The atmosphere itself seemed to respond to the cataclysmic explosion that had just shaken the very foundations of the Iron Country. What had begun as a gentle drizzle, barely more than mist in the air, suddenly intensified into a torrential downpour. Fat raindrops hammered against the scarred battlefield, each drop catching the lingering light from dissipating chakra like tiny prisms. The weather change felt almost supernatural, as if the heavens themselves were weeping for the destruction below.
Bang!
The massive transparent dragon, severed cleanly by Shisui's intervention, crashed into the earth with devastating force. The impact created a crater easily fifty feet across, sending shockwaves through the already fractured ground. Steam rose from the impact site as the creature's residual chakra dissipated, mixing rainwater with raw energy in ghostly wisps.
Naruto, his body still trembling from complete chakra exhaustion, found himself safely cradled in his teacher's arms. The familiar warmth of Shisui's presence was a stark contrast to the cold emptiness he felt within—the absence of the Nine-Tails' chakra leaving him feeling hollow and vulnerable.
After Naruto had achieved complete mastery over the Nine-Tails' chakra, his sensory abilities had undergone a fundamental transformation. The enhancement went beyond simple chakra detection; he could now perceive the emotional states, intentions, and even the arrival of familiar presences from vast distances. It was this enhanced perception that had given him the confidence to expend every last drop of his chakra in that desperate gambit against the golem.
He had sensed Shisui's approach long before the man had arrived, felt the distinctive flicker of his sensei's chakra signature cutting through the chaos of battle like a beacon of hope.
Shisui gazed down at his student with eyes full of profound relief and unmistakable pride. Despite the dire circumstances, a gentle smile graced his features—the kind of expression reserved for moments when a teacher witnesses their student surpassing all expectations.
His attention then shifted to the ongoing battle between Sasuke's towering Susanoo and the wooden construct controlled by the First Hokage. Even from this distance, the sheer scale of their conflict was breathtaking. The complete form of Susanoo, wreathed in ethereal purple flames, moved with fluid grace as it parried and struck against the wooden giant that seemed to grow and reshape itself with each exchange.
These two children, Shisui mused internally, even I hadn't anticipated they would achieve such extraordinary growth in so short a time since the war began.
The rate of their development was nothing short of miraculous. When the conflict had started, both Naruto and Sasuke had been formidable young shinobi, but still clearly students learning their craft. Now, barely days later, they were engaging legendary figures in single combat and holding their ground. It spoke to both their natural talent and the crucible effect of desperate battle.
Swish!
Kushina materialized beside them with her characteristic speed, her red hair whipping in the rain-soaked wind. Despite the chaos surrounding them, her expression radiated maternal warmth and fierce pride.
"Beautifully done, sweetie," she said, reaching out to pat Naruto's shoulder with casual affection. Her touch was gentle but firm, conveying both praise and the reassuring presence of family. The joy in her eyes was unmistakable—not just pride in her son's power, but deep satisfaction at seeing him make choices that protected others, even at great personal cost.
ROAR!
The golem's bellow of frustrated rage echoed across the battlefield like thunder. Having missed its target, the massive creature was now fully focused on the trio before it. The beast raised one enormous hand, fingers spread wide like the bars of a prison, preparing to crush them beneath its palm.
But before the attack could connect, something extraordinary happened.
BOOM!
Black flames suddenly erupted across the surface of the golem's massive palm. The fire of Amaterasu burned with unnatural intensity, each flame darker than midnight yet radiating heat that could be felt even from a distance. The flames spread rapidly across the creature's hand, consuming everything they touched with relentless hunger.
The golem's roar transformed from aggression to agony as the cursed flames ate into its flesh. Pain—perhaps the first genuine pain it had felt since its creation—shot through its consciousness. The massive hand slammed into the ground uncontrollably, creating another crater as the creature tried desperately to relieve its suffering.
The black flames continued their work, spreading from the initial point of contact like a living thing. Where they touched the ground, the earth itself began to blacken and smoke, the very soil unable to withstand Amaterasu's consuming power.
Directly in front of Naruto, Shisui, and Kushina, a new figure materialized. Uchiha Yoruki stood with the poise of a seasoned warrior, his hand resting casually on the hilt of the samurai sword at his waist. His dark eyes were fixed on the writhing golem with an intensity that made the air around him seem to shimmer with barely contained killing intent.
This was personal for Yoruki. The memories were still fresh and raw—the devastating attack on the Konoha forces after he had been forced to leave the battlefield at the Fire Country's coast. The golem's rampage had claimed the lives of Hyuga Tenki, Kato Dan, and had pushed Might Duy to make the ultimate sacrifice, opening all Eight Gates to protect his comrades.
