While Rin was still full of doubts, completely at a loss and unable to figure out what Minato-sensei and Kushina were talking about, Shi Xiu suddenly appeared in front of Minato and the others.
Minato and Kushina were startled. With guilty looks on their faces, they turned to Shi Xiu and said, "Lord Shi Xiu, you're back."
Shi Xiu nodded, then slowly slipped both hands into his clothes. But when his gaze happened to fall on the baby bottle in Kushina's hand, his movements abruptly stopped.
"Kushina, where did you get that baby bottle?" Shi Xiu asked, raising an eyebrow in surprise.
Kushina explained, "The Anbu member just brought it over. I checked it carefully, and there's nothing dangerous about it."
Shi Xiu couldn't help feeling a little surprised.
So Nara Luling had come by again. That was unexpected. Still, Shi Xiu only nodded and said nothing more.
Although Shi Xiu firmly believed Nara Luling was unlikely to leak any information about Minato, he decided to give them another serious warning, just to be safe.
Shi Xiu took a baby bottle from inside his clothes and gently set it on the table. His expression solemn, he sternly warned Minato and Kushina.
"Minato, Kushina! Next time, if I'm not here, you absolutely must not show yourselves, no matter what. And you mustn't let anyone else discover you're here! Understood?"
Minato and Kushina exchanged a glance, then nodded slightly in agreement.
But Rin, who was standing nearby, couldn't hold back her curiosity and blurted out, "Why?"
At Rin's question, Shi Xiu turned to look at her. Some unpleasant things had happened between them before, but he decided to patiently explain the reason.
"It's because of that... that masked man."
Shi Xiu paused. He didn't say Obito's name, keeping his tone calm.
After a moment, he continued, "If the outside world finds out that Minato is still alive, that masked man will probably come after us again. With his strength and methods, Konoha, which has only just begun to recover and show signs of life, will be plunged into another enormous disaster."
Rin nodded slowly. She desperately wanted to see the masked man with her own eyes, to prove that he couldn't possibly be the Obito she cared about.
But when she thought of the crisis Konoha might face, she had no choice but to give up on the idea. After all, she didn't want to see the village suffer another catastrophe.
Just then, Shi Xiu turned to Minato and asked, "You left a Flying Thunder God Mark on that masked man, didn't you?"
Minato answered without hesitation. "Yes!" He exchanged a glance with Shi Xiu, and in that instant, the two seemed to understand each other without a word.
"Let's go find that masked man in a couple of days. You can discuss things with him. I'm going to get some rest." With that, Shi Xiu turned and went back to his room.
Meanwhile, at the Raikage Building in Kumogakure.
In a spacious, brightly lit room inside the building, Fourth Raikage A sat behind a massive desk, his brows furrowed and his expression grave.
He had just received some shocking news: Fourth Hokage Minato Namikaze had died.
Without hesitation, A summoned his most capable aide, Mabui, and the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki, Killer B. The two quickly arrived at the office and stood before him.
Mabui had white hair and dark skin. Dressed in a sexy business outfit, with delicate features and an impressive figure, she was beautiful. But as the Raikage's secretary, Mabui was no mere pretty face. Her intelligence and abilities were beyond question.
Killer B had healthy, wheat-colored skin and a powerful, muscular build. His trademark features included the sunglasses he wore all year round and the eight slender Ninja Blades strapped to his back.
A looked up and stared straight at Mabui, asking impatiently, "Mabui, have you heard the news that Fourth Hokage is dead?"
Mabui nodded to show that she already knew. But before she could say anything further, Killer B, standing beside her, suddenly couldn't contain himself. He began moving his hands and launched into a lively rap.
"Fourth Hokage, still so young, yo~ A future shining bright was waiting for him, yo~ Who could've guessed he'd die so young? What a shame, it's such a loss~ Yo~"
At Killer B's wildly inappropriate words, Mabui's expression darkened, and a few black lines seemed to appear on her forehead.
Mabui turned to him and said, unable to hold back, "Lord Killer B, could you please be a little more serious? This isn't the time for jokes!"
Mabui's scolding didn't make Killer B angry. Instead, he smiled, scratched the back of his head, and opened his mouth to say something else.
This time, he only got a few words out. "You want me to be serious? Well..."
Before he could finish, A couldn't take it anymore either. He slammed his hand on the desk with a heavy thud and barked, "B! Quiet!"
As soon as Killer B heard his big brother speak, he fell silent.
Only then did A look away from Killer B and turn his attention back to Mabui.
Mabui had her head lowered, fully absorbed in reading the intelligence report that had just been delivered by their spy in Konoha.
As she carefully reviewed it, she read aloud, "According to our spy in Konoha, Fourth Hokage Minato Namikaze and the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, Kushina Uzumaki, have both died. Konoha's Anbu also suffered heavy losses."
A nodded slightly to show that he understood.
But Killer B couldn't contain his excitement any longer and blurted out, "Minato Namikaze is dead, Konoha's strength has fallen. Big brother wants to attack Konoha. Yo~"
Before he could finish, A shot Killer B a fierce glare.
Then A slowly stood up and gave his order in a low, authoritative voice. "Notify Darui and Samui at once. Have each of them lead part of the troops to the Land of Fire border and carefully test Konoha's current strength."
After receiving the Raikage's order, Mabui wasted no time. She promptly turned and left to deliver the instructions and make the necessary arrangements.
Elsewhere, in Sunagakure, Fourth Kazekage Rasa sat in his spacious, somewhat bare office, his expression grave as he read an intelligence report that had just arrived.
The report contained important information from a spy he had carefully placed in Konoha.
Rasa furrowed his brows and pondered for a moment. Then he quickly stood up and called toward the door, "Someone! Go fetch Chiyo."
Before long, a stooped old woman with white hair but a spry, vigorous air about her slowly entered the room.
This was Chiyo. Now over sixty years old, she still played an important role in the village.
Chiyo respectfully bowed to Rasa, then found a seat.
Once Chiyo was settled, Rasa handed her the report and said, "Chiyo, take a look at this report. Something major has happened in Konoha. Their Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, has died. What do you think about it?"
Chiyo took the report and read it carefully. When she finished, she only shook her head slightly. After a brief silence, she finally spoke.
"This old woman has no particular thoughts on the matter. I'll leave everything to Lord Kazekage." Then she lowered her head and said no more.
Rasa saw this and let out a deep sigh. He knew that ever since Chiyo's son and daughter-in-law had been killed by Hatake Sakumo, the White Fang of Konoha, during the Second Shinobi World War, Chiyo had grown disheartened and gradually stopped caring about village affairs.
Though she was still willing to help the village in times of crisis, most of the time she chose to stay out of things. This gave Rasa a real headache.
With no other option, Rasa continued, "In that case, I think we should hold back for now and wait to see how things unfold. Given Konoha's current situation, they'll eventually come to us for help. When that happens, we can use the opportunity to squeeze them for all they're worth and secure more benefits for the village."
Chiyo nodded slightly in agreement. Then she stood and prepared to leave.
But at the very moment Chiyo turned around, a trace of an unreadable emotion flashed through her eyes.
Ōnoki of Iwagakure also chose to hold back. And Obito, hiding behind Yagura, didn't plan to get involved any further either. He used Yagura to announce that they would wait and see.