Chapter 15 — Still Got the Nerve to Protest?
"What?!"
The lead Cloud ninja's vigilance was razor-sharp. Though startled by the hand bursting from the ground, he twisted his body at the critical moment, hacking his blade down with all his strength.
The strike cleaved nothing but dirt—those hands had already vanished without a trace.
When he looked up again, only one dead comrade and one grievously wounded remained. Kushina and Namikaze Minato were already gone.
Realizing the situation had turned dire, he didn't dare linger. Abandoning the corpse without hesitation, he hoisted his one-armed teammate and prepared to retreat.
As he turned, movement flickered at the edge of his vision. A figure stepped out from the forest—an ANBU captain, dressed exactly like the one who had appeared earlier.
Recognizing him as a member of the Cloud's diplomatic mission, the newcomer seemed about to step forward and question the scene—
But before a word could be spoken, the Cloud ninja's eyes went bloodshot. Gripping his blade, he charged with a furious roar.
"Enough of this! You think I'll fall for it again?!"
---
"Yami-nii… when did you use a shadow clone?"
After successfully rescuing Kushina, Minato finally couldn't hold back his curiosity and asked Namikaze Yami, who looked a little distracted beside him.
From the pursuit through the village to the clash with the Cloud ninjas, Minato had only seen Yami disguise himself as an ANBU captain. He hadn't noticed any moment where a Shadow Clone Technique was used.
"Do you really think you can catch a master's hand speed?" Yami brushed it off vaguely, then smoothly changed the subject.
"But your two strikes back there were decisive. You're going to become an incredible shinobi someday. When you're Hokage, remember to look out for your big brother, yeah?"
Minato scratched his head, smiling sheepishly.
"But remember," Yami added, his tone suddenly serious, "when you fight Cloud ninjas in the future, try not to do it at night. In night battles, we're naturally at a disadvantage against them."
"…???"
Minato froze, completely thrown by the abrupt remark. Before he could think it through, the topic had already been derailed.
Yami, meanwhile, quietly let out a breath of relief. If Minato really dug into the details, the entire plan would have unraveled.
As for when the clone was used?
Naturally, from the very moment he met Minato outside Kushina's house—the "Namikaze Yami" standing there had already been a shadow clone. The real body was the one that only surfaced from underground at the very end, having sprinted over at full speed just in time.
Originally, Yami had several ways to bypass the ANBU blockade. But fearing he might miss the perfect window, he chose the most direct—and reckless—option.
After all, if the shadow clone had suddenly dispersed mid-operation, the fallout would've been spectacular. Fortunately, everything unfolded exactly as he had planned.
Watching Minato gently comfort the still-shaken Kushina, Yami suddenly felt an inexplicable critical hit to his soul.
Being single really hurts sometimes.
Even though bringing the two of them together had been part of his intention all along, the future was still full of uncertainties. After all, with him acting as a "butterfly," it was entirely possible that one careless flap of wings could shatter the original storyline.
That said, if possible, Namikaze Yami still wanted to lie low until the main plot truly began. Only then could he maximize the advantage of foresight to its fullest. For now, careful groundwork and long-term planning were still the priority.
"Ahem… I hate to interrupt, but I'm still here, you know…"
Seeing the two of them practically bubbling with pink, romantic energy, Yami chose this decidedly ill-timed moment to cut in. Kushina seemed to realize only then what the atmosphere looked like from the outside, her face instantly flushing red.
Minato, meanwhile, remained his usual bright, cheerful self. Watching him, Yami couldn't help but wonder whether what he lacked was precisely this kind of naturally flirtatious, thick-skinned innocence.
After all, they were both blond. Looks-wise, he wasn't inferior to Minato in the slightest—so how was it that during his time at the academy, he'd never once triggered a romance route?
Still, as he patted the scroll tucked safely against his chest, Yami's mood lifted again. The smile on his lips simply refused to fade.
No longer in a hurry, the three of them walked back toward the village at an unhurried pace, night settling quietly around them.
---
Konoha Village — Hokage's Office
"Still nothing?"
Hiruzen Sarutobi's voice, heavy with restrained fury, echoed through the Hokage's office. If he didn't need to remain at the center of command, he might already have gone out searching personally.
The atmosphere in the room was tense. Advisors Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado were both present.
"Hiruzen," Koharu said, "we're already stretched thin. Every shinobi who can be dispatched has been dispatched."
She felt the scale of Hiruzen's response was excessive, yet as an advisor she also understood—Konoha needed to take a firm stance.
"This is Konoha," Hiruzen snapped, his voice rising. "The strongest village founded by Senju Hashirama and my teacher, Senju Tobirama!"
Bang!
His palm slammed down on the Hokage's desk, the aura of a legendary shinobi bursting forth.
"And now you're telling me someone dared to assassinate their descendant inside this village? How am I supposed to face my teachers—how am I supposed to face the First Hokage?!"
Homura remained silent. He knew that at a moment like this, words were useless. Only results would matter.
Just then, an ANBU report arrived. Hiruzen skimmed it, froze for a heartbeat, then his face darkened with rage.
"Is Cloud Village trying to rub salt in my wounds now?"
Koharu and Homura took the report to read for themselves, exchanging stunned looks.
Cloud Village had taken advantage of the chaos to abduct a member of the Uzumaki clan—only to have her snatched back by Konoha genin and academy students. Worse still, Cloud ninja casualties had occurred during the incident, and Cloud was now formally protesting ANBU for "excessive use of force."
Under normal circumstances, Konoha might have simply made a show of reprimand—raise it high, put it down gently. But now, no one was in the mood for that.
"Drive them all back to the Land of Lightning," Hiruzen growled. "Those dark-skinned bastards have truly gone too far!"
"Hiruzen… isn't that a bit extreme?" Homura finally spoke, cautious. "The alliance was just signed…"
"Then assign a squad to escort them back," Hiruzen said, biting hard on the word escort.
"By dawn, I don't want to see a single Cloud ninja left in Konoha."
Seeing his resolve, the two advisors fell silent. Truth be told, even they found Cloud Village's actions disgustingly opportunistic.
"And what about the Namikaze boy," Koharu asked, "the one who knocked out ANBU and killed members of the Cloud delegation—how should he be dealt with?"
Hiruzen took a deep pull from his pipe, thinking for a moment before replying:
"Kushina is now a shinobi of Konoha. And ever since news of Uzushiogakure's fall reached us… Lady Uzumaki Mito's health has been deteriorating. We need to reward them—make Kushina truly acknowledge Konoha, and ensure she becomes a qualified vessel for the next Jinchūriki."
With Hiruzen's decision made, the advisors nodded in agreement. Matters involving a Jinchūriki could never be handled lightly. Letting small grievances cause resentment at such a critical juncture would be disastrous.
What they never imagined was that the very person they were preparing to reward—Namikaze Yami—was also the mastermind behind Konoha's massive manhunt.
Everything had unfolded exactly according to his design.
And now, this so-called "hero" was strolling leisurely back to the village, teasing the boy and girl beside him, while calmly replaying the entire operation in his mind—
Did this grand performance… leave behind any cracks at all?