Author's Note: Well, I certainly suck at predicting how people are going to react to a new chapter, because I wasn't expecting the last one to prove so popular. While I was writing it, I thought that the Sannin battle wasn't that exicting compared to other more plot relevant fights. Guess people really wanted to see Orochimaru getting his comeuppance.
Well, here's hoping this chapter proves to be just as well received:
Chapter 126:
Jinchuriki Brawl
or
Facing Past Failures
Forests of the Land of Fire
Following Obito's command, the six undead jinchuriki launched themselves at their living counterparts. Naruto and Killer B quickly activated their Chakra Cloaks, as the plates of Fu's Chakra Armor spread over her body.
"Naruto, watch out! I'm going to attack with a wide area jutsu!" Roshi warned as his hands flew through hand seals. "Lava Release: Scorching Rocks Jutsu!"
Roshi exhaled multiple blots of lava at the trio of living jinchuriki. Naruto and Killer B jumped in different directions, while Fu flew into the air. The lava splashed around, setting the trees on fire.
"This guy's attacking us with molten earth? We better give him a wide berth!" Killer B rapped, as he narrowly avoided a lava projectile.
"That's Roshi, the jinchuriki of the Four Tails!" Naruto told hin. "He can use Lava Release! Be VERY careful with him!"
Before Naruto could plan his next movemenet, the red armored giant appeared besides him, his leg pulled back ready to give him a devastating kick.
"Boil Release: Eruption Kick!"
Propelled by a geyser of steam, the armored giant delivered a devastating kick to Naruto. The blond, however, was able to create a pair of chakra arms that, alongside his real ones, used to catch the leg before it could impact him. Naruto then spun the undead jinchuriki in a circle a few times before tossing him away. However, he managed to land on his feet on a large tree branch.
"Nice one, kid. I don't think anybody has been able to catch one of my steam-powered kicks," the red-clad jinchuriki praised. "Name's Han, by the way."
"Naruto Uzumaki," the jinchuriki of the Nine Tails replied.
Roshi then landed on a branch behind him. "You should be a proud, Naruto. Han isn't somebody to hand compliments that often."
"You know each other?" Naruto asked.
"We were Iwa's two jinchuriki, of course we do!" Han replied. "Roshi was one of the few people that made living in that shithole worth it. If he's a friend of you, then you can consider me one as well. Please ignore my unwilling attempts to kill you."
"So you have to be one of the jinchuriki dad was unable to find any info on," Naruto deduced. "Guess Akatsuki caught you with us none the wiser."
"Like I said, Roshi was one of the very few people that made me stay at Iwa, so when he left, so did I," Han explained. "Guess that made me an easy prey for those Akatsuki bastards. Also, watch out, I'm going to attack again!"
Han shot towards Naruto again, geysers of steam shooting from the gauntlets he was wearing.
"Boil Release: Propulsion Fist!"
Naruto jumped back just as Han brought his fist down, shattering the branch Naruto was perched on. As he moved backwards, though, he noticed that Roshi was about to strike him from behind, his fist coated in burning lava.
"Lava Release: Scorching Armored First!"
Naruto generated a giant arm of golden chakra to catch Roshi's lava fist before he could connect. Feeling that the lava was eating through the golden chakra, Naruto swung the golden arm around, throwing Roshi towards Han. However, rather than crash against each other, Han managed to grab Roshi and, spinning around his heels, redirected Roshi's momentum back at Naruto. While in mid air, the elder jinchuriki extended his leg just in time to deliver a powerful kick on Naruto's face, sending the blond flying away.
Naruto, however, created several chakra arms to hold onto nearby branches and regained balance, landing on his feet.
"How is that he armored guy has Boil Release? I thought it was a Bloodline from Kiri..." Naruto wondered.
"It's the power granted by his Tailed Beast, Kokuo," Kurama explained. "Just like how the smelly ape Son Goku grants Roshi Lava Release."
"Other Tailed Beasts can grant their hosts Bloodline Limits. Man, you seem kind of mediocre when you're put next to them," Naruto joked.
Kurama growled angrily. "Don't you dare compare me with those second rate animals! You should feel immensely lucky that you were blessed with my incredible power!"
"I never thought that we'd get to fight together again. Too bad it's under such awful circumstances," Han lamented.
"I feel that Naruto will be strong enough to deal with us. I mean, that golden cloak isn't just for show, is it?" Roshi asked. "You didn't have it the time I met you."
"A lot of things happened since the time we failed to save you, Roshi," Naruto told him. "This is just one among many."
Roshi chuckled. "Heh, I can imagine. I have the feeling they'd be great topics to write a book about!"
That moment, Fu appeared behind the two of them, her two arms morphed into long blades ressembling the maws of a stag beetle. However, before she could skewer them, the two Iwa jinchuriki jumped aside, and the Taki kunoichi ended up cutting thin air.
"How...?" Fu asked, surprised at their reflexes. And to her increased confusion, many bubbles appeared around her. "Where did these bubbles come from...?"
Remembering the way Utakata used ninjutsu, Naruto's eyes widened. "FU! Get away from those bubbles now!" He yelled
"Water Release: Water Explosion Jutsu!"
The seemingly innocuous bubbles detonated like they were explosive tags. Naruto launched an arm of chakra into the chain of blasts, and managed to grab Fu, pulling her away from the danger. Thankfully, her armor was able to absorb most of the blasts, leaving only a few burnt marks here and there.
"You okay?" Naruto asked, as he gently put Fu down besides him.
"I'll live. Thanks for the save," Fu said, as she dusted her armor. She then looked at Roshi and Han. "What's with the geezer and the iron giant? I made sure to be extra stealthy."
"It's a power of the Rinnegan. All six of them can see what each other sees," Naruto explained, and gestured towards Utakata, perched on a branch above them. "And Utakata was watching you."
"I see," Fu acknowledged, before she saw yet another zombie coming at her, this one a short man holding a staff with glaives at the tip. "Oh damn, here comes another!"
"Yagura...?" Naruto asked, recognizing the zombie.
"Greetings, Naruto. I'm glad to see you again, even if it's under such circusmtances," Yagura politely said, his hands making hand seals."Water Release: Water Shuriken!"
The air's moisture condensed into water, which then took the shape of several shuriken. The watery stars then flew towards the two jinchuriki, who quickly started to weave seals. Rather than dodge, they decided to counter them with jutsu of their own.
"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"
"Wind Release: Cyclone Vortex!"
Naruto thurst his hands in the direction of the shuriken, releasing a powerful horizontal tornado, while Fu blew a strong wind current from her mouth. The combined wind attacks broke the incoming shuriken, as the water forming them dispersed into moisture once again. However, while the wind traveled forward, Yagura was already working on a counterattack. He motioned one hand in a circle, creating a perfectly circular mirror made of water.
"Water Release: Water Mirror Jutsu!"
Using the glaive at the end of his staff, Yagura turned the mirror around, revealing a copy of Naruto and Fu. The copies jumped out of the mirror, and formed the same seals the originals had weaved.
"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"
"Wind Release: Cyclone Vortex!"
The copies released the same attacks as the originals. The four wind jutsu clashed against each other, no attack pushing the other back, until all four of them ran out of power. The mirror copies then quickly vanished.
"Man... I need to learn that jutsu," Fu said in awe.
"It seems that Yagura hasn't lost his edge since the last time I fought him," Naruto said, glaring at the reanimation.
"You know that guy as well?" Fu asked.
"Yeah. That's Yagura, Fourth Mizukage and jinchuriki of the Three Tails," Naruto explained. "I had to fight him as part of Konoha's deal with Mei's rebellion in our mission to bring the Blood Misty to an end. Turns out the poor guy was mind controlled the whole time. Not only we were unable to break the mind control, but we couldn't even save him from Akatsuki either."
"Though in death my mind is once again my own," Yagura added, before chuckling sadly. "Not that it matters much, given that I have no control of my body. It seems that I'm doomed to be Akatsuki's puppet no matter what."
