Naruto's nonchalance remained uncompromised. Instead, he heaved a lopsided grin when a familiar voice dawned in his mind through telepathy. And a tad of light returned to the widened eyes of the dejected alliance.

Everyone! Sorry to make you worry! said Shikaku repentantly, his voice washing over the shinobi like a refreshing breeze.

Shikamaru's eyes snapped open. "Oyaji? But how?"

"Dad!" Ino cried.

And Inoichi chuckled awkwardly.

As confused whispers and ecstatic outbursts erupted across the battlefield like wildfire, Kakashi looked to Naruto who seemed none too surprised about this unforeseen miracle.

Listen carefully, as I'm sure you guys don't have a lot of time. Don't worry about us; everyone at HQ survived. One of Naruto's clones teleported everyone out before the explosion.

A spell of relief spread across the alliance.

It took everything he had to get everyone away safely, so the clone disappeared shortly afterwards. But he wanted me to let you guys know that you can go ahead and fight without any worries.

Anticipating this turn of events, Naruto had already gone ahead and evacuated everyone from all four villages into Konoha. Leave it to the Number One Unpredictable Ninja to pull of something of this magnitude.

For a brief moment, the men and women of the alliance completely forgot they were on the front lines. They couldn't suppress the swell of emotions that took hold of both body and soul.

Tears. Laughter. Prayers. Song — for a moment, humanity abandoned their moral coils and allowed rich emotions to completely envelope their entire being. Then they turned to Naruto and showered him with exuberant words of gratitude and praise.

Needing no explanation, a disgruntled Madara looked away from the rejoicing masses into the distant mountains. Focusing his eyes — like a machine, a powerful telescope — his vision covered thousands of miles in an instant where he saw the village of his birth.

He didn't need to check what was left of the other villages to know that they were deserted. He could sense that the population that currently inhabited Konoha far exceeded its capacity — and the chakra signature of the residents were as diverse as that of the shinobi alliance.

Going back on his word, Madara fed the coordinates to the Jūbi and launched a Bijuu Bomb at humanity's newly found haven. But a clone protecting the village managed to teleport the warhead away, and the alliance watched in shock as the nuke detonated in an entirely different location.

"Tch!" Madara clicked his tongue angrily, turning the full force of his malevolent gaze onto the tenacious brat. "You definitely dance better than the five Kage managed, I'll give you that."

"To capture the Kyūbi is to truly break the spirits of the alliance and win this war," informed Obito. "It's imperative that we incapacitate him right now before he can rally everyone."

Madara sighed, tousling his pitch-black hair. "I suppose it's better that I didn't eliminate the villagers; we may need extra chakra to sustain the jutsu."

Anyway, Shikaku continued, feeling the tremors from the blast where he was in the village. Kakashi, Shikamaru... you will both have to take the reins and lead everyone in my stead. We no longer have the equipment necessary to adequately assimilate information and churn out battle strategies as we did before.

I know this is sudden, but you both have more than proven that you have the proper skills necessary to pull this off. Naruto has the power to, not only change the course of this war, but to alter the very way we lived our lives before.

Everyone please, I implore you, steel your resolve and become the pillars that hoists this young man to victory! Let's end this war!

Collectively, the alliance gave a hearty battle cry. But the Uchiha paid them no heed. Instead, they turned their attention to the individual who held everyone together like a perfectly woven spider web. As Obito rightly mentioned: it was imperative that they got the Jinchūriki out of the picture first.

To that end, one of the Jūbi 's massive tails went in to sweep the sage away like a capable broom, but Hiashi and Neji were already on the scene — repelling the appendage with a perfectly synchronized rotation.

"When we last spoke, you boldly told me that you would change the Hyūga Clan, after becoming the Hokage," Hiashi said with a rare smile. "If there was even an ounce of doubt left in my heart, it's entirely gone now."

Holding a defensive posture beside his kin, Satoshi regarded Naruto like a pouting child and then his lips eased into a rueful smile. "To be honest, ever since your fight with Hiashi-sama, I've detested you, Naruto. You not only bested the man I glorified, but you whisked away the woman I admired, too. But, despite the way I feel, you've continued supporting and protecting people without prejudice. You've changed both me and the Hyūga Clan — and I have no doubt you can change the world as you proclaimed."

"The world has already begun to change," Hiashi informed huskily. "I never thought I'd lived to see the day when all five nations would join hands like this — and it's not solely because we face a common foe. It's because you have the power to change and connect hearts, Naruto."

Neji studied the sage's chakra circularly system, noting that he was infusing an astronomical amount of power — both him and the Kyūbi. "How much more time do you need?"

"Just a bit longer," he admitted with a nervous grin, his eyes never leaving the calculating villains mounted before him.

"Your power is crucial to the plan, Naruto. So, until we execute it—"

"We'll protect you!" Satoshi finished.

"Know this!" Hiashi asserted, his vision sharpening. "The Hyūga are the mightiest among Konoha!"

"I was hoping to attack them before they could finish talking but... I can't control the Jūbi well enough," Madara prompted softly, his face perfectly composed despite his dilemma. "It should be fine until the next transformation... but next is —"

Obito's eyes narrowed with enlightenment. "It seems that without becoming the Jinchūriki, we cannot gain mastery over the Jūbi ."

"In order for me to become the Jūbi 's Jinchūriki... I need a living body, not just a corpse of Edo Tensei."

"It's slightly irrelevant," Obito began. "But with your Edo Tensei body, you could just aim right down at the alliance and use yourself as a suicide bomb. The only reason why you don't is that I'd be sucked into it, too. And the reason why you can't have that is, in order for you to fully revive and become a Jinchūriki, you need me to give away my life and use Rinne Tensei." he suddenly cast the man a shrewd stare, and his voice hardened. "In other words, you're at my mercy. You'd be wise to remember that," he warned.

"Quite the attitude you have now," Madara returned, his face calm, as if representing the fortitude of his unyielding conviction. It was the countenance of a clever man sure to have his way.

"I've had it since I met you... I've never thought of you as an ally."

"Hmph... fine," Madara yielded to his kin's ambition, though his eyes foretold of no compromise. "Well then, why don't you decide our next course of action?"

"Next," Obito held his hand forward, his fingers unfurling. "We slowly cripple them with despair."

The gigantic beast upon which they stood roared, stretching its arm forward toward the apprehensive population, in an echo of the Uchiha's gesture.

"Wood Element: Piercing Wood!"

The sky went dark and ominous.

The heavens were blanketed with thousands of wooden projectiles. They came raining down upon the dumbfounded shinobi like a great and divine cataclysm. Pointed projectiles pierced people through like something out of a nightmare, but most were able to evade certain death with quick, nimble responses such as Sakura and Kakashi.

"There are too many of them," Neji exclaimed as Hiashi, Satoshi, and himself struggled to protect Naruto and a few others in their field of defense using their rotation.

"We'll just have to try and evade them!"

That's what his uncle said, and yet the count of projectiles started to increase with each passing second, making that alternative seem utterly and hopefully impossible. But still the Jōnin persisted.

CLANG!

One of the wooden projectiles struck Neji's headband, ripping the accessory from his face. There are so many! Kaiten... won't make it in time! he murmured mentally, lines of distraught distorting his face.

Suddenly, in the nick of time, Kitsuchi erected a colossal wall that served as a barrier against oncoming spears. But, in the face of the unrelenting onslaught, the earthen defense could only withstand so much before it crumbled away.

As if hoping to capitalize on this development, the creature threw its hand down upon the ground — annihilating unfortunate souls upon impact. But Hiashi managed to reduce the number of casualties with his Air Barrier Palm. These humans, however, weren't the only one's with spirit. The vile demon raised its forefinger despite the Hyūga's counter measure, rapidly firing a column of deadly spears toward the immobilized sage.

They're fast! uttered Satoshi as he rooted himself before the man he only recently ceased despising, eyes gleaming with earnest resolve. He may have hopelessly failed at winning Hinata's heart, but at least his sacrifice would preserve her happiness — and Naruto would surely preserve everyone else's, in turn.

Damn, a pinpointed attack, Hiashi flinched, fearing the worse for his subordinate. There's too many! Neither Satoshi nor Neji's Air Palm can—

Just mere moments before the projectiles could run the man through — readily claiming him as a sacrifice in place of the mediating sage — he felt the aura and glimpsed the shadow cast by the Hyūga's young prodigy as he heroically threw himself in front of them .

Widening his field of view, Neji eased into a defensive spin. Time seemed to slow to this perilous moment — or perhaps it was his adrenaline that sped up his consciousness.

Trained eyes foretold a tragic end; there were just too many spikes. But he didn't let up. He continued going around, his chakra deflecting what it could. Then one... two... three — many projectiles found the chink in his armor, intent on skewering him where he stood.

Suddenly—

CRACK!

A mighty barricade wrought of ice prevented the projectiles from reaching their mark, blatantly wrenching fate right off course.

As the thick slab shattered, the surrounding air grew frigid. Flurries of ice whisked passed undulating dark blue hair and kissed downy cheeks.

"I won't let this nightmare repeat itself," Hinata said by means of introduction, saving his cousin from the grim fate that haunted her dream just weeks passed. And shocking everyone in the process.

"You beat me to it," Naruto challenged with a sweet smile.

And Hinata regarded him tenderly, a hint of challenge lighting her own eyes.

I just finished assimilating everybody's chakra signature, said Akiko professionally, like a dedicated secretary. You can go ahead and start casting spells, whenever you're ready.

Cure! Hinata chanted mentally with a gentle sweep of her hand. And, as if she had called upon a aurora polaris, a colorful curtain painted the sky, raining down upon the Allied Forces like pixie dust.

"Wh-What's this?" Sakura couldn't contain her shock when a light blue aura — warm and ethereal — engulfed the man she was currently healing, quickly and effortlessly closing up his wounds as if the sorcery literally turned back the very hands of time.

And it wasn't just this one shinobi, either. Everyone injured — thousands of people — were immediately cloaked by the mysterious aura and underwent rapid regeneration.

Unbelievable! Is this all Hinata's doing? This ability is far more impressive than the Creation Rebirth and Katsuyu's healing combined. She's not even making contact with them. How is any of this even possible?

Hinata whipped her head around. The sudden frosty glint in her crystalline eyes foretold of an imminent attack — and a simple tap of her foot summoned a screeching ice serpent that rose beneath the Jūbi like a gigantic uppercut. Torn between its own rebellious nature and the reins of its masters, the clumsy beast toppled backwards upon its back. Then Kitsuchi followed up back clutching the fiend between two colossal slabs of rock.

Hiashi's eyes quivered in astonishment as he peered down upon the celestial magic layering his hand, filling his body with renewed vitality. Then he looked up at his daughter. Is this… really Hinata?

"Lady Hinata has another Kekkei Genkai?" said Satoshi in disbelief. "That's never been heard of in our long line of ancestry. How is this even possible?"

"Very impressive. I owe you one," Neji smiled gratefully, reaching for his headband.

"She got stronger again," sulked Kiba.

"First Naruto, and now Hinata's overpowered, too," Ino began. "This has to be some kind of cheat! And I want in!"

"We should definitely gang up on her at the bathhouse once this war is over," Tenten entertained with a mischievous smile. "Speaking of bathhouse, as anyone seen Kurama?"

Naruto approached the Hyūga Princess, his customary crooked smile etched in his beautifully sculptured face, eyes a molten sapphire. "Hinata," his mouth formed her name, lingering affectionately on each syllable. "Very impeccable timing. How's he doing?"

"H-He's passed the worst," she informed meekly, her warriors spirit melting before his steady gaze. "All he needs now is a bit more rest—"

"Naruto! Do you really believe that you can prevent your friends from dying?" Obito exclaimed sinisterly from atop the restrained Jūbi . "All you're doing is delaying the inevitable! You may have healed everyone, but all it will take is a single strike to render them beyond saving, just like what I did to Konan!"

The sage's eyes snapped open at the news of the woman's death.

"Those words — I'll never let my comrades die — let's see how long you can uphold them," he continued furiously, feeling a bitter sting of jealously at the couple that stood oppressively before him. "We will continue bombarding you with attacks until everything you hold dear is wiped clean off the face of the earth. And then your flippant words and ideology shall become nothing but lies — this is the end result of hope and ideals. This will become your reality; I'll personally make sure of this!

Naruto... what is there for you in this reality? Your mother and father are gone, as well as your master, Jiraiya. And, if you keep standing against us, you'll continue losing your friends one by one — including that insufferable woman standing by your side!"

Both Hiashi and Kurama frowned angrily.

"This shall soon become a world where no one who acknowledges you will exist," the man relented assertively. "The only thing that awaits you... is your worse nightmare, which you know quite well — solitude!"

The words rung out across the battlefield, like a toxic miasma. And everyone stilled, waiting to see how their savior would respond.

Naruto hung his head, remembering the neatly arranged bouquet of paper flowers he'd received from the Konan. He was a fool to believe she wouldn't be targeted for deserting Akatsuki, and for safeguarding Nagato's eye. But what could he have done differently to prevent her death?

SLAP!

Hinata gently cupped his cheek after reeling him in, and much to the surprise of Obito and Kakashi who watched intently. "Naruto-kun... you hold more than one life in your hands," the princess explained softly. "Do you understand what I mean? I'll never let my comrades die — neither those words nor the conviction behind them are lies! It's not just you, Naruto-kun... we all hold those words and feelings in our hearts; it's what binds us together and makes us comrades. If we all give up and discard those words and feelings, then all the sacrifices we have made during the course of this war will have been for nothing.

And that is when... your comrades truly die! For you are then no longer comrades! That's... how I feel. So, stand with me, Naruto-kun. Because never going back on one's word... is my Ninja Way, too!"

"That's enough!" Obito bellowed with undisguised rage, the woman's words evoking emotions he would rather keep stifled.

Thrusting his arm forward, he gave the Jūbi a silent command. And the creature gave a dark shriek, it's ten tails coiling around its body like a protective cocoon. The movement was enough to send violent tremors rippling across the battlefield.

"Don't be hasty," Madara warned. "You're going to harm yourself, as well as the Jūbi !"

"I don't care!" snapped Obito, the beast generating a Bijuu Bomb as if from the sheer magnitude of the man's anger. "The Jūbi 's hide is tough!"

"Brace yourselves! They're gonna to hit us!" shouted a panicking shinobi.

In the same beat — perched upon an airborne familiar — Sai released Bee into a free fall. And the Jinchūriki quickly transitioned into Tailed Beast Mode. "Recharging complete!" he declared obnoxiously, knocking the Jūbi 's nuke back into its mouth and then detonating it with that of his own.

KABOOM!

---

The fiend's body expanded many times its size, and then deflated like a punctured balloon. Bee was hopelessly knocked away like a stray bullet in the process, painfully crashing into the ground.

"Bee-sama!" Karui called worrisomely, running over the edge of the massive crater the Bijuu's fall opened up in the earth.

"Please don't overdo it!" Omoi chided.

"There's no need to worry... protecting the alliance is my territory!" he rhymed despite his grave injuries.

With a breathtaking smile, Naruto took Hinata's small hand from his face and kissed the soft pads of her fingertips. Then he hooked his arm around the small of her spine and brought her against the wall of his chest.

Hiashi coughed awkwardly and turned his back.

Satoshi turned pea green with envy.

And Neji smiled.

Despite their audience, a familiar hunger arrested Naruto in a searing pillar of flames — blood and desire inflamed together, twin needs that centered on the goddess who felt so right in his embrace.

"Hinata... thank you," he whispered into her mouth as he kissed her, long and deep. All around them, their friends, along with the Shinobi Alliance — having received his answer — shared a cheerful roar as they pushed forward to meet destiny, to induce change.

"You guys are pretty open about your relationship now, aren't you?" said Ino teasingly, truly grateful that Naruto had saved her father, keeping her family whole.

Tenten laughed.

"Tch!" Kiba clicked his tongue angrily. "That damn show off!"

Kakashi signed. "Leave it to the number one Unpredictable Ninja to make out in front of the enemy."

Sakura laughed awkwardly.

"Well, with the abilities both of them have demonstrated, they're the only ones who could get away with pulling such a stunt."

Naruto took a step back from Hinata, feeling the gap of space like a sudden gust of chilled air. But he kept her hand in his, turning to face the Jūbi that had already rebounded from the vicious attack.

Still feeling the lingering trace of his kiss, Hinata regarded the uplifted sage with a warm smile. Naruto-kun... I've always... always... always been chasing after you. Finally, I was able to pinch the hem of your jacket and desperately try to keep up behind you. Now, we walk hand-in-hand and I am able to keep up with your pace.

I promise that I'll keep us both safe until the real you gets here. And I'll try to keep anyone from dying. You can count on me!

"Let's do this, Hinata!" Naruto roared confidently, both of them suddenly flaring with Kurama's chakra.

"U-Hn!"

The princess took a moment to marvel at the intense power churning through her body, the red cloak clinging to her form. A-Amazing... Naruto-kun is able to use such chakra...

Everyone looked on in shock. Even Sasuke and his group, hundreds of miles away, could distinctly feel the surge of power emanating from the Jinchūriki. And Obito and Madara wasn't enthused.

Nice work transforming and transferring my chakra, Naruto, Kurama complimented, regarding the boy with a wolfish grin inside their mental scape.

"I've gotten the hang of it," he replied gleefully. "Work with me, Kurama!"

That damn Nara shinobi..., the Bijuu thought to himself amusingly. He analyzed my chakra exchange capabilities extensively.

"We'll stand a better chance to beat down the Jūbi , if everyone gets a big boost," Naruto contemplated openly, disposing himself to the task.

We've kept them waiting for a while, Kurama continued. A few shadow clones should be okay.

Obito and Madara watched from atop their lofty mount as those three clones went around imparting the Kyūbi's chakra onto every single shinobi. Within just mere moments, thousands of flaming red balls dotted the battlefield as per the initial phase of Shikaku's strategy.

"That brat, Naruto...," Madara said. "Is he giving them the Nine-Tail's chakra?"

Obito responded by channeling more of his commanding chakra into the Jūbi , forcing a single tail to seek and destroyed. But Hinata managed to stave it back with a single hit from her Air Palm.

"That girl...," Madara regarded her closely. "She's gotten even stronger after getting power from Naruto. I've never seen a Hyūga with a second Kekkei Genkai before. Most impressive."

Employing a Kyūbi-ed up version of the Ino-Shika-Cho maneuver — along with the assistance of their respective clansmen — Team 10 was able to bound both Obito and the Jūbi in place. Then the alliance followed up my cleaving through the fiend's defensive tails and severing the Uchiha's connection in one fell swoop.

As the beast toppled over from the unified strength of thousands of men and woman — and a single dog — Obito and Madara were forced into a tactical retreat, their backs against a lofty rock formation. And before them stood a serious Naruto, backed by his comrades who had had more than enough of this ceaseless bloodshed.

But the villains had no intention to concede. And they did what any other animal would do when cornered — they lashed out.

"Fire Style: Majestic Flower Flame!"

Madara retaliated — launching a blistering fireball at the presumptuous insects. And Obito performed his own fire-based jutsu in tandem, both attacks covering a large area — melting rocks and burning the very air . But the shinobi didn't back down, not when the Orange Knight was among their ranks.

Naruto held his ground as the incinerating flames drew closer. Clasping his hands together, fortifying his chakra control, the Jinchūriki was able to strengthen the Kyūbi's defensive cloak, protecting both him and his comrades from the fiery assault.

Chōji looked down at his hands in disbelief. If we didn't have Naruto's Chakra Cloak, we'd be crisper than a roast pig!

Kurama grinned, looking down at his Jinchūriki who had undoubtedly transcended all others before him. Looks like things have gone your way, Fourth Hokage. Until now, the only one who was able to link their chakra to mine was Naruto, because he possesses Kushina's blood — and because he has been my Jinchūriki for many years.

And Naruto has matured to the point where he's skilled enough to sense and transmute my chakra to be compatible with other shinobi, and then hand it over to them. Though I can also help or use Naruto as an intermediary to give my chakra to anyone. The same exact way you handed over and inserted your own chakra into Naruto, Minato.

He's already... surpassed you both a while ago. The amount of chakra he's linking and delivering is on a completely different scale. Kushina, Minato... you're both pathetic; you both pale in comparison to your brat Naruto. Though, this is probably the power you wanted to give him all along.

Fierce glowing eyes peeked out beneath the fringes of dark black hair. The cursed Uchiha weren't deterred by the alliances' seemingly impenetrable defense. Instead, they upped their game — bombarding the shinobi with even stronger and more consecutive attacks. Naruto followed suit — strengthening their cloak in turn. But the exchange was steadily becoming a defensive battle on their part. And, while Naruto and Kurama were powerful, they were merely reflections of the originals; their chakra had a limit — and it was fast approaching.

As the battle intensified, Kakashi succeeded in pulling Obito into their shared dimension where a clash of love, friendship, dreams and ideologies ensued.

Madara, on the other hand — despite being constantly assaulted by resentful shinobi — managed to zero in on the distant chakra signature of his archrival. The man had somehow made it back to the land of the living, and he could feel the truth of it pulsing through every fiber of his being. A fierce and desperate battle to the death between the world's strongest — nothing excited him more than the chance to unleash his full potential once again.

The Jūbi feasted on the man's dark desire, empowering itself to break free from the earthen prison erected by an amped up Kitsuchi. Doing a quick regeneration of its missing arm, the untethered beast gave a deafening roar as it summoned its dark and ancient power.

Bad news, Naruto! Kurama exclaimed urgently. The Jūbi is planning to do the Cataclysm! The land's about to be ripped apart!

Even tucked away inside his pocket of space and time, Obito could still vividly feel the creature's devastating power. It can't be controlled anymore, because they cut the link between the Jūbi and myself. Although, I guess it's about time I became its Jinchūriki.

"The real fun... is just beginning," Madara mused, encasing himself inside his absolute defense — Susanoo.

As if the beast was the conductor of natural disasters; the progenitor of oblivion, the atmosphere destabilized, heeding its dark decree. The skies darkened, hurling down lightening bolts upon the barren land. Fierce winds spiraled into destructive tornadoes, peeling away at the bedrock — and even the sea intervened, swallowing up parts of the crumbling landscape.

As the Jūbi 's dark bellow rose to a fevered pitch, the destruction intensified, as if it was intent on enveloping the entire world. But no sooner had the storm extended its reach than it dissipated, culminating with the Jūbi 's silence.

"That should have cleared most of them out," said Madara maliciously as the dust subsided.

But he couldn't be anymore wrong. While the cataclysm was enough to knock them off their feet, not one shinobi had perished in the chaos — not when they were sheathed by the Kyūbi's cloak.

Naruto, on the other hand, took serious damage from the entire ordeal. He had bestowed most of his own protection upon his comrades — now, he was running on mostly fumes, his Kurama-Mode deactivated.

"Nice try pretending to be tough," accused Madara condescendingly. "But it seems you've reached your limit. You've given me something to look forward to... but I think it's high time you made your exit."

"Everyone!" said Hinata courageously, making her way by her fiancés side with the alliance in tow. "Let's join together and fight as one!"

"Right!" they all give a hearty roar.

And Naruto couldn't help but beam with happiness.

"Time for you to heal," said Sakura, her hands already resting on his back. And, with a flick of her hand, Hinata was healing him, too.

Madara frowned, unimpressed. "Such a futile demonstration."

The Jūbi was upset, too — stirred by the presence of the other Bijuu it sensed within the tenacious Jinchūriki. Without hesitation, the fiend began undergoing another transformation toward its original form, intent on crushing the insects that stood before it with greater force. And the size of the Bijuu Bomb it started charging was definitely in another league.

With their beacon of hope out of commission, and his protection temporarily unavailable, the alliance couldn't help but question what worth could be salvaged from their efforts in that critical moment. Before their morale could crumble beyond repair, another familiar hero made his way onto the battlefield, effortlessly teleporting away the Jūbi 's attempt at utter and complete annihilation.

"Am I late?" the stranger asked upon his speedy return, his cape lightly descending behind him like the breath of liberty and justice.

"Nah. You're actually right on time, dad," Naruto responded coolly.

Hinata's eyes widened in surprise as she assessed the perfect sculpture from which his son was inspired. "So he's Naruto-kun's..."

"Who's he?" Sakura still seemed confused.

"My name is Minato Namikaze," he greeted neatly over his shoulder. "Brace for an impending explosion; I sent the Jūbi 's attack back toward the sea."

A fierce blast followed his words. And powerful winds rivaling those of the tornadoes assaulted the unsuspecting alliance, throwing them into a panic.

As his golden, Naruto-like hair fluttered in the wild gust, Sakura couldn't help but ponder the color of his eyes. She was alarmed to find the characteristics of Edo Tensei etched in them — and the man could evidently note her anxiety.

"Relax. I'm an ally," he reassured with a polite smile upon turning around. "Thanks for healing Naruto; we'll need his strength if we hope to end this war."

"...Sure."

The man's eyes softened as they assessed the other kunoichi beside his son, and the princess couldn't help but blush. "You must be Hinata; I heard about you from Kushina."

"F-Father...," she responded with an awkward but cute bow.

"FATHER?" Sakura exclaimed in a drawl.

"Yeah — my dad is the Fourth Hokage," Naruto informed, scratching the blush that crept into his cheek.

"EHHH?"

Minato smiled awkwardly, then turned his attention back to the Hyūga princess who was the polar opposite of his wife. "Kushina deeply regrets not being able to spend more time with you — but the little time you shared together made a deep impression on her."

Hinata's cheeks reddened even more as she reminisced about bizarre encounter.

"So, why did this happen so suddenly?" Sakura asked, looking down at Naruto who knelt before her. "It seems like you knew?"

"I'm not sure who summoned them..."

"Them?"

Both Sakura and Hinata shared the question.

"Yeah — I sensed their chakra while I was in Kurama Mode. The others should be arriving soon..."

"Minato, you're as fast as ever," Sarutobi complimented as he made his grand entrance, garbed in his customary light armor.

"T-Third Hokage-sama?" Sakura uttered in surprise. "And also that's..."

"Fourth... you're better at teleporting than I am," said the second Hokage challengingly upon making his own cool descent.

"All right, let's do this!" the First said by means of introduction.

"No way."

"I don't believe it..."

"The First... The Second... The Third... and even the Fourth... Minato-sama!"

"I see... so you're the ones who stopped the attack, Hokage-sama!"

The alliance felt a renewed air of confidence in the wake of their latest reinforcements. With the former Kages' aid, they were bound to take down the evil that sought to bend their world askew.

"But who reanimated you?" one shinobi had the gall to ask.

"Orochimaru summoned us," Sarutobi informed curtly. "We need to stop this war quickly."

"What?" Sakura poked her head up. "Didn't Orochimaru die?"

"This is amazing!" one guy interjected excitedly. "The previous Hokage are going to join us in battle!"

"Now that's reassuring!"

"I don't know what's going on anymore," groaned Sakura.

"There's still more help coming," Naruto informed with a nonchalance that rivaled his father's, his wounds just about healed.

BOOOOOOOOOOOM!

Madara landed on a nearby cliff, like a crashing meteorite, eyes dilated in uncontrolled excitement. "I've been waiting for you, Hashirama!"

