The picture before them was one of total destruction. Mito knew what the fighting between Hashirama and Madara had done, but this was on a completely different level. The landscape had been completely destroyed, there was nothing left of the earth but bare, shattered rock. Boulders as big as entire houses had been whirled through the air and dug deep into the earth.
Mito could make out Madara's chakra in front of her more clearly than ever. But she also saw the shinobi army that had gathered here as well. She could read "Shinobi" on their headbands instead of the usual signs for the individual villages. From the clothing alone, she could tell that the shinobi here came from all the villages to fight united against a common enemy.
Her joy was considerably dampened when she saw the monstrous creature the alliance had faced. It was as if nature itself had come together and formed this enormous energy. For energy it was, sheer, pure chakra that had been given form. Mito was at a loss for words to describe it otherwise.
"That thing is really ugly," Kushina stated dryly.
The creature was wedged between two enormous rock hemispheres, depriving it of much of its mobility. Yet its ten arms could still do great damage. Or should Mito rather speak of tails? Could it be that that was the Jūbi there? But weren't there only nine Bijū?
"Mito-sama, look!" exclaimed Kushina excitedly all at once. "That is the chakra of the Kyūbi! That there can only be my little baby Naruto!"
Indeed, Mito clearly felt the chakra that had been a part of her for so long, and nothing about it was as malevolent as she remembered. Remarkable. A young man was wielding it and yet he had actually distributed it to the entire Alliance.
"Incredible," Mito said, impressed. Apparently this jinchūriki had achieved what she had thought impossible.
Kushina jumped up and down excitedly. Her red hair blew around her face. "But really! That's my boy, I knew it! Come on, come quickly, Mito-sama. I want to introduce you to my son."
Smirking, Mito followed the young girl. Well, she shouldn't talk about young with Kushina anymore, she thought to herself. There was not much left of the small, timid girl she had been introduced to then. The bud that Kushina had once been had blossomed and become a wonderful woman.
The shinobi were astonished when they noticed the two women who had so suddenly appeared among them. They became nervous when they saw that Mito and Kushina were Edo Tensei, but quickly reassured them that they were of the good guys. Kushina made her way directly to Naruto.
He didn't seem particularly surprised to find them both here, but as a jinchūriki of the Nine Tails, he could naturally sense chakra just the same. His control over Kyūbis chakra was remarkable and far beyond what Mito had ever been able to accomplish even with Hashirama's help. Not only did he master the Bijū mode effortlessly, but he could distribute Kyūbi chakra to all the shinobi in the alliance.
As Kushina rushed towards him, he beamed all over his face and waved at her. "Hey, mum, I've been waiting!"
Kushina embraced him stormily. "You impatient boy! How you've grown up. You make your mother proud, for real!"
Mito watched a girl from the Hyūga clan standing nervously next to Naruto. She looked stricken and Mito thought she could make out tear tracks on her cheeks, but still she held herself up. She, like all the shinobi here, was wrapped in a robe of Kyūbi chakra.
"Naruto-kun, who is that?" the girl asked.
"That," Naruto said proudly, "is my amazing mother! Even though I don't know who the granny is who came with her."
"Say, how dare you, Naruto!" exploded Kushina, her hair blowing, and headbutted Naruto. "Don't you disrespect Mito-sama! She was Kyūbis first jinchūriki and the wife of Shodai-Hokage!"
Naruto rubbed the bump on his head. "Ouch! Mum, you can be scary, believe it."
Mito had generously overheard that someone other than her grandchildren had called her Grandma. From Kushina's son, that was probably acceptable. Instead, she had been watching Jūbi. On his head she saw two small figures, one of them undoubtedly Madara. The other man at his side she did not know, but she saw the Sharingan. So also an Uchiha, she should have guessed.
"So we meet again, Mito-kun," Madara called out to her. "I didn't expect to see you again."
"Risen from the grave again to give you the thrashing you deserved," Mito shot back. "And this time you got yourself a really ugly pet, too. I preferred Kyūbi."
