"Ninja Art: Spirit Transformation Technique!"
Dan Katō's soul suddenly slipped out of his body and rushed toward Kushina Uzumaki.
"Ah!" Kushina screamed the instant Dan's soul possessed her.
"What's wrong, Kushina?" Uchiha Matsuri asked with concern, not understanding what was happening.
"I'm fine. Matsuri, let's talk about how we'll work together from here on." Kushina lowered her head and walked toward him.
"Okay." Matsuri glanced at Dan, who was kneeling on one knee opposite them, unaware that danger was about to strike.
"Hehehe." Controlling Kushina's body, Dan rapidly formed Hand Seals behind her back.
By the time Matsuri realized something was wrong, Kushina—under Dan's control—had already completed the seals in secret.
"Wind Release: Gale Palm!"
Kushina's right hand slammed toward Matsuri. He instinctively dodged to the side, but still failed to avoid the attack.
Struck by Gale Palm, Matsuri flew backward and crashed to the ground.
Just one last step. Dan thought.
Suddenly, Dan felt a strange chakra gradually emerge from Kushina's body. Unlike the ordinary chakra he usually encountered, this chakra was immense and unusually turbulent, as if enraged that he had invaded her body. The eerie sensation filled Dan with fear.
In an instant, Dan's soul left Kushina's body and returned to his own.
He gave the unconscious Kushina a meaningful glance, then his soul left his body again and sped toward Nohara Shin, who was about to grab the bell.
Nearby.
Matsuri struggled to get back to his feet.
"Looks like I'll have to use Medical Ninjutsu," Matsuri sighed, his face pale.
"Ninja Art: Healing Jutsu!"
Matsuri formed Hand Seals and released the Yang Release Chakra produced by the Medical Ninjutsu onto his wound.
"It'll take three minutes to heal. Looks like I won't be much help." Matsuri glanced at Kushina, who was lying unconscious on the ground. "Shin, it's all up to you."
Pa!
After snatching the bell, Shin, controlled by Dan, threw it toward Dan, who was a hundred meters away. At the same time, Dan's soul instantly left Shin and returned to his own body.
Jingle, jingle.
Dan caught the bell and smugly waved it at Matsuri, as if showing off his victory.
"Looks like it's decided," Matsuri sighed.
"What about those two?" Matsuri glanced at the still-unconscious Kushina and Shin, who was panting against a tree in the distance.
"That kid's fine. He's probably just exhausted." Dan put away the bell and walked over at an unhurried pace. "This little girl only fainted temporarily. She'll wake up soon."
Ten minutes later.
Kushina, who had been unconscious for over ten minutes, slowly opened her eyes. Seeing Matsuri, Shin, and Dan gathered around her, she flushed and sprang to her feet.
"Hey, hey, hey! What are you three grown men standing around staring at me for?" Kushina said, pointing at them in annoyance.
"You suddenly passed out during the fight, so we stayed here to watch over you," Matsuri replied helplessly.
"Ah! I'd forgotten about that!" Kushina suddenly perked up and shouted at the others. "So, who won the match against Senior Dan?"
At Kushina's question, Matsuri and Shin exchanged glances, then smiled wryly. Matsuri pointed at Dan.
"Huh? So Senior Dan won." Disappointment showed in Kushina's eyes.
Noticing her disappointment, Dan gave her a thumbs-up and reassured her, "You're all very impressive. In that fight, you even forced me to use my trump card. Looks like I underestimated you before."
Then Dan explained how his ultimate technique, Spirit Transformation Technique, worked.
"What? That technique is practically cheating. It's way too overpowered," Shin complained indignantly.
"Senior Dan, could you teach me that technique?" Matsuri seized the opportunity to ask.
"Sure, but..." Dan wagged a finger with a smile. "That depends on how you perform!"
Hokage Office.
Watching the scene inside the Crystal Ball, the Third Hokage smiled in satisfaction. "That Dan is quite capable. He's established his authority within the team in no time."
Ever since Dan joined Team Orochimaru, the team's overall mission success rate had risen dramatically. Good-natured and deeply principled, Dan quickly became close friends with Matsuri and the others.
Meanwhile, Jiraiya led Minato Namikaze, Kiba Inuzuka, and Chōji Dōtō on Team Jiraiya in many high-difficulty missions, and Minato's talent gradually began to shine. With Jiraiya's guidance and help, Minato learned the Flying Thunder God Technique, invented by the Second Hokage. The man who would later shake the Shinobi World as the Yellow Flash was beginning to make his mark.
June, Year 34 of Konoha.
Uchiha Matsuri was ten years old.
This month held special significance for Matsuri and the others, as it marked exactly one year since they had graduated. But for the Land of Wind, the month was a nightmarish one: the Third Kazekage, known as the "Strongest Kazekage," suddenly vanished without a trace.
After searching for half a month without success, the Land of Wind gave up the search for the Third Kazekage. Chiyo and Ebizo promptly suppressed the news, so it never spread to other countries. Even within the Land of Wind, civilians and lower-ranking ninja knew nothing of the Third Kazekage's disappearance.
Having read the original Naruto story in his previous life, Matsuri naturally knew that Sasori of the Red Sands had a great deal to do with the Third Kazekage's disappearance. The people of the Land of Wind, however, knew nothing of the truth. Even when Sunagakure was rocked during this sensitive period by the news that Sasori of the Red Sands, hailed as a "puppet-making prodigy," had defected, Chiyo and Ebizo still never considered the possibility that Sasori had killed the Third Kazekage.
Instead, Konoha was the one that ran into trouble because of the Third Kazekage's disappearance. Since it happened while Konoha's envoys were visiting Sunagakure, many of the village's senior ninja believed that Konoha's ninja must have had something to do with it.
At that moment, Team Orochimaru was carrying out a mission in the Land of Wind, unaware that danger was quietly closing in.
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