Naruto: I, Uchiha, Just Want to Die

Chapter 162: Minato's Wrath! Combo Technique: Flash Super Wheel Dance Howl Immortal Triple Slash!

"Am I late?"

At a moment when Ebizō was about to drag them both into mutual destruction, a sudden greeting broke through the tense atmosphere. For those unaware of the situation, it might have sounded like sarcasm.

Fortunately, Uchiha Ci knew Minato Namikaze's warm and considerate personality. He intended to respond:

"No, you're just in time."

But due to the neurotoxin meticulously prepared by Chiyo coursing through his body, Uchiha Ci couldn't speak. His facial muscles, paralyzed by the poison, refused to cooperate. Worse yet, his throat had been slashed by Ebizō, leaving him to silently gape like a fish out of water, unable to produce a sound.

Just as Minato arrived, he looked up and witnessed the harrowing scene—

Before him stood a pale, ashen-faced teenager staring blankly at him. Suddenly, the boy coughed up a large mouthful of blood, gasping for air like a drowning fish, his mouth opening and closing as though attempting to speak. But his injuries were too severe; every breath felt like a desperate struggle.

A massive hole gaped through his abdomen, exposing his internal organs. Sticking out of his neck was the massive blade of Ebizō's left arm puppet, spraying exaggerated fountains of blood along its edge, making it look as though half his head had been chopped off.

Any one of these injuries would have rendered a normal ninja unable to fight. Yet this boy, risking everything, had pushed himself to this state to buy Minato precious time!

In that moment, the boy's blood splashed across Minato's face.

Minato stood stunned, his shock leaving him momentarily speechless. Then, his expression rapidly shifted to one of sorrow, grief, and solemn determination.

"Am I… too late again?"

Minato clenched his fists in anguish as the full moon illuminated half his face, shadowed in darkness and smeared with his comrade's blood. It was as though a beast had clawed at his heart.

Lifting his head, he locked his blazing blue eyes, now filled with irrepressible fury, onto Ebizō—the mastermind behind this tragedy.

Meanwhile, Ebizō cursed inwardly. The sight of the yellow-haired youth standing before him sent shivers down his spine. Why was this stranger glaring at him with such intense murderous intent upon their first meeting?

Unlike Minato, Ebizō was keenly aware of Uchiha Ci's peculiar regenerative ability. Though seemingly grievously injured, all Ci needed was a moment to recuperate, and he would rise again, good as new.

That alone had pushed Ebizō to the brink of desperation. Now, to his dismay, he was confronted with Minato Namikaze—someone so fast he couldn't even react.

For a fleeting moment, Ebizō imagined the late Second Kazekage smiling and beckoning him from the heavens.

"Damn it! I can't die here!"

Clenching his jaw, Ebizō made a snap decision. Sneering at Minato, he taunted:

"Namikaze Minato, is it? This brat is still alive. If you want to save him, then—"

Before finishing his sentence, he released his grip on Uchiha Ci and swung his blade, flinging the boy's limp body like a broken sack.

Then, with a swift motion, Ebizō opened secret compartments in his chest and palms, unleashing a barrage of poisoned senbon at both Minato and the airborne Uchiha Ci. At the same time, his puppet ejected a jet of blue flames from its rear, propelling him far into the distance. Upon landing, the old man didn't hesitate; he broke into a full sprint without looking back.

Threaten, ambush, flee—this sequence of actions flowed seamlessly, buying him precious time.

But as the hail of senbon descended, Minato's pupils contracted sharply. With a light touch to the ground, he vanished in an instant. When he reappeared, he had already leaped into the air, catching Uchiha Ci and flashing back to the starting point of the Flying Thunder God seal within the barrier.

Laying the heavily injured Uchiha Ci on the ground, Minato knelt beside him, grief and guilt clouding his gaze.

"I'm sorry, Uchiha Ci. I was too late!"

Even though Minato had raced to the signal the moment he saw it, utilizing every Flying Thunder God marker from his comrades along the way, he still blamed himself for the state Uchiha Ci was in.

Taking a deep breath, Minato clenched his fists and made a solemn vow:

"I'll be back soon!"

Turning his eyes toward Ebizō, who was rushing to the cracked, faintly glowing barrier edge, Minato narrowed his gaze.

"Is he trying to break the barrier and escape? Looks like I was led away on a wild goose chase."

His brows furrowing, Minato glanced back at the pale, barely breathing Uchiha Ci. Tightening the Leaf Village forehead protector on his head, he planted his feet firmly on the desolate Wind Country sands. The wind tugged at his trailing headband as he stood tall under the night sky.

"Carrying the will of my comrades, protecting the loved ones in my village, and defeating my enemies—this is my duty!"

His blazing blue eyes filled with rage, Minato fixed his gaze on the rampaging Ebizō in the distance.

"I won't let him continue unchecked!"

With that declaration, Minato prepared to pursue. But just as he took a step, a trembling hand grabbed at his pant leg.

"Hm?"

Startled, Minato looked down. He saw Uchiha Ci, his neck and face covered in blood, his pallor ghastly. The boy raised his hand weakly, his palm outstretched as though asking for something.

"Ku… ku… nai…"

Though his throat was nearly severed, Uchiha Ci managed to rasp out the word with difficulty.

Minato, still inexperienced at this stage and lacking mastery over the Rasengan, hesitated. He was confident he could defeat Ebizō, but killing the puppet master—especially in his human-puppet form—might be beyond his current capabilities.

Just then, Uchiha Ci's Sharingan glimpsed an approaching figure from the distant desert beyond the barrier—a brown-haired man in a black ninja uniform. The figure was none other than the Fourth Kazekage, Rasa, the very target of Konoha's assassination mission!

"You… still want to fight?"

Minato, visibly moved, stared at the gravely injured Uchiha Ci.

Uchiha Ci couldn't respond verbally, but his steadfast gaze spoke volumes.

After a brief silence, Minato understood. He interpreted it as Ci's dying wish. Resolving himself, Minato reached into his tool pouch and retrieved a specially crafted kunai. Kneeling down, he gently placed it into Uchiha Ci's hand.

"Then please watch my back, Uchiha Ci! This is our fight together."

"With that, let's call this move—"

"Combo Technique: Flash Super Wheel Dance Howl Farewell Slash!"

Minato's voice trembled slightly as he spoke the name, averting his gaze from Ci's battered form. Steeling himself, he gave a resolute shout:

"Are you ready? Let's go!"

In the blink of an eye, Minato vanished, leaving only a blur of yellow light behind. His speed surpassed even Ebizō's flame-boosted propulsion, closing the distance between them in an instant.

Meanwhile, Uchiha Ci regained control of his body despite the lingering effects of the neurotoxin. His state resembled the time he was trapped in Uchiha Shinichi's genjutsu, where his body felt inverted and uncoordinated. But he quickly adapted.

Opening his mouth, Ci's body split apart, revealing a fully healed version of himself crawling out. With half his form still stuck in the remnants of his previous body, he watched Minato's retreating figure and muttered in exasperation:

"What kind of lousy name is that?"

"Flash Super Wheel Dance Howl Farewell Slash?!"

Shaking his head, Ci grabbed the specialized kunai from his previous body's hand and retrieved another Flying Thunder God kunai from the sand.

Holding both kunai between his fingers and unsheathing the Kusanagi Sword with his other hand, his crimson snake-like eyes narrowed at the fleeing Ebizō. A grin spread across his face.

"You're wrong!"

"This move should be called—"

"Combo Technique: Flash Super Wheel Dance Howl Immortal Triple Slash!"