Obito... Is that you?

Shi Xiu felt the soft, fragrant warmth in his arms, a sensation he had never experienced before.

Counting carefully, from his previous life until now, Shi Xiu had spent a long one hundred and fifty years in solitude, remaining single the entire time.

When Nara Luling wrapped her arms around his waist, a ripple stirred deep within Shi Xiu's heart.

To be honest, in that moment, he truly felt an indescribable flutter of excitement.

However, this feeling was quickly suppressed by reality. Shi Xiu knew all too well that if he were to truly fall in love with someone, the scenes that would unfold decades later would leave him in unbearable pain and helplessness.

To watch his beloved gradually age and reach the end of her life, while he remained powerless to stop it.

At this moment, the phrase "Immortality is not a reward, but a punishment" involuntarily surfaced in Shi Xiu's mind. He had never felt much about these words before, but now, he deeply understood the endless sorrow and helplessness contained within them.

Despite this, Shi Xiu did not allow himself to dwell too long on such sentiments.

Shi Xiu lowered his head slightly, his gaze falling upon Nara Luling, who was still holding him tightly.

"Flying Thunder God!"

In an instant, the figures of Shi Xiu and those around him vanished from the spot like ghosts.

Only Heimu Wu and the others were left behind, standing there in a daze, staring at the place where they had just been standing.

In the blink of an eye, Shi Xiu and his group successfully returned to his private courtyard in Konoha.

As soon as he landed, Shi Xiu casually loosened his grip and dropped Samui, whom he had been carrying, onto the ground without a hint of mercy.

Samui clearly had not expected such sudden treatment; her body hit the ground hard, and she let out a muffled groan.

At the same time, Nara Luling seemed to wake from a dream, hurriedly releasing her hands from Shi Xiu's waist.

A faint blush remained on her cheeks, like clouds illuminated by the evening glow, charming and shy.

Shi Xiu extended a slender finger, pointing at the prone Samui, and turned to speak softly to Kakashi beside him.

"Take them to the Interrogation Department together. I'll leave this to you; I have some important matters to attend to."

Upon hearing Shi Xiu's instructions, Kakashi's expression remained unchanged, and he simply nodded in silence.

He reached to his waist, pulled out his signature cat-faced mask, and donned it.

Then, he bent down and effortlessly hoisted the fallen Samui up.

At this moment, Samui's face was as pale as a sheet of paper, devoid of any color.

Samui cursed her luck inwardly. Although she had never personally experienced Konoha's Interrogation Department, she had heard rumors about it.

It was said that the methods there were extremely cruel, and few who entered ever came out unscathed.

Thinking of this, Samui felt a wave of despair, knowing that she was likely doomed and would inevitably suffer through brutal torture.

Kakashi dragged Samui away, walking toward the gate alongside another captured Cloud Village ninja.

Meanwhile, Nara Luling followed closely behind, escorting another Cloud Village captive.

However, just as the two were about to reach the gate, they stopped in unison and turned back to look at Shi Xiu, who was standing in the house.

Kakashi's gaze was fixed directly on Shi Xiu, his deep eyes flashing with curiosity and inquiry, as if he wanted to see through Shi Xiu's calm exterior.

On the other hand, Nara Luling's expression was somewhat complex, containing both the shyness typical of a young girl and a trace of indescribable... reluctance.

Shi Xiu keenly caught the strange emotion in Nara Luling's eyes and couldn't help but pause.

Just as he was about to ask, Nara Luling seemed to realize something.

She hurriedly lowered her head, quickly put on her mask, and turned to leave with Kakashi.

Shi Xiu watched the backs of Kakashi and Nara Luling in silence, his eyes revealing a complex emotion that was hard to put into words.

Shi Xiu pursed his lips slightly and let out a sigh that was almost imperceptible.

This sigh seemed to carry endless worry and helplessness, yet it quickly dissipated into the air.

"Flying Thunder God!"

With a low shout, Shi Xiu's figure turned into a flash of lightning and vanished from the courtyard in the blink of an eye.

Shi Xiu intended to rendezvous with Minato. In fact, back when Minato and his team had departed, Shi Xiu had already placed a Flying Thunder God mark on them.

Meanwhile, in the distant Land of Water, the mysterious Mist Village was shrouded in suffocating fog.

Minato carefully led Kushina and Rin, sneaking into the village like ghosts.

At this time, the Mist Village was in the dark era of the "Bloody Mist Village," and the entire place was covered in a heavy haze.

On the streets, shocking scenes were everywhere. Ragged, emaciated beggars huddled in corners, shivering; corpses lay scattered along the roads, emitting a pungent, rotting stench.

These tragic sights made Rin, who was hiding in the shadows, tighten her heart and swallow hard.

Just a moment ago, she had witnessed two vicious Mist Village ninjas beating a poor little girl, simply because the child possessed a rare bloodline limit—Ice Release.

Minato and Kushina, seeing such a cruel scene, were burning with rage. If not for the fear of exposing their identities and causing unnecessary trouble, they would have stepped forward to stop the atrocity long ago.

Just as Minato, Kushina, and Rin were marveling at the chaotic state of the Mist Village, a black shadow suddenly appeared beside Minato like a ghost, without any warning.

This sudden turn of events made even the ever-alert Minato tremble in shock.

Acting on instinct, he didn't hesitate for a fraction of a second; his right hand whipped a razor-sharp kunai from his waist, thrusting it fiercely toward the space behind him with lightning speed.

"Minato! It's me!"

With quick reflexes, Shi Xiu raised his hand and firmly gripped Minato's wrist.

In an instant, the kunai held tightly in Minato's hand was brought to a dead stop just centimeters from Shi Xiu's neck, the cold, glinting blade appearing as if it would slice through his throat the very next second.

Upon seeing that the person was Shi Xiu, the tension in Minato's heart finally ebbed away, and he let out a long sigh of relief.

Shi Xiu released his grip on Minato's wrist, and Minato scratched his head in embarrassment, a sheepish smile appearing on his face.

"My apologies, Lord Shi Xiu! That was purely an instinctive reaction!" Minato hurriedly explained.

Shi Xiu nodded slightly to show he understood, his clear eyes as calm as still water, showing no sign of blame toward Minato.

He then began to carefully scan his surroundings, observing the environment and the situation at hand.

After a moment, Shi Xiu spoke: "Alright, Minato! I know you left a Flying Thunder God mark on that Mysterious Masked Man. We shouldn't delay; let's head over there together right now!"

Hearing Shi Xiu's words, Minato nodded without hesitation.

He quickly reached out both hands, placing one on Shi Xiu's shoulder and the other on Kushina's.

However, at that very moment, Rin stepped forward without hesitation and wrapped her arms tightly around Minato's waist.

Minato didn't say anything about Rin's actions, though the corner of his mouth twitched slightly; explaining felt wrong, but not explaining felt just as awkward.

With no other choice, Minato pretended not to notice. Immediately after, his figure flashed, turning into a streak of light as he vanished from the spot with the others at incredible speed.

Almost at the same moment, the Mysterious Masked Man located not far away suddenly sensed a violent spatial fluctuation behind him.

Startled, he cursed inwardly and immediately activated his intangibility, attempting to evade any incoming attack while rapidly putting a safe distance between himself and the rear.

He then went straight for a grab... my apologies, wrong script.

After Obito created some distance, he looked back, his eyes filled with disbelief.

At this moment, as Rin looked at the Mysterious Masked Man before her, a sudden, inexplicable sense of familiarity welled up in her heart.

Rin spoke with uncertainty: "Obito... is that you?"