AN: So this was a particular complicated chapter for me to get right.

Obito's abilities are naturally kind of broken by merit of having been one of the final adversaries in canon. Which to be fair, I knew this was going to be a struggle I would have to deal with going in which is why most of Obito's challenges up until now have been mental rather than any kind of physical altercations.

Yet it's no fun if he just steamrolls his competition when I get to actual battles between Ninja like in this chapter, so there was a balancing act that had to go into making his opponents formidable while not nerfing him too much and still making it fit within the conditions I've set for this alternate universe.

No idea how well or not I succeeded at that, but this chapter is the result.


Obito

Chapter 9 - Leaf Battlefield


It was the first time I ever went inside someone else's mind space before.

I couldn't really say what it was that I was expecting to find upon entering such a place. I'll say I didn't expect it to be anything like what Naruto's ended up being, however. It was dark and hard to see, my eye taking several seconds to adjust to the dim lighting.

When I finally could see, I found myself in some kind of sewer system. Pipes ran around the walls and ceilings of the long hallway I now stood in. At least, I think it was a long hallway. I couldn't see far enough in either direction to determine anything like actual length. I just got the feeling there was a lot of empty space in either direction.

The other thing that gave it a sewer-like appearance was the ankle-deep water just below my feet. As I gazed down at it my own reflection looked back up at me. My appearance was unchanged from how I looked on the outside, so it would appear I had projected the real me inside this space. That was a good sign as it meant the Jutsu was a success and I wasn't just in some imitation or worse- a Genjutsu.

Now the only thing was… where did I go from here? I had no idea how to proceed and was completely lost in the dark. I could just start walking but what if this place turned out to be some kind of labyrinth? I had heard from the extraction forces like Ibiki from my class, but the more experienced the Ninja, the more difficult it was to navigate inside their thoughts. Worst case scenario, I might get attacked by something in here designed to defend against intruders.

No sooner did I have that thought and the sound of footsteps atop the water came from behind me. I spun around, raising my arms in a defensive Taijutsu stance. Was I even capable of Ninjutsu inside such a place? I had no idea, but it was entirely possible I was going to be put in a situation where I was going to find out.

"Ah, there you are, Obito-senpai!" Naruto called out to me, dispelling all those worries. "Huh?" He asked, taking notice of my combat stance. "You okay? There shouldn't be anyone here but us… well, and him." That could only mean the Nine-Tails. "Anyways, he should be in his cage. Come on, I'll take you to him." Naruto walked past me, seemingly guiding the way.

"You know your way around here?" I asked, giving a slight jog to catch up. Part of me was still on guard, in case this was some clever trap. Not Naruto at all but something that looked like him designed to trick me and lead me into a place I could be ambushed. The likelihood of such a scenario seemed small, but I wasn't taking any chances. I was still new to this, after all.

"Yeah." Naruto shrugged as if it wasn't a big deal. "Nee-chan and I used to come in here a lot. Apparently it's important I speak with Nine-Tails as much as I can. Even if he only ends up hating me for bugging him during his naps. She said any kind of relationship with him, even one where I'm just hated, is important. Those feelings might one day change and all that hatred will turn to affection. Or something like that, I don't really get it myself." It certainly sounded like Rin knew a lot.

"I see…" I said, although I wasn't really sure I did. One thing Rin and I never really talked about was her Tailed Beast or her status as a Jinchuriki. She became one during my time away from the village, stuck in that place while I healed. She had been kidnapped by the Hidden Mist and had the Three-Tails forcibly placed inside her.

Kakashi and I saved her and fled until we could link up with Minato-sensei. Rin explained to him the truth of what happened and that the Mist planned to detonate her seal once she was inside the borders of our home. A kind of remote bomb in the form of a Tailed Beast. Minato-sensei and his wife were no slouches when it came to seals and so they had been able to tweak it to prevent such a thing from happening.

Then we went home together. We were different, changed from before the war, but the four of us were home and most importantly, we were together. For a time. Until that man came back into my life and ripped Nine-Tails from Naruto's mother during his birth.

The unsealed Nine-Tails rampaged across the Hidden Leaf, much like how the One-Tail and Seven-Tails were doing now. The very same Nine-Tails we were here to speak with, hoping to ask him to help us save the village he once tried to destroy.

"Alright, we're here." Naruto suddenly said. At first I didn't know what he meant by 'here' as it looked no different than everywhere else in this damned place. In just a second I knew what he meant, as the hallway opened up to a wide room. One big enough for a Tailed Beast to freely run around in. The water too went from ankle-deep to a depth beyond my sight. On the other side of us was a gate, easily visible by its large size. Light itself seemed to emit off the bars.

Behind the gate, however, was pure darkness. Darker than night itself, it was impossible to make out anything in there. Yet I knew what it was on the other side of that gate… No, that seal. That's what it really was- a seal.

Even if you couldn't see what was on the other side, you could feel its presence. Its malice. There was a soft wind batting at our faces and waving our hair. That was its breath. It appeared to be… snoring? I couldn't help but think of that, the image of the terrifying Nine-Tails snoring peacefully away as it took a nap. As impossible as this sounded, it would appear that was exactly what was happening.

"Oi, you stupid fox!" Naruto yelled, not at all terrified of what he was insulting. He also seemed to forget we were here to ask it for a favor, so it might be in our best interest to be nice to it. "Wake up, damn you! It's time for your walk." Naruto stopped just in front of the gate, placing his hands on his hips and standing proudly. There was no fear at all. Not for the thing that so many others trembled at the mere name of.

Within the cage there was movement. It was subtle, but even small movements for something so large were going to cause ripples. In this case, literally, the water at our feet also rippling out from inside the cage. Finally I was able to see it, several tails as they wagged back and forth in the darkness.

Along with one blood-red eye looking straight at us.

"Naruto…" The fox growled, sounding annoyed at having its nap interrupted. "And this is… the Uchiha brat?" It would appear that Nine-Tails had some recollection of me. Either from its time in Kushina's seal or otherwise, I had no idea. How much was the Nine-Tails even able to peep into the outside life of its host to begin with? I realized how little I knew about it and the way it lived until now. Something I was going to have to change in the future if we survived this.

"His name is Obito-senpai!" Naruto corrected, reaching up and patting me on the back with enough force to stumble me a step forward. Which was also a step closer to the cage than I wanted to be. "And he's got a favor to ask you, so listen up!"

"A favor…?" Nine-Tails asked, before then letting out a bark that I think was supposed to be laughter. "Alright then! Let's hear it. Just know that whatever it is you have to say, I refuse. Especially to someone that shares the same blood as that Madara." That was about the expected response. I couldn't say I blamed him either. That man was responsible for a lot of my grief too, after all.

