Chapter 6: The Bridge of Betrayal and the Water of Weakness part- 1
"It is trying to mate with me!" Hiroto shrieked, kicking wildly at the 300-pound animal. "Help! Minato! Save me!"
(Hold... hold...) Ethan instructed. (Let him suffer for ten more seconds. It builds character.)
After Hiroto had been thoroughly rolled in the mud and drooled on, Minato flickered forward. He grabbed the boar by the tusks and gently tossed it back into the forest.
Hiroto lay on the ground, panting, covered in mud and boar saliva. The "cool guy" image was completely destroyed. The "Musk of the Alpha" now smelled like "Musk of the Barnyard."
Kushina looked at Hiroto with pity, but definitely not attraction. "You have really bad luck with animals, don't you, Hiroto?"
Hiroto looked like he wanted to cry. "I... I think I will go sleep in the merchant's cart. It is safer."
He retreated, defeated for the night.
Minato and Kushina were left alone by the fire. The mood was quiet and intimate.
"He is a weird guy," Kushina muttered, poking the fire with a stick.
"Yeah," Minato agreed. He moved a little closer to her on the log.
(Okay, danger is gone. Now is the time for the offensive. Be charming. Be sincere. Tell her she looks beautiful in the firelight. Do not mess this up, or I will electrocute your brain.)
Minato took a deep breath. "Kushina."
"Hmm?" She looked up at him.
"I am glad I came," he said softly. "Not just for the mission. But because... I missed these quiet moments with you. The village is so loud, and the work never ends. But here, with you... everything feels right."
Kushina's eyes widened slightly. A soft blush spread across her cheeks, visible even in the dim light. She leaned her head on his shoulder.
"You are getting better at this, you know," she whispered.
"Better at what?"
"Being a boyfriend," she said, closing her eyes.
Minato smiled, resting his chin on top of her head.
(Boom. Nailed it,) Ethan cheered in his mind. (Status Update: Relationship Health 85 percent. You are climbing out of the danger zone, buddy. But do not get cocky. We still have two more days of travel, and Hiroto is going to be desperate.)
Minato ignored the voice for once and just enjoyed the warmth of the woman he loved. For the first time, he felt like he was actually winning—not a battle, but something much more important.
However, inside the merchant's cart, Hiroto was not sleeping. He was scrubbing the boar saliva off his face with a wet rag, his eyes glowing with malice.
"System," Hiroto hissed under his breath. "Purchase the 'emergency item'. The one I was saving for the Chunin Exams."
A dark, robotic voice answered in his head. [Confirming purchase of 'Chakra Disruption Pill'. Warning: This item is illegal and highly dangerous.]
"I do not care," Hiroto growled. "Tomorrow, we cross the ravine. If Minato cannot mold chakra... he cannot use the Flying Thunder God. And if he falls... I will be the one to catch Kushina."
Back at the fire, Ethan's virtual ears perked up.
(Wait... I just got a ping. A purchase notification from a rival System. 'Chakra Disruption Pill'? Oh, you little weasel. Minato, enjoy your cuddle session while you can. Tomorrow, we are going to war.)
World 1: The World of Ninjas (Naruto Universe)
The dawn broke over the forest canopy, painting the sky in hues of orange and purple. It would have been a romantic scene if not for the blaring air raid siren echoing inside Minato Namikaze's skull.
(WAKE UP! WAKE UP! DANGER! RED ALERT!)
Minato jolted awake, hand instantly reaching for the kunai under his pillow. He scanned the perimeter. The merchant was snoring in the cart. Kushina was sleeping soundly wrapped in her blanket, a small bubble of drool forming at the corner of her mouth. Hiroto was nowhere to be seen.
"What is it?" Minato whispered, his heart pounding. "Enemy attack?"
(Worse,) Ethan's voice was grim, lacking its usual sarcastic lilt. (We have escalated from 'Romantic Rivalry' to 'Attempted Murder'. My sensors picked up a transaction last night. Hiroto purchased a 'Chakra Disruption Pill' from the Black Market System. He intends to dose you today.)
Minato's eyes narrowed into dangerous slits. The playful atmosphere of the last two days evaporated instantly. "Chakra disruption? If a ninja loses control of their chakra during a mission..."
(They die. Especially since we are crossing the Great Whispering Ravine today. If you try to use the Flying Thunder God technique while your chakra is scrambled, you could teleport yourself into a rock face, or worse, into the vacuum of space. He is trying to kill you, Minato.)
Minato slowly sheathed his kunai. He looked at Kushina's peaceful face. "He wants to remove me so he can 'save' her."
(Exactly. The classic 'Heroic Rescue' script. He cripples you, you fall or get captured, he steps in with his cheat powers to save the damsel, and she falls into his arms while mourning your tragic 'accident'. It is sickeningly unoriginal.)
"I will kill him," Minato said simply. The air around him grew heavy with killing intent.
(Whoa, easy there, Yellow Flash. We cannot just murder a Leaf Village ninja without proof. We need to expose him. We need him to dig his own grave so deep that even the Hokage cannot bail him out. I have a plan. But you need to be faster than you have ever been.)
Minato smirked, a cold, confident expression. "I am the fastest ninja in history. Try me."
.........….
An hour later, the camp was packed up. Hiroto had returned from his "morning walk," looking refreshingly optimistic for a man who had been molested by a wild boar the night before.
"Good morning, Minato-san! Kushina-san!" Hiroto chirped, holding out three canteens of water. "I refilled our water supplies at the spring upstream. It is important to stay hydrated for the hike!"
He handed a blue canteen to Kushina, a black one to Minato, and kept a green one for himself.
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