Naraku's Background

Tears, scalding tears, streamed from Kushina's eyes.

"Sister, you must protect Naruto," Naraku's faint voice reached her ears.

The next moment, his body slumped to the ground, and his scarlet eyes slowly closed.

Although he possessed the formidable constitution of the Uzumaki Clan, he was simply too young; continuously restoring Kushina's vitality had ultimately overdrawn his body.

So, the Sharingan has awakened after all, Kushina thought to herself. She then refocused her fading gaze. The energy she had absorbed from Naraku this time was similar to the last; while it wouldn't be enough to keep her alive, it was enough to delay her death for a while longer.

As for Naraku's identity, it was just as he had guessed: he was not Kushina's biological brother. She and Minato had discovered him among the ruins of the Land of Whirlpools. No one knew how a newborn infant could have appeared in such a place.

Yet, as a pure-blooded Uzumaki, Kushina had felt a sense of familiarity the moment Naraku appeared, as if their bloodlines were resonating with one another. Combined with his red hair, which matched her own, Kushina concluded that he was an orphan of the Uzumaki Clan.

What was most peculiar, however, was that the swaddling clothes wrapping Naraku at the time had been imprinted with a pattern resembling a fan, much like the crest of the Uchiha Clan.

Because of this, Minato had asked Fugaku to examine Naraku several times. Like Kushina, Fugaku had felt a strange sense of familiarity the first time he saw the boy.

A cross between the Uzumaki and Uchiha clans sounded preposterous, but Minato and the others didn't dwell on it; they simply asked Fugaku to keep the matter a secret, to which he agreed.

Although he was only an adopted brother, Kushina had long since come to view Naraku as her own kin.

"Don't worry, Naraku. I will protect Naruto, and you as well," Kushina forced herself to stay alert.

Clang! Clang!

Under her manipulation, the broken chains fused back together, and the Nine-Tails, which had nearly broken free, was bound once more.

"Ha... ha..." After doing this, however, Kushina lacked the strength for anything else.

She reached out, wanting to lift Naraku from the ground and hold Naruto, but in the end, her arms fell powerlessly. She had to conserve her strength to bind the Nine-Tails; she had to wait for Minato to return.

"Mistress,"

"Lady Kushina,"

Kakashi and Guy's voices rang out simultaneously, but the exhausted Kushina no longer had the strength to answer them.

I need to be faster, Obito mused to himself.

After their brief clash, he had realized a few issues, yet he remained full of confidence.

He firmly believed that in terms of rank, his Kamui was absolutely superior to the Flying Thunder God.

The only reason he couldn't catch his opponent was that his own speed wasn't fast enough yet.

Physical attacks are completely ineffective against him, but in that state, he cannot attack me either.

The two analyzed each other's tactics.

As long as he attacks me once, he will reveal a flaw, and that will be my chance.

Whoosh!

A kunai was thrown toward Obito, and Minato rose again to launch an attack.

"Speed... it's just a matter of who is faster..."

"Today, I will put an end to the myth of the Yellow Flash..."

Clang!

Obito swung his chains, batting the kunai aside. Seeing Minato rushing toward him, he sneered inwardly.

He met him head-on, the chains in his hands clattering as he prepared to launch a direct assault.

Tap, tap!

In the silent night sky, only the sound of their footsteps remained as the distance between them closed.

Whoosh!

Suddenly, Minato threw another specialized kunai at him.

"That's useless," Obito sneered in his heart as the kunai passed straight through his body.

The distance between them was now less than two meters, and Obito swung his chains, aiming to entangle Minato.

Hum, hum!

Minato didn't dodge, maintaining his forward momentum, but he suddenly raised his right hand, a brilliant blue sphere of chakra rising in his palm.

By now, the chains were brushing against his haori, and Obito's other hand was reaching for his shoulder.

"It's over, Yellow Flash."

"I have surpassed you in speed, Teacher..."

Visibly, compared to the chains already touching his robe and the hand reaching for his shoulder, Minato's Rasengan was still further away.

Obito was incredibly confident; as long as his hand could touch Minato, he could instantly transfer him into the Kamui Dimension.

At that moment, the Yellow Flash would vanish from the ninja world forever.

Swish!

Just as Obito prepared to welcome his victory, the Minato before his eyes suddenly vanished.

The kunai that had previously pierced through Obito's body had now reached his back.

The next moment, a dashing figure appeared and gripped the kunai.

"Rasengan."

Without a moment's hesitation, he turned and slammed the Rasengan directly into Obito's back.

BOOM!

The Rasengan spun at high speed, slamming Obito's body heavily into the ground. The immense impact transferred to the earth, causing the surrounding ground to crack and shatter.

"It was that kunai from before," Obito muttered in surprise, the searing pain in his back forcing him to calm down as the realization dawned on him.

Beneath his mask, Obito's lips curled into a self-deprecating smirk; he had thought he'd seen through the Flying Thunder God technique, yet he hadn't expected this outcome.

With a ripple in space, he activated Kamui once more, struggling to his feet before retreating.

"Still couldn't finish him off?" Minato frowned at the sight. "But his combat effectiveness should be significantly compromised now."

He prepared to step forward and launch another attack.

Just then, Zetsu, shrouded in his Pitcher Plant, poked his head out from the ground. "Fourth Hokage, aren't you going to check on your wife? She's about to die, you know!"

Zetsu said with a playful grin.

"Kushina." The words made Minato freeze in his tracks. He dared not gamble on whether the enemy was lying to him, and at this moment, his own chakra was nearly bottomed out.

Even if he could take these two down, he might not be able to return to Kushina in time.

After casting a deep, lingering look at the pair, Minato used the Flying Thunder God technique once more and vanished.

"Heh, I never thought you'd actually lose to him."

"Let's go. There won't be a next time."

With that, Obito turned and left the area; he was injured, and staying here would only invite further complications.

"Right, tell Yagura to retreat. Regardless of everything, the harvest this time was not insignificant."

"Ugh."

An extremely weak Kushina let out a pained cry.

Snap! Snap!

At the same time, the chains binding the Nine-Tails began to snap one by one.

"You... leave quickly..." Kushina used her final breath to speak to Kakashi and Guy nearby.

At this moment, Kakashi was holding Naruto in his arms, while Guy was carrying the unconscious Naraku on his back.

"Mistress..." Seeing Kushina in such a state, the light in Kakashi's eyes dimmed once again.

Just as he was about to say something, a yellow figure appeared and stood before him.