Even so, I had to try. Not that I was even sure how to begin. Could I just… talk to it? That was what Naruto had been doing until now, but he was its Jinchuriki. Was it fine for me to do the same? Confused, I ended up looking down at Naruto as if hoping for some kind of answer. He just looked at me as if I had gone daft and gestured forward, urging me to use my words through none of his own.

I cleared my throat, although not by any conscious means. "Right…" I began lamely. "So, it's not really a favor, per se. More of a request, really. The thing is… well, I guess I should start with why we're here in the first place." My one eye danced all over the place, refusing to look at the one I was even addressing. "So umm… One-Tail and Seven-Tails are kind of outside making a mess of the village and we were just wondering if you could help… stop it?" In the end, I don't know why that came out as more of a question. I really had no idea how to talk to this thing.

"Hmph!" Nine-Tails rolled over, turning his eye away from the two of us. "Typical of humans. Only desiring my power when you can't solve things for yourselves. Then after I've cleaned up your mess, you'll just stick me right back in here like nothing ever happened. So predictable I should eat you now for having wasted my time. Now leave so I may return to my nap." As frustrating as it was, I couldn't deny anything about what he just said. Except the eating me part, I wasn't exactly a fan of that.

As for everything else, he was exactly right. We only wanted him because we couldn't fight other Tailed Beasts on our own. Then after everything was done, I would use this key in my arm to put him right back in here. That had been the plan down to the letter. I could see how such a thing wouldn't sit well with him.

Just because I accepted his logic didn't mean Naruto was about to let it go.

"Listen here you lazy jerk!" He shouted, stalking up to the gate and slamming his fist against one of the bars. I thought for a second about pulling him back. Those bars weren't exactly close together, maybe enough to keep a giant monster fox inside, but a human could slip in easily enough. And I bet his claws could poke out just as easily. Naruto didn't seem afraid of anything like that and just continued shouting.

"You owe me rent, you hear!" He made up ridiculous sounding excuses on the spot as if it was obvious. "I come down here time and again to talk to your ass and the only thing you're ever interested in is about when I'm gonna let you outta here! Well, here's your chance and you're just gonna say no because you're too lazy to get off your fat ass?! Make up your mind, y'know!"

"You've got some nerve, Naruto…" Nine-Tails turned back to regard its jailer. I thought for a moment it might really attack. But then, "...How long are we talking about here? I'm going to need quite a bit of time, you see. I haven't been able to stretch these legs in over a decade now." That wasn't what happened at all. If anything, it sounded like maybe it was coming around to us? Maybe Rin had been onto something when she said that just talking to it was important.

"Heh, you're not the one who gets to make demands here." Naruto grinned confidently, not at all caring about what it was he was negotiating with. "Consider yourself lucky that you're finally getting out for a bit at all. Everything after that is for Obito-senpai to decide, y'know! Don't forget, he's got the Sharingan. If he wanted, he wouldn't even have to ask. We're being considerate for 'ya here, don't forget that!"

"Tch," The Nine-Tails clicked its teeth, glaring directly at me again. "Go ahead then. Use your Sharingan. Do whatever the hell you want. It's going to take at least that much to get me to come out." It felt like we were so close. Naruto almost had him convinced, but Nine-Tails was pulling back now and I think that was my fault. Not me specifically, but my Uchiha ancestry. If we could just push him a little further.

"Now, now. Don't be like that, Nine-Tails." A new voice said, one I didn't recognize. It came from all around us yet at the same time from nowhere. Before I could look for it, the water behind us shifted as something massive emerged from below the surface. A giant turtle, three tails swinging in the air visibly behind it.

"Rin!?" I couldn't contain my surprise, spotting my teammate and crush sitting cross-legged atop its head as if it was natural.

"Hey there!" She waved down at us, smiling without a care in the world. "Sorry we're late! It always takes a while to get both of us in here together." So this was something they had done before? I never imagined the Tailed Beasts could enter the mind space like this, let alone have them talk to one another. Was it possible they all knew one another?

The new Tailed Beast looked down at me as if discovering some new specimen. Unlike with the Nine-Tails, there was no cage between me and the Three-Tails. A fact which made me more nervous than I was willing to admit.

"Nice to finally meet you, Obito!" The one eye of the Three-Tails smiled at me, the Tailed Beast far more polite than I expected possible from a mass of pure chakra given shape. "I've heard so much about you from Rin. I was really looking forward to getting to meet you for myself." There was a slight pause as it looked me up and down again. "I see…" He said, as if realizing something. "So this is the kind of man that Rin is-"

"Oi, Isobu!" Rin cut it off, calling it by some strange name. I always assumed their names were just the number of tails they had. Was this some name she had given it by herself or did they all have names?

"If you're all just here to goof around, then piss off already!" The Nine-Tails roared from behind me, the loud yell causing me to jump and once again put my attention back towards it. The fact that I had even for a moment turned my exposed back on the Nine-Tails was proof of how much I dropped my guard since coming here.

"Nine-Tails…" Isobu spoke to the giant fox as if it was a disappointed sibling. "Help us out here, would you? The humans have asked you nicely." Everything rested on this; One Tailed Beast asking another to help us.

"I ain't helping no one. Do whatever the hell you want, Three-Tails." Nine-Tails once again turned its back to us, tails flickering in obvious agitation.

"Then don't think of it as helping." Isobu tried another angle, slowly swimming closer to the cage as it appealed to Nine-Tails. "They already told you, right? One-Tail is out there going crazy and doing as he pleases again. You and him never got along, right? You can put him in his place and I'll figure something out about Seven-Tails. That sounds good to you, doesn't it?"

"Hmm…" This time and against all odds the Nine-Tails made a noise that sounded like genuine interest. "I do hate that damn Tanuki. Might even lift my mood to smack him a good one and remind him who's boss. It's been several centuries since the last time I put him in his place…"

There was a pause.

For a moment I almost thought the fox had gone back to sleep, as it made a grunt of consideration that could be mistaken for a snore. But then, the Nine-Tails whirled around, sharp white teeth grinning down at us and red eyes full of life.

"Alright!" It agreed. "Let's do this!" Maybe a little too easily.

"Yahoo!" Naruto jumped in the air, throwing his arms over his head.

"I don't really get it, but thank you." It was all I could say, first inclining my head to Nine-Tails and then to Isobu.

"Heh, think nothing of it." Isobu waved me off, the movement of its arm alone enough to create rolling tides that moved us around. "Nine-Tails has always been a bit of a tsundere. You just gotta make him help in a way that doesn't hurt his pride."