The founding Kage thrust an accusing finger at his archnemisis and best friend, his expression almost dreary. "I'll deal with you later! I have to stop the Jūbi first."

The man's face did a quick morph from comical disappointment to cool indifference. "He hasn't changed a bit; we're never on the same page."

Naruto's eyes shimmered like an eight-year-old when his father activated a form akin to Kurama Mode. Then, after making the proper arrangements, teleported the Second and Third Hokage at different locations necessary for their strategy.

Forming a square around the crazed beast, the former leaders quickly sealed the creature within an extremely powerful version of the Crimson Ray Shield. And then the First employed the use of his Sage Mode to restrain the fiend even further. And, boy oh boy, the Jūbi wasn't pleased one bit. But, squeal as it may, the creature couldn't readily free itself from its binds.

The sudden appearance of another shinobi tore Sakura's attention away from the horrid beast — and, for a moment, she couldn't even hear its ear-splitting screech. All that mattered was the lovely dark knight who allowed her the privilege of basking in his presence.

Hinata's eyes widened. S-Sasuke-kun!

Naruto grinned. "You sure took your time getting here, Sasuke."

Sakura's eyes quivered, her lips parting. "Sasuke...kun?"

The Rogue Ninja casted Naruto a sidelong glance before briefly regarding the woman who would bear his child; the woman who firmly held his heart captive. He tried to feign indifference but Naruto could see straight through the brittle mask.

"Sasuke-kun! Why?"

Sakura's exclamation won the attention of the other six rookies, and Ino quickly began closing the distance between them for a warm welcome. But Shikamaru and Chōji quickly intervened, cutting the reunion short.

"He's an enemy!" Shikamaru reminded curtly.

"Ino... you better keep your distance," Chōji warned.

"You're all still as noisy as ever," said Sasuke in a rather aloof tone.

"Why the hell are you here, bastard!" barked Kiba.

In the presence of her friends, Sakura betrayed her emotions and fostered an expression of discomfort, instead. "Why are you here, Sasuke-kun?" she asked, her eyebrows descending about emerald eyes.

"A lot of things happened," he simply said. "I've decided to protect Konoha. And then I'll... become Hokage."

...

His face and tone of voice was so serious that everyone took a moment to process his words. But they just couldn't register — and the whole sentiment just threw everyone for a loop, their faces twisted in utter shock.

Sakura even more so. "EHH?"

"You can't just come back all of a sudden and crack a lame joke like that, you Rogue Ninja!" shouted Kiba, more animalistic than his canine partner. "Do you even know what it means to be Hokage?"

"I don't know what happened to you, but that's not possible," Shikamaru contributed sternly. "Do you even realize what you're saying?"

Sasuke thought about that for a while.

Through Orochimaru's use of Edo Tensei, he managed to receive an audience with the former Kage who each explained what they tried to accomplish as leaders in the time of their rule. Essentially, it was to preserve the integrity of the First Hokage's legacy — the Will of Fire. But what exactly was it?

According to Senju Hashirama — the founder of the village — it simply meant loving, believing and cherishing everyone in the village as family. Despite being from rivaling clans, a young Hashirama and Madara were able to forge a bond through the shared understanding of what it meant to lose their siblings.

While their kin were enslaved by an insatiable thirst for revenge — and a egotistical urge to reign supreme among the ranks of men, the boys simply desired an end to a bloody and unrelenting war. Through their own experience, they knew if people tried to understand each other; if they shared their happiness and burdens, they would truly be capable of achieving peace and unity. But fate was a fickle and unpredictable thing.

As the warriors paved the path to realizing this dream, Madara ended up losing the one thing he held especially dear — his younger brother — and falling from grace, as a result. This gave birth to twisted ideologies that utterly veered the man off the rails of morality.

If Hashirama hadn't hesitated in eliminating him when the chance had presented itself, Sasuke was certain the world of today would be significantly different.

As opposed to the founder's acts of idealism, Sasuke would govern the world with an iron fist. And he won't hesitate to eradicate variables necessary to facilitate this goal. At this point, it was no longer possible to mend the world with methodologies that could be weighed on a morality scale. A more unorthodox approach was necessary.

"Do you think we can just forget all the things you've done?" Shino accused bluntly, following up on Kiba and Shikamaru's verbal attack.

"Yeah, I realize you probably can't," Sasuke replied coolly. "However, it doesn't matter what you guys think of me."

Naruto frowned.

"All of the previous Kage created these current circumstances. So I will become Hokage and change the village."

— You don't become Hokage in order to be acknowledged by the village. The one who is acknowledged by everyone, is the one who becomes Hokage. I leave Sasuke to you.

Leave it to me, Naruto responded to the distant memory, as if Itachi was still within his midst. Pushing to his feet following the end of Sakura's treatment, he made his way toward his eternal rival and best friend. "The Hokage is going to be me," he corrected confidently.

Hashirama regarded the hatchlings over his shoulder. "I'm glad there's so much interest in becoming Hokage... but you guys are taking too much time! Start infusing chakra right now! We'll take down the Jūbi with an all-out attack!"

Naruto donned his battle-ready face, golden eyebrows descending above oceanic eyes. "Hinata. Sakura-chan... thanks for looking after me," he said gratefully. "Please look after each other."

Both kunoichi watched — a tad disgruntled — as their man hurried off toward the entrapped beast. And, Sakura, in particular, wasn't having it.

"Sakura-chan?" Naruto began, surprised she had followed them.

"So do you see me as some sort of weak woman who can't keep up with you two?" she said in an undertone, her words saturated with indignation. "Do you think Tsunade-sama would be the only one out of the Legendary Sennin to inadequately train her student?"

Naruto and Sasuke watched her wordlessly.

"I'm almost there," she pleaded earnestly. "I'll be at full capacity in a little bit. Then I can output my true power. Just like you, I'm a member of Team Seven... and I'm a student of one of the Legendary Sennin!"

WHOOSH!

Another participant appeared, as quick as Sakura had, and her cheeks were pouted in her own indignation.

"I-I may not be a member of Team Seven... nor was I a student of one of the Legendary Sennin, but I'm a mother-to-be, just like Sakura-san."

They all blushed fiercely at that fact.

Kurama grinned.

Hinata gathered her bearings and frowned confidently, cute fists pressing against her chest. "I won't allow our baby's father to go off to war without the proper support!"

"Hinata..." Sakura was impressed by her straightforwardness.

And a slick smile soon stretched Naruto's lips. "Okay then!" he exclaimed, driving a hand into his fist. "The Inseparable Five is assembled and ready to go!"

"Right!" everyone gave a hearty response.

"That sight sure brings back memories, doesn't it, Shikamaru?" Ino regarded the couples with a smile. "And to think Hinata gets to stand up there with them. She's undergone a huge spurt in growth, herself."

"Well, if Sasuke's willing to help us defeat the enemy, I won't turn him away," he responded wearily. "Even though I don't want to accept him..."

"It's been a long time since our class has been back together," Chōji was more optimistic and cheerful than his best friend. "I haven't felt like this since the Chūnin Exams."

"I'm going to become Hokage!" Kiba shouted, desperately trying to win everyone's attention. But he failed miserably. "Hey, are you guys even listening?"

"Kiba...," Shino began condescendingly. "No one's paying attention right now... and it's pitiful. Stop it. It's because the impact of Sasuke's sudden appearance and his declaration to become Hokage are much too great."

The boisterous roar of an infuriated Jūbi dismissed the rookies' conflicted reunion. Displeased with its confinement, the creature molded another destructive projectile, and much to the horror of the bystanders. But, the Kage and the fortitude of their barrier wasn't to be underestimated. As powerful as the nuke was, it didn't prove strong enough to break the shield. And, thus, the blast was contained, with the beast suffering damage, instead.

The Allied Forces roared in triumph, their morale swiftly returning. Now that the Kage were rooted among their ranks, nothing was impossible. The tides of the war had shifted. They could feel it.

Capitalizing on their fiery spirit, Hashirama spawned five clones that led fractions of the shinobi into the barrier at its four angles. The fifth made his way before Madara, but the Uchiha wouldn't be patronized. He found a comfortable boulder against which to lean, opting to wait for the original to face him one-off, without any distracts.

But what of the Jūbi ? Wasn't the beast a crucial part of his plan? Or was the power of his eyes able to foresee a future that no one else could perceive?

The ground trembled as the alliance converged on the motionless beast. Beneath the weight of the First Hokage's sealing technique, the creature was helplessly bound and subjected to the shinobi's vengeance. But that didn't stop the fiend from striving to protect itself.

Shifting its enigmatic power, the Jūbi began propagating — chunks of elephant-sized flesh fell from its body like worker bee's spilling out from a hive. Before the lumps of mass could reach the ground, they morphed into quadruped and humanoid monsters sporting menacing blades and spikes. They barreled toward the oncoming forces, intent on decapitating and skewering them.

Naruto and Sasuke took the lead.

And Sakura and Hinata couldn't help but gaze at the backs of the duo who were constantly playing the vanguard in their countless battles. Compared to them, both kunoichi had always been damsels in distress — constantly burdening the boys with weaknesses that seemed far too many to count.

But this time was different.

The first step to achieving any goal was to first believe in it — and they believed. They craved change and labored for it, securing a power to prove their worth and preserve the bond they managed to build with the one they loved.

Locked in combat with an enemy brandishing sharp, scythe-like appendages as its arms, Sakura heaved a confident smile following the mark of Creation Rebirth appearing on her forehead.

"I just now reached full capacity. I can finally unleash it!"

Power surged throughout her body, the likes of which she had never felt before. And that smile stretched into a nasty smirk when she planted a right hook into the fiend's gut, sending it violently blasting passed a startled Naruto and Sasuke like a stray bullet.

The creature plowed into a few dozen of its advancing counterparts, like a bowling ball crashing into pins. Then Sakura leaped into a high arch, bringing down her fist like Thor's hammer of justice.

CRASH!

The earth and bedrock yielded to the mighty assault, mountainous-sized boulders crushing the grotesque bastards into oblivion.

"What monstrous strength!" Hashirama exclaimed excitedly. "It might as well be even greater than Tsuna's!"

Shizune agreed, watching her junior intently. Amassing chakra at a continuous rate over three years requiring extremely delicate chakra control. Rebirth Creation — the technique that I couldn't even achieve.

"And I have no need to keep up a youthful appearance," Sakura gloated openly, thoroughly savoring the flabbergasted expression smeared over the boy's faces.

Unbeknownst to them, however, was the larger beast that had silently encroached upon the girl from behind, cloaked by the cover of dust and debris. But nothing could breech the acute prowess of the almighty Byakugan.

SHINGG!

A serpent wrought of ice emerged from the underground with an enchanting hum, gripping the creeping fiend in its gaping maw, freezing it solid. The Allied Forces looked on in awe as they both shattered overhead, hailing down glittering shards of ice that skewered unsuspecting monsters. The malicious creatures shrieked in alarm as the fragments proceeded to imitate their quick morphing performance earlier — transforming into snow-white wolves with piercing blue eyes.

"Protect!" Hinata chanted crisply, evoking a large-scale spell that enveloped the entire alliance in a silver aura that augmented their defense. "I'll take care of the smaller ones," she announced confidently. "Everyone else can focus on the others. I've given you some of my power!"

Disposing themselves to the will of their alpha, the pack of ferocious wolves pounced into action, corning the beasts as they would prey in the wild. One fiend squealed and flailed as a bite on the leg had its entire body undergoing a quick freeze. Another wolf bit down on a Rasengan, the resulting explosion engulfing a score of the grotesque creatures. And the wolf's destruction sent a wave of ice shards flying in every direction, skewering surrounding enemies and ultimately freezing and shattering them.

"This must be the power that Kushina unlocked," Minato smiled amusingly.

"W-When did Hinata master such abilities?" Hiashi stuttered in shock. Then he looked down at his hands which radiated the power bestowed by his once incompetent daughter.

Neji's lips pulled into a smile of veneration. "Hinata-sama... you've undoubtedly surpassed me now. Naruto has had a great impact on you, as he did on me."

"If you ask me... my girlfriend is way more badass than yours," Naruto challenged with a lopsided grin.

"Tch!" Sasuke clicked his tongue flippantly.

Then all three shinobi joined the kunoichi in her glorious spotlight, their backs against each other.

"Awesome job out there, Hinata!" Sakura praised exuberantly.

"Umm... Sakura-chan, we're here too, y'know."

"At this rate, the boys will be watching our backs from now on," Hinata chimed in with a rare display of challenge.

"She's right," Sakura added. "Keep complaining and Hinata and I might just grab the title of Hokage away from you."

"Eh?" Naruto exclaimed. "Not you guys, too!"

Drunk on the impressive flair displayed by their classmates, the other rookies threw themselves into the fray — demonstrating skills and techniques they had developed and refined over the years, while others surpassed their limits. But, no sooner had they eliminated one wave of monsters, than another was summoned in their wake.

It was unrelenting.

And the fiends grew larger in size by the moment, gradually overwhelming the shinobi despite Hinata's divine protection.

Hoping to secure a preemptive strike by air, Sai quickly closed the distance between himself and the Jūbi 's main body. But he was quickly shot down with a projectile by a watchful fiend.

"Naruto, can you share chakra with everyone again?" he asked breathlessly upon being rescued, noting that the orange-haired shinobi had donned the Kyūbi's chakra again.

"I can't right now," he replied regrettably. "Kurama hasn't finished amassing chakra yet."

"In order to take down the main body, we need to mow down the big ones and slip passed them. The distance is too great to make a single leap for it. We also need time to weave signs and repel the enemy's attacks. Without your chakra — and if Hinata's protection wavers — it's very likely we'll suffer heavy casualties. And the Medical Corps can't come up to the front."

Instantaneously, Team Seven bit the corner of their thumb and dropped their hand to the ground.

"Mow down and slip past? Easy."

"This guy has the power to clear the distance in a single leap and repel enemy attacks."

"I can now stay nearby and heal anyone who suffers serious injuries at all times."

"And I'll do my best to slow down the enemy's movements."

Sasuke, Naruto and Sakura summoned their beastly comrade, while Hinata conjured over a dozen lions wrought of blue chakra.

Feeling as those the proportions wasn't quite right, Naruto glimpsed downward and also noted that the color of his amphibious comrade was quite different from what he knew. "Wait... you're Gamakichi?"

"Pops was tied up with some negotiations," he explained in a husky voice that was a far cry from his youthful cords. "So I came in his place. Disappointed?"

"Nah," Naruto allowed a cool grin. "I'm just surprised you got big so damned quickly. I'm even more shocked than I was about Akamaru."

"You humans grow too slow, that's all."

"You made be right about that..."

"Anyway — what's happening?" asked Gamakichi, noting the restless horde marching toward them.

"See that big guy in the back — think you could get me in close?"

"Consider it done."

"Sasuke-sama, your desire?"

The deep voice came from a snake almost rivaling the size of Manda. But the difference in their temperament was like night and day.

"I need you to just keep advancing forward," the Uchiha commanded prestigiously. "I'll get the real body in the back."

"Sakura-chan," Katsuyu greeted cheerfully. "You're finally able to invoke the Creation Rebirth Mark! Tsunade-sama would be so proud!"

"Katsuyu-sama, we don't have much time," Sakura explained politely. "Please divide and attend to each person in the Allied Shinobi Forces. Our role will be to heal everyone."

"I never expected to see the Three-Way Deadlock Summoning again," said Minato with his customary smile.

And Sarutobi chuckled, the man's words bringing back the memory of his former students and their impressive accomplishments throughout his lifetime. It's a new era!

Suddenly, one of the fiends gave a pained shriek, with many other desperate howls following suit. It was Hinata — through her ferocious legion of lions, she was paralyzing the monsters by attacking their tenketsu (pressure points) with her chakra. And Team Seven registered this as their signal to charge.

Sasuke and his partner, Aoda, quickly started weaving through the forest of aggressive monsters. Naruto and Gamakichi made a leap over their ranks, effortlessly deflecting the same type of projectiles that had downed Sai before. Sakura formed her seals and started synchronizing her power with Katsuyu, who, was already dispersing and making her way to every soldier on the battlefield.

In the same moment that she started healing the shinobi, Naruto and Sasuke got within range.

"Wind Release: Ultra-Big Ball Rasenshuriken!"

"Inferno Style: Susanoo Flame Control!"

The Second Hokage watched as both projectiles hit their mark, a rare grin splitting his face. I don't recall ever seeing a Kagutsuchi of that magnitude. And they combined jutsu with matching chakra ratios. "That's difficult even for a seasoned duo."

While Naruto and Sasuke watched as the Jūbi shrieked and squirmed under the unrelenting torment of the hellish black flames, Orochimaru, Karin and Suigetsu were en route to the Kages' deathbed.

Under different circumstances, this would have been a golden opportunity for the rogue Sennin to eliminate the national leaders in one fell swoop in order to spearhead his own agenda. But, if humanity had any hopes of winning this war, they would need all the help they could get.

Whatever the case, Orochimaru had pushed his ambitions onto the back burner at this point in time. Right now, he was curious to see what path Sasuke would take. With the wind of countless ideologies filling his sails, what answer would he come to at the end? Will he ultimately plunge the world into an inescapable darkness, or would he usher in an era of peace and prosperity? Only time would — and Orochimaru wanted to bear witness.

BOOOM!

In a quiet dimensional corner of their making, Kakashi and Obito collided. The horrific chorus of breaking bones, ripping flesh and spewing blood assaulted the atmosphere.

Obito coughed, blood gushing from the corners of his mouth. Kakashi had an electricity-coated hand through the man's torso. But, in return, the Jōnin's chest was also punctured by a large shuriken.

Both men stood their ground, locked in a silent battle of endurance. Blood pooled in their clothes, the scent of iron filling their nose — such was the realism of the genjutsu that gripped Kakashi. But it wasn't enough to pin the man down. On the contrary, he only grew weary of his former comrade's roundabout way of fighting.

A few heated exchanges culminated in a genuine will to fight. And their duel ended on the same note as the genjutsu with both warriors suffering a wound through the chest — Obito's more severe and life-threatening than Kakashi's. But the Uchiha wore a grin of a man who tasted victory. It was suspicious, even more so when he made no delay to teleport back to the battlefield, mounted atop the immobilized Jūbi .

Sensing his return, Madara sprang into action and quickly dispatched of Hashirama's clone who didn't even remotely held a candle to him. Looks like that's of no use to me anymore, he concluded stoically, noting Obito's fatal injury. I wanted to fight Hashirama before I became a Jinchūriki... I guess I have no choice.

A simple hand sign had Obito's body entirely under the man's control. It's time to make him bring me back with Rinne Tensei. "Obito," he said coldly. "You're just a backup that I had cultivated for my rebirth."

— You saved me, Gramps? Thank you.

— It's too early to thank me. I intend to have you... repay your debt.

"The time has come," Madara grinned maliciously, shrugging off the distant memory of the crippled boy he rescued years passed.

Well aware of the monumental threat a fully resurrected Madara would bring, Hashirama dispatched a few more clones, even as he alerted the strongest amongst his ranks of the looming disaster. Naruto, Sasuke, Tobirama — everyone quickly raced toward Obito, but it was a clone of Minato who closed the distance in time and managed to inflict a fatal wound.

"A Flying Thunder God marking never disappears. I didn't teach you that, did I, Obito?" the man's words were low and sorrowful as he looked down at his former comrade and student.

But the Uchiha sought neither reminisce nor pity. And the wounds inflicted upon his body weren't enough to douse the flame of his ambition. Following a dark grin, the Jūbi began seeping into his chest, like a black hole devouring a planet. And Minato and Sasuke would have been consumed, as well, if not for Naruto's intervention.

"What? What's happening?"

"Is the Jūbi changing form again?"

Minato and Sasuke looked from Naruto to the Jūbi whose gigantic form had now shrunken down to an orb less than a fraction of its original size.

"No, that's not what's happening," denied Naruto urgently, feeling a familiar resonance emanating from the tightly wrapped cocoon. "He shook off Madara's control and was weaving the signs to do this from the beginning!"

CRACK!

A single uneven line slithered across the pallid orb before it shattered like glass, light reflecting off the fragments as they plummet to earth. But the contents of the glass cocoon didn't fall, as well. He simply flexed his fingers, his chest rising as he took in a lungful of fresh air — and a pair of contrasting eyes blinked open with renew zeal and intent.

"That's the Jūbi 's Jinchūriki...," Naruto informed slowly, his words cautioning against any rash actions.

Hinata broke out into a sweat, recalling the few seconds leading up to the Uchiha's transformation. "The Jūbi was completely absorbed into that man," she replied to a curious Sakura.

Feeling a spell of anxiety, the Allied Forces gazed up at the shinobi who was inexplicable floating in midair. The upper and lower back of his scaly silver skin featured five parallel appendages tipped with a pink flame. The center of his back depicted a Rinnegan-like circle above nine magatama, and he wore a dark garb below his waste.

W-What is this? Tobirama stuttered, his eyes locking with the monster whose power seemed almost unfathomable.

This is bad, Hashirama thought gravely, keeping a tight lock on his section of the barrier. Jinchūriki, huh?

Willing the complexities of his Wood Element in coordination with Sage Mode, the Hokage dropped a series of tori gate-like barriers onto the newest born villain. But Obito promptly shattered the feeble attempt at binding him, and went on to effortlessly destroying the Four Crimson Ray barrier erected by the Kages.

"Is it just me," Bee began, breaking out into a sweat. "Or is he stronger than when he was gigantic?"

Before, it was just throwing its power around, replied Gyūki. But now it's learned to focus it.

Hiashi rallied the soldiers to brace for whatsoever the godly tyrant might throw at them. But Obito didn't even spare a momentary glance in their direction; he, instead, made his way in front of the boy who was the youthful reflection of his younger self.

Mounted atop his amphibian comrade and flanked by his father and best friend, Naruto looked down assessingly at the silver entity. Countless people may perish if his clone got vanquished, but it was imperative that he engaged and analyzed Obito's newly attained powers so that his original stood a chance.

The Hokage had the same idea in mind, and they quickly appeared between Naruto and the mastermind, locking eyes with the emotionless fiend. As opposed to a single clone that was susceptible to dismissal after taking heavy damage, or expending all of their chakra, Edo Tensei soldiers were immortal and wielded an unlimited supply of chakra. It was more ideal if they played the part.

"I'll be blunt," Hashirama said with a critical frown. "This guy is stronger than me."

"No offense, but it appears so," Sarutobi replied.

"Even if you reabsorb your remaining clones, you're no match, Elder Brother," Tobirama added regrettably.

"I know. However..."

Hashirama knew his power better than anyone — and it paled in comparison to the monster that stood before them. The objective, however, wasn't to overwhelm but to pressure the enemy into revealing his abilities. And a fierce three-on-one battle ensued to that end, while Naruto, Sasuke and Minato observed from a safe distance.

As expected, Obito was completely out of their league. Hashirama's clone being quickly dismissed was evident proof of that. Tobirama and Sarutobi bombarded the man with an impressive arsenal of jutsu, but the otherworldly monster came out unscathed, his stoic expression never changing.

Hoping to turn the tides before the situation became dire, Hashirama — the original — made an attempt to join the battle. But he was abruptly impeded by a scheming Madara. And once the Second and Third Hokage were incapacitated, Obito turned his attention to Naruto and Sasuke, quickly taking to the air to close the distance between them.

But something unexpected happened.

Obito's stomach suddenly grew ten times its size, sending him plummeting to the ground like a boulder.

"W-What's going on?" Naruto exclaimed.

Sasuke wasn't quite sure, either.

I get it... Minato deduced judiciously. The Jūbi hasn't completely synched with its Jinchūriki yet. This is our chance to take it down!

Summoning his original, the duo charged toward the immobilized villain with a Rasengan combo in mind. But Obito wasn't just about to lay down and accept the beating — his ascension to Sage of the Sixth Paths opened up a plethora of capabilities, and he intended to make use of them.

"Gamakichi, below you!" Naruto warned urgently.

Sasuke's head snapped around in tandem to the toad driving his massive knife into the ground. But his retaliation was futile, and the enemy's assault connected, sending him flying backward into a high arch and slamming onto his back.

Minato pivoted his head around, shocked to find Obito's upper body slithering around on the offensive, Orochimaru-style. He passed underground? It's just his upper body!

Using the Truth Seeking Balls equipped in both hands — malleable orbs of black chakra that encompasses the power of all five basic natures — Obito launched an attack at Naruto who was still airborne. Just before he teleported to safety, Sasuke thwarted the strike by spawning a single one of Susanoo's hands.

"You're not the one... who's going to sever the past," Sasuke said with a nasty scowl. "I am!"

Disregarding the ramblings of a delusional child, Obito lunged forward, faster than they could react, and clutched their faces in an iron grip. He was intent on ending them both. No longer did he care about pitting them against one another; all that mattered was commencing the ultimate jutsu. And that meant exterminating all those who opposed him.

Minato pushed to his knees after taking a crushing hit from Obito's bottom half. I must make it in time... he urged inwardly, forming his seals. What? My marking on Obito disappeared?

Just before the robotic Jinchūriki could blast their heads right off their shoulders, Naruto, almost instinctively, extended his chakra arms and grabbed ahold of both Sasuke and his father, instantly teleporting them all over to Gamakichi's location.

Sasuke gritted his teeth upon gathering his bearings. He was infuriated by the way Obito brushed him off, and even more so, by the fact that he was hopelessly saved by Naruto, who, was supposed to be beneath him.

"Y-You can use the Flying Thunder God Technique?" Minato exclaimed in both surprise and excitement. "How did you—"

"You can thank Ero-Sennin for that," Naruto returned with a smile.

Minato chuckled inwardly. Looks like my boy is as accomplished as Sasuke — and to think this is just his clone.

Obito uprooted his body from underground, his eyes never leaving his target. But, in his attempt to right his body proportions, the power inside of him went rampant. The Jūbi was relentless in its effort to rip the man asunder and reclaim its place on earth as a natural disaster. It preyed upon its host's consciousness like a ravenous beast, eating away at his memories, his very humanity.

Just before that precious fragment that held the memory of Rin — the woman of his dreams — was entirely consumed, however, Obito asserted his will. The Jūbi found itself gradually losing the little influence it once wielded. And even the nine Bijuu sunk even deeper into the abyss of the man's absolute control.

Having set up the field for a multi-faceted attack, Minato charged in for a decisive blow. But his target had changed. The once stoic expression that the tyrant wore softened into that of a condescending human. And now he wielded nine Truth Seeking Orbs, instead of two, with one fashioned into a staff. His physical appearance was mostly the same, except for a few subtle changes, which included a pair of horns jotting out from his forehead.

Minato didn't waver. He pushed forward, clashing with his kunai that broke into half against the power of the man's staff. In the next instant, Obito brought his hand down, like an edged blade, effortlessly taking the Kage's right arm before be managed to bolt.

"He got me, but I'm okay!" Minato said upon rejoining his comrades.

"You sure about that?" Obito pointed.

