The trio's secret base—a dilapidated training ground.
Snow fell heavily.
Three figures clashed.
Uchiha Kin crossed his arms to block Kushina's punch, the sheer force sending him skidding backward as he simultaneously dodged Minato's sweeping kick. Upon landing, he redirected the impact into the ground.
Snowflakes scattered as cracks spiderwebbed across the earth.
Seeing the two charging at him again, Kin's figure began to blur, multiplying into countless afterimages in an instant.
Kushina's fist struck empty air, creating a sonic boom that sent snowflakes flying horizontally. Minato, meanwhile, immediately retreated into a defensive stance.
"Self-Pushing Technique: Limb Curving!"
True to Minato's expectations, Kin's foot slammed into his raised forearm, the brutal force sending him flying.
Kushina lunged forward, her punches and kicks generating thunderous shockwaves.
Kin dodged effortlessly.
For a moment, none of her attacks could land.
Then, in a flash, Kin appeared behind Kushina, aiming a kick at her back—only for Minato to intercept at the last second, his fist brimming with power.
"Thud!"
Kin blocked the strike with his forearm.
By then, Kushina had already recovered, flipping backward to deliver a devastating kick.
"Heavenly Foot of Pain!"
"Boom!"
The ground shattered, leaving a crater in its wake.
Minato and Kin leaped apart, narrowly avoiding the attack.
"You've gotten stronger," Kin remarked, eyeing the two as they regrouped. Just a short while ago, he could defeat them in seconds—yet now, they were holding their own against him.
Even if only in taijutsu.
"Kin, you might keep improving, but we won't fall too far behind," Minato said with a smile.
On this path of pursuit, they had finally caught sight of Uchiha Kin's shadow.
Before, they couldn't even glimpse his back.
Now, in taijutsu at least, the two of them together could fight him to a standstill.
"Impressive," Kin conceded with a nod.
He couldn't defeat them in pure physical combat, especially Kushina—her monstrous strength, honed under Tsunade's tutelage, made her attacks impossible to tank head-on.
And he had neglected his taijutsu training lately.
There were simply too many jutsu to master: the Heavenly Demon Art, Six Treasuries Immortal Thief, Soul Illumination Technique, Darkness Genjutsu...
Not to mention the techniques waiting in the wings—Flying Thunder God, Impure World Reincarnation, further development of the Heavenly Demon Art.
For everything else, "good enough" would have to suffice.
Otherwise, the workload would be overwhelming.
Add in his intermittent weapons and pill research, and it was no surprise his Eight Gates Formation was still stuck at the first gate.
Time simply wasn't on his side.
"Let's try ninjutsu, then," Kin said, cracking his knuckles as he eyed Minato and Kushina.
"Don't lose in one move."
"We're way stronger now!!" Kushina declared, brimming with confidence. Together, the two of them were a perfect team—capable of taking down even a jōnin.
"I hope... you can keep that confidence," Kin replied, tilting his head up.
The whites of his eyes turned pitch black—a sign of the Heavenly Demon Art's activation.
"Darkness Genjutsu!"
Darkness swallowed the surroundings whole.
Kushina and Minato were both engulfed.
"I can't see!" Minato called out.
"Me neither! This is the Darkness Genjutsu! Be careful—AHH!!"
Kushina's scream cut off abruptly.
Minato's stomach dropped. He formed hand seals at lightning speed.
"Wind Release: Wind Wall Technique!"
A wall of wind erupted in the darkness, emitting a pale light that pushed back the encroaching shadows.
On the other side stood Kin, with an unconscious Kushina at his feet.
Seeing the Wind Wall, Kin nodded approvingly.
"As expected, you've improved the most, Minato."
The Darkness Genjutsu was fundamentally chakra-based, so a technique that disrupted chakra naturally yielded unexpected results.
Minato didn't waste words. A spinning sphere of light materialized in his palm.
"That is...?"
Kin's expression flickered with recognition.
The most famous "ball" in the shinobi world.
The Rasengan.
"I modeled it after the Tailed Beast Ball I saw Kushina use once," Minato explained.
During a crisis on the Iwagakure front, Kushina had unleashed the technique to save them both. Later, Jiraiya had told Minato about the Tailed Beasts.
That battle had never been recorded in official ninja records.
"It's still in its early stages, but it's my pride and joy. Kushina came up with the name."
He wasn't sure why Whirling Light Battle Initiation: Uchiha Kin Twin-Style Sphere hadn't been well-received, but he'd deferred to Kushina's fists.
Besides, much of the underlying theory had come from Kin's own jutsu research.
As he spoke, Minato charged forward.
The full name?
"Rasengan!!"
Kin narrowed his eyes as Minato appeared before him in an instant using Shave.
That blue sphere in his hand...
It seemed slightly different from the original.
"Boom!!"
The Rasengan struck Kin's chest, not only dealing damage but also disrupting his chakra flow.
It can interfere with the chakra, too!?
"Poof!"
The clone dissolved into smoke.
Behind Minato, the real Kin emerged.
The darkness began to recede.
Kin formed a gun shape with his fingers, a black Spirit Bullet coalescing at his fingertips.
"You lose, Minato."
"Kin, your progress is just... unreal," Minato admitted, scratching his head and raising his hands in surrender.
Kin didn't respond, his gaze complex as he studied Minato.
He had the Golden Finger system, which explained his rapid growth.
But Minato?
Pure, unadulterated talent.
Wasn't that just... unfair?
Hyuga Kiyoshi walked alone on his way home. Not all branch family members lived together—at least, he had chosen not to.
"A fate set in stone."
His face hadn't known a smile in a long time.
The blizzard around him was nothing compared to the cold in his heart.
"You seem tired of this life."
A voice emerged from the darkness.
Kiyoshi looked up.
Uchiha Kin stepped into view, tightening his coat against the snow.
"Aren't you cold dressed so lightly?"
Kiyoshi wore only thin, traditional white garments.
"Lord Kin." Eyes glimmering with something like hope, Kiyoshi bowed his head. "Shinobi don't fear the cold."
"I suppose that's true," Kin mused, as if realizing it for the first time. They were all trained to endure such things.
"So... do you intend to fulfill what you once said?"
The question was casual, but Kiyoshi's head snapped up, his eyes blazing.
"If you've made your decision, follow me."
Kin walked past him without waiting for an answer.
Without hesitation, Kiyoshi fell into step behind him.
Together, they vanished into the darkness.
...
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(End of Chapter)