Chapter 48

This time, he had conveniently taken thirteen more Root ninja. That counted as an unexpected gain.

It also made him see clearly once and for all—the desire Danzo had to capture him had never died.

"If it weren't still too soon to kill you, you'd have been dead already."

"But this works too. I'll start with Root and gradually get every one of those people under my control."

"I still need Danzo to pressure the Uchiha, so I can use the opportunity to gather the whole clan's support and tighten my grip on power."

Uchiha Yan calculated silently.

Even trash had its uses.

Especially trash like Danzo.

Killing him outright would be the stupidest thing to do.

He would squeeze every last bit of value out of Danzo, then ruin his reputation and leave him infamous for eternity, making him die amid pain and unwillingness.

Only then would the anger in his heart be appeased.

On Uchiha Yan's Shadow Clone's side.

"You're back?"

When the clone saw the original appear, he nodded and handed over a sealing scroll. "Here. The bodies of the seven Hidden Cloud ninja from the retrieval team are all inside."

"Three jonin and four elite chunin. Not one missing."

He sensed that Kushina's group was now less than five kilometers away.

"What are you planning to do next?"

Uchiha Yan accepted and put away the scroll before saying directly, "I'll transform into Dad. The two of us will use Flying Thunder God to flash over there and wipe them all out in one go."

"Root has already been dealt with. Minato and the Third Hokage will be here soon, so there's no time to drag this out."

"Better not let any unnecessary trouble arise."

Uchiha Yan had never intended to give the Third Hokage and Minato a chance to put on this show.

Of course, appearances still had to be maintained.

If he personally killed so many Hidden Cloud ninja, it would be too conspicuous and inappropriate.

It was perfect to pin the blame on his father.

It would also let him leak the news that his father had broken through to Kage level to the Third Hokage and the Uchiha clan.

While making the Third Hokage's group wary, it could also build Uchiha Senichi's prestige within the clan.

It would pave the way for him to take the position of clan head.

That was right. Uchiha Yan had never intended to sit in that position himself.

He wanted to push his father into it.

He had no time to manage the mess of an entire major clan, handling all those trivial clan affairs every day.

"Oh?"

After hearing this, the clone raised a brow. Kagura's Mind's Eye instantly spread out, immediately catching the presence of Minato and the Third Hokage's group. A mocking smile curled onto his lips. "So this was a setup by that old fox, the Third Hokage?"

"What a dirty-minded bastard!"

"I thought he'd already given up on this stupid plan and was planning to support Kushina and us becoming a new couple!"

That old bastard really hadn't changed at all!

"Enough nonsense. Time to work. Transform into my dad and make your move."

"Hehe, no problem!"

As he spoke, Uchiha Yan's Shadow Clone immediately used the Divine Transformation Technique. His body swayed, and he transformed into Uchiha Senichi, Yan's father.

"Let's go!"

The next second, the two vanished from the spot with a whoosh!

When they reappeared, they were standing on either side of the head of the Hidden Cloud jonin who had abducted Kushina.

Kushina immediately sensed Uchiha Yan's familiar chakra. She abruptly raised her head, and delight instantly appeared on her face.

"Ninjutsu Body Art: Eight Extremes Collapse!"

Uchiha Yan's Shadow Clone drove a fist down, smashing it directly into the cheek of the leading jonin, who had yet to react.

At the same time, the real Uchiha Yan had already placed a hand on Kushina's shoulder the moment he appeared.

With a whoosh, he took her away again and landed steadily more than ten meters away.

"Ah!"

Seeing Uchiha Yan descend from above, Kushina excitedly grabbed his arm, hopping up and down. "Xuan, you finally came! I knew you'd definitely come!"

Thump!

Uchiha Yan raised a hand and flicked her forehead. "You did this on purpose, didn't you? With your current strength, could these few clowns have abducted you so easily?"

Kushina froze from the flick, then sheepishly stuck out her tongue. "Hehe, sorry! I just wanted to lure out all those rats hiding behind the scenes and deal with them in one go."

