Chapter 301: The Returned Minato Namikaze
If they had followed the original plan, mincing up the evil personality within Kurama Yakumo and paying back interest at a rate of "nine out for thirteen back" wouldn't have even covered the cost of one of the Yin Nine-Tails' tails.
Even if it was only half of the Nine-Tails, its chakra was still unbelievably vast.
For the Shinigami old pal, Minato Namikaze using the Reaper Death Seal to summon it was originally just an ordinary mission. It never expected to encounter such a massive "buy one, get ten thousand free" stroke of luck, with the Yin Nine-Tails practically gifted to it. The Shinigami laughed like a pig squealing; in its heart, Minato Namikaze was definitely the number one biggest sucker in the universe.
Now, Ino wanting Minato Namikaze's soul was no problem. But to take away the Yin Nine-Tails, even with their deep friendship, and even though the Shinigami found her increasingly endearing, it was still a no-go. The value of five gates couldn't compare to one Yin Nine-Tails. More money was needed!
Ino hadn't initially coveted the Yin Nine-Tails, but now that the opportunity presented itself, she naturally wasn't willing to give it up.
Although the Yin Nine-Tails could be controlled by the Mangekyo Sharingan, in terms of actual value, this thing was no less valuable than a Mangekyo.
Ino's chakra was several times greater than that of an ordinary person, but to skillfully use Wood Release, the more chakra, the better.
Sage Mode, Sage Body, Sage Eye, and even the future Shintenshin no Kami technique all required a massive amount of chakra. It could be said that chakra was the foundation of everything.
There was no need to give the Yin Nine-Tails back to Minato Namikaze. Anyway, he had the Flying Thunder God Technique and Rasengan, more than enough to deal with Tobi. What did he need so much chakra for? It was a complete waste!
She had worked so hard to resurrect him, selfless and noble. Now, she would just take the Yin Nine-Tails as her reward.
An energetic young man like Naruto was better suited to the Yang Nine-Tails. She would reluctantly bear it; her personal temperament could afford to be a bit more "yin." From now on, she would bear the Yin Nine-Tails' chakra for him!
She conveyed her intentions to the Shinigami: Help me separate Minato Namikaze and the Yin Nine-Tails. I have an insider here, so let's terminate the transaction for now. You keep the Yin Nine-Tails for me, and we'll discuss it in detail next time.
The Shinigami naturally had no objections. It gripped its short-bladed scythe in reverse, and like a samurai committing seppuku, it stabbed itself in the stomach, then forcefully slashed. A large amount of black-red chakra was separated. A pale blue halo of light fell to the ground, gradually stretching into a human form, finally transforming into a young, handsome man: Minato Namikaze.
The Shinigami departed, and the ominous wind in the room vanished. Yet Minato Namikaze still stood there, his eyes remaining closed for a long time.
Without needing Ino's explanation, everyone could see a layer of black-red chakra on the surface of his body. This chakra was extremely violent, though limited in quantity, and was slowly being suppressed by Minato Namikaze.
Ino said nothing. The Nine-Tails' chakra is truly immense! Even with the Yin Nine-Tails' main body separated, Minato Namikaze still emerged with a bit of Nine-Tails chakra.
After about five minutes, Minato Namikaze opened his eyes. Seeing the faces of the crowd, he looked somewhat surprised. "Master Jiraiya, Lady Tsunade, Lord... Orochimaru? All three of you are here. This is... eh? Are you Kakashi? You're even taller than me now. It seems I've been dead for many years, haven't I?"
The others nodded and stepped back, leaving space for master and disciple.
Tsunade put her arm around Ino's shoulder and asked in a low voice, "You didn't lose out, did you?"
Ino glanced at the expressionless Orochimaru in the distance. "Thanks to the contribution of a kindhearted person, I didn't even use my principal and actually made a small profit."
She showed Tsunade her Shinigami prayer beads. The transaction was postponed until next time. As a testament to their friendship, the string of beads in her hand had now increased to a full thirty-six beads, significantly enhancing their effectiveness for soul summoning, meditation, and spiritual communication.
"Hahahaha, we master and disciple just have good luck, always running into such big suckers—hahahaha!" Tsunade laughed very arrogantly. Orochimaru wore a faint, unreadable smile, seemingly unconcerned.
Tsunade brought up the matter of the First Hokage, hoping to have her grandfather released as well.
Ino could only shake her head. "Sorry, Teacher. Lord First's situation is very special; I'm afraid it will be very difficult to release him."
"Why?"
"...I'm not sure of the specific reasons either. Anyway, in the Shinigami's eyes, Lord First's value is far greater than that of the Second, the Fourth, and that Orochimaru over there combined. Hmm, it should be said that his value is several times higher than the sum of those three."
Tsunade was very puzzled. "Really? Besides being a bit foolish, does my grandfather have any other value? No matter how I think about it, he shouldn't be worth more than my granduncle Second."
"Perhaps he has shining points that even you haven't discovered?"
"My grandfather was addicted to gambling. Does that count as a shining point?"
Ino gave a dry laugh. The truth was, the First Hokage's soul was comparable in value to the Yin Nine-Tails, perhaps even slightly higher; it was definitely of immense value.
Neither master nor disciple mentioned the Third Hokage at all. Don't ask. If asked, the answer was that the "Strongest Hokage," once freed, would cause panic throughout the entire ninja world, so the Shinigami wouldn't release him.
The group excluded Orochimaru and quietly discussed the Sand Collapse Plan.
From the bottom of her heart, Ino truly felt it was unnecessary. Can't we just create some chaos and then go in and kidnap the eighty-year-old lady? Why make such a big deal out of it? The Sand hit Konoha with a stick, and now you want to retaliate? Are you children?
But she hadn't expected that among those privy to this matter, from Jiraiya, Shikaku, and Kakashi at the top, down to Iruka, everyone's tone was surprisingly consistent.
That is, an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth!
From top to bottom, they were all bottling up this resentment. If there was no opportunity, fine, but if there was, they would definitely cripple the other side!
Jiraiya and Minato Namikaze talked for a full half-hour, discussing the ninja world, Akatsuki, and the series of events that occurred after his death.
As a Hokage and a father, Minato Namikaze had sufficient sense of responsibility. Jiraiya subconsciously still treated him as a disciple, a child, but in reality, anyone who could reach this stage and become Hokage would certainly weigh the pros and cons. His resurrection now was necessary for Konoha Village; damaging relations with the Sand Village for this was justifiable.
Minato and Jiraiya rejoined the group. He smiled and greeted everyone one by one.
Even as a ghost, Minato Namikaze was the most cheerful and sunny of the five Hokages Ino had seen. The Third and Fifth were old perverts, making it hard for people to feel much genuine respect for them. The First was a bit simple-minded, and the Second appeared quite shrewd. These two were very approachable, but no matter how approachable they were, as patriarchs of the renowned Senju clan, they weren't commoners. Their words, actions, and overall demeanor showed a huge gap between them and the common people.
Minato Namikaze was different. There was a warmth in his every word and deed, as if he were just the big brother next door. You could talk to him about anything. He might not have been a good leader, but he was definitely a perfect man.
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