Led by Sarra, the group made their way towards the royal palace. Future Kurenai glanced at Haneul, sorting through her thoughts as they walked. Although the concept of time travel was foreign to her, the inconsistencies in Tsunade's and the others' behavior were numerous. Tsunade didn't know she was the Hokage, Minato Namikaze was much younger, and the little boy looked exactly like a childhood version of Haneul.
Has something gone wrong with time itself?
After a moment of thought, she decided that after dealing with Anrokuzan, she would find the Haneul who had come with her. He would surely know the reason. If she couldn't find him, then perhaps... the most impossible answer was the correct one.
As they reached the palace, the sound of heavy footsteps echoed around them once again. Minato and the others immediately prepared for battle. A moment later, puppets appeared, pouring in from all sides.
"Stand down!" Sarra commanded, her face stern. "I am the Queen of Roran!"
However, the puppets continued to advance.
"Anrokuzan!" Sarra's face paled as she shouted, "I know you're here!"
"It seems you've gotten a little smarter," a voice said as the puppets parted to form a path, and Anrokuzan walked forward.
"What... what do you mean?" Sarra asked, a final sliver of hope in her heart.
"You didn't actually think I was truly loyal to you and your mother, did you?" Anrokuzan spread his hands, purple chakra surging around him as he roared, "All I've ever wanted is power!"
Sarra stumbled back, terrified. In her memory, Anrokuzan was an upright and kind man with knowledge far beyond their time. How could he have become a completely different person?
"Before you die, I'll tell you one more secret," Anrokuzan said, a savage grin spreading across his face. "Your mother didn't die of illness. I killed her because she tried to stop me from using the Dragon Vein."
"What?!" Sarra's face was a mask of disbelief.
"So naive," Anrokuzan said, thoroughly enjoying her expression, his smile widening.
"You're Mukade?" Future Kurenai, who had been observing for a long time, finally spoke.
"Long time no see, ninja of the Leaf," Anrokuzan said, scanning the group. "What? Is your other teammate not with you? I was so looking forward to repaying him."
"Are you hoping to be beaten until you flee like a coward again?" she snorted.
"Do you think this is three days ago? I arrived here six years before you!" Anrokuzan burst out laughing, his eyes filled with a crazed obsession. "I have now mastered the power of the Dragon Vein! Defeating you is nothing! Even unifying the entire ninja world is within my grasp!"
Overcome with confidence, he dropped all pretense. The cards were on the table.
"Six years?" Future Kurenai froze, subconsciously looking at Haneul. Mukade's early arrival proved that time was indeed broken. That meant Tsunade and the others were most likely people from the past. Tsk! This little bastard, he was lying to me.
"Kurenai, I'll explain later," Haneul said, scratching his head.
"Call me 'Big Sister'," she said, raising an eyebrow. She hadn't given up on her dream of being the top dog. If it couldn't be realized in the future, she would make it happen in the past. But she couldn't help but worry about the future Haneul's current situation.
"The chit-chat ends here," Anrokuzan said, waving his hand. "After I kill you, I will rule the ninja world."
Tsunade stepped forward and threw a punch. The six puppets in front of her simultaneously shattered into dust. "Is that it?" she said, looking at Anrokuzan with contempt. "You're not even a thousandth of what my grandfather was. Rule the ninja world? What a stupid thing to say."
As she spoke, Minato and Future Kurenai moved at the same time. Minato threw a handful of kunai, which scattered around the puppets. His body then became a blur, flashing through the air. Each time he appeared, a Rasengan would take out another puppet.
Future Kurenai was less flashy. She formed hand seals and used the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju's, signature jutsu. Water Style: Water Severing Wave! A thin, high-pressure jet of water shot from her mouth. Under her control, it acted like the sharpest of blades, slicing through the puppets' bodies. In an instant, a third of them were cut in half at the waist.
"As expected of Konoha ninja," Anrokuzan said, applauding. In less than thirty seconds, his puppets had been almost completely destroyed. But he remained unfazed, even smiling.
The group realized the problem. Anrokuzan's calmness meant he had a trump card. It was undoubtedly the Dragon Vein.
"Let me show you the ultimate puppet!" he declared, spreading his arms. His clothes suddenly bulged outwards, pierced by sharp metal legs. In the blink of an eye, he had transformed from a human into a giant puppet spider. The strange purple chakra enveloped him, creating a suffocating aura.
"A Tailed Beast?" Minato's expression turned grim. He felt that the current Anrokuzan was no weaker than a jinchuriki.
"Haneul, get Sarra out of here," Tsunade ordered, her tone serious. Anrokuzan's aura had become too powerful; she wasn't confident she could protect both Haneul and Sarra.
"Right," Haneul said, pulling Sarra back. He didn't hesitate because he knew how to defeat Anrokuzan. The key was Sarra. Only she could find the Dragon Vein's core.
"Watch out!" Minato threw another handful of kunai. Anrokuzan ignored them, accelerating and charging straight at them. The kunai simply bounced off his body.
Monstrous Strength!
Tsunade's eyes narrowed. She clenched her fist and struck him. BOOM! A deep crater appeared on Anrokuzan's massive body, and the immense force sent him sliding backward. Tsunade was taken aback. He looks tough, but he's not that strong?
Just then, the damage from her punch began to repair itself at a visible rate. "I am immortal!" Anrokuzan roared, the purple chakra around him glowing as brightly as the sun. He flickered forward again, his sharp spider legs stabbing at the group.