"I can hear you, Three-Tails!" Nine-Tails growled at the turtle and for a moment I thought he might rescind his help. A second later, however, he looked down at me. "Let's get to this already! You have a way to let me out of here, don't you?"

"Ah, yes!" I nodded several times in quick succession, glancing down at my exposed white arm. As I channeled chakra into it, the design for the key to Naruto's seal appeared. The moment of truth was upon us. We were trusting our future and the future of the village to the Nine-Tails who once almost destroyed it. I just hoped we weren't making a mistake.

"Let's begin."


The change was instantaneous.

There were two massive surges of chakra so powerful I thought I was going to be lifted into the sky. Which for a minute is exactly what I thought had happened. The world below me shrunk away, the tallest trees in the area flattened as two massive monsters were released out onto the world.

Beneath my feet was the orange fur of the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox. And to our left was Isobu, the three tailed turtle. Rin and Naruto were nowhere to be seen, the two having been completely enveloped by the Tailed Beasts as if they had swapped places with them.

"Naruto!" I called out, looking beneath me as if I could find some sign of him amongst all the orange fur. The red eyes of the Nine-Tails glanced upwards to find me atop its head.

"Naruto can't hear you." It said, speaking directly to me. "Unlike with Three-Tails and his Jinchuriki, Naruto and I haven't truly shared our chakra. You simply swapped out my chakra for his, it's not a perfect fusion like what they have."

"So then…" I looked over at the form of Isobu. It must have seen me looking, because its one eye smiled in my direction.

"I'm here, Obito!" Rin's voice called out to me from Isobu, as if she was actually the Tailed Beast herself.

"We both are." Isobu spoke for himself a second later, confirming to me that they could swap control at any given moment. Truly, they were the perfect Jinchuriki combo. I had been on missions with Rin after she had become a Jinchuriki before, but she didn't have this kind of control over it back then, only able to produce a red chakra cloak at the time. To think she had come this far since then…

"Oi, Obito was it?" Nine-Tails called for my attention and I once again looked back down at it. From atop its head making eye-contact was kind of awkward, but it was doable. "If you and I are going to fight together, we need to link too. I don't like it, but sync your Sharingan with me… and certainly, if I remember right you can use that Hashirama brat's Jutsu? If you connect that to my flesh as well, you and I should be able to achieve synergy at about their level."

"You got it!" I don't know why Nine-Tails was suddenly being so cooperative but I wasn't about to complain. Maybe just getting some fresh air had really put him in a good mood? Regardless of what it was, I did as he told me immediately, reflecting my Sharingan in his eye, giving him a Sharingan eye of his own. Wood then grew out from my right arm, the branch snaking down and planting itself into Nine-Tail's flesh beneath the fur.

There was a sudden pulse and I thought my brain might explode. After a moment it settled and I felt Nine-Tail's thoughts begin to merge with my own. Our chakra swirled, merging together and becoming one single entity. I wasn't a Jinchuriki, but I think this was the closest possible feeling one could have to being like one.

"You ready?" Nine-Tails asked directly into my brain. I nodded, giving him the all clear. Even without that, he could feel my ambition through our link. The two of us might as well have been of one mind. Our eyes settled onto the two rampaging Tailed Beasts ahead of us. They hadn't taken notice of us yet, but they were about to.

"Let's go!" Nine-Tails and my voice overlapped, forming one single harmony.

"Alright!" Isobu and Rin's voice did the same. They tucked into a ball, head shrinking beneath its shell and tails wrapping around itself. The ground rumbled, trees and dirt were flung about as the ball began to roll in place, the rotational velocity increasing with every turn. Then just like that they were off, tearing across the earth and destroying the land in their wake.

Not to be outdone, Nine-Tails took off running after them. Every thundering footfall caused miniature quakes, the wildlife below brutally flattened. His nine tails swung wildly behind us, slapping away trees as if they were twigs and sending trunks of wood flying high into the air. Despite the size of these Tailed Beasts, they were unexpectedly fast. No… perhaps it was because they were so large that they were this fast.

The terrain flew by like a blur. I could barely keep up with where we were going, having to rely on Nine-Tail's senses to just keep track of it all. Even the ability to teleport great distances instantly couldn't possibly prepare me for this. They were two completely different types of speed, after all. And in a matter of moments we arrived at our destination.

The One-Tail and Seven-Tails had already made it to one of the numerous pockets of residences scattered throughout the forests of our village. Just by merely moving through them the two could cause massive damage, nevermind that they were actively seeking to cause as much destruction as possible on their way. In order to minimize the damage ourselves, we had to get them away from the townsfolk and into the forest.

Rin knew this already without anything having to be said. The Seven-Tails was some kind of giant horned beetle, its seven tails the wings it was using to now hover over the buildings of the village. The air pressure along from its movement was enough to topple whole structures and kick up dust storms that suffocated hundreds.

Isobu aimed for that one, leaping in the air while still rotating dozens of times per second. I don't even think the Seven-Tails knew what hit it. The force of the collusion sent them both careering and they crashed down in the forest on the opposite end. Even still, such a shockwave sent more structures crumbling down.

"What!?" The One-Tail turned towards the two collapsed Tailed Beasts, completely unaware of Nine-Tail's presence. Until a moment later, when Nine-Tails snagged him by his single golden tail.

"Long time no see, huh? You damn tanuki!" Nine-Tails grinned widely, hefting with all his might and pulling One-Tail up by the tail. He proceeded to laugh as he spun around, dragging his old nemesis along for the ride.

"You fucking fox bastard!" One-Tail let out a yelp of surprise as he was lifted into the air, thrown completely over Nine-Tail's head and hurtled towards his companion. Just as Seven-Tails was beginning to recover and fly back up, One-Tail collided with him and the both of them were sent crashing once more into the forest. A storm of dirt and tree hunks rained down in every direction, the entire landscape changed in an instant.

Nine-Tails leapt over the town, causing no more structure damage as he and I landed next to Isobu. "Now that we've got your attention, let's do this!" He continued to laugh, clearly enjoying the feeling of being let out and allowed to go on a rampage after so long.

"As planned, leave Seven-Tails to me." Isobu once again began to rev up, preparing to launch another spinning tackle. Although it seemed unlikely the same trick would work twice now that the enemy was aware of us.

"Lucky me!" Seven-Tails spoke now too, knocking One-Tail off of it and taking once more to the skies. "I didn't want to have to deal with Nine-Tails." It would appear that even among the Tailed Beasts, Nine-Tails wasn't something to be messed with. Although I think it was making a big mistake if it thought it had gotten lucky in any regard.

