The System Spoke?

Shi Xiu looked at the incredulous Minato and spoke in an indifferent tone.

"Witnessing one's closest friend cruelly murder the person they love most is an unbearable blow for anyone, let alone someone from the Uchiha Clan. That intertwining of pain, despair, and rage is enough to cause a person's mental world to collapse entirely. How else do you think Kakashi obtained his Mangekyo? Without Uchiha blood, he could never have awakened it on his own."

Upon hearing these words, Minato was stunned, his mind instantly flooded with fragments of his time spent with Obito and the others.

In the end, Minato let out a long, heavy, and helpless sigh. Knowing that the person indirectly responsible for his and Kushina's deaths was none other than Obito, he felt a complex mix of emotions that he could not even begin to describe.

After a moment, Minato seemed to snap back to reality. He jerked his head up, staring straight at Shi Xiu, and asked, "Lord Shi Xiu, why are you telling me these things? I am already a dead man with no influence on the living world. Why not choose to inform Lord Hiruzen instead?"

Shi Xiu was slightly taken aback by the question, but he quickly regained his composure, turned to look at Minato, and replied, "What purpose would telling that old monkey serve? You are different, Minato. I intend to bring you and Kushina back to this world through the Reanimation jutsu in the near future."

Minato frowned deeply at Shi Xiu's words and responded, "But my soul has been sealed by the Dead Demon Consuming Seal. By all logic, the Reanimation jutsu should be unable to summon my soul from that seal!"

The corners of Shi Xiu's mouth curled into a confident smile as he said, "You need not worry about that. I have my own ways to undo the shackles of the Dead Demon Consuming Seal. Furthermore, I can avoid becoming a sacrifice for the ritual myself."

Minato still wore a look of hesitation, but when Shi Xiu followed up with one final sentence, the last shred of doubt in his heart vanished into thin air.

"Do you truly not wish to witness Naruto Uzumaki's journey of growth with your own eyes?" This simple question struck Minato's heart like a heavy hammer.

Minato could not help but let out a deep sigh, then slowly said, "Since Lord Shi Xiu has already made such a decision, I have no further objections."

Just then, Minato's body began to blur and fade. He looked down at his dissipating form, a faint smile touching his lips as he said, "My apologies, Lord Shi Xiu. It seems my time is running out."

Before he could finish, a flash of light crossed Shi Xiu's vision. When he focused again, he found himself back in the mysterious space used to seal the Nine-Tails.

Watching the Nine-Tails' bewildered and at-a-loss expression, Shi Xiu couldn't help but chuckle. "Hey, Kurama, you look so cute and dazed right now—it's truly amusing!"

Hearing this, the Nine-Tails haughtily turned its head away, but a moment later, as if suddenly realizing something, it hurriedly turned back to peer cautiously at Shi Xiu.

"How exactly did you know that Minato left his own chakra behind on this seal?" the Nine-Tails asked, filled with suspicion.

Facing the beast's inquiry, Shi Xiu offered only a mysterious smile and replied unhurriedly, "Haha, there is far more that I know than just that!"

The Nine-Tails felt incredibly stifled, but what could it do? It was no match for Shi Xiu.

Shi Xiu waved at the Nine-Tails and said, "Kurama, I'll come visit you again in a while."

With that, Shi Xiu exited the sealing space, and the Nine-Tails let out a heavy sigh of relief once he was gone.

"How strange. How can a human live for so long? It's fortunate he didn't become a jinchuriki, or I'd be in for a world of trouble."

After leaving the sealing space, Shi Xiu returned to his room and looked out at the ink-black night sky.

The sky was dotted with stars like scattered gemstones, but this beautiful scenery could not hold his attention for long.

Shi Xiu narrowed his eyes, took a deep breath, and his figure flickered like a ghost, vanishing from the spot in the blink of an eye.

Using the perfect cover of the night, Shi Xiu sped toward the infirmary where the bodies of Minato and Kushina were kept.

However, while still some distance away, Shi Xiu's heart tightened; a sensation of being watched suddenly washed over him.

He stopped in his tracks, alert, and cast a sharp, piercing gaze in a specific direction.

There was no doubt that this feeling of being watched came from the magical crystal ball in Hiruzen Sarutobi's possession. At that moment, inside the Hokage's office, Hiruzen's gaze met Shi Xiu's through the crystal ball. In that single instant, Hiruzen realized that Shi Xiu had detected his surveillance.

Hiruzen shook his head helplessly and sighed. In truth, he had already vaguely guessed what Shi Xiu intended to do.

After a moment of thought, Hiruzen decisively issued an order for all Anbu members stationed around the infirmary to withdraw immediately.

When Shi Xiu finally arrived at the infirmary, he found it completely empty, despite the Anbu guards that should have been there.

Shi Xiu paused for a moment, then raised an eyebrow with a faint smirk. He quickly understood that Hiruzen had voluntarily cleared the area.

Shi Xiu walked directly into the room where the bodies of Minato and Kushina were stored.

Looking at the lifeless forms of the two, Shi Xiu sighed.

He stepped forward, took a strand of hair from both Minato and Kushina, and vanished.

When Shi Xiu reappeared, he was at the ruins of the Uzumaki Clan. Having lived for countless ages, he had left Flying Thunder God markers in almost every corner of the world.

He went straight to the Mask Storage Temple and took down a Death God Mask. In truth, he had wanted to use the Reanimation jutsu to revive Rin as well, but since her body was not in the Konoha cemetery, there was nothing he could do.

Just as he was preparing to head to another ninja village to snatch a few pawns to serve as sacrifices for the Reanimation, he suddenly noticed an arrow appearing before his eyes.

"What is this?"

Shi Xiu blinked, rubbing his eyes, only to find the arrow still there.

"Is this the system? Where is it trying to take me?" Shi Xiu wondered. Previously, the system could only copy ninjutsu, but it seemed to have gained new functions.

"Host, do not worry!"

The electronic voice echoed in his mind, catching him off guard.

Having lived for nearly a century since his transmigration, the system had never spoken again after its initial introduction, providing only notification sounds when copying ninjutsu. Shi Xiu hurriedly asked, "System, what is going on?"

He was met with a long silence. Sighing, he helplessly followed the direction indicated by the arrow.

When he finally reached the destination, the sight before him left Shi Xiu somewhat surprised.