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Chapter 86: Up to the Challenge
Normal P.O.V.
Everyone stood still as Tsunade activated her Strength of a Hundred Jutsu with a cocky smirk, "Madara! You have mocked and disrespected my grandfather's Will of Fire for the last time! As long as my student: Sakura Haruno, the Hidden Leaf Village, and its citizens, and I still breathe, the Will of Fire will never fade!"
Despite her declaration, Madara was unfazed. "Hn. Meaningless words from a so-called Medical-nin and weak Senji descendant. I care nothing for your rules. Adding you to this battle will do the exact same as our first battle, nothing."
This enraged Tsunade to the point her blood boiled. Then, suddenly, she raced towards Madara at top speed. Madara lazily summoned his weakest Susanoo form to protect himself as she got closer. However, Tsaunde was readied for this. She cocked her fist backward and added some chakra to her fist before she connected it with his defense. She smirked when she saw him gasping at his Susanoo's defense craking.
"Impressive. She may not be as fast as the Raikage, but she is definitely stronger. Hn. This woman may posse a challenge after all," Madara thought.
"Come on! We have to backup Tsunade!" A commanded as he jumped into action.
Onoki, the Third Tsuchikage, jumped onto A's back to offer support. Seeing that his four opponents were ready for another battle, Madara jumped away from Tsunade and prepared his own fire attack. Mei raced ahead and formed hand signs for her own combination of water attacks to counter this.
"Water Style: Water Piller!" she shouted before a large stream of water shot from her mouth. As it collided with Madara's fire attack, a cloud of steam formed around them. Mei kept up her attack's momentum as she continued with her combination of attacks. "Water Style: Water Dragon Missile!"
Next, while Madara was distracted with Mei, Tsunade, A, and Onoki used their strength to attack to shatter his Susanoo and send his hurling towards the ground. Once he hit the ground, Madara skidded along with the earth until he collided with a wall.
Madara had to steady himself along the wall behind him as he stood up and panted, "I admit… you are not a weak woman. On the contrary, you possess a strength, unlike almost anything I've seen. However, just know that if you die on this battlefield, so will the other Kages."
Tsunade stood tall after she landed on the ground. Her intense glare let Madara know that she was no longer playing with the villain before her. "I've had enough of you, Madara," she growled as she clenched her fists. "Despite the fact you acknowledged my strength, you did so with a backhanded compliment. On top of that, you hurt my boys. You extracted the Nine-Tails from Naruto and brought Sasuke to the brink of death before coming to challenge me! No one, and I mean no one, will ever hurt my loved ones and gets away with it! Not as long as I live and breathe! So trust and believe when I say that I will make sure that you are erased from this world for good!"
Once again, Tsunade took the offensive. While her opponent was currently defenseless, she readied her fists again. She launched herself at him and aimed for his torso. Madara quickly regained composure and tried to summon his Susanoo, but she was faster than him. Her fist hit his right side and caused a significant amount of damage. The wind and blood were knocked out of Madara as he was pushed further back into the wall.
"You were already dead once! Now, return to the afterlife and stop spreading your hate in this one!" she screamed in his face.
However, despite her efforts, Madara had the upper hand. Suddenly, another Madara appeared behind her and used his Susanoo's blade to stab her torso, effectively pinning her and the other Madara against the wall. Blood leaked from her mouth. Her eyes were wide with shock and pain. Tsunade slowly looked over her shoulder to see the real Madara stand behind her while his clone disappeared.
"I told before, if you died on this battlefield, then so do the other Kage. This is a prime example of how your arrogance will cost you. Now, the other Kage are finished." Madara turned around as Susanoo's sword lifted Tsunade into the air. His gaze was focused on the shocked Kage before him as more of his Susanoo's form emerged from the ground. "Now, who's next?"
