The sky over the Hidden Leaf Village had never looked like this before.
Naruto Uzumaki paused mid-run, staring upward as a thin crack of white light split across the heavens like a jagged wound. At first, he thought it was just strange weather. But then the crack widened, glowing brighter, pulsing with energy. Wind whipped around him, lifting dust and leaves into a swirling spiral.
"What the—?! Is that even natural chakra?" Naruto muttered, squinting as the air hummed with power. Kurama stirred inside him, uneasy for the first time in years.
Meanwhile, thousands of miles away on the Grand Line, Monkey D. Luffy was busy digging through a plate of meat when the sky above his ship split open in the exact same way. The ocean heaved violently, waves rising and falling as if responding to something unseen.
"Oi! Zoro! Nami! Look!" Luffy pointed upward, mouth half-full. "The sky is breaking! That's so cool!"
Nami nearly fainted. "COOL?! That's not cool—that's TERRIFYING!"
Zoro glanced up lazily. "Hmph. Looks like trouble."
In another world entirely, Tanjiro Kamado paused while tracking a demon. The scent in the air shifted sharply, becoming something unfamiliar, neither human nor demon. Nezuko peeked out of her box, tapping the wood nervously.
Tanjiro inhaled deeply. "This scent… I've never smelled anything like it. It's powerful. Heavy. Almost… ancient."
Elsewhere, on a quiet cliff deep in the mountains, Son Goku stood alone with his eyes closed, feeling the tremor ripple through reality itself.
His eyes snapped open. "Woah… that energy is insane. Somebody strong must be doing something big."
Even the strongest sorcerer in the Jujutsu world sensed it immediately. Gojo Satoru stopped walking, tilted his head slightly, and smiled.
"Well, well," he whispered, pushing up his blindfold. "Someone is trying to merge realities. How interesting."
In every world, every sky, the same crack appeared—growing, spreading, glowing—until suddenly, everything stopped.
Then came the explosion.
A burst of blinding white light erupted from every crack at once, pouring through dimensions like a tidal wave. The light wrapped around heroes, dragging them forward with overwhelming force.
Naruto tumbled through nothingness.
Luffy spun in a vortex of color.
Tanjiro clutched Nezuko's box as they were pulled through a tunnel of energy.
Goku grinned as he allowed himself to be taken. "Heh… this is gonna be fun."
The light swallowed them whole.
When it faded, the world had changed.
Naruto hit the ground with a thud. Dust puffed around him as he groaned and sat up. "Ow… what kinda jutsu was THAT?" He blinked, looking around, confused. The area looked like a mix of everything and nothing—trees from the Leaf Village, a stretch of ocean visible in the distance, stone paths he didn't recognize, and floating islands overhead.
"What… is this place?"
He didn't get to think long.
"HEY!" A familiar loud voice echoed. "You! Blondie!"
Naruto turned as Luffy jogged toward him, grinning brightly. "Who are you? Wanna be friends?"
"Huh?! Who are YOU?!" Naruto yelled back.
Before tension could rise, someone else landed nearby—literally crashing into the ground.
"OW! TANJIRO YOUR LANDING IS TERRIBLE!" It was Zenitsu, shaking violently.
Tanjiro appeared moments later, looking dizzy. "Sorry, Zenitsu… Wait—Naruto? Luffy?" His eyes widened as he recognized neither but sensed no malice.
More figures began appearing from beams of light. Gon and Killua landed smoothly. Ichigo stepped through the dust with his sword already drawn. Deku, Todoroki, and Bakugo appeared in a flash of green lightning. Asta crashed face-first into the grass.
Even Goku descended calmly from the sky, as if he had taken an elevator instead of being ripped through dimensions.
Within minutes, a dozen of the strongest heroes from different worlds stood in the same place, equally confused and ready to defend themselves.
Sasuke appeared behind Naruto in an instant. "We're not alone." His Sharingan activated immediately.
Zoro rested a hand on his sword. Todoroki created a patch of ice under his feet. Nezuko peeked from her box, hissing softly at the chaotic energy around them.
"Everyone relax," Goku said, raising a hand. "Nobody here is giving off bad energy."
"Yet," Bakugo muttered.
Before they could question each other, the ground shook violently as a giant tower materialized in the distance. It rose into the sky, impossibly tall, glowing with moving symbols.
Nami gasped. "That… wasn't there a second ago."
Megumi frowned. "That's cursed energy… but not from our world."
The tower pulsed, and a deep, echoing voice filled the entire fused land.
"Welcome, warriors.""Your worlds have collided because a darkness beyond anything you have faced has awakened."
The heroes fell silent.
The voice continued:
"I am the Shadow Emperor. And I am devouring realities one by one."
A cold wave of dark energy spread across the land. Even Goku frowned at the weight of it.
Tanjiro felt his heart tighten. "That smell… so much hatred."
A symbol appeared above the tower—a black swirling crest.
"You have been chosen because you are the strongest of your worlds… or the most dangerous."
A few people looked at Sasuke.
Naruto stepped forward. "If you think we're gonna let you mess with our worlds, you've got another thing coming!"
Luffy grinned. "Yeah! If you wanna fight, we'll beat you up!"
Asta swung his sword. "Bring it on!"
Goku smiled. "This might be fun."
The voice grew darker.
"If you wish to survive, climb the Tower of Convergence. Inside, you will learn the truth—and face me."
The light faded. The world fell silent again. Grass swayed gently. A few clouds drifted over the broken sky.
The heroes finally turned to look at each other—properly this time.
Naruto crossed his arms. "Okay, I'll say it. We DEFINITELY didn't end up here by accident."
Luffy nodded. "Yup! Adventure time!"
Tanjiro bowed politely. "Let's all work together. We'll need each other."
Killua smirked. "This could be interesting."
Gojo flashed a grin. "Well, I'm in. Wouldn't miss this for anything."
Goku glanced at the tower, eyes serious at last. "Let's go. Something strong is waiting for us."
Without another word, the heroes stepped forward—toward the tower, toward their destiny, and toward the greatest battle the multiverse had ever seen.
And somewhere inside the glowing tower, hidden in the shadows, the Emperor watched.
Smiling.
Waiting.
"Come, heroes. The game begins now."