The encounter with Madara had shifted Dan's perspective from "village politics" to "cosmic survival." If the Infinite Tsukuyomi was a harvest, then the Nine-Tails (Kyūbi) wasn't just a weapon—it was the primary component.
To protect the future, Dan couldn't just let the Nine-Tails attack happen and try to mitigate the damage. He had to secure the Jinchūriki.
[System Notification: Sage Mode Simulation — 45% Complete.]
[Status: 'Natural Energy' saturation is stabilizing. 'Inorganic Animation' theory unlocked.]
"Anko, Shisui, listen carefully," Dan said, standing before a holographic projection of Konoha's seal-grid in the Command Center. "The current Jinchūriki is Kushina Uzumaki. She is Minato-sensei's fiancé. In the eyes of the village, she is the ultimate deterrent. In my eyes, she is a walking time bomb with a faulty timer."
"You want to interfere with the Hokage's wife?" Anko whistled, leaning against a crate of sealing tags. "That's a fast way to get executed for treason, even for you."
"I'm not going to kidnap her," Dan replied. "I'm going to 'optimize' her. The seal holding the Kyūbi was designed by the First Hokage and refined by the Uzumaki. It's strong, but it's rigid. It doesn't account for spatial interference."
The Encounter
Dan found Kushina in a small training field near the edge of the village. She was practicing her own brand of Fūinjutsu, her long red hair whipping around her like a living flame. Minato was away on a diplomatic mission to the Cloud, leaving her under the guard of four elite ANBU.
Dan didn't use Hiraishin to enter the field; he walked through the front gate, his posture open and non-threatening.
"Stop right there, Uchiha!" one of the ANBU commanded, flickering into Dan's path.
"I'm here to deliver a report to Kushina-sama regarding the recent ROOT activity," Dan said smoothly, holding up a scroll with a genuine Hokage-office seal (which he had 'borrowed' earlier).
Kushina looked up, wiping sweat from her brow. "It's okay, guys. That's the 'Ghost Boy' Minato keeps talking about. Let him through."
As the ANBU stepped back, Dan approached. Up close, he could feel the Kyūbi's chakra—it was a boiling ocean of malice, barely contained behind the cage of her ribs.
"You've got a heavy shadow, Kushina-sama," Dan said, his Sharingan activating for a split second to map the seal's integrity.
Kushina's eyes narrowed. "You're a blunt one, aren't you? Most people pretend they don't notice the monster in my belly."
"I don't believe in pretending," Dan said. "I've seen the 'Ghost' who moves through walls. He's looking for the Nine-Tails. And your current seal... it has a resonance flaw. During childbirth or extreme emotional stress, the spatial frequency shifts. He can pull the Fox out through that gap."
Kushina went pale. The secret of the seal's weakening during childbirth was known only to the Third Hokage, the Elders, and Minato. "How could you possibly know that?"
"The Architecture sees the cracks in everything," Dan replied. "I'm here to offer a 'Secondary Anchor'. A seal that exists in the void between spaces. If the Fox is pulled, the Anchor pulls back."
The Shadow Contract
"And why would I trust an Uchiha with the key to my cage?" Kushina asked, her hair beginning to float—the sign of her 'Red Hot-Blooded Habanero' temper.
"Because I don't want the Fox," Dan said, looking her in the eye. "I want the world to stay as it is. If the Fox is released, Konoha burns. My clan burns. My friends die. I am a creature of logic, Kushina-sama. Helping you is the only logical path to my own survival."
For a long minute, the only sound was the wind through the trees. Kushina looked at the eleven-year-old boy. She saw the same look in his eyes she had seen in Minato's—a determination so fierce it bordered on insanity.
"Fine," she said. "But if you try anything funny, I'll let the Fox eat you before the ANBU can blink."
Dan nodded. "Sit. This will take four hours."
[System Command: Divert 90% Processing to 'Space-Time Fūinjutsu: Void Anchor'.]
[Warning: Physical Body will enter a state of 'Extreme Lethargy' during the process.]
As Dan placed his hands on Kushina's seal, he entered a deep synchronization. Through the System, he wasn't just drawing a seal; he was rewriting the spiritual geometry of her chakra. He felt the Kyūbi's consciousness—a colossal, burning hatred that tried to incinerate his mind.
Be quiet, fox, Dan thought, sending a pulse of his Mangekyō's 'Ame-no-Uzume' through the connection. I'm not your jailer. I'm the one making sure your next master isn't a puppet.
The Fox growled—a sound that vibrated in Dan's very marrow—but it subsided. It recognized the "Uchiha" flavor, yet there was something else. Something older. The Wood.
The Unexpected Visitor
The ritual was at 90% completion when the air in the training field curdled.
The four ANBU guards didn't even have time to scream. They were pulled into a swirling vacuum in the center of the field.
Obito had returned.
He stepped out of the rift, his broken arm now replaced with a fresh, white Zetsu limb. He looked at Dan and Kushina, his single eye widening in fury. "You're tampering with the vessel? You really are a nuisance, Dan Uchiha."
Dan didn't break the connection with Kushina. "Anko! Shisui! Engage!"
From the shadows, Anko and Shisui erupted.
Shisui: "Uchiha Style: Halo Dance!" He moved in a blur of afterimages, his blade trailing fire.
Anko: "Hidden Shadow Snake Hands!"
Obito simply phased through their attacks, his gaze fixed on Dan. "You think these children can stop me? I've been trained by the god of this clan."
"They aren't here to stop you," Dan grunted, the final lines of the Void Anchor glowing violet on Kushina's stomach. "They're here to buy me ten seconds."
"Ten seconds is all I need to end this!" Obito lunged, his hand reaching for the seal.
Zip.
Dan didn't dodge. He used a Hiraishin-jump to swap places with one of Shisui's afterimages, appearing behind Obito.
"Spatial Anchor: LOCK!" Dan roared.
The new seal on Kushina flared. A beam of violet light shot out, connecting Kushina to the earth itself. The spatial distortion around Obito suddenly snapped shut. He was frozen in mid-air, his intangibility cancelled by the sheer weight of the Void Anchor's gravity.
"What?!" Obito gasped.
"You're in my Architecture now," Dan said, his hand crackling with Purple Electricity.
But before Dan could strike, a massive hand of sand erupted from the ground, intercepting the lightning. A new player had entered the field.
A man with a puppet on his back and a cold, dead stare. Sasori of the Red Sand.
"The leader said the Uchiha kid was a priority," Sasori said, his voice clicking like wood. "I think you'll make a fine addition to my collection."
[System Notification: Akatsuki Multi-Threat Detected.]
[Combatants: Tobi (Obito) and Sasori.]
Dan stood between the two S-rank criminals and the Jinchūriki. He was exhausted, his chakra at 15%, and his rivals were closing in.
"Shisui, Anko... get Kushina to the Hokage estate," Dan commanded, his Mangekyō spinning. "I'll handle the puppets."
"You're out of chakra, Dan!" Shisui cried.
"I have enough for one more 'Calculation'," Dan said.