Gamabunta's massive hand tightened around the hilt.
With a heavy shhhk, the giant toad unsheathed his sword. The long blade gleamed coldly under the moonlight, its edge catching silver as chakra faintly hummed along the metal. The sheer size of it alone was terrifying—longer than most buildings, thick enough to crush a man even without the edge.
Jiraiya let out a low, almost wicked chuckle from atop the toad's head.
Naruto didn't say a word.
He stood there, calm and focused, eyes tracking every movement as chakra flowed deliberately through his body. His stance lowered slightly, weight balanced on the balls of his feet. He waited.
"Well," Gamabunta rumbled, lifting the sword high above his head, muscles bulging beneath his rough skin, "since you said so, Naruto—get ready!"
The world seemed to slow.
The next second, Gamabunta swung.
SHIIINGGG—
The blade tore through the air, the sound sharp and screaming as it descended with monstrous speed. The pressure alone split the ground beneath it before it even made contact.
Naruto's eyes widened—not in fear, but calculation.
He moved.
With a powerful burst of chakra, he vanished from the sword's path, reappearing several meters away as the massive blade slammed down where he'd been standing.
BOOOOM!
The impact shook the entire training ground.
Earth exploded outward, dirt and stone blasting into the air as a deep crater formed beneath the sword. Shockwaves rippled across the clearing, knocking loose leaves from the trees and sending a violent gust rolling outward.
Naruto skidded to a stop, cloak fluttering as debris rained down around him.
He glanced back at the crater, whistling softly.
"…Man," he muttered, a grin tugging at his lips. "You weren't kidding about no holding back."
Above him, Gamabunta laughed deeply, clearly pleased.
"Good, I'm just following orders " the toad chief said, lifting the blade again. The sword rose once more. And this time— Naruto leaned forward, eyes blazing, ready to meet it head-on.
Naruto didn't retreat again.
As Gamabunta lifted the blade for a second strike, Naruto inhaled slowly and focused—chakra condensing, compressing, spiraling inward instead of exploding outward. It flowed into his muscles, his joints, his fists, gathering with terrifying density.
Gamabunta brought the sword down again, even faster than before.
The shadow swallowed Naruto whole. At the last possible instant, Naruto stepped in.
Tsunade's eyes widened.
'No way…'
Naruto twisted his hips, planted his foot, and drove his fist upward—not wildly, not desperately, but with surgical precision.
For a heartbeat, his knuckles touched the flat of the blade.
Then—
BOOOOOOM!
The impact detonated.
A shockwave erupted outward like a bomb going off, flattening grass in a perfect circle and splitting the earth beneath Naruto's feet. The massive sword was knocked off course, screeching violently as it was forced aside, crashing into the ground at an angle instead of cleaving straight down.
Gamabunta's eyes bulged.
"…What the hell?"
Naruto skidded backward, boots carving trenches in the dirt as steam hissed faintly from his arm. His sleeve was torn, skin red—but intact.
He flexed his hand once. Still usable. Jiraiya stared down at him, disbelief flashing across his face.
'He redirected Gamabunta's sword… with raw chakra control?'
Naruto didn't give them time to recover.
He vanished again—reappearing halfway up Gamabunta's arm, sprinting along the massive limb as if it were solid ground. Each step cracked the skin beneath his feet.
Gamabunta roared. "Cheeky brat!"
The toad swung his free hand to swat Naruto away. Naruto jumped—twisting midair—and slammed his heel down onto the back of Gamabunta's wrist.
CRACK!
The force traveled straight through.
Gamabunta hissed in pain as his arm slammed into the ground, shaking the entire clearing. Naruto flipped backward and landed lightly, chest rising and falling as chakra settled back into his body.
From the treeline, Tsunade exhaled slowly, a sharp grin forming.
'He didn't just copy it,' she realized. 'He understands it.'
Jiraiya laughed—loud, wild, and proud.
"Hahaha! So you went and stole her trick!" he shouted. "You're really trying to kill me tonight, huh?!"
Naruto looked up at him, eyes blazing, a confident smirk on his face.
Gamabunta rolled his shoulders, grinning despite himself. "Heh… alright, kid."
The sword rose again.
"And now," the toad chief said, "I'm getting serious."
The ground trembled beneath Naruto's feet as Gamabunta shifted his stance, sheer mass making the earth groan in protest.
Naruto exhaled slowly.
'…Yeah,' he thought, eyes narrowing. 'I'm gonna need help.'
He brought his hands together in a single, sharp seal.
"Shadow Clone Jutsu."
POOF—POOF—POOF!
Bursts of smoke exploded around him as multiple clones sprang into existence, landing in ready stances the instant they appeared. The clearing filled with identical figures, each one already synced, already focused.
"Believe it!"
"Yo, it's the Chief!"
A few clones grinned, cracking their knuckles as they glanced up at the towering toad. Others immediately spread out, feet digging into the dirt, chakra flaring in perfect unison.
Naruto didn't say a word.
He didn't have to.
Their eyes met for a split second—and that was enough.
'Alright,' he thought, a calm resolve settling in his chest. 'Let's go.'
The clones moved as one.
Some burst forward, chakra flaring through their legs as they sprinted toward Gamabunta's massive frame. Others leapt skyward, springing off shattered chunks of earth and debris, angling for higher ground. A few began molding chakra, wind and rotation building rapidly in their palms.
Above them, Gamabunta laughed, deep and booming.
