Oh my, I had one hell of a horrible week. Between a terrible schedule and my phone which fell apart (literally) I couldn't find the time to post this chapter, even if it was ready days ago.

Sigh... at last, here is the first part of a two chapter conclusion to the Amegakure arc. I left a few shout outs to various works of fiction inside it; I wonder if you will notice some of them.

A little warning: things are about to get REALLY serious.

Thanks ABitterPill for betaing, and all readers for following this story.


Chapter 16:

The Rains of Amegakure

(Part One)

As the wings of the Nanabi grew out of her shoulders, allowing her to fly, Fuu was quickly swarmed by a dozen floating explosive tags, but managed to dodge them by soaring upward. Meanwhile, Kisame summoned a circle of water around himself to stop the same projectiles.

"Fuu," Konan started, hovering above the ground with her paper wings, "I always treated you the best I could. I did my best to show you our way was the right way. If you surrender, I will convince Pain to spare you."

"Sorry, no way I'm going back to your gilded cage!" Fuu snarled, spitting a cloud of golden, flammable dust at her adversary.

"Then you shall suffer the consequences!" Konan shouted back, dropping her stoic expression for once, flying out of the dust's way and retaliating with a volley of sharpened paper sheets. Fuu dodged them, each projectile being potentially deadly. "For Amegakure!"

Kisame, creating enormous quantities of water, turned the liquid into shark-shaped missiles and fired two dozens of them at Konan. The woman frowned and had a few paper tags intercept them. Seals drawn on them shined, absorbing the projectiles inside themselves, easily stopping the assault.

She incorporated Seals to her paper tags to create a variety of effects, Fuu guessed, flying toward Konan, But I'm pretty sure she isn't that good hand to hand.

The Akatsuki member noticed her opponent too late to dodge, allowing Fuu to punch her torso. The strength of the blow probably broke a rib or two, if Konan's expression was to be trusted, and sent the kunoichi crashing into a nearby building's wall.

Kisame seized the opportunity, jumping in the air while swinging his weapon. Konan barely flew out of the way, the Samehada barely missing its target. After putting as much distance between them as possible, the kunoichi used explosive tags to demolish the building and had it collapse on top of Kisame. Before Fuu could rush to his rescue, she was forced to dodge more incoming explosive tags.

"Origami Jutsu," Konan snapped, summoning red paper sheets, "Dragon Dance!"

Red seals shined on the paper tags, and at their master's command, each of them unleashed a blast of fire at Fuu. The girl skillfully dodged most of them, although a few hit her flesh.

Hey, be wary, the Nanabi's voice resonated inside Fuu's mind, its power already curing its host of the burns she was suffering from, Even my healing factor has its limits. Try to dodge them all if possible.

"I'm trying!" Fuu snapped, doing her best to avoid being burned alive.

To the people on the ground, it seemed like a fireworks display, with a green comet skillfully dodging multiple incoming fire projectiles. However, to Fuu, this was both tiring and difficult. The Jinchuuriki therefore decided to go on the offensive.

Inhaling sharply and channeling more of the Nanabi's chakra, Fuu flew upward, towards the clouds. Her skin was quickly covered with a green mix of chakra and blood, and although the strain on both her body and mind was terrible, the girl managed to stay focused. Her speed kept increasing, until the red tags couldn't keep up with her.

Then, as a pseudo-horn - the Nanabi's horn - started growing out of her forehead, Fuu turned around and started her descent, aiming for Konan.

The paper woman could only pale, when she realized Fuu was about to impale her.

Fortunately for Konan, a combination of her excellent reflexes and Fuu's trajectory allowed her to dodge… partially. While she wasn't killed, Konan didn't move completely out of the way, and Fuu's horn tore apart her left arm.

Konan, for the first time in the entire fight, shrieked in pain.

With difficulty, Fuu managed to regain control of her trajectory, but a few dozen explosive tags surrounded her and detonated. The resulting explosion sent her crashing into a roof, and forced her to regain her human appearance. Konan closed in, now preparing to maim her opponent back in revenge.

Then something hit her.

As it turned out, not only had Kisame survived, but, by surrounding his body with water, he had turned himself into a living missile, hitting Konan at full force and sending her to smash into the other end of the roof. Regaining his footing, Kisame turned his armor of water into a mini-tsunami and propelled it towards Konan.

Standing up, Konan mentally commanded paper tags to put themselves in the attack's way, their seals quickly absorbing the liquid. Then, as Kisame helped Fuu rise back up, the paper Amegakure's angel shaped a dozen spears with sharpened paper sheets.

"This is over." Konan raised her remaining hand. "Shikigami Dan-"

Then she coughed blood, as a katana impaled her heart from behind.

Fuu and Kisame both gasped in shock, as Konan turned her head to face her attacker, a black-haired man who had just teleported behind her, smirking triumphantly as his Sharingan memorized her despaired expression.

"Hey, sweetie," Obito Uchiha whispered to Konan's ear, as he twisted the blade to increase his victim's pain. "Nothing personal, I'm just paying little Nagato back for leaving me sealed. No hard feelings!"

Konan ground her teeth together, colors leaving her face. When death quickly claimed her, Tobi tossed the corpse to the side and took back his blade, not bothering to get rid of the blood on it. "Hey, Kisame," he greeted the swordsman, his cheerfulness contrasting greatly with his chilling actions, "How have you been?"

