In the lounge of the inn, the four members of Team Seven sat around the dining table—not for dinner, but for a small mission briefing.
"Kakashi-sensei," Shinho Aburame said, taking out a scroll. "This is a confidential mission from my teacher."
"So that's why Lady Hokage wanted us to go to the Sand Village," Kakashi muttered, realisation appearing on his face.
He'd wondered why a delicate diplomatic mission with Suna would be entrusted to Team Seven. Now he understood—the mission was about something else entirely.
"The Dragon Vein?" Kakashi opened the scroll, his expression turning nostalgic. Years ago, he'd undertaken a mission to the Dragon Vein with a young Minato Namikaze.
Though he couldn't recall the details, he remembered that, in the end, the Dragon Vein had been sealed away.
In the original timeline, Minato had erased everyone's memories of the mission, even his own, to prevent future complications.
"What's the Dragon Vein?" Karin asked eagerly. "Are there really dragons in the shinobi world?"
"The Dragon Vein is the life force of the earth itself," Shinho explained. "It's essentially a massive collection of chakra."
A thought suddenly occurred to him. Not long ago, he and Kakashi had discussed ways to increase one's chakra. Perhaps the Dragon Vein would hold the answer.
If it truly held natural energy, it might even be beneficial to him. But according to the original story, it was described only as a vast concentration of chakra.
Thinking about it, how could mukade use the dragon vein if it indeed held natural energy? Shinho didn't have much use for chakra itself.
He would have to make sure himself.
Karin's eyes lit up. "So it's like a tailed beast? Does that mean our mission is to bring back the Dragon Vein itself? I'm sure my sealing techniques could help with that!"
Kakashi considered the idea, a slight surprise on his face. Though it sounded plausible, the Dragon Vein wasn't like a tailed beast—sealing it like a tailed beast could be dangerous.
"According to Lady Tsunade's research, a rogue shinobi named Mukade has been trying to harness the Dragon Vein's power," Kakashi said, rolling up the scroll. "Our first objective is to locate him."
"We've already found him," Shinho replied with a smile.
Kakashi blinked. "That fast?"
"I got the intel from Gaara," Shinho said, spreading out a map. "Mukade's been hiding near the ruins of Roran ever since he defected from Suna."
"That explains everything." Kakashi put the pieces together, nodding with admiration. "Impressive work by the Hokage."
Each part of the plan was falling into place—the Dragon Vein mission and Gaara's promotion to Kazekage were all connected. It was a plan with multiple benefits.
"Get ready; we leave in fifteen minutes," Kakashi instructed, cutting his thoughts short.
Within fifteen minutes, the team was geared up and heading toward the ruins, wrapped in coats to shield themselves from the sandstorms.
"There it is," Kakashi said, nodding at the sight of crumbling structures against the sea of sand.
The ruins were scattered across the desert—tall, slender buildings that gleamed with a metallic sheen and a mechanical design.
"Karin," Shinho said, scanning the area. The desert stretched endlessly in every direction, with no signs of Mukade.
Kagura's Mind Eye!
Karin had already picked up on his cue. She closed her eyes, her sensory range extending over miles.
"There's a huge concentration of chakra underground," she reported. "It's sealed, so it's probably the Dragon Vein."
"Minato-sensei's seal," Kakashi said, his voice tinged with nostalgia.
Returning to the Dragon Vein brought back memories of those days with Minato, even though he'd lost many of the details. How strange.
He thought; It's a pity that Naruto isn't here—though perhaps it was for the best, as his presence would only add to the sadness.
"Did you find Mukade?" Shinho asked.
"No," Karin replied, her brow furrowing. "The chakra around the Dragon Vein is too dense. It's disrupting my senses."
In the original story, it was in the subterranean levels of Roran that Team Kakashi had found Mukade, performing rituals around the Dragon Vein in an attempt to draw out its energy.
"We're heading down," Kakashi said with a sigh. "I don't remember exactly what happened at Roran, but I still recall where Minato-sensei's seal is located."
Kakashi led them into the ruins.
"It's so quiet," Sasuke muttered, brows furrowed.
"It's the Dragon Vein's influence," Kakashi explained. "Even sealed, its energy repels life from this area."
They soon reached the center of the ruins, where they found a concealed entrance leading underground.
Kakashi went in first.
The underground passages, like the ruins above, were constructed with metal-like materials. Kakashi guided them carefully until they reached the area where Minato's seal lay.
They entered a large, dark hall with multiple passageways leading off into the darkness.
In the center stood a stone platform with four statues around it, encircling the seal left by Minato.
In the middle was a round stone embedded with a kunai, marked with the Flying Thunder God symbol.
Kakashi's eyes narrowed. "These markings on the ground—they weren't left by Minato-sensei. They're incomplete, it a work in progress."
"That must be Mukade's handiwork," Shinho observed.
Karin stepped closer to examine the seal. Her eyes widened in admiration. "Incredible! An outsider who mastered the Uzumaki clan's sealing arts to this level…"
While technically anyone could learn the Uzumaki sealing techniques, only true members of the clan could grasp their full depth.
Minato's use of such intricate, layered seals demonstrated an extraordinary level of mastery.
"Well, he was the Fourth Hokage," Kakashi said proudly. "Minato-sensei's talent was nearly unparalleled."
"Where did he learn it?" Karin asked, curious.
"His wife, Kushina Uzumaki, was a member of the Uzumaki clan," Kakashi explained, knowing Karin had only recently joined Konoha and might not be familiar with Minato's history.
"Really?" Karin's eyes sparkled with excitement. "So even an outsider can become the Hokage's spouse?"