"Now that's more like it!"
Jiraiya's grin widened as he watched from above, eyes sharp with excitement.
Tsunade crossed her arms, lips curling into a knowing smile.
'Good,' she thought. 'He's stopped trying to prove himself… and started fighting to win.'
Smoke, chakra, and moonlight swirled together as Naruto and his clones closed in—and the battlefield erupted into motion once more.
The battlefield exploded into motion.
Gamabunta swung his massive sword in a wide arc, the blade screaming through the air like a guillotine. Three clones leapt straight at it—
—and were obliterated mid-air, bursting into smoke as the shockwave alone shredded them apart.
"Don't bunch up!" Naruto shouted.
Too late.
The sword slammed down again, carving a trench through the earth and sending debris flying like shrapnel. Clones scattered in every direction, some rolling, some leaping, others vanishing only to reappear higher up.
Naruto himself dashed forward, chakra flooding his legs. He kicked off the ground, then a rock, then a broken chunk of earth—zig-zagging upward toward Gamabunta's torso.
At the same time—
"Now!" Naruto barked.
Five clones slammed their palms into the ground.
"Earth-Shattering Punch!"
They struck together—Tsunade's chakra control executed flawlessly.
BOOOOOOM!
The ground beneath Gamabunta detonated upward, not exploding outward but collapsing inward, destabilizing his footing. The giant toad grunted as one leg sank slightly, balance disrupted for just a moment.
That moment was enough. Naruto appeared above Gamabunta's wrist, fist drawn back. Chakra compressed. Timed. Released.
CRACK—!!!
His punch slammed into Gamabunta's forearm like a cannon round. The shockwave rippled up the massive limb, rattling bone and muscle alike. Gamabunta snarled, sword arm jerking off-line as the blade slammed uselessly into the dirt.
"Brat—!"
Naruto flipped away just as a massive pipe came swinging toward him. A clone intercepted instead—both hands braced against the pipe.
"Got it!"
The clone popped instantly, but the split second it bought was all Naruto needed. He landed, slid, and immediately formed a Rasengan—then canceled it.
Jiraiya's eyes narrowed.
'He's baiting.'
Gamabunta inhaled deeply.
"Water Style—"
"Scatter!" Naruto yelled.
The clones reacted instantly, breaking formation as a torrent of water blasted from Gamabunta's mouth, flattening trees and gouging trenches through the field. Clones vanished in clouds of smoke, information flooding back into Naruto's mind all at once.
Naruto grinned.
'Got you.'
He reappeared directly behind Gamabunta's head, already mid-swing. This time, both fists. Both loaded.
Both precise.
DOUBLE IMPACT.
The hit didn't explode outward.
It imploded.
Gamabunta's massive head snapped forward as the force traveled inward, rattling his skull. The giant toad staggered, one knee slamming into the ground with a thunderous crash.
The clearing went silent for half a second.
Then—
"Hahahaha!" Gamabunta laughed, wiping his mouth. "Alright, alright—enough!"
The sword lowered.
Jiraiya stared down at the battlefield, eyes wide for a long, stunned second—
Then he burst out laughing.
"Hahaha…!" He wiped at the corner of his eye, pride unmistakable in his expression. 'He actually beat him,' he thought, grin sharpening. 'Alright then… my turn.'
Jiraiya crouched slightly and hopped down from Gamabunta's head, landing with a solid thud on the torn earth below.
"Thanks, Gamabunta," he said, glancing back over his shoulder. "But I'll take it from here."
The toad chief snorted, clearly amused. "Heh. Don't break him too badly."
POOF.
Gamabunta vanished in a cloud of smoke, the pressure of his presence disappearing with him. The clearing suddenly felt larger—and far more intimate.
Now there were only two of them again.
Teacher and student.
Naruto stood still, chest rising and falling as he drew in deep breaths. Sweat rolled down his temple. His muscles burned—not from exhaustion, but from restraint. Chakra churned inside him, restless, violent, pressing against the seal like a tide against a dam.
'I need to finish this fast,' he thought grimly. 'Before I lose control… before he takes over.'
A familiar, dark heat crept through his veins.
The Nine-Tails' chakra.
It seeped into him in slow, poisonous threads—powerful, tempting, eager. His nails dug slightly into his palms as he forced it down, compressing it, locking it away with sheer will.
'I don't need it,' he told himself. 'Not now. Not ever.'
Across from him, Jiraiya's laughter faded.
His posture shifted.
Gone was the relaxed, teasing Sannin. In his place stood a shinobi honed by decades of war—feet planted, spine straight, chakra calm and deep. It wasn't explosive like Naruto's. It was vast. Controlled. Like an ocean that hadn't yet decided to move.
Jiraiya studied Naruto closely.
"…You're holding back something dangerous," he said quietly.
Naruto didn't deny it.
Jiraiya smiled faintly. "Good. Then this ends one of two ways."
He rolled his shoulders, cracking his neck once.
"Either you beat me without relying on that power," he said, eyes sharp, "or I knock you out before it ever comes out."
The wind howled through the clearing again, stirring dust and leaves between them.
Naruto lowered his stance, chakra tightening, Tsunade's precision locking his body into perfect alignment. His eyes burned—not red, not feral—but focused.
"Aight" Naruto said.
They stared at each other.
And then—
The ground exploded beneath their feet as both moved at the same time.
The final battle had begun.
TO BE CONTINUED