The desert roared with chaos.
"Wind Style: Rasenshuriken!"
Naruto's voice thundered across the battlefield as a massive shuriken-shaped Rasengan spun to life, tearing the air apart. He hurled it straight at Pain.
But Pain didn't flinch. His hand rose calmly.
"Preta Path."
The Rasenshuriken dissolved into nothing, sucked into Pain's palm. Naruto's eyes widened in shock—his strongest technique erased in an instant.
Pain's head tilted slightly. "Now… Asura Path."
Metal screeched as two mechanical arms burst from his back, transforming into cannons. They fired with explosive force, slamming into Naruto and sending him skidding across the sand.
"Animal Path!" Pain commanded.
A puff of smoke erupted, and from it surged a monstrous, three-headed hound. The beast snarled, each head snapping, before charging Gaara. Above, two giant paper birds circled ominously, their shadows sliding across the battlefield.
Naruto wiped the blood from his lip, forming a quick seal.
"Wind Style: Great Breakthrough!"
A violent gale tore through the battlefield, scattering smoke and pushing back the paper birds. preserving chakra, Naruto glared murderously at Tendo Pain.
But Pain's palms met. His voice was like cold judgment.
"Deva Path: Chibaku Tensei."
The world warped. Rocks, boulders, even chunks of the desert floor ripped free and shot into the sky, swirling around Naruto. His body was dragged upward, pinned by an invisible gravity.
"Wha—?!" Naruto struggled, but the prison of stone sealed around him like a growing satellite.
"Kakashi-sensei!" naruto cried.
Kakashi blurred forward, trying to break Pain's focus, but a chilling voice rang out:
"Paper Style: Paper Bombs!"
Konan's voice cut the air as a storm of exploding tags detonated around Kakashi. He dove through the flames—but straight into another jutsu.
"Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"
Kakuzu's roaring inferno swallowed the battlefield. Kakashi spun away, his vest singed and his back scorched. His hand whipped up his forehead protector, revealing the Sharingan.
"Chidori!"
Sparks screamed to life, a thousand birds shrieking in unison. Kakashi lunged, lightning flashing—but Konan dissolved into paper. His strike pierced only a clone.
The ground beneath him split open.
"Red Secret Technique: Performance of a Hundred Puppets!" Sasori's cold voice followed, and from the sand rose an army of puppets, each wielding bladed death.
Kakashi cut one, dodged another—but a sudden silver spike of iron sand shot from the ground. His instincts screamed. He twisted away at the last heartbeat.
But the battlefield was only tightening around him.
Paper shuriken cut the air from behind. Kakashi countered—
"Water Style: Water Bullet!"
The stream shattered the paper, but he barely had time to breathe before another presence loomed.
Short, black spiky hair. Cold, sharp eyes. A cloak lined with armor. His gaze carried the weight of a Kazekage.
Kakashi's breath hitched.
"The… Third Kazekage?!"
His hands blurred through seals.
"Magnet Release: Iron Sand Drizzle!"
A storm of black needles rained from above. Kakashi's feet sank—quicksand. His Sharingan spun desperately.
—
Meanwhile, Naruto roared from inside his stone prison. His cloak of golden chakra flared, limbs sprouting from his back, clutching at the walls. A Rasengan bloomed in his palm—no, something darker. It pulsed black, red, and blue, unstable, collapsing into chaos.
"Tailed Beast Bomb…?" Pain murmured, narrowing his eyes. He braced.
But the sphere shattered mid creation, backfiring. Naruto's body fell limp, plummeting from the sky.
"Naruto!" Sakura screamed as she had came out.
Pain's hand extended. With controlled ease, he caught Naruto mid-fall. His cold voice cut across the battlefield:
"You couldn't save him. You couldn't save anyone."
Gaara's eyes widened as he saw Naruto bound. Rage consumed him. The sand erupted violently, spearing toward Kakuzu. One spike tore straight through him.
For a moment, silence.
Then Kakuzu's corpse landed on the ground, gaara walked past as kakuzu rose, grinning, another heart already pulsing in his body. He blurred forward, fingers stabbing Gaara's pressure points. Gaara's body collapsed, unconscious.
"That brat made me lose one of my hearts..." Kakuzu spoke as his gaze narrowed towards a loud voice.
"Akatsuki! Retreat!" Pain's voice carried absolute authority. "We have two Jinchūriki!"
The Akatsuki scattered in perfect coordination. Sasori's puppets, Konan's paper, Deidara's clay bombs—all covered the retreat. Pain vanished into the sky, carrying their prize.
Kakashi staggered through the smoke, bloodied but standing. He caught Naruto as Pain deliberately dropped him.
"If you want to save your friend…" Pain's voice echoed from above, "…the cave ahead." Then his chakra signature vanished.
—
Minutes later, they found Gaara's still body, dried and lifeless, the One-Tail ripped from him. Naruto fell to his knees, clutching his friend's corpse.
"Gaara!" His cry shook the cavern walls.
Lady Chiyo stepped forward, her hands glowing green. Everyone watched as she placed them over Gaara's chest. Naruto's hand shot forward, pressing over hers. "I'll help you!"
Chiyo smiled faintly. "No… your power is needed elsewhere." Her eyes softened as her chakra drained.
Moments later, Gaara gasped awake, air flooding his lungs.
Naruto's tears fell freely. "Gaara…!"
Chiyo's body slumped lifelessly, her sacrifice complete.
—
When the dust settled, and Team 7 prepared to leave, Gaara stood before Naruto. He extended his hand.
"From now on… Sunagakure and Konohagakure will stand as allies."
Naruto's grin broke through his exhaustion as he clasped Gaara's hand firmly.
"Yeah… Dattebayo!"
The handshake sealed not only a friendship, but the beginning of a new alliance.
Authors corner
Man to be honest, I really like this chapter personally.
I tried to do more action but that's all that came up.
I'm free to get suggestions from dear readers and hope to improve my writing.
And I didn't read any Naruto fanfic a that had a chapter of the fourth war so...don't expect anything good.