Naruto : I Got "Return by Death" Kind Of Cheat

When Yako entered the park, the first thing he saw was the Anbu tearing each other apart.

Over a dozen Anbu were locked in chaotic combat—several corpses already lay on the ground.

There were Kumo spies among the new Anbu recruits.

During the extermination of the Uzumaki Clan, Konoha had only dispatched Anbu. The casualties were devastating—four entire squads wiped out and rebuilt.

And in the rubble of constant reconstruction, Kumo had slipped their spies in.

Avoiding the infighting, Yako burst through the treeline and spotted Uzumaki Kushina, slung over the shoulder of one of the infiltrators.

If she were taken to Kumogakure, she'd be dissected—her sealing techniques studied and stolen.

Yako immediately gave chase.

Rescuing Kushina? That would be a huge merit. Minimum, an A-rank mission. Possibly S-rank.

An S-rank mission meant a reward of a million ryō—enough to fund his extravagant living for three whole months.

The spy darted through Konoha's alleys, slipping into shadows and vanishing again and again.

No doubt about it—he was a true agent. His familiarity with the village outmatched even Yako's, who rarely visited the western district.

Yako was forced to stop and start, pausing each time to search for signs in the dark.

To raise the alarm, he threw a kunai rigged with an explosive tag high into the air.

BOOM—it detonated above the rooftops.

Nearby shinobi and Anbu would recognize it instantly as an emergency distress signal.

But the spy had already vanished through a hole beneath the village's outer wall.

Suddenly, it clicked.

A kidnapping occurred right next to the Senju compound, and not a single Senju had responded?

The village elders had been unhappy with the Senju holding custody of Kushina. If something did happen to her, it could be the perfect excuse to strip them of influence.

Maybe—just maybe—some in Anbu had turned a blind eye tonight.

The spies were too well-prepared. Something felt off.

They'd even dug a hole under the village wall.

Yako slipped through it, exiting Konoha.

Just outside the wall, he heard a noise behind him.

He ducked behind a large tree.

From the hole crawled a blond-haired boy, holding several strands of red hair.

Namikaze Minato. The kid had picked up Kushina's dropped hair—sharp as ever.

Yako suddenly felt an itch in his heart.

Minato was a speed-type shinobi, with lightning reflexes.

Ninjutsu, chakra—those could be trained slowly.

But speed? Speed trumped all. Reflexes were everything.

Originally, Yako had only wanted to secure an A or S-rank reward—to fund his pleasures at the tavern.

But this changed things.

Minato didn't know many jutsu yet. Now was the time.

If he could push this prodigy into a full-out fight… maybe he'd unlock another reflex upgrade.

As for protecting the "Uzumaki Princess"… that was Konoha's business, not his.

Yako tailed Minato outside the village. As Minato spotted Kushina and his focus locked onto her—

Yako struck.

No Anbu gear tonight, no ninjatō. Just plain clothes and a kunai.

He dropped from the treetop like a hawk, both hands gripping the kunai, stabbing downward at Minato's skull.

Minato was moving along the tree trunks, very close by.

Midair, Yako's eyes slowly filled with despair.

Minato looked up.

Those sharp, icy eyes met his.

He had completely read Yako's movement.

Not only that—Minato's gaze scanned him up and down. Mask. Kunai. Hands. Feet. Even the tree branch where Yako had been hiding just seconds earlier.

All that, in a single instant.

This wasn't just instinct.

This was something like the Sharingan.

Minato's foot slammed into the bark, halting his momentum.

Yako landed before him, swing already mid-arc—

But Minato was faster.

He bent at the waist, avoiding the slash entirely.

Then he caught Yako's wrist with one hand.

The other hand drove a kunai straight into Yako's gut.

Too fast.

He'd read everything—every motion, every angle, every intent—and reacted flawlessly.

His perception, his nervous response, his muscle control—all elite.

So this… was what a born shinobi looked like?

Was this the fate of a villain?

Unable to even defeat a student from the Ninja Academy… killed by a literal child.

Yako felt like a clown.

Even before Naruto's birth, Minato Namikaze was already the chosen one of this world.

And picking a fight with the chosen one?

Was death.

Darkness. Then a shift in sight and sensation.

Yako awoke in the tavern's back room, on that last full moon night.

Qiao Yi was above him, covered in sweat, hips moving hard and fast.

Yako closed his eyes.

Time for his system reward.

[Arc of the Full Moon activated!

Host may revive once per full moon cycle.

Upon death, revival occurs at the previous full moon night.

Reward: One draw.]

1 – Wind Release chakra nature

2 – Chūnin-level chakra reserves (stackable)

3 – Reflex Surge (Second Breakthrough)

Wind Release chakra. That was Minato's starting affinity. Same as Naruto in the original timeline.

But for Yako, wind wasn't useful right now.

Maybe later, if he ended up in the Land of Hot Water, and needed to counter lots of Kumo lightning techniques.

Chūnin-level chakra reserves—impressive. Just more proof that Minato's chakra level already exceeded genin standards.

But the third option—

Reflex Surge (Second Breakthrough)—Yako's heart leapt.

Exactly what he'd hoped for.

He chose the third reward.

In a flash, his nervous system surged—visual nerves, spinal reflexes, muscle responses—all upgraded.

Yako's original reaction time had been 0.2 seconds.

After the first breakthrough: 0.15 seconds.

Now?

He glanced at Qiao Yi.

A bead of sweat formed on her chin.

It dropped.

Yako reached out—and caught it.

Judging the height at which he snatched the drop, his reaction speed was now about 0.12 seconds.

First upgrade gave 0.05s.

Second upgrade gave 0.03s.

Even just that 0.03 improvement—training it naturally would've been impossible.

"Pervert! What're you grabbing my sweat for? Making fun of how eager I was?"

"I was just worried you were working too hard."

The next morning, Yako left the tavern feeling refreshed.

Now, he just needed to find more speed-type shinobi.

The more reflex breakthroughs he unlocked…

The closer he'd get to being the fastest man in the ninja world.

And once that happened—

Even taijutsu alone would be enough to dominate.