"Don't underestimate me just because we have less tails!" Isobu yelled, taking off after Seven-Tails. As it approached, two of the tails broke free from the rotating ball, looking like drills as they elongated and lashed out at Seven-Tails.

"Bring it on!" Seven-Tails knocked one of the tails away with the horn on its head, but was unable to do anything about the second which drilled into its torso. There was a cry of something akin to pain and it was once again sent crashing down. Isobu was on it a second later and the entirety of the village shook with the force of their collision.

That was as far as I could pay attention to their unfolding battle. Nine-Tails and I had our own problem to deal with and it had stumbled back to its feet.

"Don't think this is going to go like before!" One-Tail sneered, glaring us down. The look in its eyes was absolutely venomous. Whatever kind of history the two Tailed Beasts had, it was far from good. Although in contrast to One-Tail's hostility, Nine-Tails seemed absolutely overjoyed for this rematch.

"You mean exactly like it has been every time?" Nine-Tails smirked back, confidence rolling off his fur to the point that even without a direct link, I was pretty sure I would be able to feel it. Three-Tails had just made a point about the number of tails not exactly equaling more power, but from pure intimidation factor alone, I would bet on Nine-Tails walking out on top every time.

"I'll wipe that smirk off your damn face!" One-Tail's stomach inflated and his arms stretched out wide. He slammed down on his stomach, forcing all the air inside him out in the form of a condensed mass. The air bullet tore through the forest, ripping up whatever remaining trees were still rooted. The remaining soil and earth itself was torn asunder. All from the power of a merely enhanced exhale of air. Tailed Beasts were truly no joke.

"We need to dodge!" Nine-Tails didn't say this aloud, but I felt him feel this through our link. His body went to move, but on pure instinct my will clashed with his and we ended up locked in place. The small section of the village was still directly behind us. If we got out of the way, it was going to get caught up in that attack. Something I couldn't allow. "Guh!" Our lack of symmetry ended up costing us, Nine-Tails wanting to dodge and me willing us to block.

In the end we did neither, just eating the full force of the attack head on. Nine-Tails was blasted backwards and sent falling onto his back. For a moment, I feared I would be crushed, but he turned his head to the side at the last second, saving me from an instant and gruesome death. "Hahahaha! Got you! I got you, ya bastard!" The One-Tail whooped, jumping up and down and throwing his hands in the air as he celebrated a single direct blow.

"Oi, Obito you damn brat!" Nine-Tails roared, rolling over and getting back to his feat. "Don't get in my way! Leave this fight to me!" For the moment, One-Tail was too busy patting itself on the back, giving us a brief chance to collect ourselves.

"If I leave it to you, the village is going to get wiped out!" I retorted, rubbing at my chest. Even though I hadn't been hit directly, I felt the full brunt of that last attack. It would seem Nine-Tails and I were sharing even a sense of pain, so if I let him get beat up like just now it was going to negatively impact me as well. "Listen, we need to agree on how to fight. No big attacks, and keep him from shooting off anything destructive into the village. This whole thing is pointless if we cause more damage than we're trying to prevent."

"You're persistent, you know that?" Nine-Tails grumbled. That was all the time we had for idle chatter, One-Tail inflating his stomach and letting out another bullet of air. "But fine! If I didn't have a couple handicaps this wouldn't be any fun anyways!" He and I finally synced up our feelings, raising our arms together and swatting at the ball of air, battering it aside and sending it scattering into worthless wisps.

I think I was beginning to understand a little about what Isobu meant when he said you had to convince Nine-Tails in a way that didn't hurt his pride now too. It was difficult for me, who had had nearly all his pride ripped up root and stem, but somehow being linked to Nine-Tails helped me remember a little about my past self. About how proudly I would declare myself the future Hokage. How I would never let Kakashi take the lead, viewing it as somehow losing. All these things that I lost were coming rushing back to me.

"No time for sentimentality!" Nine-Tails must have felt my emotions running back to me too, because he quickly berated me for them. "Let's go!" We took off, stomping on the ground as we closed the distance back to One-Tail. He started to inflate his stomach again, but we weren't having him unleash another one of those attacks. Nine-Tail's claw slashed out in a jab, connecting right with the partially inflated gut.

"Uh!" One-Tail spit out the partially inhaled air skywards where it dissipated uselessly. As he stumbled back, Nine-Tails didn't press the attack. Instead, he was looking down at the claw he just attacked with and I could feel the sense that something was wrong.

"What's up?" I asked, not wanting to give the enemy even a moment to collect itself. However, this was an opponent Nine-Tails knew well and if he thought something was amiss it would be unwise to make use of his knowledge.

"I thought it was my imagination earlier, but One-Tail is… heavy." Nine-Tails noted. He had pretty effortlessly thrown him overhead earlier, but that had just been my misunderstanding. It wasn't effortless at all. Nine-Tails had strained every muscle to perform such a maneuver and he was really starting to feel the effects of that now. What he had falsely assumed as muscle atrophy from being sealed for so long was actually a difference in weight between the One-Tail he knew and the one we were fighting now.

"You just now figured it out!?" One-Tail let out a howl of laughter. "I know it's been a couple centuries, but you don't even remember how I looked? You're as blind as you are stupid!"

The red eyes of the Nine-Tails narrowed and he growled. "Now I see… you synced up with some human brat yourself." It was at that moment that I saw a figure standing atop One-Tail's head in the same way I was atop Nine-Tail's. Relatively speaking, the two Tailed Beasts were close enough to feel one another's breath, but from a human perspective, we were merely insects in size and the distance between us was massive. So it was no wonder I hadn't noticed him until now.

The Fourth Kazekage.

He had coated One-Tail in golden dust that he could manipulate using his Kekkei Genkai, enhancing the weight and destructive power of the Tailed Beasts. So not only was I already inhibiting Nine-Tails with rules and restrictions, but One-Tail had gotten a massive buff in power. What had once seemed like a sure-fire victory was becoming more and more skeptical.

"Don't think this makes a difference!" Nine-Tails roared in defiance, his confidence blowing away my unease. It was exactly as he said. Even if the specifics of the battle had changed slightly, what we had to do was still the same. The two of us would beat the two of them. That was all there was to it.

"I don't like being controlled by a human but if it's to beat your ass, I'll allow it this once!" One-Tail hollered back, the two Tailed Beasts practically screaming over one another as they closed the distance between themselves. Both of them swung their massive arms, generating torrents of destructive wind.

My ribs lit up like they were on fire, the unnaturally heavy fist of One-Tail drilling into Nine-Tail's side. Meanwhile, the demon fox bashed One-Tail with a wild haymaker that clocked him in the cheek. The sound of the impact was loud enough to echo off the Hokage monument, reverberating through the whole village.

