Year 50 of the Hidden Leaf calendar.
At the border of the Land of Hot Water, where the battlefields of the Land of Fire and the Land of Lightning converged, two squads unexpectedly crossed paths.
"That blonde hair and Body Flicker Technique... that's definitely the Yellow Flash of the Leaf!"
The sensor ninja from the Cloud squad stared at the lead ninja of the opposing Leaf squad and couldn't help but swallow nervously.
"If it's really him... Captain, we should retreat now!"
Remembering an order passed down from above, the Cloud sensor ninja immediately suggested to their squad captain, A.
But A showed no intention of retreating. Instead, he pondered thoughtfully: "So he's the ninja who single-handedly stopped the Nine-Tails capture mission..."
"A, son of the Third Raikage..." Minato's eyes grew serious as he addressed his teammates behind him. "He's incredibly fast—don't engage!"
As he spoke, Minato pulled dozens of specially marked kunai from his pouch and scattered them around the area. He could sense the eager fighting spirit in A's eyes and knew this battle was unavoidable.
A snorted coldly, activating his Lightning Release Chakra Mode. Lightning crackled around his body as he stomped hard with his foot, instantly appearing right in front of Minato!
Seeing Minato's expressionless face, as if he hadn't reacted at all, A's eyes flashed with disdain. He raised his massive fist and threw a punch straight at Minato's face!
But just as A's fist was about to touch Minato's nose, Minato casually tossed the specially marked kunai in his hand and flickered away, appearing on a large tree over thirty feet away!
The next moment, Minato flickered again, appearing behind A and catching the kunai he'd just thrown, thrusting it toward A's spine!
A's pupils constricted. Though he could see Minato's movements, his body was fully extended from his previous attack, leaving him no time to react!
Swish! Minato's specially marked kunai fell, nearly severing a massive octopus tentacle!
But A used the push from that tentacle to dodge Minato's attack, flickering back to the center of his Cloud squad!
"You okay, Killer Bee?"
A looked at Killer Bee, who had extended the octopus tentacle, feeling both relieved and worried.
Minato's attack had seemed ordinary, but it actually concentrated extremely high-density Wind Release chakra on that specially marked kunai, making it devastatingly powerful! More importantly, wind beats lightning!
Even with A's greatly enhanced defense in Lightning Release Chakra Mode, he couldn't guarantee he'd walk away unscathed from Minato's attack under wind's elemental advantage!
Minato truly lived up to being the ninja who forced Cloud's leadership to issue the humiliating order: "If you encounter the Yellow Flash during a mission, you may abandon the mission!" If it had been one-on-one just now, A would already be defeated!
"I'm fine, don't worry about me..."
Killer Bee panted slightly, his gaze locked onto Minato without the slightest carelessness. Minato's Body Flicker was too fast—it could decide a battle's outcome in an instant!
Hearing this, A also breathed a sigh of relief and refocused his attention on Minato.
That guy... is he the Eight-Tails jinchuriki?
Minato was also surprised and didn't continue his assault, turning to face off against both A and Killer Bee.
"Two against one... the opponents are A and the Eight-Tails jinchuriki. We should retreat first, Minato!"
An Inuzuka clan ninja in the Leaf squad analyzed the battlefield situation and suggested.
Whether A or the Eight-Tails jinchuriki, both had strength far exceeding ordinary jōnin, reaching "Kage" level. Only Minato on their side could match them in battle!
No matter how skilled Minato was, there were too many uncertainties in this fight! Both sides had met by accident—there was no need to fight to the death here!
Minato could naturally analyze the situation and was already considering retreat.
"Trying to run?"
A clenched his fists, ready to strike at any moment!
Minato was the rising star of the Hidden Leaf in this war, a strong candidate for the next Hokage! If they could take him down here, it would be a massive blow to the Leaf Village!
The current situation was two against one—advantage us! There wouldn't be another opportunity like this!
So even if it meant paying some price to keep Minato here, it would be worth it!
A's thoughts raced, and in moments, he'd made his decision!
The atmosphere grew increasingly tense! The Leaf squad members also sensed A's killing intent and knew things were looking bad!
"Looks like I arrived just in time! Now it's two against two!"
Suddenly, a clear voice reached everyone's ears, and a figure wearing a Leaf headband and jōnin vest, with the Uchiha clan symbol embroidered on his sleeves, appeared beside Minato!
"Kaito, how did you get here?"
Minato looked at the man beside him—with his chiseled features, he was even more handsome than Minato himself—his eyes full of delight!
"It's Kaito!"
The Leaf squad members were equally thrilled to see who had arrived, all breathing sighs of relief!
"The Mist has retreated, so I thought I'd come support this front to end the fighting here quickly..."
Kaito looked at A and Killer Bee across from them and smiled. "Looks like I'm in luck—just capture these two, and Cloud will have to surrender!"
Minato was stunned, then realized what Kaito meant, his heart racing with excitement: "Exactly right!"
Cloud Village's Third Raikage was already dead, and A and Killer Bee before them were Cloud Village's strongest remaining forces!
If they captured these two, the prolonged war between the Land of Fire and the Land of Lightning could finally end!
And once Cloud Village surrendered, the only enemy the Leaf would face would be the Hidden Stone Village of the Land of Earth!
The Tsuchikage Onoki was a smart man—he definitely wouldn't dare face the Leaf Village's might alone!
This way, the Third Great Ninja War would finally come to a complete end!
"Damn it! You Uchiha brat! What do you take us for!"
A was infuriated by Kaito's confident gaze and immediately wanted to punch him into paste!
"Wait!" The sensor ninja in the Cloud squad seemed to discover something terrifying, breaking out in cold sweat as he quickly spoke: "Lord A, he's Kaito Uchiha, who made a name for himself on the Mist battlefield!"
"Kaito Uchiha?" A frowned slightly, puzzled. "Is he that strong? I've never heard of him before."
The Cloud sensor ninja explained: "Kaito Uchiha and the Uchiha clan only joined the battlefield after the Mist declared war on the Leaf!"
"So Kaito Uchiha's reputation has only spread on the Mist battlefield so far!"
"Kaito defeated the Fourth Mizukage on the Mist battlefield! He also counter-killed four members of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist while under siege, severely injuring the other three!"
"Kaito is a ninja who rivals the Leaf's Yellow Flash!"
"The Mist ninjas also respectfully call him the Leaf's Red Sun!"
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