The Kage couldn't get over their initial shock and fear as they stared between Tsunade's bleeding body and Madara's menacing form. Their medical support was currently impaled and bleeding heavily high above the ground. Their most fearsome enemy stood before them, ready to attack at any moment. But, unfortunately, they had to face the truth. Even with the odds in their favor, Madara's strength was too much for them to handle. And now, they were down two Kages, with one of them as their medical support. Despite Tsunade, Sakura, and Lady Katsyu's efforts, they still suffered injuries. And, if they were not careful, then it was the end of them.
However, they knew that they could not retreat. They were the Kages of the Five Nations. Their duty was to be leaders and pillars of strength for their people. Despite Madara being their most formidable opponent, each of them knew that the fate of this war rested on their shoulders. Their inevitable deaths would be their greatest glories
Their minds were brought back to reality when Madara started to walk towards them. They readied themselves for whatever the elder feline threw at them. However, with Tsunade out of commission, their only prayer was that they had enough strength to prolong the battle to make a difference. Luckily, their prayers were answered.
Everyone gasped and looked towards Tsunade when they heard her scream. In surprise and shock, they watched as she used her hand to slice through the large blue blade, effectively severing it, before throwing it towards Madara. The blade pierced his defense but not him. Trying to keep up the momentum, Tsunade cocked her fist back again and connected it with Susanoo's outer shell. Angered, Madara summoned a spiraled attack and aimed it at her. Unfortunately, she caught the attack and was sent flying.
"Lady Tsunade!" Everyone shouted as they watched her skid along the ground.
However, they let out sighs of relief when they saw her struggle to get up again.
"How are you able to move?!" Madara shouted angrily. Tsunade didn't say anything as she finally stood up. Madara's composure returned as he watched her closely when he noticed something interesting. "So that's your secret, Slug Queen. Being able to fight without sustaining injuries. This is the true power hidden in your Rule Four, huh? Quite the unique jutsu. I must say, I am even more impressed as the fight continues. However, no matter what little tricks up your sleeve you may have, I will still kill you with my jutsu!"
Madara put his hands together and summoned the Ten-Tails. Everyone gasped at the sight of the massive beast before them. What scared them more was watching as the beast was absorbed into Madara's body and Tsunade's body falling to her knees.
"Tsunade," Hiruzen shouted as he jumped to his student's rescue and held her in his arms. "Are you alright?"
"Yes, sensei. But it seems my jutsu wore off already," Tsunade chuckled lightly as the markings on her body reverted back to her purple forehead diamond.
"You fought well, young one. You should rest and let the rest of us take care of things,"
"No, sensei," she disagreed as she struggled to stand. "I am the current Hokage. And, as long as I am can, I will fight to protect my people,"
Hiruzen, still kneeling on the ground, stared up at his student with admiration. He smirked as he joined her side with his staff readied, "You are Lord First's granddaughter, alright. The Will of Fore burns bright with your spirit. And you said you didn't want to become Hokage,"
She smirked, "I didn't. But a certain yellowed-hair fox brat, old Toad Sage, and a runaway Uchiha feline convinced me otherwise,"
"Those three sure are something, aren't they? No then, shall we see this war till the end?"
"Lead the way, sensei," Tsunade smiled.
Everyone readied themselves as they continued to watch Madara absorb Ten-Tails. Finally, however, their blood drained from their faces as they saw his hair and body turn completely white, and he took on the form of the Sixth Paths.
"So this is the power of the Sixth Paths. I can feel it surging through me," Madara said as he took a moment to get used to his new powers. "Hn. It seems that Zetsu is having trouble with getting me the other eye from Obito. I wonder what the hold-up is?"
"Madara! You won't be getting that other eye! Not if we have anything to say about it!" Hiruzen declared.
"Third Hokage, because of whoever reincarnated you and the others, the Five Kages were saved from my Perfect Susanoo form. However, you should ask them what it was like to fight five of my clones as they used their own Susanoos. If you think that you can defeat me now that I possess the power of the Sixth Paths? I suggest you think again. But, you are more than welcome to try," Madara smirked.