It didn't end there. The two massive beasts shaking off the mighty blows that would have killed hundreds of men and swung again. Then again. Strategy and tactics were completely tossed aside, the two mad monsters engaging in a simple slug-fest. Every blow shook my bones down to the molecule and I thought any moment I might throw up from the pain.

"Damn it…!" Nine-Tails dodged One-Tail's next swing, leaping backwards and landing a short distance away. His breathing was ragged and I could feel the external damage pulsating in near every part of his body. If the battle had continued for much longer as it had been going, we would have lost. The armor of gold surrounding One-Tail made his punches powerful, but it also made him damn near invulnerable. Nine-Tails was just hurting himself more trying to punch through that then he was doing any real damage. "If I could just use the Biju-dama-"

"Absolutely not!" I cut him off. I knew what attack he was referring to; the strongest technique known to the Tailed Beasts. Minato-sensei had been trying to create that very technique for human use while he was alive. While it was true something like that would instantly turn the tide in our favor, the risk to the village of using such an attack was too large.

"I know that already!" Nine-Tails cursed at me. "Physical attacks aren't going to cut it. We either need something more powerful or…"

"...or we need to separate the two of them." I finished that thought for him, my Sharingan eye focusing on the Kazekage riding atop One-Tail's head.

"I'll get in close and grab him. Use that opportunity to fling yourself over there and engage the other human." Nine-Tails didn't give me any more warning than that, charging forward to meet One-Tail's own rush head on.

One-Tail raised one of his arms, swinging at Nine-Tails with a powerful right hook. Nine-Tails ducked under it, raising both claws and leaping forward in a tackle. He hit One-Tail with the full force of his entire weight and the two Tailed Beasts were sent crashing onto the forest floor.

The jolt of their collision was the moment I had to make use of and in that exact second I released the appendage of wood connecting Nine-Tails and I together. Letting the forces of physics enact themselves on my body sent me flying farther than I could ever hope to jump on my own and I took immediate control of my flight to guide myself towards One-Tail's head.

I don't think the Kazekage even saw me coming, still dazed from the whiplash of having One-Tail forcibly knocked onto his back. This placed him standing horizontally atop One-Tail's prone form and parallel to the ground. In other words, the ideal condition for me to knock him loose.

"Guh!" I hit him in a tackle and both of us let out loud grunts as our bodies collided. Just as planned, he wasn't able to remain anchored and we began to fall together to the forest floor below.

The moment I hit him, and I attempted to activate Kamui. It was a cheap move, but I didn't have to win an outright battle with the Kazekage. All I had to do was remove him from the equation temporarily and that should be the same as victory.

However, Kamui didn't activate. Instead the vision of my Sharingan eye distorted and a brief flash of pain caused me to grunt. This brief moment of weakness was all it took for the Kazekage to gain his bearings.

"You again?! How many times will you continue to get in my way?" Rasa drilled an elbow into my back and my grip loosened enough for him to kick himself loose. We both performed quick flips, landing on the hard earth. He didn't waste another second, raising both hands as an indication to unleash his magnetic abilities.

Gold dust began pulling off of One-Tail, but only enough to cover a small, barely noticeable section of the entire armor. Going by the look of shock on his face, it would appear he had intended for more than that himself. "What are you doing, Shukaku!?" He turned to look at the Tailed Beast behind him which had just kicked Nine-Tails off of him and was stumbling back to his own feet.

"You're not the one in control here, you damn human! I'm finally about to beat this damn fox and you think I'm going to give up my advantage just because you got careless? It's not happening!" Shukaku yelled back, not paying any more attention to us than that as it once again charged at Nine-Tails. From the ground, the thundering footfalls seemed only all the more devastating.

I wasn't sure how, but it seemed that One-Tail had managed to take control of the Kazekage's gold dust and was restricting him from it now. Rasa had only managed to grab enough to create a thick dome around himself the same way Gaara had been hiding behind.

This wasn't something to celebrate, however. While it was true I had gotten a handicap in this fight, the same could also be said for my opponent. Rin had warned me that syncing my Sharingan to the Nine-Tails wouldn't work if we weren't on the same wavelength. And while the connection had made us stronger while fighting together, it was only a hindrance now that we were separate and I was incapable of using my Mangekyo.

As it was, there was no way for me to undue the connection amidst this currently unfolding madness.

The two Tailed Beasts continued to clash, otherwise unconcerned for the two of us left on the ground. What had once been beautiful forests was now nothing more than flat earth and dirt. Not exactly an ideal situation for a fight between Ninja and we were both a little too close to the rampaging monsters for my taste.

One way or the other, this was going to have to be a quick and decisive fight. Neither of us were in a situation where we could afford to drag things out.

I raised my hands, beginning to form a hand seal as Rasa turned back to me. In contrast to my battle ready stance, he folded his arms and tilted his head back as if to look down on me. "You seriously intend to try and fight me? I would have thought you understood your value better than that." He jeered.

It was exactly as he said. He wasn't just any opponent. He was a member of the Gokage. As the title implied, something granted to only five people in the whole Ninja world. Yet unlike before, that didn't bother me. I think maybe the Nine-Tail's confidence was still influencing me... or maybe I was still riding high from being reminded of all my past brazenness. Either way, I wasn't about to be bullied out of this fight before it even began.

"I know exactly what my value is… for the first time, I think I can see it more clearly than I have been able to in a long time!" I flew through the hand seals. "Moku Bunshin no Jutsu!" A clone of wood materialized out from my arm, splitting apart from me and taking a battle ready stance of its own.

The Kazekage quirked a nonexistent eyebrow and made a small hum of interest, maybe even acknowledgment. "Now I see, so this is where your misplaced confidence stems from. While it may be true you share the same power as the First Hokage, do not for a second believe it places you on the same level as him, let alone myself." It was true, my technique was nowhere near the level of the man whose cells coursed through the artificial flesh composing my right side. In the past I would have almost definitely condemned my own weakness and inferiority.

Yet right now that wasn't what was happening at all. This couldn't just be the confidence provided by Nine-Tails. No, it had to be something more than that. I closed my one eye and inhaled sharply, tasting the war-torn battlefield all around me. In my mind's eye I saw one thing- my idiotic blond student smiling brightly, hiking a thumb at himself as he stood below the visage of his father carved into the wall. "I'm gonna become Hokage, y'know! Greater than my father or any Hokage that came before me!" I could hear him saying, but it wasn't just his voice. I heard myself in there too. Not the current me, but one from a long time ago.

"What does a failure of an Uchiha hope to accomplish by standing against me? You, who are only recognizable for the eye you gave to your friend?" Rasa had yet to move as I opened my eye back up. The only movement was from the golden dust he had managed to rip from Shukaku as it swirled around him, waiting to form a protective shield at any given moment.