Everyone blanched at the sight of a Truth Seeking Orb attached in place of the man's missing arm. And the blinding light it began radiating spoke of an imminent explosion. But Tobirama was suddenly there, the clone bringing both the nuke and its master to another location where the man could solely experience the byproduct of his own creation.

KABOOM!

---

Susanoo brought his sword down in one fluid motion. It was caught between the palms of a wooden titan that rivaled the size and strength of the chakra-forged warrior. And a shockwave rippled outward around them.

Madara and Hashirama were entirely engrossed in their own personal war — an unfinished grudge dating back over a hundred years. The earth trembled as they exchanged blows, and the Allied Forces look on in dread.

"A-Amazing!"

"They're on a completely different level!"

"So this is the battle capacity of our predecessors..."

Shikamaru noted as the ongoing battle ate away at the shinobis' morale. Hashirama's words and leadership had instilled hope and courage before, but now the intensity of the man's personal battle was inadvertently robbing them of what little confidence they had left.

Even a small power... can be helpful, Shikamaru announced to the alliance through Ino's telepathy. We may not be of any help now, but there might come a time when we'll be needed. So don't take your eyes off the battlefield. For, if such a time arrives, our power could change the course of this world. We can't afford to relax and let our guard down, even for one second.

Temari looked around quietly, observing as the dejected expressions that hung on everyone's faces changed to determination. And her own lips curved into a smile. Shikamaru… you would make a great Hokage. The ability to sway people's hearts is practically a requisite of any Kage.

---

Obito rose from the explosion's aftermath like a God, the orbs that wrapped him into a protective cocoon unraveling themselves. Again, he was completely unscathed. And Naruto and Sasuke had practically had enough of simply staying on the defensive while everyone else did all the work.

Gauging Naruto's output using his Sharingan, Sasuke combined his black flames with the sage's Rasengan. It was no use stopping them — hence, Tobirama decided to bend the circumstances in their favor. And it was convenient he had managed to mark Obito beforehand.

Marking each other with their technique formula, both Kage sprung into action. Tobirama was suddenly behind Obito, a hand upon his shoulder. Minato, at the same time, allowed himself to get hit by Naruto and Sasuke's combination attack. A millisecond later, Obito found himself swapping places with the Yellow Flash, the whistle of the Rasenshuriken moving up an octave as it registered its true target. Together with the fiery breath that was Amaterasu, both jutsus wreaked havoc on the silver fiend.

But any hope that had sprouted in the warriors were short-lived. While the Truth Seeking Orbs couldn't keep up with the assault to protect their master, Obito had still sustained zero damage. If anything, they had only managed to stir just a modicum of his anger. And he slowly levitated above them, looking down condescendingly at the humans who struggled in vain against his divine will.

"No effect at all..." Tobirama said assessingly, stating the obvious.

"We can't touch those black, transforming spheres," Minato added, stifling the frustration behind his words. "Our attacks have no effect on him... he's quick on both offense and defense."

"What a pain!" Sasuke clicked his tongue.

"Man, he's even more prefect than how I envision myself in my dreams," Naruto said with a frown. "How do we compete with that?"

"It's like he's truly obtained dreamlike power..."

Tobirama was more focused on Minato's missing arm than his descriptive speech. "That's odd," he observed.

"What is?"

"Your arm was ripped off... there should be dust swirling around to restore it by now."

Everyone thought about that for a while.

"Our Edo Tensei bodies aren't regenerating..."

"I have come to possess the same power as the Founder of Shinobi," Obito enlightened calmly. "You can no longer measure me by the standards you are used to."

Tobirama considered the man's words, breaking out into a cold sweat. "Don't tell me your jutsu..."

"What does he mean by the same power as the Founder of Shinobi?" asked Minato curiously.

Naruto's frown deepened as he recalled information he's read from Jiraiya's notes. And the Bijuu had mentioned the name a few times, as well.

"Fourth...," Tobirama began, a critical edge to his voice. "Try not to get seriously injured again, even with our reanimated bodies. He's probably using a jutsu based on shadow and light techniques that nullify all ninjutsu."

Everyone stopped breathing.

"In other words, if he destroys our reanimated bodies... we'll be unable to regenerate and, ultimately, die. Also, assume that right arm of yours is permanently gone."

"If that's the case, we'll need to fight him even more carefully."

"But, since ninjutsu won't work on him, this will be tricky."

"How about physical attacks?"

"Let's try it out."

A muscle worked in Naruto's jaw. And Sasuke managed to note the brief flicker of frustration that gleamed in his eyes, before it was gone.

Flipping his senses inward, Naruto materialized himself inside the Kyūbi's mental scape. I've trained too hard to allow these guys to burden themselves with our problems; they've already played their part. I need to turn the tables somehow...

Kurama looked down, also noting his Jinchūriki's anxiety.

"How much longer, Kurama?"

I'm still infusing chakra, the Bijuu informed candidly, palms pressed together meditatively. If you want to enter into Perfect Tailed Beast State, you'll have to continue fighting in your normal mode for a bit.

Dammit! Naruto swore beneath his breath, his eyes deliberating as the gazed up at the almighty being hovering before them.

Recognizing that the time limit for his summoning was at hand, Gamakichi — in a last ditch effort to get some much sought after revenge — mounted a projectile attack at the cocky silver bastard. Instead of completely negating the ninjutsu as he usually would, Obito merely managed to stave it off using his Truth Seeking Orbs.

Perhaps the attack wasn't futile, after all, as Naruto's eyes widened in revelation with Tobirama following close behind. Wasting no time, our Golden Knight fastened his eyes shut and started building his power.

"Obito!" Minato called, attempting a diplomatic approach. "I thought you wanted to become Hokage? Why are you doing this?"

"You want to know why?" the man's voice rose a few octaves higher than it ever did in his new form. "Lecturing me now? Isn't it a bit late for that, Sensei?"

They held each other's gaze.

"You're always too late when it matters most," Obito scoffed, his mind recalling a tragic memory he had rehashed thousands of times — Kakashi's failure, Minato's absence, Rin's death, his heartbreak. "I'm glad my teacher was Hokage; it made it easy to give up on becoming Hokage."

His words stung.

And Minato couldn't help but grieve. The world would be completely different if he had realized the masked man who attacked the village sixteen years ago was Obito. Many sacrifices and tragedies could have easily been averted — Kushina may have not died and Naruto wouldn't have to be burdened with the Kyūbi.

"Even though you were my teacher, you didn't realize it was me," the man accused bitterly. "That's just who you are, fundamentally — pathetic. You died a heroic Hokage, but now you're being exposed as a disgrace in front of your son."

Naruto's lips pressed to a thin line.

"That's right...," Obito continued. "A Hokage is a pitiable existence compared to what I am now."

The high-pitched whistle of a Rasengan embodied Naruto's zero tolerance for the man's bad-mouthing of his father.

…This kid's really something, thought Tobirama in amazement. He realized even before I did.

"Your circumstances are a product of your own weaknesses," informed Naruto calmly, which betrayed the rage that bubbled beneath his skin. "I could have strayed from the right path, too, but I choose not to."

Sasuke and Minato pivoted their head around in surprise, while Tobirama decisively made his way at the shinobi's side, to facilitate his attack.

"And you have no right to make fun of a Hokage when you couldn't even become one yourself. Especially my dad... who actually became Hokage."

No sooner had Obito lost sight of them than he felt a blow land in his back. Then he heard a voice rang out above the shrill of the Rasengan tearing into his flesh.

"How dare you put him down!"

Sasuke's eyes widened in shock. That worked? But how?

For a moment, Minato didn't care about decorum, caution or even battle etiquette. He gazed up at his son, eyes quivering in awe and affection at the charismatic and reliable shinobi he had become. Naruto didn't just stood up for him, but paved a path they all thought nigh impossible.

It's effective! I knew it! Tobirama couldn't contain his grin. Even if ninjutsu is ineffective, Sage Art still works!

Naruto's eyes burned with the characteristics of said mode.

The toad from Mount Myōboku used Sage Jutsu and his attack wasn't nullified. Looks like this kid noticed when I did.

"You bastard!" Naruto roared, launching both Obito and his projectile into the ground, like a lose cannon. "I'm not done yet!"

"Water Style: Heavy Bullet — Gatling Gun!"

Fashioning his hands into rifles, Naruto fired a fusillade of water bullets from his forefingers that, not only inflicted massive damage, but significantly weighed the villain down for a follow-up attack.

But he needed to act fast.

Having marked the bastard when his Rasengan made impact, Naruto teleported, leaving Tobirama wide-eyed and stunned. He forged a bigger and stronger sphere, dropping the nuke on the delusional tyrant without remorse or hesitation. A shockwave of dust and debris whipped outward, jostling everyone from their trance.

He's a quick striker, just like his father, Tobirama praised. And he's mastered many high-tier jutsu at such a young age...

"Naruto-kun — that's amazing!" Hinata cheered, feeding Sakura information as she saw it unfold.

He's even mastered the same Sage Jutsu as Jiraiya-sensei, Minato thought surprisingly, his eyes transfixed.

He's grown into quite a son, eh, Minato? Kurama said — essentially the yin half of the Bijuu that was sealed inside the man. It's no wonder he managed to sweet-talk my other half.

Inside their mental scape, the Yellow Flash swiveled his head around to look up at the menacing giant. It placed one hand down and homed in close, like a loan shark about to whisper methods of torture to a uncooperative client. That's why you sealed my other half inside him, as if you were confident they would be able to work together.

"Kyūbi..."

Then don't regret it now, the darker counterpart said in a surprisingly emphatic tone. It's not your fault that Kushina died. And, making your brat into a Jinchūriki, wasn't a bad thing, either. Because your brat is trying to change what this world has become right now. He's not that newborn baby anymore.

In fact, tomorrow is...

Obito pushed to his knees for a start, the gaping hole in his back doing little to cool the anger seething through his veins. I can't believe the Jūbi 's Jinchūriki could have such a weakness, he fumed as one of his eight orbs attended to the shameful injury. And, with the Jūbi inside me, I can't pass through matter, either... how frustrating.

"Looks like Sage Mode works!" Naruto began triumphantly upon rejoining the others, careful not to lose sight of their enemy.

"Sage Power?" Sasuke murmured curiously.

"The toad attacks are Sage Jutsu, which uses Natural Energy. Come to think of it, when I tried to sense the Jūbi 's power before, it was Natural Energy, itself. So, I figured, maybe one could counter Natural Energy with Natural Energy.

Yoshi! We finally have a way to land hits on that bastard. I'll hit him next with some Frog Fu!"

To think he's capable of using the Flying Thunder God Technique. And has even mastered Sage Power, Tobirama smiled. I feel like I'm fighting alongside Elder Brother!

Sasuke, on the other hand, wasn't enthused. Naruto, as he imagined, continued getting stronger since their last encounter. He had somehow managed to achieve full control of the Kyūbi's power, and now was practically leveraging the war on his own.

Unfortunately, he, too, was a foolish idealist, just like the founding Hokage. Needless to say, Naruto was going to be a nuisance when Sasuke opted to assume control. But that nuisance would be taken care of at the opportune time. Then the Uchiha would change the very foundations of the shinobi world, and he wouldn't allow anything... or anyone, to stand in his way.

Growing weary of their futile attempts at foiling his plans, Obito proceeded to tailor his chakra nature into a specific element. A lofty stalk sprouted from the ground in response, like the tongue of death. Jotting out from the emaciated shaft were four ominous-looking flowers that quickly began charging their own Bijuu Bomb.

The alliance grew restless, and Shikamaru desperately began racking his brain for a plan. Tobirama proposed that Naruto, Minato and himself teleport away one bomb each and the remainder be taken care of by Hashirama. But Madara wouldn't give his rival enough space to breath. As Edo Tensei warriors, he knew they would be revived, should they succumb to the blast. And that reality kept the man entirely fixated on the battle.

To make matters worse, Obito erected the same Four Crimson barrier that the Kage used to trap the Jūbi before. But now the situation was reversed — this time the Allied Force were the ones trapped, like caged lamb to the slaughter.

"You intend to teleport the stalk itself outside?" Obito surmised as Minato deliberated said solution. "Think I'd let you do that? You can't save anyone!"

"Dad," Naruto called, loosening the tension. "I'm not entirely sure if it will work, but I've got an idea. Will you bump fists with me?" he asked, out-stretching his arm.

Even as the Truth Seeking Balls converged around him, wrapping its master in a protective cocoon for the impending destruction, Obito watched the exchange between father and son. Naruto was notorious for dishing out miracles in desperate situations, but what could he possibly achieve in this bleak and perilous ordeal?

Evidently feeling differently, Minato conceded. And, the moment their fists touched, their mental scapes synchronized.

Hey, other half, Yin-Kurama greeted. How ya been?

Do you mind sharing some of your chakra with me? Yang-Kurama — Naruto's partner — returned with a wolfish grin.

Kek! To be asked a favor from myself feels a bit weird...

"Naruto," Obito called. "Minato can't do a thing," he provoked. "He couldn't even protect your mother. Nor his own subordinates. You know what tomorrow is, don't you? It's the anniversary of Minato and Kushina's deaths. The day both of your parents died. In this world, it's over when you die. You see—"

"Oh, right," Naruto interjected, keeping the man's negative influence at bay, from both him and his father. "So tomorrow... it's also the day I was born."

Minato's eyes quivered. Like it was yesterday, he could hear the exuberant cry of his newly born babe sixteen years ago — his pride, his legacy, his treasure. It was the happiest day of his life, the day Kushina made him into a father.

"So you see...," Naruto continued, his voice low and resolute. "It's not over yet. 'Cause I exist in this world!"

Minato couldn't control the face-splitting smile that spread across his lips, but he managed to hold back the tears that burned the back of his eyes. Our Naruto has become really strong... Kushina.

"Let's go, dad!" Naruto roared as he reignited his Kurama Mode, flanked by his father and backed by both Nine-Tailed Foxes.

The shinobi were surprised when the Kyūbi's cloak reemerged even stronger than before. Bee could sense both Yin and Yang essences of Kurama and assumed it was their powers combined that fueled the cloak. But Gyūki corrected that it was, in fact, all the Bijuu combined.

"You're thinking about protecting us from that attack with this chakra, Naruto?" Shikamaru said openly.

But that wasn't quite the case.

By allowing everybody's chakra signature to resonate with Minato through him, our hero was able to allow his father to teleport the entire alliance outside of the barrier before the explosion.

Both Obito and the shinobi were flabbergasted.

"Fourth... this is the second time you've saved all of shinobi-kind," Tobirama praised, issuing more compliments in the last hour than he did throughout his entire life.

"I've still failed... more times than that," the man responded breathlessly. "So… I must continue making… up for it."

"What did you do?" Jūgo asked, having joined them in an attempt rescue Sasuke before the blast.

"Dad teleported everyone outside the barrier," Naruto explained with his customary lopsided grin, recalling his father's statement before.

— "I can't teleport anything that I myself, or my chakra isn't touching, even indirectly."

"Everyone? With that jutsu?" Sasuke was astounded.

"I'd shared Kurama's and my chakra with everyone earlier. So, by allowing dad to indirectly resonate with everyone's chakra through me, we made this strategy work."

"He used the principle of Shadow Clones," Tobirama launched into another explanation from a different perspective. "Even if you split up and disperse your chakra, as long as you keep even a little bit there without putting it out, when the original body infuses chakra again to regain control, all the individual chakra bits begin resonating and link together.

In short, by joining his chakra with the Fourth's, Naruto linked the Fourth to the rest of his chakra residing in everyone else. My question is: if you can use the Flying Thunder God technique, why didn't you just teleport everyone yourself?"

"I used up a lot of chakra protecting everyone before, so I wouldn't have been able to manage on my own."

"I see."

"By the way, Old man Second — you sure know a lot about my Shadow Clones..."

"I created that jutsu!" the man defended hotly. "It's my Shadow Clones!"

Minato watched amusingly as Naruto teased their founding father. And he couldn't help but reminisce about the brief but memorable moment he spent with his son as the young shinobi broke down the complexity of his plan.

"Naruto..."

"Hm?"

"I wish there was more time to talk to the grown-up you."

"Guys don't need to talk!" Naruto interrupted with a friendly grin. "I already know. I... already met with mom. What you want to say is the same as my nagging mom, right? I already know."

Minato beamed, his eyes quivering. But this time, he didn't hold back the tears that pooled in them.

…This feeling is so familiar, the man thought as the memory dissolved from his mind. Even though we're out of options, it feels like we can accomplish anything... that's right, he said, looking toward the Child of Prophecy. It's just like when I was with Kushina. Same feeling.

And, as Minato thought, Naruto began gearing up to spring into action again, his from warm and radiant as the sun.

"So we can't touch him without Sage Jutsu, right? In that case, there's something I wanna try."

Everyone looked to the scheming shinobi.

"Kurama," he called inquiringly, looking up at the attentive Bijuu. "Do you think it's possible to gather Senju Energy in this form?"

Now that you mention it, the fox began, cupping his chin as he skimmed through the archives of his memory. You've probably already forgotten but, during your final battle with Pain... something noteworthy happened. I got so mad by what he was saying that my chakra leaked out, even though you were in Sage Mode at that time. My power and your Sage power actually managed to synchronize. There was another time when it happened, as well.

Naruto flung an accusing finger at the Bijuu. He was too caught up in his emotions to remember that happening during his heated discussion with Nagato. But there was one instant he vividly recalled. "That's right — when I was undergoing Sage training, you interfered with Gramps Sage's Jutsu, remember?"

That's because I had no interest in sharing the same space with toads! Kurama fumed. Besides, it really pissed me off that you would rely on Sage Jutsu when you had my chakra!

Naruto grinned. "You stubborn bastard," he teased.

Kurama retaliated with a pointed accusing finger, as he did. You're the stubborn one! Anyway, what I'm trying to say is that I'm willing to let you use both my power and Sage Power right now. What's stubborn about that, dammit?

Naruto's eyes half-lidded mischievously. "You just can't be upfront about your feelings, can you?"

You bastard! the Kyūbi bellowed menacingly. You've been making fun of me a lot lately!

Naruto turned on his heels with a cool grin. "Nah. It's just out of familiarity."

Keh! Kurama clicked his tongue flippantly.

Using Tailed Beast State with Sage Jutsu at the same time, huh? Yin-Kurama said to Minato. You've got the same me inside you as your son. You should be able to provide him with powerful support.

And, with that, Minato leapt into action.

While Naruto accumulated Senju Energy — his growing power reverberating throughout everyone like a peel of lightning — his father summoned Kurama's body as his son did and started generating a colossal Rasengan in the Bijuu's hand. Then Naruto proceeded to add Senju Power into the mix, altering the projectile's nature.

Obito's head snapped around expectantly when they teleported behind him. Chakra arms shot out from the appendages on his back, but Kurama thwarted them using his tails, effortlessly paving a path for the Rasengan to make impact.

But the Godly bastard had another line of defense — a Truth Seeking Ball. Like a mighty blade and shield, both forces clashed to a draw. The shockwave that followed hurled both parties across the battlefield. Naruto didn't stay down long. How could he, when he noted that the man's shield crack and shattered just now. All he had to do was bump up the firepower, and he should be able to land a definitive blow.

Chakra-Kurama's snout split open as our hero began charging up a Bijuu Bomb curried with Senju Energy.

"All right! Excellent idea!" Tobirama exclaimed as the nuke swelled and the earth trembled. You might just surpass my Elder Brother as Hokage...

"Hey, other Kurama!" Naruto called. "You help, too!"

"I like the sound of that!" Minato returned, sensing his beloved wife shining through his son. As I thought... this is a familiar feeling, after all.

Sasuke clenched his fingers into a trembles fist. Wrapped in Naruto's protective cloak did little to cool the fires of jealousy that flared in his chest. In just a few short minutes, the teen had demonstrated a level of power that clearly transcended even those of the founding fathers — and he had polished his intellect to complement this newly attained power.

Was this truly the same Naruto as before?

Obito was none too pleased, either.

It was appalling to even think about it, but Naruto's latest attack had succeeded in damaging the Truth Seeking Orb. If he mounted an even stronger assault...

There's no harm in taking measures early, the man decided calculatingly. And, no sooner did he pressed his palms together, than the Jūbi began spilling out of his chest, like a broken dam.

For the first time since the war began, a flicker of concern flashed across Madara's face. He's starting the Infinite Tsukuyomi already?

Naruto's Bijuu Bomb dematerialized in the wake of the Jūbi 's turbulent return. The ground trembled and shattered as the beast rooted its fourteen limbs deep within the earth. As it gradually morphed into an ancient tree, a single eye receded into its body like a black hole consuming a red planet. And a bud quickly sprouted on its back whose bloom would spell the end of the world as everyone knew it.

"I guess I'll suspend the barrier for now," the puppeteer uttered. And, with a slight flick of his hand, the Four Crimson Ray barrier dispersed.

The shinobi watched in alarm as the unfolding nightmare was suddenly unleashed upon the land. The growing bud shot high into the sky — mounted atop a sturdy stalk woven by the creature's body. Newly spawned roots resurfaced and began running rampant; turning predatory. It was complete pandemonium.

Men and women screamed as they fled, the flexible roots snapping at them like vicious vipers. The relentless appendages whipped upward from the ground, sending rocks and bodies hurling skyward, which proved easy prey. Once caught in the roots' deadly vice grip, people were instantly stripped of their chakra — drained until their emaciated bodies resembled that of a mummified corpse.

Hinata and Sakura wore ashen faces as they out-maneuvered the roots upon the back of an agile ice wolf. The princess's protection did nothing to protect the vulnerable shinobi — and her healing couldn't revitalize faster than the roots were depleting.

Hinata..., a rueful voice whispered in her mind. It truly grieves me to say this, but I've used up all my power. I'll need to sleep for a while. I'm sorry... but please stay safe.

The girl's eyes quivered, tears spilling from them. And Sakura shared her heartache — there was mass deaths happening all around them and there was absolutely nothing they could do to help.

Naruto blanched.

He could distinctly feel the light of his comrades being extinguished, one after the other. And his heart sunk. "Hinata! Sakura-chan!" the words tore desperately from his throat as he dared consider what could happen to them at any given moment.

It took but a moment's lapse in focus for the hungry roots to ambush and nab him. And they attacked in droves; as many as needed to secure the thrashing Jinchūriki. Both Tobirama and Minato tried desperately to free him, but failed. It was Sarutobi who came swinging with his cudgel that prevailed. The consecutive attacks managed to destroy the roots and vines faster than they could regenerate. And Naruto flashed the man a weak "thank you", his chakra all but consumed.

Sasuke and Jūgo looked out upon the dreary battlefield, almost indifferent to the grim scene of carnage that greeted them. For the time being, the roots' ravenous hunt had slowed to a standstill. The flickers of light that dotted the night — stemming from the Kyūbi's cloak — had diminished significantly. The Allied Forces that once boasted several thousand strong barely numbered in the hundreds.

Rendezvousing with Sasuke via teleportation, Naruto and the Kage took a moment to assess the living hell Obito had summoned upon earth. And the sage felt a manifold of emotions — anger and frustration being the most predominant. He was able to mend his composure a tad, however, when Hinata and Sakura joined them.

He was relieved that they were without harm, and the warm smile that touched his lips proved the truth of it.

"...Naruto-kun," Hinata cried softly, her cheeks flushed, tiny hands struggling to clear her tears. "I'm so sorry... even... even though I promised I would protect everyone."

Sakura hung her head and bit her lip. The kunoichi could understand the girl's frustration; it reverberated in her chest, as well. But she wasn't about to throw in the towel. Tsunade would never forgive her, if she didn't struggle to her final breath — this war warranted just that... and even more.

Naruto pushed away from the supportive shoulder of the Third Hokage and found his own equilibrium. He gazed up at the full, blood-red moon that casted a bizarre glow upon the flower bud sitting atop the lofty stalk. He didn't quite know the methodology behind activating Infinite Tsukuyomi, but he had a gut feeling it was imperative they prevented that flower from blooming.

"Take a look," Madara boasted with glee to his best friend and eternal rival. "When the Divine Tree's bud finally blooms... the moon will reflect the eye at the flower's center, up above, and the Infinite Tsukuyomi will be fully activated."

Hashirama watched as the man's eyes widened — drunk, crazed, like those of a madman.

"...And I will be the one to accomplish it."

Obito gazed down upon the agonizing destruction that plagued mankind, a vindictive forefinger pointed down at the root cause of it. "Now be still...," he whispered to the despairing soldiers. "You have all... endured enough already."

---

"Wha-What's that?" exclaimed the Mizukage.

Quickly making their way to the front lines, courtesy of Gaara's sand, the five Kage gazed at the ominous silhouette of a tree that stood beyond the mountainous horizon.

"Katsuyu?" Tsunade beckoned to the tiny slug perched on her shoulder. And the creature made no delay to launch into a detailed summary of what was currently taking place on the battlefield.

---

An eerie silence hung over what remained of the Allied Forces. Those who had not perished were paralyzed by fear. But, despite the trauma, a selfless soul cried out at the misfortune that had befallen her ally.

"Shikamaru!" Ino cried.

The young strategist was at death's door. He had fallen victim to the lecherous roots and now the light of his candle gradually waned. Fearing the worst, Ino urgently reached out to Sakura telepathically, adding her friends as recipients who all rushed over to give morale support.

"Katsuyu-sama!" Sakura called to the slug on her shoulder. "Let's begin Distance Healing immediately!"

"That's impossible," she replied regrettably.

"Why?"

"Even my small fragments attached to everyone have been drained," she explained. "They have lost their chakra and died. In other words, everyone is in the same state as my fragments. But we may just be able to save Shikamaru-kun..."

"Sakura-san," Hinata called, dismounting the beast that carried them both. "Taking the wolf will be faster. Tend to Shikamaru-kun. I will heal Naruto-kun."

"I'm sorry, Hinata — and thanks!"

Wasting no time, the princess turned on her heels and rushed over to her beloved knight. His chest was heaving from his sheer exhaustion. It looked like he was on the brink of vanishing. But, even if he was just a clone, she couldn't allow that to happen. His presence on the battlefield held significant merit — he was the fire of hope that would instill confidence in the shinobi once more.

He but needed to rise up again.

Hinata's thin brows furrowed as she dug deep for the power to heal. But Akiko was in hibernation and she was down to the dregs of her own power, after having a close encounter with the Divine Tree.

Noting her struggle, Naruto rested an attentive hand atop her head, but his gaze was transfixed upon the silver fiend before him. "That's enough, Hinata... I'll be OK."

The warrior's eyes burned.

Since the beginning of this war, Obito had done nothing but press and provoke him. It was as if the man was testing the limits of his convictions, and he was relentless in his attempts to find the kinks in his armor. This was one of them: robbing his kin of their lives. And the bastard promised the slaughter would persist, if the opposition didn't concede to his will.

The shinobi started swallowing their pride.

It was the first time they genuinely considered surrendering themselves and accepting the man's promise of paradise. But Hashirama, who had learnt the truth from Madara, used Ino's Mind Transfer Technique to expound on the tyrant's plan and the fact they would be nothing more than nourishment for the Divine Tree.

