Splash.
The waters of the Naka River carried shattered debris and muddy currents downstream.
Inside the barrier.
The moment Uchiha Arata saw the scene before him, his entire body froze.
What lay before his eyes was far crueler than anything shown in the original story.
The air was thick with the stench of blood and burnt flesh.
Ten meters away, Namikaze Minato lay on his side.
His abdomen was torn open by a massive wound.
At the cross-section, there was no flesh or blood—only some kind of crystallized chakra.
Nearby, Uzumaki Kushina's chest had been pierced through by the Nine-Tails' claws. From the gaping hole seeped viscous, crimson chakra mist.
The red mist condensed in midair, forming a thin veil.
Beneath that veil, Naruto, who should have been crying loudly, was sleeping peacefully—wrapped in a pale golden chakra swaddle.
Whether father or mother—
They were both loving Naruto in their own way.
Uchiha Arata suddenly understood why, despite being treated the way he was in the original story, Naruto never fell to darkness.
Instead, he became the village's greatest hero.
Maybe inheritance really was something that couldn't be changed.
If it were him?
He'd probably tear Konoha down to rubble.
No wonder he wasn't the protagonist.
Shaking his head, Jin stepped forward.
Namikaze Minato—
The god of sheer effort among ordinary people!
And one of the very few characters in Naruto who reached Kage-above-Kage level without relying on bloodline power.
As Jin approached Minato's clothes, which still retained a trace of warmth, his vision was instantly flooded by dazzling entry lights!
[Contacting target: Namikaze Minato (Deceased)]
[Available entries to plunder: Flying Thunder God Technique (Gold), Rasengan Flash Super-Rotation Howl Style Three (Gold), Reaper Death Seal (Black), Sealing Techniques (Purple), Sage Mode (Gold)…]
Golden entries flared like solar eruptions.
Especially Flying Thunder God Technique, which dyed the surrounding blood mist a molten gold!
Meanwhile, the black entry Reaper Death Seal hovered nearby, exuding a chilling purplish-black miasma.
It felt as though merely looking at it could tear one's soul away.
"So this is the ceiling-level space–time ninjutsu of the original work…"
He muttered, then hesitated.
"System… what if I touch something I don't want?"
[Corpse entry plunder cooldown: 365 days.]
[Living target entry copy cooldown: 7 days.]
Seeing that, Jin's face darkened.
"One year? How is that any different from permanent cooldown?"
"I'm a fresh account—don't suppress me like this, System!"
Out of all these entries, the only one he didn't want was Reaper Death Seal.
As for Reaper Death Seal…
If he touched it and activated Golden Body at the same time—
After turning into light, could the Shinigami even grab his soul?
Seeing no response from the system, he stopped hesitating.
With his left hand, he touched the Flying Thunder God kunai.
With his right hand, he placed it on Minato's body.
Looting the Hokage—begin!
Tick.
Tick.
Thirty seconds passed quickly.
[Plundered Legendary Entry: Flying Thunder God Technique (Gold) Lv.1]
[Allows instant teleportation between marked objects (30 meters). Each teleport consumes 100 chakra.]
[Feeding ninjutsu can upgrade Flying Thunder God, increasing distance and reducing chakra consumption.]
A growth-type space–time ninjutsu?
That was unexpected—
Yet also perfectly reasonable.
After all, Minato had used Flying Thunder God even more skillfully than its creator, Second Hokage Tobirama.
Without changing posture, Jin raised his hand and reached toward Kushina.
Splash!
But the instant he touched her—
Something changed!
The Adamantine Sealing Chains around Kushina's abdomen suddenly lashed out!
It seemed to be some kind of technique designed to prevent her body from being violated after death.
Bang!
"As expected of Little Chili Pepper—doesn't allow anyone near her even after death."
Jin shook his small head, his two-and-a-half-year-old body carrying an air of unnatural composure.
Facing the moonlight, he said directly, "Golden Body—activate!"
Buzz—buzz.
The next second, golden energy enveloped his entire body under the moonlight.
Once again, his form turned into sunlight.
And the adamantine chains struck nothing but empty air.
After waiting a moment and confirming there was no further reaction, he truly reached out.
[Contacting target: Uzumaki Kushina (Deceased)]
[Available entries to plunder: Chakra Colossus (Gold), Four Red Yang Formation (Purple), Sealing Technique Affinity (Blue), Nine-Tails Power · Pseudo (Purple), Super Strength (White)…]
Compared to Minato, Kushina's entries were slightly weaker—
But every single one was still top-tier.
Especially chakra quantity!
As one of the few remaining Uzumaki clan members, her chakra reserves crowned the entire ninja world.
No one wouldn't covet that.
Especially that certain perpetual fifty–fifty ninja dragged down by the Sharingan.
Naturally, Jin coveted it too.
And even more so, he coveted the Nine-Tails Power entry!
Even if it wasn't the genuine article—
His entries could level up!
Feed it for a few years, and who knew—maybe it'd surpass the original?
Tick.
Thirty seconds passed again.
[Obtained Legendary Entry: Adamantine Sealing Chains · Incomplete (Purple)]
[Can summon three chakra chains to bind opponents. Effectiveness against tailed beasts is doubled.]
"Adamantine Sealing Chains, huh? Not bad."
Jin wasn't disappointed.
Even though he didn't get Chakra Colossus or Nine-Tails Power—
He already had invincibility, stealth, blink, and now added golden—no, adamantine—chains to bind enemies.
His toolkit was more than rich enough.
Far beyond his original expectations.
Taking a deep breath, he turned toward the blond infant between the two bodies.
"Hoo—next… it's you, Naruto."
Crack.
But just as he tried to touch Naruto—
The Four Red Yang Formation above them was suddenly forcefully opened!
Tap. Tap. Tap.
Amid the sound of footsteps—
A smoking pipe slowly appeared in the center of his vision.