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The Better Version

Naruto leapt at the statue, forming a Rasengan but before he could blast it, the giant war fan Madara had been wearing on his back shot up and blocked the Rasengan, blasting it back into Naruto and hurling him backward. He landing on his feet just as spikes began to grow out of the Gedo Mazo, its eyes beginning to bleed and its mouth beginning to stretch open, its cheeks starting to tear.

"It's definitely not taking long," Ryuu growled as boulders began to rise into the air. "Naruto, B, you two handle the statue. I'll take Madara. He and I have almost the same powers at base. We're like two sides of the same coin. It's time to see which version is better."

He began to make hand seals then set his hand on the ground.

"Wood Style, Deep Forest Emergence!" Ryuu shouted, massive trees and roots shooting out of the ground and reaching for Madara and the Gedo Mazo.

Madara snorted in amusement before making several hand seals and raising a massive dirt wall to block the trees, succeeding, though the wall crumbled immediately afterward.

"Wood Style, Wood Golem Jutsu!" Ryuu shouted, forming two of them. "These will help the two of you. Tear that thing apart."

Naruto nodded and he, B, and the two Wood Golems charged forward.

"I will not allow you to pass," Madara stated.

"You have to deal with me," Ryuu stated, speeding past the others with his Sixth Inner Gate open and throwing a punch at Madara, who he passed through. "Got you."

He sped at the statue instead but before he could reach it, Madara rose out of the ground in front of him, smashing him away with the fan. Ryuu flipped, landing on his feet just before Madara set the two Wood Golems on fire and blocked Naruto's fist with his fan at the same time. The two Golems began to thrash around, smashing into each other and falling apart and Ryuu growled in annoyance.

"Useless pieces of...fine," Ryuu growled. "Come on Madara. Let's go!"

Madara turned and stared at him for a moment before jumping and using the fan to block B's fist. B leapt back, and Madara smashed his fan into Naruto, hurling him away. Then, Madara charged at Ryuu.

"Vulnerable only to counter attacks," Ryuu grinned. "Come and get me mother fucker."

Madara leapt at Ryuu swiping at him with his fan. Ryuu flipped over the fan, kicking downward at Madara but his foot passed through. Just as his foot exited Madara, Naruto's fist began to pass through him. Ryuu landed and spun under Madara. As Naruto passed out of Madara, Madara grabbed his foot and Ryuu kicked at him. His foot passed into Madara and Naruto passed through his hand, flipping and landing on his feet as Madara flipped away from them. Madara grabbed his chain, pulling the fan toward himself from behind Ryuu. Ryuu swore turning toward it just as Guy landed behind him, blocking it with a pair of nunchucks. At the same time, Kakashi shoved a Lightning Blade at Madara. Kakashi's hand passed through Madara's head and the fan began to pass through guy. Just as it passed the rest of the way through Guy, it became solid again and slammed into Ryuu, launching him. he crashed into the side of a boulder and began to fall, catching himself with his wings just as Madara fell out of the boulder above him. Ryuu spun, Madara grabbing him by the throat before allowing Ryuu to escape as a hand made of glowing golden chakra passed through him, a tiny Tailed Beast Ball in its palm. Ryuu flipped, flying away as Madara leapt off of a boulder at Naruto. Naruto retracted his chakra hand and tried again as Kakashi hurled a kunai with a Lightning Blade around it at Madara. The chakra hand and kunai both passed through but the moment they were both clear, Madara kicked the kunai, sending it at Naruto. Naruto leapt at Madara as Madara continued at him.

"I'll take care of the kunai!" Kakashi shouted.

Naruto sent another chakra arm at Madara, this time with a fist, and it began to pass through Madara's head as Kakashi used a jutsu to make the kunai spiral around a tiny vortex and disappear. Ryuu blinked in surprise as Madara passed out of Naruto's back, shooting past where the kunai had disappeared and flipping landing on a boulder, turning to look at Naruto, Kakashi and Guy.

"Damn," Naruto growled, standing.

"Are you alright Naruto?" Kakashi asked.

"Fine," Naruto nodded. "He's awful slippery though."

Madara turned toward them less than a second before a crack split open in his mask. Kakashi, Guy, and Ryuu stared at it in shock.

"That's..." Ryuu breathed. "I wonder..."

Ryuu jumped to Kakashi and leaned close to his ear.

"I'm throwing you to B, use Kamui on the statue's head," Ryuu said. "I'll keep Madara busy. I think I know how to kill him."

Kakashi nodded and Ryuu grabbed the back of his flak jacket, spinning and hurling him at B who caught him. Then, Ryuu spun to leap at Madara, only to find him less than a foot away, reaching for Ryuu's throat.

