When Tsunade heard that Fox had used the Five Elements Seal to suppress a full Nine-Tails chakra tail from Kushina, a strange intuition stirred in her heart.
This technique…
It was too familiar...
Kushina had once said that during the night the Nine-Tails was transferred, someone had twice injected chakra into her body using Uzumaki-style sealing.
That person had to be of Uzumaki bloodline.
But the identity of that mysterious helper had never been uncovered.
At the time, only the Yellow Dog Division had surrounded Kushina.
And Fox—was the top fighter in the Yellow Dog Division.
Now, hearing that Fox had such refined command over the Five Elements Seal, Tsunade couldn't help but think:
'Was it him?'
The Five Elements Seal was a relatively basic Uzumaki sealing technique—not nearly as powerful as the Four Symbols Seal or Adamantine Sealing Chains.
But if Fox really was a ninja of Uzumaki lineage… everything would fall into place.
Tsunade glanced at the other high-ranking elders in the room.
None of them had direct contact with the Nine-Tails' chakra, so they didn't comprehend just how powerful it was for Fox to suppress it with the Five Elements Seal.
But even so, Tsunade held her tongue.
She had matured a lot.
If Fox didn't have Uzumaki blood, she could be getting played by ANBU.
And if he did have it, then she definitely couldn't approach him—he was someone watching over Kushina from the shadows. Any contact would risk exposing him.
Yako (Fox) noticed the fleeting glance from Tsunade, but made no reaction.
With his current status as an ANBU squad captain, being skilled in sealing techniques wasn't surprising to the others. No one would link him to the Uzumaki bloodline—only think, "Of course he's that good. He's Copper Fox."
Tsunade forcibly set the idea aside and addressed the council:
"Kushina is only 10 years old—she hasn't even graduated the Academy. How could you expect her to fully master her seal?
Your methods are too rough. What if something goes wrong?"
Hiruzen replied:
"There's no time. We must strengthen her as soon as possible. The Hidden Cloud's 'Perfect Jinchūriki' plan is putting immense pressure on us."
Tsunade exchanged a glance with Senju Hanaki—this level of urgency from the village was unsettling.
Hanaki said:
"The Senju clan will organize a dedicated sealing team to monitor and maintain Kushina's seal regularly.
Tsunade's proficiency in sealing is top-tier. She's learned many of her mother's techniques and even developed several of her own.
If she can't strengthen the seal, no one in Konoha can."
Hanaki knew Tsunade had already mastered Yin Seal and was researching the Strength of a Hundred Technique. Ever since that fateful night when the Nine-Tails was transferred, she had grown stronger rapidly.
The other elders didn't dispute Hanaki's statement—Tsunade's sealing skill was undisputed.
She continued:
"Still, I don't recommend putting too much pressure on Kushina before she graduates.
My mother once said: to coexist with the Nine-Tails, one must be filled with love—to counter the beast's hatred.
Its chakra induces intense negativity. Kushina deserves a happy school life. Rushing this will only worsen things."
The council ended without a final conclusion.
As they left, Tsunade deliberately lagged behind, trying to catch another glimpse of Fox as he used the Body Flicker to leave—but she saw nothing.
"Don't be impatient," she told herself. "Don't act rashly."
The Senju clan's situation was worse than she thought—she was their last hope.
Yako left the Hokage's office and quickly headed to a remote training ground near the village outskirts.
Inside the field, Hatake Sakumo suddenly turned his head—someone was approaching.
Spotting the signature fox mask peeking through the bushes, he relaxed and resumed teaching.
"Minato," Sakumo said, "you have a large chakra reserve. You can't be treated like an ordinary student.
What I'm about to teach you is my signature technique—one that brought me fame."
Minato's heart stirred.
The legendary White Fang of Konoha, after less than a month, was entrusting him with his core technique?
"Sakumo-sensei… I won't let you down!"
Sakumo nodded and continued:
"What I've taught you recently was just the foundation.
My technique is called the Chakra Refinement Art, and it has two stages:
Step One: Chakra Condensation.
Step Two: Chakra Crystallization.
If you master condensation, you can become a jōnin.
If you master crystallization, you can reach elite jōnin or even kage level."
He demonstrated by forming a ball of Lightning Release chakra.
It grew denser and more compact, even as more chakra flowed into it. The crackling sounded like birds chirping.
"Wait," thought Yako from the bushes. "That sounds a lot like Chidori…"
Sakumo explained:
"My nature is lightning. Condensing it enhances its piercing power.
Yours is wind. You've already begun condensing it to improve your Body Flicker.
This path takes years of dedicated practice. Entry is easy, mastery is hard.
But continue refining, and you'll reach the next stage: Chakra Crystallization."
"Minato," he added, "from today forward, I accept you as my disciple.
Once you graduate, I will be your team leader."
Minato was overwhelmed. He had been chosen—early.
