Endless

Just as Kei encountered a predicament, Minato Namikaze found himself facing a thorny situation outside the Uchiha clan's encirclement.

He had been enjoying a pleasant conversation with Uchiha clan head Fugaku within the Uzumaki clan's territory earlier that day, the atmosphere quite harmonious. Who could have guessed that news would suddenly arrive of a conflict between Uchiha Kei and Danzo outside Konoha Village?

For a moment, the truth remained unclear.

Fearing that Uchiha Kei might trigger a catastrophe, Clan Head Fugaku had entrusted him to head to the scene, even pleading with him to bring Kei back safely at all costs.

It seemed this Kei held significant importance in Uchiha Fugaku's heart.

There was no helping it; after all, he was a ninja renowned for his speed. Having accepted Fugaku's commission and bearing the weight of the Uchiha clan's survival, Minato set off without a moment's delay.

With kunai throws and the Flying Thunder God, Minato rushed toward the target location at top speed.

Just as he reached a stone's throw from the site of the conflict, his Flying Thunder God technique unexpectedly failed.

This was a situation that had never occurred before.

Minato hurriedly stopped and attempted to use the Flying Thunder God nearby to see what was wrong. He discovered that it wasn't his technique that was faulty, but rather that someone had interrupted, or perhaps even blocked, his ninjutsu.

The situation had turned dire. There must be great danger on the front lines.

Fortunately, Minato was not too far from his destination, and he could cover the remaining distance with a few Body Flicker techniques.

However, just as he prepared to set off again, an Uchiha in the woods suddenly launched an attack.

A man with a pair of Sharingan eyes struck without hesitation, a clean and swift blade stroke flashing through the air; his ruthlessness and coldness were displayed to the fullest.

If Minato hadn't been a ninja with reflexes far beyond the ordinary, he likely would have fallen to that strike.

Minato, having dodged the blade, felt no anger. Seeing that the attacker was an Uchiha, he hurriedly explained, "Wait a moment. I am here at the request of Clan Head Uchiha Fugaku to assist you. Please, do not misunderstand."

Minato assumed that a fierce battle must be raging behind the screen of trees, which was why this Uchiha was so tense.

If he explained his intentions quickly, he could ensure the misunderstanding was cleared up.

Who would have thought the man before him would be so unappreciative, instead snapping coldly, "No passage ahead."

Minato fixed his gaze on the mature man.

Though young, his features were aged. On his right earlobe, there was a protrusion unlike that of an ordinary person, resembling an earring. It was a handsome yet stern face, but it felt strange and discordant, as if one could see the visages of two people on a single face.

It was a face without concealment, carrying the shadows of two distinct expressions. No matter how one looked at it, he did not seem like a good person.

It was no wonder the Uchiha were always called the "Evil Uchiha." Indeed, just one look made one feel they were utterly untrustworthy.

Minato did not consider himself a person who judged by appearances, yet he was still unsettled by this man's visage.

Seeing that the man ignored his words, Minato knew there was no need for further talk; today's matter would not end peacefully.

The situation at hand forced Minato to make a judgment.

Although he had been commissioned by the Uchiha, the parties in conflict were important figures from both the Hokage's faction and the Uchiha faction.

Since it was the Uchiha blocking the road, he assumed the Uchiha were not the ones suffering; it was the Hokage's side that was at a disadvantage.

Yet, he still could not simply ignore it and return to report to Fugaku. He had yet to grasp the situation regarding Danzo, and if the Third Hokage asked later, he would have no explanation to offer.

Even if he disliked Danzo, a man who always operated in the shadows doing unsavory things, he could not watch him come to harm.

With the authorization and invitation of the Uchiha clan head, he naturally possessed the right to intervene in this matter.

Even if he forced his way through, no one would hold him accountable for it.

Since this unreasonable Uchiha would not let him pass, he had no choice.

"I'm sorry, Uchiha. I'm afraid you, in your evil, will have to lie down."

To avoid further casualties, he had no choice but to sacrifice him.

A handful of kunai scattered, followed by a flash of light.

"Spiral Flash Super Round Dance Howl Style Three!"

After the flash, the cold Uchiha collapsed to the ground.

Minato scratched his head and said, "Oops, I didn't hold back! I didn't kill him, did I? Oh well, job done!"

With that, he prepared to use the Body Flicker to continue forward.

But just as Minato activated his technique, a familiar blade light appeared from behind him.

The guy who had taken seven or eight of his Rasengans was standing behind him, completely unscathed.

Minato hurriedly bit the tip of his tongue to activate a genjutsu-breaking technique.

"Hmm? It's not a genjutsu!"

How could this be? If anyone else had taken seven or eight Rasengans, they would have been reduced to pulp. Why was this person completely fine?

Minato would never know that the reason only one person was intercepting him was that Uchiha Kei understood that group brawls were useless against Minato.

The ninja facing Minato was Uchiha Tenshen, the deputy leader of Iga, possessing the same leadership and command abilities as Ogen. He was a cold man who would stop at nothing for the victory of the Iga clan.

At the same time, he possessed an immortality technique and was immune to physical attacks. Despite his youthful appearance, he was actually several years older than Grandma Ogen.

[Uchiha Tenshen, Ninjutsu B, Taijutsu A+, Genjutsu B]

In the world of Basilisk, he could automatically resurrect after a period of time following his death.

Now, bolstered by chakra, he was effectively immortal as long as his chakra did not run dry.

Furthermore, the chakra born from extracting cellular energy, when faced with the infinite metabolic talent of the immortality technique, granted this man a near-endless supply of chakra.

That explanation wasn't quite right, though.

Take the Tailed Beasts as an example: all Tailed Beasts possess endless chakra, yet there are still differences in strength, which is a matter of output.

In other words, "endless" simply means the efficiency of recovery far exceeds the efficiency of consumption.

Therefore, even if both are endless, the Nine-Tails is still stronger than the One-Tail because the Nine-Tails has a higher output.

As for Uchiha Tenshen, he was like a humanoid Tailed Beast; the amount of chakra he required to resurrect himself was far less than the amount of chakra recovered due to his immortality technique.

Thus, to kill Uchiha Tenshen, one would have to use a destructive ninjutsu—the kind that wouldn't even leave ashes behind for Uchiha Tenshen.

This was the reason Uchiha Tenshen dared to step forward and intercept Minato Namikaze, despite knowing he couldn't beat him. He was certain that Minato Namikaze lacked any large-scale ninjutsu; this future Hokage had never been a well-rounded ninja, but rather a specialist.

The only means Minato had to kill Tenshen was a one-for-one trade like the Dead Demon Consuming Seal.

But this wasn't a life-or-death crisis for Konoha; surely Minato wouldn't risk his life for an Uchiha and an unlikable Danzo.

And so, when Minato arrived, it was destined to be a battle without end.

One could not land a hit, and the other could not be killed.

With Tenshen there, Minato could do nothing.