He implored them not to give up hope, but the shinobi was at their wit's end, and frustration quickly gave rise to anger. They accused Hashirama of being exponentially more powerful and would be revived, if he died. But the shinobi weren't immortal — it only took a single mistake, a single slow reaction, for them to get erased... permanently.

With Naruto presumably out of commission and most of their comrades dead, the remnants of soldiers swayed precariously over the precipice of surrender. They had the choice between certain death or a fake utopia, and the latter was looking more enticing by the moment.

Refusing to continue as a mere spectator, nor was he interested in Obito's embellished portrayal of paradise, Sasuke finally made a move. Susanoo's mighty sword hacked through a thick span of the Divine Tree's root, proving it was far from indestructible.

"Naruto, are you done?" he murmured condescendingly. "Because I'm not."

The current Kage arrived just in time to see Naruto don a form that shone as bright and dazzling as the evening sun. And the Allied Forces looked on in awe as the teenager rose up to take on a challenge that was tantamount to provoking God.

Through Ino's telepathic tether to the alliance, and Naruto's chakra that still dwelled within them, something unprecedented happened. Everyone could suddenly feel as his emotions and memories began flickering through them, like the pages of a time worn book. So deep, so real, that it felt like their own.

They could feel the inescapable loneliness that once plagued him as a child, as well as the unrelenting regret of not reaching out to his best friend sooner, which may have saved him from a path of darkness. There were precious bonds that got severed along the way, not to mention the sacrifices that were made for his future. There were many adversaries, but through them he was able to nurture a strength that could overcome the test of time.

The shinobi were surprised to find Hashirama's emotions and memories weaving in with Naruto's, the most prominent being the first Kage Summit ever held.

A small room housed the pensive leaders. While the founder of the village hidden in the leaves was overjoyed by the historical moment, the other Kage didn't share his sentiments. Instead, they were constantly at each other's throat.

BANG!

Hashirama slammed his forehead down onto the conference table pleadingly, winning everyone's attention. "It's true that we've never gotten along in the past... but we each did what we did to protect our brethren and clans. There were, perhaps, times when we had no other choice. And now, today, even if our Five Nation Treaty comes to be... I can't say how long it will last. Or if we can even hold to it. But I have this dream, that sometime in the future, there will come a day when shinobi will collaborate and help each other, with one heart, regardless of their affiliation.

That is my... dream of the future. I ask you to take the first step toward that dream today! So please, please, please, please...

The five current Kage stepped forward with evident determination as the man's words reverberated in their hearts. And the alliance — their confidence renewed — looked to the leaders who were brought together, as Hashirama wanted, hearts connected in their endeavor to bring down their common enemy.

"I beg you!" Hashirama tried reaching out to everyone again. "All of my beloved children! Now is the time to take all the pain, suffering, and frustration we shinobi have endured... and weave it into our true dream!"

While the current Kage spread out and took command of the shinobi, Naruto and Sasuke squared off against the self-proclaimed God and his twisted ideology. To prepare for this fateful battle, Jūgo imbued his Sage Power into Susanoo while Minato was simultaneously bestowing Naruto with the entirety of the chakra that Yin-Kurama had infused.

"Hinata..."

As if his words were a trigger, the princess gasped when her hair and clothes fluttered upon her body being engulfed by the Kyūbi's cloak. And she looked up to find a compassionate gaze fixed on her.

"I'm confident we'll be able to push him into a corner now," Naruto explained softly. "I'm not sure how he'll retaliate, so I want you to continue protecting everyone."

The princess beamed. "H-Hai! I'll do my best!"

"And Hinata—"

"I know," she responded firmly, a hand at her chest. "I'll keep us both safe... Sakura-san, too."

Naruto allowed a smile, and then he was gone.

Standing close to Shikamaru who was subconsciously being healed by the Kyūbi's cloak, Hashirama watched as the young sage threw himself into the fray on behalf of mankind. Your past is filtering into me through the others. Uzumaki Naruto... you are uniting everyone right now. Your tempestuous life made you into who you are. And your way of life has given everyone's heart hope!

As the shinobi charged forward to cut down the Divine Tree, Tsunade and Sakura combined their powers through Katsuyu to supply healing and chakra to their glorious campaign. In the same beat, Hinata channeled the Kyūbi's chakra to Akiko, who rebounded by casting a protective barrier around the Allied Forces. And, to tap off their chain of protection, Tobirama was working alongside Minato to whisk away anyone in immediate danger.

KABOOM!

Naruto and Sasuke, having adjusted to Obito's obnoxious speed, was finally able to catch the bastard in a pincer attack. But the Silver God managed to effortlessly fend off the powerful assault. Then he fashioned a pair of his Truth Seeking Orbs into massive hands, which he used to grip the insufferable duo and slam them into the ground at break neck speed.

---

Fatigued and covered in bruises, Kakashi tried to steady his breathing as he carefully slipped a needle through his skin in an attempt to stitch the wound he received from his duel. He sighed when he snipped the thread at the end, and then he pulled down his shirt and tilted his chin.

Obito... I bet you really did want to confirm whether a heart that never bends, and a Will of Fire that does not waver, are truly possible. You gave up on them once. But, after fighting Naruto and hearing his words, deep down, you're not able to deny that they might really exist. Isn't that right, Obito?

And yet, you still search and test everyone and everything, to prove yourself wrong. Which is why, even now, as you stand at the precipice... you seek an answer from Naruto.

---

From above the gaping crater formed by slamming the resistance into the ground at mock speed, Obito watched in both surprise and exasperation as Naruto slowly pushed to his feet. The once brilliant glow of his cloak was rendered to nothing but a small flicker, but still it would not extinguish.

"Why do you get up?" Obito demanded irritatingly. "And what are you fighting for? Is it for your comrades? Or is it for this world? Listen... friends will eventually betray you. And this world transforms love into hatred. You of all should know!

In the past, the people of the village and Sasuke betrayed you. And your love for Jiraiya made you hate. You and I are the same. The cumulative weight of all your suffering will change you, in time. And now, even more pain shall assault you. And you still insist that you will not change?

You don't know when your friends will betrayed you again," he gestured to Sasuke who was also peeling himself up off the ground. "Or if the Allied Forces might go back to fighting each other. And you don't even know if you can defeat me! There is no reason to keep on fighting for a world like this. In a few minutes, this world will be gone, anyway. So, why do you still fight?"

There was a moment of silence.

Sasuke and Jūgo glowered at the man, but they said nothing. As the Divine Tree inched closer to a perfect bloom, Naruto steeled his resolve and flashed the man a steady gaze.

"Because it's my Ninja Way," he simply said. "I never go back on my word — that's my Ninja Way!"

Obito's frown deepened, his eyes narrowing to dangerous slits. "I thought I told you to go to sleep!"

Refusing to back down, Naruto and Sasuke stood together. They evoked and combined their powers, which gave birth to a Nine-Tailed Fox decked out in a full plating of purple armor — from head to tails.

But Obito wasn't deterred.

The pointless resistance just made his rage stir even hotter. And he mirrored his adversaries, digging deep and bringing forth the ace up his sleeve — a mighty sword and shield forged from his Truth Seeking Orbs. But, as opposed to his selfish struggle, Naruto wasn't alone. He summoned nine of his closest friends who were each vested with a portion of his chakra.

Ino. Shikamaru. Chōji. Sai. Lee. Tenten. Hinata. Shino. Kiba — wielding a large Rasengan of Naruto's making, they all hurled themselves at the source of humanity's suffering, utterly obliterating the man's shield. Then Naruto and Sasuke followed up with Susanoo's sword, gradually chipping away at the weapon claimed to have been wielded by the Rikudō Sennin himself.

Obito's eyes widened in utter shock when the armored Bijuu zipped by him like a bolt of lightning, leaving a gaping fissure in the side of his torso. From the wound, the chakra from all nine Bijuu suddenly spilled out, desperate to detach from the villain they were tethered. And Naruto quickly capitalized on the opportunity. Using Kurama's tails, he managed to latch onto seven of the Bijuu with Gyūki and Shikaku, unfortunately, refusing the valiant rescue.

Damn! Kurama swore beneath his breath. I guess it won't work with One Tail and Eight Tails because we never got their chakra.

Just when Obito thought the devil's luck was on his side, Gaara and Bee made an appearance. Since both individuals resonated with Gyūki and Shikaku, they were able to physically interact with the Bijuus' chakra and a fierce challenge of tug-and-war ensued.

"Don't underestimate the power of the Jūbi 's Jinchūriki who's equivalent to the sage!" Obito bellowed, switching gears.

Remember when I said that, even a small power can be helpful, depending on how it's used? Shikamaru announced sincerely, his warm words reaching the entire alliance, courtesy of Ino. Now is the time! That power will change the course of this world.

It took but a moment for Obito's menacing expression to morph into that of abject shock. In the blink of an eye, the darkness of the crater was dotted with hundreds of flickering flames that shared Naruto's hope for unity and peace. Instead of making this hole a tomb for the Golden Knight and his foolish idealism, it would, instead, be the landmark where he would forever change the tides of the war.

As the Allied Forces all but pulled his ambitions from his breaking grasp, Obito felt as his warrior's spirit overlapped with Naruto's. Time slowed to a crawl. In an endless world painted with galaxies of stars, the man saw the boy standing before him. He was alone, too — but a moment later he was backed by a number of people that just kept growing by the second.

Obito couldn't help but glance behind himself. As much as he knew what to expect there, the harsh reality was far too much to bear. He was alone. It was a path he steeled himself for, but all the discipline in the world couldn't erase a human's great weakness — solitude.

As he looked to Naruto, he couldn't help but imagine himself in his shoes. If he had gone back home and mourned Rin's death with his best friend, would his life had turned out differently? Would he have become Hokage in due course and won the acknowledgment of the village? Would he have been surrounded by friends and comrades?

Obito frowned. "Are you saying... that I have regrets?"

Naruto stepped forward, cool and collected. "You once told me I'm nobody. I don't want to be anybody."

"Stop! Don't come into my thoughts!"

"But the truth is... you wanted to become the Hokage, just like me."

Obito snarled.

"It could have even ended up where I was chasing after your shadow... since I've always wanted to become the Hokage."

"I threw away the past and my naive self, so don't tell me I'm—"

"Then why am I able to see this?" Naruto interjected hotly. "You can't hide behind a mask. You were Kakashi-Sensei's friend... my dad's subordinate, a Uchiha like Sasuke... and a shinobi of Konoha who had the same dream as me."

"What... What exactly... do you want with me?" Obito asserted, pointed an accusing finger at the persistent teen.

"To remind you that you are Uchiha Obito," Naruto replied calmly, winning a vexing frown from the man. "I told you, didn't I? I swore I'd tear that mask right off your face!"

"Uchiha Obito," the man replied, hating the taste of the name on his tongue. "What meaning is there in that name... in that existence now? I have merged with the Jūbi . I have transcended and attained enlightenment. I am no longer human. I will guide mankind to the next stage. I possess the same will and body as the Sage of Six Paths — I am the Second Sage of the Sixth Paths!"

"Wrong! You are Uchiha Obito! When our chakra touched earlier, I saw your past. Our personal histories and our dream of becoming Hokage are the same. Almost exactly alike. Neither of us knew our parents. And we both lost people precious to us, which is why you tried to scare me by saying solitude is my worse nightmare."

Obito hung his head drearily.

"In the beginning, you, too, wanted to be acknowledged and praised by others. That's why you wanted to be Hokage. If you're the same as me, that is. But look at you now — you've turned all shinobi into enemies, and you go spouting some nonsense that you're doing it for the sake of the world, when you're only doing it for yourself!

No one, not even those precious to you, would ever acknowledge this current dream of yours! You used to have the same dream as me. But now, you've become the exact opposite of a Hokage! It's because you're just like—"

"No, it's because of that," Obito began curtly. "That I wanted to see you despair about this world. Or, I suppose, I wanted to feel again for myself that the path I have chosen for myself is not a mistake.

When we were fighting, you made me recall my youth. That's why I started wanting to test you, to see when you, someone who's just like me, would fall to despair and abandon your feelings, your past."

"It's because we were so alike that I'm pissed off!" Naruto snapped. "You're just... abandoning everything and running away!"

"No... what I'm doing is no different from a Hokage's actions. In fact, I'm doing even more. I can make peace a reality."

There was a moment of silence.

Then Naruto frowned, oceanic eyes inquiring. "Are you really serious?" his word came slow and stern. "Do you really believe that?"

Obito hung his head again, his eyes quivering as he quietly slipped into a reverie of a moment long passed. As Rin, the girl he was madly in love with, tended to his wounds, he recalled telling her that saving him was equivalent to saving the world as he aspired to become Hokage and finally end the war, once and for all.

It was one of the more precious memories he shared with Rin. He was sure the girl was looking down at him from heaven, heartbroken that he had betrayed her trust and faith in him. But the notion of heaven and hell was man-made, as was the laws of morality — and he wouldn't allow them to imprison his desire to meet her again.

"Yes... that's how I feel," Obito replied to the question, ignoring the scowl he received in return. "There's no need to voluntarily tread a steep and rugged path, not knowing what's ahead. You'll have to step over the corpses of your comrades. Anyone would choose a shortcut with a fixed outcome. Yes. The goal a Hokage should seek is world peace."

Naruto balled his fingers into tight fists, his eyes unwavering. "What the hell are you talking about?" he asserted, struggling to keep his voice even. "What I want to know about isn't a shortcut... but how to navigate the steep and rugged path!"

Obito did well to mask the pained grimace that creased his forehead. "Would you still say that if the final destination was the same?"

"Who can tell in the beginning which one is the dangerous one? You never know until someone starts walking," he explained as he walked over to the pensive villain. "The Hokage is someone who endures the pain, and takes the lead in front of everyone. So a Hokage never walks over his comrades' corpses. There is no shortcut to becoming the Hokage — and there are no ways out for the one who becomes Hokage! Isn't that right?"

Obito looked away, considering the rigorous training he put himself through as a kid in an effort to surpass his eternal rival, Kakashi. But forget surpassing him, it was enough of a challenge just to keep up. Though, there were no shortcuts to winning Rin's heart and becoming Hokage — hence, he had always diligently continued his training regimen.

But now he was a changed man, and Naruto frowned upon that change. If Rin was really watching over him, as she promised, what would she have thought about the man he'd become?

"You told Kakashi-Sensei you would throw away all your memories and feelings about your comrades. But, when you become the Jūbi 's Jinchūriki, and were about to be taken over by it... didn't you try to suppress the Ten Tails because you didn't want that?

The reason why you beat the Jūbi and could control it, was because you stood firm on not throwing away the past and stayed yourself, right? You just couldn't throw out the memories of dad, Kakashi-Sensei or this Rin person, could you? That's how you could stay Obito, even after you become the Jūbi 's Jinchūriki. Am I wrong?

But dragging everyone with you onto your path and continuing on it won't be allowed! I'm bringing you back as Uchiha Obito... as a shinobi of Konoha... and you're going to atone for your sins. You tried to run away from every single thing.

I bet this Rin person would say this if she were alive: don't act though and hide your wounds. I'm always watching."

Obito's eyes quivered, because he knew for a fact that's exactly what she would say. And, just before she healed him, she would give him a good scolding. But the warmth that followed would be breathtaking.

"You're no one else but you, dammit! Don't run away!" Naruto said, holding out his hand invitingly. "Come join us... Obito!"

His resolve wavering, Obito looked down at the boy's hand pensively. Before he could process his thoughts, he found his own hand reaching out, as if Rin was helping to guide it, from wherever she was. He didn't even have time to remotely consider retreat before Naruto clasped his hand.

And, no sooner did their hands meet, than their shared consciousness shattered in fragments of glass. Obito returned to reality to find the Allied Forces working in complete union. With one final pull, he found himself loosing all nine Bijuu and the eternity of his goal in one fell swoop. All that remained was the Jūbi 's husk and a sense of defeat.

Freed from their wretched prison, the Tailed Beasts — who had assumed their original form — watched as the puppet master silently fell from grace. Stripped of his once godlike powers, he lifelessly crashed to the ground. And Sasuke made haste to pull his sword and move in for the kill. Naruto chased after him, hoping to prevent the needless execution.

But it was Kakashi who first arrived on the scene via his Space-Time Ninjutsu, a poised kunai in hand. "Sasuke, we'll talk later. I apologize for appearing suddenly, but I was once his classmate and friend. So please let me take responsibility for him."

The Jōnin's fingers tightened around the weapon as he steeled his resolve. Then the blade made a glowing arch in its downward trajectory. Naruto attempted to still the man's hand with an explanation, but it was Minato who managed to get there in time, halting that purposeful hand with that of his own.

"Obito," he began, ignoring their surprise. "When we had that chakra tug-of-war just now, I got to see inside your heart. It seems like my son nagged and lectured you quite a bit. I think he might have gotten that from his mother."

Naruto scratched his cheek embarrassingly.

"But that duty actually falls on you," said Minato, gesturing to the conflicted Jōnin. "I think the one who truly understands Obito and should talk to him is you, his friend, Kakashi. Isn't that right, Naruto?"

The teen looked to the stoic mask that Sasuke wore, knowing that it would be solely his responsibility to pry it off, similar to how he liberated Obito from the darkness of his delusions.

"Naruto, you two and the Allied Forces should go and help Lord First and seal Madara away."

"Oh, right!" he exclaimed, caught up in the moment. "We still need to deal with him. Let's go, Sasuke!"

They left.

And Minato watched as they go, comparing the length of his son's shoulder to when he was just a baby. "I think you were younger than Naruto is now. Do you remember? All the missions that the four of us went on? As a Medical Ninja, Rin did her utmost to protect you two. She would never have wished for a situation like this."

As his sensei's words evoked bittersweet memories of the passed, the tension in Kakashi's arm loosened and Minato took it as a signal that he had calmed down.

"But what caused this is my responsibility," said Minato repentantly, surrendering himself to his own memories and the guilt that came along with them. "I'm sorry I couldn't protect Rin."

For the first time since their fateful reunion, Obito's face softened, much to the astonishment of Minato and Kakashi. "Rin... Rin was my only light and hope. After I lost Rin, the world as I saw it, changed — it became a pitch black hell. There's no hope in this world. I took Madara's identity and walked the world, but all it did was confirm my belief. Even with my Sharingan, I couldn't see anything... there was nothing to see."

"I don't know anything for sure, either...," Kakashi said.

And Obito's eyes widened. "Then, my new path is—"

"Without a doubt, your path is just one of many. And it may not actually be wrong, either," he replied, eyes softening empathetically. "I've thought this world was hell, too. I thought that you had died... and, right after that, I lost Rin. And I lost Minato-sensei, as well.

But... even though I don't know anything for sure, I tried my best to see the world with this eye. I felt that, as long as I had your Sharingan and words, I could see it."

"...And what you saw is Naruto? How can you be sure his path won't fail?"

Kakashi pushed to his feet, ignoring the sting from his recently patched up wound. "Actually... he may very well fail, too."

Obito gasped, curiosity consuming him whole. "How is Naruto different from me? Why do you go so far for him?"

"Because I can say, without hesitation, that he is less likely to fail than the current you."

"Why is that?"

"Because, if he trips and stumbles on his path, I'll help him."

"Why would you help him?" Obito still hadn't received a satisfying answer. Try as he may, he could just not understand.

"He would never give up on his dreams or on reality — that's the kind of guy he is. And the way he forges ahead draws others towards him. He makes you want to reach out when he's about to stumble. And, the greater the support behind you, the closer you can get to your goal. That's the difference."

Obito looked from Kakashi to the red moon that hung overhead, processing the words that had been said. "Do you really believe such a thing is possible in this pitch-black hell?"

"I'm sure you could've seen it, too, if you had tried. After all, you and I have the same eyes. If comrades that you trust, gather around you, hope can take a physical form and become visible. That's what I believe..."

And Obito saw it.

From his pitch-black hell, he saw the light of hope manifesting in the colossal sphere Naruto created atop the Divine Tree. It acted like a beacon — illuminating the darkness — and the entire Allied Forces rallied to its location, knowing that Naruto would light their way to salvation.

Good timing, son of the Fourth, Hashirama complimented as the wind-natured bomb hurled toward a restrained Madara. Let's get him with this and seal him away!

"Naruto aimed his attack over there!" someone shouted as the shockwave whipped by him like a sudden typhoon. "That's where Madara must be!"

"Don't waste any time! Now's our chance to seal him! We won't let Naruto's attack go to waste!"

Hashirama clasped his hands together, using sage-infused tori gates to add another layer of binding to the tenacious tyrant. Naruto's jutsu didn't bring him down, but with this, he won't be able to move. All that's left is to wait for the Sealing Shinobi.

Madara knelt under the weight of his bondage. But his visage wasn't of a man who was defeated — instead, the malicious smirk that split his face depicted a scheming snake. Though, Hashirama knew all the plotting in the world wouldn't have made a lick of difference, if he wasn't given the time of day. He could already see Naruto and Sai en route to their location.

Lines of fatigue and distraught creased Obito's face. His chest had started heaving as the effects of having all nine Bijuu simultaneously pulled out of him, took its toll. Normally, a host who had their Bijuu extracted would inevitably meet a grim fate, but Yin-Kurama reassured Minato that wouldn't be the case, as the man still had the Jūbi 's husk inside of him.

Kakashi was relieved — now the man would be able to spend the rest of his life atoning for his sins. But Obito knew that wasn't enough; carrying out good deeds for a hundred years couldn't compensate for taking a life, nor could it mend the hole left in the hearts of the victim's family and friends.

Uchiha Obito finally understood why Nagato betrayed him as he clasped his hands together, intent on sacrificing his one soul for the countless others he had purged in the name of his glorious crusade.

But the pitch-black darkness had other plans.

At the behest of the true puppet master, Black Zetsu emerged and began overtaking the man's weakened body. This was his destiny — the very reason his life was spared many years ago. Madara vowed the deed would require recompense and today, right now, the payment was due.

"Time to switch places," Madara allowed an evil smirk. "It's now my turn to attack!"

"Stop acting tough!" Hashirama retorted, looking to Naruto and Sai who made a speedy descent. "This war is over!"

"Sai!" the Orange Knight called authoritatively.

And the former Root agent unfurled his oversized scroll and sicced his tiger on the bastard as a means of sealing.

"Naruto...," Madara said calmly, completely disregarding the animated doodle. "I'm grateful to you. You even extracted the Tailed Beasts from Obito; saving me the trouble of weakening him."

Naruto frowned assessingly, holding his guard. There was no bravado in the man's voice, nor did his expression forecast even a slight semblance of defeat. He was definitely brewing some kind of sick scheme, and it was imperative that they ended him before he could succeed.

But Madara had already succeeded. Everything that transpired on the dark side of the spectrum was of his personal design — including being revived by the man he regarded as a mere pawn in the grand scheme of things.

Rinne Tensei!

Madara smiled triumphantly, showing little concern as the tiger bore its fangs down into his arm. He was more concerned, captivated, by the familiar sound of his heart beat and warm blood churning through his veins.

It was exhilarating!

As color returned to his cracked and pallid form, steam rose from his body, as though he was undergoing molding at a smithy's forge.

"Finally, I can fight for real!"

As if triggered by his words, a sudden explosion of energy dismissed both the tiger and tori gates that confined him. And Madara stood amidst the destruction, marveling at his renewed strength. "This is the form, the body, I needed! It's not a battle without raging blood... and a pounding heart!"

No sooner did the crazed words left his mouth than his eyes crumbled and fell from their sockets. Sasuke followed up on the fiend's misfortune by engulfing him in a wall of black flames. But Madara didn't seem bothered in the least. He didn't even flinch.

"A brat who doesn't even come close to my level," he said by means of introduction, allowing his burning armor to fall to the ground. Completely free of the corrosive flames, the man turned to face his eternal rival. "It is these polar opposites operating together that give rise to all things in this universe. Hashirama, do you remember me telling you this long ago in front of the Uchiha Stone Tablet? That the inscription on the stone says, when two opposite sides cooperate, you have true happiness. But I also told you it could be interpreted differently."

Hashirama's eyes narrowed gravely as he studied the bizarre face jotting out from the man's bare chest. He had a feeling Madara's second interpretation of the Stone Tablet's meaning would directly tie in with why the man had exposed himself to human modification experiments.

"The one who obtains both Uchiha and Senju powers can attain true happiness," he explained confidently. "Don't you think it could be read that way, as well... Hashirama?"

It was only after receiving those words did the First Hokage managed to confirm that the face on the man's chest indeed had something to do with manipulating his DNA. "It seems you've been doing a lot of plotting since you left the village."

"No... actually, this is something my subordinate's comrade came up with by coincidence. Seems there was a fellow who thought a lot like me," he said before biting his forearm. "However... me coming back to life was exactly as planned!"

The microsecond everyone took to process that horrific fact was enough time for Madara to evoke his jutsu. While the black rods Hashirama was previously impaled with restricted his movements, the Uchiha threw himself at Naruto and then Sai, a powerful kick sending both shinobi hurling backwards. Finally, he moved toward Hashirama — his prize — and clutched the man by the neck, doing quick work to drain him of every ounce of his Sage Power.

"Though things did happen out of order. Oh well," he said, delighted as the markings of the sage appeared on his chest. "So this is Sage Art Chakra — what? Is that all there is to it? Seems like this will be easy to control."

That's what he thought, but Sasuke wasn't about to let that happen. Leaping down from his aerial mount, the avenger lurched at the bastard with his sword in hand, every strike aimed at a vital organ. But, even without his eyes, Madara was effortlessly evading each attack, as if decades of fighting had ingrained an automated sensor into every fiber and cell of his body.

"This is the perfect chance now that you're flesh and blood," Sasuke scoffed, his tone as sharp as his blade as perceptive eyes studied his foe's nimble movements. "This time I'll kill you for good and send you back to the afterlife. Regret that you're still not a reanimation... as you go to your death!"

Madara paused, allowing his kin's sword to pierce through his bicep so that he could clutch the blade with gloved hands, holding it in place. He allowed the injury, not only to relish the riveting feeling of pain again for the first time in over a decade, but to allow chakra to spread through the weapon and its wilder, like echo location.

I can feel it... Madara thought, identifying the teen's lineage and impressive power. "Your Mangekyō are Choku Tomoe — a straight pattern. No wonder you have fine moves. It might be a good idea to take your eyes until I get my Rinnegan back. But killing you would be such a waste with an eye like that.

How about it? You're a savior of the Uchiha like me. Want to join forces?"

"Make no mistake," Sasuke retorted. "You're a dead man."

Madara laughed, amused. "Fine then. In any case, you don't have much time left."

Without using any finger seals, the man expelled a fiery cloud of ash, effectively blinding Sai and Naruto who were homing in for a pincer attack. In the same instant, Sasuke felt as his sword lightened, and then there was an explosion in the distance as the tyrant landed in another location. Pained screams erupted across the battlefield as shinobi were swiftly crushed by the monster dreaded throughout all of history. Just the mere thought of his name struck fear in the hearts of people — and now he was gifted with the warmth of life once more.

Madara stood atop a mount overlooking the Bijuu and Allied Forces, a felled shinobi beneath his heel. A new age was about to dawn, and he would personally ensure that it was ushered in to the fullest of its glory.

