Mahiru

The next day.

After a night of rest, everyone's chakra and stamina had fully recovered. Shinji's group made a few simple preparations before setting out once more.

Minato led the way at the front. Suddenly, he stopped and turned around.

"At the crossroads ahead, I'll head to the front lines to provide support. I'll draw Iwagakure's attention as much as possible and create an opportunity for you."

His gaze swept across the group, his tone calm yet resolute.

"I hereby appoint Shinji and Kakashi as the captains of two separate teams. Shinji Squad will provide support and harassment, disrupting any enemies that may appear. Kakashi's team will continue with the original mission: proceed to Kannabi Bridge and destroy it completely."

"Once the mission is complete, withdraw immediately. Do not get drawn into battle."

Minato's expression was serious as he delivered each instruction clearly.

Everyone responded in unison, their faces solemn.

After last night's battle, Minato had already seen Shinji's strength clearly. His Body Flicker Technique was more than capable of throwing a battlefield into chaos, and his own combat abilities were formidable. With Kurenai Yuhi, a genjutsu specialist, on his team as well, he was perfectly suited for flanking and harassment.

Kakashi, meanwhile, was the only jonin among them and possessed the strongest overall abilities. Having him lead the bridge demolition mission was the safest choice.

Besides, Minato had already had a long talk with Obito last night. He believed that this time, Obito would cooperate properly with Kakashi.

Minato looked toward Obito, his tone gentle but carrying the weight of trust. "Obito, I'm counting on you."

Obito looked awkward, but he still nodded firmly. "I understand, Teacher Minato. I'll cooperate with Captain Kakashi."

The moment he said that, everyone's eyes turned toward Obito. Kakashi in particular had a clear flash of surprise in his eyes.

Uncomfortable under their stares, Obito gave a soft snort and said nothing more, silently following the group onward.

After dealing with several more scattered groups of Iwagakure ninja, Namikaze Minato suddenly came to a sharp halt. His expression instantly turned grave as he stared fixedly into the depths of the forest ahead.

"Enemy!" Kakashi spoke at almost the exact same moment, his nerves tightening.

Shinji drew the Ninja Sword from his back, his Sharingan activating instantly. He vigilantly scanned every shadow around them, refusing to miss even the slightest chakra fluctuation.

The atmosphere immediately grew heavy once more.

"Tch, so I was still discovered?"

From behind a large tree in the distance, a figure slowly leaned out. It was Mahiru, an Iwagakure jonin.

His tone was full of disappointment. He had originally planned to launch a sneak attack from behind, never expecting to be noticed in advance.

Mahiru's gaze swept over the Konoha group, and a disdainful smile curled across his lips. "A brat leading six burdens like this dares to enter the front lines?"

"Konoha really is getting more and more overconfident."

He recognized the Konoha forehead protectors at a glance, but he never connected the blond, blue-eyed young man with the Yellow Flash, Namikaze Minato.

If he had recognized him, he would have turned and fled long ago, without daring to linger for even a moment.

Simply put, he had no idea what the Yellow Flash looked like.

After all, Ōnoki had repeatedly ordered that anyone who encountered Namikaze Minato was not to fight him and must retreat immediately. Even abandoning the mission would not be considered a dereliction of duty.

But in Mahiru's eyes, he was an Iwagakure jonin. What could this Konoha youth, who looked even younger than him, possibly be capable of?

"Shadow Clone Technique!"

As his low shout fell, a cloud of white smoke burst forth. Twenty identical figures of Mahiru appeared in an instant, each wielding a long blade as they charged toward the Konoha group in unison.

"Since I've been discovered, I'll attack head-on!"

This was his most commonly used tactic.

He would first use a large number of shadow clones to confuse his opponents and disrupt their formation, then hide his true body and seize the chance to launch a fatal sneak attack with his blade techniques. It had never failed him.

"Over there!" Kakashi's gaze sharpened as he immediately locked onto the shadow clone rushing at the very front. "Perfect. I'll test the ninjutsu I just developed."

Before his words had even faded, he tightly gripped his right wrist with his left hand. Pale blue Lightning Release Chakra instantly gathered and flowed in his palm, crackling currents continuously intertwining.

"Chidori!"

Kakashi let out a low shout. His right hand, wrapped in violent electric currents, shot toward the shadow clones like an arrow leaving the bowstring.

Wherever Chidori passed, it forcibly plowed a deep furrow into the ground, its power astonishing.

"No, Kakashi!"

Minato's expression changed. He instinctively moved to stop him, but it was already too late.

With one glance, he saw through the fatal flaw in Chidori despite its immense power: activating it required the user to focus all their attention on the attack, narrowing their field of vision and leaving them highly vulnerable to ambushes.

The others moved to support Kakashi, but at that moment, the ground before them suddenly writhed violently. Four of Mahiru's shadow clones burst from the earth, instantly closing in on them.

"Die, you Konoha brats!"

The enemy was right before them, and the wind from their blades was already brushing against their faces. The sudden ambush caught them completely off guard. They froze instinctively, their defenses half a beat too slow.

"This is bad!"

"Lightning Style: Earth Run!"

Shinji moved, slamming both palms onto the ground. Dozens of thin yet violent currents raced across the earth, instantly engulfing the four Shadow Clones that had just emerged from underground.

Crackle—

The currents raged, and the Shadow Clones were instantly struck by Lightning Release before dissolving into white smoke.

Shinji slowly raised his head, his Sharingan still turning slowly in his eyes. "No matter how skilled you are at hiding, you can't escape these eyes of mine."

Using the Sharingan's insight moments earlier, he had caught the faint yet unusual Chakra fluctuations underground. He had already anticipated the enemy's sneak attack and responded in time.

"Good job, Shinji!" Teacher Minato let out a breath of relief, his gaze full of praise as he looked at Shinji.

Elsewhere, facing the Shadow Clones closing in from all sides, Kakashi's palm flared with lightning. Chidori pierced straight through them, shattering clone after clone into wisps of blue smoke.

"One, two, three... eighteen, nineteen, twenty."

He counted every clone he had destroyed, but failed to notice that Mahiru had silently approached from beyond his blind spot. His long blade swept horizontally at Kakashi's waist and abdomen, intending to cut him in two.

"Have you lost your cool, brat? Die!"

Kakashi's pupils suddenly contracted, and his heart lurched.

Damn it!

Just as the blade was about to touch his body, his figure abruptly paused, barely slipping past the edge of the blade.

In the next instant, his body flashed, and he had already retreated back into his own group.

Kakashi panted heavily and looked at the person beside him with lingering fear. "Teacher Minato."

Teacher Minato gave a slight nod, his tone calm yet unquestionable. "Kakashi, don't use that ninjutsu again for now."

Without another word, his gaze swept over the dense forest, and his figure vanished from where he stood once more.

Mahiru felt a chill at his neck. He turned his head with difficulty, only to see that the blond young man who had been far away just moments ago had appeared silently behind him.

"Y-you're... the Yellow Flash!"

He had never imagined that the legendary Yellow Flash would be so young. The Tsuchikage's warning still rang in his ears, but now, it was already too late.

The Kunai in Teacher Minato's hand slid across Mahiru's throat.

A line of blood sprayed out. Mahiru's eyes widened as his body fell stiffly from the treetop, never to move again.