Chapter 64: Blown Up, Kannabi Bridge!
"Kakashi! Rin! Are you both alright? Where's Obito?"
A yellow flash streaked across the battlefield, and Minato—who had just broken through the front line and eliminated over fifty enemy ninja—finally arrived at the scene.
"Minato-sensei! Why are you here?"
"The enemies have been completely wiped out by Kakashi… but Obito is still trapped inside!"
Rin, still shaken by the terrifying force of Kakashi's Fire Style jutsu, turned toward Minato in surprise.
"Kakashi did all this… alone?" Minato asked in disbelief.
As soon as he arrived, he scanned the battlefield with sharp eyes and immediately assessed the situation. The scorched corpses scattered around—at least a hundred by his estimation—spoke volumes.
He couldn't believe that Kakashi, who had just become a Jōnin, had already achieved such a feat. It was beyond extraordinary.
"He really is my most promising student," Minato thought proudly.
"Kakashi, you did an outstanding job," he praised. "Once this mission is complete, I'll make sure you're properly recognized for this achievement."
But there was no time to waste basking in admiration. Minato's expression turned serious.
"Now, I need to rescue Obito."
He stepped forward, raising his right hand. A dense spiral of chakra formed in his palm—Rasengan!
Boom!
The massive chakra sphere smashed through the rubble, and as the dust settled, the entrance to the collapsed cave was once again visible.
Rin rushed inside, her heart pounding.
"Obito?"
But the place was empty.
Obito—who should've been waiting patiently for rescue—was nowhere to be found.
Outside, Kakashi, already aware of Obito's fate, calmly created a Shadow Clone. He handed the clone a sealing scroll and ordered it to collect the remains of the White Zetsu army.
The surface of these White Zetsu had been charred to a crisp, but their inner structure remained intact. If one were to skin them, sprinkle some chili and cumin, and grill them just right, the fragrance—
Ahem!
Kakashi wasn't tempted by their appearance in that way, of course!
The real reason he was collecting them was due to their origin. These White Zetsu were created by Madara using the Divine Tree and enhanced by Hashirama's cells. Their bodies were filled with powerful Wood Style energy.
Unlike the unstable original Hashirama cells, these diluted Zetsu cells were much more manageable—and still held great potential.
Just look at Obito. After fusing with White Zetsu, he could use Kamui as if it were a passive ability!
Meanwhile, Kakashi—despite possessing the same Mangekyō Sharingan—could only use Kamui sparingly. During the Fourth Great Ninja War, he had to overdraw his chakra just to save Chōji, and the result… was death.
Inside the cave, Rin called out again.
"Obito?"
No answer.
"Minato-sensei, Obito is missing!" she cried out in a panic.
Minato's brows furrowed. He calmly inspected the cave.
"Don't panic, Rin," he said reassuringly. "There's no other exit from this cave. Since he's not here, that leaves only one possibility—a powerful Earth Style user took him away."
"Eh?! Could some Rock Shinobi have escaped earlier and taken him hostage?" Rin asked, her anxiety rising.
"No," Minato replied firmly. "I'm certain all enemy shinobi were eliminated. That means whoever took Obito wasn't part of the earlier ambush."
"If that's true," Kakashi added smoothly, "then the person might not have had any hostile intent. Don't worry too much, Rin."
Rin looked at Kakashi and nodded, though worry still clouded her eyes.
Kakashi, of course, knew the truth. But he couldn't reveal anything about Madara, Black Zetsu, or the Akatsuki—not without risking suspicion.
Minato might trust him, but the village elders wouldn't take kindly to mysterious, unexplained knowledge. If he wasn't careful, they might accuse him of being a spy or even possessed by some unknown jutsu.
No… Kakashi had to bide his time. Even if he was forced to expose the truth one day, it had to be with a rock-solid excuse.
"Hmm… what Kakashi says could be possible," Minato nodded. After a thorough inspection of the area, he sighed. "We don't have any leads. We'll finish the mission first, then expand the search later."
"Yes, sir!" the two answered in unison.
Soon, the team arrived at their destination—Kannabi Bridge.
A colossal transnational bridge spanning across two nations, Kannabi Bridge stretched over a raging, 30-kilometer-wide river. The river below was rapid and ferocious, making crossing nearly impossible without the bridge.
Even a Jōnin—capable of walking on water—would struggle to cross such a span. Without the bridge, this route would be effectively cut off for weeks, if not months.
It was a modern marvel in the ninja world—a testament to both nations' engineering capabilities.
But war knows no sentiment.
This strategic bridge was destined to become another casualty of the times.
"We're here," Minato said as he landed gracefully atop a tall tree overlooking the bridge.
Peering through the foliage, he counted over 200 Rock Shinobi stationed at the checkpoint.
"Looks like the enemy commander isn't an idiot. They're fully aware of the bridge's importance," he muttered.
"I'll take care of the guards," he said calmly. "You two plant the explosive tags at the bridge supports."
With that, he disappeared in a brilliant flash of yellow light—Flying Thunder God in full force.
"Enemy attack!"
"Oh no—it's the Yellow Flash!"
The Rock Shinobi shouted in horror, but Minato was already upon them.
He cut through their lines like a blade through silk. Close combat, ranged ninjutsu, coordinated formations—it didn't matter. Without elite-level shinobi present, they stood no chance.
Meanwhile, Kakashi and Rin rushed to the support points.
"Lin, hurry up! At this rate, Minato-sensei will finish them all before we're done!" Kakashi urged.
"Right!"
Rin nodded quickly and followed Kakashi's lead. They placed dozens of detonating tags in key structural points.
To ensure the bridge's destruction, the logistics division had provided them with a massive sealing scroll filled with tens of thousands of explosive tags.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
A thunderous series of explosions echoed across the valley. Flames erupted. Smoke filled the sky. The mighty Kannabi Bridge cracked, shuddered—and collapsed into the roaring river below.
Their mission was a success.
On the shore, Minato stood silently amid a field of fallen Rock Shinobi. He turned to the pair as they regrouped with him.
"Well done," he said. "Let's return to the village to report the mission's success first—then we'll begin the search for Obito."
Without waiting for a response, he placed a hand on each of their shoulders.
Flying Thunder God—Teleport!
---
Half an hour later…
Huff... Huff... Huff…
Minato landed outside the Hokage building, panting heavily. His hands rested on his knees, his golden hair damp with sweat.
He had maintained continuous high-speed teleportation for over 30 minutes—covering an immense distance while carrying two passengers.
Even for him, it was exhausting.
"Sensei… are you alright?" Kakashi asked, concerned. If it had been him, he would've collapsed long ago.
"I'm fine. I'll go report to the Hokage. Wait for me here."
Despite his calm demeanor, Minato's heart was racing—not from fatigue, but from worry.
Obito's sudden disappearance haunted him. If he hadn't prioritized the mission's completion, he would've begun the search immediately.
"I just hope… it's not too late."
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