Chapter 141: The Name Doesn't Matter
Watching Naruto awkwardly scratch his head with a sheepish smile, Mizuki could only feel completely helpless. This kind of ninja who constantly created unpredictable and out-of-spec outcomes was exactly the type Mizuki hated dealing with—whether as an enemy or a teammate. Things most people would consider common sense never seemed to apply to Naruto.
As someone with excellent chakra control, Mizuki rarely interacted with people who had a foundation as poor as Naruto's. So, almost by instinct, he'd overlooked all the possible mishaps that might occur when Naruto used the Summoning Technique. Naruto's chakra was mixed, unstable, and hard to control—there could be any number of reasons why he couldn't summon Gamabunta.
But none of that mattered anymore. Mizuki glanced at Tobi in the distance, who was already forming hand seals. The Wood Golem Technique was taking shape at a fast pace, and once completed, there was nothing Mizuki could do to resist it. Even if the Tobi here couldn't match the strength of the Wood Golem three years from now, the gap in power and size between their side and the technique was vast. They'd likely be crushed.
Despite the urgency, Mizuki didn't blame anyone. He wouldn't be so irresponsible as to lay the fault on a twelve-year-old genin. In the end, the real problem was his own oversight—he hadn't anticipated this development. And no matter who Naruto was, even as the so-called Child of Prophecy, he was still a kid.
Forcing a smile, Mizuki patted Naruto on the shoulder. "That's fine. In a moment, stay close to the battlefield—but not too close—and whatever you do, don't act on your own."
Naruto couldn't be allowed to get too near the battle. Without Gamabunta, he wasn't ready for this kind of confrontation. But he also couldn't be too far—Tobi's space-time ninjutsu made his mobility frightening. If Naruto strayed too far, he might be snatched before anyone could react.
"So, what do we do?" Sasuke asked, clearly itching to fight. Truth be told, he'd contributed the least so far—besides alerting Mizuki earlier, he'd had no real presence in the fight.
"What else can you do? Run." Mizuki sighed. "Just follow me…"
Abandoning Naruto would have kept Mizuki safe—no one would bother going after someone like him before his various research results were exposed. But since it was a situation of his own making, he figured he should at least clean up his own mess. Naruto and Sasuke wouldn't be in this kind of danger now if not for him. He could at least help a little while he still had the strength.
"Run? But Mizuki-sensei, I was just about to go all out! Just give me one more second and I'll summon the Big Boss Toad—"
"Don't bother, Naruto. Let's go." Sasuke interrupted him. "This isn't our fight."
Mizuki glanced again at Tobi, whose technique was nearing completion. Spiraling coils of wood were forming, wrapping tighter and higher, already molding into the shape of a humanoid wooden giant.
"As expected… without Yamato, White Zetsu's power is significantly reduced. Forget ten thousand clones—even this Wood Golem Technique looks much weaker."
The pressure it gave off was similar to that of a powerful summoning beast—maybe even less than a tailed beast. It was still dangerous, but not hopeless.
"We need to move. Staying here will only put the others in danger. Follow me…" Mizuki dashed toward Jiraiya's position, Sasuke and Naruto close behind. From what he'd gathered through the clone's memory, Kakashi and Guy had already lost their fight. Though not critically injured, their condition was poor. Guy had barely avoided being severely burned by Amaterasu thanks to Mizuki's timely response, but Kakashi had suffered a direct hit from Kisame's Water Release, seriously diminishing his combat ability. And Guy, who had just opened several gates preparing to take down Kisame, had been interrupted by Itachi's Amaterasu—his momentum broken, his ultimate technique wasted.
Even though he didn't suffer a blow, the Eight Gates didn't care. The damage from opening them was already done. In their current state, Jiraiya was the only dependable force. At least he wouldn't fail to summon Gamabunta.
But even the best plans could be derailed. Before they got far, wooden spikes erupted from the ground, blocking their path. A tangle of wood surged up and scattered them. Mizuki and Sasuke weren't fazed—they were strong and agile enough to dodge—but Naruto was slower. One of the wooden vines coiled around his leg, trapping him.
"Sasuke!" Mizuki called, gesturing for him to help.
"Got it!" Sasuke nodded, quickly forming seals. With the screeching sound of a thousand birds, his form flickered and sliced through the vines with Chidori, freeing Naruto.
With Naruto safe, Mizuki relaxed a little—but their window to escape was gone.
