"Boom!!!"
Mu collapsed onto the ground, a gaping hole blown open in his abdomen. Ōnoki flew in swiftly, pressing one hand against Mu's body.
"Earth Release: Ultra-Added-Weight Rock Technique!"
Mu's body instantly became as heavy as a mountain. The sand beneath him sank into a deep crater from the sheer weight. Layers of yellow sand wrapped around his form as Gaara threw a sealing talisman onto it, pressing it down.
He turned his head toward Naruto, whose entire body was glowing gold, and demanded,
"Why are you here?"
Naruto's body was enveloped in golden chakra, streaked with mysterious black markings. The energy around him flickered like flames as he spoke earnestly.
"I couldn't just stand by and watch everyone die for my sake."
"Sacrifice is necessary! This isn't just about you!" Gaara shot back. If Naruto were captured, everything they'd fought for would be lost.
Kiyosuke stepped forward, looking Naruto up and down.
"So this is the new mode of chakra control you've developed from the Nine-Tails? It's just like the chakra I imagined."
"Of course! I trained with Bee, Sasuke, and—"
Naruto turned his head mid-sentence and froze when he saw Kushina standing behind Kiyosuke.
"Uh… this…"
"Naruto," Kushina said softly, walking up and wrapping her arms around him. "You've grown up."
"Y-yeah…" Naruto's eyes reddened as he hugged her tightly.
Uzumaki Mito approached, smiling faintly.
"So this is Kushina's son? What a fine boy."
Even she had never achieved a chakra mode like this. She could borrow the Nine-Tails' chakra, yes—but nothing like this form. Hers had only been the basic tailed cloak.
Naruto's chakra mode was fundamentally different.
Kiyosuke said, "He's probably extracted most of the Nine-Tails' chakra from within. And this kid's body is… special. Similar to the First Hokage's."
"Hashirama's body?"
"Not as full of life force as Hashirama-sama, but in terms of chakra reserves—Naruto might one day surpass him." Kiyosuke spoke with certainty.
"Sounds reasonable."
"Where's your real body right now?" Kiyosuke asked.
This Naruto was clearly a clone. The real one was with Sasuke and Killer Bee.
"I'm heading toward the main battlefield with Bee and Sasuke. But it's a long way… and there are enemies along the route," Naruto said.
"Alright, let's deal with the enemies here first. We're up against some tough ones," Kiyosuke said, turning around.
Obito was still struggling to keep several Raikage occupied. If not for his intangibility, his head would've been taken off already.
On the other side, Itachi was locked in combat with the First Tsuchikage—hardly an easy fight either.
A gigantic stone golem rose from the ground, crashing into Itachi's Susanoo.
"Susanoo, huh? The Uchiha Clan keeps producing geniuses like this. Konoha never ceases to amaze," the First Tsuchikage said with a grin. But his attacks showed no mercy.
Every strike from the stone giant was devastating, forcing Itachi to block continuously with the Yata Mirror.
Boom!
The stone giant's punch slammed against the mirror, producing a deafening impact.
The First Tsuchikage appeared on the golem's shoulder, but Itachi seized the opening—thrusting the Totsuka Blade straight through his body.
"Oh? A sword imbued with a sealing jutsu? Interesting."
The Tsuchikage's soul was drawn into the sake gourd, sealed forever within that drunken dreamlike realm. His body crumbled into dust, leaving behind the corpse that had once been reanimated.
"What a sinister technique," Itachi muttered, shaking his head before turning his eyes to the next opponent.
...
Meanwhile, Kiyosuke was locked in fierce battle with the First Mizukage, Byakuren.
The old man's vision wasn't what it used to be, but his strength was monstrous. His taijutsu was brutally powerful—a true warrior capable of quelling an age of chaos. Against him, few modern shinobi could even stand.
"No wonder you were the First Mizukage—you're incredibly strong," Kiyosuke said with genuine admiration.
"Hmph, and you're not bad yourself, boy. To hold your own against me like this—impressive. You're married into Kirigakure, aren't you?" Byakuren asked mid-battle.
"Yeah. I married the Fifth Mizukage."
"I've heard rumors—the Third died by your hand. They say the Fourth's death was also connected to you. The Second was sealed because of you. And now you're fighting me. You sure you're not out to destroy Kirigakure?"
"Ah, come on…" Kiyosuke laughed. "That's all slander! Total slander! I should sue them for defamation!"
"So you admit it, huh? Fine then—come at me, boy!"
Byakuren took a stance, ready to fight for real.
"Wouldn't have it any other way!"
As soon as Kiyosuke finished speaking, his speed spiked again. The two clashed in a furious exchange of blows that left the watching shinobi stunned.
"My god… are they even human?"
"Hmph! Kiyosuke-sama from Konoha is unbeatable!"
"No wonder the Mizukage married him—he's a monster!"
The Allied Shinobi Forces could only stand and watch, unable to intervene. Their power wasn't even close.
Kiyosuke laughed, grabbing Byakuren by the arm. With a violent twist, he tore it clean off, then swung it like a club, smashing the Mizukage's neck.
Byakuren's head flew off his shoulders as sand surged in from the side, wrapping around his body.
Uzumaki Mito stepped forward and completed the sealing.
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
With that battle done, only the First through Third Raikage remained.
Those three brutes were no easy opponents—fast, tough, and ridiculously durable. Pure offense and defense wrapped in armor.
"This'll be a pain," Kiyosuke muttered. "Use their own attacks against them."
Suddenly, one of the Raikage formed hand signs.
"Summoning Jutsu!"
The First Raikage's body moved involuntarily, summoning two coffins.
Kiyosuke's eyes widened. For a second, he thought Uchiha Madara had returned.
But when the lids opened, what he saw made his blood boil far more.
"Yakushi Kabuto!!! You bastard!!!"
The First Raikage, still under control, guided the coffins closer.
From within stepped a man and a woman. Kabuto smirked.
"I wonder if Kiyosuke-sama likes the special gift I prepared for him?"
"Who are they? Konoha shinobi? Are they strong?" Naruto asked, sensing Kiyosuke's fury and realizing something was very wrong.
"They are…" an older Konoha ninja in the Allied Forces answered quietly, "…Kiyosuke-sama's parents."
"What?!"
The man continued, voice low.
"Kiyosuke-sama lost his parents when he was just a child. They were killed in the Second Great Ninja War. He's been an orphan ever since—raised himself into Konoha's strongest ninja."
"Then… Kiyosuke-sama's parents must've been incredible too, right?"
After all, someone capable of raising such a son couldn't have been weak.