"Don't worry, Yagura. We'll make sure to send you back to the place you belong and make whoever's behind this pay," Naruto promised, raising a fist at him. "And I never go back on my promises."
This made Yagura smile a little. "It seems that you're as much tenacious now as you were back when you fought me. Yes, I know you'll do your best, Naruto. By the way, may I ask about my wife and my son? Do you know if they're okay?"
"They're fine. Your family and the rest of your loyalists surrendered once the news of your condition spread, and Mei, the current Mizukage, pardoned them," Naruto explained.
Yagura seemed to sigh in relief. "It's good to know that. If only I could see them one more time..." Yagura lamented, before his body tensed up. "Watch out, I'm going to attack you again. Water Release: Tsunami Glaive!"
Yagura then leaped towards the two jinchuriki, rearing his staff back, water started to gather around the glaive at the end of the weapon, forming a large blob around it. He then swung the staff towards Naruto and Fu, who jumped backwards in order to avoid the strike. However, the water gathered on the weapon was then released in the form of a watery blade. Fu deployed her wings and flew upwards, but Naruto couldn't dodge, and was forced to parry the attack with his Wind Blade as well as two arms made of Kurama's Chakra for extra help. Naruto was able to overpower the water blade, which broke down into millions of water droplets.
"Naruto, watch out!" Kurama warned.
Before Naruto could heed the fox's advice, two shadows fell upon him, revealing them to be the forms of Roshi and Han.
"Sorry, Naruto!" Roshi said, as he shot chakra coated fist at him. "Lava Release: Scorching Armored Fist!"
"Boil Release: Erupting Propulsion Foot!"
Naruto screamed in pain Roshi's lava covered fist and Han's steam powered kick connected, sending him flying backwards. Naruto, however, was caught by Fu, who placed him on a nearby tree branch. The blond hissed as he touched the scorched marks on his chest the two attacks had left. Fu looked at the Iwa jinchuriki, who, alongside Yagura and Utakata, were closing on them.
"Hey Chomei, think you can contact the other beasts and tell them to drop it already?"
"Sorry girl, but I can't sense them," Chomei apologized, sounding a little sorry. "Even if the jinchuriki have access to their powers, I can't sense my siblings inside any of them."
"That's because they aren't really there. If these six are like Mito, the rest of our siblings are still inside the Demonic Statue, and they're able to channel their power thanks to a chakra nail stuck on their bodies," the fox explained.
"Yeah, what Kurama said," Naruto agreed. "Right now, we should focus on finding where those nails are and remove them as soon as possible," Naruto said.
Meanwhile, as Naruto and Fu made plans, Killer B was fighting Yugito alone. The blond kunoichi assaulted Killer B with an onslaught of swipes from the claws growing from her fingernails, swipes that Killer B expertly parried with his swords. The rapper managed to swipe an arm aside, before smacking her with one of his tails, sending her flying backwards.
"I'm sorry, Yugito-chan, but I need to be tough, so, hope you don't-"
However, before Killer B could finish his line, he was assulted by a large sand tornado, forcing the Kumo jinchuriki to jump backwards.
"Hey, what the hell's wrong with you, dude? Getting in the middle of my and Yugito's fight, that was pretty rude!" Killer B protested.
"Stay sharp, B! There's no time for polite gestures!" Yugito warned, as her hands started to form hand seals. "Fire Release: Mouse Hairball!"
Yugito expelled a single, large fireball made of blue fire that quickly split into many, mouse-shaped fireballs, all of them flying towards the living jinchuriki. Killer B's swords started to crackle with electricity as he channeled Lightning Chakra through them, and deflected all of them while jumping backwards.
"B, behind you, watch out!" Gyuki warned.
And indeed, another sandstorm formed in the direction Killer B was jumping to. Fortunately, he was able to change his course by wrapping one of his chakra tentacles around a nearby branch above him, avoiding the sand tornado. However, the bearded old man jumped from within the sandstorm, and raising his hand, formed a large spear out of sand, befor engaging Killer B on hand to hand combat.
"Zzzzzzz..."
"What the... is this guy snoring!? Does he find fighting against me boring!?" Killer B shouted, taking offense at his enemy's flippancy.
That moment, the old man suddenly woke up, looking startled.
"Huh? Eh? W-Where am I?" the old man asked, sounding confused and scared. However, his body continued moving on its own and fighting with surprising skill. "H-Hey, sorry for fighting against you... my body seems to move on its own..."
"That's Bunpuku, B. He's the One Tail's first known jinchuriki," Yugito explained, as she jumped to join the fray. "Be careful with him, he might be a narcoleptic old man, but he's as much of a threat as I am," Yugito warned, before she quickly glanced back at Obito, who was still perched on the same branch as before, not having moved a centimeter since the battle began. "And be careful with that man. He has one half of the Nine Tails bound to his will."
"The fox won't be a problem anymore, we used his jinchuriki to wipe the floor," Killer B reassured his former fellow Kumo ninja.
"You did? Good. Still, don't lower your guard," Yugito insisted. "I underestimated that man, and it cost me my life. I'd hate seeing you making that mistake."
"Damn, fighting against Yugito-chan alone is quite testing, with the two of them, there won't be any time for resting!" Killer B distressingly thought, as he parried blows from Bunpuku's sand spear and Yugito's claw swipes.
"B, we should regroup with the others. Fighting individually against enemies of such caliber won't end well for us," Gyuki suggested.
"As much as I hate to run from a fight, I'm afraid you may be right, it's better to flee and fight another battle, than stay and be slaughtered like cattle!" Killer B agreed.
While fighting with one hand and several chakra tentacles, the jinchuriki of the Eight Tails dug into his ninja tool pouch, grabbing a couple of smoke bombs, and threw them at his feet, creating a large cloud of smoke, stopping Yugito and Bunpuku from attacking, and letting the ninja rapper some time to breathe.
"Now that they can't see, it's time for Killer B to flee!" Killer B thought –he was smart enough not to speak out loud when he was trying to be beneath notice– as he dashed towards where Naruto and Fu were exchanging blows with the other undead jinchuriki.
Or he would have, if he didn't found himself surrounded by chakra-charged bubbles.
"What the...?"
The bubbles detonated like bombs, resulting in a chain of blasts that shook the entire forest. Killer B was fast enough to dodge the explosions, but doing so pushed him back against the other two reanimations he was trying to flee from. Looking up, he could see a tall, rbown haired man in a long kimono floating inside a large bubble.
"Hey, that's not fair! Why do I get three enemies going after my hair!?" Killer B protested.
"Guess the enemy sees you as the biggest threat," Gyuki said, shrugging a little. "And feels that his chances of winning are greater if he keeps you isolated."
"I see. If they aren't going to let me go to them, then I'll be the one to flatter this scum," Killer B said, as he raised a hand, his index and pinky fingers up. "Tailed Beast form, oh yeah!"
Killer B started to grow in size as his chakra cloak began to morph into Gyuki's actual form, toppling trees down as his body expanded, and forcing the other three jinchuriki back. From his new vantage point, he could see his fellow jinchuriki battling against the other three undead, not doing that good. Oh well, that was going to change soon. The two youths did notice the Kumo jinchuriki going into Tailed Beast form, and glanced at him inquisitively.
"Fu, take Naruto out off the ground, the fight is going to take a turnaround once I chance the shape of the battleground!" Killer B said, as he coiled his tentacles around his body. The two of them nodded, and Fu grabbed Naruto and flew into the sky. The other jinchuriki tried to bring them down with powerful ranged ninjutsu, but Fu's speed allowed her to dodge them. Now that his friends were safe, it was time to make his move. "TAILED BEAST TWISTER!"