Madara's words sent a chill through each shinobi's body. Fear ran rampant through the battlefield, and Madara could smell it. In fact, he inhaled in their fear and let it feed him. Although he has had the upper hand throughout the entire war, he still needed to put certain events into place for his victory to be completed. And, it started with making sure that Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha were dead by all means.
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Sakura, Jiraiya, and Gaara flew through the sky on Gaara's sand clouds as quickly as they could. Sakura did her best to keep Naruto alive, but things looked grim. If they didn't get to the Fourth Hokage soon, they would lose Naruto forever.
"How's he doing, Sakura?" Jiraiya asked.
"He's not doing well! I'm trying everything I can, but nothing seems to be working!" she cried as she continued to push more healing chakra into his fading body. "Naruto! Please, hang in there! We need you! You have to hold on! Please don't leave us! You're strong! I know you can hold on until we reach your dad. Just please don't give up!" Despite her exhaustion and depleting chakra, Sakura continued to do what she could to keep Naruto alive. "Damnit! My chakra is running out. But I have to hold on too. Naruto is counting on me!" Suddenly, Naruto's Nine-Tails' Chakra Cloak disappeared until nothing was left. "What's happening?"
"It's the Naruto's lifeforce. Because the Nine-Tails were extracted from him, their life forces are linked. Once a Tailed-Beast is removed from its host, it won't be long before the vessel passes onto the next life. A similar event happens if a Tailed-Beasts' vessel dies. That is why a Tailed-Beast will automatically join any battle or heal their hosts even without being asked. If the host dies, so does the Tailed-Beast. It's the main downfall of becoming a Jinchūriki," Gaara explains.
"Damnit, and since all of Naruto's chakra cloaks are gone, that means we don't have much time before we lose him," Jiraya cursed.
"Not if I have anything to say about it. Kazikage Gaara, can you please go at top speed? I will do my best to keep Naruto alive until we get there?" Sakura asked.
Gaara nodded before using his sand to secure everyone and increase their speed. Sakura grabbed Naruto's wrist and gasped when she didn't feel a pulse. She quickly put her ear to his chest and gasped when her worst fears were realized. No heartbeat or pulse remained in Naruto's body.
With tears in her eyes and a determined glare on her face, Sakura jumped into action. First, she unzipped his jacket and pulled up his fishnet shirt, exposing his abs and chest. Then, with her chakra added to her hand, she sliced along his right side and reached inside until she found his heart. Once she found it, she created her own pulse to keep his heart pumping.
"Don't you die on me, Naruto! You have to become Hokage! That silly dream you've had since we were kids is supposed to come true! Everyone believes in you! You can't die until you realize your dreams! I will do whatever I have to so that you realize your dreams! Just stay with us!"
Sakura knew she had to add air into his lungs. So as she continued to keep his heart pumping, she leaned over and covered his lips with hers. She breathed as much oxygen into his body as she could while continuing to keep his heart pumping.
"I promise, I won't let you die. No matter what!"
No one knew how much time had passed until they finally arrived at their destination. Gaara lowered them towards the ground as Jiraiya got the other's attention.
"Minato, Kakashi, we need your help,"
"What is it, Lord Jiraiya?" Kakashi asked.
They looked behind him and saw an almost dead Naruto lying on the ground with Sakura and Gaara above him. "Naruto?! What happened?" Minato asked as he raced to his son's side.
"The Nine-Tails was extracted from him. That is why we need your help, Lord Fourth," Gaara explained.
"Ah, yes. It seemed that we were so distracted by what was happening here that I failed to notice that my other half was gone. Quickly Minato, I need you to transfer me into your son before he dies," Evil Kurama commanded.
Minato only nodded before turning his attention to Obito and Zetsu. "Kakashi, I leave him to you,"
"Of course, sensei," Kakashi said as he stood up and summoned his Chidori.
"We'll help too," Gaara and Jiraiya said as they stood by Kakashi's side.
