In the corner, Naruto woke up dazed, but soon fell back asleep under a Genjutsu.
Masahiko stood in the corner.
The one holding Naruto was the real body!
At that time, the moment he made the Shadow Clone hand seal, he used the Body Flicker Technique to swap places, using high-speed movement and the momentary clone to deceive Yakumo.
Now that the plan was complete and Naruto was no longer needed inside the Barrier, he opened a corner of the Barrier to send Naruto out.
Kakashi took him at the entrance.
Outside, Hiruzen Sarutobi formed hand seals, and the Sealing Jutsu formulas inside the room quickly converged onto Ido.
On the outside, Inoichi Yamanaka mobilized his spiritual power, striking at Ido with all his might.
This usage was simple and crude, with little effect, and normally no one would use it this way, but if it was just to suppress Ido, it wasn't a big problem.
Masahiko used the Body Flicker to get close to Ido.
Powerful Chakra surged out, temporarily pinning Ido down.
The next second, dark Chakra erupted, Ido shrieked, and the Chakra combined with the hallucinatory power sent Masahiko flying.
But only halfway through, Masahiko had already broken free from the Genjutsu, and a burst of water from beneath him allowed him to stabilize his body.
During that moment of entanglement, the Sealing Jutsu formulas had already been gathering around her.
Ido sensed the danger and was filled with terror.
Her body turned pitch black as she tried to merge into Yakumo, but Yakumo Kurama's mind resisted intensely, and at the same time—
Chains formed from the formulas converged from four directions, pinning her down.
This was the Four Symbols Seal formula!
Ido screamed in terror and anger:
"Yakumo!! You can't do this to me!"
"I am you!"
Later, the anger turned into begging.
"I am your other side, I'm helping you! Let me back! No! Let me back! That way I won't..."
"I am who I am, I don't need another side like you."
Yakumo Kurama's tone was cold.
"Ah!!!"
As Masahiko said, although she had obtained dark Chakra, she was essentially still a part of Yakumo and was constrained by Yakumo to a certain extent.
One waxed as the other waned.
Yakumo's conviction became firmer, and with the effect of the Sealing Jutsu, Ido couldn't break free from the formula at all.
She wailed as she was compressed and sealed by the Four Symbols Seal.
But the dark Chakra kept crashing against the outer wall within the seal, and pitch-black mist leaked out from the gaps in the Four Symbols Seal.
At this point, the Barrier was removed.
"Apply another layer of the seal!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi entered with the Body Flicker.
"Hiruzen, I'll help you!"
The next second, Danzo also appeared with the Body Flicker.
The two formed hand seals simultaneously, performing the Sealing Jutsu together, and completed the Four Symbols Seal in the blink of an eye.
The Chakra of the Third Hokage and Danzo erupted together, and even the mutated Ido was forcefully suppressed, the black mist completely retracting into the seal.
Hiruzen Sarutobi moved, pushing the seal toward Yakumo Kurama.
The next moment, traces of the sealing formula appeared on Yakumo's abdomen.
Danzo also completed a new seal—
Another layer of the Four Symbols Seal was pressed onto Yakumo Kurama's sealing spot with his palm.
The double seal formed a state similar to the Eight Trigrams.
Hiruzen Sarutobi finally breathed a sigh of relief and said, "It's a success!"
Danzo stood by, looking calm and composed.
But at this moment, Yakumo Kurama's mood was low.
She lowered her head and asked softly, "Hokage-sama, Teacher... can I still be a Ninja?"
"Hahaha, of course!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi smiled kindly.
He patted Yakumo's head and said, "Your teacher risked his life for you exactly to fulfill your wish and let you continue being a Ninja."
Danzo glanced at Hiruzen Sarutobi, then looked at the respectful Yagyū Masahiko, remaining silent.
"Teacher!"
Yakumo Kurama looked up, her eyes red as she looked at Masahiko.
Masahiko smiled and said, "Actually, it wasn't that dangerous..."
"Alright, Yakumo, get some sleep first. You can go to school when you wake up."
Hiruzen Sarutobi said gently.
While speaking, he quietly used a Genjutsu technique.
