Chapter 157: Slashing Jutsu
One Month Ago
"Huff, huff... Lord Hokage," Minato Namikaze panted, "I need a break."
But his only answer was an even more ferocious assault.
He gritted his teeth and squeezed out the last of his stamina, dodging and blocking. His dynamic vision and reflexes could keep up, but the constant, high-intensity focus was draining him, both mentally and physically.
The next moment, his defense failed, and a blade stopped just a centimeter from his forehead, the sharp airflow cutting a few strands of his hair.
"Not bad," Sakumo Hatake said, his voice low. "At your age, I was not as good as you."
Minato didn't know if he was being serious or not. He just replayed the last exchange in his mind. Sakumo had clearly held back. Otherwise, with the sharpness of his White Fang, he would have been cut in two, sword and all.
Nearby, the young Kakashi was a little jealous. A month ago, his father had started to train this Minato, and had even begun to teach him their family's sword style. Though he hadn't said it, it was clear that he was training him as his disciple.
This did not please Kakashi, who had always aspired to be the second "White Fang of Konoha."
What was even worse was that his father, with his busy schedule as Hokage, only had time to train him in the evenings, after work. This time had always been theirs. Now, his father was using that time to teach Minato.
He hated this golden-haired guy. He thought even his smile was fake. But there was nothing he could do. He could only train harder, to show his father that he, and only he, was the true heir to the White Fang.
He swung his sword with a little more force, as if the training dummy in front of him were Minato.
Sakumo sheathed his short sword. "Stay for dinner," he said. Though the Hatake clan was small, they still had servants to cook.
Minato scratched his head, a little embarrassed. Kakashi just "tched."
Besides Kakashi's sulking, the dinner was a pleasant one.
"Minato," Sakumo said, "the Joint Chunin Exams are next month. As the leader of the contestants, you must take care of your teammates."
"Don't worry, Lord Hokage," he said. "I will do my best to ensure everyone's safety."
Sakumo nodded. He didn't ask for too much. A ninja's exam was always accompanied by danger. And Minato himself had to strive for a good result for the village. He couldn't be expected to do everything.
Of all the contestants, Minato was likely the strongest, and one of the few who would have the spare capacity to look after his comrades.
"If you have any concerns, you can bring them to the village," he said. "I apologize for the inconvenience of having you demoted to Genin. The village will compensate you."
"There's no need, my lord," Minato said, shaking his head. "It is my duty to bring honor to the village. My only concern is that with all six parties gathered in the Land of Rain, the situation will be complicated. It's not impossible that someone might have ideas about the contestants."
"You're right," Sakumo said, stroking his chin. "There are many ninja with secret jutsu in our team. It's not impossible that someone might get funny ideas. I'll have the Military Police Force send one or two people. They will be responsible for the safety of the contestants."
After the Third Hokage's death, Sakumo's power had increased considerably. The Uchiha clan, who had always been at odds with Hiruzen, had extended an olive branch and had become one of his supporters. This support was different from that of the other clans. The Hokage's faction was still strong, but they were mostly supporting him out of necessity, because of the Third's death. They would support whoever was Hokage. The Uchiha, on the other hand, only supported him.
In the post-"Night of the Purple Moon" atmosphere of unity, no one had objected. And the Uchiha, with his support, had begun to participate in other village affairs, instead of being confined to the Military Police Force as they had been under the Third.
"Lord Hokage," Minato said suddenly, "who do you think the Cloud will send to the exams?"
Kakashi, at the dinner table, suddenly froze. He remembered the terror of that night.
"That man," Sakumo said, "he will certainly not be participating in an exam like this. Though he is still young, he is a powerhouse who has already made a name for himself in the ninja world. If the Cloud were shameless enough to have Yotsuki Dana participate in the Chunin Exams... my advice would be to just forfeit."
Minato was silent for a moment, a little dejected. "Not surrender," he thought, "but forfeit."
"But even if he doesn't participate," Sakumo continued, "the Cloud is not without opponents you need to be wary of."
"Who?"
"A red-haired boy," he said, trying to recall the memory. "An Uzumaki. You probably wouldn't recognize him. When the Third and I rescued you, he was still using a Transformation Jutsu."
Minato immediately thought of the opponent who had also used the Rasengan, the one with the twisted, evil smile.
"You were already unconscious," he continued. "Later, in the Four Violet Flames Formation, though he was not a main player, he held on until the very end. The Uzumaki constitution gives him a massive amount of chakra, and the power of his ninjutsu surprised even the Third. If you face him, you will need some extra skills to win. I will be giving you some special training on how to deal with powerful ninjutsu-type ninja."
