"You bastard!"
Hearing these words that sounded like explanation but were actually a threat, Naruto pushed off with his legs, charging out in anger.
Along the way, he formed hand seals, creating a shadow clone.
Then he extended his right hand, gathering Chakra, which the shadow clone shaped, quickly forming a highly compressed, spinning Chakra Sphere.
Whoosh!
Gin moved, body-flickering to appear beside Naruto, raising her right hand to throw a punch at him.
But just as her fist lifted, she glimpsed a flash of yellow light behind her.
Minato arrived in time, raising his right leg as if to kick her away.
"Daring to be distracted to save someone under my watch?"
Like a nesting doll, Ryuji appeared behind Minato, the corner of his mouth raised, extending his right hand to grab at his neck.
At that moment, Kakashi body-flickered to appear beside Sara, about to carry her away.
Shibi raised both hands, ready to lend support.
In the blink of an eye, everyone made different choices, but ultimately...
Bang!
Accompanied by the sound, Naruto was smashed away by Gin, crashing into another wall, collapsing the already old and damaged structure.
Minato, before being grabbed, teleported away using Flying Thunder God Technique.
Shibi, as he was about to act, suddenly had three Scarab puppets erupt from the ground, spewing flames at him and Choza.
Left with no choice, Shibi had to use the Ninjutsu he prepared for support to block the flames.
Choza, due to the small space and fearing collapse might injure comrades, dared not use the Multi-Size Technique, so he could only obediently hide behind Shibi.
Slap!
A slapping sound came from behind.
Kakashi, trying to rescue Sara, was slapped away by her.
Ryuji's words made her realize she had no real choice.
Either take the people of Roran away from this troubled land, or choose to join Sunagakure. There was no other option.
Therefore, she decisively refused Konoha's rescue.
But whether by coincidence or not, this slap saved Kakashi's life.
The moment Kakashi appeared, three Scarab puppets emerged from the rubble in the corner, spewing flames at him.
But the girl's slap made his body tilt, allowing the flames to pass just in front of his chest.
Seeing the rescue failed, Kakashi unhesitatingly body-flickered away.
Buzz, buzz...
Insects flapped their wings, devouring the Scarab puppets.
Shibi breathed a sigh of relief.
Last time, he was distracted by distant enemies and neglected himself, leading to a sneak attack by the Scarabs.
This time, he naturally wouldn't make the same mistake.
Although he couldn't support his comrades, at least he wasn't taken out immediately upon entering the field, becoming deadweight.
Sara's eyes widened, her chest heaving rapidly.
She was just an ordinary person; her nerve reactions weren't that fast. Naturally, she couldn't save someone from a Shinobi's sudden sneak attack.
So much happened in that split second, leaving her somewhat shaken.
Ryuji glanced at her, then turned his gaze to the Konoha's group. "Sara has made her own choice. Do you still want to meddle?"
Kakashi and the others looked at Minato, waiting for their captain's decision.
"..." Minato remained silent for a moment, then looked up at Ryuji. "Although the party concerned refuses help, even if not to aid Roran, we of Konoha must also stop Sunagakure's ambitions."
"Is it okay for you to make this decision unilaterally?" Ryuji smiled. "Sunagakure and Konoha signed an alliance after the Second Shinobi World War. Aren't you afraid of damaging the alliance between the two villages?"
"It's a normal phenomenon for Shinobi from different villages to encounter conflicts while on missions. This does not represent the village's decision."
Minato answered without hesitation.
Having witnessed Ryuji's endless stream of puppet technology, he deeply understood that the Dragon Vein must not fall into his hands.
Otherwise, with advanced mechanical technology paired with infinite Chakra, Sunagakure would practically dominate the Shinobi World.
Although Minato wasn't an ambitious person, as his perspective grew, he often contemplated the Shinobi World's situation and worked for Konoha's future.
He knew well that alliances between Shinobi Villages were maintained through a balance of power, not things like peace intentions.
If Sunagakure truly obtained the Dragon Vein, their first step with increased power would be to break the alliance and start a war.
So, even to truly maintain the alliance, they must stop Sunagakure from obtaining the Dragon Vein.
This point, Minato understood, and Ryuji also understood.
Seeing he couldn't trick Minato, he felt some regret. "Looks like there's no room for discussion."
Crash!
From the pile of rubble, Naruto pushed aside the large stone pressing on him and stood up.
His arms hung limply, his body swayed unsteadily, and a trace of blood hung at the corner of his mouth.
"This kid took a punch to the face from me and didn't die?" Gin's pupils contracted, then she looked at her own fist in confusion.
'Could it be I held back just now?'
"You bastards..." Naruto wiped the blood from his mouth, his gaze firm on the two. "I absolutely won't allow scum like you to do as you please."
"Talking is useless. Let's see it in action!"
As he spoke, Ryuji grabbed Sara's shoulder and jumped back upstairs with Gin. "There's no room to fight here. Outside."
Saying this, he summoned the Mechanical Bird, carrying Gin and Sara as they flew outward.
The Konoha group hurriedly gave chase.
…
Flying out of the inner courtyard, Ryuji asked Sara, "Where is Mukade's workshop?"
"Huh?"
The girl hadn't expected Ryuji to ask a question at this moment and didn't react immediately.
"The place where Mukade produces puppets."
"I, I don't know."
"..." Ryuji was somewhat speechless.
Although he knew she was a puppet queen, with so many puppets wandering around this country, not even knowing where they came from last year was really a bit too naive and innocent.
"Gin, take Sara to find Mukade's workshop. There's a device inside that controls the Dragon Vein Chakra. Aim the Dragon Vein target at me."
"Understood."
"Then, I'll play with them for a bit first!" Ryuji glanced at the Konoha's group relentlessly pursuing across the rooftops, leaned back, and dropped from the Mechanical Bird.
"Kakashi, you go rescue people. We'll stop the puppeteer."
Minato quickly gave commands, then led Shibi and Choza to split up and pursue the falling Ryuji.
And Naruto... he originally also wanted to go rescue people.
But upon hearing Minato's words, he instinctively followed the order, chasing after the falling Ryuji along with the other three.
However, during his fall, Ryuji summoned Armor, completing the transformation in mid-air.
Thrusters on his hands, legs, and back all activated simultaneously, spewing flames as he rapidly chased after Kakashi, who continued leaping forward across the rooftops.
"Did I say you could leave?"
Ryuji arrived almost instantly before Kakashi. Before he could react, Ryuji backhandedly slapped him away.
The tremendous force directly shattered his cheekbone, sending his entire body flying backward, falling from the tower hundreds of meters high.