Sakumo, gazing toward the brush where Yako watched, thought back to Fox's advice.
Initially, he'd been skeptical.
But now, the more time he spent with Minato, the more he liked him.
Meanwhile, little Kakashi stared intently at the glowing lightning orb in his father's hand.
And in the shadows, so did Yako.
"I must get stronger."
If Sakumo died, all his careful plans would be wasted.
Currently, Yako's strongest techniques were:
Absolute Defense: Bronze Light
Water Release: Instant Body Flicker
But the latter couldn't be used openly—it still wasn't presentable.
"I can't exactly go kidnap Hanzō of the Salamander and interrogate him about it…"
Bronze Light was based on Earth-nature chakra crystallization. It was excellent against physical attacks—but it failed against something like the Nine-Tails' chakra.
His second chakra nature was water.
Earth gave dense defense.
Lightning gave high-frequency destructive power.
Wind (as Minato was discovering) provided explosive force through pressure.
But what did water do?
Yako sat quietly in the bushes after they left and began experimenting with Water Chakra Condensation.
He couldn't rely on the system—it had only helped with Earth. The rest he had to learn himself.
"I'm just an average guy without the system."
He began condensing water chakra in his palm.
But water was nearly incompressible. No matter how much pressure he applied, its volume barely changed.
"Is water chakra also incompressible?"
"Is chakra crystallization not compatible with Water Release?"
He was tempted to skip it and go straight to wind.
But no.
"Don't give up. What if I'm not actually a loser?"
He began reviewing chakra traits:
Earth = Density = Defense
Lightning = Frequency = Penetration
Wind = Pressure = Burst
Water = ??? = ???
Two hours later, he had made zero progress.
"Yep. Not a genius after all."
Returning to ANBU HQ, he submitted reports.
The bureaucracy of being a ninja never ended—task scrolls, surveillance logs, detailed reports on Sakumo and Kushina.
Purple Cat helped organize the other squads' summaries, but Yako still had to write his own.
She noticed he was in a bad mood.
"Something bothering you? Want to… dig up some happiness?" she whispered slyly.
She was getting better at using their coded innuendo.
After one round, her neck was already flushed.
After two rounds, Yako's mood was vastly improved.
But still not perfect.
So… round three.
Only when Purple Cat was limp and speechless did Yako finally leave, satisfied.
Back at Tsurugetsu Tavern, he found Kyoi had closed shop early.
"Bad sales today?"
"Yeah, weirdly slow."
She shoved him into her bedroom.
"Ugh," he thought, "three rounds with Purple Cat and now this? I'm worn out…"
It was the water chakra's fault. He'd been so frustrated he took it out on Purple Cat.
Kyoi noticed his hesitation.
"Too late! I've restarted my shinobi training. Whether you're up for it or not—doesn't matter!"
She pulled out a blue Akimichi secret pill, dropped it into a glass.
Yako watched it swirl lazily in the water—resisted by its viscosity.
"Wait… resistance… THAT'S IT!"
Inspiration struck.
Water = Resistance.
"…why are your eyes glowing? I'm scared. Let's just stop for tonight—"
Too late.
He downed the pill.
"Tonight, I will perform!"
Refreshed and inspired, Yako snuck out to an empty training field.
He reviewed what he'd learned:
Earth = High density → Defense
Lightning = High frequency → Penetration
Wind = High pressure → Burst
Water = High resistance → ?
He began gathering high-density water chakra in his palm.
Then, kicking a stone into the air, he let it fall at full speed toward the chakra cluster.
SPLASH.
The chakra absorbed the impact. The stone's speed plummeted—it landed gently in his hand.
It worked.
Water Chakra, when condensed, offered incredible resistance—a buffer.
He split into shadow clones.
One clone fired Fire Style: Fire Dragon Flame Bullet.
The flames hit the water chakra cluster and were instantly neutralized—dissipated into harmless steam.
Another clone cast Earth Style: Earth Dragon Lance.
The lances were slowed as though pushing through thick oil. Their tips broke off.
"Huh. Another defense technique? Am I that scared of dying?"
Combined with Bronze Light, he now had two layers of defense:
Water resistance to reduce impact
Earth armor to absorb it
He was a turtle tank.
He experimented further.
By modifying hand seals from Water Dragon Bullet, he formed a coiled water chakra snake around his body, hovering half a meter away.
Eventually, due to chakra exhaustion, he refined the shape to a slim floating snake—not flashy, but effective.
"Not pretty, but it works."
The denser the chakra, the faster it spun, the more force it absorbed.
He named the jutsu:
Semi-Absolute Defense: Coiled Snake.
When he eventually mastered full Water Chakra Crystallization, he'd combine Earth and Water defenses. Let enemies waste their energy.
"If I can't beat you, I'll just outlast you."
The month passed with surveillance assignments across the villages.
On the night of the next full moon—silver and round—
The Jōnin Conference would resume five days later.