Minato and Sakura could care for Naruto with the three against Zetsu and Obito. It pained Minato to not be a part of saving Obito, but this was more important. Currently, Obito was going in and out of consciousness as he fought for his life against Zetsu. Zetsu already handed over one of Obito's eyes to Madara, as everyone already knew. Now, all he needed was to give the other. Before the others arrived with Naruto's body, Minato and Kakashi we preoccupied with helping Obito fight off Zetsu. Luckily, things seemed to get easier with the extra aid. Now, all Minato needed to focus on was helping his son.
Minato formed his hand signs before placing his hand over Naruto's stomach where the Nine-Tails' Seal was removed. His hand started to glow as he transferred the remaining Nine-Tails' chakra into his son. However, Zetsu had other plans in mind.
Before anyone could stop him, Zetsu shot across the battlefield and got between Minato, the Nine-Tails' chakra, and Naruto's body. Once Minato started the transfer, he couldn't stop it, and soon the chakra went into Zetsu's body.
"How dare you interfere!" Minato growled as he summoned a Rasengan and aimed it at Zetsu.
As quickly as the black entity appeared, he disappeared back into the ground. Minato retracted his attack to avoid hitting Naruto before turning his attention towards Obito's body.
"Thank you for the chakra. Lord Madara would be please once I give him both Obito's other eye and the rest of the Nine-Tails' chakra," Zetsu grinned.
Speaking the man into existence, everyone gasped as they saw Sixth Paths Madara appear with an unpleasant look on his face, "You're late, Zetsu," he growled.
"My apologies, Lord Madara. But, as you can see, I had my hands full. Fortunately, I retrieved what you wanted along with the rest of the Nine-Tails' chakra,"
"Although you annoyed me because I had to come to get you, I am pleased to hear it was not for nothing. But tell me, how long do you plan to cling to Obito?"
"I do not need to any longer. I only did so so I could take Obito's left eye and absorb the Nine-Tails' chakra," Zetsu explained as he kneeled onto the ground.
"Good. Now, bring them both to me. I desire to wait no longer,"
Zetsu menacingly smiled as he started to leave Obito's body, "None of you can do anything to me now that Lord Madara is here. Even if I leave Obito's body, you cannot win against us. This is the end for all of you," Zetsu gasped as he was suddenly sucked back towards Obito's body.
Once Zetsu reconnected with the disabled feline, Obito opened his eyes and glared at Madara, "Just what am I to you,"
Madara did not answer right away. However, his glare intensified as he finally did, "What kind of question is that? Did I not make myself clear when I rescued you all those years ago? You were supposed to become me: the one who rejects this world. You were supposed to strive to achieve the Infinite Tsukuyomi. That was what you were supposed to become. However, because your power was false, you ended up losing everything. As a result, you could not obtain our goal. But, you still can be useful. Come to me,"
As if his body was being controlled, Obito did as commanded and walked towards Madara. This caused everyone to jump into action to stop him. Gaara summoned a sand wall between them. Kakashi used Kamui to send him into another dimension, and Jiraiya and Minato summoned Sage Rasengans to attack Madara. However, Madara was quicker than them.
He used his staff to remove Minato's other arm before stabbing Jiraiya in his torso. Next, he did a roundhouse kick and sent the two of them flying backward. Gaara used his sand to try and catch both males. Unfortunately, Kakashi was not as fast and took the brunt of Minato's severed arm with the Rasengan in it. Sakura gasped as she watched everything unfold and cursed because she could only help Naruto.
Madara smirked as Obtio and Zetsu continued to walk towards him but didn't expect what happened next. As the younger feline got closer, Madara held his hand out to complete the transfer of Zetsu to himself. However, when they were close enough, Obito's right hand completely bypassed his and went into the older male's stomach.
"Damn you. What are you doing?" Madara struggled to ask.
"I'm nobody's puppet. Not anymore. I am Obito Uchiha, a former member of Team Minato. My rival is Kakashi Hatake. The girl I loved was Rin Nohara. I am a member of the Hidden Leaf Village and dreamed of becoming its next Hokage. One thing I am not is Madara Uchiha." He declared with a glare.