"Better watch your statue," Ryuu grinned.

Madara's head spun toward the statue as its head began to warp and spiral. Naruto and Guy's fists began to pass through Madara and he ducked under them, leaping away. Then, he landed on a boulder as Naruto's still-extended chakra arm with the miniature Tailed Beast Ball hit it, blasting it and Madara. The Statue's head suddenly righted itself and Kakashi fell to a knee as Ryuu's eyes narrowed.

"I knew it," Ryuu growled, the dust clearing and revealing that Madara had escaped the blast.

Suddenly, B shot toward the statue, throwing a punch.

"You're wide open!" B shouted.

"Uchiha Flame Formation!" Madara shouted, a massive cylindrical barrier of blood red flames shooting up around the Gedo Mazo.

B's fist crashed into the barrier, lighting on fire and B staggered back, shouting in pain.

"Damnit!" Ryuu growled.

"Looks like we're going to have to take out Madara first after all," Guy stated.

"Yeah," Ryuu nodded. "I'll be back in a minute."

He vanished in a flash of light, reappearing beside Kakashi who looked over at him.

"Have you also figured it out?" Ryuu asked.

"Yes," Kakashi said. "But I need to test it."

"That we can do," Ryuu nodded as Naruto and Guy appeared beside them. "We're going to try something. Naruto, you need to use a Rasengan on him. Me and Guy will distract him while you get into a clear spot. Preferably behind him."

Naruto nodded and they all leapt off of B's hand at Madara. Guy fell back a bit, Kakashi, Ryuu, and Naruto all leaping off of a boulder just before Guy smashed it into bits, sending it raining down at Madara, who the pieces passed through. Guy landed and began to attack Madara with his nunchucks rapidly, but after a moment, Madara grabbed them. Ryuu landed on a boulder as Naruto leapt at Madara from behind Guy, holding out a Rasengan so that Madara would know to let it pass through. However, at the last second, Kakashi hit the Rasengan with the same jutsu he had hit the kunai with and the Rasengan vanished. Then, Naruto began to pass through Madara. Just as Madara's right shoulder exited Naruto, and explosion shot off of it, launching Madara away and blasting his shirt's sleeve into ribbons.

"Got him," Ryuu grinned as he dropped down beside Naruto and Guy, Kakashi landing beside him.

"You were right," Naruto said. "I finally landed a hit."

"So it's true then," Ryuu said. "His ability is linked to your Mangekyo Sharingan."

"Yes," Kakashi nodded. "My Kamui is the key to his defeat."

"But why are they connected?" Guy asked.

"Kamui's a Space-Time Ninjutsu right?" Ryuu asked, Kakashi nodding. "Then I can only assume that Madara's ability is a Space-Time Ninjutsu that utilizes the same dimension as your Kamui."

Kakashi nodded.

"That makes sense," Kakashi nodded as Madara stood, ripping his ruined sleeve off. "Where did you get your Sharingan?"

"In a way, during the last Great Shinobi War," Madara said. "At the Battle of Kannabi Bridge. The same battle where you gained the title, Kakashi the Sharingan Hero."

"Are you..." Kakashi trailed off, staring at Madara.

"Are you ready Naruto?" Ryuu asked.

"Almost," Naruto said.

"Naruto," Madara spoke up. "I have been wondering. You say your dream is to become Hokage, and to remove hatred from the world to gain peace. But what would your father and your master think if you failed. And if you failed, what would you think of yourself?"

Ryuu glanced at Naruto just as his eyes turned red with slit pupils and the whisker marks on his cheeks grew thicker.

"Madara," Naruto said with a much deeper and more animalistic voice. "Your words don't apply to this kid."

"That voice," Kakashi gasped.

"Is that the Nine-tails?" Guy asked.

"Yeah," the Eight-tails said from above them. "It's Kurama."

"He was entrusted with me by the Fourth Hokage as a means of stopping you," Kurama stated. "Not only has he somehow befriended me, but he has completely mastered my chakra. You've lost."

Ryuu grinned, suspecting what was coming. A moment later, Naruto's chakra shroud returned, once again splitting down the middle and opening into a full-length coat.

"Ready," Naruto grinned.

"Let's tear that mask off and find out once and for all who this asshole is," Ryuu growled.

