"Clap!"
"Secret Scroll: Clone!"
Yun clapped his hands. A puff of smoke appeared beside him at the bottom of the river, and within the mist was a vague figure that refused to fully emerge.
A smirk tugged at Yun's lips. 'As expected, the rule-forged Secret Scroll has uses beyond just an extra life.'
Of course, having an extra life was its most important function. From now on, as long as the clone and the original didn't die on the same day, once midnight passed and the scroll refreshed, Yun could resurrect.
And now…
A young man around 1.8 meters tall began to materialize from the smoky riverbed. With red hair, he looked like a slightly off-model version of Yahiko.
'A red-haired Yahiko? "Uzumaki Yahiko"?'
No. This clone's name—"Kū" (Void).
It was as if two souls could operate simultaneously. The next moment, the clone darted away from the riverbed into the distance.
Yun surfaced and climbed ashore. Given his current status as a nobody, it was unlikely anyone would go out of their way to monitor him. Releasing a clone from the riverbed was just a precaution.
With White Zetsu everywhere and the Third Hokage prone to peeking wherever and whenever, better safe than sorry.
Yun had also secretly marked Flying Thunder God formulas at both the Nara clan grounds and the Tatsumi shelter. If the Nine-Tails were released tonight, as unlikely as that seemed, it was still wise to prepare in advance.
By the time he returned home from the mountains, it was already noon. His mother, Izumi, had come back, and the family happily went to the market together.
…...
As night fell, Konoha remained bustling under the lights.
Atop the Hokage Rock, the clone Kū narrowed his eyes. A figure flickered across the distance, seemingly unaffected by the previously prepared barrier.
Due to the risk of the Nine-Tails going berserk, Kushina's delivery location was placed in a cave outside Konoha, sealed with barriers to prevent any accidents.
Even so, faint traces of the Nine-Tails' chakra still seeped through and lingered in the air.
"Draw out the Nine-Tails' chakra in advance, then slowly release it with sealing techniques? So the real birth location has a much stronger seal? Not a trace of the Nine-Tails' chakra is leaking... impressive."
Kuu sat down cross-legged. Now, all he could do was wait. If things got chaotic, he'd stir up some trouble. If not, he'd just leave a few seals behind and call it a night.
…
"Ahhhh!!!"
"It hurts!"
"Minato! Minato…"
Kushina's screams echoed through the cave. Minato stood beside her, gripping her hand tightly, his face full of worry.
Hidden in the shadows, Kakashi was utterly bewildered. 'How could two serious men acting as a couple seem so convincing?'
'Absolute legends.'
Ten minutes later, Shisui, disguised as Kushina, had screamed himself hoarse, but the enemy still hadn't taken the bait.
Time was running out. Once the real baby was born, the Nine-Tails' chakra would erupt, there would be no hiding it. The enemy would instantly know this was a trap.
'Wait!'
Suddenly, Shisui realized, 'Of course! The enemy was waiting for the moment when Kushina's seal would weaken during labor, when the Nine-Tails' chakra would burst out. That would be their chance to strike!'
He and Minato locked eyes, both smart enough to grasp what the other had figured out.
Meanwhile, Obito, who had phased into the area with his intangibility, was growing impatient. The Nine-Tails' chakra had been leaking for ages. 'Why hasn't the baby come out yet?'
The Uzumaki clan's sealing arts were renowned across the ninja world. Their unique bloodline made them the perfect vessels for tailed beasts. Once the baby was born, Minato would have a second weakness, an utterly defenseless infant.
"He's here! He's here!"
Fugaku, disguised as Biwako, along with two female medical ninja, exclaimed, but no baby cries echoed in the cave.
Minato cried out, "Why can't I hear him? What happened to Naruto?!"
Fugaku immediately played along. "We need to give him a little slap. Don't worry."
He held the baby upside down and flicked its sole. "If there's amniotic fluid in its mouth, this'll help it cough it up."
Minato looked relieved. On the bed, Shisui, still disguised, knew the mission was nearly complete. If he shouted any longer, he might lose his voice entirely.
'It's time!'
In a flash, a shadow appeared silently beside Fugaku and drove a kunai toward his neck.
POOF!
Fugaku dodged with a swift Body Flicker, eyeing the enemy warily. In the scramble, the baby was snatched away.
"I didn't expect the wife of the Third Hokage to be so fast with the Body Flicker Technique. But now…"
Obito, the masked man, held the baby tightly and stabbed with his kunai.
For a moment, he gazed upon his former teacher, his Mangekyō Sharingan full of malice.
'Feel the pain of loss, sensei. Once again… you're too late!'
'Poof!'
Smoke billowed, the "baby" was a transformed kunai. Its dark blade reflected Obito's masked face, almost mockingly.
'A trap?!'
'Impossible!'
Obito turned sharply toward Minato. "How did you know?!"
Minato's eyes narrowed. Though he avoided direct eye contact due to the Sharingan, he couldn't help but glance at the bandaged arm of his former student, regret flashing across his face.
"There's much I want to ask you… but I doubt you'll answer willingly now. Some of this is my fault. So, I'll capture you first, then ask!"
The Flying Thunder God technique activated instantly. With the seals already placed in the cave, Minato could appear anywhere at will.
Whoosh!
The kunai struck nothing, Obito had phased through it, his face calm and mocking.
"What makes you think… You can actually catch me?"
As Minato's arm passed through him, Obito solidified and thrust his kunai in return.
Whoosh!
Minato teleported again, reappearing elsewhere, his earlier intel from the Shadowy Figure was confirmed.
Obito tilted his head and looked toward Shisui, still lying on the bed. "If the baby's fake, then the Nine-Tails' jinchūriki must be too. Still playing dead? Did you really think I'd fall for that?"
Shisui sat up awkwardly and scratched his head. "I never thought you were stupid. It's just… that performance earlier was so cringe, I needed a moment to recover."
Obito sneered. "You were pretty convincing, I'll give you that. Since the Fourth Hokage posted you here, you must be strong, huh? The Third Hokage, perhaps?"
"Sorry to disappoint, Uchiha senior… you guessed wrong!"
Poof!
As Shisui finished speaking, the Transformation Jutsu was undone. Out of the smoke emerged a pair of cross-shaped Sharingan.
Kotoamatsukami.
Before Obito could react, the seeds of the genjutsu had already been planted.