Killer B extended his tentacles as he began to spin around. The tentacles tore apart every tree and rock in the area, flattening the battleground into a complete and empty plain. The speed of the giant beast spinning, as well as the speed of such movement also caused a tornado to form around Killer B, which send the six undead jinchuriki flying away, before they fell back into the ground with loud thuds.
Once the winds ceased and the clouds of dust raised by them settled, they could see that Killer B was now standing in the middle of a large crater, and that all the forest in a kilometer around him had been wiped out, leaving nothing but ground.
"Whoa..." Fu said from above, awed at the sight below her. "He made the entire forest disappear..."
"Yeah... though, this is for the better. We will do better fighting in an open field than around so many trees," Naruto said. "Let's go back to B."
Fu nodded, and descended towards their teacher, placing Naruto on one of his horns, while she was perched on the other.
"All right, the three of us are together again! Now we can cause the enemy even more pain!" Killer B cheered.
"Hey, I see the other jinchuriki," Naruto said, pointing at their seemingly uncoscious forms, lying on the ground. "We should try to seal them before they get back-"
"Too late," Kurama interjected.
And indeed, the six reanimations quickly jumped back to their feet as Obito teleported in front of them. He looked at Naruto and Fu standing on top of Killer B's head, and scowled.
"It seems that fighting you normally isn't going to be enough," Obito said, shaking his head. "In that case, I'll have to have them use more power."
Obito made a hand seal, and an aura of chakra exploded around the undead junchuriki, looking at first like a generic Tailed Beast cloak, but each of them began to take on a new shape of their own.
Bunkupu's chakra cloak appeared to be made of sand in constant movement, in the shape of an armor that looked like Gaara's Shield of Shukaku jutsu, complete with a wide conical helment. On his hands rested a large spear made of sand. It was the Spear of Shukaku, another of Gaara's jutsu, a weapon powerful enough to pierce even a Tailed Beast Chakra Cloak.
Yugito's Chakra Cloak looked like Naruto's, giving her an appearance of being made of fire, except it was sapphire blue with black edges instead of golden, while her fingers being made longer and in the shape of claws. Yagura's, on the other hand, ressembled more Fu's Chakra Armor, as it was a physical armor made of sharp maroon coral that covered every part of his body, leaving only the eyes visible.
Roshi's chakra armor was made of lava, so hot the air around him appeared distorted. Han's chakra cloak made him look as if he was made of clouds. But Naruto could tell that those clouds were both extremely hot and made of a very corrosive substance.
Utakata's chakra cloak was the only one who looked liquid rather than solid or made of flames, looking like he was covered in a light blue liquid cloak that was constantly producing bubbles, which burst almost as soon as they formed. Once again, Naruto knew that those were no normal bubbles. Plus, unlike the other jinchuriki, while Naruto knew what powers their Tailed Beasts granted them, he didn't knew what was the Six Tails' abilities.
"The slug can secrete corrosive substances from his body, either in liquid or gaseous form," Kurama helpfully provided upon sensing Naruto's thoughts. "So you better watch out for that."
"I see... thanks, Kurama," the blond mentally replied.
Down below, Obito motioned his hand forward.
"Go!" he ordered.
As soon as that word left his lips, the six undead jinchuriki charged forward. While most of them merely ran, the three living jinchuriki watched in shock how Han leaped towards them like a rocket, propelled by a stream of pressurized steam coming from his feet.
"What the hell!?" Naruto asked.
"Don't look at me, I didn't know I could do this either!" Han replied, even more surprised than Naruto.
"Heh, that's quite the risky move to try, and thus I'm going to crush this guy!" Killer B rapped as he tried to swatt the incoming Han with his hands.
However, the other jinchuriki weren't going to let him. Roshi stopped and, after making several hand seals.
"Hey big guy, watch out! Lava Release: Flower Fruit Mountain!"
After trying to warn them, Roshi slammed both hands into the ground, and suddenly, the spot Killer B was standing on suddenly turned into a pool of burning lava. It wasn't powerful enough to harm him much while in Tailed Beast form, but it indeed hurt a lot.
"Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! So hot!" Killer B complained, as he dragged his body backwards, away from the pool of lava.
Unfortunately, the lava distracted Killer B from Han, who was barreling towards him at high speed. The former Iwa ninja slammed into Killer B's face with a tremendous force, enough to knock him on his back. Fu managed to jump and fly into the air before she could lose her balance, but Naruto couldn't do such a thing, and fell to the ground below.
"AAAAAAAAAHHH!" the blond screamed.
"Naruto!" Fu shouted, as she dived to catch the falling Konoha ninja.
However, before she could grab her distressed friend, she was intercepted by yet another jinchuriki, Yugito, who tackled her away from Naruto.
"Sorry, sis. I know that boy means a lot to you, but that man really doesn't want you to help him," Yugito sadly said.
"Don't worry, I know you don't mean to cause harm. So please don't take this badly either," Fu replied, as she grew several insect arms, pushing Yugito away from her. When Yugito tried to get back at her, Fu kicked her hard in her gut, sending him flying backwards.
The winged girl dived towards Naruto once again, but she was too far away from him in order to save him in time. But alas, Naruto wouldn't crash against the ground, since much to his luck, a large mass of sand formed beneath him, cushioning what would have been a very painful landing.
"Sand Coffin!"
Unfortunately for Naruto, that sand had been placed there by Bunpuku not to save Naruto but to capture him. The sand quickly rushed towards the blond, encasing him inside a cocoon of sand. After Naruto was completely covered, more and more layers of sand added on top of it, taking the shape of a large pyramid. Han and Roshi then landed at each side of the pyramid.
"You better get your friend out of there because Roshi and I are going to use our combination attack on him right now!" Han warned, as he and Roshi began to make hand seals.
Killer B and Fu shuddered. A combination attack between two of the most destructive elemental combinations couldn't spell nothing but pain for the now trapped blond.
"Lava and Boil Combination Release: Blast Furnace!"
Roshi expelled a huge amount of burning lava from his mouth, surrounding the pyramid with a moat of lava, while Han created a tornado of boiling steam around it, making the air around the pyramid as hot as an oven. Under the intense heat, the pyramid of sand began to turn into glass.
Killer B was dealing with Yagura and Utakata. The latter was sliding among Killer B's giant body, leaving a trail of corrosive acid behind, while the former Mizukage was covering one of his arms in hard coral, which spread around it. Still, the Kumo jinchuriki was able to sense that Naruto was in trouble, and that if he didn't do anything, the enemy would take him away.
"Get away from me, you fools!" in anger, Killer B flared his chakra with all his might, creating a pulse that pushed Utakata and Yagura away from his body. "NARUTO!" Killer B screamed, as he shot several of his tentacles towards the construct.
Killer B tried to dig into the burning sand, but the extreme heat quickly began to burn his tentacles. Growing desperate, he was about to use a small Tailed Beast ball to destroy the sand prison, however, it burst from the inside out, sending sand and chunks of glass everywhere, revealing Naruto surrounded by a powerful blue aura. Seizing the opportunity, Killer B wrapped a tentacle around Naruto and pulled him towards him.
"Hey, Naruto, you okay? Those guys got you belay!" Killer B asked.
"The chakra cloak protected me. If it wasn't for that, I would be a goner," Naruto replied. "Thank goodness I had Sage Mode to break out from that prison. Fu, maybe you should do the same."
The green haired girl nodded, and made a hand seal. Back in the makeshift shelter the trio had used to spent the night, there were a Naruto clone and two Fu clones gathering nature energy. One of the two Fu clones disappeared in a cloud of smoke, transferring all the nature energy to the female jinchuriki, allowing her to enter Sage Mode.
"Much better," Fu said, basking in the feeling of nature energy coursing through her chakra network. She then noticed Killer B's arm encased in coral. "Let me fix that. Sorry if it hurts!"
Fu started to fly around the coral-encased arm, punching it multiple times. Each punch was powerful enough to shatter a section to pieces, and after a few hits, the arm was completely free of coral.