"Madara?" Kisame blinked in surprise. "Weren't you dead?"

"Nah, although Pain did try to leave me rot. You know me, I can never stay down." Tobi chuckled and glanced at Fuu. "Hey, girlie, nice to meet you. The name is Tobi, and you must be… the Nanabi, am I right?"

Fuu glared at him. The man clearly wasn't seeing her as a person; he only cared about the Bijuu inside her.

"This Sharingan…" Kisame trailed off, recognizing the strange pattern in both of Tobi's eyes. "You only had one Mangekyo before."

"Thanks to Zetsu's quick surgery, I have… taken back what was mine, with interests." Tobi snorted. "Anyway, just knock out the girl and let's get-"

"No."

The answer seemed to genuinely amaze the Uchiha, whose jaw dropped when Kisame adopted a fighting stance, shielding Fuu with his body. "I'm done working for you," he said. "If you want her it will be over my dead body."

"Have you gone crazy?" Tobi snarled, almost as surprised as Fuu herself. "She's needed for the Moon's Eye plan! Don't you want to see a world of truth? Don't tell me you grew attached to this trash?!"

"Your world of truth is a lie, a delusion," Kisame shot back calmly. "I have found a true friend and comrade in Itachi. This is the world of truth I've been after all along. I don't want your illusion any longer."

Tobi stayed silent an instant, and then burst out laughing. "You and Itachi? Hah, I almost believed for a second!" When he noticed Kisame was serious, the Uchiha glared at his former ally. "Alright… let me teach you something."

The madman crossed his arms. "Man lives and dies alone. Friendship, love, all this shit is just a lie we tell ourselves to deny reality! This is just a farce! Our lives are just dirt, and bonds are as meaningless! If you think Itachi is a friend, then you're even dumber than I thought!"

Fuu had enough of the blabbering and prepared a jutsu. "You're the only one alone here," she snarled, firing a blast of golden dust at the Uchiha.

The attack phased through the man harmlessly.

"As much as it shames me, fighting both you and a Jinchuuriki might be a little too hard for me, so I'll take my leave," Tobi told Kisame, teleporting away, but not before uttering one last ominous sentence.

"It's not like she's the only Jinchuuriki I can grab anyway…"


Dosu was, in a nutshell, a brute: all strength and zero skill.

After Naruto dodged a punch, and then a kick, the blonde realized for all the muscle the Samsara had given his opponent, he was still a genin inside. His moves were careless, easy to predict, and were overall a waste of breath. So far he hadn't managed to hit Naruto since the beginning of their duel, while the Konoha-nin had already landed a few blows.

However, none of them had fazed his adversary. So far the two ninjas were locked in a stalemate, which, considering the difference in strength, would probably end when Dosu managed to grab Naruto and knock him out.

Unwilling to be backed into a corner, Naruto launched a volley of Shuriken at Dosu's eyes, hoping to blind him. The renegade ninja protected his face with his arm, and the Jinchuuriki realized he would need to taunt him into making a mistake. "Look, Dosu, I've got to say, beside your pretty face, I didn't see what the Samsara improved on. I mean, I don't have any chakra and yet you can't even reach me!"

"I don't need to," the man snickered calmly, activating his Melody Arm. While the distance between the fighters was too great for Naruto's inner ear to be affected, the blonde still felt the vibrations. "It doesn't matter how long you dodge, it's only a matter of time before I hit you. Hell, I don't even need to win, just delay you until Pain-sama notices us. Then you and the tree-huggers will be crushed."

As much as it shamed Naruto, the man was right. The Jinchuuriki had to win fast. If only I had my lighter or summons, he thought grimly, throwing smoke bombs at Dosu and preventing him from seeing clearly. "Why do you even call us tree-huggers?" Naruto asked, before attempting to sneak around his opponent and hit him from behind, "Oh, I know, a Konoha-nin kicked your ass real bad, am I right?"

"You know nothing," Dosu snarled, trying to locate him by sound. However, Naruto, being much faster, had already started attacking.

Carrying two kunai, Naruto stabbed Dosu's right eye, drawing blood. When the enraged ninja attempted to retaliate by smashing the blonde with the Melody Arm, the Jinchuuriki leapt backward and threw the second kunai at his opponent's forehead, barely missing. So far, the hit and run tactic was a complete success. "So it was a Konoha-nin…" Naruto trailed off, preparing another smoke bomb. "I should have guessed one of us would have beat up an asshole like you at a point or another."

"You think you're a hero?" Dosu roared angrily, his eye bleeding profusely. With astonishing speed, he attempted to tackle Naruto, who barely dodged…

Only for Dosu's hand to grab his shoulder. Oh shit, Naruto thought, before being tossed to the ground.

"Konoha took my face and my home!" Dosu snarled, grabbing Naruto's neck with both his hands and lifting him above the ground. "My parents and their neighborhoods were just peasants on a strike, but the Daimyo paid your ninja to massacre us! Your kind burned my home with me inside!"

Naruto coughed, as Dosu tightened his grip on the blonde's neck. Apparently, he had completely forgotten about Pain's orders to keep the Jinchuuriki alive and was now trying to strangle the blonde to death. The Konoha-nin searched for a kunai in his pockets, found one, and stabbed Dosu's hand with it.

