Even though they were shouting orders and doing their best to stay focused, the sheer pressure of facing the colossal Nine-Tails was almost unbearable.
BOOM!
The nine massive, fiery-orange tails lashed out again, and in an instant, countless houses were reduced to rubble.
But the destroyed buildings weren't even the worst of it—the greatest losses were among the brave Konoha shinobi who had rushed in to assist Tsunade and Hiruzen Sarutobi.
The shockwaves stirred up by those tails alone had flung dozens of shinobi away like leaves in a storm.
Those who were only caught by the air pressure might survive with broken bones—but the ones directly hit by the tails? They were gone.
They didn't have Tsunade's legendary regenerative power.
For ordinary shinobi, being struck by a single swipe of the Nine-Tails' tails was a guaranteed death sentence.
Seeing her comrades coughing up blood, Tsunade clenched her silver teeth in rage.
As she darted around the battlefield, she smashed her fist down on the Nine-Tails' paw, forcing a pained roar from the beast, while simultaneously shouting orders over her shoulder:
"Close-combat units, don't charge in recklessly!
Split half your numbers to guard the sealing team, and the rest focus on distraction and containment!
Leave the offense to me and the old man!
Ninjutsu units—speed up your hand seals!
We must stop it here!"
On the other side, Hiruzen took advantage of the moment when the beast's attention was fixed on Tsunade.
With a swift motion, he extended his Adamantine Staff to its full length and drove it hard into the Nine-Tails' abdomen, sending the massive fox tumbling backward through the streets.
The blow enraged the beast even further. Its blood-red eyes burned with feral fury—any semblance of reason long gone.
By now, Uchiha Yamashiro's Mangekyō control was barely relevant; the Nine-Tails' primal wrath had completely taken over.
Even if Yamashiro released the genjutsu at this point, the Nine-Tails would still rip its enemies apart for the pain they'd caused.
"ROOOOAAAAR!!!"
The Nine-Tails climbed to its feet and let out a sky-shaking roar.
Its chakra surged outward like a tidal wave—an ocean of destructive energy.
There was no need for fancy jutsu.
The raw blast of chakra alone tore through everything nearby, shredding both the terrain and the hapless shinobi caught in the shockwave.
The cheers that had risen after Hiruzen's last successful hit froze in everyone's throats.
All around, despair replaced hope.
Such overwhelming power—this wasn't something human beings could possibly contend with.
Against any other tailed beast, Hiruzen and Tsunade might still have a chance—if not to defeat it outright, then at least to forcefully seal it away.
But against this one… the Nine-Tails… even they felt helpless.
It wasn't just a tailed beast—it was the tailed beast.
The strongest of them all.
Its physical strength, its chakra, its endurance—everything was on a level the others couldn't even approach.
Even without special abilities, its sheer chakra reserves made it capable of overpowering any foe.
And just as morale began to crumble—things got even worse.
"Wh-what… what's that!?"
A pale-faced Konoha shinobi stammered as he pointed toward the Nine-Tails.
Tsunade and Hiruzen followed his gaze—and their expressions turned grim.
The Nine-Tails had opened its massive jaws wide.
Inside its mouth, a dark purple-black sphere of compressed chakra was slowly forming.
Everyone watching gasped in horror—they all knew exactly what that was.
"That's… a Tailed Beast Bomb!"
"Stop it—stop it now!
If it fires that thing inside the village, Konoha will be completely destroyed!"
Every remaining shinobi on the field went berserk, hurling every jutsu and weapon they had at the fox.
Explosions, kunai, and elemental attacks filled the air—but it was useless.
Against a monster like the Nine-Tails, their attacks were nothing but mosquito bites.
All their combined effort barely scratched its fur.
The fox stood unfazed, continuing to gather that terrifying sphere of chakra in its jaws.
Even Hiruzen and Tsunade felt despair creeping into their hearts.
They had given everything they had—yet they still couldn't stop the formation of the Tailed Beast Bomb.
Was this… how it would all end?
Tsunade watched as the Tailed Beast Bomb in the Nine-Tails' mouth neared completion, and she could no longer afford to hold back.
She shouted toward the rampaging beast:
"Uchiha Yamashiro!
Is this what you wanted to see?!
Once the Nine-Tails releases that Tailed Beast Bomb, do you think your Uchiha clan will be spared!?"
She was trying to reach Yamashiro through words—hoping, somehow, that he might stop the Nine-Tails' attack.
But beside her, Hiruzen Sarutobi placed a heavy hand on her shoulder and said quietly:
"It's no use… Uchiha Yamashiro is already dead."
Tsunade's eyes widened in shock.
Only then did she realize that Yamashiro was no longer standing atop the Nine-Tails' head.
The man who had been forcing himself to live through drugs and sheer willpower had finally lost to time.
Before he could ever fulfill the grand "Uchiha destiny" he dreamed of through the power of the Nine-Tails, his body had given out—drained completely of chakra and ocular power.
By now, even his corpse was gone—flung somewhere, lost amidst the chaos.
"Damn it!"
Tsunade slammed her fist into the ground in frustration.
Even the one man capable of controlling the beast was gone.
Now—who could possibly stop the Tailed Beast Bomb?
Before anyone could answer, the Nine-Tails completed its charge.
With a motion like it was retching, it hurled the massive black sphere outward.
Everyone's eyes widened in terror as they watched the glowing orb streak across the air.
It was over.
No one could have imagined that Konoha—the village that had survived both the Second and Third Great Ninja War—would fall to the betrayal of one of its own clans.
When that Tailed Beast Bomb exploded, none of them would survive.
And with them gone, their families would die as well.
Everything… seemed about to end.
But just as despair reached its peak—two streaks of golden light flashed across the battlefield.
BOOM!
A massive explosion sounded from far away. Hearing this somewhat distant explosion, everyone was stunned. Wait, that's not right. Could it be… the Nine-Tails missed with that Tailed Beast Bomb?
How was that possible?
At that moment, a voice rang out in the air:
"Good thing, Minato, that you managed to develop the second stage of the Flying Thunder God technique.
Otherwise, today would've been a disaster."
Another voice—warm, respectful—answered:
"It's all thanks to your guidance, sensei.
Without your theory, I don't know how many more years it would've taken me to perfect the second stage."
Everyone on the ground looked up in stunned disbelief—
and saw, hovering above them, a familiar flying sword, with two figures standing proudly atop it.
Gekko Hoshiyomi and Namikaze Minato!
The moment their eyes confirmed those two familiar faces, the despair that had filled every heart melted away—
replaced by overwhelming relief and joy.
Shouts erupted all around, voices hoarse from screaming:
"They're back!!"
"Lord Minato! Lord Hoshiyomi!"
The backbone of Konoha had returned.
There was still hope.
Konoha was saved!
Minato and Hoshiyomi exchanged a knowing glance as they heard the cheers from below.
Then, together, they leapt gracefully from the flying sword, landing before the gathered shinobi.
Clad in white robes, they smiled calmly at everyone and said:
"Thank you for holding the line.
From here on… leave the rest to us."