Thunder rumbled through the clouds. Through the rain falling like severed threads, Minato stared at the man on the steps, his expression turning grave.
"His hair color has changed, and there are strange decorations on his face, but that face is undoubtedly... Mizuki."
His gaze lowered slightly. When he looked up again, he said something startling. "Are you Sasori of the Red Sands?"
"..." Mizuki said nothing.
Minato Namikaze said in a deep voice, "According to the latest intelligence, the intruder is suspected of possessing a puppet body."
"He controls multiple puppets made from living people and can hide his real body somewhere out of sight. A puppeteer capable of such a feat... the only one I can think of is the Hidden Sand Village's famed genius, Sasori of the Red Sands!"
His instincts really are sharp... Without Pain's technique, that would almost be the only answer.
Nagato laughed through the Human Path, Mizuki. "Who knows~?"
"More importantly." Minato's expression tightened slightly as he raised a hand and spoke earnestly. "Could you give me what you are carrying on your back? That is the culmination of Konoha's predecessors' painstaking work. I would be quite troubled if you simply took it away."
The Human Path glanced toward the enormous scroll behind him!
Splash! The rain rippled, and that blond figure was already before him!
So fast! With just a slight flicker, he surpassed Kakashi at full speed...!!
Fortunately... I was prepared as well!
He abruptly turned sideways, brushing past Minato. He leaped down from the steps and landed in the open space, smiling. "Charging in so brazenly like that... you really don't take me seriously, do you?"
Minato turned around and said calmly, "Next time, I will not let you evade me."
Whoosh! Azure chakra gathered, spun, and compressed in his raised palm... forming a perfectly round sphere!
The Human Path's pupils widened. "That technique is..."
Whoosh! Minato flashed right before him. At such close range, thoughts raced through his mind. If... Mizuki was not turned into a Human Puppet by Sasori of the Red Sands, but was being controlled by someone else using genjutsu or something similar... then Mizuki might still be alive. This strike must avoid vital areas!
He spun through the air, aiming at "Mizuki's" left shoulder!
Rasengan!!!
"If I can't evade it, then I won't..."
Boom!!! The Rasengan struck the Human Path's arm. Almost simultaneously, the latter thrust out his right hand and pressed it against Minato's chest, curling his five fingers inward as both pupils abruptly focused!
—Human Path!
Whoosh!
"What...!? What is this feeling!?" Minato's pupils shrank sharply. In that instant, an extreme sense of danger surged through him!
Whoosh! A glimmer of white light had only just emerged before the Human Path's fingers when Minato vanished from the spot...!
"What a vigilant one." The Human Path glanced at the spiral-shaped wound left by the Rasengan on his shoulder. The wound itself was insignificant, but the string of black curse markings upon it made his pupils narrow deeply.
"A Flying Thunder God mark." He smiled helplessly. "This is done for... completely done for, this Pain..."
He removed the Scroll of Seals and propped it against the side.
"Though it was not the primary objective of this trip, it is a rare prize. Before this Pain perishes, I must find a way to transfer it to my real body!"
He looked up toward the sky beyond the rain curtain. The Yata Crow circling in the air beat its wings and dove toward this place!
I hope it makes it in time!
In Konoha, inside an abandoned house far from the residential district, Minato lay beside the Flying Thunder God Kunai embedded in the muddy ground, still shaken as he recalled the danger just now.
"In that instant, something like a soul was pulled slightly out of my body, accompanied by a feeling of weakness. That was close. One second later, I probably would not have even been able to use Flying Thunder God to escape..."
He sat up from the mud and sank into thought.
"Come to think of it, is that kind of ability really something a ninja can accomplish? At the very least, I do not believe Sasori of the Red Sands' Puppet Technique could achieve such a thing."
"If it is not Sasori of the Red Sands, then who could it be? Shamon, the Second Kazekage who created Puppet Technique, or Monzaemon, the first master of Puppet Technique?"
"No... those two should have died long ago."
"Perhaps I should not have assumed from the start that the other side was a puppeteer from the Hidden Sand Village. The ninja world is full of talented individuals. In places unknown to us, there will always be existences that cannot be judged by conventional knowledge."
"From our exchange just now, I determined that his soul-pulling ability is activated through touch from his palm. As long as I remain careful and do not let him grab me, this enemy will not be difficult to deal with!"
He grasped the Flying Thunder God Kunai beside him and stood up, examining himself. A helpless smile appeared on his handsome face.
"Ah... my cloak has been dirtied by the mud. Even though I have taken over all the housework during Kushina's pregnancy, she always insists on hand-washing this Hokage cloak herself."
"I am going to trouble her again..."
His smile faded as Minato looked solemnly into the distance. "I need to quickly put an end to this disturbance and return to Kushina's side!"
At this moment, every second mattered to the Human Path!
"Hurry!!"
Fortunately... the Yata Crow successfully arrived!!
The Human Path seized the Scroll of Seals and hurled it into the sky with all his strength. The Yata Crow spread its pointed beak and clamped down on it...!!!
Whoosh! Minato flashed out and caught sight of that scene.
"You intend to use aerial support to take away the Scroll of Seals?"
"Do not think you will succeed!!!" He hurled a Flying Thunder God Kunai into the air with all his strength. Just as the pointed beak caught it, he flashed out with a whoosh, grabbing the scroll!
Whoosh! The next second, he teleported back to the ground with the Scroll of Seals.
Seeing the tear in the Scroll of Seals, he raised his head toward the sky. The Yata Crow was clearly holding something in its beak.
Minato focused his gaze. "Did it tear off several pages from the final volume with its beak before I flashed back?"
On the Yata Crow's back, Pain Rin looked at him from afar... then turned around and flew toward the skies beyond Konoha!
Minato did not pursue her. Instead, his gaze shifted to "Mizuki."
In his heart, the safety of a companion took priority over the village's forbidden techniques.
"Mizuki, whether you were made into a Human Puppet or controlled by some other means, I cannot simply leave you alone. Sorry, but I may have to hit a little hard. At the very least, I will make sure this body of yours cannot get back up for a while!"
Minato slung the Scroll of Seals over his back and formed another Rasengan. He drove the kunai in his hand into the ground at his feet, then flashed out with a whoosh from the Flying Thunder God mark on "Mizuki's" shoulder!
"You came? Then it is time to say goodbye!"
The Human Path, Mizuki, smiled as he tore off his upper garment, revealing Explosive Tags plastered all over his body. They hissed as flames ignited!!
"What!?" Minato's pupils contracted sharply. He had never expected the other side to intend to perish together with him!
Of course... it was not mutual destruction!
This was the safeguard Nagato had asked Konan to add. If a Pain encountered an unavoidable fatal situation, it would self-destruct and be utterly annihilated, preventing Konoha from uncovering Pain's most vital intelligence through research!!
Rumbleeeee...!!!
Within the explosive blaze... the Human Path, Mizuki, was blown to pieces!!
Whoosh!!
Minato teleported out from the kunai behind him.
"..." As the flames faded, Minato looked at the heavily falling rain and the scorched forehead protector lying amid the blast crater. His gaze grew heavy.
Clench! He balled his hands into fists and cast a sharp glare at the Yata Crow's retreating silhouette!
"No matter who you are, anyone who harms my companion... I will never forgive you!"
He bit his finger and formed hand seals with blood!
—Summoning Technique!!!
Before you continue