"I'll be taking you all next," he vowed as his bicep did a quick heal. "You filthy beasts!"

Knowing that they would be trampled in the crossfire between titans, the Allied Forces fled to higher ground, waiting for the opportune moment to strike. But Madara didn't concern himself with the plotting of insects. Instead, he focused his full attention upon the Bijuu — the catalysts that would bring his ultimate goal to fruition.

With an eager grin, he threw himself into battle, only to fall prone to a combination attack between Gaara and Shukaku that significantly dulled his mobility. The Bijuu wasted no time swatting the bastard around like a bean bag, which culminated with him being sealed inside a large pyramid made of condensed sand.

The spectators were flabbergasted, however, when Susanoo effortlessly staved through the lofty structure with a chakra-forged sword and made a tactical retreat.

"I'll be putting collars on all of you shortly," Madara scoffed, his expression menacing despite his missing eyes. "Not one of you will be able to get away."

"I won't let you!" Naruto exclaimed, ramming the Susanoo-clad bastard from behind in a surprise attack, driving him into the ground.

No one here's going to wag his tail for you! Kurama raged.

Sorry we're late, Gyūki apologized, joining his comrades as they converged on their common enemy. We were moving the injured.

Don't worry, Matatabi — the Two-Tails — reassured. There won't be any more wounded. We're ending this now!

Stack tails! Kurama instructed.

And the Bijuu happily heeded, simultaneously slamming their tail into the malevolent fiend who was partly responsible for the death of their Jinchūriki. But, despite the fierce onslaught, they only managed to rip a single arm from the bastard before he slipped away like a tenacious cockroach. He was tough as nails. But the Tailed Beasts didn't lament as he was heavily wounded. Surely with another push, they would be able to finish him off once and for all.

"Sorry I'm late, Madara-sama," said White Zetsu, spouting creepily from the ground as he usually did.

"You're finally here," the man replied calmly. "Do you have it?"

"Of course."

Madara didn't just accept the offering, he severed the entire arm of his parasitic subordinate to replace is own. Then skillfully reinstated his eyeball as if it was as easy as screwing in a light bulb. "This should make things a little more fun," he mused, that single eye snapping open with renewed power and deadly purpose.

A familiar ache brought the man's attention to the bleeding wounds on his forearm. Bringing that limb in close, he tasted the life-sustaining elixir that coursed through his veins, and his body trembled in utter gratification.

"This taste of blood... this pain! This is my body! Finally, I can fully savor battle again!

The Bijuu watched in disdain as the wretch fell into a fit of laughter. But that joyful guffaw ended on such a note of complete seriousness that it was almost bizarre. With an unblinkingly gaze, the man robotically drew a line of blood in his palm.

And Kurama flinched. His blood... it's bringing back some really bad memories. That repulsive blood that summoned me long ago.

Shukaku practically leapt at the opportunity to tease his cocky rival. Hey, dumb fox — don't get scared and stick your tails between your legs.

I wouldn't underestimate him if I were you...

This isn't like you. It's rubbing me the wrong way.

Slamming his hand to the ground, Madara effortlessly summoned the Gedō Mazō statue from inside Obito, who had only just performed a sacrificial jutsu. Now the former God was barely being kept alive by Black Zetsu, who had temporarily fused himself with the man to retrieve his master's eye. But Kakashi and Minato was determined to eliminate the leech the first chance they got, which had really put the fiend in a bind.

"Shit!" Naruto swore. "Not that thing again!"

"Seems the right arm's been wrenched off," Madara said indifferently, noticing Kakashi's handy work. "Seems there's someone left with good eyes on the other side. Well, it's not much of an impediment. And now—" he passed a condescending gaze over the Bijuu— "I've got a pen for them. All I need to do is shove them in there."

A fake Rinnegan from a reanimation can summon that thing? Son Goku exclaimed, a hint of trepidation hidden beneath his high soprano voice.

He's bleeding and wounded, Matatabi deduced calmly. In order words, he's not a reanimation anymore. He possesses a real Rinnegan.

How did he come back to life? Chomei — the Seven-Tails — asked.

That's when our hero's eyes snapped open.

— "Naruto, I'm grateful to you. You even extracted the Tailed Beasts from Obito, saving me the trouble of weakening him."

As the fiend's words rehashed in his mind, like the hiss of a toxic viper, Naruto quickly pieced the puzzle together. Similar to how Nagato was a pawn natured for his use of the rebirth technique at the opportune time, Obito was also manipulated in the same way. But that meant he had forfeited his life in the process.

Naruto's eyes quivered.

Both him and Obito were like either sides of the coin same. Their current circumstances differed, but at their root, they were both cut from the same cloth. Now that his life was stolen from him, how would he make amends for all the bad he had done? How would he be pulled from the dark binds that confined him?

"It's going to take a bit longer for the left eye," Madara said with little concern.

"Seems like it," replied Zetsu. "This also looks like it's going to take a bit longer, too."

"Don't compare me to that brat who took years to get back these pets," Madara retorted as his body did another quick heal.

"You're covered in blood."

"Knowing that I possess Hashirama's healing powers might cause me to fight crudely. I'll proceed more carefully. If I use the Rinnegan's true powers, we should see a more sophisticated battle. It will only be a few seconds, so watch closely," Madara vowed before leaping atop the Jūbi 's humanoid husk and evoking a power he dubbed Limbo: Border Jail.

He might try something, so be careful, Matatabi warned.

But, no sooner had she declared the warning, than she was knocked down by an inexplicable force. Son Goku quickly tried to make sense of the ordeal, but was heavily struck down, as well. The assault continued until all nine Bijuu were completed floored.

Gaara and the rest of the alliance looked on in bewilderment. Like Son Goku, they tried their best to make sense of the situation, but they were completely baffled. The enemy hadn't moved an inch from where they stood, so what happened?

"That ought to have tamed you a bit," Madara said, lacing his fingers together. "Now I can put on your collars!"

The statue's jaw fell open.

"Something's coming!" Gaara warned.

But it was far too late.

The Bijuu were still disoriented from the previous attack. They laid helpless against the familiar purple chains that shot out from the Gedō's gaping maw and wrapped around their neck.

Naruto, however, reacted in the nick of time with an instant teleport. He knew what the appearance of the Gedō Mazō meant — and he was already far too familiar with the power of the chakra-suppressing chains that the creature commanded.

Knowing he wouldn't be able to compete against Madara's ascension to godhood in his current state, the Orange Knight steeled his heart and abandoned his friends so that he may free them later.

And they understood.

Madara clicked his tongue, recognizing his folly. "So one of you managed to escape. And, of course, it would be Naruto. Oh well, I shaved off a bit of the Kyūbi's chakra before using Susanoo, just in case. Besides, I suppose I'll need someone to test out my abilities on later."

Unlike Naruto, Gaara didn't retreat. Although he was no longer a Jinchūriki, he couldn't sit idly by and allow Shukaku to get sucked into oblivion. The creature may have been nothing but a burdensome neighbor throughout his life, but the Bijuu was also the only one to acknowledge his unwanted existence. And his fate as a Jinchūriki led him to meet Naruto.

"You can't have Shukaku!" the Kazekage bellowed, a pair of hands wrought of sand restricting the pull of the chains.

The selfless deed had the Tanuki reminiscing about a former Jinchūriki — a humble monk who reminded him of the Rikudō Sennin. The elderly man promised the Bijuu would inevitably meet people who were of like mind and heart, and today, right now, the veracity of his words were shining through.

"You sand brat!" Zetsu argued. "Are you really that happy to have your old pet back? How dare you interfere, even when you're not going to die as a Jinchūriki."

Madara, however, wasn't one to provide lip service to vermin. Using Susanoo, he fired off a chakra-forged blade that snipped the chain at either ends of the meddling sand. And, it was during this moment of upheaval, that Gyūki inconspicuously lapped off one of his tentacles.

Gaara, don't overexert yourself! Shukaku called. Find that Naruto-brat and follow his lead; he'll find a way!

The Allied Forces watched in horror as all eight Bijuu were numerically absorbed into the ravenous fiend. Madara, in turn, completed the assortment of chakra by adding that of the Kyūbi's from his titanic blue guardian.

"Well, I guess that's about all I can expect from my current strength," Madara said with open contentment.

White Zetsu looked up passed the giant's bulging eyes to the evidently smog mastermind. "It took more than a few seconds... but you were still faster than Obito."

"You really do talk too much," the man chided, trying to ignore the parasite's inability to stay within the boundaries of their master-pawn relationship. "You're all dud inventions of mine, and yet always finding fault with me."

"Black Zetsu is nicknamed Wicked Tongue and they call us White Zetsu Wagging Tongues," he laughed.

Madara frowned, ignoring the dry humor. "I hope the other battle is going well."

"Don't worry. After all, the base is good."

Capitalizing on the man's lax attitude in his moment of triumph, Tobirama suddenly appeared behind him for a surprise attack. While a fated battle unfolded, Gaara took the opportunity to sneak away while Sasuke, of course, did the exact opposite.

WHAM!

Madara chucked a metallic sphere into the Kage's forehead, adding another projectile to the eleven others that pinned the man to the floor. "To be honest, I've wanted to do this to you for a long time. Since you're... the one who killed Izuna! But, you're just a moving corpse, so it's hardly fulfilling."

"Madara, what is it that you desire so badly that you'd come back to life for? Our era, our time ended ages ago."

"I just want to build the nation that Hashirama couldn't. But this world belongs to Hashirama, my predecessor who failed. Drastic measures are needed to save the dying patient."

"So this thing called the Infinite Tsukuyomi was your idea? This is your idea of a cure?"

"Indeed. Hashirama's nation-building bore a paradox. People desire peace... and yet, on the other hand, crave conflict, as well. That duality is mankind. To only want peace and to discard conflict would cause people to stop being people. And those two things stand together side by side. People will sacrifice something in order to protect something else. Except in a true dream world."

Without missing a beat, Tobirama scoffed at the man's ideology and spat a pair of hidden needles from his mouth at the bastard's face. With a mere sweep of his arm, Madara evoked Susanoo's chakra and deflected the attack. But it was just a distraction.

Sasuke leaped from his aerial mount and plummeted to earth like an armed missile. His sword at the ready, he braced for a killing blow. But something powerful and invisible — something his eyes couldn't perceive — stopped his descent, like a barrier. He couldn't move a muscle.

"You could say that this world is Hashirama's paradox world," Madara reasoned, turning to pick up the sword that had fallen from his kin's hands. "In order to protect something, one must sacrifice something else..."

Dammit! Sasuke swore mentally, unyielding lines of distraught beneath widened eyes. What is this?

"Stop, Madara!" Tobirama pleaded, his body squirming beneath the sealing prowess of the metal rods. "Don't go any further—"

"Be they friend, sibling, or even my own child..."

Sasuke gasped, his eyes quivering in devastation. He heard as the blade punctured his chest — tearing through skin, flesh, muscle and even a vital organ. And the excruciating pain and humiliation that followed was unbearable.

"I gave you plenty of time," Madara said in an icy tone, his stare just as frigid. "And I warned you... that there wasn't much time left. How unfortunate."

While the life slowly drained from Sasuke's body, White Zetsu had made his way onto the battlefield. Hiding his identity behind a mask, the parasite made use of the stage by testing out the superior cells he had received from Yamato through Kabuto's intervention.

And so far, it was spectacular!

Mounted atop a colossal humanoid construct made of wood, the fiend employed the use all six elements to corner and overwhelm the exhausted alliance. Their only line of defense was the Third Hokage who wielded an infinite source of chakra courtesy of Edo Tensei.

In the meantime, the tides of change had started to stir. Madara had completely absorbed the Gedō Mazō and all the Bijuu stored within, effectively transcending to a sage far more powerful than Obito ever was.

But he wasn't complete — he needed to acquire his other eye as well as to dispose of Uzumaki Naruto so that he could capture the Kyūbi. And he welcomed the challenge; he desired it. For what was the use of having godlike powers if he couldn't test his limits?

While the God set off for his destination, Karin was frantically rushing toward the last point where she sensed Sasuke's chakra. Orochimaru, Jūgo and Suigetsu followed suit, dreadfully aware that a suspicious and potentially malicious character was also en route to the Uchiha's location.

Hinata, Sakura, Gaara, and Gai's team were also on the move. Madara was no longer a force to be reckoned with. It was imperative that they regroup and set a plan in motion — and, whatever strategy was made, Naruto and Sasuke would be crucial to bringing this war to a close.

---

Black Zetsu steeled his nerves, evoking Obito's Mangekyō Sharingan when Naruto suddenly materialized out of thin air before him. Time slowed. And the Orange Knight watched in annoyance as his fingers slipped through the Rinnegan he intended to pluck from the man's eye socket.

Zetsu retaliated with a mighty kick. Naruto guarded, but the blow was still powerful enough to send him flying back into a high arch. Kakashi and Minato watched as he landed next to them, his fiery form dissipating, his chest heaving.

"Naruto?" Minato exclaimed in surprise. "What happened to Madara?"

Kakashi waited for the response.

Minato..., Yin-Kurama called. Switch to sensory mode.

The man did as he was told, and his eyes widened in alarm at what he found out. Kakashi didn't know what the situation was, but his sensei's grave expression had him breaking out into a sweat.

We were distracted by what was happening here. There's no mistake, the Tailed Beast said regrettably, to which Yang-Kurama confirmed. The other Bijuu have already been absorbed.

Naruto looked up from his knee with a rueful smile. Deep lines of distraught and fatigue darkened his eyes. "I only managed to escape because of the Flying Thunder God Technique."

"Naruto...," Minato held his gaze sympathetically.

But the teen wasn't looking for sympathy; there was absolutely no time for that. "Hinata and Sakura-chan should be here soon; I couldn't teleport them with the power I have left. Dad, according to Kurama, you should be able to transfer his other half to me, right?"

The man nodded. "Your body should be able to hold him in his complete form now."

"While you do that, Hinata will restore my stamina and Sakura will heal my wounds. The plan is to return to my original body with as little burden as possible. Madara should have become the Jūbi 's Jinchūriki by now. My guess is that he'll try to find me, afterwards."

"Kakashi — he's yours," Minato gestured to Obito.

"I understand!" the Jōnin replied without missing a beat, and Gaara arrived just in time to participate.

"Naruto-kun!" Hinata called, both her and Sakura quickly dismounting an icy wolf to tend to his needs.

While the girls urgently played their part, Minato used a single hand to weave his signs in preparations to transfer the Kyūbi. At the same time, Black Zetsu inconspicuously liquefied a portion of himself and allowed it to burrow underground. Just before the chakra was transferred over to Naruto, the parasitic fiend thrust that artificial body forward, allowing the Bijuu to be sealed inside him, instead.

To make matters worse, Madara made his grand entrance right then and there, making the possibility of reversing the situation nigh impossible. And a grin of relief spit the parasite's face.

"Zetsu, how long are you going to cling to Obito?" Madara's voice was low and impatient.

"Sorry. But that allowed me to steal the Kyūbi's other half from these guys."

"Good. Now bring it, and my left eye, to me."

Everyone held their ground. The situation was grave. Any impulsive moves could result in their complete annihilation. Madara was no longer in a league they could hope to challenge — the man now wielded power that was on par with the founding father of shinobi. But, if they did nothing, all would be lost.

With a smog grin, Black Zetsu began separating his goo-like form from his host, like oil exposed to water. "Since Madara-sama is here, you can't do anything to me, even if I separate myself from Obito."

But it wasn't the spectators who intervened, but the host, himself. Drifting from his stupor, Obito exerted control and forced the parasite to reintegrate with his weakened body. Kakashi and Gaara took the opportunity to relocate behind him for a preemptive strike, if necessary.

"I need to ask you something, Madara," Obito's voice was weak but resolute. "Just what am I to you?"

Madara's chuckle ended on a condescending laugh. "You're kidding, right? What kind of a stupid question is that, at this point in time? You are only one thing to me..."

As Obito looked into his eye, he could almost see the hint of a memory flickering there, the events of which rehashing in his own mind. Just before Madara had pulled the plug, essentially ending the life support he received from the Gedō Mazō, he had told Obito to assume his identify while putting their plan into motion.

"Madara is he who rejects the world," the man explained. "All who hold that in their heart, and strive toward achieving the Infinite Tsukuyomi, are Madara."

Obito frowned, considering the circumstances that led him to collude with the tyrant. "That was once my path, too."

"I left you in charge of everything. And let you walk in my shoes, while I slept, waiting to return. It's the path I guided you towards. You were supposed to live out your life as Madara in order to achieve our goal as the savior who rescued this world."

Madara looked to Naruto — a descendant who had obviously inherited the Senju's will. "This world laid out by the Rikudō Sennin has failed. The chakra dispersed by the forefather was originally meant to be a linking power. The mental energies of people would connect, and feelings would be understood without the need for words. That would lead to peace and stability.

The one who preached this as Ninshu, the Ninja Creed, and sought to guide the people, was the Sage of the Sixth Paths. However, before long, people used chakra not to connect with others, but only to link the mental and physical energies within themselves. Through a method of infusing one's own chakra and increasing it multifold, they changed chakra into ninjutsu that could be used as weapons in battle.

All the Rikudō Sennin did was to further the human paradox. And, even if bonds were established, all they learned was that true understanding was not possible. In any case, chakra only gives rise to conflict and false hope. We all know the reality all too well. Even as we seek peace, we seek war. And this reality compels infinite suffering through the power known as chakra.

Power leads to the desire for war. And the lack of power leads to losing everything. I will build a new world that overcomes that! Through the Infinite Tsukuyomi, I will create a dream world without any abominable chakra! I, who possess the most powerful chakra, shall lead it. And you are not Obito, but me... Madara himself.

Uchiha Obito with his Uchiha Chakra, challenged Hatake Kakashi, desired the title of Hokage, and yearned for Nohara Rin. But, because his power was false, he ended up losing everything! This is hell! Have you forgotten?"

Obito gasped, the scene leading up to Rin's death replaying in his mind like a never ending nightmare. His inability to live without the woman he loved was the very reason his desire overlapped with this man's agenda. Even if their reunion was in a fabricated world, he intention was to make due. After all, his soul wouldn't be complete with her.

"Yes, come, Madara! You are still the savior, even now."

Without a word, Obito conceded to the man's beck and call. With what little energy he had left, he placed one leg in front of the other, slowly sauntering toward the godly pioneer. But the spectators weren't having it. Gaara quickly erected a wall of sand to cut off the man's path, while Kakashi activated his power to transport him into another dimension. Minato, at the same time, slipped into Sage Mode and used his teleportation to instantly assault the tyrant with a lethal Rasengan.

Madara didn't even flinch.

His countermeasures were quick and decisive. With a swipe of his staff, he severed the Kage's arm and sent it along a calculating trajectory. The still active Rasengan shattered the wall forged of sand before colliding with Kakashi to interrupt his jutsu. And a roundhouse kick sent Minato hurling into Gaara.

Sakura looked on in horror as the high-tiered combination attack fell apart as if it was child's play. And Obito continued his amble stride, his arm reaching out in an echo of Madara's.

CRUNCH!

Everyone blanched.

Instead of accepting the tyrant's invitation, Obito pierced his chest with his hand, as though he was wielding a lance. Ignoring the curse that rose from his lips, Obito looked to Naruto who had practically drifted off into a stupor amidst his treatment.

As he studied the boy's profile, he couldn't help but recall the heart-to-heart conversation they had in the eve of his failure. And weighing his sentiments against Madara's revealed one thing: Naruto was the only one who acknowledged Rin's feelings.

"One who leads others, is one who never steps over his friends' corpses," Obito quoted vehemently. "Even if his own ends up being stepped on."

"Then, in order to confirm that, you'll have to become a corpse," Madara returned stoically.

"You won't be stepping on me anymore. I realize now that letting someone handle everything in your name isn't the same as truly entrusting them with the task. I am not you."

— Go for it, Obito! Become the Hokage and save the world! That's a promise, too!

Allowing Rin's word to wash over him, fueling his resolve, Obito closed his eyes and focused. Having only recently fallen from grace, he could still faintly sense and whisper to the godly powers stemming from Madara. Willing just a tinge of that rebellious power to flow within him through his arm, Obito managed to summon just a single Truth Seeking Orb, which he promptly morphed into a staff.

"The current me... is the one who wanted to be Hokage: Uchiha Obito!"

Everyone looked on in amazement. But it was Kakashi who was truly moved by his friend's timely reform. Obito, you've finally found yourself.

Gripping his staff, the man commanded his newly found power and began extracting precious chakra from the enemy. Madara retaliated, thrusting his arm forward at lightening speed. But it simply passed through Obito's body, courtesy of his unique ocular ability.

Leaping backwards didn't make a difference, either. Like a well-secured leash, chakra tethered from Madara's chest to Obito's hand. And, in the next instant — like a tenacious virus — Obito forced himself inside Madara's mental scape.

Despite his toxic personality, the man's realm was a beautiful expanse of ocean that stretched into infinity. Spheres of light dotted the quiet world, their brilliant glow illuminating the sleeping Bijuu bundled together below the gentle tides.

"Are you trying to weaken me by taking away the Bijuu?" Madara spat venomously. "Do you think you can challenge me and win?"

Ignoring his assertions, Obito focused on the task at hand. Transforming the leash into an extension of his arm, he quickly reached into the blue tides and summoned all of his power to fish out as many of the chakra-based Bijuu as he could manage.

Madara watched mockingly as the man struggled to reel in his prize that was swiftly absorbed into his body. "So weak," he scoffed. "Is that all? You only tore off a mere sliver of the Ichibi and Hachibi?"

"Kakashi!" Obito called upon returning to reality. "Take Naruto into the Time-Space!"

Immediately recognizing that his friend planned on handing the teen the Kyūbi there, the Jōnin wasted no time teleporting Naruto, Hinata and Sakura into the safe haven.

But Madara had a pretty good hand to play.

Knowing that the body had to materialize during the warp, he used his Truth Seeking Orbs to mount a powerful attack. Obito managed to defend in like. But with his escape thwarted, he was left to stare helplessly into the jaws of death.

Sakura looked around assessingly before taking a breath, her chest heaving. "Hi-Hinata... are you OK?"

The princess nodded meekly, her lips pursed in a prim fashion. Her gaze and focus were fixed on Naruto despite the beads of cold sweat that trickled down her face. She was evidently terrified, but she kept on doing the only think that was within her power.

Sakura bit her lip in frustration. Madara could have killed us at any time... I was so scared that I forgot to breathe. Of all the people we've faced... he's in a different class!

"All right, I transported Naruto," Kakashi said, moving to Obito's side. "All that's left is for you to teleport yourself there, right, Obito?"

"Dammit," he smiled harmlessly, groggily pushing to his feet. "You always talk down to me, and act so superior... just like old times."

Madara watched them like a hawk, a lifetime of battles allowing him to practically predict their next move. Warping was slow, so more than likely Kakashi would try to create a diversion while Obito warped himself or was warped by Kakashi. No matter the simulation, the best course of action was to attack them simultaneously and abruptly cut off any retaliation they would hope to achieve.

The villain did just that, launching a pair of Truth Seeking Orbs at the infuriating duo. But his impressive years of experience in the dark ages didn't account for the mutual trust and intuitive communication between friends.

Madara could but smile in defeat as both men activated their ocular ability in unison, speeding up Obito's warp before he was struck down. In the same beat, Gai arrived in the nick of time to shield Kakashi from an unfortunate fate.

"You actually had perfect time for once," Kakashi teased.

Thanks for saving Kakashi, Gai! Minato thought inwardly, a kunai secured in his mouth.

"Obito!" Sakura exclaimed when the man materialized, her disposition instantly changing to caution.

"It's all right," he reassured wearily. "I'm here to help Naruto."

"Can I trust you?"

Hinata studied his features, as if to wring the truth from his body. But, as he staggered close, she could feel the light brush of a cool aura that was almost synonymous with Naruto's.

"Ever since I was a kid, I've never been able to walk a straight path," he admitted sincerely, resting a hand upon Naruto's chest. "But I've finally gotten to where I needed to be."

And with those words, a warm light enveloped Naruto's body.

---

The Final Battle — The Sage Emerges!

"Only senjutsu works against him," Minato informed as he approached the others. "As well as physical attacks such as taijutsu."

"Which means our only hope is the Fourth Hokage's senjutsu and your taijutsu, Gai," Gaara added.

Kakashi glanced over at the Yellow Flash who seemed to have a lot on his mind. "If I recall, Sensei... senjutsu isn't your forte..."

"Yes. In all honesty, I'm weak in senjutsu. It takes me too long to infuse the chakra and I can't maintain it very long. I haven't used it very much in combat, either. Furthermore, in this state, I can't weave signs, so I don't think I can even fight effectively."

"Everyone!" Hinata said upon being warped back among their ranks. "The transfer was successful, and the clone returned to his original body. The real Naruto-kun should be here any minute now."

"What about Obito?" Kakashi asked.

"He said it's imperative that we keep the Rinnegan as far away from Madara as possible. Sakura-san stayed behind to heal him. He needs to regain his strength in order to keep suppressing Zetsu."

"In that case," Gaara began. "All we need to do is hold out until Naruto gets back."

Gai did nothing but listen to the entire conversation, and then he leapt before the daunting foe without hesitation, knowing exactly what must be done. "So, it's showtime for the wild blue beast, eh?"

While the Jōnin employed the fierce power of the inner gates to confront Madara, Orochimaru and company came across Kabuto hovering over Sasuke's motionless body.

The man was able to escape Itachi's eternal prison, only after coming to terms with his feelings and turning over a new leaf. But, despite his change of heart and proficiency in medical ninjutsu, Kabuto could but heal the cold corpse that laid beneath his hand.

Karin's eyes quivered. Devastated, she dropped to her knees limply as a scream tore from her lungs.

---

Naruto scratched his cheek with an awkward smile, looking to Shukaku who meekly held a paw forward like a borne tsundere. Hurry and make the pact before I change my mind!

"A pack?" Naruto's eyebrow quirked in question.

Kurama watched as he made contact with the Bijuu before next moving to Gyūki to do the same. Thanks to Obito, you're now in possession of all nine Bijuu.

Naruto stepped back into the transmutation-like circle etched in the ground. Then he turned on his heels to pass a gaze over the unique creatures that surrounded him. As opposed to the dreary mental scape that housed Kurama, they were all gathered in a world of white that stretched as far as the eyes could see.

"...Son," Naruto said repentantly, looking to the Bijuu that shared an uncanny resemblance to a gigantic ape. "Even though I promised I would free you, I stood by and watched you get taken again. Everyone... I'm so sorry."

You're not to blame, Matatabi returned with a gentle, maternal voice. You did as promised. It was up to us to protect ourselves, afterwards. But Madara proved too strong, even for our combined strength.

At least we're free to choose whether our consciousness hangs out here or with that lunatic, Chomei said in a happy-go-lucky tone, highlighting the positive side of their circumstances.

Naruto grinned. "In that case, how about I make it feel more like home until I beat the crap out of that nut job?"

Using the realm as his canvas and his will, a dependable brush, the Jinchūriki weaved beautiful colors together to pain nine separate worlds for his new house guests.