While the ninja groaned, he didn't appear that bothered. In fact, he increased the pressure. "But now, I'll be the one laying waste to Konoha!" Dosu snarled madly. "It's my turn!"

Dropping the kunai, Naruto frantically searched in his pockets. There was only one thing that could save him right now.

He would have to thank Pain for leaving it to him.

Finally, Naruto found the item he was looking for: a small syringe full of a liquid Dosu instantly recognized.

"The Samsara?" Dosu's eyes betrayed a tiny hint of panic. He probably expected Naruto to use it on himself and even the odds. "Give it to me!"

"If you… say so," the blonde managed to blurt out, before stabbing Dosu's arm with the syringe and releasing the product into his veins.

All of it.

The madman shrieked and released Naruto, holding his arm in pain. As Dosu hissed, his opponent gasped for air.

When Dosu started convulsing in pain, the blonde smirked triumphantly. "What's wrong, having an overdose?" Naruto taunted, grabbing the kunai he had previously dropped. "They didn't tell you about the drug's side-effects, did they? If you take too much of it your body can't handle it! I may be powerless, but at least I win through my own achievements!"

Dosu hissed, but was powerless to do anything when the blonde leapt on the madman's back and raised his weapon.

"Sorry," Naruto replied, throwing Dosu's former taunts back at him, "I'm not paid to care."

Then he stabbed Dosu's jugular and spine, killing him almost instantly.

The madman blurted out something, before collapsing to his knees. Naruto panted, taking a few steps back and examining his surroundings.

Team Gai had easily finished off Dosu's reinforcements, with the exception of… actually, Naruto had a hard time describing this thing. It looked like a unholy mix between a white snake and a man, and it was giving Neji and Lee trouble.

That is, until Gai smashed the creature's skull into a bloody smear on the ground.

Naruto briefly shuddered, but smirked when his friends rushed at his side. They quickly removed their ANBU masks, revealing their faces and their Konoha forehead protectors. "Thanks-" he started, before coughing as Tenten hugged him.

"I'm so glad to see you again!" she said. "I was worried for months!"

"It's… good to see you too…" Naruto managed to blurt out, before Tenten broke off the embrace.

"We missed you," Neji whispered, patting his friend's shoulder. "Now let's get the hell out of there."

"Indeed, while I find this display of affection most youthful, we need to get away before reinforcements come," Gai ordered, having dropped his usual silly behavior for deadly seriousness.

Naruto nodded, before frowning. "Wait, Tenten, do you have a sword on hand? A tanto, if possible?"

The Kunoichi nodding, opening one of her scrolls and unsealing a blade. "I thought you might want it," she said, tossing it at her friend.

"I've got to do one last thing before we flee." Naruto approached Dosu's corpse, raised his blade, and then cut the arm equipped with the Melody Arm from the rest of the body.

"Naruto, what the hell!?" Tenten asked in surprise.

"It makes removing the Melody Arm faster," Naruto explained, separating the device from Dosu's limb. Then he proceeded to equip it on his own arm.

"Naruto-san, there's still the guy's blood all over it…" Lee pointed out, disgusted.

"Consider it a war trophy," Naruto shrugged. "It would be a waste not to take it. When I figure out how it works, it could be a real life saver. Now let's go-"

Only the ninjas' good reflexes saved them this time, when they noticed a fireball flying in their direction. The group separated and dodged, as a powerful explosion devastated the street.

Naruto, quickly regaining his composure, found himself suddenly grabbed by the neck by a man in black. "Naruto Uzumaki," the individual whispered, his Sharingan's tomoe adopting a strange, unnatural shape. "Time to follow Tobi-kun like a good fox…"

Much to Naruto's horror, the man's Sharingan turned into a black hole, threatening to swallow him whole.

Fortunately, Gai literally kicked in. His foot slammed into the man's torso, forcing him to release Naruto, and propelled him a few meters away. The Shinobi managed to land to his feet and gave the jounin a murderous glare.

"Impossible…" Gai paled, upon recognizing his adversary. "Obito?"

"You know this guy?" Naruto asked, readying his blade, while the rest of the group closed in, prepared to stand their ground.

"For a guy who can't remember faces, you're surprisingly sharp to recognize someone you haven't seen for more than a decade," the Uchiha hissed.

"He is Obito Uchiha, a Chuunin thought to be killed in action during the Third Shinobi War," Gai said, still amazed by the Uchiha's surprising return, "He was one of the Yondaime's students, alongside Kakashi."

My dad's student? Naruto wondered inwardly.

"You know, Gai, last time we talked, it was when you humiliated me back when we were kids," Obito hissed, as he started making hand-seals, "I've been waiting to settle the score for a long time…"

The Uchiha opened his mouth and unleashed a stream of fire.

The Konoha-nins dispersed again to dodge, and went on the offensive immediately. Gai, the fastest and strongest, reached this Uchiha first, his fist within an inch of the man's face.

Obito suddenly vanished out of sight, his body replaced with dozens of explosive tags.

Naruto paled in horror as he watched Gai get blown up at closed range, his body burned and torn apart into an unrecognizable mess.

His death had probably been instantaneous.

"Gai-sensei!" Lee screamed in horror, imitated by Tenten. Neji, while not going into an outburst, stood still, paralyzed by shock, before rushing with Lee to his sensei's corpse, unwilling to accept the harsh reality.

