"!!!..."
The Konoha ninjas at the scene exclaimed as they made a startling discovery. They had not initially thought of this, but after calming down and reflecting, they realized they had always overlooked Kushina's true strength!
Keep in mind...
Though Kushina is a female ninja, she possesses the same Sage Mode as Minato. How weak could someone be if they are capable of using Sage Mode?
Not necessarily weak at all!
Too many things had been happening all at once.
People had just reacted.
"Now they realized the issue.
"Sakumo-sama, do you mean to say that the situation over there is still uncertain?" asked the ninja who had just questioned Sakumo, who is now less anxious. He genuinely worried for Minato and understood the sacrifices Minato had made for them. No ninja wanted anything untoward to happen to Minato, but things didn't always change according to their hopes.
Everyone at the scene looked towards Sakumo, understanding his guidance but still finding it hard to believe without hearing it from Minato himself. They hoped for a firm answer from Sakumo's mouth.
Feeling everyone's gaze, Sakumo felt a surge of pressure. He had to admit, this was just a hypothesis for him, too, even though he wasn't sure if Minato really had something up his sleeve. He believed this was the most reasonable explanation and that there shouldn't be any more changes.
"I think that's the case."
Sakumo spoke softly, not entirely comfortable interpreting Minato's actions. He feared that his words might diminish the impact of what Minato was doing, possibly sacrificing himself for everyone else. Seeing everyone so worried, each with their anxieties, they all craved that reassurance from Sakumo.
He saw all this and spoke thus to calm them, hoping they would settle and not remain agitated.
"I think Minato has a contingency plan!"
Sakumo spoke again, his voice steady and his gaze firm. His expression and demeanor set a very solemn tone, offering the ninjas a pillar of strength.
Originally, he was the leader of these Konoha ninjas, responsible for their physical and psychological safety. Though Minato had saved them and gained their utmost respect, potentially becoming Konoha's future, Sakumo was still effectively in charge, especially since Minato had departed.
"But..."
Sakumo added, changing his tone and pausing as his gaze swept over everyone present, finally resting on the ninja who had asked him the question.
"Even if Minato has a plan, what he's doing is still a risk. We mustn't overlook what he has done for us. Do you understand what I mean?"
Sakumo's expression was very serious. He wanted to calm everyone down but also didn't want his words to cause any misunderstandings, so he took extra care in explaining.
"Understood."
In reality, everyone there was just grateful to Minato.
Hearing that Minato might still have a trick up his sleeve, their hearts surged with excitement and relief. They did not want such a bright prospect as Minato, the future of Konoha, to fall here.
As the saying goes, without the diamond, do not engage in porcelain work.
In their view, Minato's choice now, just like when he saved them, was so mighty and solid, providing a profound sense of security, which was crucial.
If Minato hadn't had the strength and suddenly appeared before them, it wouldn't have been to shield them from the storm but rather to throw his life away recklessly, which would have been unacceptable.
"If Minato-sama has a plan, that's truly great!"
"Minato-sama must be safe!"
"I support Minato-sama as the next Hokage!"
"I was scared! I thought Minato-sama might really die here!"
"Anyway, after returning this time, I need to train hard. I absolutely can't be so passive and miserable anymore!"
"Honestly, I'd rather die myself than have Minato-sama sacrifice himself to save me…"
The Konoha ninjas at the scene spoke one after another, visibly relaxing as reflected in their expressions and even their facial lines softening, not as rigid as before.
After Sakumo's clarification, they all re-evaluated the recent events. They clearly remembered Minato's determined and serious expression, devoid of any fear—a sure sign of confidence, likely indicating that Minato did indeed have a contingency plan.
As long as Minato could return alive, they were all more than willing to support him wholeheartedly as the next Hokage. By now, they were completely won over by Minato's charisma.
Among the crowd...
An ordinary Konoha ninja was smiling subtly, witnessing everything that had unfolded.
That would be just fine.
Aoba nodded slowly. This persona was created through his transformation technique, mimicking a ninja who had already fallen on the battlefield. He had quietly used this identity to blend into the Konoha group unnoticed.
It wasn't that they were unguarded; the recent continuous battles had been too chaotic, and amid the attacks from Sunagakure and Kumogakure, followed by encounters with Kirigakure, they hadn't had the chance to settle down and consider Kushina's strength, much less notice the sudden disappearance and return of someone beside them.
This could be considered their internal chaos!
In any case, they hadn't noticed Aoba's presence, simply assuming he had always been among them.
Aoba had yet to plan to walk with them.
He just wanted to blend into the group to observe the situation on Minato's side, especially the confrontation between Minato and the Seven Ninja Swordsmen.
However, he found that the Seven Ninja Swordsmen had not launched a direct attack but had used a strategy to avoid harming the Konoha ninjas.
This surprised Aoba; he hadn't expected Juzo to possess such wisdom. It seemed everyone was progressing, and his butterfly effect had altered many lives and destinies.
While the development was unexpected, Aoba found the outcome exceedingly favorable. This paved the way for Minato to become Hokage, establishing a solid base of popular support for him.
After all, nearly all combat-capable Konoha ninjas had been mobilized to the front lines.
These Konoha ninjas here could almost represent Konoha's current strength.
More than 90% of Konoha's ninja force was here.
As for the rest, they were either older or held significant familial and village responsibilities, including some family leaders and village administrators, as well as students still attending the Ninja School.
