"Lord Shura, please go back. We are only acting on orders."
The taller Root ninja spoke with a tone that made Ren Uchiha freeze. If there was one thing that distinguished these two from other Root agents, it was that they were... far too polite.
Unlike the typical Root operatives who ordered outsiders around with death-mask faces, these two seemed to hold a flicker of genuine respect for him.
Wait a minute...
Ren had a sudden jolt of memory. Weren't these two part of the squad led by Aburame Ryoma that had assisted him back in the Land of Hot Water? They were effectively Orochimaru's subordinates within Root.
Ren looked toward Training Ground Three, where the massive silhouette of the Nine-Tails flickered in the air. A wave of realization hit him like a physical blow.
To be able to strike from within Konoha, and even interfere with the top-secret Jinchūriki security detail... only Orochimaru, whom Hiruzen Sarutobi was grooming as his successor, had that kind of access.
"Orochimaru is playing this big?!"
A sense of absurdity washed over Ren. Perhaps Orochimaru had been too good to him lately. It felt like playing a high-stakes RPG where the legendary "Cursed Seal" artifact was given as a login bonus, and a Kage-level mentor was available for carry-service at any time. Even the "Hashirama Cells" and "Cursed Seal Power-Up" bundles were currently on cooldown, waiting to give him a massive surprise.
But at this moment, Ren truly realized—Orochimaru is definitely not a "good guy."
This man was the primary antagonist of the first part of the original manga. His kindness was exclusive to himself and Ren. To everyone else, the Sannin saw people as little more than crawling insects. Whether it was sending the Konoha strike team to their deaths or releasing the Nine-Tails in the heart of the village, it proved one thing:
He disregarded all life other than his own and Ren's.
Ren's expression turned grim. He understood Orochimaru's intent now. Did Orochimaru not know the consequences of a Nine-Tails rampage? He knew. But he did it anyway, simply to force a situation where his disciple could be sent to the battlefield!
Thinking of the impending tragedy—the screams that would soon echo through Konoha—and the possibility that if this were exposed, Orochimaru might be forced to defect early...
Ren gritted his teeth and clenched his fists. He looked up, his eyes igniting with the crimson light of the Two-Tomoe Sharingan.
The eerie eyes met the gaze of the two Root ninjas, instantly plunging them into a world of spiraling, distorted hallucinations. Ren seized the opening, leaping from the second-floor balcony. He caught the eaves of a distant pavilion, flipped onto the roof, and began sprinting across the skyline.
Through the heavy, humid night, he shot like an arrow toward Training Ground Three.
"Damn it, you bastard teacher!"
"This time... it's my turn to save you!"
Konoha, inside the Uzumaki Barrier.
On a street devoid of people under the cover of night, Kushina Uzumaki used her Adamantine Sealing Chains to bind the four Anbu guards assigned to her. She sprinted out of Mito's old residence, her feet pounding against the pavement.
Finally, she stopped at the long line drawn on the ground—the threshold between freedom and her shackles. Her gaze wavered. She bit her lip and fell into a tense silence.
At that moment, the seductive, low voice of the Nine-Tails echoed in her mind:
"What are you hesitating for, Kushina?"
"Your Uzumaki Clan takes pride in that 'Whirlpool' sealing power, yet you are used by it just as much as you use it."
"In the whirlpool of this era, you are drowning and cannot escape."
"Yes... that's it."
"The only one who can liberate you from the people who use chains to turn you into a tool... is me!"
"Do not forget that hatred, and do not trust anyone!"
Kushina looked up. Her dark eyes shifted, the pupils elongating into vertical, crimson slits—sharp and cold.
"Shut up, Nine-Tails!"
"I... I just don't want to lose Minato!"
Hatefully silencing the fox's whispers, Kushina stepped out of the barrier with a look of iron resolve, running toward Training Ground Three.
Earlier that day, before Ren had fired his Tailed Beast Bomb, Minato had been unable to spend time with her due to missions and training. He had left with his teammates and a few "vixen" kunoichi who clearly had designs on him.
He had broken their promise. She had lost her temper, but her sensitive heart was immediately filled with regret. Because of that "brat" Ren, her security had been doubled. In her world of strict observation, the only friend—the only person—she could truly reach was Minato.
If she didn't clear up the misunderstanding now, she might lose the person she cherished most over a ridiculous argument. She couldn't endure that. She had to find him and apologize. She had to keep him close.
The clouds parted slightly, revealing a pale moon.
Training Ground Three.
"I'm sorry, Kushina!"
"Actually... the reason I wanted to finish this jutsu even if it meant breaking our promise is because..."
"This jutsu was created to protect you!"
"We are in the middle of the Third Great Ninja War. You might be sent to the front lines any day. So, I developed this specifically to counter Tailed Beasts and enemy Jinchūriki."
"It can even be used in resonance with your own chakra. I want to teach it to you..."
"Because I—I don't want to lose you!"
Minato Namikaze stood alone, his cheeks flushed red, practicing the apology he planned to give Kushina tomorrow. In his right hand, he held a black, hyper-compressed sphere of chakra.
This was the Rasengan: Rinne!
After getting the core concept from Ren, it had taken him less than half a day—using the principles of the Uzumaki Eight Trigrams Seal he learned from Kushina—to find a way to compress both the core and the outer shell of the Rasengan simultaneously. He had been training here until it was finally complete.
"Ahhh, I'm so nervous!" Minato scratched his head, holding the Rasengan as he crouched on the ground. He felt like he wouldn't be able to sleep at all tonight. The thought of saying those words to her face made him swing between shame and the fear that she wouldn't forgive him.
"How can I get her to forgive me... should I buy some jewelry girls like? Or maybe..."
Suddenly, from behind him, a clear, bell-like voice rang out:
"Minato! I'm the one who should be apologizing!"
"That voice..." Minato's eyes widened in pleasant shock. "Kushina!"
But as Minato turned around with joy, the sight that met him was not just the face of his beloved.
Inside those eyes, he saw cold, violent, and hateful vertical fox pupils.
WHOOSH!
A massive, glowing crimson paw swept upward. Accompanied by a gale of wind, the strike carved a deep, bloody gash from Minato's stomach up to his chest and chin!
He was sent flying. As he hit the ground, nine lashing tails erupted from the berserk Kushina! A violent, ominous chakra explosion shook the very foundation of Konoha.
"Gah! Cough!"
Mid-air, Minato spat out a large mouthful of blood. His face twisted in horror.
"Oh no... this is—"
"Kushina is about to reach full Tailed Beast transformation!!"
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