"Haha," Obito chuckled cheerfully as he reappeared not far away from Naruto, not caring in the slightest he just murdered somebody in cold blood, "That trick never gets old!"

Sharingan… intangibility… Naruto instantly realized who he was up again, clenched his jaw, and charged. "You! You're the one who killed my sensei!"

"Boy, I've killed so many people I can't remember half of them, even with the Sharingan," the man taunted. His eye opened a hole in space once more, allowing the Uchiha to draw a katana out of it. "You've got to be a little more specific."

It was obviously a provocation to make Naruto slip up, but the blonde had a hard time shrugging it off.

"Her name was Anko Mitarashi!" Naruto snarled, trying to bisect the man in half. Tobi hastily parried with his own blade, and quickly, the two Shinobi engaged each other in an intense sword duel. While Naruto was without a doubt the most skilled of the two with a sword, according to Obito's careless fighting style, the Uchiha was both much stronger physically and was using the Sharingan to predict his opponent's moves. "One night you murdered her after Sasori took her hostage!"

"Look, kid… for you the day I murdered your mentor, was the most important day of your life… but for me…" Tobi gloated, parrying another sword strike. "It was Tuesday."

Then he landed a kick between Naruto's legs, before sending him crashing into his back with a powerful punch. Finally, he raised his katana and lowered it to maim the blonde.

Only for a volley of kunai to stop him, phasing through his body and deflecting his sword. The next second, Lee was at his throat. "You killed Gai-sensei!" he snarled, enraged. His body was radiating with chakra. "Third Gate… open!"

Obito grunted and took a few steps back, before allowing Lee to close in. The boy's punch went through the older Shinobi as if he was made of air, and Tobi turned his blade around in a sweeping motion, intending to behead his adversary in one swoop.

With nigh-supernatural accuracy, Tenten launched a kunai at Obito's sword, deviating it and saving her teammate.

"If he was completely intangible, he wouldn't be able to wield a blade," Naruto pointed out, glancing at Neji, "Can the Byakugan help us?"

"I'm already studying his chakra pathway, but his body composition is incredibly odd," the Hyuuga replied, focusing, "I need you to buy me some time before I can find a flaw in his technique."

"Tenten, since he needs to keep his hand tangible to hold his blade, try to target it or his sword," Naruto explained, joining the melee, "If we can disarm him, he will lose his extended range." He didn't even wait for her to agree to join Lee.

With a powerful kick, Tobi repelled Lee, before parrying a sword slash from Naruto. When he attempted to retaliate with an horizontal swing, Tenten's kunai deflected the katana, putting Obito on the defensive. "Since when aren't you kids a joke anymore?" he grunted.

"Practice," Naruto snorted, trying to disarm Obito with a vertical swing. The Uchiha hastily parried it, but one of Tenten's kunai targeted his hand. To avoid being hurt, Obito turned it intangible and was forced to drop his weapon, much to Naruto's delight. "Seems like you're the joke here."

"Man if I had known you would be so troublesome to subdue, I would have killed you alongside your mother years ago."

Naruto's brief surprise was the single opening Obito needed, as he grabbed the blonde's neck. The blonde was thrown near Tenten, and accidentally dropped his own blade. The Kunoichi helped him get back to his feet, but Naruto was focusing on Obito and Obito alone.

Suddenly, everything became as clear as water.

Obito was Minato's student. Meaning he probably knew Kushina and the fact she was the Kyuubi's Jinchuuriki. Once upon a time, Madara Uchiha had managed to control the Nine Tailed Fox with the Sharingan.

Who said he was the only Uchiha who could pull it off?

"You!" Naruto snarled in rage. "You're the one who unleashed the Kyuubi on Konoha years ago!"

"Yes." Tobi admitted with chilling nonchalance. "I did it. I'm the one who kidnapped your whore of a mother and ripped the Kyuubi from her belly, killing her. Then I set it loose on Konoha. And if I could, I would do it all over again-"

Tenten had exploited the madman's monologue to launch a volley of kunai at him, each of them covered with explosive tags. Obito vanished in the resulting blast, only to reappear in front of the Kunoichi. Without wasting any time, he quickly punched her, breaking her nose and almost knocking her out.

Even more enraged, Naruto tried to get his sword back, but Obito quickly engaged him in close combat. Forced to protect himself from a punch with his arms, the blonde glared at his enemy. "Why?" he snarled. "Why did you do that? The Yondaime was your own mentor!"

"Why? Because I wanted to show the world the famous, invincible Yondaime Hokage was shit!" Obito snapped wrathfully, quickly overpowering his rival with a frenzied series of blows. "He promised he would come to save us if we were in danger, but he abandoned me and left me to rot under rocks! He showed up to save his prized student Kakashi, but the dropout Obito Uchiha wasn't important enough for him to save!"

He snickered. "Why do you think I left you run around for so long, when I could have kidnapped you up anytime? Watching the spitting image of my sensei getting rejected by the people Minato gave his life to save, time and time again, was so fulfilling!"

"You killed thousands of people!" Naruto snarled, incensed. "You ruined my life!"

"Idiot, you think life has value?" Tobi snapped back, pushing the blonde back with a roundhouse kick. "You think when I disappeared, anybody gave a shit? Everyone just cried for the show, then forgot to even get my corpse back! All we get when we die is a mention on a tombstone, and then we're forgotten like trash!"

