Minato thought fast, analyzing the situation with the precision only a shinobi of his caliber could. He was wounded. His team... gone. Their chakra signatures had faded minutes ago, leaving only silence and a gnawing pit in his chest. The enemy outnumbered him. And even if the two Iwa ANBU stood aside and allowed him to face the Tsuchikage one-on-one, he still didn't see a clear path to victory.
Teleport away? No.He clenched his fists, blood dripping from his fingers.
He still had a duty—to avenge his fallen comrades, who had been savagely cut down. Their deaths were likely neither swift nor painless. Running away now would make it meaningless.
Minato sighed heavily, his lungs tight with grief and resolve. He inhaled deeply, centering himself—and then flashed forward with even greater speed than before. Chakra surged through him as he reappeared in the clearing, now wielding two massive Rasengan, one in each hand, their spiraling energy humming with fury.
This time, Arano, the Tsuchikage, didn't take any chances. He narrowed his eyes and quickly formed six Jinton cubes, their ghostly forms flickering with deadly power. They floated around him, rotating in a precise, defensive formation like the moon that rotate around the earth.
"He can create that many?" Minato thought, his heart racing. He hadn't expected this. Even by elite standards, this was far beyond the usual Jinton display , from the intel that konoha had about Onoki who also used jinton.
He immediately distanced himself, backing off with swift steps, kunai ready. Attacking now would be a mistake. His first misstep had been allowing the Tsuchikage to complete his Dust Release technique. He couldn't afford a repeat.
"I need to force him to burn through those cubes. If I can get him to use even half of them, my next strike might land."
Minato sighed again, a sound halfway between frustration and steely determination.
"Let's hope my speed's enough."
With a sharp flicker of yellow light—Fwup!—he vanished, reappearing just a few meters from Arano and, without hesitation, hurled both Rasengan at him.
The swirling chakra spheres tore through the air, deadly comets screaming toward their mark.
Arano simply smiled, a faint, confident smirk creeping onto his face.
With a calm raise of one finger, two of the six Jinton cubes accelerated forward like guided weapons. The Rasengan met them—and were instantly erased. Gone. Not destroyed, but disintegrated. Reduced to nothing.
From atop a tall branch above Arano , Minato watched it all unfold.
He narrowed his eyes.
"Just what the hell am I supposed to do against that?"
He analyzed again, quick as ever. Arano wasn't just strong—he was experienced, tactical, efficient. This was no ordinary Kage. He surely merited the tittle of veteran of the Second Great Ninja war.
Suddenly, Arano raised his voice.
"You don't plan to just sit in that tree forever, do you?" the Tsuchikage called out. He crouched slightly, already preparing his next move. "You'll die waiting."
Minato didn't respond. The situation was already dire. Words wouldn't change anything. Strategy would.
Seeing he would get no reply, Arano launched himself straight toward Minato, cloak billowing, power radiating with every step.
Minato waited.
And waited.
Then, just as Arano neared striking distance, one of the Tsuchikage's Jinton cubes fired toward his location.
Too close—
Minato vanished.
The Jinton cube obliterated the branch, pulverizing the tree behind it in a straight, white-hot line of annihilation.
And then—Minato reappeared directly behind the Tsuchikage.
"Now!"
He immediately formed the largest Rasengan he could muster, chakra swirling faster than ever. Using the element of surprise, he slammed it forward—aiming straight for Arano's unguarded flank.
Arano's instinct kicked in. He turned toward Minato—but too late.
He should've countered with another cube, but instead, his reflex had betrayed him.
The Rasengan connected.
It smashed against his side with a violent impact, shredding through his clothes and tearing a deep wound into his torso. Blood sprayed into the air as the Tsuchikage was knocked back like a rag doll, crashing hard into a tree trunk with a resounding crack.
"Aaghhh!" Arano let out a cry—short, clipped, but pained.
Even a hardened Kage couldn't ignore a blow like that. Ninja were trained to resist pain—but they were still human.
Minato landed again, breathing hard, but eyes locked on his target.
This wasn't over.
The Tsuchikage had dropped his guard.
Minato immediately formed two more Rasengan, one in each hand, planning to press the advantage—
But before he could strike, three Jinton cubes shot out like daggers toward him.
Minato reacted instantly, teleporting to one of his marked kunai far in the trees, narrowly evading death.
He appeared on a distant branch, still gripping his kunai tightly, blood trickling down his side.
"Now's the moment," Minato thought, calculating rapidly. "The Tsuchikage has no cubes left. And after that Rasengan, he's got to be distracted by the pain."
He gritted his teeth, grabbing another kunai in each hand.
Then—he moved.
Flashing from mark to mark, he closed in with terrifying speed.
Arano had just gotten back to his feet. His vision blurred for a second as he glanced down at his flank—a mess of torn flesh and dripping blood.
His right side… pulverized.
Blood streamed down his leg, pooling at his feet. The pain was intense, but he forced himself to ignore it. He couldn't lose focus now.
He looked up, just in time to see Minato preparing another strike.
"No time… I can't create more Jinton cubes fast enough…" Arano bit his lip hard enough to bleed. "Terrain manipulation will have to do."
With a stomp of his foot, chakra surged through the ground.
The earth erupted into a massive wave of rock, soil, and shattered roots, crashing forward toward Minato like a tidal wave of stone.
Minato didn't hesitate.
He threw one kunai straight up into the air.
With his now-free hand, he formed a large Rasengan again and charged headfirst into the wave.
The Rasengan met the wall of earth and drilled into it, carving out a narrow path through the incoming mass.
Just enough.
Minato hurled his second kunai through the gap—and in an instant, teleported to it on the other side.
"What…?! He pierced through my defense?!" Arano thought, stunned. This wasn't what he had predicted. He had expected enough time to form at least one more Jinton cube, but Minato had countered too fast.
And just as Minato was about to unleash another Rasengan—
Something hit him from both sides.
Two massive walls of earth collapsed inward, aiming to crush him from left and right.
It wasn't Arano.
It was the two ANBU guards, finally making their move.
They had remained in the shadows, watching closely—and when Minato had landed a critical blow, they acted to protect their Kage.
The walls met with explosive force—but Minato had already teleported away, barely avoiding being caught between them.
From a distant branch, Minato now stood again—panting heavily.
He saw them.
The two ANBU now stood protectively in front of the Tsuchikage, weapons ready, their presence now fully engaged.
Then—he coughed. Hard.
Blood splattered into his hand.
His bandage—soaked through. His wound had reopened, bleeding freely now.
His chakra… nearly depleted.
The teleportation, the Rasengan, the fight—it had taken its toll.
The Yellow Flash was fading.
And yet—
He looked down at the battlefield.
The Tsuchikage was wounded. Only two guards. This was their leadership.
If he struck the Tsuchikage down here… the war could shift. Maybe not end, but it would bring Konoha that much closer to peace.
Minato's legs trembled. His breath was ragged. But his mind remained clear.