Shukaku was now able to wonder the high dunes of a desert. The torrid wilds was glorified with many ancient structures and lush oases. Chomei was now the master of a sky accentuated with floating islands and beautiful waterfalls that cascaded into the clouds. Son Goku would now roam an expensive forest teeming with life where he would relish the title of king.

Similarly, Naruto prepared a home that best complemented the temperament and characters of each Bijuu until there was Kurama.

"As for you, O Great One...," Naruto performed a cancerous courtesy that had Kurama's face contorting into a sneer. "Words can't begin to describe how grateful I am for everything that you've done for me. I'll give you the power to shape your space in however way you like — and you can change the design whenever you want. I'm sure the others wouldn't mind some tweaking every now and then, too."

Kek! Gyūki came back from his lakeside paradise in time to overhear Kurama's special benefits. The Kyūbi's always the one getting special treatment.

He's my Jinchūriki, so it's only right, Kurama responded with a smog grin.

"What other special treatment has he received?"

Kurama is the only one who received special jutsu from the Rikudō Sennin — two, in fact, Matatabi answered upon returning from her own realm.

Surrounded by all nine Bijuu again — who looked more exuberant than when they left — Naruto looked to Kurama inquiringly. "I know about one of them, but what's the other?"

The pact, Kokuo murmured, his response leaving much to be desired.

"Shukaku mentioned that before. What exactly is this pact?"

Kurama took a moment to gather his thoughts. For as long as I can remember, we have been nothing more than just tools. Powerful weapons for humans to use for their own selfish gains. Bijuu Fission was meant as a means of finding salvation.

If there ever came a time when we were all imprisoned and our powers threatened the very fabrics of this world, then we would set out to find a savior.

Everyone looked at Naruto intently, which made him extremely self-conscious.

Kurama gestured at the intricate circle beneath his feet that had started giving off a luminous blue glow. You are our savior, Naruto. I've been watching you since you were an infant and know this to be true. When you met the Bijuu and their Jinchūriki earlier, you were not just given a portion of their chakra, but entered into a pact. The pact can be interpreted as a verbal consent, while the chakra acts as a key.

Naruto turned on his heels, captivated by the unraveling ritual and the increasing glow that tinted his body. "But what exactly does all this mean?"

The Rikudō Sennin sealed a portion of his power inside all of us, Matatabi clarified calmly. By receiving our consent and chakra that acts as a key, one would be able to break the seal and obtain this great power. You are our savior, Naruto. You will receive this great power and liberate the world from the evil that is Uchiha Madara.

Naruto humbly gestured to the Bijuu who summarized everything with less than a fraction of the words that Kurama used. "Now was that so hard?"

Kek! the Kyūbi clicked his tongue flippantly. A little suspense never killed anyone.

The glow from the circle waned as Naruto absorbed its contents, divine power permeating through every fiber and cell of his being. His expression hardened as his beastly comrades regarded him with high expectations. And he responded with a nod, oceanic eyes smoldering with unspoken promises.

His expression softened, however, when a familiar aura pulled at his senses. As if he could look across the veil of time and space, he snapped his head to the side, his eyes focusing on a soul who didn't belong.

I have poured all that I am into your ring, Akiko said softly, her angelic voice humming from the wedding band perfectly cupping Naruto's finger. Please take good care of Hinata — and tell her thanks for giving me such a wonderful name. Our time was brief, but I enjoyed her company. Make sure that you win!

Naruto closed his eyes, his heart effusively and ceaselessly chanting his gratefulness to the selfless deity. Then he looked to the assessing Bijuu once more. "Before I face Madara, there's something I need to take care of first."

---

A single droplet falls into the pitch black of an endless stream. As waves rippled across the surface, Sasuke found himself gradually climbing back to consciousness. When his eyes blinked open, it took a moment for them to acclimatize to the dazzling glow that surrounded him.

"This is..."

He could instantly tell that he was no longer apart of the moral world. The unrelenting flames that fueled his desire for vengeance and global reform no longer plagued him. In its place, he felt a deep-seated regret and longing.

"I'm happy to see you and yet, it grieves me that you are here."

As if the man's words held the power to shift dimensions, the all-white scenery suddenly changed. Now Sasuke stood beneath a cherry tree in a grove, the balmy summer breeze stirring up a flurry of leaves that cluttered the ground.

As if a second later would render the man a mere illusion, Sasuke snapped his head around to capture him in his gaze. He didn't need to see the owner of the familiar voice to know who it belonged to. But still he studied the figure ambling toward him — a man bearing dark eyes and a warm smile.

"Itachi...," the words left Sasuke's mouth on a note of disbelief.

"Despite putting a stop to Kabuto, it looks like the war still managed to become unfavorable."

Sasuke bowed his head repentantly, his fists trembling. "I'm sorry. I failed at changing the village and restoring our clan."

Itachi homed in close, gently pulling in his brother so that their forehead could meet. "You're beginning to sound like father and the others," he teased harmlessly with a smile.

In the same beat, Sasuke noted his mother and father standing together. They watched eagerly from a distance, as if it was forbidden for them to tread any closer despite their desire to do so. And a rueful smile stretched their lips when they met his curious gaze.

"Without everyone's influence weighing on his mind, I was finally able to get through to him," Itachi admitted softly, a hint of joy dancing in his eyes. "Don't trouble yourself with matters concerning the clan. This burden is what led us astray in the first place. Focus on yourself, little brother. Don't you have a child on the way?"

Sasuke's eyes widened, a fierce blush burning his cheeks. Tearing himself away, he raised his hands defensively. "H-How did you know?"

Itachi laughed, relishing the nostalgia between them. "This woman and child are your clan now, Sasuke. If you wish to pay tribute to my sacrifice, then take care of them. All I ever wished for was your happiness."

Sasuke's eyes quivered. "But... it's too late for that now."

Itachi turned on his heels, holding his brother's gaze from across his shoulder. "Your friend made me a promise. I have the utmost confidence that he'll keep it."

Following his eyes, Sasuke turned to find Naruto standing behind him. And when he looked back around, Itachi and his parents were gone.

"I'm glad I was able to see Itachi again," Naruto said as a means of introduction, his voice changing the scenery to a cloudy sky being reflected upon an endless sea.

Sasuke frowned. His brother's indication aside, he knew that Naruto had somehow found a legitimate way of bringing him back to life. Though, accomplishing such a forbidden feat had to be far from easy. "Why are you doing this? Why would you go to such lengths for me? Why wouldn't you bring back your mother or father? The Fourth Hokage could have helped you fight off Madara!"

Sasuke but blinked, and Naruto was suddenly floating down at his side from a gnarled and moss-coated tree protruding from the water, demonstrating extraordinary speed and agility. "There's no way I could separate mom and dad, just for my sake. Besides, unlike you, they are happy and have fulfilled their role. But yours is just beginning."

"I gained the power to enter the darkness and sever all bonds. And, naturally, everyone's tried to cut their ties to me, as well, at some point. But you... you've never attempted to cut me off.

— "The only one who can handle all that hatred is me!"

"Why do you keep involving yourself with me?"

Naruto smiled, surprised he would have the gall to ask such an obvious question. "You already know, don't you? Now that you're a spirit, your mouth sure is moving a lot."

"Just answer me!" he asserted.

And Naruto paused, organizing his thoughts. "...Because you're my friend."

Sasuke's eyes widened. Now that he wasn't blinded by the sinister ambitions that erected an invisible wall around him, it was easy for him to comprehend those words and the emotions they summoned. Naruto had expressed the weight of their friendship time and time again, but only now was it recognizable.

"I've heard that before," he attempted to dig deeper. "But what exactly does that mean to you, anyway?"

"You ask me to explain it, but I really can't put it into words. It's just that... when I see you take on stuff... and get all messed up. It kinda... hurts me. It hurts so much inside, that I can't just leave it alone, y'know?"

...

"Come back to us, Sasuke...," Naruto said just above a whisper, wrapping an arm around his shoulder.

The Uchiha's eyes widened and then half-lidded as he surrendered to his thoughts. When he first met Naruto, he thought he was a weak, good-for-nothing who constantly played pranks on the villagers. But, in truth, it was his loneliness that incited such obscene behavior. Even if it was just to get scolded, his existence had to be acknowledged in the process.

As he desperately continued trying to bond with people, it reminded Sasuke of his own family, which, in turn, reminded him of what his brother had done. And so, every time he saw Naruto suffering, he felt pain, too. But, it was through this pain that they forged a bond like no other.

— "I'll let you deal with Sasuke."

The teen flinched as his brother's voice echoed in his mind. Like a broken dam, Naruto's memories gushed into him, playing on his emotions as if they were his very own.

— "That was my plan from the start!" Naruto returned with unsuppressed exuberance.

And it was enough to win a grateful smile from the typically aloof Itachi. "Entrusting it to you was the right thing to do, after all."

Naruto's dream was not just to become the Hokage, but to become a leader more powerful and successful than all others before him. It was a treacherous path with no shortcuts. There was indescribable pain and many sacrifices. But he kept pushing forward regardless, forging irreplaceable bonds and overcoming countless obstacles along the way.

Though, there was one sacrifice he was not willing to accept. One person he wouldn't allow to be crushed under the weight of the past.

— "No way can a guy who can't even save one friend become the Hokage. Isn't that right, Sasuke?"

And so, despite his own burdens and shortcomings. Despite his own aspirations, Naruto decided to chase after his friend — to set his dreams aside and salvage the most meaningful bond he had found during the time his world was at its bleakest.

—"No matter how powerful you become... don't try to shoulder everything alone," said Itachi, sharing his counsel with the man tasked with saving his brother. "You share your father's dream, don't you? Then don't forget: Becoming Hokage doesn't mean people will acknowledge you. But when the people acknowledge you, you can become Hokage. Never forgot your friends."

Sasuke's chest tightened, his facial features set in utter dejection. Forgetting his friends is exactly what he had done. Consumed by the darkness associated with his chosen path, he had carelessly trampled upon the Will of Fire that both Naruto and Itachi proudly wore upon their foreheads.

Why did it take so long for him to recognize the futility of his path? Was the curse of the Uchiha Clan true? Until he had died and was stripped of his burdens, he was entirely blind to everything but his goal.

As the world shifted around him, Sasuke tilted his head, reduced to but a child. The bitter blackness that encircled him only became visible after Itachi — his ray of light — disappeared. Now he had matured into a teen, and Naruto stood before him, braving a similar weight of solitude.

As time pressed on without pity or remorse, Naruto found Iruka. But Sasuke still stood alone. Soon Sakura and Kakashi flanked him. Next the rookies and their team captain joined his ranks while Sasuke's company was still the cold darkness. As Naruto kept weaving new friendships, including Itachi's, Sasuke still had nothing.

His heart broke at that sudden realization.

If he continued down this beaten path, would his mental fortitude outlast the culmination of his goals? No. His goal was impossible from the beginning. Like Itachi said, the people were the catalysts that determined a worthy Hokage. His dream of a global reform was dust in the wind before it had even begun.

"I see. I see now...," Sasuke murmured in a low, repentant breath, picturing himself standing amidst the warm community that Naruto had forged all on his own.

Naruto dropped his arm from Sasuke's shoulder and took a step back, yellow eyebrows pulling down above oceanic eyes. "Anyway, let's hurry back so that you can return to your physical body. If I punch you hard enough, maybe that will make you finally open your eyes!"

Sasuke laughed. It wasn't the crazed guffaw he had let out after eliminating Danzo, but a merry sound he hadn't allowed since they were kids. "Even in death I can't get a break from you!"

"Damn right!" Naruto snapped. "Sakura-chan and your kid are—"

"I admit it," Sasuke interjected. "...I was wrong."

"You cocky bastard! It took you this long to figure that out? After atoning for your crimes, you better bring your ass back and help me! What I want to do is to make all shinobi cooperate with each other — and that definitely includes you!"

"Just because you want that doesn't mean others will agree to it."

"Dammit! If you keep whining and sulking, I'll really have to slug you, once I bring you back!"

"There's no guarantee I won't stand against you again..."

"Then I'll stop you again!" Naruto warned, a confident hand cupping one hitched hip. "Besides, I know you're not going to do that kinda thing anymore."

Sasuke bowed his head, eyes cast in the shadow of his bangs. "...How can you be so sure?"

"Don't make me repeat myself! Haven't you figured it out yet? Now that I think about it... you were always pretty stupid, too—"

Naruto's words trailed off when he noted Sasuke's shoulders rise and his body began to quake. And he turned around before he could see the tears, his friend's grief weighing on his own heart. "...I'm sorry it took me this long."

---

Madara peeled himself up off a slab of bedrock and wiped the blood from his mouth with a grin. "I almost died, you bastard! You're the first since Hashirama to make me feel this excited! Can you still dance? Do you have any other techniques? Give me some more fun!"

Gai broke out into a sweat, alarmed and distraught by the man's eagerness to continue despite getting beaten to a pulp. The awkwardness he felt, however, couldn't be compared to the inconceivable pain that rippled through every fiber of his being. Such was the price he had to pay for unleashing the final chapter of the Eight Inner Gates.

But he wouldn't allow himself the time to consider the pain, nor would he give Madara any time to gather his bearings. It was evident that his attacks worked, he just need a greater force to finish the bastard once and for all. And, as he assumed a stance to dish out his ultimate move, he knew it would be enough to get the job done.

An ultimate move with the ultimate sacrifice.

"That's enough," said Naruto coolly, placing an attentive hand upon the man's shoulder. As if his words were enchanted, an enigmatic power from his touch quickly suppressed the inner gates. And the man's skin tone gradually went back to normal, hot, hearty breathes ripping from his lungs.

"Na-Naruto-kun!" Lee exclaimed.

Minato's eyes narrowed. That speed... it's much faster than me, and he's not even using the Kyūbi's cloak.

"Fuzzy-Brows! Hinata!"

The princess promptly answered to the call, doing quick work to heal the Jōnin once his apprentice had recovered his overburdened body. That's strange..., she thought inwardly, probing the man's skeleton using her Byakugan. I noticed multiple fractures and broken bones while Gai-sensei was fighting before. Did Naruto-kun somehow heal them?

Naruto? Madara thought, studying the teen's back curiously. You seem a little different from before. What did Obito do?

"Naruto..." Gaara muttered.

So this is it... Kakashi's eye narrowed pensively. The amalgamation of thousands of clones' worth of training and study. You may just be a teenager in body, but your mind must be as refined as a sage. Let's see what you're capable of now.

"Water Release: Corrosive Whip!"

He's fast! Kakashi thought surprisingly. It's almost like when I was fighting Itachi; I can't keep up with his finger seals.

Tapping into Saiken — the Six-Tails' — arsenal of abilities, Naruto spewed a high-pressured jet of noxious fluid from his mouth to cleave the bastard in two. Unable to dispel the jutsu with a single eye, Madara ducked, the corrosive attack slicing through half the trunk of the Divine Tree in a glorious demonstration of destructive power.

Naruto frowned calculatingly, already flying through another series of seals that culminated with a stomp of his foot to the ground.

"Earth Element: Skewering Spears!"

Just before the rugged spikes could sunder his body, the man leapt upwards. Then used his staff to defend against a monstrous punch from a sneering sage, who had almost instantly closed the distance between them. As much as he had blocked the attack, the force was still strong enough to drive him up against the tree in a loud explosion.

Madara frowned, his arm trembling under the force of Naruto's push. He touched the Truth Seeking Orb, so how can he...? Is it because I haven't finished healing yet? No. His power is suddenly growing?

"Sage Art: Lava Style Rasenshuriken!"

Now Naruto tapped into Gyūki's reservoir. And a whistling sphere radiating hellish flames effortlessly formed in his hand, fanned by his own wind-natured chakra.

"Th-This is bad!" Madara panicked as the orb swelled more than twice the size of its wielder.

Without missing a beat, he hightailed it, willing an invisible shadow of himself to intercept his pursuer. But while Naruto wasn't able to see the invisible phantom, it wasn't quite elusive enough to fool his sensory abilities.

What? Madara's eye popped disbelievingly. He dodged... my Limbo?

Before he could spin another thought, he, instead, heard as the air was suddenly torn from his lungs. Searing flames engulfed his torso when the projectile made impact. And, with a single verbal command from its master, the sphere detonated, slicing through the Divine Tree like a hot knife through butter.

The tree's been severed, Kakashi observed in shock, watching as the colossal structure eased into a slow fall. In less than a minute, he managed to topple the tree and deal a heavy blow to Madara. Unbelievable!

Crashing into one of the many giant roots looping through the earth, the fallen God watched as all his lofty ambitions came falling down in the form of the Divine Tree.

As he stared at the horrific sight, willing it to be untrue, he heard a ghostly voice whisper in his mind. For a moment, he wondered if his obsession had rendered him delusional or driven him mad. But, for such an unstable mind, the proposition it whispered was quite rational.

Take me within you, it commanded again. Take the Divine Tree, the Jūbi ... everything, into you.

---

"The tree disappeared!" Gaara said, watching from a distance.

But Lee was more concerned with his sensei's treatment, tears blurring the man who was the embodiment of his entire world. "Gai-sensei!"

"Bushier-Brow Sensei is going to be all right," Naruto reassured, suddenly teleporting there via the formula he had placed on the man before. "He's not going to die."

"Naruto-kun — you healed him? But I thought he had activated all Eight Gates..."

"It feels like I can do all sorts of crazy things... the way I am right now. You guys look after him. I'll take care of Madara."

"Naruto-kun!" Lee wept. "Thank you for... Gai-Sensei..."

With a nod, the sage turned on his heels.

"Naruto." It was Gaara who stopped him now. "When you become Hokage, let's have a drink together."

"I'll ensure that Shukaku and Kurama joins us, too," he promised with a grin before taking off.

---

...I understand now, Madara mused, gazing unseeingly at the moon as if he had reached some new plateau of enlightenment. The Divine Tree itself... he laughed delightfully. The time has come for all to become one.

Naruto tightened his headband, looking up at the villain who giggled like a child with a new toy.

"You cannot take me down," the megalomaniac assured, clenching gloved fingers into fists. "Essentially, I am completely immortal now! I have attained eternity!"

Unlike his previous adversaries, Naruto knew there was no reasoning with Madara. No eloquent tongue or empathetic speech would bend his will and shift him from his chosen path. For the man thought he was humanity's savior. He knew his philosophy was distasteful and undesirable by the people, but deemed it necessary to induce a better change.

Keeping his lips sealed, Naruto dropped his hands from the straps of his forehead protector. With a controlled breath, he donned his new form, which glowed like the first light of dawn. A conjunction between Six Paths Sage Mode and Nine-Tails Chakra Mode, he had achieved a new pinnacle of greatness.

A circular design sat prominently over his stomach, his attire giving the appearance of a full black body suit beneath an open yellow coat. The whisker-like patterns on his face become thicker to resemble a trigram, and six magatama markings were present on and around his collar.

Naruto outstretched an arm, the intersecting slits of his eyes characteristic of Sage Mode and Kyūbi Mode fixed on his foe. Mentally reaching out to the tiny traces of his chakra still present inside Sasuke, he effortlessly summoned the Uchiha beside him via the Flying Thunder God Technique.

"Your time has come, Madara," Sasuke said by means of introduction, the pattern representing his Sharingan overlapping that of the Rinnegan in his left eye.

Madara tilted his chin arrogantly, regarding the duo from his lofty spot in the sky. One has awakened the Six Paths' Senjutsu and the other awakened the Rinnegan, huh? However... I possess both of those powers!

"This is the final battle!" he said, forming the seal for a lethal attack. "My powers versus yours... let's settle who is superior, once and for all!"

Ignoring the challenge and the looming assault, Naruto turned his head to the side, gazing across the rugged battlefield. "Sasuke. Your role is to provide support and help me to analyze his moves."

"Hah," Sasuke agreed calmly. Despite his new eye, he knew for a fact that Naruto was the only one who stood a chance against the man right now, especially since he absorbed the Divine Tree.

Making use of his augmented sensory abilities, Naruto quickly calculated a few coordinates and locked onto a target beyond the horizon. Tapping into the assorted pool of Bijuu chakra dwelling inside him, he combined the power of Shukaku and Matatabi to create a massive arrow made of sand. The projectile had a pointed tip and a hallowed circle at its end housing a hidden Rasengan.

As if he could not only sense but see his target, Naruto frowned, a flick of his hand launching the arrow like a cannon firing a rocket.

"Sage Art: Magnet Rasenglaive!"

Madara snapped his head to the side, following the trajectory of the deadly weapon as it broke the sound barrier. Before he could deduce who or what its target was, the projectile was already within the airspace of the other battlefield and pierced White Zetsu's chest.

Sarutobi and the rest of the Allied Forces braced themselves under the rippling force of the shockwave. Zetsu shrieked, the sealing ability of Shukaku's magnetic element preventing his escape.

With a fold of his hand, the sand heeded Naruto's distant command. It began shifting its shape, enveloping the parasite inside a ball-like cocoon. And, the Rasengan harboring Matatabi's blue fire at its core, merged inside that constricting sphere.

Burst! Naruto chanted.

And, the resulting explosion was fierce and all-consuming, completely vaporizing every fiber and cell of the parasite along with the wooden titan upon which it was mounted.

Black Zetsu vividly felt as his counterpart abruptly ceased to exist. And the frightening power that dealt the swift blow struck fear in his heart, adding fuel to his endeavor to fight against and retake control of his host. But neither Obito or Sakura had any intention of allowing that to happen.

Madara grinded his teeth in fury.

"One down and two left to go," Naruto threatened with a nonchalance that had the man seething even more.

"Sage Art: Shadow Style Thunder Blast!"

Purple lightning shot out from the man's fingertips, extending downwards like branching veins. Without missing a beat, Naruto used one of his eight Truth Seeking Balls as a lightning rod to completely intercept the attack. Sasuke, on the other hand, completely disappeared, throwing Madara for a loop.

This left eye... so that's what it can do, he deduced inwardly, gazing up at his foe through his fingers.

After receiving Hashirama's power and experiencing death, the ordeal had somehow evoked an evolution of his ocular abilities. As opposed to Madara, however, he had only acquired the Rinnegan in a single eye. It was strange, but he was certain his single Rinnegan held more power than one of Madara's. But his stamina for prolonged use was another matter.

Teleportation? This distance? Madara thought, trying to figure out his kin's special ability. No, he didn't teleport!

Capitalizing on that momentary distraction, Naruto morphed one of his Truth Seeks Orbs into a staff and mounted an attack. Madara retaliated with his phantom warrior, and Naruto flinched, quite familiar with the sensation of the invisible threat.

What is that? Sasuke pondered, his eyes following the elusive creature.

"Sage Art: Gale Style — Fang of Light!"

Naruto ducked in time to avoid being beheaded by a laser beam-like whip that shot out from Madara's mouth. His staff wasn't so lucky, however. It got cut in half, which spoke volumes about the force behind the attack.

It's coming again! Naruto thought, his senses prickling.

Sasuke launched his sword in the phantom's projected path, but it flew right through it. And the seemingly intangible warrior proceeded to attack Naruto, only to be rewarded with a cloud of smoke.

Madara's eyes dilated when a large shadow appeared beneath him. Before he could look up, he was hit with a colossal, double-headed hammer that breached the atmosphere like a meteorite. The explosion that followed shook the earth.

"I can't see it but something's definitely there," Naruto said, suddenly appearing next to Sasuke.

"Oh yeah? I can see it clearly!"

WHOOSH!

The enormous hammer dispersed, and Madara slowly levitated from the crater, evidently damaged from the attack. These guys can see my Limbo...

"It's another Madara...," Sasuke informed in a low tone. "Looks like our physical attacks have no effect on him."

"Yeah. I figured as much," Naruto replied, looking to the sword that had failed at hitting its mark.

Madara raised his hand, morphing an orb into a staff. Normally, one shouldn't be able to sense or see it from this realm. That "me" exists in the invisible world of "Limbo." How did they both obtain such power so suddenly? Especially Naruto... I don't think I'll be able to deal with him without first retrieving my other eye.

So Naruto's Six Path's Sage Chakra can affect the shadow Madara, too, huh? Sasuke concluded, watching as the white phantom hovered close to its master. That wound on his right arm is from blocking Naruto's first attack earlier.

"It seems your shadow returns to your body after a certain amount of time," Sasuke declared, to both Naruto and Madara as he studied the phantom doing just that. "Naruto...," he whispered this time. "When his shadow emerges again, go after it. I'll take on the real one. However—"

"I don't want you putting yourself in any danger..."

"Relax, and just listen. This is our chance. Madara and his shadow will probably stay merged for a little while longer. I don't care what it is, but get a Sage Power Jutsu ready — one that seals movement."

Madara poised himself for what would come next, his attention more learning toward Naruto who was the greater threat. He's estimating the Limbo's duration, activation interval and how to counter it, he noted, sparing Sasuke a momentary glance. He's got sharp intuition, calm analyzing and judgment skills, and ocular abilities similar to my own. If he had only been born before Obito... he would be my— no. There's no point in reflecting now. No matter what's happened, I must keep in mind that these two aren't ordinary brats. I need to get my other eye back soon.

Naruto's eyes narrowed, as if he had caught the fleeting hint of desperation that flickered across the man's stoic visage. And he knew what intention that desperation would spark, which he needed to nip in the bud before circumstances spiraled even more out of control.

"Sage Art: Magnet Style Rasengan!"

"Chidori!"

My input won't be as effective as Naruto's, but I did receive quite a bit of Sage Power from Hashirama. "Naruto, aim that towards me! I'll take care of the rest!"

Without missing a beat, Naruto did as he was told with Sasuke mirroring his charge. The next thing Madara knew, the world around him shifted, and he was now caught in between both attacks. Sasuke's special ocular ability allowed him to switch a target's location with another. Madara understood that now, but it was far too late — the sealing jutsu was already accomplishing its intended purpose.

Or so Naruto and Sasuke thought.

In an instant, Madara decisively turned the tables by substituting himself with his phantom. Then he slingshot himself in Kakashi's general direction, leaving the duo in shock. But Naruto had a contingency plan.

Having applied a Technique Formula through his Rasengan making impact, he teleported Sasuke to the man's location. But, even when cut in half at the waist, Madara found his equilibrium and continued hurling towards his target.

Leaving a clone to hold the phantom down, Naruto teleported himself next. Willing a Truth Seeking Orb into an edged blade, he brought the makeshift sword down into an diagonal slash, hoping to sever the bastard's head from his shoulders.

But Madara was as slippery as Orochimaru. He managed to tilt what was left of his body in time, offering the Jinchūriki an entire arm, instead of his cranium. There was no hesitation or regret — and he dared not slow his speedy career or look back. Before Naruto could teleport and pounce on him again, he covered the distance that separated him from his target.

Like a scouting meerkat, Kakashi pivoted his head to the side. And a pained grunt tore from his mouth before he could comprehend what had happened. In the nanosecond it took Madara to zip by the Jōnin, the man ripped the Sharingan from its place and promptly secured it in his own eye socket.

"Dammit!" Naruto cursed, just merely missing the bastard with another magnet attributed Rasengan.