Good people. Strong people. People who had trusted him to be there when they needed him most.
"Just turn to ash," Yoruki said, his voice low and filled with cold determination. The words carried the weight of a death sentence, spoken with the absolute certainty of someone who had already decided his enemy's fate.
"No!" Naruto's voice cut through the rain and smoke, urgent and desperate. "We can't just burn this thing to death! I have to rescue the tailed beasts trapped inside its body!"
Both Yoruki and Shisui turned to look at the young man, surprise evident in their expressions. In the heat of battle, with legendary enemies bearing down on them, Naruto was still thinking about saving others—even enemies who had been used against their will.
"Naruto," Shisui said gently, his voice carrying the patience of a teacher explaining a difficult concept, "the tailed beasts are immortal beings of pure chakra. They cannot truly die. What's most important right now is destroying the Ten-Tails' vessel before it can be completed."
His eyes shifted toward the ongoing battle between Minato and Madara, where flashes of golden light clashed against dark techniques in a display of power that made the very air crackle with energy.
"If we can eliminate this threat, we can prevent the enemy's ultimate plan from succeeding," Shisui continued. "Besides, Amaterasu's flames cannot be extinguished or recalled once they're ignited. The decision has already been made."
"I've already made a promise to them!" Naruto shot back, his blue eyes blazing with the same intensity that had driven him to master the Rasengan, to tame the Nine-Tails, to never give up on his friends no matter the odds. "If there's no other way, then we'll find one! Cut off the creature's hand if we have to!"
From within Naruto's seal, the Nine-Tails' voice rumbled with something approaching amusement despite the gravity of the situation. "Naruto, don't worry yourself over this."
There was ancient wisdom in the bijuu's tone, knowledge gained from centuries of existence that put current events in perspective.
"How could Amaterasu possibly destroy something that's already dead?"
As if responding to the Nine-Tails' words, the flesh on the golem's burning hand began to writhe and shift in disturbing ways. The skin and muscle tissue covered by the black flames started to separate from the underlying structure, peeling away like a molting snake's skin. The affected layer of flesh detached completely and fell to the ground with a wet, heavy sound, leaving the golem's hand damaged but functional.
The black flames continued to burn on the discarded tissue, but the golem itself was no longer affected. It had simply shed the burning parts like a lizard dropping its tail.
"Since Amaterasu has proven ineffective..." Yoruki's eyes underwent a subtle transformation, the pattern within his pupils shifting as a fierce light seemed to ignite behind them. The air around him grew heavy with the promise of violence.
But their enemy was far from passive.
"It won't be that easy!" Madara's voice carried across the battlefield, cold with calculation even as he continued his intense duel with Minato.
Boom! Boom!
The golem's massive form shuddered as it drew itself up to its full, imposing height. Raindrops that had been falling toward its surface were scattered by the creature's movement, creating a momentary halo of suspended water droplets around its form. As it stood, crackling veins of electricity began to race across its entire body, building to dangerous levels.
Lightning fell from the storm clouds above—not natural lightning, but bolts of pure chakra that sought out the golem like iron filings drawn to a magnet. The creature was gathering power from the very storm it stood beneath.
"Susanoo!" both Shisui and Yoruki called out simultaneously, their voices overlapping in perfect synchronization.
Rich, chakra-laden light erupted from both men as their legendary techniques manifested. Shisui's Susanoo formed around himself, Naruto, and Kushina in a protective embrace of ethereal energy, while Yoruki's own construct materialized with predatory grace.
The lightning struck almost instantaneously, multiple bolts hammering into both Susanoo constructs with devastating force. The impacts sent shockwaves through the protective barriers, the chakra shells holding firm but visibly straining under the assault.
"This kind of attack... it doesn't seem to be formed purely from chakra!" Yoruki observed, his analytical mind working even in the midst of combat. There was something fundamentally different about this lightning, something that suggested the golem was drawing power from sources beyond simple chakra manipulation.
Shisui shared his surprise, but it was Naruto—with his enhanced sensory abilities—who felt the most profound confusion. The energy signatures he was detecting made no sense according to everything he understood about ninjutsu and chakra manipulation.
"After absorbing such a massive amount of my chakra from that last exchange," the Nine-Tails explained with heavy resignation, "the golem has recovered substantially. If it manages to obtain the chakra of even three more tailed beasts, I'm afraid it will achieve a form of revival."
