Chapter 36: Nine-Tails Attack
Yahiko stepped over the scattered rubble and broken branches, the sound of his boots squelching in the mud unnaturally loud in the quiet.
He stopped before two corpses, looking down from above.
Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki still maintained their final posture, their stiff arms tightly shielding the wailing, blood-stained infant between them.
"Truly great paternal and maternal love."
Yahiko's voice came through the fox mask, carrying a hint of insincere admiration.
Unfortunately, in this world, the dead have no value; only the living are spoils of war.
His gaze fell on Naruto, or more precisely, on the Eight Trigrams Sealing Style that had just formed on Naruto's abdomen.
Half of the Nine-Tailed.
This was the Ninja World's top-tier Chakra battery. If he brought it back, even if he forcibly extracted it with the Gedo Statue, it could double the Akatsuki's trump card.
Even without that, if he brought this child back to the Hidden Rain Village and brainwashed him from a young age... a perfect Jinchuriki weapon that would obey his every command?
It seemed like a good script.
Yahiko slowly extended his hand, his black glove gleaming coldly in the moonlight, reaching directly for the still-crying Naruto.
No one could stop him now.
As long as he could take Naruto and disappear instantly, Konoha would be left with an unsolved mystery forever.
Just as Yahiko's fingers were about to touch the infant's cheek, the long-dormant electronic voice in his mind rang out.
[Ding! Detected the deaths of important plot characters Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki.]
[Triggered Legacy Mission: Host, please ensure Uzumaki Naruto safely passes his infancy (0-6 years old) in Konoha Village.]
[Mission Reward: S-rank Space-Time Ninjutsu: Flying Thunder God Technique (can be advanced).]
[Triggered Legacy Mission: Host, please ensure Uzumaki Naruto safely passes his childhood (7-12 years old) in Konoha Village.]
[Mission Reward: Uzumaki Clan Kekkei Genkai: Adamantine Sealing Chains (can be advanced).]
Yahiko's palm abruptly froze in mid-air.
Under the mask, his cold eyes narrowed slightly.
He asked in his mind, "System, what does 'can be advanced' mean?"
The System, for once, answered him, "You can learn Flying Thunder God and Adamantine Sealing Chains in advance, but if the mission fails, the abilities will be revoked, and the Host will suffer heavy damage."
It was the first time the System had informed him of the rewards before the mission was completed, and even allowed advancement. This was interesting. Why did these System rewards sound more like Minato and Kushina's intentions?
Yahiko retracted his hand, his fingertips gently stroking his chin as his mind rapidly weighed the pros and cons.
The scroll of seals was already on his back. Although it contained the Cultivate methods for the Flying Thunder God Technique, the learning threshold for this thing was ridiculously high. In the original work, Shiranui Genma and two other Jonin barely managed to activate it together, and even a Genius like Minato Namikaze practiced for a long time.
Although he had a Stand, he wasn't a Ninjutsu Genius.
If he had to practice from the book for ten or eight years just to get started, it would be too late.
And now, by simply giving up on taking Naruto, he could directly obtain a "perfectly mastered" Flying Thunder God? And the Adamantine Sealing Chains, which could suppress Tailed Beasts?
On one hand, there was a "Nine-Tails Jinchuriki infant" that required immense effort to raise and would attract the encirclement of the Five Great Nations.
On the other hand, there was a "divine skill" that was plug-and-play and could qualitatively change King Crimson's close-combat abilities.
This calculation was too easy.
More importantly... if he took the Nine-Tailed now, Tobi would probably be too happy to sleep, right?
Letting that guy get such power too early wouldn't be good for the Akatsuki's plan.
"You're lucky, brat."
Yahiko snorted lightly, decisively abandoning his plan to be a human trafficker. He glanced at the still-wailing Naruto, a hint of playful amusement in his eyes, like he was looking at a "long-term investment product."
"Go on and be a Dead Last in Konoha. When you grow up, we'll settle the score."
