"It was the Ringo Clan. Their armor was highly defensive; my Rasengan couldn't break through it. There was even one suit that I could barely leave a scratch on. We'd probably need an S-rank jutsu to get through it.
"Also, one of them saw through the Flying Thunder God Technique and had some kind of Magnet Release. I let my guard down..."
Minato Namikaze briefly recounted the battle. Ultimately, he had been careless. Otherwise, how could the enemy have outmaneuvered him so easily?
"Armor that can withstand the Rasengan, someone who saw through the Flying Thunder God Technique, and Magnet Release."
Hiruzen Sarutobi furrowed his brow. Kirigakure had been shocking and troubling him for a long time now.
First, his eldest son Shinnosuke's scheme had failed, and both Shinnosuke and Enma had been killed. The Monkey Clan's Summoning Contract had also been destroyed by the enemy.
Then they had killed three of Mount Myōboku's great toads, and now they had badly wounded Minato, who was practically invincible.
Each new development had shocked him so much that he hadn't even had time to feel the hatred he ought to have felt over his son's death.
"I killed the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist. These are their Ninja Swords. Karatachi Yagura, who was in charge of this Frontline, was also badly wounded. If we rout their army, they should retreat."
As Minato spoke, he took a storage scroll from his ninja pouch.
He had seized those Ninja Swords on the spur of the moment mainly so they could be used in the negotiations to come. Kirigakure would surely be eager to get them back, which would mean Konoha had to give up less in return.
"Take care of your injuries and spend more time with Kuuhina. We'll handle things outside the