Tears, scalding tears, streamed from Kushina's eyes.
"Big sister, you have to protect Naruto," Naraku's faint voice reached her ears.
The next moment, his body collapsed to the ground, and his scarlet eyes slowly closed.
Although he had the Uzumaki Clan's powerful constitution, he was simply too young. After restoring Kushina's strength again and again, he had finally pushed his body past its limits.
So it really did awaken... the Sharingan, Kushina thought to herself. But then she forced her fading gaze to focus again. The energy she had absorbed from Naraku this time was about the same as before. It wouldn't keep her alive, but it would buy her a little more time.
As for Naraku's origins, they were just as he had guessed: he wasn't Kushina's biological younger brother. She and Minato had found him in the ruins of the Land of Whirlpools. No one knew how a baby who had only just been born had ended up there.
But as a pure-blooded Uzumaki, Kushina had sensed something familiar about Naraku the moment she found him, as if their bloodlines were calling out to each other. Combined with his red hair, the same shade as her own, she had concluded that he was an orphan of the Uzumaki Clan.
What puzzled them most was that the swaddling cloth wrapped around Naraku had borne a symbol resembling a Gunbai, much like the Uchiha Clan's crest.
That was why Minato had asked Fugaku to examine Naraku several times. Like Kushina, Fugaku had felt a sense of familiarity the first time he met him.
A child of mixed Uzumaki and Uchiha blood might have sounded far-fetched, but Minato and the others weren't particularly concerned about it. They had simply asked Fugaku to keep it secret, and he had agreed.
Though she had only adopted him, Kushina had long since come to think of Naraku as her own younger brother.
"Don't worry, Naraku. I'll protect Naruto—and you, too." Kushina forced herself to stay alert.
Clang! Clang!
At her command, the broken chains joined back together, binding the Nine-Tails once more, even though it had nearly escaped.
"Ha... ha..." But after doing that, Kushina had no strength left for anything else.
She reached out, wanting to lift Naraku from the ground and hold Naruto, too. But in the end, she let her arm fall, powerless. She had to save her strength to restrain the Nine-Tails. She had to wait for Minato to return.
"Sensei's wife..."
"Lady Kushina..."
Kakashi and Guy called out at the same time, but Kushina was so drained that she had no strength to answer.
I need to move even faster, Obito mused.
After their brief exchange, he had realized a few things, but he remained confident.
He was certain that, in terms of rank, his Kamui was far superior to the Flying Thunder God.
The only reason he hadn't been able to catch his opponent was that he himself wasn't fast enough.
Physical attacks can't touch him, but in that state, he can't attack me either.
The two of them analyzed each other's tactics.
The moment he attacks me, he'll expose an opening. That'll be my chance.
Whoosh!
A Kunai flew toward Obito, and Minato sprang forward to attack again.
It all comes down to speed—who's faster...
Today, I'll put an end to the legend of the Yellow Flash...
Clang!
Obito swung his chain, knocking the Kunai aside. As he saw Minato charging toward him, a sinister grin spread across his face.
He headed straight for him, the chain in his hand clanking as he prepared to attack head-on.
Tap, tap!
In the silent night, only their footsteps could be heard. The distance between them grew shorter and shorter.
Whoosh!
Suddenly, Minato threw another specially made Kunai at him.
That won't work, Obito sneered inwardly. The Kunai passed right through his body.
Now they were less than two meters apart. Obito swung the chain toward Minato, aiming to wrap it around him.
Whirring!
Minato didn't dodge. He kept charging forward, only raising his right hand. A sphere of bright blue chakra formed in his palm.
The chain was already brushing against his Hokage cloak, while Obito's other hand reached for his shoulder.
"It's over, Yellow Flash."
"I've surpassed you in speed, Sensei..."
It was plain to see that Minato's Rasengan was farther away than the chain that had already touched his cloak and the hand reaching for his shoulder.
Obito was confident. The instant his hand touched Minato, he could transport him to the Kamui Dimension.
After that, there would be no more Yellow Flash in the Shinobi World.
Whoosh!
Just as Obito was preparing to savor his victory, Minato vanished before his eyes.
The Kunai that had passed through Obito's body earlier had now reached his back.
The next moment, a handsome figure appeared and caught the Kunai.
"Rasengan!"
Without the slightest hesitation, Minato turned and drove the Rasengan into Obito's back.
Boom!
The Rasengan spun at tremendous speed, slamming Obito hard into the ground. The powerful impact traveled through the earth, and the ground around them began to crack.
The Kunai from earlier... The pain in his back brought Obito to his senses. Only then did he realize what had happened, and he stared in disbelief.
Beneath his mask, Obito's mouth twisted in self-mockery. He had thought he'd seen through the Flying Thunder God, but things had turned out this way instead.
Space rippled as he activated Kamui once more. He managed to stagger upright and retreat.
"Still not enough to finish him?" Minato frowned. "But he must have lost a lot of his fighting strength."
He was about to step forward and attack again.
Just then, Zetsu emerged from underground, his body still covered by the Pitcher Plant. "Fourth Hokage, shouldn't you go check on your wife? She's about to die!"
Zetsu grinned as he spoke.
"Kushina!" His words stopped Minato in his tracks. He couldn't risk assuming Zetsu was lying. By now, his chakra was nearly depleted.
Even if he could take the two of them down, he might not be able to make it back to Kushina afterward.
After giving them both a long look, Minato used the Flying Thunder God to leave once more.
"Heh. I didn't think you'd actually lose to him."
"Let's go. There won't be a next time."
With that, Obito turned and left. He was injured now, and staying would only invite more trouble.
"Oh, and tell Yagura to retreat. No matter what, we've still gained quite a lot this time."
"Ugh..."
Kushina let out a groan of pain, utterly exhausted.
Crack! Crack!
At the same time, the chains restraining the Nine-Tails began to snap one by one again.
"Get... out of here..." With her last ounce of strength, Kushina spoke to Kakashi and Guy beside her.
Kakashi held Naruto in his arms, while Guy carried the unconscious Naraku on his back.
"Sensei's wife..." Seeing Kushina like this, the light faded from Kakashi's eyes once more.
Just as he was about to say something,
a yellow figure appeared and stood before him.