Chapter 257: Rescue across worlds...

Evening, after resetting Rashōmon.

"Minato, once you're over there, please be very careful."

Sarutobi Hiruzen admonished him.

"Understood, Lord Third."

Namikaze Minato nodded. He was wearing his trademark white Hokage cloak, his waist hung with Flying Thunder God kunai. Inside the scroll pouch at his chest were three scrolls sealed with Link's special chakra, plus two scrolls containing Senju Tobirama's space–time ninjutsu.

"I'm leaving everything to you." Senju Hashirama gave a deep bow. He really wasn't well-versed in space–time ninjutsu and couldn't draw or use it properly.

If someone went over as a vanguard, there was a good chance they couldn't come back.

Within Konoha, the only ones with that level of skill were the two reanimated Hokage and a prisoner. Orochimaru obviously couldn't go; Sarutobi Hiruzen wasn't as mobile as Minato.

Most importantly, Minato was an extremely powerful sensor ninja, naturally suited to scouting out places where the level of danger was unknown.

In the manga, he and Senju Tobirama once both sensed chakra fluctuations from a battlefield hundreds of kilometers away. Learning Flying Thunder God required not only knowledge of space–time formulas but also top-tier sensing ability.

The situation on the other side was unclear. Sending many people for the first attempt was impossible – if something went wrong, it would only cause confusion. The best choice was Namikaze Minato, who had mastery of Flying Thunder God, was the fastest man in the ninja world, and whose sensory ability was on par with Senju Tobirama.

No one wanted to demand that a Hokage who had already sacrificed himself for the village should sacrifice himself again, but Minato volunteered, willing to take that huge risk.

Link's expression was solemn. "Be extremely cautious. Your body will only last about eight hours. If you can't get back within those eight hours, I don't know what will happen."

No one was sure whether a reanimated person traveling to what might be a different world could return once their time ran out. Everything was unknown.

He laid out all the risks. Yet the Fourth Hokage still chose to accept them.

"Dad." Uzumaki Naruto stood some distance away, silently watching this father who had so recently returned from the dead, and who was about to embark on a new peril. He kept quiet for a long time, not stepping forward.

Minato went over on his own, gently placing a hand on his son's head. In a soft voice, he said, "Naruto, I'm really glad to see you in these circumstances, not...the other kind."

Originally, he expected to see his son at the moment the Nine-Tails' seal broke.

Chakra can be so mysterious – even in the Reaper's belly, the chakra Minato left inside Naruto let him meet his son. And when reanimated by Edo Tensei, he still acted as though he had seen Naruto.

"Sorry." He pulled his son into a hug, whispered it briefly, then let go. Without hesitation, he walked over to the lab station. "I'm counting on you to look after Kushina, Link."

Minato spoke earnestly. His wife and child were what he cared for most. His son was alive and well, but his wife's whereabouts were unknown. If her soul wasn't in the Pure Land, then who knew where it lingered? He did know she left chakra in Naruto, so unsealing that would let them see her.

Through that chakra's connection, she could be guided to the Pure Land, contacted by a secret code, and from there Summoned or reanimated.

Unfortunately, after being summoned himself, he had more pressing issues to deal with. And Naruto still hadn't reconciled with the Nine-Tails – darkness in his heart remained. Directly undoing the seal might be dangerous.

Still, he believed in his son, just as he had on that night of the Nine-Tails' attack. He trusted his child beyond all doubt.

Link gave him a thumbs-up. "That's a matter you should handle yourself." He smiled. "Don't think you have to shoulder all the risks alone, Fourth Hokage."

"Learn to trust others. If you're not back five hours after you leave, Lord Hashirama and I will come to save you."

With that, he poured chakra into the technique, then stepped beside Uzumaki Naruto, who was choking back tears. He lightly patted the jinchūriki's shoulder. In a relaxed tone, he said, "A man should raise his own kid properly, and take care of his own wife, too."

Minato chuckled. At heart, he was quite the lone-hero type. For various reasons, his fighting style and vast experience were all about "I'll handle it alone," because nobody could keep up with his speed, after all.

His one true partner was his wife, Uzumaki Kushina. In the manga, when fighting alongside Naruto, he still thought mostly about her.

[The younger generation sure can surprise you…]

He smiled. [Kushina, it looks like our child's found some wonderful friends.]

"And now, I'm off." Minato grasped the scroll, no longer entrusting his wife and son to anyone else.

[Wait for me, Kushina, Naruto!]

He cast aside his scattered thoughts, recalling how Tobirama had disappeared with this same jutsu into an unknown dimension. Concentrating on the reanimated Second Hokage's photos, habits, catchphrases, and mental imprint, Minato fully activated the jutsu. His body vanished amid a vortex-like distortion.

"N—ingh—"

Naruto couldn't restrain a small cry, tears and snot leaking in streams.

Jiraiya patted his back in silent support.

"Lord Third, Orochimaru—prepare the next scroll for release," said Link, calming himself and smoothing out his smile. He spoke gravely, "If even Lord Fourth doesn't come back in time, then let me go over and help."

"No!" The fiercest opposition came from Orochimaru.

"You're going with me," Link shot him a warning glance, brushing aside Orochimaru's vehement objection. If they were heading to some unknown otherworld, Orochimaru would be a good ally; no matter how unlikeable, he was the best survivor in the shinobi world.

Sarutobi Hiruzen wore a grim look. "No, we can't let you take that risk. I'll lead a team over to rescue Minato."

If even the Fourth Hokage—capable of using Nine-Tails mode—couldn't handle it, others likely wouldn't fare better. They might as well deploy their strongest. Outside of the reanimated Hokage, the strongest living shinobi in the village were Bubbles, Uchiha Sasuke, and Hiruzen himself.

They also didn't know how reanimations would function in another world, so living people might stand a better chance. More importantly, the two Hokage had already shown their stance. It wouldn't look right for him to just stay behind.

Link thought for a moment. "Lord Third, I—"

"Leave it to us," Senju Hashirama interjected, quite composed. "Link, you're still a child. Leave it to us."

"As for the village's future, hmm..." Remembering how Tobirama had warned him he too would be 'reborn' for the future, Hashirama felt slightly vexed and laughed. "Haha, I'm still not great at giving speeches…"

"But there's no way we grown-ups can let you kids face such danger."

~~~

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