Chapter 14 – The Chase
"Got her. Move—now."
"Konoha ninja aren't all that after all."
Under the cover of night, the Kumogakure shinobi sprinted through the darkness, one of them slinging the bound Kushina over his shoulder. Even as they ran, they couldn't resist mocking Konoha's weakness.
In their eyes, a bloodline ninja who had lost her backing simply wasn't worth Konoha overturning the table for.
After all, would Konoha really tear up a freshly signed alliance over something like this? Push too hard, and they might even offend Kumogakure—shattering the fragile balance on the battlefield.
At this moment, Kumogakure held every advantage: timing, position, and leverage. With their stance, the scales could be tipped at will through pressure or temptation alike.
So what if they casually "packaged" a piece of spoils?
As long as it didn't cause too much of a stir, once this Uzumaki girl was brought back to Kumogakure, Konoha would have no choice but to swallow the loss in silence.
---
Bound hand and foot, Kushina's face remained stubbornly defiant. No matter how the Cloud ninja threatened or coaxed her, she refused to utter a single word, quietly searching for any chance to break free.
But as someone who hadn't even graduated from the Academy, facing three fully grown Kumogakure shinobi, her struggle was pitifully ineffective. Dark-skinned, battle-hardened powerhouses were not to be underestimated.
All she could do now was hope the village discovered her disappearance soon and sent help.
Yet for some reason, the figure that kept resurfacing in her mind wasn't an ANBU captain or a legendary ninja—but that blond guy.
Again and again, his image refused to fade.
---
Inside Konoha Village
After escorting Kushina home, Minato Namikaze felt an inexplicable unease gnawing at him—as if something precious were about to slip away.
It was a rare sensation, one he couldn't explain, but it left him restless. Then he noticed ANBU operatives moving rapidly through the streets, clearly searching for something.
Watching the masked figures dart across the village, Minato suddenly realized where this feeling came from.
The last time he'd felt like this… was when his parents left on a mission and never returned.
His heart sank.
He spun around and broke into a run, heading straight back to Kushina's house.
The building stood in darkness, as though its occupant had already gone to bed.
Too quiet.
The silence itself felt wrong.
Driven by unease, Minato stepped forward and knocked.
Creak—
Before his knuckles even landed properly, the door swung open on its own.
"Kushina?"
He called out cautiously. No answer came—only a faint echo returning his voice.
Stepping inside, Minato froze.
The room was a mess. Furniture displaced, signs of struggle everywhere. At least several people had been here.
"Did ANBU take her away…?"
"Don't be stupid. If ANBU had moved, do you really think Kushina could've resisted?"
A calm voice spoke beside him.
Minato whirled around. "W–who—Yami-nii? Why are you here?!"
Yami shrugged lightly. "It's late. You didn't go home and instead ran back here. I figured you were about to confess and came to watch the show."
"I wasn't—"
"Save it." Yami cut him off flatly. "If I'm not mistaken, Kushina was taken advantage of during the chaos. If we don't chase now, by the time you get there she'll have two Cloud kids."
The blunt words snapped Minato's nerves taut.
"There—!" Minato forced himself to calm down and scanned the room. "Kushina tore out strands of her red hair. They went this way."
Yami nodded. Sharp.
Once Minato stopped overthinking, he really was reliable—didn't even need prompting.
The two of them followed the trail of crimson strands, tracking it all the way to the edge of the village, where they spotted ANBU still searching the area.
"What do we do?" Minato hesitated, weighing his options.
Before he could finish, Yami was already walking straight toward the ANBU.
When the ANBU operatives saw Yami step out, with Minato beside him, they relaxed slightly. Even if they didn't recognize them personally, they knew at a glance these were Konoha kids. One of them spoke up, warning them to return to the village at once.
Yami put on a visibly anxious expression. Minato played along perfectly, his face pale with worry as he blurted out,
"It's like this—our friend was kidnapped!"
"I understand. This matter will be handled by ANBU. You two should return imme—"
Before the sentence could finish, Yami suddenly exploded into motion. He drove a heavy punch straight into the speaker's abdomen. The blow landed with crushing force; the ANBU ninja let out a muffled grunt and collapsed on the spot, knocked unconscious.
"…Huh?!"
"Don't just stand there gawking," Yami snapped. "If you keep hesitating, you'll be the one dragged back by ANBU."
With that, Yami flashed into the forest. Though Minato felt the move was wildly out of line, he clenched his teeth and chased after him.
---
In Yami's perception, the Cloud ninja had stopped to rest briefly in a forest up ahead—likely slowed by having to haul Kushina along.
At that moment, the three Kumogakure shinobi had recovered their stamina and were about to set off again. Even though they were still deep within the Land of Fire, they believed their actions had gone unnoticed. By the time Konoha realized what had happened, it would be tomorrow morning at the earliest.
Just then, the previously compliant Kushina suddenly began to struggle.
The Cloud ninja didn't bother indulging her. One of them raised a hand, clearly intending to knock her out and carry her again—
A flash of gold burst from behind the tree where Kushina stood!
A razor-sharp kunai swept through the air. The Cloud ninja's hand was severed in an instant, dropping to the ground with a wet thud.
"AAAH—! Enemy attack!"
The scream alerted the other two Kumogakure ninja. They rushed over, eyes sharp as they scanned their surroundings.
But aside from rustling leaves stirred by the wind, there was nothing—only the severed hand lying on the forest floor, shockingly vivid.
One of them stayed on guard. The other crouched to staunch his teammate's bleeding.
Before he could finish, the bushes suddenly parted.
A figure clad in an ANBU captain's uniform stepped out slowly and declared coldly,
"You dare abduct a Konoha ninja. Surrender now—my squad has already sealed off this area."
"Heh. Spare us." The Cloud squad leader sneered instead. "Are you Konoha really prepared to break the alliance you just signed?"
Rustle—rustle—
Another sound cut through the tension. From the underbrush emerged Minato, looking as though he had just arrived—dusty, breathless, and clearly out of sorts.
"Minato?! Get out of here!" the ANBU captain barked urgently, ordering him to retreat.
Seeing how tense the ANBU captain became at Minato's appearance, the two Cloud ninja still able to fight exchanged a glance, instantly reading each other's intent.
They struck at the same time.
One lunged straight for the ANBU captain, blocking his path and pinning him in place.
The other rushed toward Minato, aiming to seize him as a hostage.
The Cloud ninja engaging the ANBU captain felt a chill run down his spine when the man didn't dodge at all. A blaring alarm went off in his mind.
The next instant—
A piercing scream rang out behind him.
He turned just in time to see his comrade collapse, a kunai buried squarely in his chest. Blood sprayed as Minato, who had looked harmless moments ago, withdrew the blade with frightening precision.
At the same time, the "ANBU captain" struck by a sword dissolved with a poof, turning into a cloud of white smoke.
The last remaining Cloud ninja stared in disbelief at the sudden reversal, his mind still reeling—
When two massive hands burst up from the ground beneath his feet, grabbing his ankles tight.