Pupil Technique: Guo Changli!

Minato Namikaze paid no attention to the masked figure who had just vanished.

His focus was entirely on the man standing before him—Uchiha Madara.

He was devastated that the Nine Tails had been taken.

The masked figure, alongside Uchiha Madara, had used space-time ninjutsu to launch a surprise attack, forcefully extracting the Nine Tails from Kushina before she had even finished giving birth.

Fortunately, Lady Biwako, the chief midwife, was not the only one present at the time—Lady Tsunade was there as well, acting as an extra layer of protection. Tsunade had made him a solemn promise: Kushina would not die.

Because of that assurance, he could now face Uchiha Madara head-on.

But just as the Tailed Beast Ball began forming in the mouth of the Nine Tails, Minato sensed that something was terribly wrong. His eyes darkened, and in an instant, he unsheathed his kunai, infused with the power of the Flying Thunder God Technique.

—Buzz!

In a flash, the sky became covered with intricate runes—an enormous, black curtain of sealing symbols twisted and expanded, engulfing the Nine Tails and a fifty-meter radius of space around it.

This was Minato's new technique: Flying Thunder God Flash: Super Wheel Sky Curtain Five Shikigami Slash Barrier.

Logically, he could have simply teleported the Nine Tails away, but he had no intention of letting Uchiha Madara escape.

His love for Kushina ran too deep. If it weren't for Lady Tsunade, she could have died. That thought alone filled him with cold rage.

This barrier wasn't just an advanced Flying Thunder God seal—it was a complete space-time domain, granting him free movement within its confines. Any attack he launched inside would be instant, unavoidable.

With this, Minato believed even Uchiha Madara would not stand a chance.

And why had he developed such an advanced technique?

The answer was simple—his monstrous disciple, Yuma. As a teacher, he had felt immense pressure to keep up. Moreover, after becoming Hokage, he was determined never to fall behind. By studying the Uzumaki clan's sealing techniques, he had created this powerful space-time barrier.

Now, armed with his most formidable technique, he was confident he could take down Uchiha Madara.

But more than anything, he was furious.

His overwhelming love for Kushina made him reckless in ways unbefitting of the Fourth Hokage.

If Tsunade hadn't been there to save Kushina… Minato might have already thrown his life away in rage.

At that moment, Uchiha Madara's Sharingan widened in surprise.

He had initially dismissed Minato Namikaze, but now he saw him in a different light.

With an intrigued expression, Madara smirked.

"You're quite the remarkable young man. To think you developed a technique like this using the Flying Thunder God… It seems the one who led you here underestimated you."

He hadn't expected Tobirama's "rat-like" technique—once only good for scurrying about—to evolve into something as formidable as this space-time barrier.

Realizing the threat, Madara knew he couldn't allow Minato to complete the jutsu.

His body surged with chakra, and a colossal blue arm materialized—Susanoo, gripping an enormous ethereal sword.

Madara's Sharingan spun, the three magatama shifting into the pattern of the Mangekyō.

A glimmering pattern began rotating—

[Dōjutsu: Kuni Changli]—Activated!

A flash of blinding blue light filled Minato's vision.

Before he could even react—

Space and time itself were ignored.

Three enormous, overlapping swords slashed from different angles, bending time and space itself with their sheer force.

A tearing sound echoed.

In an instant, Minato's space-time barrier—

And his body—

Were cleaved in two.

Meanwhile—

Uchiha Yuma took in the unfolding chaos.

The Sharingan in the Nine Tails' eyes. The massive Tailed Beast Ball. The disoriented village. The gruesome sight of Minato-sensei's body being sliced in half.

The village was facing an existential crisis.

But there was no time to hesitate.

Without wasting another second, Yuma swiftly eliminated White Zetsu and sealed his remains inside a scroll.

Then, activating his Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan, he directed his immense pupil power toward the Nine Tails.

—Buzz!

Immediately, the Nine Tails—its Tailed Beast Ball still forming—froze in place.

Whoosh!

Yuma vanished and reappeared beside the Nine Tails.

His foresight had paid off—he had secretly spread Flying Thunder God seals all across Konoha in preparation for an emergency like this.

Moving at unimaginable speed, he took advantage of the moment.

Before the white-haired old man standing atop the Nine Tails could react—

Snap!

Yuma placed his hand on the Nine Tails' body.

Rip!

Instantly, Yuma, the Nine Tails, and the old man were teleported away—disappearing from Konoha in a flash.

Ten kilometers outside the village…

With a loud tear, the colossal Nine Tails reappeared in the middle of a dense forest.

Now isolated, Yuma leaped onto the beast's head, activating Susanoo.

With one of his massive chakra-formed hands, he gently cradled the two halves of Minato's broken body.

A surge of chakra flickered as he conjured a Wood Clone.

Without hesitation, Yuma cut his wrist, letting his blood drip into Minato's open wounds.

"My blood contains the power of the Uzumaki clan. Take Minato-sensei back to Konoha—there's still a chance to save him."

His clone nodded, swiftly taking Minato's body and teleporting away with the Flying Thunder God technique.

With that settled, Yuma turned his gaze toward the head of the Nine Tails.

And standing there, arms folded, was Uchiha Madara—watching him with a mixture of amusement and disdain.

Yuma clenched his fists and spoke in a low, unwavering voice:

"I'll settle everything right here."

Madara merely smirked.

Yuma took a deep breath—

Then, with an intense glare, he unleashed a surge of overwhelming pupil power.

The battle was about to begin.