"Enough of this chatter. The family reunion is hereby ended," the unknown Uchiha said. He did something that caused the Jūbi to struggle against his stone prison. The earth shook and the rock formed cracks.
"Obito, don't put your foot in your mouth if you don't know who that is," Madara snapped at the man beside him.
Mito wondered what their relationship was. They seemed to be working together, but how far would that cooperation go and what were their goals?
"Oh, but I know that very well," Obito replied. "Uzumaki Mito and Uzumaki Kushina, both former jinchūriki of the Kyūbi. I have even had the pleasure of making Kushina's acquaintance. Don't you remember me, Kushina? It was I who took Kyūbi away from you."
Surprisingly, Kushina did not explode. Instead, a determined expression came over her face and she let her fingers crack. "It looks like I'm going to get the pleasure of giving someone a well-deserved beating too."
Obito was apparently not impressed by Kushina's murderous aura. "Kabuto was actually going to use your sealing techniques for himself, but it seems you have escaped Edo Tensei as well."
"Tch, children," Mito made snidely, turning to Naruto. "Can you give us some of your chakra too, Naruto-kun? We're going to need it."
"You got it, Mito-obaasan," Naruto said with a wide grin that he could only get from his mother. When he touched her outstretched hand, Kyūbi's consciousness brushed against it for a brief moment.
"You're quite astonished, aren't you, old woman?", Kyūbi greeted her.
"Impressive, indeed," she agreed. "Hashirama and I had felt it necessary to lock you away because not even he could believe there was any good in you. But lo and behold, you seem to be getting along splendidly with Naruto."
"Hey, you two know each other?" asked Naruto in amazement.
"Weren't you listening, you stupid brat?" raged Kyūbi. "Mito has been my jinchūriki far longer than you or Kushina. Of course I know the wizened witch!"
"Are you still sulking, flea-infested fox?" retorted Mito. It was surprisingly easy for her to fall back into their old game and exchange insults.
"Pah!" Kyūbi snorted. "And I have a name, you know. I'm Kurama and that's the Jūbi up ahead. We have to stop him, but that should be obvious to you. The Jūbi is different from us Bijū. It has no consciousness and no emotions in that sense. It is nature in form, like an all-devouring storm that sweeps over the land, taking everything with it. That there is not its final form. When he reaches that, it's over. That can't be allowed to happen."
"I thank you for that information, Kyū ... I mean, Kurama," Mito said, then turned to Kushina. "Can you teach your son the Kongō Fūsa? That way I can support you and focus on the seal at the same time."
"But of course. Naruto, pay close attention now," Kushina said.
"It's like tug-of-war, I know," Naruto said. "When I released Kurama's seal, we spoke before. Dad had sealed some of your chakra inside me. But I could only use that technique because I had that chakra from you."
"Then now I will show you how to use it yourself."
Jūbi used this moment to finally break out of his prison. He blasted the hemispheres that had held him with a deafening roar. Boulders were hurled away. The Alliance shinobi fought them off with their jutsus, but still many of the boulders fell in their midst, shaking the ranks of the army.
Jūbi was finally free again and immediately went on the attack. Mito did not hesitate for a moment. She summoned her Adamantine Chains herself and with Kurama's chakra she was able to cover a much larger area. Using her chakra, she formed a force field between the chains and stretched it into a wide dome that protected the alliance. The chains were capable of binding a being like Kurama, even if it had been difficult for her alone. Jūbi was immeasurably more powerful and she didn't fool herself into thinking she stood a chance alone. But three of them could make it work. When Uzumaki teamed up, nothing had ever been able to stop them.
"Wow, Mito-obaasan! You're really something!" marvelled Naruto enthusiastically.
"You should stop addressing Mito-sama so disrespectfully!" exploded Kushina.
Jūbi punched the dome. It trembled under the blows it rained down on her, but still it held. It would not do so forever. Kushina hurriedly explained the technique of the chakra chains to her son.