"This is completely wrong!" Tenten snapped, having recovered Naruto's sword and joining the melee. Obito was forced to turn intangible to survive the assault. "We Konoha-nins value life! Which is why we came here to help Naruto!"

While Naruto smirked, Tobi grunted. He teleported away, and fired a burst of flames at the duo. The two ninjas dodged and then, with surprising synchronization, raced toward the criminal.

"This is what the Leaf represents!" Tenten boasted, her sword going through Obito's body as if he was made of air. "The respect of life! We Konoha-nins fight to save our comrades, no matter the cost, and we cherish the memory of the dead! This is why I feel proud to wear Konoha's headband!"

"You have no idea just how stupid you sound," Tobi hissed angrily, more annoyed by her words than her ineffective attacks.

At this moment, Neji hit him in the back with a spiraling orb.

Naruto found the sight strangely beautiful. The orb of chakra in Neji's palm was twisting on itself as it impacted on the Uchiha's flesh. The madman was propelled away, only managing to stand up again with great difficulty. "The Rasengan…" he hissed. "Someone taught you kids the fucking Rasengan?"

"You do not turn intangible," Neji declared, ignoring the remark. "You only appear to be. You teleport your body parts to another location before hits can connect with them, while the rest of your body stay in our world. The teleportation is too fast for normal eyes to process, but the Byakugan's vision of your Tenketsu allows me to see which body parts you teleport… and those I can strike."

"Your second-rate Dojutsu still can't hold a candle to my Mangekyo Sharingan," Tobi snapped, before teleporting once more to avoid a sneak attack from Lee.

"Everyone, swarm him!" Neji commanded, the Konoha-nins obeying instantly. Tobi soon found himself forced to dodge or turn intangible to protect himself. He dodged a punch from Naruto, let Tenten's blade phase through his belly, and deflected Neji's Gentle Fist.

"The ribs!" the Hyuuga ordered. "Target the ribs!"

Tobi didn't turn intangible fast enough. Lee's foot impacted on his solid thorax, breaking a rib, and propelled him against a building's wall. The shock almost knocked him out, and he fell on his knees.

But this time, he was furious.

"When the boulders crushed my body," he whispered with a creepy monotony, "I survived, but my brain suffered extensive damage. Particularly, it removed the biological limitations to my Sharingan."

He glared at the group, his eyes bleeding.

Naruto paled in dread. The hell?

"There's a reason why transplanted Sharingan are considered extremely dangerous for their wielder," Obito continued. "The Uchiha's brain is naturally geared to reduce the flux of information the Sharingan records, allowing them to keep only important details. A normal brain is quickly overloaded by the information recorded, resulting in tiredness and dementia if used constantly."

He rose back up to his feet. "The removal of this biological limitation allowed my skills to skyrocket. After a few years, I, a failure of a Shinobi, could stand up against the strongest Hokage the world has ever seen. But this was at a cost. My memories, my mind… it's an utter mess, a boiling chaos. I don't even clearly remember how I survived. Sometimes, it's Kiri-nins who dig me out. Sometimes, it's Uchiha Madara himself who takes me as apprentice. And often, I dig myself out."

He chuckled insanely. "Sometimes, I'm not even sure I'm even Obito Uchiha. Sometimes I'm just no one. But, there is one thing I know is mine for real," Obito hissed, as he glared at Neji, "The hate of the headband you kids take pride in! Kamui!"

A breach in space opened, right where the Hyuuga's left arm used to be.

Naruto could only pale in horror as his friend's limb vanished inside the mini black hole, leaving only blood in its place. As Neji collapsed screaming, Tenten gasped in horror, Lee was deathly silent, and Naruto was glaring at Obito with burning fury.

"What's wrong?" the Uchiha mocked, before charging at the blonde. "Oh, sorry, did I just blow up your friend or something?"

Even the Sharingan and Tobi's excellent reflexes weren't enough, when Naruto's fist connected with his face before he could turn intangible.

Tobi was tossed to his back, blood flowing from his mouth. He spat something to the ground, and glared at Naruto. "You knocked out a tooth you little piece of-"

He suddenly realized how much he was screwed.

Naruto's body was covered with purple markings and enveloped in sinister, black chakra. He hissed and grabbed his own head, before roaring. Tobi rose up to his feet and observed the scene with slight apprehension.

His anger awakened Orochimaru's Curse Seal… Obito thought. Jiraiya's additions weren't enough to restrain it… and now it is conflicting with…

Red chakra started surrounding Naruto's body, tearing apart his skin and mixing with his blood.

the Yondaime's seal.

An ungodly killing intent almost paralyzed Obito, as Naruto was replaced with a monster of mixed blood and chakra, a unholy fusion between a man and the Nine Tailed Fox. Teeth turned into fangs; fingers into claws; and five tails grew out of Naruto's back.

"And fuck," was all Tobi could say before the monster leapt in his direction.


Pain attacked first, slamming his palms together and razing the area to the ground with a powerful shockwave. Debris and dust were sent flying toward the Konoha-nins, and Itachi put himself in the way, his Susanoo armor fully materializing. As the ethereal warrior of chakra shielded everyone, Itachi locked eyes with Jiraiya. "I have sent Kisame to break Fuu out," he said, "So I thought you might need my assistance."

