Tsunade finally left the Village.
Right after they finished lunch.
As if fleeing in panic, the aura of the clone seeds rapidly left Konoha.
And Danzo received the news of Tsunade's departure from the Village immediately.
"Finally... she's gone!"
The moment he received the news, even with the patience he had cultivated over years of being suppressed by Hiruzen Sarutobi, he couldn't help but let out a long sigh of relief.
Worried that delay might lead to complications, he immediately summoned his subordinates.
"There is only one mission: kill Uzumaki Kushina under the guise of Kumogakure Ninja."
Looking at the four silent figures kneeling before him, Danzo's voice was laced with coldness.
"Remember, your original goal was to kidnap the Wood Release Genius and the Uzumaki Bloodline, but the plan was accidentally discovered by Minato Namikaze, leading to exposure, which forced you to kill Uzumaki Kushina."
"Furthermore, Minato Namikaze is very strong and possesses wide-area attack capabilities. If he manages to stall you until reinforcements arrive, you should understand the consequences."
"Understood!"
Captain Sanguǐ's tone held no emotional fluctuation whatsoever.
"Mhm..."
Danzo nodded slightly.
The four people before him were all orphans with outstanding talent, who had been brainwashed since childhood, erasing their sense of self to become perfect Ninja—they were his biggest trump card!
The only troublesome thing was that because the brainwashing was so thorough, these 'tools' lacked flexibility when executing missions, requiring him to provide on-the-spot instruction for certain mission details.
It was a bit troublesome, but at least they were reliable to use.
If they were stalled, these four could truly commit suicide without hesitation, leaving no trace behind, so he wouldn't have to worry about being implicated.
"Go..."
As Danzo's voice fell, the four figures instantly vanished as if they had never been there.
Meanwhile, at home.
As soon as Tsunade left, Nawaki adopted the posture of an older brother, taking on all the chores, but Minato couldn't possibly dump all the housework on him alone, so Minato took on the job of washing the dishes.
Driven out of the kitchen by Minato, Nawaki had no choice but to go to the courtyard and continue Cultivating the Rasengan that Minato had taught him.
With Minato's guidance, he had completed the first stage of Cultivation half a month ago, and he had done it one-handed.
Seeing the hope of success, Nawaki Cultivated even harder, sneaking off to secluded spots to Cultivate whenever he had free time.
Now that Tsunade wasn't home, he didn't need to hide anymore and just focused all his energy on Cultivating.
"Sister Tsunade isn't home, I feel a bit lonely..."
After Minato finished washing the dishes, he saw Kushina curled up on the porch with her legs hugged, looking listless.
Every time they had a break before, Tsunade would take them out to play.
Now that Tsunade was gone, she suddenly didn't know what to do.
"Don't sit here in the winter, you'll catch a cold."
Minato picked up Kushina by the collar, lifting her back into the living room with one hand: "Don't worry, Teacher won't be gone for too long."
"How do you know?"
"Hmm... intuition?"
Minato chuckled. He couldn't exactly tell her that he had put a tracker on Tsunade and that she was currently in a Hot Spring Village twenty kilometers outside Konoha, could he?
Furthermore, recently, he occasionally felt a faint sense of being spied upon.
This surveillance might come from the Third Hokage, or perhaps from Danzo.
However... Wood Release + Light Release + backup Nine-Tails Jinchuriki + First Hokage's Grandson.
With this lineup, based on his understanding of the original characters, the Third Hokage might not necessarily do anything, but if Danzo didn't take this opportunity to act, he wouldn't be Danzo.
Therefore, from the moment Tsunade left, he was on high alert.
Now, this residence was filled with countermeasures he had set up.
Unless Hashirama was resurrected, or Uchiha Madara came in person, anyone else who came would die!
In the blink of an eye, it was evening.
The winter sun clocked out early, and the sky was pitch black.
Several figures silently infiltrated the residence under the cover of night.
Minato's movement while cooking paused almost imperceptibly, feeling a little disbelief.
They acted so fast?
Tsunade had only been gone for one afternoon!
Was this really Danzo's doing?
Wasn't this too reckless?
But after a second thought, Minato felt relieved.
At this time, Danzo hadn't lost his arm yet, so his understanding of Wood Release should be limited.
Coupled with the fact that he had long been prepared for Danzo, setting a trap for the unprepared, it was easy for him to detect the infiltrating enemies.
However, he still needed to confirm who the target was and whether they were truly sent by Danzo.
"Ah—Cultivation finished, I'm so hungry, so hungry~"
Nawaki rushed into the room carrying a ball, full of energy: "Minato, is dinner ready yet?"
"Wait a moment, almost done. Nawaki, come help taste it."
Minato made an intelligence hand sign toward the two of them: "Kushina, you come taste it too. It might be a little spicy."
Enemy attack, four people, gather... Both of them had good theoretical scores at the Ninja Academy and instantly understood Minato's hand sign.
"I'll taste it, I'll taste it!"
Kushina eagerly rushed into the kitchen, and Nawaki subtly followed behind Kushina.
After the three met up, Minato immediately created two Wood Clones.
The Wood Clones' skin underwent a transformation, ultimately taking on the appearance of Nawaki and Kushina.
Wood Transformation Jutsu!
This transformation uses the growth of wood to change the external form; because it has a physical form, it will not immediately dispel even if damaged.
As soon as the two Clones appeared, they mindlessly praised Minato's cooking skills, just like the two real people usually did.
Minato bit his finger and summoned a Slug the height of an adult, speaking in a very low voice.
"Lord Katsuyu, please remain quiet. There are intruders in the house. Please protect these two and contact Teacher immediately."
The Slug nodded silently and quietly wrapped Kushina and Nawaki inside its body.
Although both of them looked unwilling, they did not resist.
Because they both understood that the gap in their strength compared to Minato was too great; staying here would not only fail to help him but would also become a burden.
The moment he was wrapped by the Slug, Nawaki clenched his fists, his knuckles turning white from the effort.
He stared intently at the Wood Clone impersonating him nearby. The Clone was carelessly praising Minato's cooking, a silly grin identical to his usual one plastered across its face.
Damn it, he had clearly Cultivated desperately, yet when danger arrived, he was still the one who needed protection... He didn't even know who the enemy was before being stuffed into a'safe room'!
The warm Slug mucus isolated external sounds, but it allowed Nawaki to hear the unwilling pounding of his own heart even more clearly.
Kushina felt the same way as Nawaki, and her unwillingness was even stronger than his.
Nawaki was at least Cultivating desperately, but all she thought about was eating, drinking, and playing; when a crisis came, she could only drag Minato down... Seeing the two figures completely enveloped by the Slug, Minato and the two Wood Clones began performing their one-man show, simultaneously locking onto the intruders' positions.
One person in the hallway.
Positioned between his and Kushina's bedrooms.
One person outside Kushina's room window.
The only target that couldn't be instantly controlled.
Two people inside his bedroom... It seemed to be aimed at him, but was the real target Kushina?
Was Nawaki ignored?