"What is this, Mito-kun?" demanded Madara to know. "You know you cannot stand against me. You are only Hashirama's wife, not himself. So give up instead of teaming up with that kid."
"I don't know what you're up to, but really I don't care either," Mito replied. "Hashirama is not here, but I am, and that means I will do everything in my power to stop you. Your bad luck if you never took me for granted before."
"This is all nonsense!" shouted Obito. "This world here is a nightmare, and I'm going to end it. Here and now! Your struggle is futile. Soon none of this will matter any more. Then this nightmare will come to an end and the Mugen Tsukuyomi will create a better world. One without losers and without pain. A world where only love reigns."
"Sounds like made-up nonsense to me," Mito observed. "Did you read that on the Uchiha stone tablet, Madara-kun? If that's the best you could come up with, then you really should have left the science to the people who know something about it. You've always been good for nothing but flexing your muscles."
Still Jūbi pounded on the barrier. It held, but it wavered. Mito could not play for time much longer.
This Jūbi was powerful, no question about it. It could not be dealt with by normal means. If Mito sensed it right, this creature had mastered all chakra natures, apparently even the Mokuton, as she judged from the wooden spikes that littered the battlefield and had cost numerous shinobi their lives.
She had to seal this creature somehow, everything else would have to wait. An exciting challenge, because as an Edo Tensei she could not just become the jinchūriki of the Jūbi. Or maybe she could? Edo Tensei was one seal, the eight Trigrams another. But seals could be fused together. She smiled grimly. If anyone could solve this question, it was her. No one was better with seals than she was.
"Naruto, what are you doing?" sneered Obito. "Are you such a mama's boy that you have to hide behind your dead mother's coattails? Give up, Naruto. You have seen true despair, not even your friends you could save. What good are two dead women going to do anyway? All that does is postpone the inevitable."
Wordlessly, Naruto stepped forward and looked up at Obito, who was standing on a large boulder some distance away. Kurama's robe flared and quickly formed the shape of the fox. Mito was admittedly very impressed. She would not have thought that humans and Bijū were capable of such harmonious cooperation, and yet here she was beholding it with her own eyes.
"The bullshit coming out of your mouth makes me sick!" exclaimed Naruto. "You wouldn't believe how great I feel being surrounded by my friends and family. And no matter what you say, I'll always have them with me. Right here, where I also hold the real Neji!" And with those words, he beat his chest, right over his heart. "Nothing can take that away from me, got it! Come on now, Kurama, let's show this fool what friendship means!"
"Ha! I've been waiting for this moment!" roared Kurama, digging his claws into the ground ready to pounce.
The moment had come for Mito to drop her barrier. At the same moment, Kurama leapt forward, roaring, and lunged straight at Jūbi. Kushina threw her chains and caught the hands with which Jūbi was about to strike at Kurama. Mito supported her with her own chains wherever one of Kushina's hands threatened to escape. Together they kept the Jūbi on the ground. From the air, Naruto, supported by Kurama, also threw his chains, which wrapped around the Jūbi's form.
The gigantic creature roared and rebelled against the Uzumaki's restraints. Kurama landed behind him, grabbed the chains and pulled them tight. Mito and Kushina also pulled and together they managed to throw Jūbi off balance. The creature stumbled and eventually fell over backwards. It was as if it was falling in slow motion. Mito could follow every moment of it closely and also the moment the creature crashed to the ground. The earth itself reared up under the shockwave, knocking numerous shinobi off their feet.
"Mito-sama, now!" shouted Kushina. "Seal this thing!"
"You must buy me time," Mito retorted. "This is going to be a tricky formula and I don't know if I can get it perfect the first time."
"What are you going to do, Mito-kun?" wanted Madara to know. "You're like me Edo Tensei, you can't become the jinchūriki of the Jūbi."
"What, was that your plan? Oh, how unfortunate that one of Tobirama's jutsus is throwing a wrench in your plans again," Mito scoffed. Hashirama wasn't here, so it was justifiable to tease this slob a little. He certainly deserved it for what he had done to Hashirama. She turned to the assembled alliance behind her. "Go, shinobi! Attack them with everything you have!"
