Chapter 310 – Return to the Village
Within the quiet heart of the Uchiha compound, in an old warehouse long emptied of purpose, space rippled.
A surge of chakra flared — and six figures appeared out of thin air.
Five of them wore black cloaks and masks, their chakra still flickering faintly from the strain of teleportation.
The sixth was unconscious — a pale, white-haired boy lying limp across one of their arms.
They were the strike team that had just returned from the Land of Water:
Uchiha Kei, Minato Namikaze, and their allies.
Golden chakra still shimmered faintly around Minato's body.
The faint hum of the Nine-Tails' power lingered in the air.
Even for someone as skilled as him, teleporting across nations — and carrying five others in one go — was no small feat.
Without the aid of Kurama's chakra, even the Yellow Flash would have struggled to cross such distance alive.
Kei exhaled, scanning the dim warehouse before letting his shoulders relax.
A deep fatigue washed over him all at once — the kind of exhaustion that only struck after a battle was truly done.
He wasn't in terrible shape, but after that kind of fight — manipulating the Three-Tails, using Susanoo repeatedly, pushing his chakra control to the edge — his body was starting to protest.
"Finally back," he muttered, half to himself.
His integration progress was advancing — but still imperfect.
The triple fusion technique he'd been refining had stabilized at around fifty percent, and though his current strength rivaled that of a reborn Madara still "warming up," the difference lay in stamina.
Madara's chakra had been near-limitless.
Kei's was not.
He smiled faintly, shaking his head. "Still, not bad… for one lifetime."
There were times he envied Jinchūriki — beings who could draw upon a living ocean of chakra at will.
But envy didn't mean he was reckless enough to try becoming one himself.
He couldn't capture a tailed beast, and even if he could, he had no intention of sealing a conscious entity inside his own body.
The thought made his skin crawl.
To have something alive inside you — something watching, judging, whispering — even when you sleep…
That was a kind of nightmare even he wanted no part of.
Still, the idea of harnessing a tailed beast's chakra… that was a different matter entirely.
He already had a new experiment forming in his mind.
Something that didn't require a host — only fragments.
After all, the chakra samples Ayaka Hyūga had extracted from the Three-Tails were still sealed within a scroll.
He didn't know how stable that seal was, or how much chakra remained, but even residual traces could serve his purpose.
If the experiment succeeded, he could move on to the next step — tracking down a man named Kazuma, one of the so-called Twelve Guardian Ninja.
Kei had never thought much of the Guardians — mere political watchdogs for the Fire Daimyō.
Still, a few of their techniques were intriguing… and dangerous.
Especially those forbidden jutsu associated with their faction like: —
"Earth Release Resurrection Technique: Corpse Soil", a jutsu rumored to reanimate corpses by infusing them with chakra-rich earth.
Of course, the latter was nothing compared to Edo Tensei — the so-called "true resurrection."
This version produced only soulless shells, puppets of flesh and soil bound to the user's will.
But the fact that they could move at all, without sentience, was… worth studying.
Kei's eyes gleamed faintly behind his mask. "Even imperfection can be useful."
He shook his head, pulling his thoughts back from the labyrinth of ideas.
Turning toward Minato, Kei observed the Hokage's heavy breathing and then glanced at Ayaka and Kenta, who had begun checking on Kimimaro.
After a quick inspection, both nodded.
Kei exhaled softly in relief.
Those two had been recovered by Uchiha Fugaku during the extraction, but the man hadn't been able to watch over the unconscious boy they carried.
It was good to see everyone alive.
"Captain Minato," Kei said quietly, stepping closer. "You alright?"
Minato straightened, offering a tired smile. "Just a bit drained. Nothing serious."
Kei's eyes narrowed slightly, noticing the fading glow around him. "That's the Nine-Tails' chakra, isn't it?"
"Yeah," Minato admitted, rubbing the back of his neck. "The distance was too far, and with this many people… I had to borrow some of Kurama's power."
The last traces of golden light faded from his body.
"The synchronization still isn't perfect," he continued. "It's the first time I've used this form to carry multiple passengers through space. The strain was… considerable."
Kei nodded slowly. "Understandable. Even Kurama's chakra can't erase distance entirely."
He paused, letting the quiet settle between them — the hum of chakra fading, the air heavy with the scent of exhaustion and iron.
Outside, the first rays of dawn began to filter into the compound, painting faint golden lines across the warehouse floor.
They were home.
For now.
Inside the quiet Uchiha storehouse, the air still shimmered faintly with residual chakra from the teleportation.
Minato Namikaze looked around at the gathered shinobi — Kei, Kenta, Ayaka, and Fugaku— all of whom had already removed their masks.
With a tired smile, Minato reached up and took off his own as well.
He looked exhausted — his complexion pale, his breathing slightly uneven. Two long-range spatial transfers, one round trip across the sea, and a brief but draining exchange with Obito… all of it had clearly taken a toll on him.
Even so, there was a faint brightness in his eyes — a subtle spark of relief, maybe even hope.
Whatever he'd said to Obito seemed to have mattered.