Several urgent whooshing sounds came from the distant forest.
"Quick! The barrier is gone!"
"Over there! Is that... the Fourth Hokage?!"
An old roar followed closely. Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage, dressed in black combat attire and wielding his adamantine staff, led several Anbu members, rushing through the forest like lightning.
The Sandaime, arriving nearby, only saw the Fourth Hokage and his wife lying in a pool of blood, and Naruto in the altar beside them, while Yahiko's figure had long since vanished... at the edge of Konoha's Forest of Death.
This place was far from the battlefield, with only a few crows cawing harshly on dry branches.
A disheveled figure leaned against an ancient tree, breathing heavily.
Uchiha Obito took off his broken spiral mask, revealing his half-disfigured face. At this moment, his right arm was empty, and the White Zetsu substance was slowly wriggling, trying to repair the comminuted fracture.
"Ugh—"
Obito lurched forward, spitting a large mouthful of blood onto the grass.
It was an internal injury from being hit head-on by the Rasengan, and his internal organs felt excruciatingly painful, as if they had shifted.
"Minato Namikaze."
Obito clutched the clothes on his chest, his eyes filled with resentment and hatred.
Even with the Mangekyo Sharingan, even with Hashirama cells, even mastering a BUG-level ability like Kamui... he still lost.
He lost to the man he called the "yellow flash."
Without Izanagi, that Rasengan just now might have directly taken his life.
"What a defeated dog you look like."
A flat voice suddenly came from above his head.
Obito stiffened, his lone Sharingan sharply looking up at the tree, his body instinctively tensing.
Yahiko was sitting on a sprawling branch.
The scroll of seals on his back was particularly conspicuous in the moonlight.
"I remember someone confidently saying before leaving that they would bring back the Nine-Tailed as a greeting gift," Yahiko said.
Obito's face instantly turned extremely gloomy.
He wanted to refute, to get angry, to use Kamui to twist this person's neck.
But seeing Yahiko's unconcerned demeanor and the unblemished composure on his body, Obito forcibly held back.
"There was an accident," Obito gritted his teeth, squeezing out a few words, "The Fourth Hokage's Flying Thunder God... was faster than I imagined."
"Is that so?"
Yahiko chuckled, leaped down from the tree, and landed lightly in front of Obito.
That sense of oppression suddenly increased as the distance closed.
Obito subconsciously wanted to retreat but found that his back was already against the tree trunk.
Yahiko reached out and patted Obito's intact shoulder, "Admit it, Tobi. You lost is you lost."
"You..." A flash of rage flickered in Obito's lone eye.
Yahiko withdrew his hand, "In this operation, you not only lost the Nine-Tailed but also ended up like this. As a new member of Akatsuki, your debut is quite disappointing to me, your leader."
Obito clenched his fists, his nails digging deep into his palms.
Humiliation.
Unprecedented humiliation.
"But never mind," Yahiko changed the subject, his tone gaining a hint of a boss's leniency towards a low-level employee, "After all, you're an intern, mistakes are inevitable. Consider this your failed probationary period assessment."
What the heck is an intern?!
Obito almost passed out from anger; what did this guy think a world-destroying organization was? A company?!
"I've got the scroll of seals now. Although it's not as good as the Nine-Tailed, it's a consolation prize."
Yahiko patted the large scroll on his back.
"Let's go, Tobi."
"There's a mess of problems waiting for us to clean up in the Land of Rain. If you want to achieve that 'eye of the moon' plan, first learn how to survive in this real world."
With that, Yahiko didn't look at Obito again, turned, and walked towards the Land of Rain.
Obito watched that retreating figure, his chest heaving violently a few times.
Finally, he silently put on his spare mask, hiding all expressions on his face.
Deep in the rainforest, the two figures gradually faded into the distance.
Light was left for the newborn infant, while the most extreme darkness slowly enveloped the entire Ninja World, following the footprints of these two.
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