"...I'm the senpai of the future Hokage, y'know." My bold claim seemed to take him aback and his mouth opened slightly as if to ask what the hell that even meant. Something about that made me laugh and I felt all that confidence I had within my youth swell inside me.

In that one moment, I was the twelve year old me again. The Obito that used to point brightly at himself with his own thumb and smile with all the boldness of someone with a dream to strive for. As if to honor that, I mimicked that pose from my youth, glancing over at the Hokage monument while I did. Specifically at my Sensei, who had managed to achieve our shared dream. "It means there's no way in hell I'm going to lose to you, because I'm already an existence above the Gokage!"

"Such nonsense!" Rasa unfolded his arms, face twisting in unrestrained frustration. My words had finally gotten to him and he was ready to acknowledge me as an opponent. The golden dust at his feet whirled and rose, as if reacting to its master's anger.

Looking at this battle from the outside, this match-up wasn't much different from the one that had been interrupted; A Sharingan warrior vs an absolute defense. The difference here was we weren't Genin fighting for spectacle. This was a war between veteran Shinobi and that meant the entire scope was on a whole other level.

I glanced sideways at my clone and we nodded to one another. We took off running, sprinting straight for the Kazekage. I closed in from the right, him from the left. The tomoe of my Sharingan whirled as I pictured Might Gai's fighting style and mimicked it, every muscle in my body contorting to match the flawless form he had spent his entire life perfecting. While still slower than the instant teleportation of my Kamui, this speed was nothing to be disappointed in.

"Leaf Whirlwind!" I jumped in the air, delivering a powerful spinning kick aimed at the side of the Kazekage's head. In ordinary circumstances this was a blow that would destroy a standing structure, nevermind what it would do to a fragile human skull.

Despite this, golden dust was in my path faster than I could blink, my foot crashing into the protective barrier. The chakra enhanced gold buffered my blow, barely bending despite its destructive power. My clone was met with similar resistance.

As expected of the strongest Shinobi from the Hidden Sand.

A shadow above us caused both the Kazekage and I to glance up just in time to see a giant orange claw coming down over our heads. "Nine-Tails! Watch it!" I yelled, jumping sideways and barely out of the way in time. Simply touching down caused the ground to quake and I was nearly thrown aloft if not for chakra to anchor me.

"I can't watch you and deal with this at the same time! You watch it, brat!" Nine-Tails shouted back, launching himself forward and once again tackling Shukaku. The two Tailed Beasts roared and continued their epic match just overtop where I was having my own.

A gust of wind flew through the area strong enough to batter both Tailed Beasts. "Seven-Tails!" Shukaku and Nine-Tails roared at the same time. The giant horned-insect Tailed Beast flew overhead, racing through the skies as if the king of them.

"You ain't getting away from us that easy!" Isobu was hot on its tails, the turtle having compacted itself into a ball again that raced across the earth, sending hunks of trees and dirt flying in every conceivable direction. While riding atop Nine-Tails the debris from its movement hadn't been a problem, but I was on the ground now and a tidal wave of tattered forest was flying right at me.

"You have got to be kidding me!" I dismayed. Of all the times to not be able to use Kamui, this was probably the worst. "Mokuton: Deep Forest Emergence Jutsu!" I pumped as much chakra as I could into the jutsu, sweat dotting my forehead as I felt the strain take hold. Little saplings and roots began sprouting out from the recently trampled earth surrounding me. In a matter of moments, those saplings transformed into full trees and I was enveloped in a deep pocket forest that acted as a buffer against the wall of debris.

Flakes of gold Dust scattered throughout the forest I just created, spread so thinly I could barely notice it if not for the slight shimmering they gave in the light. No doubt it was probing for me and acting as eyes for the Kazekage.

I pressed my back to the trunk of the nearest tree, slipping a handful of shuriken into both hands. It wouldn't take long for the Kazekage to find me, so I needed to ascertain his location as quickly as possible. I had also lost sight of my clone in the chaos, but it should have moved onto the next step of the plan already. It wouldn't be in time to help me track Rasa, but I had other options for that.

In fact, it was only too easy to track him as he walked boldly into my forest. I knew he must have been confident in his ability to take me in a fight, but I was starting to think he was underestimating me a little too much. His defenses were seriously no joke, and this was coming from someone that was pretty confident in their own defensive game. Which may have been exactly my problem. Between Kakashi and I, he had always been the one with a stronger offensive. Even the Sharingan I gave to him allowed him to use Kamui at a range, unlike my own which was basically only good for dodging and capture.

Normally I didn't really have many complaints about our respective roles, but right now I really wish I had his analytical mind to think of a way to breach this seemingly impervious defense. Looks like I was going to have to fall back to that after all. Which meant I was going to need to stall for a little more time yet.

I broke away from the tree, spinning to where I believed the Kazekage to be. In a matter of seconds he would know where I was.

With my right hand I threw one volley of shuriken and then immediately followed that volley up with one from the left. My own shuriken collided into one another, altering their course and allowing me to aim for Rasa without even having to expose myself to him.

At the same time, a stream of gold dust came flying at me from the side. I took to the branches above, barely dodging the writhing, snake-like compact gold. Jumping from branch to branch, I circled the expected location of the Kazekage, catching brief glimpses of his white and blue robe.

Behind me I heard the whizzing of Shuriken and spun around, drawing a kunai and deflecting my own weapons which had been caught and returned to me. Two exact replicas of Rasa landed on the branches where I had just been. Both of them were clones made almost entirely of gold dust.

It would appear Rasa had been getting creative with his magnetic capabilities and was mixing the golden dust with the soil around us to essentially give himself more to work with. While I'm sure it slightly dulled the quality of his Jutsu, it also meant I had more to watch out for than I previously hoped.

"Don't think creating territory to give you a home field advantage is going to be enough to close the gap in power between us." One of the clones taunted me.

"Katon: Great Fireball Jutsu!" My response was a giant fireball. They both jumped away, but the heat from the flames slightly melted the golden dust, jilting their movements and allowing me to close the distance. With a swift kick, I sent one of them crashing into the other and they both fell into my fireball and were turned into molten gold.

I fell through the brush, landing in a small clearing directly in front of the true form of the Kazekage. He continued to stand there with his arms folded, more of the golden dust floating around him as always.

I could tell with my Sharingan that he had also taken the time to cover himself in a layer of golden armor, similar to Gaara's sand armor. So physical blows weren't going to hurt him. I needed something that could hit him through that armor… and I had just the jutsu. But to make the most use of it, I was going to need to buy my clone a little more time still.

