"Wind Release: Gale Blast!"
After using a somewhat weaker Wind Release technique to disperse the scalding steam, Kakuzu scanned the devastated mountaintop, looking annoyed.
What the hell... a Fire Release attack came flying up here out of nowhere. That explosion just now must have been its doing, too. Who was causing trouble down at the foot of the mountain?
Xue Ge and Kakuzu had climbed the mountain along paths on opposite sides, so Madara had not noticed Kakuzu, and Kakuzu did not know anyone else was there.
Whoosh!
Just as Kakuzu was debating whether to find Xue Ge first or deal with the Fire Release shinobi below, a flash of golden light streaked up the mountain alongside a kunai and charged straight at him without slowing.
A Rasengan slammed straight toward Kakuzu's head. Without hesitation, Kakuzu formed hand seals and activated Earth Release: Earth Spear.
With a muffled thud, Kakuzu was sent flying backward. He flipped several times through the air before landing on the ground, while Minato came to a stop and watched him warily.
He had taken a Rasengan head-on without suffering any damage... Granted, Minato's Rasengan was not particularly powerful yet, but it was roughly on par with a C-Rank Wind Release technique.
Another troublesome opponent...
Whoosh!
A few seconds into Minato and Kakuzu's standoff, Madara leaped onto the crown of a tree and looked down at them.
After glancing at Minato, he turned straight to Kakuzu. "Hmph. Another rat."
"Two of you?" Kakuzu looked at Minato in front of him, then at Madara in the treetop, his brow furrowing.
"I never expected a routine job to turn into such a mess. Are you two here for that brat, too?"
"You mean Xue Ge?" Minato asked immediately.
"Huh? Who else would I mean? Aren't you... wait." Only then did Kakuzu notice the forehead protector on Xue Ge's head. "I see. You're from Konoha. That makes sense, then. But how did you find this place?"
He pointed at Madara as he spoke. "Are you two together?"
"Heh, heh, heh..." Madara offered no answer, but Kakuzu could hear the disdain in his laughter.
"Then I suppose you're a wandering shinobi like me." Kakuzu did not mind Madara's contempt. Wandering shinobi all had their tempers.
I'll just kill this arrogant bastard later.
"Enough small talk. Sir, where is Xue Ge?" Minato could not be bothered with any talk of wandering shinobi. Kakuzu clearly knew Xue Ge, and judging by his words, he had probably seen him just moments ago.
Minato remained poised to attack. His tone was polite, but the threat was very real.
"Well, how should I put this..."
Kakuzu wore a strange expression as he pointed toward the cliff behind him. "He..."
Kree!
A clear eagle's cry cut Kakuzu off.
A giant eagle shot up from below the cliff behind Kakuzu and soared into the sky. There seemed to be a trace of chakra rippling through the air as well, stirring up sand and stones across the mountaintop.
The three looked closely and saw a black-haired boy clinging to the giant eagle's back as it climbed rapidly into the sky.
"-Xue Ge!" Minato froze for a moment, then called out in delight. Waving to Xue Ge in the distance, he immediately hurled a marked kunai and used Flying Thunder God to leap into the sky.
"-" Barely able to keep his eyes open in the relentless wind, Xue Ge heard Minato's voice and greeted him below. "-Minato-"
"Wait, wait!" Kakuzu stared in surprise. "Hey, hey, hey! That eagle was the brat's summoning beast? No wonder it lunged at me earlier..."
"..."
Madara silently watched the eagle and Xue Ge soaring through the sky, saying nothing.
Golden light flashed, and Minato landed steadily on the giant eagle's back, using chakra at his feet to cling to its feathers.
"Thank goodness you're safe, Xue Ge. You..." Before he could finish his greeting, Minato saw Xue Ge's obvious injuries and weakness, and his expression changed. "Your body..."
"..." Xue Ge shook his head. "Minato... it's dangerous here."
"All right, let's head back first," Minato said immediately, pointing in a direction. "Go that way."
