Naruto's Birth, Kushina's Capture

Outside Konoha Village, With the appearance of a spatial vortex, Obito revealed his figure, clad entirely in black.

"So this is the place. My apologies, Sensei, and to you as well, Mistress," Obito murmured softly as he walked forward.

Swish! Swish!

He had only taken a few steps when several figures appeared before him.

Selected specifically to guard Kushina during her labor, these Anbu operatives were far from weak.

Without a word, the Anbu chose to strike immediately, brandishing their blades as they slashed toward Obito.

"Clang! Clang! Clang!"

The several blades, striking from different directions, passed straight through Obito's body as if he were nothing but air, emitting the sharp sound of metal clashing against metal as they struck one another.

"What is this?" someone exclaimed, reacting with lightning speed to leap backward.

However, others were not so fortunate; Obito quickly dispatched one of them with a kunai.

The scarlet eyes beneath his tiger-striped mask grew brighter. "Today, I, Uchiha Obito, shall sever the threads of fate."

He moved with rapid speed. Though these Anbu were skilled, they were no match for Obito and his Kamui. Within a mere dozen seconds, every one of them lay in a pool of blood.

Obito cast his gaze toward the cave. "It is time for you to act."

Inside the cave, "Waaah!"

"Waaah!"

A loud, clear cry echoed through the air. Hearing it, Kushina, nearly exhausted, and Minato, who was struggling to suppress the Nine-Tails' seal, were overcome with emotion, tears glistening in their eyes.

This newly born life was the crystallization of their love and the continuation of their bond.

It was a feeling that those who had never been parents could never truly understand.

"Waaah!" "Waaah!"

As the cries continued, Biwako Sarutobi, who was overseeing the delivery, picked up the newborn Naruto. Like most infants, his skin was slightly dry, and his tiny body trembled ever so slightly.

"Minato, hurry and reinforce the Nine-Tails' seal!" another person in the room warned.

This individual appeared to be a woman with white hair.

Though he longed to hold his child, Minato knew there were more pressing matters at hand.

"Kushina, bear with it a little longer; it will be over soon." Because of Naruto's birth, the original sealing jutsu on Kushina was nearing collapse, unable to suppress the Nine-Tails any longer, forcing Minato to reconstruct the seal from scratch.

It was troublesome, but fortunately, sealing jutsu was one of Minato's specialties; at this rate, he would have the seal re-established before long.

"Universal Pull."

Just then, a cold voice rang out in the room.

Then, a shocking scene unfolded: Kushina, who had been lying on the bed, suddenly flew backward at high speed.

"Kushina!" Minato cried out, immediately ceasing his sealing jutsu and reaching out to grab her.

Despite his lightning-fast reflexes, he was a step too slow; Kushina had already been seized by a man shrouded in a black cloak.

Hum! Hum!

Just as Minato prepared to rescue her, he felt a ripple in space, but before he could act—

"Ah!"

A scream pierced the air. Biwako, who had been holding Naruto, suddenly collapsed to the ground with a gruesome wound on her abdomen.

Obito, wearing his tiger-striped mask, appeared before her and reached out to snatch Naruto.

However, the white-haired woman beside Biwako was one step faster, pulling Naruto into her arms.

Poof!

A cloud of smoke erupted, enveloping the white-haired woman. When the smoke cleared, a tall figure stood in the room.

"Jiraiya, of all people," Obito's pupils constricted.

"Ninja Art: Wild Lion's Mane Technique!" Jiraiya held Naruto in his left arm while his right hand moved through a rapid sequence of seals.

His flowing white hair grew rapidly, surging toward Obito.

"What does it matter if you are one of the Sannin? My plan has already succeeded," Obito chuckled, letting the hair pass through his body before he vanished into thin air.

So this is the space-time ninjutsu Minato spoke of, Jiraiya thought to himself.

To be safe, Minato had not only brought Jiraiya to the birthing site but had also briefed him on the nature of this space-time ninjutsu.

On the other side, Minato had already appeared beside the cloaked figure, reaching out to grab Kushina.

But the next moment, he froze.

The cloaked figure held a black rod against Kushina's throat. "Stop, Fourth Hokage. Take one more step, and your wife dies here."

In that split second of hesitation, Obito appeared before the cloaked figure, gripped Kushina's arm, and immediately activated Kamui.

"It's over, Fourth," the next moment, he and Kushina vanished simultaneously.

The figure in the black robe also glanced back at Jiraiya before vanishing into a puff of smoke with a soft pop.

"Kushina," beads of sweat the size of peas rolled down Minato's face. He had been careful enough, yet he never expected an accident to occur regardless.

"Go, Minato. Leave Naruto to me," Jiraiya said, his eyes filled with complex emotions.

The black-robed figure from just moments ago had given him a sense of familiarity.

After casting a grateful look at Jiraiya, Minato said nothing more. He closed his eyes and began to sense Kushina's location.

He had placed a Flying Thunder God seal on Kushina beforehand.

In truth, he had begun searching the moment she disappeared, but he had been unable to detect her until now.

"Found you," Minato snapped his eyes open, his sharp gaze brimming with killing intent.

Swish!

A flash of yellow light streaked by, and his figure vanished.

Left behind, Jiraiya felt a sense of powerlessness. In the face of such bizarre space-time ninjutsu, even he had been unable to prevent the tragedy from unfolding.

He then gathered Naruto and hurried toward Konoha Village.

As for Biwako, who lay on the ground, she no longer showed any signs of life. Jiraiya placed her body into a scroll.

"Ah!"

A cry of pain rang out through the dense forest. Kushina was currently bound to a massive rock face by four chains. At her abdomen, the Nine-Tails had already completely broken its seal with Obito's help, and violent red energy poured incessantly from her stomach.

Even the pitch-black night sky turned eerie under the influence of this energy.

"Come forth, Nine-Tails," Obito said from the side, watching Kushina's miserable state. A flicker of complex emotion crossed his eyes, but it vanished as quickly as it had appeared.

Because Obito had used the Tailed Beast Extraction Seal on Kushina while inside the Kamui Dimension, the Nine-Tails was now nearly completely free.

Outside Konoha Village, In a hidden patch of forest, Zetsu, encased in his Pitcher Plant, suddenly chuckled. "To think he actually succeeded."

He had already received word from his clone, confirming that Obito had successfully captured Kushina.

"Then, it is time for your performance."