"Thanks, Number Seven, you're a life saver! Let's see if I can return the favor!" Killer B replied.
"You can repay her right now! They're coming again!" Naruto warned.
"This time, don't let them split you apart! You're at your strongest when you fight together!" Gyuki sternly said.
Once again, Han was rocketing towards them, propelled by a stream of pressurized steam. Bunpuku was also flying towards them on a cloud of sand. On the ground, the other four undead jinchuriki were charging as well.
Fu flew in front of Killer B, deciding to attack them first. "So, you said that they have a shared visual field, right? Then, I'm going to end that advatange right now!" She made the Tiger hand seal, and started to release a cloud of sparkling powder from her open mouth.
"Guys, you better close your eyes now!" Chomei warned Naruto and Killer B through their mental link.
Fu clapped her hands. "Hiding in the Scale Powder jutsu!"
Just as Naruto and Killer B closed their eyes shut, the cloud of sparkly clouded exploded into an extremely bright flash of light, blinding their enemies.
That moment, the two youngest jinchuriki decided it was time to attack. The flash would only last a few seconds, but that would be enough for them. Thanks to the sensing abilities provided by Sage Mode they could still track their opponents. Fu managed to send Han crashing into the ground by delivering a devastating kick to his face.
When she moved to deal with Bunpuku, she was assaulted by a tsunami of sand, forcing her to fly back. She started to remember her match against Gaara during the Chunin Exams.
"Just like the redhead, the sand moves on its own to protect the jinchuriki," Fu recalled, as she started to make hand seals. "But I know the sand's weakness! Water Release: Great Waterfall Jutsu!"
Fu expelled a massive amount of water from her mouth towards the airborne Bunpuku. The sand quickly moved to protect him, but all it accomplished was absorb part of the water of Fu's attack, becoming much heavier and thus falling to the ground, leaving the still asleep old man completely defenseless.
And indeed, taking advantage of the situation, Naruto created a massive arm of golden chakra, and used it to deliver a devastating punch towards the old man, who, like Han, was sent flying downwards, hitting the ground with a loud crashing noise.
"Nice punch, Naruto!" Fu praised, giving her fellow jinchuriki a thumbs up.
"Thanks! But we aren't done yet!" Naruto said, as the light of Fu's jutsu began to banish. "B-sensei, I'm sensing the other four jinchuriki just below you! Swipe the ground in front of you with your tentacles!"
"You got it!" Killer B agreed, as he quickly delivered a swiping blow, raising a large cloud of dust, but most importantly, hitting the four remaining jinchuriki, knocking them backwards with a brutal strike. "Oh yeah! Four birds with one stone! If you mess with B, you will be blown!"
"Now that they're incapacitated, we need to remove the black rods from their bodies!" Naruto urged. "If we do, they won't be able to draw power from the Tailed Beasts and we'll beat them easily!"
Naturally, Obito wasn't planning to make things for the three jinchuriki any easier. He was growing more and more frustarted and impatient with how his undead Six Paths of Pain were failing to beat his three elusive preys. Then again, he still had more cards to play.
"You're annoyingly persistent in your resistance," Obito said, though it was more like a growl. He made a hand seal. "Alright, let's see how well you do against THIS!"
That moment, Like Killer B before them, all the jinchuriki quickly grew in size as they transformed into their Tailed Beast forms.
"This... this is bad... very, very bad..." Kurama said, sounding worried, even scared.
"Come on, don't be such a downer! Didn't I beat you when I was less powerful than I am now?" Naruto replied. "Besides, you always boast about how you're the strongest of the Tailed Beast. Was all that bravado?"
"I AM the strongest of the Tailed Beasts," the fox insisted. "However, you don't have access to my full power. You won't have it until you're able to reach the Tailed Beast form, something you had failed to do."
"I didn't need that to beat you!" Naruto protested.
"Even ignoring the fact that you had external help, I was only one enemy," Kurama replied. "If you were to fight against a single Tailed Beast, my proverbial money would be on you. But six? Unless you and bug girl get their shit together, I see a lot of pain in your future."
"Then I'll prove you wrong. Besides, I don't need to beat them per se. I only need to find the location of the black rods and pull them out," Naruto retorted, before turning his head at Fu and Killer B. "Come on guys, let's go!"
"Crush them!" Obito said. "Focus on the Eight Tails! That's the biggest threat right now!"
"Sand Coffin!"
Bunpuku raised his arms, and a torrent of sand formed around Killer B. The sand wasn't enough to cover him completely, but it was to impede his movements. While he was restrained, Han charged forward, lowering his head.
"Horn Strike!"
Han's horns stabbed into Killer B's flesh, drawing blood and pushing him backwards. Upon seeing this, Naruto realized that he needed to help his friend and mentor or else things would get ugly. He raised his arms towards Han.
"Leave him alone!" Naruto said, as he began to gather chakra into a spinning, dark purple sphere. "Tailed Beast Ball!"
Naruto fired the Tailed Beast Ball, and it hit Han squarely on the side. The resulting explosion lunged the Five Tailed Beast backwards, making him land on his side. However, before Naruto could have time to celebrate, he saw a shadow looming over him. Looking up, he saw the massive form of Roshi in his Four Tails beast form dropping on him. The blond was quick to leap away before he was crushed. Roshi's attack didn't end there, though. He took a deep breath.
"Monkey Flame Arson!"
Roshi expelled a stream of green fire at the still airborne Naruto, who quickly made several hand seals in return.
"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"
"Naruto, what the hell are you doing!? You won't beat this jutsu with wind!" Roshi protested.
However, much to Roshi's surprise, rather than aiming the wind blast towards the stream of fire, he aimed it upwards, making Naruto to barrel towards the ground, dodging the attack.
"Oh, I see... really clever, kid," Roshi said.
"Shadow Stroke!"
But once again, Naruto wasn't safe. He felt the ground shake as a chakra signature approached him at great speed. Turning around, he saw Yagura in his Three Tails form, curled into a ball that was about to roll into him at great speed.
"Naruto, watch out!" Fu yelled, as she dived down. "Takigakure Great Whirlwind!"
Fu punched the giant rolling turtle before it could steamroll Naruto, and managed to push it backwards as her strike generated a powerful gust of wind. However, she stil hurt her hand a little with that punch, something she had never happened to her before. Even with Senjutsu, a Tailed Beast proved to be more than a match to her.
"Cat Flame Roaring Fire!"
Suddenly, Fu was hit by several large fireballs. The explosions didn't harm her much, but the kinetic impact threaten to destabilize her flight. Which was all what Yugito needed in order to land a clear blow.
"Sorry again, sister," Yugito said, as she leaped at the Takigakure kunoichi. "Cat Claw Attack!"
Like a cat lazily swatting a fly, Yugito's brutal paw strike send Fu crashing against the ground, opening a crater where she landed. While she was on the ground, she could sense Bunpuku sending a wave of sand to capture her. Fu, however, forced herself back on her feet, and once again flew into the air. Unfortunately, Yugito was once again ready to put her down.
"Cat Claw-"
"Wind Release: Rasenshuriken!"
A whirring noise filled the air, and Yugito was hit in the face by Naruto's most powerful jutsu. The chakra shuriken burst into a spiraling dome of razor sharp winds that pushed the giant feline away, allowing Fu some respite.
"Thanks, Naruto. Guess we're even now," Fu replied.
"Girl, you can't continue fighting like this!" Chomei said. "Kurama is right! If you want to leave this battle alive, you need to fight as a Tailed Beast like they're doing!"
"But I can't do it! No matter how many times I tried, I just can't do it!" Fu replied, her fists clenching in frustration.
"Then try once more! It's still better than what you're doing now!" Gyuki interceded.
"I guess we have no choice..." Naruto conceded. He tried to put on a brave face. "Come on Fu! Let's show our fellow jinchuriki the results of our training!"
"Alright!"