"Can't you teleport after him?" Sasuke asserted.

"It's too risky. If I don't have enough chakra to make the trip, I could get trapped in between dimensions."

"Tch!"

---

Just to be safe, Obito had entrusted Sakura with an important task. While he focused entirely on preventing Black Zetsu from intervening, the girl was to destroy the Rinnegan. Obito had a gut feeling a mere dimension's distance away wasn't enough to prevent Madara from turning the laws of reality askew to have his way.

And he was right.

Just before Sakura's kunai could puncture its mark, the mastermind appeared, intent on skewering the wench who would dare attempt to foil his plans.

Obito managed to teleport her away just in time, only to have Madara turn the full of his malevolence on him, instead. And what better way to torture him than with the absolute truth of events long passed.

Obito's eyes dilated in horror, his heart all but stilling in his chest. And Madara heaved a devilish grin, relishing the man's despair as he admitted to being the puppet master behind Rin's untimely death. It was all an elaborate plan to pitch Obito into the darkness and equip him with the necessary strings to become a proper marionette.

---

"This is bad!" Sakura exclaimed upon being brought up to speed by Kakashi, Naruto and Sasuke. "Obito had already reached his limit and couldn't move. According to him, if Madara manages to get his other eye back, he's going to become nearly unstoppable!"

"Which is why I was so annoyed when he got away," Naruto said, gesturing that the kunoichi step aside in the treatment of their sensei.

Having achieved a masterful grasp of chakra and the ability to comprehend all universal things, Naruto rested an attentive palm over the man's eye, effortlessly treating it as if he had reversed the very influence of time.

Kakashi blinked his eye open, astounded by the results. It was if he had never lost it in that desperate battle to rescue Rin.

"No way!" Sakura gasped. "How did you do that?"

"Mmm...," Naruto considered that for a while, a finger beneath his chin. "The best way I can describe it is that I took a part of Kakashi-sensei — on a molecular level — propagated and molded that into his new eye."

"Oi, Naruto!" Sasuke snapped. "Shouldn't we be staying alert right now? What are we going to do about Madara?"

"Na-Naruto-kun!" Hinata called breathlessly upon joining their ranks. "I saw what happened! Is everyone all right?"

"Hinata! We're fine. How is Bushier-Brow sensei?"

"He's stable, thanks to you. He just needs a lot of rest."

Kakashi sighed in relief.

And Naruto shrugged, recognizing the anxiety hidden behind Sasuke's growing annoyance. "Don't worry, I have the Bijuu keeping watch, too — and I have a plan. Ideally, it would have been better if Madara didn't regain his other eye. But I think I can still beat him.

Going forward, I'll face him alone. Sasuke, you look after Kakashi-sensei and the girls. Pull back as far as you can. Once Madara returns, I plan to go all out. I don't know what the significance of absorbing the Divine Tree is, but I don't plan on giving him enough space to find out."

"But how do you plan on defeating him?" Sasuke asked, reminding the sage that cutting him in half didn't even slow him down.

"I'm going to try crushing his heart. If that doesn't work, I'll move on to lapping his head off. If neither methods work, then I'll try a seal. It's very risky, so I hope one of the former methods work, instead."

Before anyone could argue, Madara returned with his lower half entirely regenerated. And his eyes radiated a fierce desire for revenge that had Sakura and Hinata quivering in their sandals.

Obito had returned, as well. But the man was suspiciously quiet and still, his close proximity to Madara arousing many questions.

"Unfortunately, Obito is gone," Black Zetsu informed. "I've taken over his body now. Seems he was hoping to right his wrongs. He was praying like a child, deep inside, so that he could leave the future to you all. How convenient that would have been for him, right? Just like a spoiled brat."

Naruto's eyes was a fierce storm. Every word that the parasite spouted had his blood heating to a boil, and he took a calm step forward, his amble stride the embodiment of conviction and rage.

"Naruto!" Sasuke called tellingly.

"Yeah, I know. There are more of them, right?"

Registering his approach as a clear indication that their battle had begun, Madara unleashed his four phantoms on the advancing warrior. At the same time, he took to the skies to unleash a cataclysmic-level attack.

"Catastrophic Planetary Devastation!"

Similar to the god-tiered jutsu Nagato had used in an attempt to subdue a rampaging Kyūbi, Madara released a dark sphere of energy imbued with gravitational properties. But, as opposed to the single sphere that the Almighty Pain had managed to produce, Madara effortlessly replicated dozens that quickly amassed chucks of earth miles wide in diameter. Without hesitation, he launched his fabricated meteors that sparked fire as they breached the atmosphere, intent on completely eradicating the opposition.

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

Naruto tasked four clones to engage the phantoms in close combat, and then he spared Hinata a reassuring gaze before looking to Sasuke. "Go now! All hell is about to break loose!"

Quickly spawning his purple guardian, Sasuke secured Kakashi, Sakura and Hinata inside of a protective screen behind Susanoo's forehead before taking to the skies.

"Bijuu Bomb: Rasenshuriken!"

Even as Naruto's sudden eruption of power supplemented the earth's gravitational pull, slowing Susanoo's speedy ascent, the party watched as the projectile made impact with the first mountainous clump of earth. The resulting explosion destroyed its target like a fragile pane of glass against jagged rocks. And the prolonged vacuum created by the nature of the attack continued shredding the other meteors, like peanuts in a food processor.

Madara paid their efforts no need. It was merely a distraction to seize an opportunity. Breaking off the horn-like crown from his forehead, he turned his full attention to the full moon that seemed closed enough to be plunked. Bearing the characteristics of both Rinnegan and Sharingan, a blood-red eye suddenly snapped open in the center of his forehead, the intricate patterns now being reflected on the moon.

According to that stone tablet: when the one who possesses the power of the Rinne should drawn near to the moon, the eye that can reflect off the moon and grant the infinite dream, shall open. "Shine upon the world... Infinite Tsukuyomi."

The Allied Forces hadn't gotten a chance to breathe, even after the fall of the hooded warrior that terrorized them. Now the ground rumbled beneath their feet as island-sized masses of bedrock were obliterated above the earth. These were the repercussions of a battle leagues above what they had witnessed between Hashirama and Madara. Their duel was one among men who had ascended to the pinnacle of greatness, but this current battle was being waged by gods.

While the shinobi braced themselves in a panic, Akamaru was the only one who noticed the curious change in the moon. Sasuke was the second to take note. And, as if his newly evolved eye had whispered the dangers it posed, he made a breakneck dive to the ground.

Naruto frowned, studying the change in the lunar deity. Shit! If it's making Sasuke haul-ass like that, then it must be serious.

Susanoo made no attempts at a soft landing. The titan practically crash-landed next to Naruto and unloaded its human cargo before nestling around them like a hen protecting its young, giant wings coiling around them to form a velvety cocoon.

With a malicious grin, Madara evoked the jutsu. And a blinding surge of light illuminated the globe. It was as if the morning had dawned, completely dismissing the blackness of night. Earth, wood, concrete — nothing could filter out or escape the penetrating glow. Those who were fast asleep in their beds, or even the many who had taken refuge in underground bunkers, were still subjected to the jutsu's effects.

Animals were no exception.

The warriors of Edo Tensei watched in dismay as their families and comrades stood motionlessly in what seemed like a daze, their eyes locked in a perpetual gaze at the moon. What was most bizarre was the Rinnegan that overlaid their eyes. It was a blatant indicator that Madara was somehow involved in this great tragedy.

"Divine Deep Forest Emergence!"

On top of Infinite Tsukuyomi, the puppet master summoned a field of massive roots. From their groves and crevices, slender wisps of wood reached out to coil around the enchanted victims. Like a spider restraining prey, they spun them inside of a cocoon-like husk.

Try as they may, Sarutobi and Tobirama couldn't stave off the occurrence. As they ripped and sliced through the wooden wisps, more would simply spawn in their wake until the subject was secured.

Fear. Grief. Anxiety. Loss — Naruto could feel as a plethora of negative emotions across the globe converged to form an unspeakable darkness. It resonated in his own heart, like a volcanic eruption, urging his body into motion despite his better judgment.

"Naruto, don't do it right now!" Sasuke exclaimed urgently, a restraining hand upon the sage's shoulder. "Don't go outside right now; without this Susanoo that my eye made, you'd get bound inside his genjutsu, as well!"

"Naruto-kun, please don't go!" Hinata cried pleadingly, clinging to the hem of his jacket. Like Sasuke, she could see what was happening on the outside with her ocular ability. It was terrifying.

The sage allowed his shoulders to sag, his composure gradually returning. "…Sorry to make you worry," he reassured with a smile and a pat on her head. "I've calmed down now, thanks."

Sasuke relinquished his grip, dark eyes grave and unswerving. "Naruto... if you fall, it's all over! We need to bide our time. This is all I can do to help, so allow me to protect you."

Sakura's emerald eyes were automatically drawn to Dark Knight by his uncharacteristic words. Since she returned from Obito's space-time dimension, he somehow seemed different. Almost like the icy wall that surrounded him had thawed. Now, he seemed warm, approachable… human.

A muscle worked in Naruto's jaw. Now that the collective wave of emotions had passed, it was possible to think more clearly. It was evident that everyone was still alive on the outside; they were just trapped inside an illusion that would undoubtedly be dispelled once the caster was defeated.

Sasuke and Hinata were right — ideally, they just needed to bide their time until the opportune moment presented itself. This was all still reversible. He just needed to play his cards right to ensure that Madara got what was coming to him.

But, behind his conceding nod and reassuring smile, a vicious rage grew inside Naruto. What Madara had done was beyond outrageous. Despite the general consensus, he had forcibly entombed the entire world within his selfish ideology. Just thinking about it made his blood seethe beneath his flesh.

All the deaths, all the suffering... was it truly worth it?

---

As the luminous light from the moon subsided, Madara gazed down upon what was once a fierce battlefield. Now all was still, all was quiet, except for a few whose grim fate was already etched into history's stone tablet.

Disposing himself to the divine task — fate's own personal guillotine — Madara slowly floated down to the ground, watching as Sasuke's Susanoo gradually unfurled its wings. "Once I personally guide these pests to the River of Styx, no one will be left to stand in my way!"

That's what he thought. But even the almighty Madara couldn't have accounted for what would happen next. Drunk on his divine power and what he had accomplished thus far, the man had sorely forgotten what people were capable of when they were trapped between a rock and a very hard place. Especially a certain shinobi that had been tasked with, not only ending the war, but ascertaining the true path to peace.

Madara and Black Zetsu watched in surprise as Susanoo launched itself into the sky like a missile, as if desperately trying to escape the looming grip of a nuclear strike.

Had they decided to turn tail and flee?

Did they finally realize the futility of their resistance?

No.

The pull of gravity suddenly doubled.

Madara noted a silhouette emerging from the cover of dust and debris, and the individual's high soprano voice reached out before his body did. The roar of Naruto's battle cry was like the embodiment of wrath and malice itself. And, for an instant, Madara felt the fine hairs at the back of his neck stood on end.

As if a defense mechanism, all four phantoms materialized to protect their master. But Naruto wasn't deterred. He broke through their ranks like a clap of lightening and thunder, and time slowed as his palm spanned the size of Obito's face. Employing his universal comprehension of chakra control, the sage effortlessly separated the parasite from Obito's body, and then sent the man to Sasuke's care via the Flying Thunder God Technique.

Son! Naruto called inwardly, and the Bijuu heeded the call.

Simultaneously combining his wind-natured chakra with that of Son Goku's earth and fire, the sage was able to simulate the effects of Kekkei Tota (Bloodline Selection) and create a new element.

"Dust Release: Atomic Blast Technique!"

Time righted itself as Black Zetsu studied the translucent cube that was essentially his grave. He frantically screamed his discontent, but was promptly reduced to nonetheless in a blink of an eye.

Outraged, Madara flung his arm out, siccing his phantoms on the lone shinobi like a pack of hungry wolves. But still Naruto didn't concede, nor did he even frown. Far from alone, he called out the names of all nine Bijuu, requesting their aid as he raised a single hand to the stars.

"Tailed-Beast Planetary Rasenshuriken!"

Willing an astronomical amount of his power to his command, Naruto weaved and launched a giant Rasenshuriken with a lava-based core. Empowering the projectile even farther — like organic cannons — Shukaku, Matatabi, Isobu, Son Goku, Kokuo, Saiken, Chomei, Gyūki and Kurama fired off a highly compressed Bijuu bomb that synched in rotation around the sphere like planets orbiting around a sun.

The cosmetic phenomenon hummed like an celestial hymn as it traveled along its trajectory with unshakable purpose and resolve.

And Madara flinched.

He didn't need to be psychic to recognize danger. Every nerve ending in his body screamed in alarm. Committing the entirety of his power into a hasty retreat, he watched in a mixture of apprehension and fury as the expanding blast tossed his phantoms from Naruto's path like straws and feathers.

From their high altitude, Sasuke and the others cried out as the shockwave met them like a brick wall. Hashirama, Tobirama and Sarutobi watched in dumbfounderment as a blinding white light effortlessly vaporized thousands of miles of landscape in a matter of moments.

Madara was in disbelief. Slowing to a stop, he turned to assess the scope of the destruction. Miles of land looked as if it had been gorged out and spirited away by an unfathomable force. Despite being airborne, he could feel the earth still rumbling, charged with sparks of energy that prickled his skin like electricity.

Aside from the Kyūbi, Naruto only possessed an inkling of the other Bijuu. Madara, on the other hand, held the majority of their power — including the Divine Tree and the Gedō Mazō. So how? How could he possibly manage to output this magnitude of power?

Before he could even come up with an hypothesis, Madara caught a flash of movement — fiery bright against the black plums of smoke rising up from the land. No sooner had he spied a pair of piercing blue eyes through the thick veil, than Naruto's hand was piercing his chest.

Flabbergasted, the man looked down with wide eyes. What's this...? I can't move? Madara studied the aura emanating from Naruto's arm, noting the elemental traces of sealing-type chakra. "H-How is this possible?"

Like I thought, Naruto thought inwardly. I completely crushed his heart and he didn't even flinch. There's no guarantee that lapping off his head would work, either — and he probably won't allow me to get in this close again.

Despite the violent storm brewing in his oceanic eyes, a muscle worked in Naruto's jaw as he spun the words on his lips. "I wasn't just dwindling my thumbs while you fought my clone," he clarified, his voice quivering in his effort to subdue his anger. "I was devising a way to take you down."

Madara grinded his teeth, veins bulging at his temples as he mustered his strength. But try as he may, he couldn't break free.

"It's pointless. I accepted the fact that you're a seasoned veteran — you're knowledgeable and experienced in warfare. And, on top of that, being a Uchiha makes you exceptional at almost everything. But, your power is limited. My only way to defeat a genius like you before you could analyze and intercept, was in one fell swoop with overwhelming force."

Madara clicked his tongue. With his acute field of vision, he could see Hashirama and his kin observing from below, which made his humiliation soar even further. But, despite the emotions that fueled his power, he still couldn't break free from Naruto's accursed hold.

"While my body was recovering, my mind was still hard at work. I taught Kurama how to gather Senjutsu. With such a large container, he was able to amass an inconceivable amount of power. That coupled with his own chakra and my newly attained divine energy gave me a constant supply of explosive power.

Even as we speak, Kurama's taking in a constant supply of Senjutsu — the earth, the mountains, the seas... even everyone you trapped inside that genjutsu — they're all sharing their power with us. We even took energy from the Divine Tree, before you took it in.

The world is pitching in so that we can finally end your reign of terror, Madara. The difference between you and I is that you chose to walk your path alone, and selfishly kept everyone beneath your thumb as you carried out your acts of tyranny."

"...It's not too late," Madara began, seeking now to fight with words than brawn. "I just severed the Karmic Cycle of this world. I have freed humankind from their suffering, pain and futility."

"All this is just a lie!" Naruto sneered.

"Naruto, you're the one who's interfering with everyone's happiness. Just look at this world now," his eyes motioned to the cocoons suspended from the appendages of the Divine Tree. "All fighting between shinobi has ceased. I've transformed hell into heaven. I've finally corrected Hashirama's mistake."

"What do you mean by the First Hokage's mistake?" Sakura shouted from the protection of Susanoo's bosom.

"You Hidden Leaf may not want to acknowledge it, but Hashirama ultimately failed in reforming the shinobi world. In the beginning, both Hashirama and I had the same goals — and we worked together. We tried to change the culture that sent out barely grown children to war.

As a result, the two of us created the Shinobi Village. However, that does not result in true peace. People cannot show each other their true feelings. Fear, suspicion, and resentment... never subside. My opinions were pushed aside and the shinobi world moved forward in accordance with Hashirama's vision.

And what happened because of it?

The fighting between shinobi didn't stop. Rather than ceasing, establishing ninja villages led to an increase in their military build-up, which resulted in battles that turned into great wars... with countless lives lost. This is Hashirama's legacy to the shinobi world.

Right now, everyone is inside of the Divine Tree. Each one of them, dreaming their own idyllic dreams. They are in their own ideal worlds."

"This is your idea of a perfect world?" Sasuke retorted. "You're just deceiving people."

"I just want to be the savior that ends the long history of fighting amongst shinobi. This is the only path left to humanity..."

Naruto frowned, both unconvinced and unamused. "The First didn't fail," he corrected bashfully. "We no longer live in an age where children are sent out to war. And, thanks in part to Akatsuki, a strong bond was created between all five Kage. The world wasn't created in a day — likewise, you can't expect it to change in a single generation, either.

The First strived for change. Despite having the power to bend everyone to his will, he didn't become a tyrant. He knew that change genuinely needed to be desired and pursed by others. If it was forced or dictated, it could potentially yield the opposite effect. And that's exactly what you've done."

"If there is one thing that I'm sure of, it's that people will never change. Despite Hashirama's shameless pleas to the heads of the other villages, the world didn't change. People need to be herded like sheep—"

"You changed," Naruto interrupted curtly, catching the man off guard. "The only reason you fell from grace is because the other villages didn't share the same vision that brought you and the First together. So you decided to find another answer. But what if there was no segregation? What if those other villages with conflicting ideals didn't exist?"

Madara's forehead furrowed in his reluctance to swallow Naruto's reasoning, but the sage pushed even harder.

"Despite being from rivaling clans, you and the First became friends. Am I wrong? You could both relate to one another because of the burdens you shared. And a tenacious greed for a better future natured you both into powerful warriors that managed to usher in this change.

What if everyone faced the same circumstances?

You destroyed all the Hidden Villages except for Konoha. What if, instead of rebuilding the other villages, everyone moves to the Leaf, instead? If everyone works together toward the same goal, just like you both did, I'm sure our customs will change."

"Kek!" Madara clicked his tongue venomously. "Do you really believe that the other villages will abdicate in favor of your proposal? There are minimalists who seek peace and prosperity, but there are even more who seek conflict and to be drunk on all the pleasures that life has to give. Both you and Hashirama are idealists who are completely blind to the true nature of people.

What you strive to achieve will merely become another idiotic legacy that exposes humanity to another generation of chaos and suffering. Cease your foolishness and surrender to me, Naruto. The world cannot be changed using conventional means. You know this to be true. My plan is nearly complete. All you have to do is surrender the Kyūbi to me and join your friends. This is your only chance to find true happiness — you will be able to reunite with the family you never had and finally become Hokage."

...

There was a moment of silence. So prolonged and deafening it made the onlookers anxious.

"Na-Naruto!" Sakura called worrisomely. "Don't listen to him!"

"Naruto... I'm sure I don't have to remind you about all the sacrifices that have been made up until this point," Kakashi added. "All those killed in the war won't be able to live a life of paradise in a genjutsu. Once you die, there's no coming back."

"To induce a change of this magnitude, it would be weirder if there wasn't at least this level of sacrifice," Madara defended coolly, years of combat and solitude deteriorating his sense of empathy.

Hinata looked on silently with a knowing smile, a hand pressed to her chest. Naruto's delay didn't mean he was considering the Madara's proposal. He was just taking the proper precautions to controls his emotions as he gave the man an opportunity to redeem himself.

But that moment was now passed.

"Are you saying I can't become Hokage on my own?"

Madara may have become antisocial and boorish in the final years of his life, but he hadn't become so insensitive that he couldn't note the rage that was flaring beneath the weight of Naruto's words, stemming on the brink of nuclear meltdown.

Before the tyrant could spin a word of consolation on his tongue, he heard as a broken roar tore from his throat, instead. The power that Naruto wielded suddenly reached deep inside of him — breaching every barrier and barricade — until it got to his core. Like ghostly hands, something all-consuming with absolute power and authority wrapped around the gears, cogs and levers that powered and propelled his entire being. Intent on destroying him.

Severing the conversation induced by Shukaku's need for time, Naruto proceeded to put an end to the stubborn tyrant. At his disposal was the One-Tails' strongest jutsu — a sealing mechanism that would entirely extract a target's chakra.

But, there was a risk.

The target would also share the ability to seal the assailant's chakra. It was a kind of tug-of-war, where the strongest would prevail. But, until Madara who walked a lone path, Naruto had the help of all nine Bijuu. Kurama, in particular, was funneling a monumental amount of Sage Energy to him. It essence, it was as if mother nature and all the people of the world — despite being trapped in a genjutsu — was sharing their power with him. An explosive flash signaled the end of a long battle.

With an emotionless expression, Naruto yanked his hand from the man's chest, a bundle of chakra akin to an inverted Rasengan humming in his palm. Like a star that had lost its light, Madara grew pale and weak, his body emaciated. He plummeted from his once lofty place in the sky, motionlessly crashing to the ground.

Sasuke sighed in relief after appraising Madara for a moment, the tension leaving his body like a punctured balloon.

"Is it really over?" Sakura dared to ask, noting the moment Sasuke deactivated his ocular ability. "Did we finally win?"

"Madara barely has any chakra left," Hinata confirmed exuberantly.

Once Susanoo was grounded, Kakashi took his friend and found a quiet spot to rest the man down on his back. Naruto waited for the moment the Jōnin would urgently request his aid. But the moment never came.

"It's finally over," Obito celebrated in a strained whisper. "Tell Naruto I said thank you. After fighting him, I feel like I've woken up. It was as if I saw my past self when I looked at him. And I regret what I am now. But, for some reason, it also made me happy.

As a kid, I would imagine myself as Hokage so often. That indescribable feeling of exhilaration and anxiety... I think he brought that all back for me. Imagining the village, friends, and me as the Hokage... even after all that's happened, just the thought of it seems to fill up the hole in my heart." he allowed a weary smile. "Maybe it's because it's the end, I find myself rambling all of a sudden."

"You still have a chance, Obito!" Kakashi urged uncharacteristically. "Naruto should be able to heal you—"

The man shook his head in denial. "Even if it was just a droplet in an endless ocean, I've played my part in Naruto defeating Madara and saving the world. Me sticking around would only be a constant reminder of the pain I've inflicted on many people. Besides, I've kept Rin waiting long enough."

"Obito..." Kakashi murmured, regarding the man with a grief-stricken gaze.

"I really made a mess out of the Shinobi World. So much that I don't even know what to say to you before I go."

Kakashi attempted a wholehearted smile behind his mask. "We're able to say goodbye as friends, not enemies. To the old you — the one who was always late because you were helping others. That's plenty enough for me."

Obito smiled faintly, knowing it was more than he deserved. His eyes grew heavy, and he allowed them to drift close. "...Thanks, Kakashi."

Naruto watched from afar. He didn't need to use his abilities. The moment Kakashi's head tilted low, he knew Obito was gone. But the traces of a smile upon the man's lips proved his final moments was not entirely of regret and sorrow. There was evidently some bliss weaved in, and that was enough to put Naruto in better spirits.

Looking down upon the ball of chakra in his hand — the essence of Madara's power — the sage allowed his shoulders to sag. Finally it was over. Now, they just needed to clean up the aftermath of the war. And the first order of business was—

CRASH!

He shattered the sphere with a tight clench of his fingers. From its depths, nine different color chakra emerged, each transforming in a full-sized Bijuu that surrounded their savior.

We finally made it out! Son rejoiced. Kurama, your Jinchūriki's pretty good.

The fox heaved a wolfish grin.

"Kurama, you said the Bijuu's strength are determined by the number of tails they have?" Naruto said with a grin. "I find it pretty ironic then that the jutsu that just saved us all came from Shukaku."

The One-Tailed Bijuu allowed a smog grin, lapping up the compliment like a deprived animal. And he practically beamed at the sight of Kurama's annoyance. It had been far too long since he managed to one-up the dumb fox.

Wearing an ashen expression, Hashirama looked toward his rival and best friend who had suffered a gripping defeat.

"Well done, Naruto," Minato said warmly.

"Indeed. Your feats are definitely worthy of praise."

The voice came from a man who looked almost identical to Madara, but his words held more power and authority. And most noteworthy was that they were pure and sincere.

"Naruto, who's this?" Sakura asked in a low whisper, sharing everyone's curiosity.

"Mmm," he looked the man over, processing his thoughts. "If I had to guess, I'd say he's the Six Paths Super Gramps. I started sensing him after I awakened by my abilities."

The man nodded in confirmation. "Similar to how Minato incorporated both his and Kushina's consciousness inside of the Eight Trigrams Seal, I also preserved myself within the seal that imparted a portion of my powers onto you."

"Six Paths Super Gramps?" Hinata couldn't help but think Naruto was being obnoxious again.

Kakashi broke out into a nervous sweat. "Are you by any chance the legendary...?"

"I am Hagoromo Otsutsuki," the man clarified. "Also known as the Sage of the Six Paths."

"No wonder... you're levitating," Sakura muttered meekly. "At this point, nothing shocks me anymore."

"So you are the one, after all," Kakashi continued. "To be able to independently manifest yourself in a physical form despite dying hundreds of years ago, you're probably the only person who could perform such a godly act."

"Are you Hatake Kakashi?"

"Oh... yes."

"Good job guiding everyone and subduing Madara."

"I hardly played any part at all. It was these four and many comrades. And... a former friend also lent us strength."

"That's why I said you guided everyone well. Despite losing your way, you remained Naruto's teacher and Obito's friend. Or else, you likely wouldn't have succeeded in stopping Madara."

"Oi, Kurama!" Naruto called, running over to the pensive Bijuu. "Were you lonely being separated from me? I missed you!"

Don't talk so loud! Kurama snapped. I wasn't lonely. You have most of me inside you, remember?

Son Goku burst into a fit of laughter.

It must of been contagious, because Hagoromo chuckled, too. "Just look at Kurama, all embarrassed and flustered. But this is exactly what I had once envisioned — that there would one day be a shinobi who could move even the Tailed Beasts to cooperate."

Hinata regarded the Miracle Boy with a loving smile, honored to be the one responsible for safeguarding his heart.

"Oh, everyone!" Naruto called out to the Bijuu with a grin, whipping through a series of complex hand seals. "I have a present for you all."

They watched him intently.

"Bijuu Fission: Jinchūriki's Judgment!"

As opposed to the corresponding jutsu that judged a Bijuu by allowing just the embodiment of their goodwill — the Yang aspect of their character — to emerge from the seal, Naruto gave them the exclusive right to pass through of their own free will.