Although Yakumo Kurama was exceptionally gifted, she was exhausted at this time and didn't resist much, immediately falling into a hypnotic sleep.
The room fell into silence.
After watching the Medical Squad take Yakumo and Naruto away, Danzo finally said, "Well done."
"It was the support of Hokage-sama and Advisor-sama that gave me the confidence."
Masahiko replied respectfully.
Danzo said, "Your plan succeeded, which is good, but what if the deception hadn't worked?"
"Then we would have had to isolate Yakumo first and let her overcome her slowly."
Masahiko answered.
He wasn't sure if the so-called Tailed Beast Chakra replacement and consumption would succeed; what if a small portion of the Nine-Tailed Chakra was also consumed by Ido?
Therefore, those words earlier were to deceive Ido.
The main purpose of setting up such a large operation was to make Ido believe everything was real, driving her to act out of desperation.
Hearing this, a look of appreciation appeared in Danzo's eyes.
Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed softly, "Fortunately, it was a success!"
He looked at Masahiko, hesitating to speak.
Masahiko understood and immediately said, "Hokage-sama, I'll go to the hospital to check."
"Good, go ahead."
Hiruzen Sarutobi smiled.
After he left, Hiruzen Sarutobi's face turned cold, and he stared at Danzo: "This Chakra... do you recognize it?"
"Although I haven't seen those symbols before, the Chakra feels somewhat familiar."
Danzo sneered, "It seems some old friend hasn't died completely and has jumped out again to deal with us!"
"Investigate!"
...Outside.
Kakashi was leaning against the wall, holding a book in his hand. When he saw Masahiko come out, he closed the pages.
He stared at Masahiko, his exposed eye showing a hint of gloom.
A few seconds later, he said, "Congratulations, you saved your student. However, only you would dare to propose such a plan."
"There was no other way."
Masahiko sighed.
Then, he looked at Kakashi and asked, "Naruto's situation..."
Kakashi was silent for a few seconds and said, "Hokage-sama's intention is to keep it sealed for now. Naruto is too young and isn't suitable for using that much Chakra yet."
"Alright."
Masahiko nodded.
The characteristic of the Eight Trigrams Seal is that it can slowly convert the Chakra leaking from the seal into one's own.
This was also why the Eight Trigrams Seal was used on Yakumo—
The Third Hokage and Danzo hoped to use this method to convert Ido's Chakra for Yakumo's use, improving her weak body over time.
"Then, I'll head to the hospital first. Kurenai and Senior Murakumo might still be waiting."
"Mm."
Kakashi nodded, watching Masahiko leave.
He took out his book and walked slowly toward the Memorial Stone.
The past will never return.
Back then, he didn't have Masahiko's current ability, nor did he have such favorable conditions.
There are no 'what ifs' in life.
But his heart still grew a bit heavier... Konoha Hospital.
Kurenai Yuhi was comforting the Murakumo Kurama couple.
Seeing Masahiko arrive, she immediately stood up, her anxiety showing slightly but quickly being reined in.
"Masahiko, Yakumo..."
"Everyone, don't worry. Yakumo will rest for a night and can go to school as usual tomorrow."
Masahiko's voice was steady.
"Masahiko-sensei, truly... thank you so much!"
Murakumo Kurama bowed deeply, his voice choking up.
As the former head of the Kurama Clan and a Jonin of the village, he could naturally hear some news.
Yakumo's situation had not been optimistic earlier.
To calm his wife's emotions, he hadn't shown it before, but now that he had news of Yakumo's safety, how could he not know who had put in the effort?
It must have been Masahiko who saved Yakumo!
Kurenai Yuhi's eyes flickered with light.
She was very aware of Yakumo's obsession.
If Yakumo really couldn't be a Ninja, she could hardly imagine what Yakumo's mental state would be like.
Being able to continue going to school was naturally for the best.
Masahiko stepped aside, unwilling to accept the gesture: "I am her teacher, and it was my suggestion for Yakumo to go to school, so naturally, I have to be responsible to the end."
Then, he smiled: "As for the matter of going to school later... she's in my class, so you two don't have to worry at all."
"Thank you!"
The couple bowed repeatedly, unable to say anything more.