c18 Crisis, Hidden Power
Just when Naruto finally got rid of Gaara and Gamabunta returned to Mount Myōboku, Naruto was about to sit down and rest when he suddenly felt a sharp killing intent and instinctively leapt back. At that moment, a masked intruder armed with a kunai appeared exactly where Naruto had been standing, moving with the fluid silence of an elite assassin from the Sand or Sound.
Seeing Naruto dodge, he let out a dry laugh and said: "So the reports about you weren't exaggerated. I planned to finish you quietly while you were exhausted, but you sensed me anyway. It seems I'll need more than stealth. Your chakra is drained after fighting Shukaku how do you intend to defeat me now?"
Naruto had originally intended to catch his breath before rushing to help the Third Hokage, but judging from the situation, fleeing with the Flying Thunder God seal he'd prepared would expose his technique, and Sakura, Sasuke, and Shikamaru would be killed. Even though his chakra reserves were nearly empty, he could only find a way to take down the attacker first.
At that moment, the masked man vanished from Naruto's sight using high-level Body Flicker, reappearing behind him the next instant. Naruto felt danger immediately and used the Substitution Technique to evade, but the enemy moved like a phantom, repeatedly assaulting him with silent footwork reminiscent of ANBU training. All Naruto could do was dodge, yet even so he received several cuts across his arms and side, unable to land a counterattack.
Shikamaru, observing from afar, saw Naruto's movement falter and quickly approached while calling to Sasuke, "Sasuke, follow with your Sharingan track the enemy on Naruto's flank. Sakura, keep watch and be ready to help." Although the intruder used an advanced camouflage or speed technique, the Sharingan's analytical clarity allowed Sasuke to trace the assassin's chakra flow. No wonder Orochimaru coveted the eye so badly.
"Left! Right! Behind you!" Sasuke kept calling out to Naruto.
But the enemy's blade grew faster each time, and Naruto had to wait for Sasuke's directions before reacting. As the seconds passed, Naruto gained two more shallow wounds. Desperate, Naruto activated his Lightning-style chakra cloak again, crackling arcs forming around him much like the enhanced chakra control exercises Kakashi had pushed him through. Seeing this, the masked attacker materialized briefly and commented approvingly, "So you can mold lightning chakra to augment your body. Impressive for a genin. This complicates things."
Right after speaking, chakra flared along his blade, hinting he intended to pierce Naruto's Lightning Armor directly. Naruto felt the intruder's strikes become sharper and faster, hitting the armor twice in quick succession. Although Naruto remained uninjured thanks to the protection, each hit destabilized the chakra cloak, and maintaining it consumed enormous chakra far too much right after fighting Gaara and Shukaku.
Naruto felt more and more that his strength was reaching its limit, and the masked enemy clearly sensed this, pressing the attack with greater ferocity. Sasuke, watching from the side, noticed the decline in Naruto's movements, while Shikamaru analyzed the opponent's patterns, trying to see through the unknown jutsu. Just as the attacker prepared to finish Naruto with a single decisive strike, Naruto suddenly closed his eyes. At that life-or-death instant, his consciousness was pulled inward.
The dripping cavern walls, the colossal barred gate reinforced with the Hakke sealing formula, and the massive fox looming behind it Naruto didn't expect his first direct encounter with the Nine-Tails would come under such desperate circumstances. From behind the iron gate came the beast's deep roar: "Brat… I'll crush you." Their first meeting was as rude and violent as he had feared.
Naruto replied to the Nine-Tails, "Not much of a greeting, huh? But you're definitely the Nine-Tails. My chakra's empty—I need your strength right now. We'll talk later."
"Take it, kid. Think of it as a gift for showing your face," the Nine-Tails growled. Naruto could sense its malicious amusement, but for now, he had no choice but to rely on its overwhelming power.
Though the exchange in his mind felt long, only a heartbeat passed in reality. The moment before the enemy's blade landed, Naruto's eyes snapped open, glowing an eerie red, and a cloak of bubbling Nine-Tails chakra erupted from his body. Power flooded his limbs speed, force, and regeneration all surged, unmistakably the strength of the tailed beast.
Naruto leapt back and formed hand seals in midair. "Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique!" Enhanced by the Nine-Tails' chakra, the jutsu expanded far beyond its normal size. Judging by its radius, there was no way the opponent could simply outrun it. Yet no scream came from within the blaze. The masked man vanished again, and only after the heat dissipated did he reappear, blade drawn, looking completely unscathed.
"Did he dodge, Sasuke?" Naruto demanded.
Sasuke answered, "I saw him vanish inside the flames. It wasn't normal evasion he just disappeared." At that moment, Shikamaru shouted, "Naruto, use the Fire Style again!" Naruto launched another massive fireball. Through the Sharingan, Sasuke saw the same sequence: the enemy vanished entirely, but once the heat faded, water vapor condensed subtly in the air and then the enemy's form re-solidified.
"I get it," Shikamaru muttered, then whispered urgently to Sasuke, "Scan everything with your Sharingan. Can you still use Chidori?"
Sasuke frowned. "The Sharingan alone eats chakra. Using it again… isn't happening."
"That makes things troublesome," Shikamaru replied.
With Fire Style ineffective, Naruto reactivated his Lightning-style chakra cloak and charged in, but the enemy remained superior, slipping in and out of visibility. Fighting an enemy who turned intangible and nullified large-scale attacks was maddening.
Just as Naruto faltered, Shikamaru suddenly yelled, "Naruto! Fall back, fast!" Even without understanding why, Naruto trusted Shikamaru's instincts completely and retreated at full speed.
Laughter echoed above him. "Running now? Realize you can't win? I'll admit, brat, you've impressed me still producing chakra after that battle. But that only makes me more eager to kill you. You won't escape."
Naruto continued retreating until he heard Shikamaru's final command: "Naruto, use your strongest Lightning Release, right now!" Naruto instantly formed seals, unleashing a burst of lightning. Empowered by the Nine-Tails' chakra, the discharge surged through the battlefield. In that blinding flare, Naruto spotted a dark silhouette reforming behind a nearby tree and at the same moment, Shikamaru's Shadow Imitation Technique snapped into place, locking the enemy's movements.
Though the mask hid his face, the enemy's shock was obvious.
"Why… how did you find me?" he demanded, staring at Shikamaru.
Shikamaru explained, "When Naruto used Fire Style the first time, I suspected you were using Water Release, probably forming a liquefied body to hide. Water Release is good for concealment. When he used it again, I confirmed it—those attacks weren't from your real body, but from water clones condensed around you. After the flames heated the air, there wasn't enough moisture for you to re-form immediately. You had to wait for the temperature to drop. So I had Sasuke watch for vapor reforming. You can hide your chakra flow, but to cut through Naruto's lightning armor, you needed hand signs and a surge of chakra into your clone. That spike gave you away. Once Sasuke located you, we couldn't pin you down completely so we needed Naruto to pretend to run. Water Release is weak to lightning, and Naruto's Lightning Release completely disrupts your technique."
With a final scream, the enemy collapsed, the lightning tearing through his watery form. Naruto had defeated the assassin but in his current condition, he knew he couldn't reach the Third Hokage in time. Most likely, the battle atop the barrier had already reached its end. And perhaps, Naruto thought bitterly, for the Third Hokage, dying while protecting the village he loved was the fate he had already accepted.
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