Konoha, far away...
Kushina Uzumaki was asleep.
In her dream, Kushina saw a nightmarish, dark figure with nine tails towering above her.
"I can feel your fear... and hesitation... new host," the voice whispered. "You know, it's not me that binds you—it's yourself..."
"Let me free you then... come on..."
Kushina bolted upright in bed, gasping for breath and drenched in sweat.
...
Grass Country.
Jiraiya stared at the distant explosion, shaken to his core. "That was way too close."
Shindai, Kakashi, Obito, and Rin Nohara all stared blankly at the blast.
The power of a tailed beast was just overwhelming.
If anyone had been caught in that blast, they'd be smashed black and blue!
After letting out a light sigh, Jiraiya said, "We should retreat officially now. Iwa has sent two jinchuriki here—we won't be able to stop them. There's no need to continue this mission. Let's return to our base."
Minato Namikaze replied grimly, "Right. I wonder whether they simply sent the jinchuriki to deal with us or if they're planning to directly involve them in battle."
"Oh man, I think I'm injured!"
Suddenly, Shindai collapsed onto the ground, trembling violently as his face twisted in apparent agony.
Rin quickly began examining Shindai's body.
"Huh? How come I can't find any injuries?"
Though Shindai looked extremely pained, Rin couldn't detect anything wrong, making her sweat from anxiety.
Weakly, Shindai spoke up, "Ken... It must be because your Medical Ninjutsu isn't good enough yet, Rin. Take me back to the base with Master Jiraiya and Minato so the senior medical ninja there can check me out~"
As soon as Shindai uttered those words, everyone nearby gave him dead-fish stares.
Rin stood up and kicked Shindai without hesitation, "You're the one who isn't good enough!"
Kakashi muttered ominously, "Shindai, we need to leave fast. This place isn't safe. That Five-Tails' jinchuriki has been chasing after you ever since you hit him with your Iron Sand. After blowing him up just now, who knows what he'll do when he catches up."
Shindai immediately got back to his feet. "I can hold on a bit longer. Let's move out!"
He still felt uneasy inside—Han had chased him like a rabid dog. Was it really necessary to chase him so relentlessly just because he'd struck him with Iron Sand?
Earlier, he'd taken down Han's Steam Armor. If Han truly followed through, who knew what he would do to him next.
Jiraiya raised an eyebrow while muttering, "Kid, you sure put on quite a show..."
Since they still needed to deliver supplies, Minato Namikaze decided to personally escort Shindai and his team, letting Jiraiya return to the stationed camp first to report mission details about the Jinchuriki.
...
"Oh? Obito has already activated his Sharingan, and that Rock ninja with his head severed—you three coordinated to take him down? You've all improved a lot in just a few months."
Listening to Shindai and the others taking turns describing what had happened over these past months, Minato Namikaze smiled with satisfaction.
Upon hearing Minato's praise, both Shindai and Obito proudly lifted their heads high with pride evident on their faces.
Rin Nohara was covering her mouth while laughing.
As usual, Kakashi preferred to maintain his aloof demeanor, but since he was wearing his mask, no one could see his expression clearly.
Shindai suddenly grabbed Kakashi's mask and pulled it right off. Kakashi's lips were slightly curved upward too, clearly showing his happiness.
But as soon as his mask got pulled off, that smile immediately disappeared.
Kakashi quickly put his mask back on, then instantly performed the Body Flicker Technique, appearing directly behind Shindai. He hooked his foot around Shindai's ankle and tripped him, finally landing a punch straight onto Shindai's left eye.
Kakashi's series of movements flowed seamlessly. Not only did Obito and Rin Nohara watch in astonishment, even Minato Namikaze was left speechless.
Holding his left eye and clearly angry, Shindai shouted: "Ow! Kakashi! What was that for?! I just thought your mask might be stifling your breathing, so I helped you get some fresh air. How could you repay kindness with cruelty like this?!"
Kakashi replied sarcastically: "I noticed your left eye seemed itchy, so I helped relieve the itch. Consider my debt repaid."
Just as Shindai was about to start verbally abusing Kakashi, Minato asked: "By the way Shindai, have you made your decision yet?"
At Minato Namikaze's question, Kakashi, Obito, and Rin Nohara all simultaneously turned their gaze toward Shindai.
They naturally understood what Minato meant by "have you made your decision yet?"—whether he would join Konoha.
Shindai counter-questioned Minato: "If I joined Konoha... wouldn't I have to return there once?"
Minato nodded: "Of course. We'd need to register your identity officially."
Without hesitation, Shindai immediately agreed: "I accept!"
Minato pursed his lips slightly, sensing somehow that Shindai had accepted merely because it meant returning to Konoha.
Minato reminded him: "Shindai, this is extremely important. You must think carefully. Once you join Konoha, you'll have to live according to Konoha's rules from now on."
Shindai replied with a sigh: "Lord Minato, I've been working for Konoha for half a year already. If I really didn't want to join Konoha, I'd have run away long ago. Do you think I'm crazy enough to keep being a rogue ninja forever?"
"Uh..."
Minato was momentarily at a loss for words because Shindai's reasoning actually made perfect sense.
Smiling, Minato said: "Well then, welcome to Konoha in advance."
Obito clenched his fist and said excitedly, "Shindai is finally one of us — a true Konoha Ninja! That's fantastic!"
Obito seemed even more thrilled than Shindai was.
Kakashi and Rin Nohara were clearly happy too, although they weren't nearly as expressive about it as Obito.
After all, they figured that after being betrayed by Sunagakure, Shindai would definitely choose to join Konoha.
Minato Namikaze spoke to Shindai and the others, "Once you finish this supply run, come straight back to the Stationed Camp with me. I'll inform Shikaku and assign other ninjas to handle future deliveries.
Rest at the camp for a few days. If Iwagakure decides not to involve the Jinchuriki in the war, we'll return to Konoha to finalize Shindai's official registration. You've all worked hard these past few months — this will be a good chance to rest.
But if Iwagakure wants to involve the Jinchuriki in the war effort, then we might have to delay finalizing Shindai's official documentation."
Shindai nodded. "Understood, Minato-sensei. But… there's something I'd like to ask."
"Go ahead."
"I've done so many supply runs already — don't I get some kind of reward?"
Shindai gave a classic greedy look, subtly rubbing his thumb and fingers together.
You couldn't really blame him for being so money-minded — Minato had already taken him out for some seriously pricey meals, and if he planned to open a shop in Konoha later, even with Jiraiya investing, he'd still need some cash upfront.
Minato chuckled. "Of course there'll be a reward — no worries about that. Konoha doesn't expect anyone to work for free."
Shindai immediately smiled brightly. That settled it!
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