Naruto: Maelstrom Of The Uzumaki

When Raiden led the troops to regroup with Namikaze Minato and the others, the sky was already turning dark. After several hours of rest, Minato and his team were in much better spirits.

Seeing Raiden return, Minato stepped forward, concerned about the identity of their powerful opponent:

"Raiden, who were the Iwa shinobi that intercepted us? They were incredibly strong."

"Did your troops manage to catch up?"

Raiden didn't hide anything and explained:

"You encountered the two commanders Iwa has stationed at the border. One is Kitsuchi, the son of the Third Tsuchikage, Ōnoki. He's a tall, strong man."

"The other, that old man, is Roshi, the Four-Tails Jinchuriki. He possesses the Lava Release Kekkei Genkai. He has mastered a certain level of control over his tailed beast, making him a formidable enemy."

Raiden glanced at Minato with a faint smirk.

"With these three burdens, you managed to hold on until we arrived. Minato, your strength is truly impressive."

"Although we pursued them, they left over 20 shinobi behind to cover their retreat. In the end, we couldn't catch up."

While Raiden spoke, he cast a glance at Obito and the others, silently evaluating Minato's team.

Obito, clueless about the meaning of "Jinchuriki" or "tailed beast," curiously asked,

"Minato-sensei, what is a tailed beast? And what's a Jinchuriki? Are they really strong?"

Rin also looked puzzled. Unlike Kakashi, who had learned many secrets from his father, both Rin and Obito had little knowledge of such matters. Rin was a civilian ninja, and Obito, raised by his grandmother, had no one to explain these things to him.

"Tailed beasts are physical manifestations of chakra, essentially extremely powerful monsters," Minato began explaining.

"A Jinchuriki is someone who serves as a living container, sealing these monsters within their bodies."

"There are nine tailed beasts in total, each named based on the number of their tails. Roshi, who Raiden mentioned, is the Jinchuriki of the Four-Tails."

Hearing this explanation, Obito nodded in realization. However, another question quickly formed in his mind. Tugging at Minato's sleeve, he asked,

"Hey, hey, if Iwa has these things, then doesn't Konoha have something similar? If not, how can we fight them?"

His innocent curiosity made Minato look slightly embarrassed. Kakashi lowered his gaze, while Raiden's expression turned unreadable. The identity of Konoha's Nine-Tails Jinchuriki was an open secret among those in the know, but it was strictly forbidden by the Third Hokage to speak of it publicly.

Obito's phrasing, referring to Jinchuriki as "things," only added to Minato's discomfort.

"Kid, that's a good question," Raiden finally said, emphasizing the word "thing" as he playfully knocked Obito on the head. Leaning in close, he whispered:

"The 'thing' you're talking about is me."

Even Obito, as naive as he was, realized his mistake. His face turned pale, and he stammered,

"I-I'm sorry! I didn't know the thing was you—I mean, I didn't know you were the Jinchuriki!"

Raiden chuckled softly. "Simple brat," he muttered before turning serious.

"Now that Roshi and Kitsuchi have escaped, they'll likely regroup and assemble reinforcements to surround us," Raiden said.

Minato interjected, "Shouldn't we retreat quickly, then? They've had enough time to rest."

"No," Raiden replied, shaking his head. "I had a plan from the moment I knew you were delivering supplies here. Now is the perfect time to execute it."

"Shibi, bring me the item," Raiden called out.

Aburame Shibi stepped forward, producing a container resembling a rice cooker from his pack.

"This... is a stew pot?" Minato asked hesitantly, while Kakashi, Obito, and Rin peered at it curiously.

"Are you hungry?" Raiden shot Minato an annoyed look. "This is a sealing container. I'm going to hunt the Four-Tails."

Raiden's words stunned Minato. "You're planning to hunt the Four-Tails?! But Iwa has stationed countless shinobi along this front. How is that even possible?!"

Raiden grinned. "It wasn't possible before. That old man, Roshi, always moves with a large army."

"But now that you're here, it's doable. I need you to help me. During the battle, use the Flying Raijin technique to teleport both me and Roshi to a battlefield I've prepared."

Minato's sharp mind quickly grasped the plan. At that moment, Hizashi approached Raiden and whispered,

"The barrier team is already in position, and our reinforcements from the stronghold are en route."

"Good," Raiden nodded, then turned to Minato. "I've prepared everything. Minato, from this moment, I'm in charge of you."

"I'll explain everything to the Hokage afterward," Raiden added.

Minato hesitated but couldn't bring himself to refuse. Typically, such a high-risk mission would require prior approval from the Hokage, but it was clear Raiden hadn't sought any.

"You three, rest up," Raiden said, addressing Kakashi, Obito, and Rin. "When the battle begins, your teacher won't have time to babysit you."

"If you want to survive on the battlefield, you'll need to rely on yourselves. Remember my words."

With that, Raiden sent Minato off to prepare for the battle, a sharp glint in his eye as he muttered under his breath:

"Roshi, take your time. Let me get ready."

(End of Chapter)