"Are you ready to finish this battle?" It was my turn to try and taunt him a little. "You've been fighting pretty defensively, have I got you on the ropes that badly?"

The Kazekage snorted as if what I said was funny. "This is an invasion and I have bigger things to deal with than you. Which means there is little value in wasting my chakra when I will need it for what is to come. Such as retaking control of Shukaku. By all means feel free to continue wasting your own reserves as you have been."

He had me there. While it was true that flame techniques didn't take a lot out of me, the same couldn't be said about wood style. I could still fight, but the number of large techniques I could unleash was pretty much spent.

"One more thing," The Kazekage continued, cutting me off from my thoughts. "I don't know what you're buying time for, but it won't work. This fight is already mine." The gold dust around him sprung to life threateningly. He was about to attack and without Kamui I had no chance to defend.

Looks like this was it.

I inhaled deeply, shouting at the top of my lungs and praying my clone could hear me. "It's now or never!" My shout must have reached, because a moment later and the memories of my clone came rushing to me. Along with the special chakra he had been gathering for me. It wasn't much, probably only enough to last for thirty or so seconds, but I was going to make full use of it. The way I saw the world changed. The wildlife around me came into focus. I could feel the energy of the plants I had just given life to. Their very life-force radiated and gave off a visible aura.

"...You!?" Rasa stared at me with wide-eyes and a slack jaw. "This is… Sage energy?" He took in my slightly altered appearance and correctly surmised my sudden boost in power.

"Oh? I'm impressed you can recognize it." I confirmed his suspicions. The white Zetsu cells of my body had begun sprouting small saplings and miniature trees, giving the right side of my body the appearance of a miniature bonsai garden. It wasn't exactly a stylistic choice and it was by no means practical. The Zetsu cells of my body just reacted this way to the intake of natural energy.

That wasn't likely what tipped Rasa off, however. No, the other telltale mark was the symbols that had shown up around my opened Sharingan eye. This was the same type of Sage mode used by the First Hokage, after all. So anyone that knew he gained these markings when utilizing Sage mode would recognize them. How the Fourth Kazekage of all people knew about that I had no idea, but he seemed like the type of person that liked to be informed. No doubt he had his sources.

Master Jiraiya could also use Sage mode, as could Minato-sensei, but theirs was a little different from mine. They were taught by the Toads through their usage of a special natural oil. I lacked the Toad contract, but I had this connection to Mokuton like the First had. So it took some finicking, but my Master had managed to crack the trick to teaching me about natural energy.

Not that I was very good at gathering it. You had to remain completely still to successfully mold natural energy and merge it with your own chakra. No doubt something my clone found very difficult with all the chaos happening right now. This amount should be sufficient, at least enough for me to make use of the other technique my master taught me.

"To be honest, I don't like to show this off to just anyone, but you are one of the Gokage. So I'll make an exception this time." What I said just now was only a half-truth. The reality was that I didn't use Sage mode often because it conflicted with Kamui. I was incapable of shifting natural energy into the pocket dimension, effectively making my Mangekyo useless while in Sage mode. Since I was already in a situation where I couldn't use it, however…

"This is- Impossible!" The Kazekage seemed to realize he was in trouble now that I had just brought out my hidden trump card. I don't think he was even aware of it as he took a step back. As his physical body retreated, the golden dust around him abandoned all defense and switched to a purely offensive base.

A storm of golden bullets flew at me. I charged into that storm head on, using the combination of my Sharingan and sage senses to read the incoming trajectories. Ordinarily this would be the equivalent to dodging rain, but by combining my two enhanced senses, even something like this became possible. I was almost as untouchable as if I had Kamui.

In my right hand chakra began to swell and swirl. There was a loud humming as the chakra formed into a ball of spiraling energy.

"It can't be- That Jutsu!?" Rasa realized only too late what it was I was planning. The remaining golden dust at his side took the form of a lance. The dust compacted, solidifying and giving the lance solid form. The moment the Kazekage's hand took up the weapon, wind-affinity chakra travelled through it, causing strange blue markings to appear along the handle and a pulse of energy to flow out.

I could tell just looking at it. This was the Kazekage's ultimate attack. A spear made of pure gold and enhanced with the power of divine wind. It required him to sacrifice all defense, but in exchange he gained a weapon that could pierce through anything.

Whether he knew it or not, this was undoubtedly the correct course of action. Since I could blast through his defenses now with just simple blows while using natural energy, the only option left for him was to attack. And if it was this attack, there was no guarantee I would be the one to come out on top.

Two Shinobi who prided themselves on defense had just thrown their specialty away, resting everything on a single powerful blow.

I took one final step, planting my foot firmly in the ground and pushing into it with all my might. The once peaceful humming of the technique was now whirling violently. The blue glow illuminated everything around us, dying the entire stage a similar hue. My right hand reached out, striking at the Kazekage as he came in range.

Rasa grit his teeth, turning his previous retreat into a last ditch charge. His foot planted just next to mine. The spear thrust forward, aiming for my heart. As our attacks passed one another we gave mighty shouts, unveiling the name of our respective Jutsu.

"Kamiyari!"

"Rasengan!"

Without fail the spear's aim should have rung true. He aimed at my heart and with the power of some divine wind guiding it there was no way for him to miss. This was an unavoidable fact. In this exchange of blows I could only die.

As if to cheat this fate, the rotational power of my Rasengan pulled at the spear like a vortex- altering its course and turning the tip of the blade ever so slightly. It wasn't much and a moment later the blade still pierced me- but what it struck was the artificial half of my torso. A hunk of flesh made up only of a creature known as Zetsu. There were no organs to be pierced, which is what this attack was: A thrust to pierce through any defense. That made the radius of damage small. Deadly if it had hit my heart, but inconsequential to what had ultimately been struck.

His attack had failed- and mine was about to land.

The whirling blue sage chakra tore through Rasa's golden armor, and tattered his ceremonial robes. For a split second, time seemed to stand still as reality took a moment to catch up. Then there was a small explosion of energy and Rasa was sent flying backwards. His back collided with a thick trunk of the nearest tree and he slid down to a crumpled heap at its base.

I gasped for breath, still standing with my right hand held up in the position it had been as I sent the Kazekage flying. It was almost as if the truth of what had just happened hadn't settled in yet as I stared at my extended hand at where the Rasengan had just been. At where I had struck the winning blow.

That was right… I won. I had beaten the Kazekage in straight one-on-one combat. Neither one of us were at full power and he had underestimated me up until the end… but in the Ninja world, none of those things mattered. His people needed him and he wasn't there to lead them anymore. That meant this was a bigger victory than just beating one Shinobi.

