On the banks of the Nanga River.
"Naruto, remember—Mom will always love you."
After whispering those final words, Namikaze Minato turned to face the monstrous fox behind him. His eyes held nothing but resolve.
"Nine Tails—Ghoul Seal!"
He was determined to leave behind a safeguard for his child.
"Sealed again?!"
The Nine-Tails was furious. Absolutely livid.
Decades ago, it had been sealed by that man who claimed it was "too powerful." Then, without even resisting, it was sealed again into the red-haired woman.
Now, after finally breaking free, it was about to be locked away once more?
Was all this destruction for nothing?
Its rage boiled over. The nine crimson tails thrashed wildly, smashing everything in sight.
Rumble! Boom!
The earth split open. Fiery red chakra surged like flames, tearing through the landscape.
One massive tail crashed down without warning.
But then—a phantom appeared, a sharp blade clenched in its mouth. The chaos was cleaved in two.
The Nine-Tails struggled, unwilling to yield, but it was dragged away.
Half of its chakra was sealed into the newborn Naruto.
When the battle ended, Minato and Kushina lay on opposite sides of their child.
Between their outstretched hands, the naked, yellow-haired baby clung to life.
Three faint whisker marks adorned his cheeks.
Minato looked at his son and finally smiled.
It was joy. It was sorrow. It was hope, regret, and love—all at once.
He leaned close to the baby's ear and whispered:
"Actually… Dad loves you too, Naruto."
"With the Nine-Tails inside you, even without us, no one in the village will dare harm you."
"The Third Hokage, Lord Jiraiya, and that Hatake brat… they'll protect you."
"Naruto, don't blame us…"
Above the battlefield, chakra clouds burned like fire.
The Four Red Sun Formation buzzed faintly, its blood-red barrier enclosing the crater like a dome.
Intricate sealing scripts shimmered across its surface.
Occasionally, sparks flew—melting stone like honeycomb.
Its power was terrifying.
"The Third Hokage has ordered—no one is to approach!"
Outside the barrier, an Anbu in a dog-faced mask stood guard, sword drawn.
At his command, the Genma Squad halted.
Shiranui Genma spat out the senbon from his mouth and frowned.
"We're the Fourth Hokage's personal guard. You sure you want to block us?"
The Anbu didn't respond. He simply stood firm.
The Fourth was dead. The Third was now in charge.
Fifty meters behind them, a white robe embroidered with "Fourth Hokage" fluttered in the wind.
Its golden-haired wearer was long gone.
Snap.
Uchiha Jin curled up behind a charred tree stump.
The Nine-Tails had finally been sealed.
He turned toward the Genma Squad, eyes narrowing.
In front of him, glowing points of light hovered—visible only to him.
They were entries.
Captain Shiranui Genma's head pulsed with a rare purple glow.
[Flying Thunder Formation (Remnant): Form a three-person team to teleport to a marked location. Usable three times per day.]
"A nerfed version of the Flying Thunder God Technique…"
Jin's chubby cheeks puffed slightly.
Like a cautious owl, he crept through the shadows.
Along the way, he passed seven fallen Anbu—slain by the Nine-Tails' rampage.
One corpse, wearing a respirator like Hanzo's, lay nearby.
Its shoulder armor still radiated residual chakra.
"A corpse?"
Jin's heart stirred.
The barrier guards weren't paying attention.
He licked the corner of his mouth, hesitated for three breaths, then made his move.
Practice makes perfect.
He lay low in the shadows and reached out.
As his fingers touched the first corpse, a cold system prompt echoed in his mind:
[Contact: Elite Chunin corpse detected.] [Plundered Entry: Strong (White) – Slightly improves body coordination. Stackable.] [Duplicate Entry Upgraded: Light as a Swallow (Green) – Increases limb flexibility and speed by 50%.]
A tingling sensation shot down his spine.
His muscles tightened. His arms felt lighter.
He truly felt as nimble as a swallow.
"So this is looting? No wonder people get addicted."
He licked his lips and reached for the next corpse.
Another green glow burst forth.
[Contact: Elite Chunin corpse detected.] [Plundered Entry: Dynamic Vision (Green) – Your eyes can track even a fly. Stackable.]
His eyes burned slightly.
Suddenly, the night slowed around him.
He could even see the lips of the Hokage Guard Team as they argued.
"Nice."
He took a deep breath, eyed the next corpse, and kicked off the ground.
Whoosh. Snap.
His toddler body leapt two meters—barely disturbing the dust.
The Anbu remained focused on the guards, oblivious to the child looting corpses in the corner.
Zzzzt!
When Jin touched the fifth charred body, something changed.
The corpse grabbed his wrist.
Its throat emitted a raspy "hoho."
"A zombie? In the Hokage's ranks?"
Without hesitation, Jin snapped the brittle arm.
It was just residual Lightning Release chakra causing the twitch.
He curled back into the shadows, motionless.
"Huh?"
Some Anbu heard the noise.
They glanced over, saw a fallen comrade, and dismissed it.
Only Shiranui Genma frowned.
"What's wrong, Captain?" asked Jing Zulei, gripping his blade.
"Nothing. Thought I heard something."
Genma shook his head and spat out his senbon.
Shh. Pfft.
No movement. He let it go.
Three breaths later, Jin exhaled quietly.
"What's the difference between this and invisibility?"
"They can't see me at all. I'm basically a J-10C stealth jet."
He decided to stop looting for now.
The Four Red Sun Formation was dimming.
If he didn't enter soon, it would collapse.
Ten seconds later, on the other side of the barrier—
Jin activated his Golden Body under the moonlight.
A faint golden glow made him slightly translucent.
And just like that, without alerting a single soul—
He walked into the formation.