"So you're leaving the village again, Minato?" Kushina pouted, her face clearly showing her displeasure.
Minato gently patted her head. "Don't worry. If I'm right, within a month, the other villages will be begging me to come back."
"It's a good plan," Sarutobi Hiruzen grunted, his pipe clenched between his teeth, his brow furrowed. "But this will inevitably stain your reputation with the mark of a Rogue Ninja."
He wasn't worried about anyone using this to harm Minato. In his eyes, Minato's actions would be dismissed as childish folly at worst. But to Hiruzen, who saw Minato as the perfect successor, the title of Rogue Ninja was an indelible stain.
Minato seemed intrigued. "What kind of stain is that? I've never been a Rogue Ninja before. It could be an interesting new experience."
Sarutobi Hiruzen:
If anyone else had said that, he would have sent them straight to the interrogation department to have their ideology straightened out.
But Minato—
As he said, if he wanted to become a Rogue Ninja, no one could stop him, right?
Though it was a bit unconventional, it was actually a good plan.
If Namikaze Minato has already defected from the village and you still target the Land of Fire, it proves you're deliberately provoking us.
When that happens, Konoha will naturally regret its decision and bring Minato back, then we'll fight you fairly!
No one could fault that logic!
With this thought, Sarutobi Hiruzen hardened his resolve: "Let's do it! According to the intelligence, this incident originated from Kirigakure, initiated by the Third Mizukage."
Minato nodded in understanding: "So it's Kirigakure—"
"Hmph, those bastards! They don't dare fight us head-on, so they resort to these underhanded tactics!" Nawaki snorted. "We encountered them during our mission in Whirlpool Country, but they fled in panic without even saying hello."
Sarutobi Hiruzen shook his head and chuckled. If Minato hadn't been present, it would have been a matter of whether to greet them or not.
"When do you plan to depart?" Sarutobi Hiruzen asked.
"Right now. The sooner we resolve this, the better. Once it's settled, I'll return to the village and surrender."
Minato spoke, turning to Kushina and Mikoto beside him. "You two stay here in the village and wait for me to return."
"..."
"Fine~" Kushina pouted, reluctant.
Mikoto gently squeezed Minato's hand, her voice soft. "Remember to come home early."
"Mmm—" Minato nodded.
Nawaki watched the lingering romantic tension between the three with a look of disgust.
Sarutobi Hiruzen's mouth twitched. He didn't envy Minato's strength, but he truly envied his ability to charm women!
After leaving a small bag of Wood Clone Seeds for Kushina and Mikoto, Minato used the Flying Thunder God Technique to depart the village.
Soon, news that shook Konoha spread from the Hokage Building: The Yellow Flash of Konoha, a war hero, had publicly defected from the village, citing dissatisfaction with international pressure and the leadership's decisions. He even vowed to retaliate against the villages pressuring Konoha!
Simultaneously, Sarutobi Hiruzen issued a formal notice to all Shinobi World villages, the core message of which could be summarized as:
Namikaze Minato possesses abilities such as the Flying Thunder God Technique, Wood Release, and Light Release. Konoha is no longer able to effectively restrain his actions. All villages are advised to strengthen their defenses and take appropriate measures.
No sooner had the news been released than the Hokage Building was surrounded by villagers, packed so tightly that not a drop of water could pass through.
"How is this possible? Lord Minato was a war hero! Why would he betray the village?"
"I can't understand it. I heard he was a candidate for Hokage. Why would he do something so drastic?"
"It's all the fault of these other nations! If they hadn't pressured the Daimyo's Office, Minato wouldn't have betrayed the village!"
The crowd buzzed with noise, but the major clans merely smiled and dismissed the news.
Sacrificing one person for the continuation of the clan was a common occurrence in almost every family. Besides, Minato had merely severed his ties to the clan; for the clan's ninja, such things were commonplace.
Other villages naturally understood this as well, but what could they do about it?
Rogue ninja were a common occurrence in every village. Anyone who wanted to condemn the act should first round up their own rogue ninja.
Meanwhile, Minato wasn't in a hurry to settle the score with Kirigakure.
Instead, he first went to a nearby town to commission a custom outfit.
The moment he put on the black coat with red clouds, the aura of a rogue ninja radiated from him!
Looking at Namikaze Minato in the mirror—the Akatsuki special edition—Minato nodded in satisfaction.
After all, he was a rogue ninja; he had to make it convincing. He pulled out a kunai and slashed a mark across his forehead protector.
"You—you—!"
The shopkeeper nearly wet himself at this display.
This place was close to Konoha, and he'd seen ninjas before. He knew exactly what Minato's actions meant.
Minato offered no explanation. After paying, he left.
He spent two days wandering the Land of Fire with his rogue ninja forehead protector.
Estimating that news of his defection had spread to all the villages, he finally arrived at the docks and boarded a merchant ship bound for the Land of Water.
Meanwhile, in Kirigakure, the Third Mizukage stared at the notice from Konoha. His usually narrowed eyes widened, and his mind buzzed like a trapped fly.
"Defected?"
Truthfully, he had never wanted a direct confrontation with Minato.
But as he'd said before, if Minato wasn't restrained, no one else could expand their influence.
Moreover, if the Land of Water and the Land of Wind went to war, and the Land of Wind hired Minato with a hefty sum, what hope would they have?
Though it seemed inexplicable, the procedure itself was entirely by the book.
"How could he defect?!"
The Third Mizukage's voice was hoarse. This was the last outcome he had wanted.
His original plan was to unite the other nations in pressuring Konoha, forcing this troublesome monster to remain within the village's rules and responsibilities. A genius constrained by the village would still offer room for negotiation and checks and balances, no matter how powerful.
He had been highly confident in this plan. After all, Minato was only eight years old, an age when emotions ran high.
But he never could have imagined that the boy would throw the script out the window and defect on the spot!
Though it was obvious to anyone paying attention that this "defection" was just a performance for outsiders, it effectively absolved the Land of Fire and Konoha of responsibility, while cornering the allied nations who had been pressuring them.
"Namikaze Minato—"
The Third Mizukage closed his eyes. The name weighed on him more heavily than Kirigakure's dense fog.
Flying Thunder God Technique, Wood Release, Light Release, and a speed so extreme that even the Third Kazekage couldn't resist—
The village's barrier was practically useless against him. They couldn't even predict when or how he might appear.
He might blast through this Mizukage office with Wood Release in the next second!
Boom!!!
As if on cue, a violent explosion shook the village gates—
The Third Mizukage sprang to his feet, his face grim.
He had come!
And so quickly!
Please Support me by becoming my patreon member and get 10+ chapters.
[email protected]/Ajal69
change @ with a
Thank You to Those who joined my Patreon