Jiraiya frowned. "What do you know about this… undead abomination… and its abilities?"

"This is Pain's Deva Path," Itachi explained, as the dust started settling down, "An animated corpse able to control gravitational, attracting, and repulsing forces. I believe he might have, however, a time limit between his attacks, since he hasn't been able to blast us consecutively."

"Alright," the Toad Sage nodded, before glancing at his troops. "Han, Yugao, engage him at close range; Sasuke, Itachi and I will-"

"What are you doing?" Sasuke hissed at Jiraiya. "We can't be working with him! He-"

"He killed your entire family and who know how many others, I know!" Jiraiya cut in angrily, hating to be interrupted, "And I want him to face justice as much as you do! But Pain is the greater threat and we need as much help as possible to defeat him, so please, delay your revenge until we beat him!"

The young genin clenched his fists in rage, but his logic seemed to overcome his wrath. The potent death glare Sasuke sent to his brother, however, chilled Itachi to the bone.

"Temporary," Sasuke spat venomously, "Very temporary."

"So be it," Itachi shrugged.

"And I thought Orochimaru was had issues," Jiraiya snorted, already making hand seals, quickly imitated by Sasuke. Both Shinobi left the Susanoo's protection and fired multiple fireballs at Pain.

The madman raised his hands and repelled the assault with an invisible force, only for Han and Yugao to engage him at close range. The first attempted to punch Pain's face, while the second readied her Tanto and prepared to cut Akatsuki's leader in half.

The Deva Path dodged Han's first, then jumped above Yugao to avoid her sword and landed behind her back. Before she could turn around, Pain blasted her away with a Shinra Tensei, and she collided with Han.

Itachi instantly seized the opportunity and attempted to smash Pain with the Totsuka sword. The Susanoo raised the blade and lowered it in a vertical swing, but the Deva Path gracefully dodged.

"You will regret betraying me, Itachi!" While the Deva Path's expression was as emotionless as ever, the anger in his voice was very noticeable. "You should have thought better than bring upon yourself the wrath of a god."

"I see no god," Itachi shrugged, "Only a walking corpse."

Pain's reply was to use his power to levitate a huge debris and throw it at the Susanoo, forcing it to shield itself. Meanwhile, Jiraiya reached the Deva Path and smashed a Rasengan against his back, sending the walking corpse flying. He managed to land to his feet and retaliated by blasting his former sensei away with a pulse.

"Sasuke!" Han yelled. "Do you remember the Lariat move I showed you?" The Uchiha nodded. "Use the Sharingan and be perfectly synchronized with me, in both strength and movements! Use everything you have!"

The Uchiha nodded, and vanished from Itachi's sight alongside the Gobi's Jinchuuriki. Meanwhile, Pain levitated a dozen giant debris and propelled them in all directions, hopping to crush everyone in the vicinity. While everyone but Itachi dodged, the Susanoo resisted the attack, and charged, followed by Yugao. Both the kunoichi and the ethereal warrior raised their swords, and attempted to tear the Deva Path apart.

Pain easily repelled both of them away with a Shinra Tensei, and regretted it one second later.

The five seconds limit between his techniques sealed the Deva Path's fate, when he was left with nothing to defend himself with when Han and Sasuke closed in, their arms extended, both from behind and in front of Pain.

Itachi's Sharingan analyzed and memorized every instant. Both Sasuke and Han managed to use the same amount of opposing strength, and their arms formed a scissor motion around Pain's neck. However, due to the difference in height between the partners meant the beheading wasn't clean at all, with blood splattered in all directions and Pain's head sent to fly aimlessly.

When both fighters finished their motion, panting heavily, the headless Deva Path fell to the ground, defeated.

Everyone glanced speechless at the spectacle, and Itachi couldn't repress a warm smile. I'm proud of you, little brother, he thought.

"That was fast," the Han noticed. "The guy who taught the Han this move was not kidding when he nicknamed it the 'Killer Beellotine'."

Sasuke shrugged. "At five against one this was-"

It happened at this instant. The moment Itachi feared the most. And the Sharingan memorized it forever.

A beam of light illuminated the area, before vaporizing Sasuke. The powerful attack hit the surprised genin before he could dodge, burning off his flesh and bones, reducing him to ashes.

Itachi's mind shut down.

At this moment, nothing mattered. The dozen Ame-nins and giant summons rushing in to kill Yugao and Jiraiya didn't matter. The white chakra enveloping Han didn't even distract Itachi. The arrival of Pain's remaining Paths wasn't that important. All that mattered were Sasuke's ashes and his killer's emotionless expression.

The Asura Path glanced at Itachi. He could have killed a bigger threat like Jiraiya, but a promise was a promise.

"I told you I would kill your brother if you betrayed me."

At this moment, the Uchiha snapped.

Itachi roared in blind fury and ordered his Susanoo to crush the undead with the Totsuka blade. The ethereal warrior attempted to impale the walking corpse…

Only for the Preta Path to grab the weapon.

The Uchiha shrieked, as the Susanoo's chakra was drained whole from him. He actually felt the chakra armor's collapse, and panted heavily. The Asura Path exploited the opening to fire a volley of missiles at Itachi.

The Uchiha's Sharingan quickly noticed the danger, and the genius leapt away to dodge. Unfortunately, one of the projectiles exploded at close range, propelling the former ANBU above the soil. He crashed onto the ground and was knocked out by the brutal aftershock.