Xue Ge took a deep breath and patted the giant eagle's back. It gave a cry, then changed course.
Minato's eyes lit up at the sight. "Is this... your summoning beast?"
"Yes. We just made a contract. This one's called Black Pine." Xue Ge smiled faintly.
As Black Pine tilted slightly into the turn, Xue Ge's gaze happened to drift toward Kakuzu and Madara on the distant mountaintop.
Even without seeing his face, Xue Ge was certain that the mysterious man was "Shura." Perhaps someone there could recognize him, and he had put on a cloak to avoid showing his face to the others.
Seeing him seemingly look up without making any other move, Xue Ge rubbed his fingers together.
"Minato... do you have a pen and paper?"
"I do."
Shinobi usually carried pens and paper on missions to jot down intelligence. Without needing Xue Ge to say anything more, Minato took out a pen and notebook and handed them over.
Xue Ge tore out a page and wrote something on it, then looped the paper around a kunai and tied it in place. After taking aim for a moment, he threw it toward Madara.
Once he was done, he said quietly, "Let's go."
Black Pine beat its wings hard, and the two riders and the eagle suddenly surged forward.
Clink!
The kunai embedded itself in the tree trunk beneath Madara's feet.
As Xue Ge turned his gaze away from him, Madara's expression remained as indifferent as ever, though he felt a little regret.
"Goodbye."
As expected, he chose to return to Konoha. Fine. That gives me another pawn in Konoha for the future.
What a pity. We only spent a short time together, but I really did admire that child.
The cursed talisman he had placed gave Madara some comfort. He jumped down from the treetop, pulled out the kunai, and casually slipped off the paper and unfolded it.
[From now on, you are my friend.]
"...Hmph."
"Tch. As if I'd let you leave that easily!"
Watching Xue Ge fly away, Kakuzu felt both alarmed and delighted. Delighted that the boy was alive and could still earn him money; alarmed that he was about to escape!
He swiftly formed hand seals. "Wind Release..."
"I suggest you stay still."
Three shuriken flew at him from different angles. Kakuzu had no choice but to interrupt his hand seals and sweep them aside, then, rather irritated,
looked toward Madara, who had crumpled something in his hand.
"What the hell are you doing? Get lost. I don't have time for you right now..."
"Stay still."
"Where did this idiot come from..." Before Kakuzu finished speaking, Madara formed a seal with one hand, and a dragon of fire hurtled straight at his face.
His expression changed, and he swiftly formed hand seals with both hands. "Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet!"
After the water dragon and fire dragon canceled each other out, Kakuzu muttered to himself, "So you were that Fire Release shinobi..."
Thanks to Madara's interference, Xue Ge had already flown out of sight. At the very least, he was beyond Kakuzu's reach now. Seething, Kakuzu's expression turned savage. "Bastard... since you stopped me from catching that brat, I'll take your head instead. Maybe it'll fetch a decent price."
"You're certainly confident." Madara spoke lightly, watching Kakuzu with amusement now that he was in a pleasant mood.
"Then rest assured. You can die content knowing you were killed by a shinobi who fought Hashirama Senju." Convinced that no wandering shinobi could match him, Kakuzu delivered his threats as usual.
"..."
Beneath the cloak, everything suddenly fell silent.
Kakuzu walked toward Madara. "Don't struggle. It'll make things easier for both of us..."
Vrrrm-
A low, rapid roar erupted. Kakuzu's vision blurred, and a furious gust instantly swept him off his feet!
After finally regaining his footing, he looked up to see the blue upper body of a giant towering at the source of the gale, its four arms holding swords.
"...?" A huge question mark appeared in Kakuzu's mind.
Susanoo!
As he stared in shock, a loud, arrogant voice rang out. "I see-you've fought Hashirama Senju!"
A Mangekyo slowly rotated in Madara Uchiha's eye.
"Since you want my head, I'll get a little serious-if you survived Hashirama, let's see whether you can survive me!"