The great battle ceased.
Sora stood alone in contemplation. He looked up, gazing at the battlefield that had long been reduced to ruins, his eyes somewhat distant.
'The Sealing Techniques of Uzumaki Clan seem to be just so-so. I wonder if my current Kido mastery can counter the power of the Dead Demon Consuming Seal.'
Sora pondered inwardly.
Confident.
But not arrogant.
This was his principle for survival.
No matter the opponent, he would not become cowardly due to fear, nor would he become arrogant due to overconfidence.
Just like this time, when dealing with Kushina, Sora fought with utmost caution. He didn't want to capsize in a ditch, inexplicably dragged into another Shinigami's stomach to spend the rest of his life.
Therefore, from the very beginning of the battle, the 'Sora' standing before Kushina was the Portable Gigai.
After all, the opponent this time is from the Uzumaki Can!
Sealing Techniques like Four Symbols Seal, Adamantine Sealing Chains, and Dead Demon Consuming Seal!
The endless stream of Sealing Techniques represented mysterious and terrifying combat power!
Especially the Uzumaki Clan's head, Uzumaki Ashina, was a top-tier powerhouse who had lived through the era of the God of Ninja, Senju Hashirama. His Sealing Techniques were used with divine skill, and he held great prestige throughout the entire Ninja World.
Of course, it was precisely this great prestige that ultimately doomed the Uzumaki Clan.
Ten years ago-
Driven by fear of the Uzumaki Clan's Sealing Techniques, Kirigakure, Kumogakure, Sunagakure, and Iwagakure launched a joint operation.
They dispatched four Kage-level powerhouses and, with Konoha's tacit consent, annihilated Uzushiogakure in one night, almost completely slaughtering the entire Uzumaki Clan.
Although Sora did not participate in that genocide war, he learned the truth about the Uzumaki Clan's extermination from some top-secret documents stored in the Anbu.
It is always the innocent man who gets into trouble because of his treasure.
When your strength is insufficient to guard the treasure in your hands, the only outcome waiting for you is destruction.
In that battle, it was rumored that the Third Mizukage, the Third Raikage, the Third Tsuchikage, and Sunagakure's Chiyo all took action.
The appearance of these powerhouses also indirectly confirmed the fearsomeness of the Uzumaki Clan's Sealing Techniques.
Therefore, when facing Kushina or Minato, Sora naturally maintained a relatively cautious attitude.
'Sealing Techniques!'
'Flying Thunder God!'
'Nine-Tails!'
'These two were indeed quite troublesome opponents!'
…
"Obito…"
"Are you alright?"
At the distant boundary of the battlefield, under the curtain woven from vines, the strange, venus flytrap-like humanoid creature was asking something with a playful expression.
Only,
The black-robed youth wearing the spiral-patterned mask beside him didn't speak.
He just hung his head low, his body trembling uncontrollably.
"You…"
"What's wrong with you exactly?"
"Obito?"
The venus flytrap-like creature leaned closer. He sniffed, as if trying to smell the emotion on the youth.
"Enough!"
"Shut up!"
The voice of Obito, clad in the black robe, suddenly became extremely furious. He lifted his head, like a wounded beast, and roared with a ferocious gaze: "I'm already annoyed enough, annoyed enough! Seeing that damned figure of Namikaze Minato, I can't help but want to kill him, I want to kill him so badly!!!!"
"And also…"
"That damned Nine-Tails' Jinchuriki!"
"Why!"
"Why is it only when that damned Nine-Tails' Jinchuriki is in danger that you can arrive promptly like a flash?"
"Why! Why! Why!"
"Why, when I needed you, when Rin needed you, could you be so indifferent about being late, and then lightly say 'don't be sad'!??????"
"Why!"
"And by what right!"
"Is it because Rin was just your subordinate, while that damned Nine-Tails' Jinchuriki is the bond you truly care about!??"
At this time, an endless stream of malice rose in Obito's heart, causing his aura to become increasingly sinister and cold-hearted.
Hysterical!
This was a despair even more hysterical than Kakashi's pain!!!
Kill! Kill! Kill!
Kill! Kill! Kill!
Obito's mind was full of insane emotions. He even felt that, compared to the monstrous Sora, the person he hated more was the teacher he once respected immensely, but now wished he could tear apart and eat raw…
'Namikaze Minato!!!'
'Konoha's Yellow Flash!!!!'
'I will kill you with my own hands!!!!'
'If it weren't for your indifference, if it weren't for your lack of concern, Rin would definitely still be alive, living happily!!!!'
At this moment, the venus flytrap-like creature beside him, with its black and white face, suddenly revealed a human-like smile. It looked slyly at the hysterical Obito. That playful gaze was like looking at a fun new toy that had just been acquired.
…
Land of Fire.
Konoha's Camp at Kirigakure front.
The Konoha's Ninjas on sentry duty suddenly saw a group of stragglers approaching the camp from afar.
Someone was about to signal, to alert their companions in the camp, but suddenly stopped their movement, their face dumbfounded.
"Is... is that Minato-sama?"
"And Kushina-sama!"
"Why is Kushina-sama unconscious!"
"You…"
"What happened to you!??"
The Konoha's Ninjas on sentry duty hurried forward. Looking at the disheveled, unconscious Kushina, and Minato clutching his kidney, his clothes stained with blood, their expressions held an indescribable shock and bewilderment.
'Minato-sama and Kushina-sama!'
'How did they end up like this!!!!'
Some inexplicably recalled the scene from half a month ago when Jiraiya returned in a sorry state. Only now, Minato and Kushina seemed to be in an even worse state than Jiraiya was back then!!!
Minato, who is always as warm as the sun, now had a cold face and remained silent. Clearly, he was not only injured but also in an extremely bad mood.
At this time, Choza in the team waved his hand and said, "Don't ask any more questions. Let's get into the camp first. Everyone is quite injured and needs treatment."
"Alright, Choza-senpai."
Soon, Medical-Nin rushed out from the camp and helped the injured inside.
Inside the medical tent,
Minato sat by the bed, silently watching the unconscious Kushina. He allowed the Medical-Nin beside him to treat the wound on his kidney. Even with piercing pain, he remained expressionless, enduring it strongly.
"Kushina…"
"How is she?"
Minato asked, his face full of tension.
"Nothing too serious."
At this moment, Shizune, who had just finished the examination, took off her mask and said, "She's just exhausted. Kushina-san's Chakra reached its limit and almost collapsed. Fortunately, her constitution is strong enough to pull through. Otherwise, the consequences would have been truly unimaginable."
As soon as the words fell, Shizune's expression suddenly became complicated: "Minato-san, what kind of enemy did you encounter? How did you end up in such a sorry state?"