Both Naruto and Fu started to glow with chakra, while their bodies started to grow, taking the form of the Tailed Beasts they housed inside their bodies. Naruto and Fu could feel the power surging through their bodies, and it felt... natural. Like the pieces that they were missing had finally been found, and were now whole. Both Killer B and Obito held their breath as they watched in awe how the two young jinchuriki were about to accomplish what had eluded them for so long.
"No... it can't be..." Obito said in a whisper. Was he going to lose again now that he finally was on the verge of victory?
"Yes, yes! They're going to do it!" Killer B cheered. "They're-!"
...right after the transformation wavered before breaking apart, and the two jinchuriki returned to their previous forms.
"They didn't do it..." Gyuki said, letting his head down in defeat.
Obito, however, let out a mocking laugh. "Ha! For a moment, you made me believe that you greenhorns had mastered the power of the your Tailed Beasts in such a short amount of time. And while you have grown indeed very powerful, this is a battle you can't win. This ends right here, right now!"
"Naruto! The transformation failed!" Fu cried, panic seeping into her voice. "What the hell do we do now!?"
As Naruto watched the six Tailed Beasts closing in, the ground rumbling under their heavy footsteps, he tried to think what else he could do. Though, just like the Taki kunoichi, Naruto was unable to think properly due his panicked state. Something the Nine Tails noticed.
"Come on Naruto, you aren't going to let Akatsuki get their hands on me, are you? Tell me you don't plan to give up, after you went this far!" Kurama interceded. "What about that obnoxiously positive attitude you always have?"
"I'm trying, but I can't think anything! For some reason, I just can't pull the complete transformation!" Naruto snapped back.
"All that training, and this is the best you can do!? Unbelievable," the fox scoffed. "Didn't that loudmouth from Kumo give you any advice on what were you doing wrong?"
"He did, but he-" Naruto said, before interrupting himself. Suddenly a realization dawned upon him.
Jinchuriki are two being sharing a single body, the two need to agree, or the result will be shoddy. If you want to get the job done, the key to that is to work as one!
"But he what? What did he say?" Kurama nervously asked.
To work as one.
"To work as one," Naruto said. "Wait...maybe... maybe that's what I've been doing wrong? I've been trying to do the transformation on my own. Maybe... the two of us need to be synced in order for that to work?"
"Oh? So you need a little push from me then?" Kurama asked. The idea... didn't sound half bad.
"Wait, all this time..." Gyuki's voice said."Where you trying the transformation on your own? Instead of working together?"
"..."
"Didn't B tell you that the key was to work together?" Gyuki asked again.
"Eh... whoops?" Naruto bashfully said.
Gyuki let out a defeated sigh. "You guys... I'm starting to wonder if it's not just B, but all of you who lack in the brain department..."
"You can insult the inferior species' intelligence later! We have a battle to win!" Kurama said. "Chomei, you hear that?"
"I did!" Came the giant beetle's reply. "I'm ready to help my girl!"
"Let's hope it works this time," Fu said.
"Alright Fu, one more time!" Naruto said out loud.
Once again, Naruto and Fu reached for the power of their Tailed Beasts and brought it out, triggering the transformation. And once again, when they reached a certain point, the transformation began to waver, threatening to break apart. This time, however, Kurama and Chomei pushed more chakra themselves, helping stabilize the process. Naruto and Fu felt how like a door that refused to open more than a little creak was slammed open, letting a huge stream of chakra flow free into their beings, which in turn, gave them the final push to complete the transformation.
"Yes, yes! This is such a blast! After so much struggle, they did it at last!" Killer B cheered.
While Fu had transformed into Chomei, Naruto was floating inside an avatar of Kurama made of golden chakra.
Upon seeing Naruto and Fu succesfully transform on their second attempt, Obito's smile disappeared from his face. Still, he refused to back down. He still had the advantage. He still could win. Or that's what he wanted to convince himself of.
"Your transformation means nothing! Numbers are still on my side! Attack, my Tailed Beasts!" Obito ordered again.
"You might have the numbers, but as the saying goes, quality beats quantity! And there's no better quality than the three –no, the six of us!" Naruto boasted.
The six opposing Tailed beasts opened their mouths and started to gather chakra in the form of a sphere in front of them. Naruto, Fu and Killer B replied in kind, forming Tailed Beast Balls on their own. Nine spheres of destruction fired, six versus three, clashing in the middle in the form of a gigantc explosion that opened a large crater while raising strong winds in every direction.
The moment the blast subsided, Naruto in his Kurama Avatar and Killer B in his Tailed Beast form charged forward, the former slamming his tails against Han and the latter taking down Bunpuku in a single punch. Naruto and B then wrapped their tails around Roshi and Yagura, immobilizing them, before launching them into the air.
"Fu, your turn!" Naruto called.
"Got it!" the girl said, as she quickly flew towards the airborne Tailed Beasts. Her Y-shaped horn started to glow with a teal light as it doubled in size and length. "Horn Buster!"
The horn hit both the targets resulting in an explosion of chakra, sending them crashing down against the other Tailed Beasts, The impact left them momentarily stunned, and they would get back on their feet in no time. However, said moment was all what Naruto needed in order to end the batle here and there.
"Alright, found all the black rods!" Naruto said, as he clapped his hands. From the Kurama Avatar's back shot six arms of chakra which latched onto the parts of the Tailed Beats' bodies that had the rods. Each of the arm had a Naruto clone that was grabbing each of the rod. "I got all of them! All I need to do now is to pull and...!"
…
Somewhere else
"...uh?" Naruto asked in confusion.
The noise of the ongoing battle had disappeared, being replaced by a welcomed but suspicious calmness and silence. The blond then he realized was no longer in the battlefield, but inside some kind of vast, empty room. Which wasn't a room, and more like the pokect dimension where Kurama was sealed.
Except, instead of just Kurama, there were six other Tailed Beasts there wih him.
"What the... what is this place?" Naruto asked, looking around. He took no time to notice all the six enemy Tailed Beasts, and was startled upon seeing them. "UH!?"
"Relax, Naruto. They aren't your enemies," Kurama's voice said. The fact that the Nine Tails was with him kinda soothed him a little. "At least, as long as we're here."
"Oh... that's a relief..." Naruto said. Indeed, none of the Tailed Beasts –nor the jincuriki, who were sitting on their heads– were displaying any kind of aggressive body language. "By the way, what is this place?"
"This is a pocket dimension that links every Tailed Beast with one another, young one," the Two Tails said. "Due to being sealed inside the Demonic Statue, we're barred from this place for the time being."
"But by touching all the chakra rods that bound us to the undead jinchuriki, we're allowed to temporarily reach this place once again," the Six Tails added. "It's little consolation given our due predicament, but you have our thanks."
"Oh... eh, you're welcome," Naruto said, as he rubbed the back of his head. "Wish I could do more for you guys."
"Really? Do you really want to help us?" the Four Tails asked, sounding skeptical. "A human wants to help Tailed Beasts? Ha! Now that's a good one!"
"Don't laugh at Naruto, you ungrateful monkey. This kid basically lives to help others. He tried to help me, despite being from an enemy village," Roshi replied.
"Yeah, what Roshi said! Uh..." Naruto continued, before losing trail of thought. "Hey, I don't think I know your names, do I? I know Shukaku over there because of Gaara, as well as your jinchuriki, but I don't think I know any of you."
The Four Tails looked at Naruto as if he had grown a second head. "You... you want to know our names? Thats-"
"Ha! Told you!" Roshi said with a smirk, crossing his arms.
"In that case, let us introduce ourselves," the Two Tails said. "My name is Matatabi."
"I'm Isobu," the Three Tails said.
"Kokuo," the Five Tails said in a soft, feminine voice that caught Naruto a little by surprise.
"Saiken," the slug added.
The Four Tails then cleared his throat. Shukaku rolled his eyes and groaned loudly.
"Oh god, here we go again..." the giant Tanuki lamented.
