When Kushina Uzumaki woke up, she found herself slung over the shoulder of a shinobi, her body swaying violently as they moved at high speed through the dense forests of the Land of Fire.
The relentless jolting was the main reason she regained consciousness so quickly. The other reason was her Uzumaki bloodline, combined with the powerful vitality granted by being a Jinchuriki.
She struggled instinctively, only to realize that her chakra had been completely sealed. A thick rope was tightly bound around her body, restricting her movement.
Even with her usual carefree nature, Kushina immediately understood the situation.
She had been kidnapped.
"Waaah, I do not want to die!"
At that moment, Kushina deeply regretted ever getting so absorbed in manga.
She had been reading so intently that she never noticed the danger approaching, until a single palm strike knocked her unconscious. After that, everything went black, and now she was here.
She had to leave behind some kind of clue. Otherwise, she might truly disappear without a trace.
But with her chakra sealed, ninjutsu was completely out of the question.
"What do I do, what do I do…"
Her thoughts raced at incredible speed. Then, an idea struck her.
While the shinobi carrying her was focused on moving forward, Kushina quietly plucked a strand of her long red hair and let it fall to the ground.
Many of Konoha's tracking shinobi were extremely sensitive to scent. Leaving behind hair was one of the most effective ways to mark a trail after capture, something clearly stated in the Academy textbooks.
Given their speed, she was not worried about the enemy noticing such a small action.
"Hahahaha, you are really something."
An irritating voice echoed in her mind.
"It is several days of nonstop travel from here to the Land of Lightning. By the time you arrive, you will have pulled out most of your hair."
Inside her consciousness, Kurama lounged against the bars of his cage, laughing openly.
"What are you saying, you stupid fox!"
Kushina planted her hands on her hips, furious.
"I will be rescued soon. Very soon!"
"Once you reach the Land of Lightning, it will not be up to you anymore."
Kurama's laughter grew louder.
Kushina bristled, like a startled cat.
"Land of Lightning? How do you know we are going there?"
Kurama grinned, sharp teeth exposed.
"While you were unconscious, I listened to them talk. They said they are taking you back to Kumogakure."
"..."
Kushina grabbed the bars of the cage, her lips trembling.
"I do not want to go to Kumogakure. I want to go back to Konoha!"
"Stop shouting. Even if you scream yourself hoarse, no one will come save you."
Kurama did not hold back.
"I have been sick of Konoha for a long time. Now that I finally have a chance to leave, why would I want to go back? Kumogakure is much more interesting. I might even get to see Gyuki again."
"..."
Kushina slumped in defeat.
If only I had a more reliable Tailed Beast.
...
Meanwhile, deep within the Valley of Clouds and Lightning, a dark-skinned, powerfully built middle-aged shinobi stood with his arms crossed. Lightning-shaped scars marked his chest, and the kanji for "Lightning" was tattooed prominently on his right shoulder.
He stared sharply at the young man standing before him.
"Wrong."
His voice was stern.
"The Lightning Release Chakra Mode requires circulating Lightning Release chakra throughout the entire body at once. Where is your shape transformation? Focus and try again."
"Yes!"
The young man nodded forcefully and began gathering chakra again.
As the son of the Third Raikage, he rarely had opportunities for direct guidance. His father was constantly burdened with village affairs, so he treasured every moment of training.
After repeatedly exhausting his chakra, the Third Raikage finally raised a hand to stop him.
By then, the young man could barely stand.
He accepted the water handed to him, took several deep gulps, and sat down on the ground to recover.
"Father… did something happen?"
He looked concerned.
From the beginning of the session, his father had seemed distracted. That alone was unusual.
As the strongest shinobi in Kumogakure, the Third Raikage almost never showed such hesitation.
"It is nothing," the Third Raikage replied after a pause.
"You already know about the Jinchuriki plan. I am simply… uneasy."
This was classified information, not meant for outsiders. However, the person before him was his son. If nothing went wrong, he would become the Fourth Raikage in the future.
There was no reason to hide it from him.
More importantly, the Third Raikage wanted his son to understand these matters early.
He was strong enough to fight the Eight-Tails head-on, but strength alone was never enough.
The Second Raikage had been powerful as well, yet he still died in an ambush.
That lesson had never left him.
"What is the problem?" the young man asked.
"Did the plan fail?"
"There is no such thing as absolute certainty."
The Third Raikage's voice was low.
Infiltrating another village to abduct a Jinchuriki was inherently dangerous. However, what unsettled him was not failure.
It was how smoothly everything had gone.
The plan was simple. A spy hidden within Konoha abducted the next Nine-Tails Jinchuriki.
But that raised a crucial question.
How difficult should it be to kidnap a heavily protected shinobi from Konoha, the strongest village?
The answer was obvious.
It should be extremely difficult.
Yet it had happened with absurd ease, as if one had simply gone to the market and returned home.
Only a fool would believe there was no hidden issue.
Kumogakure had only recently lost control of the Eight-Tails, and immediately afterward, news surfaced that an Uzumaki clan member had appeared in Konoha.
Who would not be tempted by such information?
Since Mito Uzumaki became the first Jinchuriki, every major village had attempted to replicate Konoha's success.
The results were clear.
In Kumogakure alone, the Eight-Tails had gone on multiple rampages.
Meanwhile, Konoha had never suffered such disasters.
The Uzumaki clan possessed an innate ability to suppress Tailed Beasts. That fact alone made Kushina invaluable.
Yet temptation did not blind the Third Raikage.
Identifying the target, subduing her, extracting her from Konoha, and doing so without alerting the village's defenses was far too perfect.
Even he would not plan an operation that clean.
Could this be a trap set by the Hokage?
He dismissed the idea almost immediately.
The benefits were insufficient.
At best, Konoha would gain justification to declare war on Kumogakure.
But Konoha was already locked in fierce combat with Sunagakure in the Land of Rivers. Unless the Third Hokage had lost his mind, he would never open another front.
That left only internal conflict.
Konoha's security was currently overseen by Root.
Was it possible for Kumogakure shinobi to bypass both ANBU and Root without triggering an alarm?
Impossible.
The only reasonable explanation was that someone inside Konoha had deliberately allowed this to happen.
Someone like Shimura Danzo.
Yet even Danzo would never willingly hand over Konoha's future Nine-Tails Jinchuriki to another village.
Which meant only one thing.
Along the route to the Land of Lightning, Root shinobi were almost certainly lying in wait.
The Third Raikage lifted his gaze to the clouds drifting above.
"So you want to use me," he thought coldly.
"Then be prepared to be bitten in return."
____
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