You might have been wondering the last few chapters: Where is Kakashi? And I have a confession to make. I forgot all about him actually and I just realized my mistake. So he'll appear now in this chapter. I hope you'll like it even though there's no improvising here this time, sorry. Anyway have fun reading.

Chapter 25 – Mukade's True Form

Minato sighed. It was now dark and there still was no sign of Mukade. He supposed the minister was locked in one of the towers in safety. But there were at least a hundred towers. How on Earth were they going to find him? And in the dark at that. Minato suddenly found himself wishing that he was a Hyuga. They could really use the Byakugan right now.

Minato was getting tired of all the noise in this city. On this evening there had been a huge parade and lots of fireworks and constant cheering. Didn't those people have a home to go to? They'd been standing there for hours, just cheering. That certainly wasn't normal in his opinion.

'Wait a minute!'

"Sensei!"

Minato looked behind him to see Kakashi.

"What is it?"

"Puppets," Kakashi said.

"What?" Minato exclaimed, looking around. "Where?"

"Down there," Kakashi said, pointing at the crowd.

"I don't see any-". "Sensei!" Kakashi cut him off. "Don't tell me I'm the first one to notice this".

Kakashi took out his chakra blade and cloaked it with his blue chakra. He jumped down towards the crowd of cheering people. He thrust it in the air and two people collapsed.

Minato's eyes widened. "How come I didn't see this before? I'm supposed to be the jounin," he murmured to himself.

"They're all puppets," Kakashi said. "That's why they ignored our presence".

"But then if they are all puppets where are the real people of this city?"

"Thanks for walking with me home Kushina," Mikoto said gratefully. "I think Fugaku will feel more at ease when I tell him I didn't walk home alone".

"My pleasure," Kushina said.

"You know walking with you is kind of nice, and the exercise is good, maybe we could do this again sometime".

Kushina nodded. "I'd like that".

"Why don't you come in for a while?" Mikoto asked. "For tea and supper, it'd be great to have you".

"I don't know," Kushina said. "Don't get me wrong but I just don't feel comfortable in the Uchiha estates and did you see the way they looked at me at the wedding? I'm not sure they feel comfortable with me either".

"Then that is what we have to change," Mikoto said.

Kushina still looked hesitant.

"Oh come on, please we'll have a great time," Mikoto pleaded her.

Kushina sighed. "Alright".

"That's more like it," Mikoto said happily. "Now come on". Kushina was pulled by the arm towards the gates.

When they reached Mikoto's house Kushina was starting to have second thoughts. Mikoto noticed her nervous glances around and gave her an encouraging smile. "Don't worry," she said. Kushina nodded and put on a smile.

"I'm home dear!" Mikoto called.

There was no answer.

"Oh he must be working," Mikoto said. "Now that I think about it wasn't it today he was scheduled to meet with the clan elders? I'll just start dinner then".

"Can I help?" Kushina asked.

"Oh no I can do it by myself," Mikoto said.

"You sure?" Kushina asked.

"Listen up Red, I may be pregnant but I am not incapable of doing my chores, I can still cook a meal," Mikoto snapped.

Kushina guessed the mood swings had started again.

She was right.

"I'm so sorry I didn't mean to snap at you," Mikoto said, tears starting to well up in her eyes. "All you wanted was to help me and I just… oh I'm so sorry, Kushina please forgive me".

"Relax," Kushina said. "It's okay, but please let me help you, it'll be fun".

Mikoto sniffed and nodded.

"Sensei I found something," Kakashi said.

Minato looked at the hole in the ground. It looked like it led down to a sewer.

"Do you think this is what we've been looking for?" Chouza asked.

"There's noise coming from down there," Minato said. "There must be something going on".

"Then let's check it out," Kakashi said, ready to jump down. But Minato stopped him. "I'll go first, then Chouza and Shibi will follow and then you Kakashi".

"Why do I have to go last?" Kakashi complained.

"It's an order," Minato said.

Kakashi sighed. "Understood".

Minato jumped down the hole and landed smoothly on his feet. He immediately found the source of the noise.

It looked like Naruto had not only found the Queen but Mukade as well. Currently Sara and Naruto were standing there, looking at a horribly huge puppet.

"Is that Mukade's true form?" he wondered. In either case there was no time to waste. Naruto needed help.

Minato quickly went back to the hole he came from and motioned for the rest of his team to follow quietly.

Minato told each of them to throw a pair of kunai knives with paper bombs attached to them. They did so and the smaller puppets like those seen earlier blew up. When the smoke cleared they jumped down on the ground between Naruto and his opponents.

Minato took off his mask. "Are you alright?" he asked the younger blonde. Naruto just looked at him in shock.

"Who are you?" the giant puppet yelled in outrage.

"You did well," Minato commented Naruto as Kakashi activated another set of paper bombs.

"Now you protect the Queen," Minato ordered his look-alike. Naruto nodded. "Sara you free the prisoners and get them to the surface".

The Queen followed his orders.

'I guess we've found the citizens too,' thought Minato.

The next thing he knew Naruto came flying towards the puppet with a sphere of chakra in his hand that had an eerie resemblance to Minato's Rasengan, a jutsu he had just perfected mere months ago. Sure Naruto was from the future but he couldn't know it, could he?

The chakra sphere hit the puppet spot on and it was thrown back into the wall.

Mere moments later the puppet rose again.

"It can still move after a hit like that?" Naruto exclaimed in disbelief.

"Don't let your guard down," Minato warned him, "we still haven't found the limits of his power".

"I get it," Naruto said.

The puppet collapsed. But its head moved and spit out chakra and attached the body parts of the other puppets that lay scattered around the floor to itself, making its armor even stronger.

"Do you think I'm that easy to beat?" the puppet mocked. "I told you I'm invincible!"

"Despicable," Naruto murmured before he formed a hand seal and yelled, "Multi Shadow-clone Jutsu!"

About ten clones appeared, each holding a chakra blade and they all headed for the puppet and began trying to stab him.

"Amazing, he can create that many shadow clones without trouble, just who is this boy?" Minato wondered. Shibi and Chouza seemed to be wondering the same thing.

Unfortunately the stabbing didn't work.

"Chouza," Minato yelled.

Chouza understood. "Body Expansion Jutsu!" he yelled and punched the puppet with his now huge fist.

The puppet was now furious.

"Shibi!"

"Hidden Jutsu: Beetle Sphere!" Shibi yelled. His insects flew out of his body and flew towards the puppet and engulfed it in beetles. The puppet couldn't maintain its balance anymore and once again fell down on the ground, creating a huge hole.

"Did we get him?" Naruto wondered.

Just then Mukade summoned more chakra and attached new body parts to his armor, making him even stronger.

The puppet now rose again, bigger and stronger than ever. It was even more horrifying than before.

Okay I personally think this chapter was a bit crappy but I hope you'll live. Please submit your reviews, you know I love them :)