"You bastard."
Uchiha Yuzuru almost laughed in anger.
After so many years, this was their first meeting—and Namikaze Minato did nothing but lecture him and ask about his wife…
Was this guy actually stupid, or just pretending?
Minato seemed to realize his question had been inappropriate. He scratched the back of his head awkwardly and lowered his gaze.
Seeing that, Yuzuru snorted. "Kushina's doing great. She even gave me a big, healthy son."
"That kid's name is Naruto. Uchiha Naruto."
"When there's time, I'll bring him over so he can meet you, his uncle."
Minato's expression stiffened, and he let out a depressed sigh.
How the world had changed. The girl from back then had already become someone's wife—and now even had a child.
Maybe it was time for him to let go of the obsession in his heart and simply offer his silent blessings.
Taking a deep breath, Minato quickly pulled himself together.
He looked at Yuzuru. "Carrying the hopes of the entire village on my back… this time, I won't lose to you again."
Yuzuru didn't reply. He merely crooked a finger at Minato.
"Come. Let me see how much you've improved over the years."
Minato's fighting spirit surged. He raised his hand and hurled dozens of kunai toward Yuzuru.
The next instant, Minato's figure flickered repeatedly as the two of them clashed in close combat.
Clang!
Clang!
Clang!
…
Their speed was terrifying, their figures flashing all over the battlefield.
Yuzuru's Mangekyō Sharingan spun rapidly in every direction. The Uchiha Gunbai in his hand precisely blocked every single one of Minato's attacks.
"Rasengan!"
A sky-blue sphere of chakra formed in Minato's palm as he slammed it toward Yuzuru.
Yuzuru raised his gunbai to block—
But in the next moment, Minato's figure vanished into thin air.
Without any warning, Minato appeared behind Yuzuru, driving the Rasengan straight into his heart.
Yet the attack passed straight through Yuzuru's body.
"Scorch Release: Rasengan!"
Yuzuru pressed a Rasengan, compressed and forged through Scorch Release, directly into Minato's abdomen.
Boom!
Minato was blasted backward dozens of meters, carving a deep trench into the ground.
Hiss…
Minato stood up, staring at the white smoke rising from his scorched skin, lingering fear in his eyes.
He could clearly feel the terrifying heat contained within that Rasengan.
If not for the Nine-Tails' chakra shielding him from the high temperature, he would already be nothing more than a dried corpse.
As expected—fighting a monster like Uchiha Yuzuru meant that the slightest mistake could mean instant death…
"Minato, use that move."
"Yeah. Let's do it together!"
Faced with the Nine-Tails' suggestion, Minato responded without hesitation.
The most terrifying aspect of the Flying Thunder God was its complete lack of any wind-up or warning. No one could predict the direction or trajectory of his attacks.
Yet Yuzuru still managed to block every strike and counterattack at incredible speed.
That could only mean one thing—
Yuzuru's speed was far beyond his own!
In that case, the only option was to become even faster.
Minato slammed his right fist into his left palm. A terrifying surge of chakra instantly erupted from his body.
Golden chakra cloaked his entire form.
"First, take out Yuzuru's Shadow Clones."
Even without using the Flying Thunder God, Minato's figure turned into a streak of yellow lightning.
He weaved through the battlefield, coordinating with the Konoha ninja to swiftly wipe out all of Yuzuru's shadow clones.
Yuzuru didn't stop him, only muttering with interest, "Kurama Mode…"
"Interesting. Really interesting."
The moment his words fell, Minato appeared directly in front of him.
As Minato's punch came flying, Yuzuru raised the gunbai to block—
And a tremendous force sent him flying.
Boom!
Yuzuru crashed straight into the ruins of a residential building, kicking up clouds of dust.
Seeing this, the Konoha ninja all lit up with excitement.
"So this is the Nine-Tails' power? We're saved!"
"Konoha finally has a perfect jinchuriki! We can definitely return to our peak now!"
"He's been gone for so long—who would've thought Lord Minato had become this strong!"
"Lord Minato, please teach that bastard Uchiha Yuzuru a lesson! We're begging you!"
Hearing their shouts, Minato's expression remained grave.
Through the Nine-Tails' senses, he could clearly tell—Yuzuru's aura hadn't weakened in the slightest.
"All of you, fall back. Get farther away."
The moment Minato finished speaking, massive chunks of rubble came hurtling toward him.
With a thought, nine thick tails swept outward, pulverizing every stone instantly.
As the dust settled, Yuzuru slowly emerged from the ruins.
He stowed the gunbai into the Kamui Space and casually brushed the dust off his shoulders.
"Now this finally feels exciting. This—this is a real fight! Hahahahaha!"
Yuzuru threw his head back in laughter as blue arcs of lightning began crackling across his body.
When the laughter stopped, he had already entered Full-Power Lightning Release Chakra Mode.
Unlike the original timeline, the current Minato wielded the complete power of the Nine-Tails.
An opponent like this should finally let him experience the thrill of battle he hadn't felt in a long time.
"Come fight me!"
Yuzuru's figure transformed into a streak of blue lightning and shot toward Minato.
Minato refused to back down, charging forward as well.
Blue and gold lightning collided head-on, the shockwave sending everyone nearby stumbling.
They separated instantly—only to crash into each other again in the next moment.
Boom!
Boom!
Boom!
…
The collision of their bodies was like rolling thunder, shaking the hearts of everyone watching.
The surrounding Konoha ninja could no longer see anything clearly. All they could hear were deafening explosions and catch brief flashes of blue and gold lightning.
"My eyes can't even follow them anymore. What kind of speed is this?"
"That monster Uchiha Yuzuru fought with clones for so long—and he still has this much strength left?!"
"We can't help at all… Lord Minato, you have to win!"
From the beginning of the battle until now, the pressure Yuzuru exerted on them had only continued to grow.
His strength seemed limitless, and his stamina was monstrously terrifying.
After more than an hour of nonstop high-intensity combat, his aura showed no signs of weakening whatsoever.
Although Minato didn't appear to be losing ground yet, fear was quietly taking root in the hearts of the Konoha ninja.
If even Minato—the perfect jinchuriki—were to lose to Uchiha Yuzuru…
They truly didn't know what could possibly stop him anymore.