The men and women of the Alliance stretched their weapons and roared their bravery to the world. And brave they were indeed, for it took so much to stand in Madara's way. Had Mito not been Edo Tensei, she too would have hesitated.
Jūbi was still resisting its bonds. Mito fought with Kushina, Naruto and Kurama for control. Even with Kurama's chakra and three Uzumaki, it was hard to keep this beast under control. How could she seal it? Would conventional seals even work?
"I won't let you get in the way of our plan, old woman."
Startled, Mito turned to face Obito all at once. Where had he come from so suddenly?
A white flash passed between them both. A shinobi with wild white hair had stepped between them. His left eye was divided by an old scar and from that eye shone the Sharingan, though he was not an Uchiha. Somehow this face seemed familiar to Mito, though he hid it under a mask.
"First you must pass me, Obito," the man said.
Obito grabbed him by the shoulder and then ... they just disappeared.
"Whoops." Mito blinked in surprise. But wait, no time to wonder about that. She had a sealing formula to develop.
In the distance, Susanoo flared up. Not good. She remembered all too well the large number of casualties when Madara had attacked Konoha. Had it not been for Hashirama, he could have destroyed the village, especially with Kurama under his control. That was not the case this time, but Susanoo was still a deadly weapon that hardly anyone had anything to oppose. The shinobi's only chance was their sheer mass.
For Madara, the lives of other shinobi were not worth a second thought. He wiped them all out in just one mighty Katon. It was just like when he had left for Iwagakure, even before he had turned his back on Konoha for good.
Mito gritted his teeth. One thing at a time. First Jūbi, then Madara.
"Mito-sama, look!" exclaimed Kushina. "Jūbi seems to be transforming, it's not good."
"Absolutely not," Mito agreed. "We must strengthen our chains!"
The earth shook as Hachibi rushed over. "That won't do any good," he said. "The Adamantine Chains are really impressive, but in the end, Jūbi is stronger. Nothing can stop him as long as we don't find a way to seal him. So long we can only play for time."
Jūbi squirmed in his bonds. His previously scrawny limbs gained mass as he charged his chakra. Something that looked like a giant flower bud spilled out of his mouth and immediately began to open its petals. They were thick, fleshy petals of a flower unlike anything Mito had seen before. Each of them was significantly larger than even Kurama or Hachibi. And in that flower, Jubi once again gathered his chakra for a massive Bijū-ball.
"Kushina-kun, pull!" shouted Mito, grabbing her own chains. "He mustn't be able to aim!"
Hachibi joined in, tugging at the chains of the two women. Kurama, too, pulled as hard as he could to unbalance the Jūbi once more. However, it was probably doubtful whether this would be of any use at all given the enormous size of this bomb. He didn't even need to aim at a specific person to hit his target.
All at once, she felt a spiritual presence creeping into her thoughts. Someone from the Yamanaka clan was connecting her and, it seemed, all the Alliance shinobi with a young Nara.
"Now listen carefully everyone," the Nara said in her mind. "I will now teach you a simple Doton. We will use it simultaneously and counter the quality of the opponent with our quantity. Pay close attention."
He transmitted to them a series of finger signs for a simple earth wall. None of them would ever be strong enough to stop this massive sphere, but together they might be able to deflect the trajectory enough.
Together with the two Bijū, the Uzumaki pulled on their chains. At the same moment, Jūbi fired his bullet. Hachibi leapt away and fired a series of bullets, even though each of them looked tiny next to the Jūbi's enormous bomb. Mito loosened her chains around Jūbi and created a barrier that threw her into the bomb's trajectory. But not even that could stop it. Mito's barrier lasted longer than the Alliance's simple earth walls, but it too was eventually pulverised. At least it bought Hachibi enough time to throw himself in the bomb's path as it swept away the last earth wall.
And then ... just like that, the bomb disappeared.