In the Hokage's office, an intense glow suddenly appeared. Minato formed a hand seal and, at his side, white smoke spread, from which a Shadow Clone emerged. Then Minato vanished in a yellow flash, leaving the clone responsible for handling the Hokage's duties.
Minutes later, Minato was sitting on the branch of a tree. Calmly, he formed another hand seal, dispelling all of his Shadow Clones—except for the one that remained in the Hokage's office. As the techniques dissipated, Minato felt his head spin, overwhelmed by a flood of information coming from the clones' memories. The sensation was strong, almost suffocating.
Little by little, the dizziness passed. Even so, a sharp, irritating pain lingered in his head. Minato brought a hand to his forehead and massaged it, trying to ease the discomfort.
"I have to sort out this part of the memories…" he murmured. "If I make too many clones, this could end badly for me. How did Naruto put up with it?"
Taking a deep breath, Minato formed another hand seal. Forty Shadow Clones appeared around him amid white smoke. Only five stayed there; the others quickly scattered to monitor Konoha. Minato no longer trusted the village's defenses—not after what had happened the day before. He suspected it might be the work of a single person, but he wouldn't jump to conclusions. Still, he would keep his eyes wide open.
Next, Minato entered Sage Mode. Natural chakra wrapped around his body as he created a Rasengan in his hand. Before he even realized it, he fused the wind element into the technique, causing shuriken-shaped blades to spin around the sphere of chakra. Thus, the Rasenshuriken formed with frightening ease.
Minato dispelled the jutsu and frowned. He didn't understand how he could perform such complex techniques with such naturalness. Even without consciously knowing all the steps, his body acted almost on autopilot, while his mind merely observed.
He then turned his gaze to the five remaining clones, who were sitting and concentrating, trying to use other chakra elements—even those Minato didn't naturally possess. It didn't take long before, one after another, the clones exploded into white smoke and dispersed. At that very instant, their memories returned to Minato.
He blinked, eyes widening in horror, and began forming hand seals instinctively. His chest inflated like a balloon, and when he released the air, a jet of hot steam escaped from his mouth, dissipating into the air as he tried to process everything he had just learned.
Minato formed a hand seal to recover his chakra. Before even beginning the full sequence of seals, he closed his eyes and began to feel the flow of chakra coursing through his entire body, focusing on the sensation until that energy began to transform into the element he desired. When he opened his hand, a living flame appeared in his palm, dancing softly.
Without breaking his concentration, Minato continued. He tested the elements one by one, manifesting fire, then water, then earth, alternating between them naturally, as if they were extensions of his own body.
Curiosity got the better of him. Just as he had done with the steam element—the result of fusing fire and water—he decided to try something different. Minato combined earth and water, feeling the chakra mix within him, reacting in a strange and unstable way. With anticipation, he touched the ground, releasing the accumulated chakra. The energy dissipated, but nothing happened.
"I guess my expectations were too high…" he commented softly, thoughtful. "I thought I could create the Wood element."
Without success, he tried another combination. He mixed earth and fire, and almost immediately a molten ball of lava began to form in his hand, pulsing with intense heat. Minato observed the phenomenon carefully, but soon frowned.
"Why can't I use the Wood element?" he murmured. "Steam and lava I did with ease… but wood, no. Is it really necessary to have Hashirama's cells?"
He sighed, arriving at his own conclusion.
"Looks like it is… yes."
---
Meanwhile, in the village, Mikoto walked calmly through the streets of Konoha. In her arms, Sasuke slept peacefully, and in a bag she carried there was some ramen she had bought for Kushina. The atmosphere seemed normal, until, as she passed a corner, Mikoto heard voices that made her slow her steps.
Three women were talking not far away.
"Look at the way she walks," one of them said, in a tone of contempt. "As if she's superior to everyone else just because she's an Uchiha."
"Yeah," another replied. "I heard from my husband that they're causing way too many problems. And it seems they were also involved in that attack on the Hokage's demon woman."
"Keep your voice down!" the third scolded, looking around.
Mikoto tightened her hold on Sasuke against her chest and kept walking, pretending she hadn't heard anything. Even so, the discomfort was evident. Her heart felt heavy. She truly hoped it was nothing more than gossip—baseless rumors. However, she remembered well what Fugaku had mentioned: the clan was, in fact, nurturing dangerous thoughts.
Shaking her head, she tried to push those ideas away. She didn't want to carry that weight at that moment. Soon after, Mikoto stopped in front of Kushina's house, raising her hand, about to knock.
Mikoto knocked softly on the door, and soon she heard the sound of it opening.
"Mikoto." Kushina, who had just opened the door, replied in surprise, looking at her friend. She hadn't expected a visit, before looking at little Sasuke in her friend's arms, which made her blue eyes shine as she stared at his cheeks.
"Look at you, little one!"
A big smile appeared on Kushina's face as she brought her "claws" toward Sasuke's plump cheeks. Her hands, like pincers, latched onto the big, chubby cheeks, squeezing them lightly. Even though it wasn't hard, it made little Sasuke pull a face.
"Hi, you look better—I hope it's not just my impression."
Mikoto replied, giving her friend a look. Her expression seemed better than yesterday, and that relieved her. Kushina's condition the day before had been far from good; at least now she was better, which put Mikoto more at ease. Her friend's eyes weren't as red as before.
"Huh? Yeah… let's go in. I just made breakfast, but I can make more. Come in." Kushina said, surprising herself. Closing the door, she picked up a mirror to look at herself. She really didn't look as worn out as yesterday. She hadn't looked at herself properly, even though she had gotten dressed to go to the funeral.
"I brought your favorite food," Mikoto said, placing the ramen on the counter.
Kushina's eyes sparkled as they followed the bag Mikoto had placed on the table, pulling the ramen out from inside.
"You didn't have to, but I'm not turning it down. Thank you."
Kushina sighed, as if she had accepted it only because it had been brought, and not because she wanted it. But she had forgotten one detail.
"Sure… wipe the drool that's been running nonstop." Mikoto rolled her eyes at her friend, who was returning to normal. Kushina quickly wiped the corner of her mouth.
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Happy New Year! 😃