Naruto nodded and the two of them sprinted forward. B followed, but after a moment, gigantic shuriken began to fly out of Madara's Sharingan. B used his tentacles to block all but one, which removed a tentacle and flew at Naruto and Ryuu. They stopped and Naruto formed Kurama's head, catching the shuriken in its mouth and throwing it away. Then, Ryuu and Naruto continued. Guy and Kakashi followed them this time, watching for a chance for kakashi to use Kamui. Ryuu and Naruto attacked Madara, their attacks passing through for several seconds before Ryuu drew his tanto, using it instead of his hands, on the off chance he managed to land a hit. After a moment, Madara ducked under one of Naruto's kicks and then caught Ryuu's wrist, stopping his slash before kicking Naruto away. He stood, twisting Ryuu's arm, making him drop the tanto and fall to his knees. Madara caught the tanto and raised it.

"Looks like I'm the better version after all," Madara stated, driving the tanto downward.

At the last second, a massive blood red chakra arm hit the tanto blade, knocking it away from Ryuu without breaking it before continuing at Madara, who it passed through, allowing Ryuu to escape and catch his tanto as it fell. Then, he leapt away from Madara as Madara leapt into the air, landing on a boulder above them. Ryuu turned, looking at the owner of the chakra arm, seeing Fu.

"But...how?" Ryuu blinked.

"Chomei stored about a portion of her chakra in the medallion," Fu stated. "As she was being forced out of my body, she shoed me how to retrieve it. Once I was awake, I did just that, and now my old seal keeps it inside of me, dead or not."

Ryuu grinned just as massive black rods began to rain down at them. B grabbed the two of them, setting them beside Naruto who was forming a Tailed Beast Ball while a clone sprinted at Madara with a Rasengan. The black rods began to hit B, purple chakra chains shooting out of them and pinning B as they did. Fu exited her Version Two form, breathing hard.

"Can't waste the chakra," Fu sighed. "There isn't much of it."

"Will it regenerate and get stronger over time?" Ryuu asked, more out of curiosity.

"Yes," Fu nodded. "Never to what it was while I had Chomei inside me, but more than it is now."

Ryuu nodded, looking up at Naruto's clone as Kakashi's Kamui began to make it and the Rasengan distort. Then, just before it reached Madara, a black rod shot out of Madara's eye and the clone was gone.

"Looks like you were too slow Kakashi," Madara stated.

"Not so fast!" Naruto shouted, firing the Tailed Beast Ball.

Too late, Ryuu thought as Madara began to pass through the Tailed Beast Ball.

Then, the Tailed Beast Ball shot away, exploding in the distance and left Madara standing before them, shattered mask on the ground, exposing his face.

"Kakashi sent the clone," Ryuu realized. "But...who is he?"

"Is that you...Obito?" Kakashi asked.

"Obito?" Ryuu blinked.

"Are you really Obito?" Guy asked. "I thought he died?"

"Who is he?" Naruto asked.

"He was our classmate," Guy stated. "An Uchiha of the Hidden Leaf. We all thought he was killed in action during the last war."

"If you survived..." Kakashi began. "...why didn't you come back?"

"It's irrelevant now," Obito stated. "Though, if you truly must know, it's because you let Rin die."

"You're not going to condemn me?" Kakashi asked.

"What purpose would blaming this absurd reality serve at this point?" Obito asked.

"Kakashi, I don't know what happened between you two in the past, but right now stopping what this guy is planning is most important," Naruto stated.

"Kakashi, Naruto is absolutely right," Guy stated.

"I have nothing further to say to you, Kakashi," Obito said.

"You were crushed to death right?" Ryuu asked. "Or rather, almost to death?"

"How did you know?" Obito asked, intrigued.

"The Zetsu that rehabilitated me told me about you," Ryuu stated. "Actually, he called you Madara at the time, but he said that when you two first met, he had found you near death, with the entire right side of your body crushed. He said that, like me, you had had your body repaired using pieces of artificial flesh like his own, pieces of Zetsu Clones. He said that you had rehabilitated yourself in two months, half the time of my own."

"So that's how he survived?" Kakashi blinked. "I see."

"Naruto's right," Ryuu said. "I gather this Rin was important to you. I can sympathize, and you know that. But Naruto's right. Regardless of what happened in the past and what your reasons were, stopping you is the most important thing right now. So I'm sorry for your loss. But I'll be sending you to see her again soon."

"We'll see," Obito said, forming several hand seals before a wall of fire began to spiral out of his eye.

Naruto formed Kurama's tails, blocking the jutsu just as a dark streak shot through the air, crashing down beside Obito.

"Shit," Ryuu growled. "I should have known. You broke your contract too, didn't you...Madara?"

The dust began to settle and Madara Uchiha stood, dusting himself off and crossing his arms.

"I thought we had a plan, Obito?"


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