If the war worsened and these ninjas lost their lives, the next line of defense for Konoha would be the newly graduated students from the Ninja School.
That would be when Konoha would truly feel the pain!
Aoba was still contemplating how to increase support for Minato in the village without too much suffering when Minato himself found the answer.
As for their safety...
Aoba had prepared the Flying Thunder God Technique before leaving, continuously monitoring the situation with his sensory abilities to ensure Minato and Kushina wouldn't face the Seven Ninja Swordsmen alone. After all, the Seven Ninja Swordsmen were formidable.
But their strength wasn't the point; their motive for coming here was. Capturing any of them to probe their memories could implicate Danzo and the Third Hokage in this affair— Aoba's ultimate goal!
"They're coming."
Aoba's smile widened as he murmured to himself, audible only to him. With everyone's attention still on Sakumo, absorbed in whether Minato had a plan, they hadn't noticed their surroundings. They had moved quite a distance away, feeling relatively safe and no longer the targets.
So, they had forgotten Kushina's warning before they left.
After all, too much had happened in a short time; it was understandable they couldn't grasp everything immediately. They were humans, not robots, unable to analyze the situation calmly amid chaos and panic. Perhaps some could, but not them now.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh...
Just as they pondered whether Minato had a plan, a series of swift sounds broke the silence, sharply reaching their ears and changing everyone's expression instantly.
Enemy attack!!!
The two words sprang to the minds of all the Konoha ninjas at the scene. They couldn't imagine any other possibility after encountering too many similar incidents.
"This is bad!"
Sakumo exclaimed, suddenly remembering Kushina's words before they left—another group was approaching. But at that time, Kushina hadn't clarified, and they hadn't taken it seriously. Sakumo had been explaining Minato's situation, so absorbed by Minato's self-sacrificing actions that he forgot this critical piece of information.
"I forgot something important!"
Sakumo felt frustrated, unable to believe such an oversight could happen to him. Known for his calmness, he had made several mistakes during his command, especially now, a potentially fatal one.
He could already sense several chakra signatures rushing towards them, moving incredibly fast. There was no avoiding or escaping, and he didn't even know who the opponents were.
From the direction of Konoha...
Sakumo squinted toward the incoming figures, silently hoping they were reinforcements, not enemies.
The Konoha ninjas, however, displayed extremely displeased looks. Once or twice was bearable, but this was the third or fourth time, and they truly felt treated like easy targets. Their initial relief at learning Minato might have a plan tightened back into tension.
In just a short time, their emotions were like a rollercoaster, a bitter taste lingering as they wished their strength had been just a bit more, perhaps deterring the opponents from underestimating them.
Indeed, born in comfort, they die in adversity!
Since the era of Senju Hashirama, the First Hokage, Konoha had been the strongest of the five major ninja villages, with the others barely comparable.
This sentiment also infected them, making them feel invincible, leading to complacency in their training.
But unbeknownst to them, times had changed.
It was no longer the era of the First Hokage. The villages had been established for decades, especially the other four, which had leapfrogged under the leadership of their Second Kage and welcomed competent Third Kage.
Yet...
Konoha also welcomed their Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen...
The gap in strength, which had been wide during the first two Hokage's tenure, continued to grow under Hiruzen's leadership. Due to the foundation laid by the previous Hokages, Konoha's people should have noticed the gap narrowing, even being overtaken.
Gradually, Konoha was no longer the strongest of the five villages.
Both Kumogakure and Iwagakure had grown strong enough to rival, even subtly surpass, Konoha.
The other two villages, Sunagakure and Kirigakure, which Konoha had hardly taken seriously, chose the moment Konoha was weakening to strike hard.
As the saying goes, shrimp tease a dragon in shallow waters, and dogs bully a tiger in flatlands. Konoha had reached a point where anyone felt they could bite at it.
These Konoha ninjas realized they had lost the protective aura of a powerful Hokage. Relying solely on themselves, their strength wasn't even on par with their counterparts from other villages, giving them a gradual sense of exhaustion.
This feeling was like playing a game where, when backed by a strong player, some feel emboldened to recklessly charge ahead, only to realize they can't win on their own—it was their ally carrying the team.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh...
Another series of swooshing sounds rang out.
One after another, ninjas appeared in front of the Konoha ninjas.
Their appearance immediately eased the tense expressions of the Konoha ninjas.
Because...
These ninjas wore various patterned masks, resembling Anbu style, and each bore the Konoha ninjas logo.
This clearly indicated one very obvious fact!
These were Konoha's Anbu!
"Anbu has arrived!"
"So, it's the Anbu!"
"Hahaha, so support has arrived!"
"I knew it; that direction is from Konoha!"
"No wonder Kushina didn't specify who these people were..."
"It turns out they're our own!"
The Konoha ninjas each wore a faint smile, their emotions returning to calm after such an ordeal, unknowingly having ridden another emotional rollercoaster.
"Something's off!"
Sakumo, observing the masked ninjas, suddenly felt a foreboding sense as he noted their intense murderous aura.
From this perspective...
They didn't seem like ninjas coming to welcome them back triumphantly but rather like executioners prepared to carry out sentences on the spot.
"Wait."
Sakumo immediately spread his arms, signaling the Konoha ninjas not to celebrate too soon. His expression was grave; his eyes locked on the masked "Anbu" charging towards them.
"Weren't all the Anbu supposed to be wiped out?"