"I have many names and titles," the Four Tails began. "For I have lived a long live, committed many deeds, and mastered many arts. I am the King of the Sage Monekys, the Handsome Monkey King, the Sage of-"
"Oh for fuck's sake! Son Goku! His name is Son Goku!" Shukaku yelled, while throwing his arms into the air.
"How dare you ruin my introduction, you filthy tanuki!" Son Goku protested.
"Naruto only asked for your name, not a detailed story of your life," Utakata deapanned.
"Silence, human! This doesn't concern you!" Son Goku growled. He then turned towards Naruto in defeat. "Well, that's my name. Son Goku."
Naruto smiled at all of them. "I'm glad to meet all of you. I mean, meeting in a way that doesn't involve you trying to kill me and my friends. Not that I blame you guys or anything."
"We know. However, the fact that you brought all of us here means that we may actually help each other," Saiken said.
"Really? How? What can I do to help?" Naruto asked. "And how are you guys going to help me if you're inside the Statue?"
"We will give you a portion of our chakra," Kokuo began. "With that chakra, we will be able to assist you with our wisdom and what little power we can gather."
"Not to mention, we will be able to experience some form of freedom, and be in the company of our siblings," Isobu chimed in.
"And they won't be the only ones," Han interceded. "We will also give you some of our chakra as well. You're going to need all the help you can get."
"Zzzzzzz..."
"All of us minus Bunpuku," Yugito corrected, rolling her eyes a little. "I doubt the sleepy old man will be of much help, anyway."
"Now, Naruto, extend your hand upwards," Matatabi instructed.
Naruto did as he was told, and the six Tailed Beasts began to slowly place their limbs above it, on top of each other. Once all six were done, Naruto could feel a rush of chakra as the power of the Tailed Beasts started to flood his chakra network.
"This power will allow you to use our special abilities, such as my Lava Release or Shukaku's Magnet Release;" Son Goku explained.
"And with our chakra, we will be able to teach you how to use your new powers, Naruto," Yagura said.
"Also, once you return to the real world, ask Chomei and Gyuki to share your chakra with you as well," Saiken requested. "That way, all nine of us will be in contact with each other through you."
"Don't worry guys... I will. And I will save you. All of you," Naruto promised. "And when this war is done, I'll make sure no Tailed Beast will have to go what Kurama or some of you had to go through."
As the connection finally broke apart, Kurama didn't say anything, but his lips curved into a small smile.
…
Real World.
Naruto and his clones pulled with all the force they could muster, and even if they resisted a little at first, the black rods slid out of the flesh of the jinchuriki-turned-Tailed Beasts, cutting the connection between undead and Tailed Beast. The effect was immediate, and all the undead jinchuriki quickly began to shrink back to their normal size.
"You did it Naruto, you removed the weird stakes!" Killer B cheered. "Now finishing them off will be piece of cake!"
"Chomei, Gyuki, I can't explain right now, but I need you two to share some of your chakra with Naruto," Kurama intervened. "You'll understand once you do."
The ox and the beetle didn't say anything. It was an odd and sudden request, but Kurama wasn't somebody to ask things nilly-willy, and the two of them wordlessly agreed. As the three living jinchuriki returned to their human forms, they walked towards Naruto, who was extending his fists towards them.
Both Killer B and Fu bumped their fists with Naruto, allowing their beasts to transfer some of their chakra to Naruto.
As Naruto's body absorbed the two remaining Tailed Beast chakras he didn't have yet, something happened. His body started to glow brighter, as white electricity started to crackle around it, before producing a burst of a very bright light that blinded Naruto and his fellow jinchuriki.
…
Ninja Alliance HQ
"Onoki-sama, we're picking up several powerful chakra signatures to the northeast of our position!" Ao informed. "We believe- no, we know it's Naruto, Fu and B! It appears that they've been found by Akatsuki and they're fighting once again!"
"We need to send them help as much as soon as we can!" the aged Third Tsuchikage exclaimed. "What's the state of our forces?"
"Unfortunately, all of them are still engaging enemy forces. They appear to be winning, but it will take some time until they can deal with all the reanimations," Santa Yamanaka informed.
Onoki grunted in annoyance. "Keep me informed of their status every fifteen minutes! Once they're done, I want them directed to the jinchuriki's position!"
…
Somewhere else
Naruto was once again back in the pocket dimension that linked all Tailed Beasts. The other beasts and their jinchuriki minus Bunpuku were there, in the very same positions. But they weren't the only ones there this time.
At Naruto's sides were Fu and Killer B, and behind them, flanking Kurama, were Gyuki and Chomei. However, there was one more individual in that mysterious place: in the center of the room, there was an old man, floating above the ground, in a sitting position. His appearance was rather unsettling, with his wrinkled gray skin, forehead that grew into a pair of horns, and a red circular mark with several concentrical black rings on said forehead. He was wearing a white priestly robe with black magatamas around it, not unlike those used by the Moon Acolytes.
But the more fascinating feature of the man were his eyes: purple with concentrical rings. Eyes that Naruto had only seen in one other individual: Nagato.
And even more fascinating than that, was the way the Tailed Beasts were reacting to the man. They looked at him in awe and shock. Not because they were afraid of him, but as if they saw somebody who they hadn't seen in a long, long time.
"Father...?" Gyuki asked.
"It's papa!" Chomei excitedly said.
"The old man? Here...? But..." Kurama began to mumble.
"Papa?" Fu repeated, looking at Chomei incredulously. "That man is your father, Chomei?"
"You can bet he is!" Chomei replied. "Oh papa, I'm so glad to see you again!"
The old man smiled kindly at the giant beetle. "I'm also happy to see you, Chomei. The same goes for your brothers and sisters as well."
"Wait a second! Just... who the hell is this guy?" Naruto asked, pointing at the floating monk. "And why does he have a Rinnegan?"
The old man seemed amused by Naruto's questions. He looked at the blond, and smirked a little. "Who am I? I'm sure you can tell. Because you told the kid about me, right, Kurama?"
"I did, father," Kurama said, before he looked down at Naruto, groaned, and slapped his hand against his face. "Seriously? Did you forget already everything I told you?"
"Father...? Then that means... you're the Sage of the Six Paths?" Naruto said in realization.
The Sage nodded. "Indeed, that's the title I'm known in your time. But that's not a title I was keen on having. My name is Hagoromo Otsutsuki, and I'd appreciate if you addressed me by my first name."
"Hey there. I'm Naruto Uzumaki," the blond awkwardly said. Not every day you get to speak with a legend who had lived a thousand years ago.
"Naruto. Yes, the name sounds familiar. You're the romantic partner of my brother's heiress, Hinata Hyuga, right?" Hagoromo asked.
"You know Hinata-hime? And yeah, I'm her boyfriend," Naruto said, smiling proudly of the fact. He then remembered that he didn't come alone this time, and was quick to introduce the other two jinchuriki."Oh! These are my friends Fu and B."
"What's up?"
"Yo."
"A pleasure meeting you two as well," the Sage nodded. "I can sense a very strong bond between the two of you and Gyuki and Chomei. From what I could gather, not many humans have a meaningful bond with a Tailed Beast, so it's delight to be in the presence of not one or two, but no less than three."
Both jinchuriki didn't say anything, but smiled in return. The normally loud and talkative ninjas were too awed to say anything, being in the presence of a living legend. And the fact that said legend had sent a compliment their way did nothing but increase said awe.
"Not to sound disrespectul, father..." Kurama began, looking nervous, shaken even. It was odd for Naruto to see the usually haughty and arrogant fox being so humble. "But why are you here? Better said, how can you be here?"
"The answer is a simple one, Kurama. I'm here because of all of you," the Sage replied, spreading his arms towards the Tailed Beasts, much to the beast's surprise. However, he decided to elaborate. "I once held in my body the primordial Six Paths chakra that I used to create all of you, and thus my spirit is bound to it, even long after my death. When the pieces of your different chakra were sealed inside Naruto, they merged together, creating Six Paths chakra, and allowing me to manifest once again."
