On the battlefield, the pitch-black Susanoo arrived almost instantly. With it came the Five-Tails and two unconscious figures.
The moment they appeared, everyone's expression turned grim.
"They got here fast. Those new eyes really aren't ordinary."
"Is that the Two-Tails? The Four-Tails? And the Five-Tails?"
Madara Uchiha stood as arrogantly as ever, as if nothing before him was worth noticing.
A masked man appeared beside him, his crimson Mangekyō Sharingan glowing ominously.
"You guessed right. These three ran all the way to the Land of Snow."
"I'm betting it was that bastard Kazuyama Gekkō's doing. I sensed his chakra over there."
"Didn't expect it… That bastard's reach extends even to the Land of Snow."
Muren Uchiha's voice overflowed with hatred toward Kazuyama.
If not for Kazuyama, their plan wouldn't have been nearly this troublesome.
Across from them, the Five Kage—along with Yahiko and Konan—wore equally dark expressions.
Especially Ōnoki, Yahiko, and Konan.
"The Five-Tails was captured? And that one… Rōshi?"
"Where did that idiot run off to? And he got caught? Pathetic."
Both the Four-Tails and Five-Tails had once been assets of Iwagakure. During the Third Shinobi War, they even served as the village's siege weapons.
But during the war, Han—the Five-Tails' jinchūriki—died mysteriously, and the Five-Tails vanished. It was later sighted only at the borders of Kusagakure and Konoha.
As for Rōshi, the Four-Tails' jinchūriki, he had quarreled with Ōnoki after the war and left the village. His whereabouts had been unknown ever since.
No one expected that their next encounter would be like this—captured and badly injured.
Meanwhile, Yahiko and Konan turned all their attention to the blond youth.
"Damn it, that's Yugito!"
"Konan, find a way to get her back!"
The name "Yugito" didn't provoke much reaction from the others—but the Fourth Raikage snapped his head around instantly.
"What!? Yugito?"
"Where!?"
His reaction was understandable—Yugito Nii was his village's missing jinchūriki!
"Damn it! Why is Yugito so familiar with you Takigakure people?"
"Don't tell me she was kidnapped by your village!"
"No… wait. How old were you then? No, that makes no sense."
He tried to connect the pieces but quickly dismissed the suspicion—it didn't fit at all.
Yugito was young when she disappeared. These two were far too young to have abducted a jinchūriki from Kumogakure.
"Now's not the time for that."
"We need to get them back first."
Minato Namikaze stepped forward.
A quick glance around told him all he needed: Kushina's Adamantine Sealing Chains, already weakened from the earlier battle, had been pierced by the dark Susanoo's spear.
"Kushina, can you lay down the Adamantine Sealing Chains again?"
"Of course. But Minato… shouldn't we restrain those two first?"
Kushina's gaze remained fixed on the two opponents, her expression wary.
The Adamantine Sealing Chains were the Uzumaki clan's strongest sealing technique.
They could suppress the Nine-Tails—yet two people had broken through them.
This was the difference in absolute power.
"Set the barrier first. We can't let them escape!"
"Got it!"
...
Far from the central battlefield, another clash unfolded.
Puppet fragments lay scattered everywhere.
"Damn it! Why are there so many puppets?!"
"Less talking!"
"Itachi, Shisui—take the right flank!"
"Kai, Kakashi—take the left!"
"I'll handle the center!"
Tsunade stood before the puppets with unshakable confidence.
No puppet could survive a single punch from her.
"Hey hey hey, Tsunade! I'm here too! Don't hog the spotlight!"
With a thud, a giant toad dropped from the sky.
Jiraiya made his grand entrance—late, but present.
Orochimaru had been impossible to track, slippery like an eel, so Jiraiya had come straight to the battlefield instead.
Kabuto stood behind a row of puppets, his cloak discarded.
His puppet-like body was revealed—he had followed Sasori's path, though unlike Sasori, his core remained hidden.
"All here, are you?"
"The Sannin. The Uchiha. Kakashi."
"Excellent. I'll use you to prove my puppetry!"
"Red Secret Technique: Performance!"
"Dance, my puppets!"
Kabuto unfurled two scrolls. More puppets appeared at once.
They were clearly different from the earlier batch—different colors, different construction.
These were Kabuto's personal creations, the elites among his puppets.
"This bastard still has more puppets!?"
"No whining—attack! Brats!"
Tsunade rushed straight at Kabuto.
Her monstrous strength shattered one of the specialized puppets in a single blow.
But in the next moment, countless black tendrils burst from the shattered pieces, forcing her to retreat.
"My puppets fused with Earth Grudge Fear! Even if you smash them to bits, the Earth Grudge Fear hearts remain their source of power!"
"Ahahahaha! This is the pinnacle of puppetry—undying, indestructible puppets!"
As Kabuto cackled, dozens of puppets surged forward.
The others dared not hold back—unleashing their strongest techniques.
Ninjutsu, taijutsu, dōjutsu—everything collided on the battlefield.
Despite controlling them alone, Kabuto's puppets fought with shocking efficiency, each unleashing its maximum combat capacity.
"Damn it, these puppets are a nightmare!"
"Jiraiya, cover me! I'll heal everyone!"
"Got it!"
"Summoning Technique!"
Jiraiya and Tsunade summoned simultaneously.
Gamabunta and Katsuyu appeared.
Jiraiya leapt onto Gamabunta, leading the charge.
Katsuyu split into countless mini-slugs as Tsunade released her Yin Seal, flooding her body with chakra and healing the others through the slugs.
"Lightning Release: Charging Fist!"
"Konoha Great Whirlwind!"
Kakashi and Might Guy cut through the enemy ranks like twin blades—one wrapped in lightning, the other in the Sixth Gate of the Eight Gates.
Not a single puppet could withstand their combined assault.
Their battle burned fiercely—no less intense than the clash happening on the opposite field.
Just as Kabuto had boasted, he was indeed displaying the pinnacle of a puppeteer…
Though the path he walked was anything but pure.