Very quickly, the eight ninja hounds returned. Pakkun said,
"We found him."
Everyone perked up and immediately followed Pakkun and the others.
"Kakashi, get ready to fight," Kiyosuke warned. "Whoever took Obito isn't likely to be a good person."
"The Sharingan of the Uchiha Clan is extremely valuable. Even people from Konoha have their eyes on them, let alone shinobi from other villages."
Kakashi instinctively touched his eye. Only after obtaining the Sharingan did he understand just how powerful it truly was. Kiyosuke was right—anyone who took Obito away definitely wasn't acting out of kindness.
Minato nodded.
"Kiyosuke is right. If we run into enemies, I'll take the lead. Kakashi, Kiyosuke, your job is to protect Rin."
"Understood."
They trudged through the terrain, eventually entering a forest.
"Be careful," Kiyosuke warned. "We've crossed into the territory of Kusagakure. Some Grass ninja may show up."
The Battle of Kannabi Bridge had broken out in the Land of Grass. Kusagakure ninjas had been involved back then too.
Ninjas from Kusagakure were known for studying techniques from other villages and using diplomacy to play powerful nations against each other. They had a knack for reading the tides of war and staying on the winning side. They also excelled at breaking down the jutsu of others.
To put it bluntly, they were opportunistic fence-sitters. In times of war, they always sided with the stronger faction, ganging up on the weaker one.
When Konoha was attacked by multiple villages, Kusagakure sided with the Land of Earth. They never expected the Yellow Flash to appear and single-handedly wipe out an entire Iwagakure unit. That battle made Minato famous overnight.
You could say that Minato's reputation was built on the corpses of Iwa ninjas… and a handful of Kusagakure shinobi.
"I'm not worried about them," Kiyosuke muttered, unimpressed. "Bunch of weathervanes. Just burn them all."
Minato smiled wryly.
"Kiyosuke, I know you're strong, but don't underestimate Kusagakure. There are skilled fighters among them."
"Wait, Sensei, did you run into any strong ones during the war?"
"Well…" Minato scratched his cheek, a little embarrassed.
"With the Flying Thunder God, I move too fast. They never had a chance to attack me, so… I'm not really sure."
"…"
Alright. Flying Thunder God is busted.
...
Meanwhile, in a hidden underground hideout nearby, Madara Uchiha and his group had already sensed the approaching team.
A White Zetsu popped out of the cave wall.
"We've got incoming."
Dressed in a blue robe, with long white hair and an aging face, Uchiha Madara opened his eyes. On the wooden bed beside him, Obito lay fast asleep, his broken body patched together with White Zetsu's cells.
"Who is it?" Madara asked in a deep voice.
"The Yellow Flash from Konoha. The Arsonist who made a name for himself on the battlefield of Kirigakure. And Obito's two friends," Zetsu reported.
"How did they find this place?"
Madara frowned. With the state Obito had been in, it would've been reasonable to presume him dead. No one should've gone looking for him.
"No idea. They brought some dogs."
"Useless," Madara cursed. Using his scythe to support himself, he stood up.
"Obito is a key piece. They can't be allowed to find him. I'll go stall them."
"Oooh! A fight? Exciting!"
A spiral-eyed White Zetsu dropped in front of him and burst apart like a blooming flower, wrapping Madara in a cloak of Zetsu matter.
"Tch… I've gotten old," Madara muttered. "In the past, I never would've needed this kind of help."
Only his right eye remained uncovered—his right Sharingan had been given to Nagato long ago. He still had the left one.
"The Yellow Flash… a shinobi who rose to fame using Tobirama's Flying Thunder God. Tobirama was always tinkering with troublesome jutsu," he grumbled as he sat back in his chair. Behind him loomed the open mouth of the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path.
Two Zetsu clones picked up the sleeping Obito and carried him off. Now was the perfect time to relocate him.
"The Gedo Statue can't be exposed… we're running out of time!"
Madara rubbed his temple. Neither the Gedo Statue, nor Obito, nor himself could be revealed right now.
If only he had another six months to lay the groundwork, Obito would have fully turned into his loyal pawn. But fate had other plans. Who would've thought Minato would show up with backup?
Luckily, Madara had sealed the entrance with a massive boulder to keep Obito from escaping. Without a Zetsu-level Earth Release, no one could move it. It would take someone with overwhelming brute force.
And clearly, Minato wasn't that kind of ninja.
Wearing the White Zetsu cloak was just a precaution.
He raised an Earth Wall to conceal the Gedo Statue, leaving only a narrow opening just big enough for a chakra conduit.
The Gedo Statue was too critical to his plans. It couldn't be risked.
"They're already at the entrance," Zetsu said.
Madara closed his eyes.
"Disguise yourself as Obito. Play dead."
"Huh? Alright…"
White Zetsu slowly transformed into Obito's form—missing his right limbs, half of his face smashed, his body wrapped in bandages. He shut his eyes and lay still.
No heartbeat. No breath. No pulse. His body was cold. Indistinguishable from a real corpse.
Madara nodded in satisfaction and vanished into the shadows.
...
At that moment, Pakkun sniffed the air and said,
"This is it. Obito's scent is strongest here. Our job's done. Later!"
With that, he and the other hounds vanished.
The group stared at the giant boulder in front of them.
"Should I just blow this place up?" Kiyosuke offered.
Minato wiped the sweat from his brow.
"No, that might cause a cave-in and bury Obito. Leave it to me."
He closed his eyes. When he opened them again, orange markings had appeared around his eyes, and his once-blue irises had turned to golden horizontal slits.
"So this is Sage Mode… from Mount Myōboku?" Kiyosuke asked.
Minato nodded.
"I studied there, though I'm not very good at it."
Kiyosuke raised an eyebrow.
"Sensei… not everyone can learn Sage Mode, you know. And you can enter it in under a minute? You call that not good? If word got out, you'd get punched."
Some people say they're bad at Sage Mode… and then instantly activate it.
Are you the legendary Minato?
Minato gave a sheepish smile.
"Step back. I'll take care of the boulder."
Everyone, including the dogs, backed off.
A Rasengan began to glow in Minato's palm. He channeled sage chakra into it and hurled it toward the rock.
"Rasengan: Flash Spiral – Triple Stage!!"
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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