Chapter 249: Minato: "I Wish I Could Be a Jinchūriki"

At this point in time, the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist had only been formed recently, and with the Water Country's closed-off nature, there was very little information about them.

The outside world knew that Mist Village had trained a group of highly skilled swordsmen, but as for the details about their seven swords, not much was known. Even Konoha hadn't gathered much intel.

They only knew that Samehada could absorb an enemy's chakra and transfer it to its wielder.

"Move a little," Takuya said, tapping Samehada's hilt.

Samehada made a strange noise, and its previously flat body swelled up. A row of sharp spikes stood up along its surface, making it look more like a blue spiked club than a sword.

"Emmmmmm..." Minato stared, dumbfounded.

Mist Village truly lived up to its reputation as the strangest of the Five Great Shinobi Villages. Not only were its people weird-looking, but even its weapons were downright bizarre.

After retracting its spikes, Samehada's hilt greedily wrapped itself around Takuya's wrist, like it wanted more. It was obvious Samehada enjoyed absorbing Takuya's chakra. The mix of human and tailed-beast chakra had left the living sword practically addicted.

Looking at it now, it didn't even resemble a sword at all. No wonder Samehada's attack style was more about shredding or smashing things.

Minato shook his head, a bit troubled. "Takuya, I feel like my fighting style is getting too predictable."

Due to his mastery of the Flying Thunder God Technique, Minato rarely bothered with learning other types of ninjutsu. As a result, his arsenal of techniques was relatively small, and the more he relied on Flying Thunder God, the more predictable his attacks became.

"It's true that your style has become a bit one-dimensional," Takuya said. "If you ever encounter an enemy that counters you or has a way to neutralize your abilities, it'll be tough."

Of course, Minato could always run if things went south.

With the Flying Thunder God Technique, there were few people who could actually stop him from escaping. But the problem was, who would want to run if they could win the fight? And what if you had to stop the enemy, but you couldn't beat them?

"Just diversify your offensive techniques a bit," Takuya advised.

It was clear that Minato was aware of his limitations and wanted to expand his range of attacks so he wouldn't be so easily countered.

Ninjutsu: Wind Style: Ultra Spiral Blue Chakra Bomb?

Takuya froze for a second, and then suddenly burst out laughing. Minato was infamous for being terrible at naming things—just like when he first created the Rasengan. In the end, Jiraiya couldn't stand it anymore and changed the name to Rasengan.

Thinking back to how people had mocked Minato for his naming skills in his previous life, Takuya couldn't help but laugh even harder.

Minato blinked in confusion. "???"

What's so funny about me trying to improve my fighting style?

"Why not use a weapon while you're using Flying Thunder God?" Takuya asked, his laughter finally subsiding.

Minato pulled out a kunai and handed it to Takuya. "It's tricky. At first, I kept hurting myself. Eventually, I got better at it, but there's still a problem. The best solution would be if I could use ninjutsu while teleporting with Flying Thunder God."

"Tailed Beast Bomb?" Takuya suggested casually, raising a hand as chakra gathered in his palm, slowly forming a miniature version of a Tailed Beast Bomb.

"Come on, where am I supposed to find a Snowy of my own?" Minato let his arms fall limply to his sides, looking defeated. "Can't you give me some more realistic advice?"

And anyway, Snowy was ridiculously overpowered. A summon that could use Tailed Beast Bombs? Not to mention the insane amount of chakra it had. It wasn't enough that Takuya was overpowered—his pet was just as monstrous.

"Ugh..." Takuya shook his head and kicked Minato lightly. "I was just giving you a hint. You should try using pure chakra. I think it could work."

Takuya wasn't too interested in fiddling with the Rasengan or trying to modify it. For him, the Spiral Tailed Beast Bomb was a lot more fun—a trick he'd developed by combining Snowy's chakra into a mini-Tailed Beast Bomb, similar to a Rasengan.

The only problem? The damn thing was a bit too dangerous. It was powerful, but not stable, and if he wasn't careful, it could blow him up along with everything else.

It was definitely a move made more for showing off than practical combat.

Even the smallest version of the attack made Minato envious. He'd been imagining how incredible it would be if he could pull off the same thing—teleport to his enemy with Flying Thunder God, then drop a Tailed Beast Bomb on their heads before teleporting away.

Leaving behind an utterly confused enemy and a massive explosion.

"I've tried it, but I've never been able to get it to work," Minato admitted with a sigh. "If only I had a Snowy, or maybe even a tailed beast... then I could make a Spiral Tailed Beast Bomb too!"

"Keep dreaming," Takuya shot down the idea immediately.

There were only nine tailed beasts in existence, and Snowy was an exception. The fact that Minato was thinking of turning a tailed beast into a chakra battery was just insane.

Was he seriously wishing to become a jinchūriki? Most people were terrified of the idea, and here Minato was, actively wanting one.

Where on earth was he going to get a tailed beast?

Wait a minute!

Takuya suddenly froze and turned to Minato. "You're not afraid of becoming a jinchūriki and being discriminated against?"

Minato shrugged casually. "Does anyone dare to discriminate against Kushina?"

"Well... no."

Takuya was left speechless. It was true. Most people didn't even know Kushina's identity, and the ones who did wouldn't dare mess with her. The mountainside that Kushina and Nine-Tails had obliterated with a Tailed Beast Bomb was still barren, with no plant life growing back yet.

Piss off Kushina, and she'd just let Nine-Tails take over and throw a Tailed Beast Bomb your way.

Honestly, Takuya thought that given enough time, Kushina might even become a perfect jinchūriki.

"Besides, you're the one who said it yourself—strength is what matters. If you're strong enough, nobody will dare discriminate against you," Minato said confidently.

"And you're not worried about going mad from it?" Takuya asked, amazed at how serious Minato was about this jinchūriki idea.

"I trust myself," Minato said, patting his chest.

Big deal!

Of course, Minato had confidence in himself. And why wouldn't he? Even Naruto had struggled to master becoming a jinchūriki, but Minato? He sealed himself with half of Kurama's chakra, then emerged over a decade later as a perfect jinchūriki.

That kind of talent was something you couldn't help but admire.

"Kurama's jinchūriki is Kushina, Eight-Tails and Two-Tails are with Cloud Village, so no chance there. One-Tail is in Sand Village, and we can forget about Four-Tails and Five-Tails—Ōnoki won't let us near them. Three-Tails and Six-Tails are in Mist Village. Seven-Tails might be our only shot."

Minato grinned mischievously. "Hey, why don't we just go steal it? What do you say?"

It's true what they say—bad company corrupts good character. Growing up with Takuya had completely warped Minato's personality.

He was mostly joking, but the fact that Minato even thought of stealing a tailed beast showed just how far he'd strayed. And the craziest part? Nawaki was even worse.

"What are you two talking about? Minato, why do you look so shady?" Nawaki's voice interrupted as he returned to the ship. Seeing Minato grinning suspiciously made him want to roast him.

Normally, Minato teased Nawaki for having a mischievous look. Now it was Nawaki's turn to get some payback.

"Minato wants to take me on a mission to steal a tailed beast and become a jinchūriki," Takuya said, still laughing.

Daydreaming.

Nawaki gave Minato a withering look. "Sure, count me in. I want to see how this plays out."

Minato: "..."

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