The implications hit Naruto like a physical blow. The golem had absorbed not just his own chakra from their technique clash, but also the residual energy from Kushina's spiritual form. Combined, that represented power equivalent to what the Nine-Tails had possessed before it was split in half during the sealing ritual sixteen years ago.
"But why?" Naruto asked, shock evident in his voice. "Didn't you say the Ten-Tails could only be resurrected after obtaining all nine tailed beasts?"
"Under normal circumstances, yes," the Nine-Tails replied, its ancient eyes growing distant with the weight of terrible knowledge. "But Madara has likely realized that obtaining the complete Ten-Tails under current battlefield conditions may be impossible."
The great fox paused, as if reluctant to voice what came next.
"So I believe he's planning to achieve an incomplete resurrection of the Ten-Tails and make himself its jinchuuriki. Even a partial Ten-Tails would grant him power beyond imagination..."
"Seeking even greater strength..." Naruto whispered, his gaze shifting to where Minato and Madara continued their epic battle.
The realization was sobering. Even with complete mastery over the Nine-Tails' chakra, even with all the growth he'd achieved, there remained a vast gulf between his abilities and those of the legendary figures currently locked in combat. The chakra signatures emanating from both Minato and the resurrected First Hokage were so intense they made even Naruto's enhanced form feel insignificant by comparison.
"If Madara actually succeeds in becoming the Ten-Tails' jinchuuriki," the Nine-Tails continued grimly, "even the Fourth Hokage won't be able to match him."
Naruto found himself nodding in reluctant agreement. As a jinchuuriki himself, he understood better than most just how dramatically the presence of a tailed beast could amplify a shinobi's capabilities. He possessed only half of the Nine-Tails' chakra, and that alone had made him one of the most powerful ninja in the current generation.
If Madara gained access to the Ten-Tails—even an incomplete version—the power differential would be insurmountable. Even his father, legendary as the Yellow Flash was, would be hopelessly outclassed.
"However," Naruto said, forcing optimism into his voice, "the other jinchuuriki are already under Dad's protection. They should be safe from capture."
It was a small comfort, but an important one. As long as the remaining tailed beasts stayed out of Madara's reach, the worst-case scenario could be avoided.
"Perhaps that's true..." the Nine-Tails replied, though its expression remained troubled. "But that boy Sasuke... he can't hold out much longer."
"You can sense it too, can't you?"
Under the protective dome of Shisui and Yoruki's combined Susanoo, Naruto and Kushina were forced to retreat steadily as the golem's attacks intensified. Through the translucent chakra barriers, Naruto's sharp gaze found Sasuke's position on the battlefield.
The sight that greeted him was deeply concerning.
The wooden giant controlled by the First Hokage was pressing its attack with increasing ferocity. What had begun as a relatively even match was gradually turning into a one-sided assault. Sasuke's complete Susanoo, magnificent as it was, showed signs of strain. Chakra chains erupted from the wooden construct at unpredictable intervals, forcing Sasuke to constantly adjust his defensive posture.
Earlier in the battle, Sasuke had been able to use his enhanced Sharingan to predict the chains' movements, reading the subtle shifts in chakra flow that preceded each attack. His tactical mind had found ways to turn the wooden giant's aggression against itself, using misdirection and precise timing to create openings.
But that strategy was failing now. The wooden construct's attacks had become increasingly erratic and powerful, overwhelming Sasuke's ability to predict and counter.
Meanwhile, on another section of the battlefield, Madara observed Minato with cold analytical interest.
"Your body truly is remarkable," Madara commented, his voice carrying grudging respect. "To withstand such massive amounts of natural energy without suffering cellular breakdown... most impressive."
Minato's expression was grim, sweat mixing with rainwater on his face despite the cool air. Even for someone of his caliber, the natural energy he could safely channel had limits. His body was approaching the threshold beyond which senjutsu would become more dangerous to him than to his enemies.
And when he could no longer absorb natural energy from his surroundings, the First Hokage would be free to begin preparing his own sage techniques—a prospect that filled Minato with deep concern.
Like Minato himself, the First Hokage was capable of entering Sage Mode during active combat. The difference was that Hashirama's version of sage techniques operated on a completely different scale, drawing from the profound connection between his Wood Release and the natural world itself.
Bang!
After another thunderous collision between the two titans, the samurai sword wielded by Sasuke's purple Susanoo was violently knocked from its grip. The massive blade spun end over end through the air, its passage creating a howling wind, before crashing into the earth with devastating impact.
The ground, already weakened by countless previous attacks and riddled with deep cracks, finally gave way completely. The area where the sword landed collapsed into a massive sinkhole, swallowing debris and creating yet another hazard on the increasingly treacherous battlefield.