Psychological Warfare

Somewhat unexpectedly, Yuzuru sensed the Natural Energy around him being "disturbed." After examining it carefully, he grew accustomed to the sensation and realized he was being followed.

It wasn't hard to accept that someone had noticed him. After all, this was Konoha.

"An Anbu Ninja? Would they have one keeping an eye on me at a time like this? What have I... All right, I really do look pretty suspicious."

Wandering around Konoha in his current appearance, Yuzuru might even have been mistaken for the mastermind behind the Nine-Tails' Rampage—if only he were strong enough. There was no helping it; right now, he really did have the air of a villain.

Unfortunately, he was only average in actual combat, and he didn't have the eye power to control the Nine-Tails... He couldn't be the boss, at best he was an elite monster.

"My abilities in the instance don't match my abilities in the real world. This is the first time that's happened. Comparing the two, it's obvious I have much better control over Natural Energy in the instance..."

Yuzuru had figured something out, but he didn't find it unacceptable. He didn't want to turn into a "snake" in the real world, after all...

His thoughts were simple: first, if he could stay alive, he should try to; second, if he could remain human, he shouldn't go adding other creatures' features to his body.

The Nine-Tails was rampaging not far away. Yuzuru turned into a dark alley, then stopped.

It was a chaotic, noisy night, thick with the stench of blood. Even the pale moonlight seemed tainted by the Nine-Tails' Chakra, its color turned murky.

Yuzuru turned around and waited a second or two. Then he saw a ninja rush into the alley's entrance.

"Who are you? You don't look like a ninja from the village."

Seeing that the intruder had actually stopped so brazenly, the newcomer immediately challenged him.

In Yuzuru's eyes, the Konoha Ninja pursuing him looked rather slight, and seemed to be only fourteen or fifteen. Yet his features were unmistakable.

"Kakashi of the Sharingan..." Yuzuru identified him outright.

Kakashi Hatake was certain Yuzuru was up to no good. He had prepared for a fight before arriving, and now his Sharingan was exposed.

Though Kakashi Hatake wasn't particularly strong at this point, getting away from a ninja like him without paying a price would be difficult. A fight seemed unavoidable.

Yuzuru sighed inwardly. He had originally planned to visit little Naruto, but Kakashi had stopped him halfway. If possible, he wanted to deal with him as quickly as he could.

Besides, considering Kakashi's caliber, perhaps Yuzuru could expect some special jutsu or Chakra Nature Transformation to "drop" from him.

So, could Kakashi drop "Kamui"? If he could, it would be worth abandoning this instance exploration altogether.

Colored contacts paired with a tattoo—maybe they'd even have a set bonus.

"You know who I am?"

Looking at the man concealing his face, Kakashi felt a strange sense of familiarity for some reason, though he couldn't immediately tell where it came from.

It was because Yuzuru's presence at that moment closely resembled Orochimaru's.

"The hero of the Battle of Kannabi Bridge. You have some renown in the Shinobi World... There's even a bounty on you in the black market," Yuzuru said.

He wasn't trying to make small talk with Kakashi. In fact, he planned to deal with him in the most efficient way possible: talking him through it, using words to win him over.

It was an advanced technique, and Yuzuru wasn't sure he could pull it off.

If words could solve the problem, then talking would always be faster than fighting.

"Quit hiding your face and answer me. Who are you?"

Kakashi was still young, after all. At the mention of Kannabi Bridge, his expression changed noticeably... That was where he had lost his closest friend. More importantly, he had later broken his promise to him.

Yuzuru didn't answer Kakashi's question. He pulled away the coat covering his head and revealed his face.

Kakashi didn't recognize him, of course, but Yuzuru's appearance naturally put him even more on guard... Yuzuru looked like a lizard man, which was certainly a shock to the eyes.

Yuzuru had no intention of explaining who he was. It would be pointless and a waste of time. He glanced at the Nine-Tails in the distance, then began to strike at Kakashi's sore spots.

"A hero... Tch. The Battle of Kannabi Bridge made you reclaim your ninja way, while killing your teammate with your own hands sent you into despair. Objectively speaking, in both cases, you were just a piece of duckweed swept along by the current."

"You were a ninja shaped by the times, not someone who shaped them."

"You bore the consequences, but the blame wasn't yours."

"But tonight is different. The Nine-Tails' attack seems to have nothing to do with you, but in reality, you're the director behind tonight's disaster."

Kakashi furrowed his brow. The man before him seemed to know far too much about him, and so Kakashi found himself letting him take control of the conversation.

His actions during the Battle of Kannabi Bridge might not have been hard to investigate, but hardly anyone outside the village could know that he had "killed his teammate."

He was involved in what happened tonight? That was outrageous.

"What do you mean? Stop speaking in riddles."

"Very well. Some people commit evil without realizing it, and can even show up in front of others with the air of a protector of Konoha... I'll be kind and explain."

"The Uzumaki Clan are born special. Their most exceptional members can even suppress Tailed Beast Chakra, making them natural candidates to become Jinchuriki."

"Under normal circumstances, once a member of the Uzumaki Clan becomes a Jinchuriki, they can easily suppress the Tailed Beast. Their Sealing Jutsu is practically unbreakable."

Yuzuru was making this up. In reality, according to Minato's story, Kushina Uzumaki had struggled to control the Nine-Tails, and her rampages had been frequent. After all, Kushina Uzumaki wasn't Mito Uzumaki—and more importantly, the Nine-Tails sealed inside her was whole.

"So here's the question: when would a Jinchuriki's seal loosen?"

"The answer is simple: when the Jinchuriki gives birth."

"That's why the date of Kushina Uzumaki's delivery was a top-secret matter in Konoha. Only a handful of people in the entire village knew about it."

"And yet..."

"One of the people close to the Jinchuriki revealed that secret at the worst possible time."

"As the saying goes, there's no such thing as a pitiable person without a detestable side. It was this person's carelessness that allowed the mastermind to time things perfectly and extract the Nine-Tails from the Jinchuriki."

"What happens to a Jinchuriki once their Tailed Beast is extracted? They die. There's no other outcome."

By this point, Kakashi still looked somewhat confused. But when he thought of what would happen to Kushina Uzumaki, his expression darkened further.

"So who was this incredibly careless person who revealed the core secret?"

"Kakashi Hatake, you can take a guess."

"Oh, I'll give you a hint. The place where the supposedly confidential information was leaked..."

"It was in the memorial cemetery."

Yuzuru was simply pinning the blame on Kakashi. Kakashi had never revealed the exact day Kushina Uzumaki would give birth; he had only used vague phrases like "soon" or "in the near future."

But once that accusation was leveled at him, would Kakashi defend himself?

No. He would only blame himself.