"Not just raw power—this Tobi clone has serious tactical awareness. As a clone, Afei's capabilities are honestly terrifying—even stronger than the original White Zetsu."
"Sasuke, Naruto, stay close to me," Mizuki instructed. "We'll never break out without effort."
"I'll hold them off with my Shadow Clone Technique!" Naruto shouted, grasping the urgency.
"No," Mizuki shook his head. Against Wood Release, a shadow clone swarm was a joke—just a waste of chakra.
"Then what do we do? I don't even know if I can summon the Big Boss Toad now…"
"Forget it, Naruto. Leave it to me." Mizuki wasn't about to gamble on unknowns—not in a crisis. Unexpected developments were deadly. Even if a plan wasn't perfect, if it was within his control, it was better than chaos.
"You two, step back." Mizuki pulled out a summoning scroll, spread it on the ground, and bit his thumb. "Summoning Jutsu! Show yourself—Potan!"
With a puff of chakra smoke, a massive bear appeared before them. Brown and hulking, it stood nearly two stories tall. Its limbs were thick like pillars, claws sharp as blades, and its fangs peeked from its jaw like curved daggers.
"Pffft—" Naruto couldn't help it anymore. He burst out laughing. "Mizuki-sensei, did you just call him Potan?"
Even Sasuke, always stoic, turned away, shoulders shaking.
"What's wrong with that? Potan's a perfectly fine name for a bear."
"But he looks like a savage beast… Potan sounds like a mascot name!"
"Who cares? Quit yapping and get on already." Mizuki snapped. Naming things was a hassle. Most of his summons didn't even have names—especially the simple-minded jellyfish ones. This big guy, though, was a special case. If not for Tsubaki's protests, Mizuki probably would've named him "Steamed Bear Paw."
Once Sasuke and Naruto were mounted, Mizuki commanded the bear to charge. Bears were famous for brute strength—and this one had been specially bred to be even stronger. Trees in their way were ripped apart like paper. Finally, they burst through the encirclement.
"Mizuki-sensei, where'd you find this summon—er, Potan?" Sasuke asked, impressed. He'd seen Gaara's tailed beast, Naruto's toads, and even Jiraiya's terrifying Gamabunta. He was now very tempted by summoning techniques.
"Potan? Found him in the Forest of Death," Mizuki replied. "He wasn't this big originally. Feeding him is the real pain. I usually let him roam and hunt on his own."
In the original timeline, this bear was supposed to be killed by Sasuke while attacking Karin—sparking Karin's admiration and affection. But now things had taken a very different turn.
"So you can capture wild animals too?"
"Of course. But training them into reliable partners is no easy feat. Think of Kiba's ninken or Shino's insects. Still, Sasuke, I don't think summoning is your path. Your chakra reserves are way lower than Naruto's."
The message was clear—if Sasuke wanted to grow stronger, he'd need another method.
"I understand," Sasuke replied, reluctantly.
"Focus ahead—you're on strike duty."
Though Potan was strong, his speed wasn't impressive. The Wood Release techniques kept slowing him down, and they still hadn't escaped Tobi's range. The wooden giant Tobi summoned was slow, but its attacks were massive and harder to dodge than the spikes.
Thankfully, Tobi hadn't used elemental techniques yet—clearly showing how much he relied on Yamato for those.
"That's fine—this makes him easier to stall."
Mizuki steered Potan away from crowded areas to avoid collateral damage. Sasuke's Chidori was instrumental in cutting through tighter spots when the bear's strength wasn't enough.
"How many times have you used Chidori?" Mizuki asked, noticing Sasuke panting after returning from another break.
"That was the fifth."
"Five already? Then stop—any more and you'll collapse. I'll handle the rest."
"Leave it to us, young man!" a sudden voice rang out.
A massive hand swept through a wall of wood, opening a path. Mizuki's eyes lit up—Akimichi Choza had arrived.
Where Choza appeared, the rest of the Ino-Shika-Cho trio wouldn't be far. And indeed, the long-haired Yamanaka Inoichi soon appeared and clapped Mizuki on the shoulder.
"You're the one who fired that flare, huh? Didn't expect to see Wood Release—this is serious."
"What amazes me more is that you survived long enough to call for help—with two kids in tow," said Nara Shikaku, emerging behind Inoichi.
"I'll explain later. Drinks on me. But for now… let's see what this Wood Release can do."
---
Read up to 20 chapter ahead of time on patreon.com/Legendryweeb
{please give this novel 5 Star review and power stone}
*Thank you*