Kushina Uzumaki was no secret in Konoha.
Many still remembered her as the boisterous kunoichi who'd once attended the academy. However, only a select few knew that she had been the Jinchuriki of the Nine-Tails.
Kushina Uzumaki became the Hokage's wife partly due to her status as a Jinchuriki.
But it might be more accurate to say that Minato's position as the Fourth Hokage was also strengthened by her identity.
"Uh?" Kakashi's mouth twitched. How did Karin go from that question to this conclusion? Besides, the current Hokage was Tsunade, so being the "Hokage's wife" wasn't even possible.
Wait—no, that wasn't it.
Kakashi realized Karin was assuming that Shinho Aburame would be the next Hokage.
"Is it possible?" Karin looked at him with eager eyes.
"It's possible, but…" Kakashi started, but she interrupted him.
"Great!" Karin instantly radiated enthusiasm.
"Enough with the nonsense!" Shinho walked up and knocked her on the head. "Can you break this seal?"
Karin quieted down and studied the seal carefully. After a few moments, she sighed in disappointment. "Not yet. I don't have the skill—maybe in a few more years."
Given her age and the short time she'd studied sealing techniques, it wasn't surprising that she couldn't match Minato's proficiency just yet.
Shinho nodded. "Then let's focus on finding Mukade."
"You were looking for me?"
A deep voice suddenly echoed in the hall, but was quickly drowned out by a harsh, metallic clanging.
Shinho looked up. Across from them stood a man in his thirties with a cold, calculating smile, flanked by four enormous, menacing puppets that exuded an aura of danger.
"What business does the Leaf Village have with me?" Mukade asked, his tone relaxed.
His confidence stemmed not only from the strength of his puppets but also from the fact that Shinho, Sasuke, and Karin looked so young.
The only real threat seemed to be the white-haired man, who looked vaguely familiar but hadn't yet triggered any alarms in his memory.
"Shouldn't I be asking you that?" Kakashi's usual deadpan expression hardened. "This is where the Dragon Vein is sealed, it's definitely not somewhere you should be."
"Sealing the Dragon Vein? Such a waste!" Mukade's face contorted with excitement. "You have no idea of the Dragon Vein's power! With it, I'll unite the entire shinobi world!"
Shinho couldn't help but laugh.
It seemed every movie villain dreamed of world domination, yet strangely, the Kage of the Five Great Villages didn't seem to share this ambition.
"You brat! You think this is funny?" Mukade felt insulted, raising his hand.
The four puppets surrounding him opened their compartments, releasing a barrage of kunai, shuriken, and senbon, descending like a storm of steel.
Sasuke's expression didn't change as he unsheathed his lightning-fire sword, and the sound of chirping lightning filled the air.
His Lightning enveloped the blade, cleaving through the shower of weapons as they shattered and scattered.
"What kind of jutsu is this?" Mukade was stunned, unable to hide his shock.
"Is that all you've got?" Sasuke sounded disappointed as he sprang forward, closing the distance to Mukade.
"Damn you!" Mukade swung his hands, commanding one of the massive puppets to leap into the air.
It aimed a punch at Sasuke, chakra swirling around its fist to create a powerful shockwave.
Sasuke scoffed. Compared to Shinho's punch, the pressure from this attack was laughable.
His sword blazed with blue lightning, slicing through the puppet midair, which froze in place before bursting into sparks and crumbling to the ground in a shower of parts.
"This can't be happening!" Mukade's eyes widened in terror.
Sasuke was pleased with the reaction. Finally, a normal ninja.
He'd grown too used to sparring with monsters like Shinho and Naruto and had forgotten how ordinary shinobi reacted to his skills.
Mukade, while a jonin, was merely an average one, and as a puppeteer, most of his strength came from his creations.
The only exception among puppeteers might be Sasori, who'd turned his own body into a puppet, eliminating his human weaknesses.
"Sasuke, don't kill him yet. Just restrain him," Shinho reminded him. He didn't want Sasuke to get carried away and accidentally kill Mukade.
"You little punk!" Mukade, enraged, commanded his remaining puppets to close in on Sasuke from all directions, each puppet striking at him simultaneously.
"Useless," Sasuke muttered as his Sharingan activated.
With fluid precision, he moved through the barrage of fists, his Lightning Blade flaring as he cut down each puppet in quick succession.
After a final flourish of his sword, Sasuke landed softly as the three puppets collapsed into a cloud of dust behind him.
Shinho could only admit—this was one flashy takedown.
Mukade staggered back, trembling. "A mere genin? How…how is this possible?"
His grand ambition of unifying the shinobi world flashed before his eyes. He couldn't just stop here.
Mukade hurriedly formed hand seals, but before he could complete them, the world spun around him as Sasuke cast him into a genjutsu.
"Mission accomplished," Kakashi said with a satisfied smile, clearly impressed by Sasuke's performance.
The combination of lightning release and swordsmanship held incredible promise. With the enhancement of Lightning Style, his father's blade would be feared once again.
"Not quite," Shinho shook his head.
"What do you mean?" Kakashi looked at him in surprise. "Is there more to this mission?"
"Sasuke, have Mukade complete the seal," Shinho instructed. Turning back to Kakashi, he explained, "Our mission is to try and claim the Dragon Vein."
"Why?" Kakashi frowned.
"Kakashi-sensei, didn't you say you wanted more chakra?" Shinho pointed at the Dragon Vein. "Now's your chance."
Kakashi blinked, surprised. "Wait! so this was all for me?"
Could Karin's earlier suggestion about sealing the Dragon Vein as if it were a tailed beast have been serious?
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