"Fool, do you know what you're doing?"
"Yes. I am becoming my own person again and a leader," Obito turned around and gave a small smile to his sensei and comrades. "A wise sensei once told me: a leader is not someone who steps over the corpses of his friends, even if he is the one being stepped on," he nodded a final time before returning his glare to Madara while summoning his staff. "I am taking back the very thing you stole from me: my life!"
Obito added chakra to his arm and used it to absorb Madara's. Madara reached forward to grab Obito's left eye, trying to stop this. However, he was shocked when his hand passed through. Needing to distance himself, Madara jumped backward into the air while Obito's chakra was still linked to him. However, he didn't get far as Obito dragged both of them into a genjutsu world with the Nine-Tails in the background.
Once there, Obito reached the ground and pulled out one of the Eight-Tails' tails from the water below them. Madara was unimpressed by this, "Is that all you've got? You only tore off a sliver of one of the tails from the Eight Tailed-Beast. What do you hope to accomplish with that?"
"You'll see. You're not the only one who is great at manipulation and planning," Obito smirked before he whipped the tail, severed himself from Madara, and exited the genjutsu world. "Kakashi! Take Sakura and Naruto to the Time-Space dimension!"
"Right!" Kakashi said before doing what he was told.
Simultaneously, Obito tried to teleport himself to the dimension with them, but Madara stopped him by using wind attacks their way. Obito used his staff to deflect the attacks, but it knocked him to his knees.
"Obito!" Kakashi yelled as he ran to his comrade's side.
"I'm fine. Don't worry about me. Did you teleport them safely?"
"Yes. All you have to do is do the same and save Naruto," Kakashi confirmed.
"Damnit, Kakashi," Obito smirked as he tried to stand. "You're always talking down to me, just like old times. But this time, I'm taking the lead. You just need to back me up,"
This caused Kakashi to smirk under his mask, "Hn. It's been a while since we've been a two-man squad. Try to keep up, Obito,"
"Funny, I was going to say the same thing about you," Obito teased back.
The moment between them brought back familiar feelings and old memories. However, the familiar feelings comforted them as they prepared for their next attack. "Obito, things may look bleak, and neither of us may make it out alive. I'm just glad that my final op will be with you,"
"Agreed," Obito replied.
Madara observed the two before making his next move, "Either Obito will teleport himself to the Space-Time dimension, or he'll have Kakashi do it. Either way, I have to stop that from happening. I'll attack simultaneously. Both can't dodge my attacks if that happens,"
Readied, Madara stabbed his staff into the ground and shot two of his black Sixth Paths balls towards the couple. Fortunately, that didn't work. When Madara launched his attack, they activated their Kamui jutsu to teleport Obito, but Kakashi was unfortunate. Luckily, he had a fast friend on his side. After the smoke cleared, Kakashi was shocked to see his Might Guy standing before him.
"Guy? What are you doing here?" Kakashi asked.
"I heard you might need some help from the Hidden Leaf's Beast!" Guy smiled with a thumbs up.
Where Gaara, Jiraiya, and Minato kneeled on the ground in the background, Rock, Tenten, and Neji were there. Seeing his mate there, Gaara offered a teasing remark and smile, "Come to save me?"
"Well, I can't have you dying on me. After all, what am I going to do without my red-headed raccoon," Neji teased back as he held his hand out to help Gaara off the ground.
Gaara took his alpha's hand and used it to stand tall beside his mate. Tenten did the same with Jiraiya and Minato. After making sure their comrades, Kakashi asked an important question, "How did you guys know we were here?"
"We saw Gaara's sand clouds heading this direction. Hinata sensed Naruto's lifeforce draining, and we wanted to come help," Neji explained.
"Speaking of which, where are Sakura and Naruto?" Tenten asked as she looked around.
"Oh no! Did something happen to my Sakura-chan and Naruto?!" Lee gasped with worry.
"Don't worry, Lee. They're safe and in good hands," Kakashi replied.