Water Style: Water Formation Wall! Future Kurenai slammed her hand on the ground, and a wall of water rose up, only to be pierced through the next second. Minato immediately used the Flying Thunder God Technique. The three of them vanished and reappeared behind Anrokuzan.
"Together," Tsunade said, lifting her leg. Painful Heaven Leg! Chakra gathered in her foot, and she unleashed a devastating kick. The back of Anrokuzan's body was blown apart.
Minato leaped into the air, his hand outstretched. Rasengan! A swirling ball of pale blue chakra formed in his palm. He aimed for the opening Tsunade had created and slammed it down. The high-speed rotation, combined with Tsunade's attack, completely pierced through Anrokuzan's body.
Future Kurenai formed hand seals. Water Style: Water Severing Wave! A jet of water shot through the hole they had created, slicing him in two like a giant blade.
"Did we get him?" Minato asked.
"No," Tsunade's face was grim. Future Kurenai's expression was just as serious. A combined attack like that could be withstood by only a handful of ninja.
"Mere fatal wounds!" Anrokuzan stood up again. His two halves, enveloped in purple chakra, instantly reformed. Not only that, but his aura grew even stronger. "You don't understand the power of the Dragon Vein!" The purple chakra around him flared again, firing off like cannonballs. The three of them quickly dodged. BOOM! A massive crater was left in the ground. The attack was even more powerful than a normal ninjutsu. If they were hit, they would surely die. And yet, Anrokuzan had terrifying regenerative abilities. The more they fought, the stronger he became.
"We have to seal the Dragon Vein," Minato said grimly.
At the same time, a voice called out. "Senior Minato! Fifteen minutes from now, use the Flying Thunder God Technique to find me!" Haneul shouted.
"Not so easy!" Anrokuzan hadn't forgotten about Sarra, the only one who knew the location of the Dragon Vein's core.
"Got it!" Minato replied, flickering in front of Anrokuzan to block him. Tsunade and Future Kurenai moved to support him.
"Revive, my puppets!" Unable to break away, Anrokuzan roared, and purple chakra shot out, reanimating the destroyed puppets on the ground. They all charged after Haneul and Sarra.
"Sarra, run ahead!" Haneul spun around, his samurai sword flashing. He left a deep gash on the nearest puppet, but as it wasn't human, it continued to advance. Monstrous Strength! He planted his feet and threw a punch. The puppet froze, then crumbled into a pile of scrap metal around his fist. He glanced back at the palace; he could no longer see the others.
Lightning Release Chakra Activation! A crackle of lightning appeared around Haneul's body, boosting his attack, defense, and speed by 50%. He coated his sword in lightning and slashed out. BOOM! This time, the puppets were cut clean in two.
He had no time to catch his breath. The nearby puppets raised their arms and fired purple chakra blasts at him. Water Style: Water Formation Wall! Since no one was watching, he no longer held back. A wall of water rose from the ground to block the attack. Without waiting to see the result, he ran after Sarra.
He had asked before; it was a ten-minute run from the palace to the Dragon Vein's core. To be safe, he had told Minato fifteen minutes. It wasn't much time. He had to hurry.
An explosion roared from behind him. He looked back and saw two special puppets with wings. He took out four kunai wrapped with exploding tags and threw them. "Explode!" The massive blast brought down the surrounding buildings, burying the puppets. But a few seconds later, they burst from the rubble and continued their pursuit.
He could see Sarra up ahead. He sheathed his sword and formed hand seals. Water Style: Water Dragon Bullet Technique! This was the six-seal version he had "stolen." Wait, how is it stealing? Kurenai gave me the scroll. A water dragon shot out, engulfing the puppets. But purple chakra flared, and countless arrows pierced through the dragon, heading for him.
Body Flicker Technique! He became a blur, and the arrows slammed into the wall behind him, reducing it to dust. The puppets rushed him again. An idea came to him. He planted his feet and drew his sword, coating it in brilliant lightning. He leaped into the air and slashed down. A fierce storm of lightning descended on the puppets. He landed and immediately used, Water Style: Water Trumpet! A large volume of water shot from his mouth. When the water hit the lightning, a violent reaction occurred. The struggling puppets instantly froze in place, their internal components short-circuited. The power of science, kid!
"Quick, in here!" Sarra's voice called out. Haneul used his Body Flicker and was at her side in an instant. "The Dragon Vein's core is just ahead," she said, relieved. "Once the puppets enter, their chakra will be affected by the Dragon Vein, and they'll be unable to move."
They descended a passage and arrived in a massive underground hall. The immense chakra had taken the form of a dragon, coiled around the chamber. "It's so big. Can you really seal it?" Sarra asked, worried.
"It's actually not that big," Haneul shook his head. This dragon was, at best, on par with a Tailed Beast, and not nearly as large as the Nine-Tails or the God Tree.
Sarra was speechless. Is the outside world this terrifying?
"Let's wait for Senior Minato," Haneul said, sitting on the ground to catch his breath.
A few minutes later, space distorted, and Minato appeared. He looked at the Dragon Vein, and a weight was lifted from his shoulders. "Well done!" he praised.
"How are things on your end?" Haneul asked.
"Not good. Anrokuzan just gets stronger the more we fight," Minato said, then smiled. "But now, it's time to end this."
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