"I get it! It's like when Hinata saw Hamura! She told me he said that he was also bound to the Six Paths chakra that she and Hanabi have," Naruto said in realization.
"Exactly," Hagoromo nodded. "And you, Naruto, are the second person who was able to recreate Six Paths chakra and summon me."
"Second? Who was the first then?" Naruto asked.
"A man by the name of Madara Uchiha," Hagoromo replied.
Naruto could feel the sheer rage that was coming from Kurama behind him. Still, the Fox was doing his best not to lose his cool in front of the being he respected the most. Still, he ignored his tenant's anger and focused on the matter at hand.
"Madara Uchiha? How? When?" He asked. He couldn't think how Madara was able to manifest such chakra.
"To answer your first question... well, this is mostly an educated guess. Given that Madara has a Sharingan, that means he's a direct descendant of my oldest son Indra, who inherited the Yin Half of my Six Paths chakra, which I assume were passed to all his descendants as well," Hagoromo began. "Maybe this Madara sought a descendant of my second son, Asura, and found a way to integrate their Yang Half of my Six Paths chakra into him. When I met him, his chakra signature felt like two diferent chakras superimposed onto each other."
Naruto nodded. This matched with what he had learned from the Moon Acolytes about the Sage and the Rinnegan.
"As for your second question... while my perception of time it's kind of muddy given the circumstances, I'd say it was... perhaps two decades ago? Give or take," the Sage said.
"No... that... that can't be right," Kurama said, trying to make sense out of his father's words. "He should have been dead by then."
"He was very much alive when I saw him, Kurama. That much I can tell you," the Sage confirmed.
"Then the Madara who tried to summon you wasn't a reanimation," Gyuki concluded. "How did that monster managed to survive for so long?"
"From what I had gathered, he used an Uchiha forbidden jutsu called Izanagi to undo his death. Then, he went into hiding, and spent the following years planning. He then used a complex jutsu to return his body to his prime over several years," Hagoromo said. Naruto then remembered Rin's story, and how there was a second cocoon next to hers. That had to be Madara's. "However, that doesn't matter right now. What does matter, however, is this: Madara Uchiha is the mastermind behind this war. He's the one who indoctrinated Obito Uchiha into following his ways. He's the true enemy that you have to defeat to put this war to an end."
"But... why is that Madara guy doing this? What does he want?" Fu asked.
"When Madara met me for the first time, he had... less than kind words for me," Hagoromo said, causing all the Tailed Beasts to scoff in indignation. How dare that filthy human disrespect their father like that! "He believed it was my fault the world was in such a sorry state, ravaged by wars, mysery and death, and how I shirked my responsibilities. How I should have used my power to impose peace on the world."
"That's nonsense!" Naruto said. "Your mom already tried that and she failed! There's no peace through suppression by force!"
All the Tailed Beasts were quick to agree and nod, all expressing their support of Naruto and their beloved progenitor.
"My thoughts exactly. Unfortunately, Madara didn't share them. He said that, if I refused to create, and I quote, 'perfect world for mankind', then he'll do it with the new power he had awakened," the Sage explained.
Naruto, however, felt there was something he was missing. "That makes no sense. Madara was nothing but a warmonger consumed by bloodlust. And now he wants to create a perfect world of peace?"
"Madara Uchiha is... a little more complex than the way history books describe him," Hagoromo said.
The Sage then waved his hand, conjuring a large sphere of white light above him. Images could be seen on that sphere as if it was a screen. It was the image of a young Madara Uchiha fighting on a battlefield.
"Madara Uchiha was born and grew on very turbulent times. He had to watch his mother dying after delivering her sixth son. He had to watch how his father, and four of his five brothers died to the Senju one after the other. All what he had left was one of his younger brothers, Izuna."
The sphere of light then showed another battle, one where Izuna fell before Tobirama's blade. Naruto knew that this was the last battle between the Senju and the Uchiha, that preceded Konoha's foundation.
"Izuna's death affected Madara more than any of his other relatives. His death caused him so much pain, Madara refused to form any new bonds anymore, out of fear of experiencing the pain of loss again," Hagoromo explained. "However, Izuna's death also left a hole on Madara's heart, a hole that Madara refused to fill with new relationships.
"And if Madara couldn't fill that void with love, he would fill it with something else: war and power," Hagoromo contined. "That's why he sabotaged all of Hashirama's attempts at establishing peaceful relationships with other villages. His desire of making Konoha into a superpower was nothing but a excuse to allow him to bathe in the blood of his enemies once again, in an attempt to fill the painful void in his heart."
"Yeah, that sounds like Madara alright," Kurama scoffed.
"After his final argument with Hashirama, Madara finally left Konoha, a village he never saw as a home, no matter how hard he tried," the Sage continued. "After leaving Konoha, he journeyed the world, trying to find a place he could call a home, or trying to fill the existential pain caused by the void in his heart. After some time, and finding about the origins of his clan, he sought a plan to unite the world under a single nation, and for that, he needed to awaken the Rinnegan, for which he needed to fight Hashirama one more time."
Hagoromo told them the details about what Madara did after he lost against Hashirama and how he faked his death, how he stayed hidden underground for decades until he met Obito, how he turned Obito into an agent of his will, and what he planned to do once the Ten Tails was revived once more.
"It's rather sad, when you think about it. Madara thinks he's doing this to create a better world in honor of his fallen brother's memory, but in reality, all he wants is to soothe the pain of his heart, and thinks that absolute power is the key. I don't think even Madara himself is aware of this," Hagoromo shook his head. "In a way, he reminds me of my eldest son, Indra. Like Madara, Indra was also extremely gifted, and grew into somebody so powerful, his might could match my own. He could do anything he set his mind to. In fact, he seemed to take pride in the fact that he didn't need any help to do anything."
"Yet you didn't chose him as your successor," Naruto stated.
Hagoromo nodded. "No, I didn't. My youngest son, Asura, was born with none of Indra's talent. He needed to work ten times as hard as him to achieve a tenth on his accomplishments. This made him rely on friends and allies in order to even the odds. One may think that Asura would be an inadequate inheritor, but I realized that, by working together with other people, Asura's victories and accomplishments were also his friends' as much as his. This, in turn, helped create a sense of unity that fostered harmony and peace. Meanwhile... Indra would just follow my mother's footsteps, and bring peace through imposing his will on others. I knew that Asura's way was the key to peace an harmony."
The Sage then let out a weary sigh he had been holding.
"My biggest mistake was to naively believe that Indra would accept my decision and support Asura. I remember the last time I saw Indra, shortly before my death, when he swore that his hatred would live through his bloodline and wouldn't cease until everything Asura and I worked for were reduced to ashes. And when I met Madara, I could see that very hate in his eyes," the Sage recounted, sounding a bit disheartened. "Even if their reasons were different, both Madara and Indra refused to bond with other people, and that led them to a path of pain and suffering, for them and people around them.
"Such pitiful existence."
Naruto corssed his arms, and shot the Sage an unamused glare. "Yeah well, excuse me if I don't feel very sorry for him."
"I don't blame you if you don't. Like I said, Madara caused untold pain to countless beings," Hagoromo said, his gaze meeting Kurama's. "But I felt it would do you good knowing a little more about the enemy you have to beat."
"Wait... that's it? That's all you're going to do?" Fu asked, sounding a little disappointed.
"Fu! Don't talk papa in such disrespectful way!" Chomei chided her.
"It's alright, Chomei," Hagoromo cast Chomei's concern away with a hand wave. "And what else do you expect me to do, young lady?"
"I don't know... maybe give us some sort of extra power? You know, so we would have an easier time beating Akatsuki?" Fu asked. "I mean, you're the Sage of the Six Paths! According to the legend, you created ninjutsu!"