"Hn. More pests to get in my way. Great, just what I need," Madara groaned before turning his attention to Might Guy, "Wait, I've seen you before,"
This caused Guy to turn around and look at Madara curiously, "Hn? Who the hell is that?"
Everyone smacked their hands over their faces at this comment, "Guy-sensei, that's Madara Uchiha. Ya know, the man who started this whole war we're fighting in?" Tenten groaned.
"Ah yes. That guy. Well, don't worry, everyone. The Handsome Leaf Devil is here to save everyone!"
"This cheetah does not seem to possess any significant chakra or jutsus. However, I can sense a great power coming from Ahim. It seems he's gotten stronger since the last time. This shouldn't take long," Madara thought to himself. Little did he know just how wrong he was.
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On the other side of the battlefield, Karin, Orochimaru, Suigetsu, Jugo, and Hashirama finished off the bandaged Madara clone and continued to race towards Sasuke's body. Once they got there, Karin kneeled beside him to evaluate Sasuke's condition. She grabbed his wrist to look for a pulse as she placed her ear to his chest.
"Oh no, Sasuke-Kun!" she cried as she sat up and covered her mouth.
"What is it, Karin?" Orochimaru asked.
"He's barely alive. At this rate, he's gonna die!"
"Then do something, dumbass! You're supposed to be the leader here. Save him already!" Suigetsu scolded.
"Right!" she said as she wiped her tears away and pulled up her sleeve. Next, she used her right hand to cup the back of his head and lift it up. Then, she put her wrist towards his mouth and tried to get her to bite. But, when he wasn't responding, and his pulse faded more, she began to panic. "Oh no, Sasuke-Kun! You can't die! I won't let you!"
Without hesitation, she did the same as Sakura and unzipped his high-collared shirt, exposing his lean muscles and chest. Then, with chakra added to both hands, she sliced down his left side and shoved her hands in until she found his heart. She pumped her chakra into her hand before creating a makeshift heartbeat.
"Lord Orochimaru, I need your assistance. Please, can you use your regeneration jutsu to heal Sasuke-kun?" she asked.
"I am sorry, Karin, but I'm afraid I cannot be of much help,"
"What do you mean you can't help?! Aren't you like one of the best scientists or something?!" Suigestu yelled.
"Keyword: scientist. I never claimed to be a healer such as Tsunade. However, we have one of the best healers known to men," he said as he turned to Hashirama.
"I am not quite sure how much help you think I could be to you. Unfortunately, I do not possess the same powers and abilities that I did while alive,"
"That may be true, but I have something that can help us," Orochimaru said before pulling out a small jar of white cells. "Behold, what remains of your cells, Lord First."
"What? Did EVERYONE ransack my grave for my cells after I died?!" the annoyed male groaned with his hand over his face, "Do I even know how you got them?"
"Does it matter now? You need to know that we can use them to save the boy. I can implate them inside of his body, and with your chakra, we can save him."
"As if I'm given a choice here," Hashirama glared.
"Well, you guys better do something. I'm running out of chakra here," Karin commanded.
Not wanting to waste more time, Orochimaru went to work doing as he implanted the cells into Sasuke's body. Once this was done, Hashirama placed his hand over Sasuke's body and added his chakra. Everyone curiously watched as the cells reacted to the chakra and spread towards the young boy's chest and wound. The cells merged with the pale chest, blended in with the skin, and soon returned Sasuke's life force. Once Karin felt his heartbeat on its own, she removed her hand. Soon that wound closed too. After Karin dubbed that the omega feline was in stable condition, everyone gave a sigh of relief. Now, all they had to do was wait for him to wake up.
Saving Sasuke was the highlight of this war for Karin. Even though Hashirama and Orochimaru were the ones who actually saved Sasuke, it was her quick thinking and her ability to recall the training and time spent with Tsunade, Sakura, Ino, and Hinata. Now, all she could do was look to the sky and pray that Sakura accomplished the same with Naruto. After all, she had the more challenging patient to care for.
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To Be Continued…