I couldn't help but let out a small laugh. Partly out of disbelief, part exhilaration. The Sage energy coursing through me dissipated and the plants growing from my right side whithered and crumbled. The markings around my face also faded. My clone hadn't been given a lot of time to gather much natural energy, but it had been enough. Barely.

The spear of gold also crumbled apart, leaving a gaping hole in my body. Despite not having any vital organs to be punctured, it still hurt like hell having the hunk of flesh keeping me alive damaged in such a way. Yet through the pain I was able to continue smiling. That was how exhilarating this feeling of success was.

However, now wasn't the time to revel in my victory. Because this was only one battle in the middle of war. I had more battles to fight yet. So I stilled my beating heart and calmly walked over to the unconscious form of the Kazekage. Grabbing him by the scruff of his robes, I lifted him up and pushed him back into the tree. He sunk into the bark as I manipulated it with the Mokuton Element until only his face was visible. Now he was completely incapable of moving so much a single centimeter and so long as I channeled chakra into the wood he would be incapable of using any Jutsu.

The moment I finished that and the ground gave a tremor unlike anything that had come before. While it was true the ground hadn't stopped shaking from the moment the Tailed Beasts were unleashed, this one in particular felt really bad. I quickly sprinted to the edge of the forest I had created, bracing for whatever it is I might see.

"Damn it… Damn it…" Only to be relieved by the sight of a defeated and shrinking Shukaku. The golden dust that had been protecting him was broken and scattered- a direct result of the Kazekage being defeated I did not know. The Tailed Beast continued to curse his fortunes until he was all but gone, leaving only an unconscious Gaara behind. Nine-Tails, meanwhile, tilted his back back as he let out a powerful and victorious roar.

Tension still coursed through my veins, but with the thrill of the two battles temporarily ended, I could focus once again on the connection Nine-Tails and I shared. He seemed to feel for it at the same time and together we disentangled our interweaving chakra.

There was still no time for rest, a sudden shout drawing our attention. "Nine-Tails! If you ain't too busy, I could use a hand!" Isobu had dug itself into the ground, its three tails wrapped around the flying Seven-Tails who was attempting to wiggle itself free.

"Hmph," Nine-Tails snorted, out of amusement or some kind of feeling of superiority I couldn't be sure. But probably both. His cheeks inflated and just before I could scold him to not use the Biju-dama he unleashed a torrent of flames. The rolling heatwave washed over me with enough force to send me to my butt. All humidity in the air was vaporized and the leaves of the small forest I created began to instantly wilt.

The screams of agony from the Seven-Tails actually made me feel sorry for it. I wasn't even coming into direct contact with these flames and it was affecting me and my surroundings this much. To even try and imagine what the insect-like creature was experiencing...

It had the desired effect, the Seven-Tails beginning to shrink now too as it retreated back inside its Jinchuriki. I almost think it was a willful decision, rather than having fallen unconscious and reverting naturally. It would just rather hide in its human host rather than be subjected to more of that.

As that Tailed Beast reverted, Isobu did as well. All three of our battles were over. It would appear I had made the right choice in taking an offensive position against the Kazekage, despite that not usually being my style. Defeating him had been the key to a cascade of quick victories and with the Tailed Beasts problem resolved we could turn our attention to the other areas of the village that no doubt needed assistance.

For now, however, I was going to take a quick breather as I waited for Rin. Something which didn't take nearly as long as I would have expected. Or hoped.

"Obito!" Rin called, sprinting across the broken terrain in my direction. On her back was the unconscious form of the Seven-Tails Jinchuriki, Fu. I nodded her over to Gaara's prone form and hopped to my weary feet to make my way there, the two of us arriving at about the same time.

"You're okay." I smiled at her, just relieved to see she appeared completely uninjured from the previous battle. "What about… Isobu?" I struggled for a moment whether or not to call a Tailed Beast so casually by its given name.

"He's a little worse for wear, but he'll be okay with a little rest." Rin laid Fu down next to Gaara, before pausing unnaturally. I recognized it now as her stopping to communicate internally with her Tailed Beast. "He says thanks for the concern." She then passed on the message.

"Ah…" I could only grunt, more surprised by the fact he was able to hear me. Although I guess it shouldn't have been too much of a shock. After all, Rin had been able to do the same from within Isobu, so it made sense the reverse would be true.

"So what should we do with them?" Rin asked, nodding down at the two unconscious Jinchuriki that laid side-by-side. Her expression was complicated and for good reason. We had essentially just captured two powerful weapons of war and had them at our complete mercy.

"For now, I'll put them in the Kamui dimension where they can't cause any more harm." I said, bending down and finding I could once again activate my Dojutsu. Both of them were immediately sucked inside the vortex with my eye at the center and disappeared from this realm. "Afterwards we can let you talk to them… find out what really happened. There's no guarantee they willingly let their Tailed Beasts out."

Gaara aside, we literally had no information on Fu and what her relationship with her village or her Tailed Beast was. For all we knew she had been completely in the dark about this whole thing. I wouldn't put anything past Kakuzu, who I suspected only returned to his village in the first place to take part in this invasion. So for now I would like to assume Fu was somehow innocent.

Rin nodded immediately. "Thank you." She whispered. Her expression was still mixed, looking simultaneously like she might cry and yet relieved all at the same time. I could only imagine what it was like for a Jinchuriki to see another like them used in such a way. Heartbreaking was the only word that immediately came to mind.

"That just leaves…" I turned my attention up to the giant demon fox that was looming over us now. Once he was back in his seal, that would put an official end to the Tailed Beasts threat of this invasion. As if he felt my gaze on him, he looked back down at me, leering over us with his large red irises.

"If you think I'm going back in the seal willingly, you have another thing coming, you brat." It was as I feared. This was the real reason he agreed so quickly and had only argued with us enough to make it seem like he was hesitant to be released. He knew once we let him out, we had no way of putting him back peacefully without his cooperation. If we had more time to plan this out, we could have figured out fail-safes for this kind of situation. As it was, we may have just traded in one monster for another.

Before any further argument could be had on the matter, something falling from the sky caught my attention. I didn't have any time to react and Nine-Tails didn't even see it coming. A giant torii gate made wood slammed down on one of his tails. "What!?" Then following in quick succession, gate after gate pinned his tails to the earth. Before he could even react, larger gates then pushed him down at the torso until one final gate caught his neck.

"This can't be… you don't have this kind of power!" Nine-Tails seemed to be under the misconception that this was somehow my doing. However, he was exactly right that I couldn't use Mokuton Jutsu of this level. There was only one person who could.

If Senju Hashirama was here though… What was happening to the others over there?