For the first time since they met him, Hagoromo's pleasant disposition disappeared, replaced by an unamused scowl. "First of all, I did not create ninjutsu. Ninjutsu is a tool of war. I created ninshu, which is a way to use chakra in order to help human beings connect with each other. I'd really appreciate if you don't make such mistake again.
"And second... as if it wasn't clear before, even if I'm standing before you right now, I'm dead. I can't influence the world in any meaningful way. I can't give you new powers or enhance the ones you have. All I can do is share some of my wisdom with you."
"Oh, I see," Fu sheepishly said, rubbing her arm. "Well, thanks for that. And sorry."
Hagoromo's smile returned. "No harm done, young Fu," he then looked at Naruto. "And while I may not be able to increase your power, the chakra of the Tailed Beasts that is sealed inside you will. With your new Six Paths chakra, you will be able to take your Kurama Chakra Cloak to a greater level of power. Thankfully, it will be enough to put an end to Akatsuki and their nefarious goals.
"Now, it's time for you three to finish this once for all. My children will help you as well as they can," Hagoromo said, as he started to vanish. "Good luck in this endeavor. I know your victory will pave the way for a much better world."
…
Real World
When Naruto stopped glowing, both him and his fellow jinchuriki could see that his Chakra Cloak had changed. For starters, there were more black markings around it, including the whisker-like marks on his cheeks, which were much bolder. Rather than merely cover his usual clothes, the cloak now was shaped like a long haori, with nine magatamas on its back.
Then, a sphere of golden light appeared behind him. The sphere started to grow in size, before splitting into nine spheres, revealing to be Truth Seeking Balls once they stopped glowing.
"Damn! Now that's a power-up!" Fu said, surprised at both Naruto's new appearance and the sheer power he was radiating.
"Whoa, Naruto, you look so amazing! Now that's a jinchuriki form worth praising!" Killer B rapped.
"Heh, thank you guys. Yeah, this form feels pretty awesome," Naruto said, looking at his hand, flexing his fingers. He then looked at the now depowered undead jinchuriki, who were slowly getting back to their feet. Even if they no longer had their main source of power, Naruto knew they could still cause trouble. Oh well, not that it was going to be a problem now. "Though if you like the new cloak, you're going to like this even more. Observe."
Naruto motioned his right hand forward, sending six of his nine Truth Seeking Balls into the undead jinchuriki, lodging them inside their chests. Naruto then clenched his fist, and the orbs grew multiple sharp spikes that shredded the reanimations from the inside out. As expected, they didn't regenerate.
"Man, I wish we had that when we fought the tree guy..." Fu said, remembering the gruesome fight they had to endure against the legendary First Hokage, in contrast to how easy Naruto had defeated his enemies now.
"Also... sorry for killing you, guys," Naruto apologized.
"Don't worry, they weren't the real us," Yugito said from inside Naruto's head.
"Yeah. Those were mockeries of our true selves. Even existing as pieces of chakra within you is more dignified than slave zombies," Han added.
Meanwhile, in the background, Obito was looking with his eyes wide open, half amazed and half frustrated. Not only were Naruto and that dumb Taki brat able to pull the complete Tailed Beast transformation off, which allowed them to beat his Six Paths of Pain jinchuriki, but Naruto had somehow acquired Six Paths chakra himself, to the point of being able to summon Truth Seeking Balls.
"How...? How is he able to shrug everything I throw at him?" Obito wondered, grtting his teeth, and balling his hands into fists. "Why can't I do something so simple as beating a mere brat?" He took a deep breath. "No. I can't let any defeatist thoughts. And desperate situations call for desperate measures. Time to play my final gambit."
Obito made several hand seals, and slammed his hand into the ground.
"Summoning Jutsu!"
Obito's action drew the jinchuriki's attention to him once again. After a large burst of smoke, the Demonic Statue was summoned, with Obito standing on the tip of one if its fingers, looking down at his prey below.
"So, he plans to throw the Demonic Statue at us," Kurama mentioned, and chuckled confidently. "He's really getting desperate."
"This is it, guys! If we crack that statue open, we will liberate our siblings and put this war to an end in a single swopp!" Chomei cheered. "Come on, Fu, Naruto, Killer B! Just keep going for a little longer!"
"Still, it would be good not to underestimate that," Gyuki advised. "That statue is pretty powerful on its own, plus it has six of our siblings sealed there, as well as half of Kurama."
The three jinchuriki nodded, and prepared for what they believed was the final battle. However, they weren't counting on what Obito was going to do next.
"Sealed within this statue are the Tailed Beasts from one to six tails. There's also half of the Nine Tails that we captured some time ago, plus the Eight Tails tentacle that Killer B used to dupe us," Obito explained. "You see, I don't need every beast to revive the Ten Tails, just their chakra. Meaning that I only need to acquire a little of the Seven Tails' chakra, and the Ten Tails will be reborn!"
"Ha! If you think I'm going to let you get a piece of Chomei's chakra. You don't-" Fu said, but was interrupted by what Obito did next.
The Uchiha pulled out a sealing scroll from within his robes, and unsealed its contents, which caused Fu to shock her into silence: it was a pair of insect-like wings, identical to those she generates to fly.
"Remember these, Fu? Kakuzu tore them from your back when he tried to capture you. I guess he wanted to keep them as tropies or something. It does't matter," Obito said. "Turn out, his failure to catch you wasn't as complete as I initally believed."
"Quickly, somebody stop him! If he feeds those wings to the statue-" Gyuki yelled, panicking.
Too late. Almost casually, Obito tossed the wings into the statue's open mouth. The statue swallowed the wings, and closed its mouth shut. Its last remaining closed eye finally opened. The statue let out an ear-piercing scream, as power began to build up inside it. The earth started to shake, and chunks of rock were lifted into the air, as if gravity had no effect on them.
Naruto, Fu and Killer B's senses were overwhelmed by the sheer power the statue was radiating. It felt like what they felt when Naruto gained Six Paths chakra, except this time it felt a thousand times more intense.
Obito then teleported back to ground level, his mouth curved into a manical grin, and let out a malicious laugh upon seeing the state of his opponents.
"It seems that you finally realize what you're up against," Obito said, as he spreaded his arms out. "Now get ready... for the return of the Ten Tails!"
Author's Note: Did you guys remember when Kakuzu teared Fu's wings from her all the way back in the Taki arc? Were you expecting that such action would become so plot critical? Because I can assure you, I had planned that from the very beginning.
I really hated that Kishimoto kept the undead jinchuriki as mere attack drones. He had the chance to flesh out their personalities at least a little, given that most of them were captured offscreen, but nope. Well, not that I didn't commit the same mistakes with some of them. At the very least, I just hope that I did some justice to Yugito and especially Han, since I didn't use them that much when they were alive, as opposed to Yagura, Utakata and Roshi. Then again, despite their undead bodies being destroyed, they aren't going anywhere and will continue helping Naruto as much as they can. And yeah, Bunpuku was mostly a placeholder for the sixth Path of Pain, so I didn't feel like having him give his chakra to Naruto.
For those who complained about Naruto being too weak, I hope you guys are happy now that Naruto has unlocked Six Paths Sage Mode. That mode makes him at the very least as powerful as Hinata with a Perfect Tenseigan, but way more versatile since he has the abilities of all nine Tailed Beasts (which I plan to use way more than Naruto did in canon). But yeah, he's going to need all that power for the challenges to come.
We also expand on a little on Madara's revisit backstory. Like I said many times, I think my version of Madara's past is a little more consistent with his character than canon, and I hope you think the same.
Special thanks to W8W, who provided really good ideas about how the chakra cloaks of the other jinchuriki could look and what could they do.
Thanks to Ookami88 for betareading this chapter.
And with this chapter, the very final battle begins! Are you guys as excited as I am? So, what did you think about this chapter? What did you think it will happen next? Tell me your thoughts in a review! Reviews make me really, really, really happy!