An Imperial Influence

[Minato Namikaze]

The man stared intently at his hands, examining them. They ached and, beneath the bandages, were covered in cuts and chakra burns. His new jutsu, the Rasenshuriken, was something else. He’d have to take further caution when using it in the future. The name was a bit much, but it did take the shape of a shuriken, and he had grown quite fond of giving his techniques complicated names. It was one of his many quirks. His analysis, however, was cut short as a cough interrupted his train of thought. Looking up, he was reminded of the fact that he shared a hospital room. He had almost forgotten about the two Empire agents that he had confronted earlier. They appeared to have it much worse than he did. It seemed that a direct hit from the Rasenshuriken had a much more severe effect.

‘Laugh it up, blondie.’ the woman coughed through her bandages. He couldn't really see past the coverings around her face but her eyes glinted in the moonlight. She was glaring at him or, at the very least, trying her best to.

‘There’s nothing to laugh about.’ he responded, emotionlessly. The woman grunted back at him before letting out a pained cough. Her partner was still unconscious, though the shinobi could see that he was in a similar state. He’d done quite the number on the empire duo.

‘We’ll never speak.’ She groaned with an air of confidence and arrogance. ‘You kept us alive for information, but we'll never give you anything.’
‘What do you mean?’ Minato responded. ‘I was trying to kill you.’ He threatened.

The woman fell silent, his threat clearly eliciting some sort of fear in her. He could kill them now, but Tsunade clearly has plans for them and Minato didn’t want to get on her bad side. That would be dangerous for his health. After Letting out a loud sigh the blonde shifted in his bed and laid down. He still quite exhausted

‘Minato…’ a deep, ominous, voice emanated from behind the bars.

‘It seems like everyone wants a piece of me today… Huh Nine Tails?’ he sighed as he found himself standing in, what appeared to be, a rather poorly lit room flooded with water. Minato stood in front of a ginormous, grey, metal gate. A single piece of paper inscribed with a sealing formula kept them from being opened. It seemed flimsy but it was a seal of his own design, he trusted it to not fail on him.

‘Why haven’t you used my power yet?’ The beast questioned one of the creature’s eyes appearing from the thick covering of darkness. A Blood red iris with a black, vertical, slit for a pupil, a sight that the man had not seen for quite a while. A sight that he’d hoped not to see anytime soon. He was, to say the least, not happy to see the creature.

‘It’s not like you, Nine Tails, to be this talkative.’ The man mused, almost letting out a laugh. Though the beast did raise an interesting question. He’d been in the Omniverse for a while and the enemies he’s had to face so far had only increased in strength, the Makhel family leader and the two empire spies were a testament to that fact. He and his allies had managed so far, but the people they faced seemed to only be getting tougher. The gigantic fox let out an impatient sigh. Minato turned to the beast and smiled.

‘You know, I might have to in the future…’ The man spoke with an oddly soothing tone. Something that the fox didn’t expect. ‘But for now, we’ll have to stay separated.’ Minato turned, placing a hand over his bellybutton.

‘Maybe next time.’ He finished as he moved his hand in a circular motion, as if he was turning something. The seal on his stomach heated up for only a moment before Minato opened his eyes, finding himself back in his hospital bed.

‘I guess he’s not full of hate after all.’ Minato thought, causing him to laugh a little as he lay awake, staring up at the roof. Things would only get worse from here.