The Asure Path propelled himself like a jet by channeling chakra through his legs, preparing to crush Itachi's skull.

He never reached the Uchiha. A Rasengan hit the Path's back, destroying it utterly.

"Shit, shit!" Jiraiya groaned, as he reached Itachi, grabbed him, and dodged incoming Jutsu from both Pain and his Shinobi. Meanwhile, Yugao was forced on the defensive, trying to avoid strikes from a dozen opponents at once.

A giant rhino, one of Pain's summons, charged at her and almost impaled her with his horn. Yugao was only saved from death when a huge, white tail of chakra whipped the creature and tossed it away. Then a cloud of steam covered Ame's forces, preventing them from seeing clearly. Jiraiya glanced at their savior.

While the Sannin had already seen the Gobi in drawings, it was the first time he was looking at the creature in the flesh. The beast was both graceful and ugly, with a horse's body and a dolphin's head. But most importantly, it was huge. Much taller than even Gamabunta himself.

"The name is Kokuo!" the Gobi yelled, "Jump on my back!"

Jiraiya obeyed instantly, while still carrying the unconscious Itachi the best he could. When Yugao joined them, and grabbed one of the Bijuu's horns, the giant creature glanced at the cloud of steam it had created. It was already dissipating, and Ame's army was preparing to strike once more.

"Okay," Kokuo explained, "I know we are, well, completely screwed over, but I'm pretty sure I can take down those summons, except maybe the giant bird-"

"We aren't fighting back," Jiraiya decided, "We're retreating."

Yugao and the Bijuu said no word, begging for an explanation.

"Nagato has both the Rinnegan and the power of the Tailed Beasts Akatsuki managed to capture," the Toad Sage elaborated quickly, "Not only is he a formidable adversary on his own, but we'll have to fight all of Amegakure at this rate, and we will lose. Worse, the real Nagato isn't even here, he's controlling puppets from afar. We would better flee when we still can and return with reinforcements."

"And Fuu and Naruto?" Yugao asked. "We can't leave without them!"

"With luck, Gai's team and Kisame helped them break out," Jiraiya said grimly, "But right now, we're all on our own. The loss of Sasuke is enough already. Let's not waste it."

"My container said he doesn't like the plan, but he doesn't have a better one," the Gobi admitted, before inhaling sharply, "Grab my horns and try not to fall!"

The Five Tailed Beast turned its back on Amegakure's forces and raced through the city, quickly reaching the outskirts.

And so Jiraiya, Itachi, Yugao and Han escaped from Amegakure, with Pain's animal summons giving chase.


When the possessed Jinchuuriki raised his claws to attack, Tobi regained his composure and locked eyes with the beast. "Obey your master!" he snarled, activating the Sharingan. "Obey!"

His only answer was a demonic roar and a punch.

Of course, the latter phased through Tobi harmlessly, but it was the thought that mattered. He's too berserk to fall under my control, the Uchiha thought, before teleporting away, If so…

"I don't need the Sharingan to tame you!" the madman hissed as he reappeared two dozen meters away from the beast, activating Kakashi's eye. A black hole opened next to the Jinchuuriki, destroying a leg… which instantly grew back.

The possessed Naruto retaliated by waving his tails, unleashing a powerful hurricane. Tobi was hit before he could turn intangible and propelled into a building's wall, crashing against it. The very next second, the Jinchuuriki was already at his throat.

Teleporting away as the beast was within an inch of killing him, Tobi reappeared in a distant street. He could only watch, as the surrounding buildings collapsed, the Kyuubi rampaging through them in search of its hated foe.

It was obviously a lost cause. Although the power of his Kamui had been tremendously increased when he had stolen Kakashi's eye, it had been implanted only recently and its power wasn't enough to beat the beast.

Alright, new strategy, Tobi thought, If you can't beat them, have someone else beat them.

When the Jinchuuriki finally located him, Tobi ran away, phasing through the buildings and houses with Naruto Uzumaki closely trailing him. The Uchiha quickly arrived to his target: Pain's memorial tower, the heart of his city.

The plan was simple. Pain would have no choice but intervene in order to save his city from the rampaging monster, and hopefully he and the Kyuubi would slaughter each other. Or at least, the winner would be tired enough for Tobi to finish him off.

But Pain was not here, only cannon fodder rushed in. Dozens of foolish Ame-nin arrived to fight off Naruto, trying to valiantly protect their home and their god's tower. Their Jutsu bounced off harmlessly on the monster's chakra cloak. Instead of stopping it, these doomed efforts only angered the creature further.

The monster inhaled and started firing small, yet powerful blasts of chakra with his mouth, at incredible speed and with ruthless efficiency. One blast killed three Ame-nins unlucky enough to be in the way. Another ravaged the surrounding streets, blasting houses to ground. And others hit Pain's tower, blowing it up entirely.

All Tobi could do was watch at the devastation, as the Jinchuuriki kept firing in all directions in berserk rage, laying waste to Amegakure itself. The Uchiha marveled at the savage destruction, memorizing it forever with the Sharingan. This power, he thought, remembering the night of the Kyuubi's attack, This… why did I seek the Juubi? This power is all I ever needed…

Tobi was snapped out of his trance, when he noticed a blast aiming for his head. Activating the Mangekyo, the Uchiha absorbed the attack inside his pocket dimension, briefly turning tangible for a few seconds.

