"I had them guarding Gaara."
"Kushina has old man Sarutobi watching over her, so there shouldn't be any problems."
"Another piece, Pakura."
"After I finish eating, I'm heading to the front lines. My clone seems to be having way too much fun."
Kazuyama kept eating, more and more absorbed in the flavor, but he still planned to check the front lines. Even though he'd left clones behind—clones strong enough to stall even Uchiha Madara for a while—he couldn't shake the feeling that something wasn't right.
"Beep!!!!"
Just as he put another piece of fish into his mouth, a piercing alarm suddenly blared.
Kazuyama shot up immediately.
"What's going on?"
"Enemy attack?"
Pakura set down his cooking tools, and the two stepped outside together.
The moment they left the room, both Kazuyama and Pakura froze.
"Damn it!"
"Pakura! Summoning Technique! Find Michihito and the others—get them out!"
"Old bastard! Opening with the ultimate move!"
"Summoning Technique!"
Without hesitation, Kazuyama bit into both palms and slammed his hands onto the ground. Pakura did the same.
A moment later, four enormous serpents materialized—Kinrin, Yulín, Huanlin, and Qinglin.
"What the hell is that!?"
"Don't ask! Just run!"
"Hey! You two are too much!"
"Seriously, it's just a giant rock. Watch me crush it!"
Each serpent reacted differently upon being summoned, but all of them were terrified by what hung above the village.
A massive boulder—no, a meteorite—was descending over Konohagakure.
The whole village fell into panic.
In a nearby house, Kushina suddenly felt her entire body jolt. Terrified, she checked her seal and shouted:
"Nine-Tails! What are you doing!?"
The Nine-Tails' chakra was spilling out wildly. Inside her, the beast radiated a dangerous aura and roared back:
"You idiot! Kushina! Go outside! That bastard is here!"
"I don't know how he's still alive, but he's here!!!"
"This is the worst possible disaster!"
The Nine-Tails' frantic voice stunned her, but she instinctively rushed outside—and saw the colossal meteorite hanging in the sky.
"What is that!?"
"Wait… is that… Kazuyama?"
Konohagakure's alarms were blaring everywhere.
"What is happening!?"
"Lord Sarutobi, what do we do!?"
The ANBU stationed in the village gathered before Hiruzen Sarutobi, awaiting orders.
Ninjas from the other allied villages also turned toward him. They had all heard of the Third Hokage, and right now, he was the strongest person in the village.
Though he had lost an arm and was far from his prime, he had been a legend once.
"This isn't something normal people can counter. Everyone, hurry and evacuate the civilians!"
"Wait!"
Hiruzen suddenly stopped speaking. His eyes locked onto the sky, where a streak of light shot up from the ground straight toward the meteorite.
"That brat Kazuyama?"
"What? Lord Kazuyama!? But wasn't he on the front lines?"
Hiruzen took another look and nodded heavily. His next words left everyone stunned.
"It's him. I'd never mistake that kid."
"Knowing him, he definitely left a clone at the battlefield and came back here to rest!"
"He's the only one who would pull such a stunt during a war!"
Years of experience—specifically, years of being tricked—had sharpened Hiruzen's intuition. He instantly saw through Kazuyama's behavior.
"How could that be…"
"Lord Kazuyama wouldn't do something like that, right?"
Hearing the whispers, Hiruzen snorted and immediately aired Kazuyama's dirty laundry.
"You're all new ANBU. You don't know what this bastard used to be like."
"Yes, he's your instructor, and yes, he's strong—but he's lazy. Back during the Third Shinobi World War…"
"He disappeared mid-battle more than once. And every time, he went off somewhere to play!"
"So trust me—the one on the front lines is definitely his clone!"
"But for a meteorite this big, only he has a chance."
At this point, all of Hiruzen's hopes rested on Kazuyama.
Even he had no way of stopping such a gigantic meteor.
...
On a slope outside Konohagakure.
"Oh? That brat. No wonder Black Zetsu praised him so much."
"Hmph. Not killing him back then has come back to bite me."
"But what will you do against this meteorite, Kazuyama Gekkō?"
Madara Uchiha kept his hands in a sealing position. The meteorite was his doing, birthed from his Rinnegan.
Tengai Shinsei—the Heavenly Obstacle Crushing Star.
Without hesitation, Madara aimed to wipe Konohagakure from existence.
Inside the village, chaos erupted. People ran everywhere, screams echoing through the streets.
"Michihito, aren't you scared?"
"That meteorite is huge!"
Michihito Gekkō, assigned to guard Gaara, glanced at the boy beside him but said nothing. Senko Gekkō simply pointed upward.
Around them, the rest of Konoha's young powerhouses were gathered.
"Look, Dad's already moving. We'll be fine."
"He's here!"
At her words, everyone looked to the sky. Neji Hyūga, with his Byakugan, saw things even more clearly—something else was approaching.
Before they could question it further, a massive golden serpent appeared before them.
"Whoa! A giant snake!"
"What is that thing!?"
"Relax. That's my mom and dad's summoning beast!"
The children jumped back in shock, but Senko simply smiled and walked toward Kinrin.
As the giant serpent came to a halt, Pakura appeared before them.
"All of you, follow me!"
"Michihito, Senko—protect Gaara! The enemy's target is Gaara!"
"Move!"
"Kinrin!"
Her voice was filled with urgency. Kinrin immediately opened its huge mouth, gathering natural energy.
Pakura grabbed Gaara and her daughter and rushed toward the serpent's maw.
She was going to have Kinrin dive underground to escape.
Meanwhile, Kazuyama had already reached the meteorite. He roared upward, furious:
"You old bastard! You don't hold back at all—not even against the village you founded!"
"Flying Thunder God Technique!"