Kei couldn't hear the details, but from the look on Minato's face, he could tell the encounter hadn't been for nothing.
After a few quiet moments, Minato exhaled and turned to him.
"Kei," he said suddenly, his tone firm. "What exactly happened with the Three-Tails?"
His brows furrowed. "If my intel is correct, the beast was sealed inside the Fourth Mizukage, wasn't it? So how—"
Kei didn't hesitate. "That was arranged between us," he said plainly.
"He gave me permission to use the Three-Tails. In fact, he even taught me a few techniques to help control it. You know how chaotic that battlefield was — without the beast, I probably wouldn't have made it out alive."
He gave a faint, almost mischievous smirk. "Besides, Captain, your reinforcement speed wasn't exactly… ideal."
At that, Minato looked mildly embarrassed.
He wasn't wrong.
This had already been one of the fastest responses possible — but even the Flying Thunder God had limits. The distance between Konoha and the Land of Water was immense, and the chakra signal Kei sent had taken far too long to reach him.
Minato sighed quietly. From a purely tactical perspective, Kei's actions had been excessive — but strategically, they made sense.
He didn't particularly care about the Mist suffering casualties, or even about the Three-Tails' rampage; he had fought in wars, after all.
He understood that mercy was a luxury.
What concerned him was the timing.
There was no official war now — and an incident of this scale could ignite one.
"Kei," Minato said carefully, his tone low but serious. "Have you considered what happens if someone traces all this back to you?"
Kei's expression didn't change. He only smiled faintly, eyes gleaming behind that calm composure.
"You mean war?" he asked softly. "Don't worry, Captain. I've already accounted for that."
He clasped his hands loosely behind his back.
"My little 'display' wasn't just to cause chaos. It was to keep certain families silent. They've all seen what I can do — and they know what'll happen if they talk."
He paused, glancing at the dim ceiling as if thinking aloud.
"And with Obito still inside Kirigakure, acting as the Mizukage's shadow, even if those clans tried to report anything… I doubt the village would take kindly to their betrayal."
Minato frowned. "You sound awfully confident."
Kei chuckled. "Confidence is part of the act."
For a long moment, Minato just stared at him — then sighed and nodded.
"Alright," he said finally. "But keep in touch with him. The last thing we need is another uncontrolled variable. After what you did to the Mist, even one mistake could spark a diplomatic nightmare."
He rubbed his temple wearily.
He didn't even want to imagine the reports that would come out of the Land of Water — a tailed beast rampaging through their forces? The scale of the destruction alone could shake every major village.
Still…
In truth, Minato couldn't entirely blame Kei.
The Kaguya affair had already turned into a blood feud — there was no going back from that.
At least, with Obito still embedded within the Mist's leadership, there was some stability.
And during their brief encounter… Minato had confirmed something vital.
Obito was still there.
Still himself.
Flashback:—
"Damn it!"
Black Zetsu barely had time to react as a golden flash erupted beside them.
A kunai gleamed — and in the next instant, it was buried in Obito's chest.
For a moment, Zetsu froze, too stunned to comprehend what he was seeing.
But Obito had expected it. His body flickered — twisting, warping — and he vanished into the Kamui dimension, the kunai passing clean through his phasing body.
When he reappeared a few meters away, his hand was already clutching another kunai.
Blue lightning danced along its edge.
Without hesitation, he hurled it toward the golden figure.
Minato caught it midair, his eyes unreadable behind the glow of chakra.
For a heartbeat, teacher and student faced each other — motionless, silent.
Then, the Three-Tails' roar echoed from the distance, shattering the tension.
The masked Minato hesitated for the briefest instant — and in that moment, his body flickered again, disappearing from sight.
All that remained was the echo of chakra and the faint scent of ozone.
Obito collapsed to one knee, clutching his wound, blood seeping through his fingers.
Zetsu finally found its voice. "He left a mark on you?"
It stared at Obito, disbelief spreading across its face.
"You never mentioned that!"
"How could I have known he'd sense it?" Obito hissed, grimacing in pain. "Damn that man… I should've killed him when I had the chance."
Zetsu sighed — a sound like rustling leaves. "Forget it. I'll purge the seal traces. He's too dangerous to risk another encounter."
Obito exhaled heavily. "Fine… I'll leave it to you."
But behind his mask, his expression shifted — from anger… to something else.
Something trembling on the edge of emotion.
Because when Minato's kunai struck him, it had carried chakra — not meant to harm, but to communicate.
And within that chakra was a message.
A message only he could feel.
"Obito… you've committed unforgivable sins.
But you are still my student.
I'll be waiting for you in Konoha.
When we meet again, I hope you'll still be my disciple —
and I'll still be your teacher."
Minato's body reappeared above the Three-Tails, landing softly atop its armored shell.
In his hand, he still held Obito's kunai — its blue chakra already fading into nothing.
The energy had never been meant to wound. It had only carried words — one final exchange between master and student.
And far away, in the darkness, Obito's voice broke the silence.
"I'm sorry… sensei."