Which were too long, when the Jinchuuriki reached the Uchiha and clawed at his face.

Tobi's good reflexes saved his skull from being entirely destroyed, but the Kyuubi's claw reached his newly acquired left eye, tearing it apart alongside a good chunk of the ear. The Uchiha shrieked in pain. "My eye!" he snarled, teleporting a few meters away before Naruto's fangs could chew his head off.

Preventing the blood from flowing out of his body with one hand, Tobi glared at the Kyuubi. "You took my eye, you son of a fox whore!"

The sound the Jinchuuriki produced in response was deep and animalistic, yet the Uchiha instantly recognized it.

The beast was laughing at him.

Memories flooded Obito's brain. He remembered his classmates laughing at his poor grades. He remembered Kakashi snickering at his failures. He remembered Rin's laughter, as she told him she was so happy to be in Kakashi's team. He remembered Minato and Kushina's smiles as they celebrated the birth of their first child, while they had left him to rot in a cave.

Tobi snapped.

"I'll show who's gonna have the last laugh!" Obito Uchiha shrieked, his old composure replaced with intense, childish rage. "I won't let a trash like you mock me!"

He vanished.

The Kyuubi snarled, angry at his prey fleeing. Not that he would get far. The creature would track down the Uchiha to the other side of the earth if needed and then slowly skin him alive for having dared to brainwash it years ago.

Tobi reappeared, but he was not alone.

He was using Tenten as a meat shield, holding her above the ground with the right hand, while using the left to cover the wounds on his face. "Now," Tobi trailed off, tightening his grip to better strangle the kunoichi, "Time to be a good hero and save the damsel in distress by surrendering!"

The possessed Jinchuuriki recognized his friend, for its rage was briefly replaced with silence. Unfortunately, the Kyuubi's rage overwhelmed him, and the beast gathered chakra in front of him, giving it the shape of a sphere.

"Stop!" Tobi panicked, increasing the pressure on Tenten's neck. "Stop or your girlfriend gets it!"

"Naruto…" Tenten coughed in horror, upon realizing what was happening. "Please… I beg you…"

For the briefest of instant, the creature that used to be Naruto faltered, struggling against the Kyuubi from the inside.

But the Bijuu's anger won out, and the possessed Jinchuuriki fired anyway.


The event could be seen from all corners of the land.

Amegakure was swallowed by a red light. The entire country shook, as a powerful blast razed the city to the ground, destroying buildings and torching the earth to ashes. The lives of thousands ended abruptly, and although some survived, many weren't so lucky, as the Tailed Beast Bomb reduced them, their homes, their families, to dust.

This day was a grim reminder for mankind, that Jinchuuriki were to be feared.

To be continued...


Original Jutsu List

Origami Jutsu, Paper Tag Defense: Paper tags on which are written absorbing seals are put into the way of an attack targeting Konan. The seals activate and absorb incoming projectiles, sealing them off. Ineffective against Taijutsu.

Origami Jutsu, Fiery Dance: Seals are applied to paper tags, and fire is sealed inside them. With a verbal command, Konan is able to release the fire sealed inside the tags into different shape, allowing her to swarm her opponent with flames from all directions.

Water Release, Shark Jet: by surrounding his body with water, Kisame launches himself at an opponent like a missile at extreme speed, before turning the water into projectiles. The technique can be used both for offense and as an improvised armor.

Space-Time Ninjutsu: One-Hit Kill no Jutsu: by using both the Kawarimi and the Kamui at the same time, Tobi can instantly switch place with explosive tags he stocked inside his pocket dimension, which is lethal for anyone caught in the blast's range. However, the technique leaves no room for error, since any failure will result in the user blowing himself up. As such, it is rarely used multiple times in a fight.

Killer Beellotine: a bastardized version of Kumo's traditional Lariat. Two partners combine their arms in a scissor motion to behead an opponent: the beheading's cleanliness depends on the synchronization, and the difference in strength and size between the partners.

Bijuu Minigun: by focusing its chakra, the Kyuubi fires multiple shots of condensed chakra in a row, like a Minigun. The shots are much weaker than a Bijuudama but extremely difficult to dodge.


A/N: yes. The Kyuubi nuked Amegakure. Time to remind everyone why Bijuu are considered WMD.

Before you flame: I didn't write Tenten or Tobi were dead. Just that the Kyuubi fired a Bijuudama. You'll have to wait for the next chapter to see what happened exactly. But yes, at least Sasuke is dead. Sorry for those who cared about him, but I want to explore Itachi's character. The death of his brother opens many opportunities for character development.

... all in all, it's Atlas' version of the Pain's Invasion Arc. Except the positions are reversed. And there's no mass revival at the end.

Yes, Tobi has brain damage and dementia. I mean, no amount of surgery will ever heal a brain half crushed by boulders. I think it might be a good explanation for why old Obito is so different from his child self (he did unleash a Bijuu on a city that never did anything to him...). Of course, Tobi is still a dick. While Pain is the greater threat, if Naruto has an archenemy, it's Obito.

By the way, this is your last chance to vote at the popularity poll. I will close it (and announce the results) when I post the next chapter.

Anyway, don't forget to tell me what you think of the chapter in PM or reviews.

Thanks for reading.