The sounds of battle—Kumo's invasion, Uzumaki's resistance, and Anbu's support—echoed across Konoha's night sky, firelight flashing and buildings crumbling in the chaos below. At this moment, the contrast between stillness and turmoil was especially vivid.
After Kushina Uzumaki severely wounded the leader of the Kumo squad, Haseo finished them off in true "cleanup crew" fashion. The Kumo ninja deep within Konoha, now leaderless, were unable to escape or complete their mission.
The key point was that, due to Haseo's warning, Konoha had already anticipated Kumo's intentions and made corresponding preparations. A minor slip-up might be forgivable, but if enemies could still flee under these conditions, then Konoha would truly have lost all face.
At least for now, Konoha hadn't sunk that low.
Once the Kumo ninjas realized they couldn't accomplish their goal or leave Konoha, they switched tactics and began attempting large-scale destruction. However, the Uzumaki and Anbu forces were doing everything they could to prevent such a disaster from occurring.
"Minato, we can't keep going forward anymore… it's too dangerous."
Not far from the Uzumaki District, the murmurs of three kids who'd been up all night drifted quietly into the dark.
The chaos in the dark had spiked their curiosity and pushed them to move closer. However, witnessing real bloodshed between ninjas made them freeze in place. Let's be real—even backing down when scared isn't cowardice. Sometimes, stepping back is the smarter move.
Sometimes, following your gut is the wisest choice you can make.
They were just kids after all. If they didn't cause any trouble for the grown-ups, that was already doing their part.
Minato Namikaze wasn't someone who liked to recklessly push forward either. He understood the danger of moving ahead further and was about to agree with the first speaker's suggestion so everyone could return home safely.
However, just as he was about to speak, another voice suddenly said, "If I'm not mistaken, that crazy girl's house is over there…"
"You two go back right now. I'll check it out."
The words Minato had nearly spoken instantly transformed into something completely opposite.
First, Minato knew exactly who his teammate meant by "that crazy girl." Second, he was gentle but unusually mature for his age. And finally, he would later become Jiraiya's disciple, meaning at the very least, he shared a compatible personality with him.
Who could possibly get along with Jiraiya? A person like Haseo—noble in mind, upright in character, and far removed from base pleasures—would never see eye to eye with Jiraiya.
Of course, what really drove Minato Namikaze at that moment was simple—a genuine worry for his friend. That was what friendship was all about.
Kushina had never even spoken to Minato Namikaze, but she hadn't done him any harm either—so it could be seen as a gesture of goodwill...
As soon as Minato Namikaze finished speaking, he shot off at full speed without giving anyone time to react, leaving behind two baffled companions, frozen in place and exchanging confused glances.
...
On this side of the battlefield.
Haseo was taken aback by Black Cat's sudden transformation, but looking into the small eyes it cast toward him, he realized its mind was still sharp enough—well, at least sane enough. If the cat had gone wild and lost control, then Haseo would've had to consider taking drastic action… [Putting Down a Pet for the Greater Good].
Especially since just now during the fight against Kurin, the black cat had helped pin down their opponent. That proved it was still *the* same cat.
So the cat issue could wait—for now, Kushina's condition was more pressing. Not that they should be worrying about *why* she could use a jutsu unique to Haseo, but rather, whether she was okay physically.
If Haseo hadn't misjudged the situation, Kushina had really used a dangerous forbidden jutsu, not just faked it poorly. Even though the jutsu only lasted a moment, who knew what kind of damage it might have caused?
Just as Haseo crouched down to check on Kushina, he suddenly sensed a massive shadow approaching from behind… Hmm, it was his cat—clearly worried too.
But the moment Haseo started turning back around, the black cat "lightly leapt." First came a gust like mountains collapsing, then a crushing weight slammed onto his shoulder—and with a loud thud, Haseo was buried into the ground.
Uh…
Had the black cat finally risen up in rebellion?
Haseo froze for a second before realizing—it had probably just jumped onto his shoulder out of habit, forgetting how big it had become. Cat paws were sensitive spots for some people, but adding all that weight on top? It felt no different from carrying a couple of sandbags.
"Change back... seriously, can you even change back?"
From beneath him, Haseo mumbled those words, and the black cat finally realized its mistake. In an instant, it transformed back to its original size and rubbed its fluffy head affectionately against Haseo's face.
With a grumpy expression, Haseo brushed himself off and slowly got back up. He couldn't believe he'd been defeated—by a cat.
Normally, with his reflexes, he would've dodged something like that easily. The problem was, the black cat's "pounce" hadn't been an attack. And Haseo hadn't even considered dodging before being flattened.
This dumb cat had messed up, sure—but Haseo couldn't exactly cook it over something like this, right? They still had things to do.
"Kushina..."
"Yes, Master Haseo."
"How are you feeling now?"
"My body... feels slightly out of control."
Kushina was completely lucid, but describing her current state as "just losing control of her body" was clearly playing things down big time.
After Haseo briefly checked her condition, he noticed there were no obvious burns from chakra energy on her body. Only then did he finally relax a bit. Fortunately, the duration of that kinjutsu had been very short, so Kushina wasn't seriously injured.
Haseo carried Kushina on his back, planning to send her to the Konoha Hospital for a thorough checkup later... with such an injury, whether she arrived earlier or later wouldn't really make much difference.
Anyway, better resolve the current battle situation first.
Soon after, several Anbu shinobi arrived beside Haseo.
"Haseo-sama, the vast majority of the enemies have already been eliminated. Now only the last three remain scattered within this district."
The Anbu Squad Leader gave him a quick update.
"Besides those three, all the remaining Kumo shinobi have been dealt with?" Haseo questioned.
"Yes. We directly disposed of them. These Kumo ninja... were quite determined, so in order to reduce losses and prevent the battle dragging on too long, we didn't hold back."
"I understand. However, for those remaining three, we must capture them alive by all means. Do you understand?"
Now that most enemies had been mostly wiped out, it was time to shift from killing to capturing.
"Yes, Haseo-sama!"
Having briefly reported the current status to Haseo and received new orders, the Anbu prepared to leave and continue dealing with the remaining three targets.
However, just as they turned away, faint whispers reached Haseo's ears.
"Haseo-sama... seems to have been flattened by a feline—as in a cat?"
Due to having been smashed into the ground moments ago, Haseo currently looked rather ragged.
Yet this description was completely unprofessional—it was outright slander. Who said a door? Haseo was clearly flattened by a cat.
In a way, such a scenario was even worse than getting squashed by a door. Fortunately, those people hadn't witnessed that particular moment, so Haseo-sama managed to save some face.
"Don't talk nonsense! Can't you see the enemy leader and his whole squad are already dead over here? Just now, Haseo-sama clearly engaged in an intense battle."
Another Anbu tried to cover for Haseo, but his explanation sounded even worse, making Haseo feel increasingly embarrassed.
These Anbu agents just weren't cutting it.
Aren't Anbu supposed to be tight-lipped and ruthless? Why are you guys so into gossip?
At this moment, Haseo's heart was filled with lingering frustration.
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