.

When the Anbu Ninja saw Namikaze Yoru, with Namikaze Minato beside him, they recognized them as children from their own village, even if they didn't know them well. Their guard eased slightly, and they warned the two to return to the village at once.

Namikaze Yoru put on an anxious expression. Minato beside him looked just as worried and hurriedly said,

"Our friend's been kidnapped."

"I understand. The Anbu will take over from here. You two should return at once—"

As he spoke, Namikaze Yoru suddenly sprang into action and slammed a heavy punch into the man's abdomen. The blow landed with tremendous force, and the Anbu was knocked unconscious on the spot with a muffled groan.

"Huh?"

"Don't just stand there. If we waste any more time, you'll be waiting for the Anbu to drag you back."

With that, Namikaze Yoru darted into the Dense Forest. Even though Namikaze Minato thought this was outrageous, he had no choice but to grit his teeth and follow.

As far as Namikaze Yoru could sense, the Cloud Ninja were taking a short break in a patch of Dense Forest ahead. They were probably unable to move at full speed because they had the burden of carrying Kushina.

By now, the three Cloud Ninja had recovered their strength and were about to set off again. Although they were still deep in the Land of Fire, they believed no one knew they were there. Konoha wouldn't find out until early the next morning.

Kushina, who had been reasonably cooperative until then, suddenly began to struggle. The Cloud Ninja weren't about to indulge her, and immediately prepared to knock her out and carry her.

A golden flash appeared from behind Kushina's tree! A sharp Kunai sliced through the air, and the Cloud Ninja's hand was severed in an instant.

"Ah—We're under attack!"

The piercing scream alerted the other two Cloud Ninja. They rushed over and, seeing their comrade's severed hand, warily scanned their surroundings.

But apart from the wind stirring the trees, there was nothing unusual in the forest. Only the severed hand on the ground was a horrifying sight.

One of them remained on guard while the other crouched down to stop the bleeding and bandage their comrade.

Before he could finish, the bushes suddenly rustled. A figure in an Anbu Captain's uniform slowly emerged and addressed the three of them:

"You dared kidnap a Konoha Ninja. Surrender. My squad has already sealed off this area."

"Hah! Spare us the nonsense. Does Konoha want to break the Treaty it just signed?" The Cloud Ninja at the head of the group spoke boldly, even turning the accusation against them.

"Rustle, rustle~"

A sudden sound of someone pushing through the forest rang out. Namikaze Minato appeared as if he'd only just arrived, looking travel-worn and disheveled.

"Minato? Leave, now!" Seeing him, the Anbu Captain urgently barked at him to go.

Noticing how tense the Anbu was about the newcomer, the two Cloud Ninja who still had their strength immediately exchanged a glance, understanding each other without a word.

They attacked at the same time. One charged straight at the Anbu Captain, blocking his path. The other lunged at Minato, who had just appeared, trying to take him hostage.

The Cloud Ninja who had gone after the Anbu saw that the Anbu didn't dodge. Alarm bells rang in his mind, and he sensed something was wrong.

The next moment, he heard his comrade scream behind him. The seemingly harmless Namikaze Minato had driven a Kunai straight into the Cloud Ninja's chest. Blood sprayed everywhere.

Meanwhile, the "Anbu Captain" was cut down by a blade and vanished with a "poof" in a cloud of white smoke.

The remaining Cloud Ninja was stunned by the sudden reversal. Before he could react, a pair of large hands burst through the earth and grabbed for his ankles.