Obito's gaze was filled with malice, looking at Minato with mockery and ridicule.
That man, who always seemed perfect and radiated a warm, sun-like aura.
Obito hated Minato Namikaze. He despised the "goodness" he possessed.
Minato was clearly fast enough to save both him and Rin, yet he hadn't protected anyone. He hadn't done anything at all!
Why?
Why does someone as hypocritical as Minato get to have this happiness?
Jealousy, anger, hatred, and resentment burned like a wildfire, constantly consuming his sanity.
Obito wanted revenge—revenge against everything he once knew. He wanted to tear apart that perfect image and make Minato experience the hellish pain he himself had endured!
"Come on, Sensei, make your choice~"
Obito smirked, not hiding his malice, his eyes bloodshot, his face twisted with hatred. "Will you choose this woman? Or will you choose this child?"
On one side was Kushina, her throat being squeezed, close to suffocation; on the other was the child, his body frozen by icy power, his skin turning an abnormal bluish-purple.
"Please… don't do this, Obito!"
Minato had never felt so powerless. His whole body trembled as he could only whisper a plea.
He was the Yellow Flash, capable of killing fifty ninja in the blink of an eye, a dominant force on the battlefield. Yet, facing his wife and child, captured so close to him, he was powerless.
Should he use Flying Thunder God?
The problem was that the Flying Thunder God's mark was only on Kushina. If Minato acted recklessly and saved Kushina, Obito would kill the child.
Minato was caught in a dilemma, his heart filled with endless struggle and pain.
"There's not much time left~"
Obito laughed loudly, tilting his head, and spoke with a playful tone: "Sensei, if you don't make a choice soon, both of them will be gone."
"I…"
Minato's face showed veins, his fists clenched, but his throat felt blocked, as if he couldn't speak.
His eyes were filled with pain, as if he had been dragged into an abyss, left only with dark despair. On one side was his beloved wife, and on the other, his newly born child. No matter which one he chose, it would torment his heart.
"I choose the child."
After saying this, Minato's spine seemed to be pulled out. He hunched over, drained of energy and spirit.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk, you actually gave up your most beloved wife?" Obito seemed surprised. He loosened his grip on Kushina's throat and said loudly, "I'm really surprised, Sensei. You didn't choose your beloved, but instead chose this child?"
"Cough, cough… cough…"
Kushina coughed violently, tears filling her eyes.
"Did you hear that? Sensei's wife, Sensei has abandoned you~"
Obito taunted Minato, who was kneeling in pain, unable to look Kushina in the eyes. "It seems that in Sensei's heart, the child is the one he loves most."
"No… Don't say it anymore."
Minato lowered his head in shame, his body trembling slightly. He pleaded, "I've made my choice. Please… don't say it anymore."
"You're so ugly, Sensei."
Obito looked down from above at his once-trusted teacher, now so pain stricken and broken, it was as though he were about to be crushed into the dirt.
The burning anger inside him had nowhere to vent, and it left him feeling deeply disappointed. "Aren't you supposed to be more proud, like a hero, and take them back from my hands? Ah, Minato Namikaze!"
"Please, let the child go."
Minato's voice was filled with humble pleading.
"Alright, I keep my promises."
Obito gave a meaningful, cold laugh as he patted Kushina's face.
Then, he threw the child he was holding with great force. "But we'll meet again in hell!"
Dozens of sharp ice spikes formed and shot toward the child, who was flying through the air. However, Sarutobi Hiruzen, who had been preparing for a long time, moved with the grace of a powerful ninja, leaping forward in an instant.
"Adamantine Wall!"
The Adamantine Staff in his hand spun in a perfect circle, creating a barrier that nothing could penetrate.
In the same moment, Minato, who had been pleading humbly, finally saw his chance. Like a beast suddenly attacking, his figure vanished in an instant.
Flying Thunder God Technique!
A streak of yellow light arrived in the blink of an eye, carrying a sharp kunai filled with killing intent, aiming straight at Obito's neck.
But, as the kunai sliced through Obito's neck, no blood spurted as expected. Instead, it seemed to pass right through, as though the neck wasn't there at all.
Seeing that his attack had no effect, Minato frowned slightly. Without hesitation, he leaned down to block Kushina's waist and used the Flying Thunder God once more, disappearing from the spot.
"Heh, Flying Thunder God again," Obito said, watching Minato with a playful look in his eyes. "Do you think I'll fall for the same trick a second time?"
Suddenly, an ominous feeling surged in Minato's heart.
Kushina, in his arms, let out a pained groan, and uncontrollable chakra began to surge out of her body, enveloping her in a hot, blood-red aura.
"Minato, the seal... the seal!" Kushina's face twisted in agony as her joints turned white from the force. She grabbed his hand tightly, her eyes watery with pain. "Hurry, get away from me! That guy... he destroyed my... seal! Ahhh!"
"Sensei, oh sensei, did you really think I wouldn't figure it out?"
Obito seemed to have expected everything, showing a sinister smile. "Too bad, from the very beginning, I never planned to follow the rules!"
"Obito—!!!"
The intense rage caused Minato to roar out.
In the next moment, a hurricane-like blood-red chakra erupted, as if a volcano had just exploded.
Boom—!
Minato was forced to retreat, his eyes widening as he looked at his wife, who was engulfed in the blood-red chakra.
One, two, three.
The blood-red tails were visibly growing at an incredible speed. Soon, they reached eight tails. Then, with Kushina's agonizing scream, a monster with orange-red fur, resembling a demon, emerged from her body.
The Konoha hospital collapsed with a tremendous crash.
Next, a creature nearly a hundred meters long, resembling a monstrous fox with nine tails, stood atop the hospital ruins.
"Roar—!!!"
The earth-shattering roar, mixed with solid chakra, created a violent storm.
The quiet night was shattered by the terrifying cry of the Nine-Tails.
People waking from their dreams rubbed their sleepy eyes and saw a figure in the moonlight, swinging nine tails, looking like a demon. Surprisingly, they felt an unusual calm in their hearts.
"Oh, I thought the sky was falling. It's just the Nine-Tails again. This guy's out again?" Since the Third Great Ninja War, the Nine-Tails had become like a permanent guest in Konoha. Whenever anything happened, it was always the first to show up. Over time, the people of Konoha had almost gotten used to it.
On the other side, seeing the Nine-Tails suddenly appear, Sarutobi Hiruzen leaped several times, holding Kushina in his arms, and then arrived at Minato's side. He spoke in a deep voice, "Minato, take care of Kushina and the child. I'll handle this for now."
Without waiting for Minato to respond, the old man gripped his Adamantine Staff, jumped into the air, and shouted, "Enma, extend!"
Boom!
The suddenly enlarged Adamantine Staff slammed into the Nine-Tails' stomach.
Afterward, Sarutobi Hiruzen let out a fierce roar, veins bulging from his arms. Like a reincarnated demon, he single-handedly used the Adamantine Staff to suppress the rampaging Nine-Tails, knocking it back with tremendous force.
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