Minato nodded. When he said he was an Uzumaki, he immediately thought of Kushina, whose whereabouts were still unknown, and of the anonymous messages he had received. But the matter of Kushina was a taboo topic among the Konoha high command after the "Night of the Purple Moon." Even if he asked the Hokage, he probably wouldn't get an answer. And with Sakumo being so generous with his training, he couldn't bring himself to complain. It seemed he would have to investigate on his own.
Present Day
Minato, one hand holding his sword, the other a Rasengan, was like the wind, chasing the two Hirotos.
After one of the Shadow Clones had been destroyed, his opponent had not summoned another.
And the two Hirotos, though they were not as fast as him, had a powerful ninjutsu that allowed them to control the earth beneath them. Wherever they went, the earth would follow, smoothing the path before them. Minato, on the other hand, was constantly being harassed by Earth Release, his movements constantly being hindered.
In the stands, Koharu broke into a cold sweat. The red-haired boy from the Cloud... she saw a shadow of Hiruzen in him, a mastery of all five elemental releases. Even Hiruzen, in his youth, had probably not been this strong. And his chakra reserves were no match for an Uzumaki.
On the battlefield, Hiroto was constantly trying to block him. But whenever he used a ninjutsu, Minato would react, diving underground. And if he tried to trap him, he would find that he had only gone underground for a moment, never staying for long, sometimes even moving randomly, making him impossible to catch.
Though his reaction speed was not bad, he was still a step behind Minato.
Minato disappeared from his sight again, and the ground where he had been was shattered by an incoming ninjutsu.
He was also starting to feel the strain. The closer he got to Hiroto, the more difficult it was to dodge, and the shorter the travel time of his opponent's jutsu. And the longer the fight dragged on, the more his own chakra was being depleted. He had lost count of how many times he had used the Headhunter Jutsu.
I'll have to use that move.
"Wind Release: Great Sickle Weasel!"
"Fire Release: Great Fireball!"
"Lightning Release: Lightning Ball!"
Breathe... breathe... breathe...
First, lower the stance.
He used the Body Flicker, almost hugging the ground.
Second, predict the trajectory.
He spun, and a wind blade flew past his forehead. He then used his short sword as a pivot and twisted his body, dodging another wind blade.
Third, small, quick steps.
After a brief pause, he sidestepped several meters, dodging a whistling lightning ball.
But the last Great Fireball had clearly anticipated his move. With Hiroto's enhancement, it was several meters in size, cutting off almost all his escape routes.
In the past, he would have gone underground to dodge. But that would not have closed the distance between them.
So.
Last, chakra as a blade.
He leaped into the air and, with a fearless charge, crashed into the oncoming Great Fireball.
"What is that kid doing?" the Third Raikage said, surprised. "Is he trying to commit suicide?"
"Is that the real one?" Dana wondered. "Even for a clone, what's the point of just crashing into it?"
"Did he make a mistake?" Koharu was so nervous she grabbed the railing of the stands.
Just as everyone thought he had made a mistake, Minato, in mid-air, pointed his short sword at the Great Fireball. A pale blue chakra phantom appeared on the blade, and then, with a single slash, the Great Fireball was cut in two.
He passed through the two halves of the fireball without a scratch, his golden hair, in the light of the flames, like shattered sunlight.
"What?! He cut a ninjutsu!"
"That kid is completely unharmed! He just passed right through it!"
Chiyo's eyes widened. "It's him! It's him! This Minato Namikaze is that man's disciple! The White Fang of Konoha!"
She had fought Sakumo Hatake many times during the war. She was sure of it.
In the stands, hearing his grandmother's words, Sasori's face turned cold. He stared at Minato, the hatred in his eyes undisguised. Pakura looked at him, worried.
"Not all ninjutsu can be cut," Sakumo said, carefully wiping his polished ancestral blade. "And the timing is very important. Compared to the sword, most ninjutsu are much larger. You only have a single moment. If you cut too early, the latter half of the jutsu will still hit you. If you cut too late, it will be useless. Though I personally believe that the true path is to further increase your speed, as a special technique, it can often have a surprising effect."
"The most important thing is the timing," Minato mused.
"You already have the basics of imbuing your blade with chakra. You've tried it with the White Fang."
Kakashi, on the side, rolled his eyes. This was the one thing he could not accept. His father had actually allowed Minato to practice with their family's ancestral blade.
Does Dad have a misunderstanding of the word "ancestral"?
"But you don't have your own chakra metal weapon yet," Sakumo said. "So your sword can probably only be used for this technique two or three times before it breaks. You have to seize the opportunity."
Minato's face fell. Two or three times... This sword had cost him a good chunk of his savings.
And he had been polishing it so carefully.