For the sake of the village, one must be prepared to go this far, even at the cost of one's life. This is the manifestation of each person's will.
With the will to die awakening within her, Kushina ignored the Nine-Tails' menacing expression. The moment she made her decision, there was no hesitation. If she hadn't been suppressed, she would have used the Reaper Death Seal to drag the Eight-Tails down to hell with her—at least that would have shown some value.
Just as she was about to end her life… a flash, like lightning, cut through the cold, damp, dark space, momentarily brightening everything. It made her stop her suicidal thoughts.
The brief flash of light came from a very familiar chakra, one she least expected to encounter here. And yet, it had appeared, filling the entire sealed space in an instant.
In disbelief, Kushina's eyes snapped open. The overwhelming force pressing down on her back had disappeared, as Killer Bee had been knocked away by a figure engulfed in lightning. The chakra radiating from that figure, passing so close to her, confirmed the suspicion in her heart.
With her unique sensing ability, she could clearly recognize whose chakra it was.
The sudden appearance of the figure sent Killer Bee flying into the distance. The hand covered in lightning chakra pierced through Killer Bee's abdomen.
The Cloud ninjas, who had been watching Kushina get brutally beaten, were startled by this sudden turn of events.
A, even more furious at his own carelessness, activated his lightning cloak and flashed toward Killer Bee's position.
"Who are you?"
Killer Bee winced in pain, staring at the masked man before him. The immense amount of lightning chakra being poured into his body was paralyzing him, even in his tailed beast form. This reckless transfer of chakra could kill the caster if not controlled properly, as it would deplete their chakra entirely.
Freed from Killer Bee's crushing attacks, Kushina leapt out of the crater and stared at Ye Zi, whose hand was still buried in Killer Bee's abdomen. The chakra radiating from Ye Zi's body—the sensation she thought she'd never feel again—had returned.
She had believed she would never see him again. Just moments ago, when she was ready to die, she had wished to see him one last time. All these strange thoughts and feelings, which had begun with him, now ended with him.
Kushina quietly watched the figure, tears suddenly slipping down her cheeks. No joy could compare to this feeling of regaining what she thought was lost.
She had waited so long for this figure—no longer unreachable, but right there in front of her, standing between her and danger to protect her.
At that moment, A arrived in a flash, his lightning-charged hand slicing toward Ye Zi's head.
A flash of lightning later, the upper half of Ye Zi's head was severed and flew into the air. The lightning that had paralyzed Killer Bee disappeared instantly.
The joy Kushina had felt upon seeing Ye Zi froze on her face. The first thing she registered wasn't the brutal scene before her but the sudden disappearance of Ye Zi's chakra.
It was as if a sharp blade had stabbed her heart, the pain unbearable.
In the sealed space, the Nine-Tails' eyes widened in shock. It immediately sensed the drastic change in Kushina's emotions, and a gleam of joy filled its beastly eyes. This was what it had been waiting for all along.
"Worthless scum," A said coldly.
"Well done, big bro!" Killer Bee grunted, clutching his wounded abdomen.
Boom!
Suddenly, the body A had struck turned into a puff of white smoke.
"Huh?!"
Both A and Killer Bee were momentarily stunned.
The devastated Kushina was also taken aback.
What was going on?
"Could it be… a shadow clone?" A guessed.
Killer Bee hesitated, realizing that the intense lightning chakra that had invaded his body was from a shadow clone. It made sense now. A shadow clone could recklessly expend chakra without worrying about the consequences, which explained why it had seemed like a suicidal attack.
"So it was just a shadow clone."
Upon realizing this, Kushina's shattered mental state quickly returned to normal.
Meanwhile, inside the sealed space, the Nine-Tails was utterly bewildered.
"Then where is he?"
Kushina, ignoring A and Killer Bee, spread out her sensory ability but couldn't find him.
"Why aren't you showing yourself?" she wondered, her gaze falling once again on A and Killer Bee, though her mind was still focused on Ye Zi.
The weakened chakra cloak around her body suddenly returned to its original strength.
As she looked at A and Killer Bee, she realized that her strength wasn't enough to defeat them. Her thoughts shifted.
Since she couldn't defeat them, she would stall for time—buy time until reinforcements arrived.
Believing that Ye Zi was secretly watching over her gave Kushina newfound confidence. She didn't understand why he hadn't revealed himself, but she was sure he had his reasons.
Many questions that had been racing through her mind were now pushed aside, all because Ye Zi had saved her at the critical moment.
"When this is over, I'll definitely find you and get the answers. And I'll find out what you never finished saying!" she thought optimistically.
Meanwhile, A and Killer Bee, too, were now more cautious, concerned about the presence of Ye Zi hiding somewhere nearby.
All three of them—Kushina, A, and Killer Bee—had been fooled by Ye Zi's shadow clone, which had originally been sent only to gather intel.
Ye Zi's real body was far away, well beyond Kushina's sensing range. A and Killer Bee lacked the sensory abilities of Kushina, so after realizing the attacker was just a shadow clone, they couldn't help but be on guard. The enemy was clearly a skilled user of Lightning Release, and the speed of the sneak attack had caught both Killer Bee and A off guard.
Far from the battlefield, Ye Zi was quietly following the Raikage's squad when his expression suddenly changed. He stopped and put a hand to his head.
"These are… the shadow clone's memories."
He received the brief memories of the clone. Standing atop a tree, he fell into deep silence.
"Even in that situation, I couldn't help but step in to save her? Even if it was just a shadow clone, to recklessly rescue her like that… it feels wrong," he muttered to himself.
But he knew that if it had been his real body, he would have made the same decision. He might have made a better choice if he weren't a clone, but still, he had acted to save her…
Lowering his hand, two faces flashed through his mind—one of Rui, the other of Kushina.
Capture the Tailed Beasts, return to Earth!
There was no doubt that in the end, he would have to take the Nine-Tails.
And yet, this act of saving her…
"How foolish," he murmured coldly after a long pause.
If there was anyone left in this world who mattered to him, it would be Kushina and Orochimaru.
"Fine. Today, I'll sever these ties."
With a cold heart, Ye Zi calmly and rationally planned his future. He knew that Konoha would ultimately be his enemy. Since they were enemies, he would treat them as such.
He stared ahead, as if looking down a long, seemingly endless path.
Though the shadow clone's actions had revealed some information, it didn't change his resolve. Even if Konoha knew he was still alive, it wouldn't matter. As his power grew, his perspective had already shifted. He now considered Orochimaru weak. Where he once sought to surpass him, now he felt he could defeat him easily. And the shadow clone's actions only further clarified his future choices.
If he was going to walk this path to the end, he couldn't hesitate!
With a firm step, Ye Zi resumed following the Raikage's forces.
Orochimaru's forces had been completely wiped out, and now Kushina's troops were also annihilated. As for the other shadow clone, it had yet to send any information back before it disappeared.
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Currently on Chapter 257 - The Impure Summoning of 'That Person'