"Besides, I was sure you'd make it in time."

As she spoke, she raised her head, her eyes sparkling as she looked at Uchiha Yan. Her gaze was filled with love and gratitude. "See? You showed up in time, didn't you?"

While the two were talking,

"Damn it!"

"No! Captain!"

"Kill them!"

The remaining Hidden Cloud ninja watched helplessly as two people suddenly appeared, instantly killed their captain, and stole away their target.

In an instant, their eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets.

The Hidden Cloud ninja rushed over in a swarm, blades flashing as they charged at Uchiha Yan and his Shadow Clone.

"Sharingan Genjutsu: Mental Chaos!"

Uchiha Yan's clone widened his eyes. His Sharingan spun rapidly as a wave of mental force blasted toward the group.

"Urgh—"

It felt as if someone had violently stirred up the brains of the Hidden Cloud ninja. Pain seized them, their movements stiffened, and their bodies halted.

"Body Flicker: Uchiha Flame Sword!"

Taking advantage of the opening, Uchiha Yan drew his blade and charged forward. A flash of sword light cut through the air, and a head flew away as blood sprayed three feet high.

At the same time, Uchiha Yan's real body and Kushina were not idle either.

"Flying Thunder God Slash!"

"Monster Strength Fist!"

Boom!

"Ahh!!"

"Ninjutsu Body Art: Eight Extremes Collapse!"

"Flying Thunder God Slash!"

Minato and the Third Hokage's group arrived just in time to see Uchiha Yan, Kushina, and Uchiha Senichi slaughter the remaining Hidden Cloud ninja as though they were chopping vegetables.

"This..."

Everyone was stunned.

Minato stood there in a daze for a long while, his eyes fixed on Kushina—she was holding Uchiha Yan's arm, chattering away about something, her eyes curved into crescents from her smile.

"...Sigh."

A thousand words ultimately turned into a stifled sigh.

He turned to leave.

"Huh?"

As though he had only just noticed him, Uchiha Yan turned his head and saw the Third Hokage and several old men standing dozens of meters away, though he had no idea when they had appeared.

He raised a hand in greeting. "Big brother, Lord Hokage, you came to rescue her too?"

"It's already been resolved, but thanks anyway."

Minato smiled bitterly. "I saw the hair Kushina kept dropping along the way, so I..."

"Hair?"

Kushina tilted her head, utterly confused.

When had she ever left hair behind to guide anyone?

"Huh?"

Minato froze.

She hadn't?

Then whose red hair had he picked up on the way?

That color, that scent—how could he possibly have mistaken it?

"Ahem!"

The Third Hokage could no longer sit still. In a flash, he landed beside Minato and patted him on the shoulder, praising him, "Minato, you did well helping someone in need."

Then the Third Hokage looked at Uchiha Yan and Kushina with concern. "Are you two alright?"

"We're fine."

The two shook their heads.

Kushina secretly glanced at Minato and the Third Hokage, muttering inwardly, Something's not right. There's definitely something going on here. I'll ask Xuan when we get back. This is too much of a headache to think about, and I can't be bothered.

Minato noticed that something was off about the way Kushina looked at him, and his heart skipped a beat.

He was not stupid. Otherwise, he would not have become Hokage in the future.

After piecing together everything that had happened, Minato quickly began to understand.

First, he was certain that the red hair he had picked up along the way absolutely had not been dropped by Kushina.

Someone had clearly thrown it deliberately along his route to lead him here to rescue her.

That was strange.

Who exactly was that person?

What were they plotting?

Second, there was a serious problem with Kushina being abducted from the village.

How had the Hidden Cloud ninja managed it?

How had Konoha's barrier become nothing more than decoration? How had no one noticed?

This was completely abnormal.

It was obvious that someone had deliberately turned a blind eye. It was even possible that someone in the village had colluded with the Hidden Cloud ninja.

Otherwise, there was no way to explain it.