"Hatani, it's the middle of the night. Why did you drag me all the way out here?"
Yawning with a mix of exhaustion and confusion, Minato looked at his younger brother, then at the surrounding waist-high wild grass—foliage so thick you could hide a hundred people in it without a trace. Finally losing his patience, he shook off Hatani's hand and demanded an answer.
Having just received the scrolls for the Flying Raijin, his time was currently beyond precious.
Hatani closed his eyes briefly, confirming one last time that no one was nearby. He opened them and looked Minato dead in the eye.
"Minato, promise me. No matter what I tell you or what you're about to see, you cannot tell a soul. Not even Kushina!"
Even as he spoke, Hatani couldn't help but keep his voice to a low, urgent whisper.
"What is it?"
The sleepiness vanished from Minato's face instantly. His gaze turned sharp, almost suspicious. Hide it even from Kushina? That was asking him to tread on dangerous ground. He was devoted to Kushina with his whole—
But his internal monologue was cut short. For the first time in his life, Minato's eyes bugged out of his head.
"Holy crap!"
A phrase he had picked up from Hatani years ago—but had stopped using because he found it uncouth—burst from his lips with perfect, shocked articulation.
The reason for Minato's total loss of composure was simple: Hatani had just flexed. He had used the Blink Dagger.
"Hatani... you... you just..."
Looking at the space where Hatani had stood a second ago, and then at Hatani himself, now standing over ten meters away, Minato found himself tongued-tied. He struggled to process the sheer impossibility of what he'd just seen.
Shua!
Fifteen seconds passed in a heartbeat. Hatani activated the Blink Dagger again, appearing right in front of Minato.
"Hatani, have you... have you already mastered the Flying Raijin?"
After a few seconds of recovery, Minato finally regained his voice.
"Even you haven't found a starting point yet. Do you really think I could?"
Hatani felt a familiar twinge of annoyance at the unfairness of the heavens. His tone carried a hint of bitterness. "I can only do this because of this."
He pulled out the Blink Dagger. Because he'd been humbled by his brother's talent so many times before, the frustration passed quickly.
"Huh?"
Minato stared blankly at the short dagger. It looked sleek, but otherwise perfectly ordinary. A few metaphorical question marks popped up above his head.
"Take it. Now, focus on where you want to go."
Since the item had already undergone the "blood-bonding ritual," Hatani wasn't sure if it would work for anyone else, but he shoved the dagger into Minato's hand anyway.
Skeptical, Minato took the weapon. He examined it closely for a moment before looking toward the spot Hatani had just teleported to.
The next instant, the thought had barely formed in his mind before he was already there.
"This is..."
His eyes widened again. His disbelief was now mixed with pure, unadulterated excitement. Eager to experience the sensation again, he tried to trigger it a second time, but the dagger remained inert.
"You have to wait fifteen seconds," Hatani called out, guessing the cause of his brother's confusion. "Wait for the blade to start glowing again."
Inwardly, Hatani couldn't help but mutter another grievance. Seriously? Why did it work for him? Is Minato really the protagonist here? Am I just some NPC quest-giver handing out legendary loot?
Shua!
As soon as the cooldown reset, Minato blinked back to Hatani's side.
"Hatani, this... what is this blade?"
As he basked in the strange, residual thrill of the teleportation, Minato asked the question burning in his heart.
"Don't worry about where it came from. I'm lending it to you for now. I want you to use it to get used to the 'feeling' of space-time travel. It should help you master the Flying Raijin faster."
Showing the effect and lending the item was Hatani's limit. He wouldn't say another word about its origins. It wasn't that he didn't trust his brother—otherwise, they wouldn't be out here—but the truth was so bizarre he feared Minato wouldn't be able to handle it.
Truthfully, if he didn't need Minato to master the Flying Raijin as a "cover story" so he could eventually use the Blink Dagger without suspicion, he might never have revealed it at all.
"I understand. Hatani... thank you."
Minato had known his brother was "special" since they were ten years old. He didn't push for answers. He simply gripped the hilt, nodded to Hatani, and gave him a warm, grateful smile.
"Heh. If you really want to thank me, just master the Flying Raijin as fast as you can."
Even with the Blink Dagger, Hatani was still incredibly envious of the actual Flying Raijin. After all, while the dagger didn't require pre-placed formulas or chakra, it had a fifteen-second cooldown and a range limit. Twelve hundred meters was a lot, but compared to the infinite reach of a Flying Raijin seal, it was like comparing a firecracker to a supernova.
"With the help of this... 'Blink Dagger,' I'm confident I can solve the theories I was struggling with much sooner," Minato said with absolute certainty.
Pffft!
The moment the blade glowed white again, Minato vanished.
Hatani shook his head with a wry smile. He had wanted to ask about the underlying logic of space-time theory, but he let the thought go. For now, he stayed alert, sensing the surroundings to ensure they weren't discovered. Simultaneously, he pulled a standard short sword from his back—one he'd grabbed from logistics—and began his kenjutsu drills.
He had told Sakumo he would "observe" when the man taught Kakashi back in the village, but he wasn't about to wait that long to start. Every time Team Sakumo took a break during patrols, Hatani would pester the White Fang for pointers.
His foundation was weak. He had to make every second count.
Hatani and Minato both threw themselves into their training, desperate to grow stronger in the precious time they had left.
But reality was not inclined to give them much time.
After three days of initial skirmishing—where both sides lost nearly a hundred scouts—Ohnoki finally reached his limit.
As the Tsuchikage who had initiated the war to carry the hopes of his village and nation, Ohnoki was under immense pressure. For Konoha, who had just finished a brutal war with Suna and Ame, a stalemated defense was a victory. For Iwa, failing to gain ground was a catastrophic defeat.
Under the weight of that pressure, the "Old Stone" himself finally gave the order. Iwagakure launched its full-scale offensive against Konoha.
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