And nine miniature Tailed Beasts appeared from a cloud of fluffy smoke, looking around from their new adorable skins.

"Bee-kun?" Hinata called in disbelief when she spotted him.

The tiny tyke rushed off to meet her, leaping into the princess' arms despite the presence of his kin. "I've missed you!" she cried.

Except for Matatabi, none of the other Bijuu would admit it, but they longed for a day to be loved and appreciated just the way the Sage of the Sixth Paths treated them when they were young. Considering Kurama's temperament, it was truly ironic that he was the first one to find the haven they all secretly sought.

It's so strange seeing a baby version of myself, Son commented with a quirked muscle that represented eyebrows.

Oi, who are you calling a baby? his counterpart snapped.

Naruto watched in amusement as they all assessed their counterparts. "Until the world is mended, I think it would be for the best if you guys stayed with me."

The Bijuu considered that for a while.

Between having a boundless dimension to explore and being able to visit the real word whenever we please, I think it's a great deal, Kokuo said.

If we get captured, we can just undo the jutsu and respawn again, Chomei added in a laid back tone. It's the perfect method for us!

I think so, too, Matatabi concurred. And I think we will meet more people like Naruto, if we stay by his side.

Everyone else nodded in agreement.

Chibi-me can remain with Naruto, Gyūki began. But I'll go back to Bee. He should be safely tucked away inside of one of my tentacles right now. But the fact he isn't here means he's also under the genjutsu.

What about you, Dumb Tanuki? Kurama ridiculed. Aren't you going back to that Kazekage brat?

Keh! You seem to forget who just saved the world, including your sorry hide, Shukaku gloated shamelessly. Naruto said he plans on uniting the Shinobi World, so I'll see Gaara, either way.

It's settled then, Isobu concluded.

While Naruto was busy assimilating the Bijuu, Sasuke sought to deal the finishing blow to Madara who was still faintly breathing. But Hagoromo raised an arm, stopping the Uchiha in his tracks. "Madara was a Jinchūriki," he said. "Even if it was temporary... emptied of the Tailed Beasts, he won't last long. Sasuke, Naruto — behold, the end of your predecessors. You should watch this closely."

The First knelt before his fallen rival, his visage a mold of many emotions. The most prominent had to be a sense of regret and pity. It clawed at him incessantly, like a dripping facet in the back of his mind that he couldn't shut off or mend.

"Is that you, Hashirama?" Madara murmured beneath his breath, gazing off unseeingly into the dark night's sky.

"Hah..."

"I guess neither you, nor I could achieve what we wanted."

"It's never that easy. Our job is to do all that we can, while we're alive. And then, bequeath the rest for future generations to accomplish."

"So naive... as usual," Madara responded wearily with a wanly smile. "You... were always... the optimist. But perhaps... that is the correct path. My dream was squashed. But your dream... still lives on."

"We were both too hasty. We didn't need to fulfill our dreams ourselves. It was more important to cultivate those who would come after us, to whom we could entrust our dreams."

"Which means I would have failed, anyway. Since I always hated someone... standing behind me."

"When we were kids, you once said we're shinobi and we don't know when we'll die. And that for neither side to die, we'd both have to reveal what's inside of us and pour each other drinks to toast like brothers. But we're both about to die. Right now, we can drink together, as war buddies."

Madara considered that for a while, his lips pulling up into an uncharacteristic smile. "War buddies... huh? Well... I guess... that's okay... by me..."

Hashirama hung his head as his friend, for a second time, moved on to the afterlife ahead of him. Madara's desire for a better world was just, but his methods were unorthodox and unfavorable in the eyes of the people. Could his shortcomings be blamed entirely on the fabled curse of the Uchiha Clan, or the toxic environment in which he was grown?

As the founding Hokage mourned his former ally, everyone took a moment to allow the bittersweet scene to wash over them.

"This is the perfect moment," Hagoromo said, diluting the tension a tad. "I will release the jutsu and free the Kages."

Naruto flinched at those set of words. He looked up at Kurama dejectedly, as if silently hoping the Bijuu could cast some manner of spell to keep this moment suspended in time. But, instead, the deity simply told him to go and bid his final farewell. If this moment ceased to progress, the rest of his dreams would never come to fruition.

"Dad...," Naruto said upon leaping over to his father, his eyes glum and quivering.

Minato attempted a wholehearted smile. "Oh, that's right. I've been meaning to tell you..."

As he weaved the words together in his mind before spinning them upon his lips, the sun rose from beyond the horizon, basking the world in the promise of a new age. "Happy Birthday!"

Tears tipped Hinata's eyes.

"You've become a splendid young man, Naruto. I wish both you and Hinata all the best."

Naruto attempted his own wholehearted smile. "Yeah... thank you."

"We're an existence outside of the rules; we can't remain in this world forever. It's time to say goodbye."

Naruto hug his head somberly as his father was enveloped in a ray of soft light, his soul separating from the human vessel.

And Minato fastened his eyes shut, desperately trying to keep up his fatherly figure rather than falling apart under the weight of his sorrow. "I promise to tell Kushina everything."

"Tell her not to worry," Naruto responded exuberantly, trying to prove his independence and uplift his father's spirits. "Thanks to Hinata, I'm not as picky and eat lots of different foods, including fruits and veggies. I bathe every day, and go to the Leaf Hot Springs once in a while, too. Although everyone just says I only take quick dips."

He laughed awkwardly, lacing his fingers behind his head.

"Let's see what else. Oh. I've made lots of friends! And they're all good guys! And I was really awful at school, but I never got depressed and had more confidence than anyone else!

Naturally, I always obeyed Lord Third and Kakashi-Sensei. I respected them both. They're both right here, so you can ask them yourself. Oh! And those Three Prohibitions of Shinobi? I learned a lot about that when I was with the Ero-Sennin. He was hopeless when it came to them, though. But he was an awesome Sennin and I respected him the most.

I haven't been indulging myself on alcohol. Oh, and I know mom said to find someone like her. Hinata may not be as outgoing and headstrong, but she's just as determined and loving!"

Tears spilled down his face in an echo to hers.

"I'll keep pushing forward and giving life my best. I've got dreams, too! I'm gonna become an even greater Hokage than you, dad! I swear I will! So, when you see mom over there, please tell her... that she doesn't have to worry about me at all! Tell her I'm doing my best!"

Hinata came to a stop behind him and pinched the hem of his jacket affectionately.

"Got it," Minato replied just before he was spirited away by the sky. "I'll make sure to tell her everything. Hinata, thank you for loving our son..."

"H-Hn!" the princess nodded, burying her face in his back.

Sarutobi heaved a radiant smile as he, too, began his permanent departure. "We're leaving the rest to you... Kakashi, Sakura, Sasuke... Hinata and Naruto."

Kakashi bowed his head respectfully.

"Elder Brother," Tobirama began. "You finally settled things with Madara. As Saru said, let's leave the rest to the next generation."

As his soul abandoned the vessel, Hashirama took one final look at his old friend before casting his gaze over the others. Uzumaki Naruto... Uchiha Sasuke... you two will probably find a different conclusion than we did — no, it looks like you both already have. he noted the gentle light of empathy that dwelled in Sasuke's eyes now, and it brought a smile to his face. I'm curious to see how both your stories unfold.

And, all too soon, the previous Kage were gone.

"A very interesting derivative of the Bijuu Fission jutsu," Hagoromo said, appraising the tiny titans. "Except for Gyūki's, all of your chakra is now within Naruto. In short, Naruto is like a home and gathering place for you all. If you want to discuss something, you can speak to each other through your chakra inside Naruto, assuming you're not together in real world.

Kurama..."

Hmm?

"You will be the overseer of the gathering place. It's no longer a hardship for you anymore, is it?"

Well, if you say so, Old Man, I guess I have no choice.

The Bijuu all laughed, incurring the fox's wrath.

Still not upfront with your feelings, Kokuo teased. You haven't changed at all, Kurama.

Naruto grinned, which brought a smile to Hinata's lips, as well.

"So the Great Ninja War is finally over now," Sakura said.

"Yeah," Kakashi replied. "All that's left is..."

"To ensure that a reenactment of Madara's deeds never reoccur, I will be taking the Gedō Mazō statue to the netherworld with me. I will also undo the Infinite Tsukuyomi. But, before that," the sage looked to the Child of Prophecy who came to a halt before him. "Naruto, do you wish to use the eye you received from Itachi?"

Sasuke's eyes widened at the mention of his brother's name. And he looked to Naruto curiously, awaiting his response.

Kakashi and Sakura looked on in surprise, too.

A muscle worked in Naruto's jaw as he considered his options, his disposition hardening. "Jiraiya, my former sensei, searched for the path to true peace all his life. In the end, he passed on that responsibility to me before he died. After sending out thousands of clones in an honest pursuit for knowledge, it feels like I've lived for hundreds of years. But it was enough time for me to come to a conclusion: there's no such thing as complete peace and prosperity."

Everyone gasped in shock.

And Naruto heaved a wanly smile. "Light cannot exist without darkness, after all. There will always be conflict. Of course, that's not to say people can't get along. The Will of Fire has kept Konoha peaceful for many years, because we're a very close-knit community.

Nagato believed that the path to any measure of peace was to understand the pain and values of others. I believe this, too. By living united and working together as one to survive, I'm sure we can achieve a greater level of unity and prosperity than we ever did before.

Despite the deep-seated hatred between the Senju and Uchiha Clan, the First and Madara was able to share their burdens and form a bond, which later resulted in the founding of Konoha. As other civilizations established their villages in turn, a desperate need arose for more resources to cater to their ever growing populace.

A barren region such as Sunagakure would face difficulties in agriculture, forcing them to plunder other villages to make ends meet. Other regions, I would imagine, had similar difficulties, which resulted in reoccurring wars and the cycle of hatred and revenge.

Zabuza. Itachi. Orochimaru. Akatsuki. War has given rise to so many different circumstances. Madara, too, felt that he needed to find the true path to peace and prosperity. But while his intentions were pure, his methods were undesirable.

While I was training in Mount Myōboku, I watched how two animals existed in close physical association, to the benefit of them both, and how, perhaps, that's exactly what the shinobi world needed. When we work together, understand one another's hardships and joy, I think this will make people able to easily relate to one another and coexist in peace.

Seeing as Madara has destroyed all the other villages, and the hearts of the current Kage have been connected, I think this is the opportune moment to unite the shinobi world.

When I learned about Uchiha Shisui's ocular ability from Itachi, I took the eye with the intention of using it in correlation with the Infinite Tsukuyomi. My plan was to forcefully reintroduce Ninshu, where chakra's only possible use is to connect the hearts of people, instead or being infused for ninjutsu. Or to erase hostility within the hearts and minds of people altogether. I hoped, after a generation, the lifestyle would be so integrated into society that the following generations would naturally adapt it.

But, before I play that villainous role, I would feel more comfortable waiting to see what outcome uniting the world will bring."

A prolonged moment of silence arrested the atmosphere. There was a lot to unpack from what Naruto said. But Sasuke could readily relate to his perspective. After listening to the Kages' story, he had moved on from his path of vengeance and desired, instead, to induce a revolution. It was becoming increasingly obvious that the world's current system was dreadfully flawed. And, after leaving the comfort of the nest, Naruto gone out into the world and figured it out, too.

Hagoromo pulled his long goatee pensively.

Despite being intelligent and self-aware creatures, humans, like any other species, were but savage animals at their core. The rules and norms of today's society was made to suppress people's natural inclination to satisfy their desires. But what happens when instincts triumph over one's better judgment?

Naruto's point-of-view was understandable. The world was pivoted on a broken system. Perhaps the best remedy wouldn't arise from the morally sound part of the spectrum, but something unorthodox and severely controversial.

"I created the religious discipline of Ninshu to spread peace and unity throughout the world. By imparting my chakra onto my followers, I was able to connect the heart of each and every soul, making it easy to for people to understand one another's feelings. But, as you mentioned, Naruto, that interconnecting chakra was eventually manipulated into weapons that sowed the seeds of conflict and discord. Today, Ninshu is known as chakra.

Child of Prophecy, I failed in my attempt at uniting the world. Now I have no choice but to leave this feat in your capable hands."

"How can you have so much faith in Naruto?" Kakashi asked.

"Because he was the only one capable of saving and befriending Kurama, who had become a concretion of hatred. Naruto," he won the shinobi's unwavering gaze. "Prophecies of your great deeds did not start in this generation. Gamamaru and I placed our bets on you thousands of years prior to your birth."

Everyone gasped in abject shock.

"Now go and make your will be known. As promised, I will undo the Infinite Tsukuyomi and take the Gedō statue with me. Farewell.

---

Epilogue: Happily Ever After

A gentle autumn's breeze tousled the cherry tree under which they stood, carrying off a flurry of leaves by their cheeks. But Naruto and Hinata didn't waver. They were lost in each others eyes, caught in a web of love and enchantment. They came back to reality in time to hear as the priest recited the line: You may kiss the bride.

Liquid sapphire, Naruto's eyes smoldered in veneration. Using the back of his fingers, he feathered a touch across Hinata's downy cheek before tenderly capturing her painted lips in a solemn seal.

Bee let out an excited howl, his high soprano voice echoing octaves above everyone else's cheer. Then he learned forward, deft hands moving over his audio mixer to bring forth a pleasant ceremonial melody.

Garbed in a fancy white tuxedo and frilly white dress, our NaruHina couple turned to face the exuberant crowd with a smile. Then Naruto rose a hand skyward, his grin seeming almost sinister as a silent command summoned dense thunderclouds overhead that completely blotted out the sun.

"Hit it!"

At his signal, fireworks exploded in the sky, the darkness induced by the clouds providing the perfect backdrop for the impressive spectacle. And everyone looked on in awe, but Naruto wasn't done.

Next, stage lights flicked on, highlighting the glamorous couple. And, all around the city, giant digital billboards started livestreaming the Hokage and his wife who had just renew their vows, illuminating the spectators who stopped to watch.

The melody streaming out of the speakers ended on a classical scratch sound effect. Now the familiar chime of a song spilled forth: Bill Medley & Jennifer Warnes – I've Had the Time of my Life.

With a wild and saucy flair, Hinata cupped and ripped her off-shoulder wedding dress, the once long skirt now cut off at her thighs. In the same beat, Naruto doffed and twirled his jacket, revealing a perfectly chiseled chest beneath a close-fitting tank top.

And then they started to sing.

Now I've had the time of my life

No, I never felt like this before

Yes I swear, it's the truth

And I owe it all to you

'Cause I've had the time of my life

And I owe it all to you

Ino, Sakura, Tenten, and many other women screamed as Naruto and Hinata's harmonious voices came to life. Those who weren't able to make the couple's ceremony united in the bustling city streets and at home in front of the television, completely captivated by the performance.

Thrusting their hips from left to right, hand-in-hand, the dancing duet downed the flight of steps from the alter. Then they turned to one another, eyes smoldering beneath a sweep of thick eyelashes. They rolled their hips in time with the sexy beat, getting up close and personal, which won another wave of excited screams.

I've been waiting for so long

Now I've finally found someone to stand by me

We saw the writing on the wall

And we felt this magical fantasy

Now with passion in our eyes

There's no way we could disguise it secretly

So we take each other's hand

'Cause we seem to understand the urgency

Holding each other's hot gaze, they gyrated their bodies, moving in close and then back teasingly. The audience could almost see the passion rolling of their bodies, feel the truth of it swelling in their hearts. The possessive lyrics of the song and the sinuous movement of the singers had everyone pairing up and surrendering themselves to the contagious groove. But, all the while, Naruto and Hinata were caught in their own private maelstrom of emotions. Imprisoned by that familiar static, loathing the idea of slipping free.

With my body and soul

I want you more than you'll ever know

So we'll just let it go

Don't be afraid to lose control, no

Yes, I know what's on your mind

When you say, stay with me tonight

Everyone stopped breathing as Naruto and Hinata pulled in close, rocking their hips, pumping and grinding. Their breaths were heavy, eyes wild and hungry. She had a limp hand upon the hard wall of his chest. His slowly curved around her waist and back, supporting her weight as she dipped low and pivoted her back in a circular motion. It was a breathtaking dance move, and then they were singing again.

Just remember

You're the one thing

I can't get enough of

So I'll tell you something

This could be love, because

I've had the time of life

No, I never felt this way before

Yes, I swear, it's the truth

And I owe it all to you

The sexy hum of a saxophone took over from the couple, washing over the audience with alarm effectiveness, elevating them up, up, higher, into a state of frenzied euphoria attainable only through the most powerful music.

When the speakers went silent, screams, whistling and cheering erupted all throughout the city. Naruto and Hinata were still hopelessly lost in each other's eyes, their chest heaving, body hot and intermingled.

When the livestreaming was over and the dark clouds dispersed, mothers finally uncovered their children's eyes with a warm tingle in their tummies.

"Get a room you two!" Ino teased playfully as she ambled over with Sai in tow.

"Yeah, you both can let go now!" Tenten added with a blush.

"Amazing performance, Naruto-kun!" Lee gushed. "You're a shining example of the Springtime of Youth!"

"You were amazing, Hinata!" Sakura chimed in.

While friends and acquaintances compliment and teased the couple, the Chibi-Bijuu were busy running a makeshift daycare in a corner of the congregation. Toddlers were surprisingly taken by the adorable Chakra-Monsters. Kurama, however, was in his third form sipping on sake while surrounded by his harem that had only grown in size over the years.

While Bee kept the crowd immersed in his smooth transitions of various music genres, the rookies pulled together in a tight-knit group and began socializing.

"Even after twelve years, a western style wedding is still so romantic!" Ino gushed with starry eyes. "Honey, why didn't we make our wedding reception the same?"

Sai smiled coolly, years of experience refining his social etiquette and sensitivity to women. "We'll just follow Naruto and Hinata-san's example and renew our vows in the same way."

Chōji licked his lip. "Do I get an invite?"

Karui elbowed him in the gut. "Do you never stop thinking about food?"

Temari giggled, the merry sound spreading a smile across Shikamaru's lips, in turn. "Some things never change, eh, ol' pal?"

"There's never a dull moment when we're with your friends," Tamaki laughed, allowing her husband to twirl her around.

"Just remember to never called him the f-word," Kiba warned with a wolfish grin.

Tenten sneered at her husband who, as per usual, was trying to turn everything into a competition with his best friend. "I still can't believe that you ended up with Karin, Neji. I guess polar opposites do attract, after all."

Karin pounced on her husband lovingly, who sported a flare similar to the man she loved many years ago. "He may look innocent on the outside, but my Neji-kyun have a thing for naughty girls like me."

Neji cupped her mouth a second too late, and everyone burst into a fit of laughter, a bright red stain burning his cheeks.

A blush crept into Sasuke's cheek, too, even as he struggled under Sakura's patient tutelage as she taught him how to waltz.

"Sakura-chan," Hanabi called playfully. "Just have him use his Sharingan, he'll learn much faster."

Sasuke flashed her an icy gaze.

"Kowai!" she flinched.

"By the way, Naruto-niichan," Konohamaru began. "Where did Daisuke go? He's not with the other kids..."

"Now that you mention it, Ayame is gone, too!" Sakura added.

Naruto tousled his hair embarrassingly. "They were practically bouncing off the walls to get their mission started, so they left the city a few days ago."

"Hmph." Sasuke chuckled. "Sounds like a pair of numbskulls I used to know."

Naruto grinned mischievously, relishing the memories of his youth. And Hinata buried her face in the broad of his chest, inhaling his intoxicating scent.

September 26th

Weather: Sunny

Dear Dairy,

Twelve years have passed since the cataclysmic battle against Uchiha Madara. As per Naruto-kun's will, the shinobi world united. Today, we all live in a large metropolis called Nuwtopia. Despite renaming our home, the Will of Fire still lives on, and have not slowed in consuming the hearts of the new citizens.

It's truly divine.

With everyone working together to make ends meet, people have been able to successfully coexist, and the city thrived, as a result. With less conflicts, there is no longer a need for many shinobi. But those that remained loyal to the craft continued to sharpen their skills and be vigilant. While the Five Great Countries have merged, there were still smaller villages in existence and, for the most part, their intentions were unknown.

As Naruto-kun promised, I no longer need to don my forehead protector and ninja pouch. For the last decade, I've been playing my role as a diligent housewife. When I'm not busy tending to Daisuke or the house, I lose myself in books or knitting. I wonder what hobby I should adopt next!

Oh, that's right. To ensure people led more enriched and fulfilling lives, the council encouraged the citizens to chase their dreams, no matter how bizarre they may seem. That was many years ago. Since then, Orochimaru-sama have let loose — no, he's not dabbling in forbidden jutsus anymore. Instead, he has pioneered us into a new age of technological advancements. Fields of science that were once highly esoteric has now become commonplace.

As human ingenuity became more complex, it became a catalyst for other fields of science and recreational activities to bloom. From aviation, astronomy, and psychics, to cinema, museums and zoos, just to name a few.

Sure people were more content with an endless assortment of different things to partake in, but Naruto-kun believes that Madara was right. While some people desired nothing but peace and happiness, there were a few who preferred conflict and discord. To that end, a large coliseum was erected in the city. Participants were able to fight whenever they pleased and earn honor and prestige based on their performance.

Those who preferred to create havoc outside the arena was swiftly disciplined. As no one was capable of escaping the iron fist of justice, it acted as an effective deterrent against crime. I can't tell the last time I heard there was an incident in the city.

As Naruto-kun vowed to his father, he's become an incredible Hokage, and an even greater husband and father. He mostly stays home with us and allows his clones to work. Because of that, he's never missed a birthday or anniversary. I think he feels an inherent desire to shower us with the love and attention he didn't receive growing up. It's very sweet!

Sasuke-kun spent a few months away traveling the world and helping people. I think he was trying to find a way to atone for his sins and redeem himself. He returned just before Sakura-san gave birth to baby Ayame.

Naruto-kun told me that he died while fighting Madara. Of course, we didn't breathe a word about it to Sakura-san. It was Akiko and the Coatlicue Ring that brought him back to life. Apparently, Sasuke-kun was never the same since. He's practically reverted to the way he was when we were kids — cool, decisive, arrogant, but very approachable.

Shino-kun is the only one among us who is still single. But I think he prefers it that way. Like Iruka-sensei, he became a teacher and dedicated his life to imparting everything he knows to the next generation. Despite appearances, he's very good with kids.

We never met the Sage of the Sixth Paths again. But I'm sure he's looking down upon us with a smile, wherever he is. As for the Bijuu, they have finally found true peace. Instead of weapons of mass destruction, they are now regarded as deities. It's a rare occurrence, but sometimes you will see one of them playing with the children at the Academy. Just as abruptly as they appear, they are whisked away like fairies. It's so surreal and magical that some people actually worship them.

Most of our seniors have gone into retirement. With the world now peaceful, I guess it really isn't that surprising. They are occasionally invited to the Academy as guess instructors, to impart their knowledge onto the next generation. But, for the most part, they have picked up new lifestyles, or have left the city on long journeys.

All is well.

The world is experiencing prosperity like never before. As for me, I'm happy beyond measure!

---

Hinata and Kurama watched with a warm smile as Naruto traced his finger along the age-old lines that formed their name in the tree trunk.

= Hinata + Naruto =

IIII

"We're a few years late. But, with this, we've fulfilled our promise," Naruto said solemnly, turning to face them with a quivering light of compassion in his eyes. "Thank you both for coming back. My world wouldn't be complete without you."

"Naruto-kun..."

"Keh!" Kurama pouted embarrassingly. After twelve years of being subjected to such torture, he still hadn't gotten even relatively used to it. "The kids are nearing their destination, so it's about time I head back."

"Thanks, buddy. Be sure keep them in line."

Hinata giggled endearingly as the tiny Bijuu vanished in a puff of smoke. And a neat smile stretched her lips when Naruto chivalrously offered her his hand. Encircled by the embrace of Darlyn's Grove, he pulled the woman of his dreams against his chest with such flair it utterly took her breath away.

"I love you so much," she managed to whisper.

Naruto softly kissed the pair of lips from which the heartfelt words were uttered, his fingertips tenderly skimming across her soft, milky skin. "I think Natsumi is long overdue. What do you think?"

The princess flushed, tears swelling in her eyes. Pulling back, she looked up at her glorious knight who was already whisking away the salty tears spilling over her cheeks. Now that he had grown out his hair, he was the splitting image of his father. "H-Hn! Let's have a daughter, Naruto-kun…"

The moment the words left her lips, he vanished in a fluffy ball of smoke. And Hinata could feel her center heat in response; she had been with this man for over twelve years now. Whenever he vanished like that, it meant he had a very special treat in stored – a treat that would culminate with something hard and veiny, deep inside of her world.

Spurred on by the delicious promise, the princess cautiously entered the nostalgic cottage home. She expected some measure of battle against dust bunnies, but the familiar space was evidently cleaned and aired out in advance.

The sound of Ariana Grande and The Weeknd's Love Me Harder hummed from a stereo. Rose petals and candles led Hinata to the master bedroom. Inside, nonchalantly leaning against the bed's headboard, was a breathtaking Naruto.

Candlelight tinted his russet-colored skin. He was already naked, an impatient cock taut below his waist. It had been twelve years, but the static between them had not waned. An absolute and all-consuming force pulled them to each other, like magnets.

And Hinata didn't resist.

Her arousal made her lightheaded as she stepped out of her spaghetti-strap dress and ambled over to him. The next thing she knew, his hot member was filling her small mouth, even as he held her upside down against his hard body, his tongue parting her wet cleft.

The princess let out a cute mewl around the width of him as that capable tongue dipped inside her pocket. She felt so open and exposed to him, and her heart thrummed a frantic tattoo by the erotic way he found to devour her.

As her fever grew beyond control, time progressed in that disjointed fashion she had come to know, the gaps filled with raging orgasms that had her struggling to keep her head above the unmerciful tides.

The princess whipped her head back, the luster of her hair a cascading waterfall down her back. She panted as she rode him, mounted atop her favorite stallion. She rolled her hips, his thick muscle pressing against her sensitive walls.

Coaxed by the sinuous bounce of supple curves and perky peaks, Naruto learned forward, even as he found the right tempo to thrust his hips, moving in perfect harmony with her. His large hands cupped her breasts and squeezed, then his wet mouth closed around one aching peak, wringing a broken gasp from her.

"Please don't stop!" she pleaded breathlessly, a combination of flavors trigging a telling quickening in her tummy. Squeezing his cock deeper inside her, the entranced princess grinded against him, rocking back and forth, until another rippling orgasm pulled her under.

Now Hinata was bending over against the bed, liquid crystal eyes glazed with shock and delight by their sacred ceremony of give-and-take. She gripped the sheets with a lascivious sigh, her body pushing forward as a plug eased into her forbidden chambers. Then her inner goddess was crying out when Naruto slipped into her center right afterwards — hard, hot, lean, and veiny.

"Nhh!" the princess moaned, all three girls did. "I feel so full! Please don't stop!"

Naruto's response was a hard grunt, but he welcomed the carnal demand. His cock delved deliciously hard and delicious deep, each sweet assault pushing her closer to that familiar summit.

"Love me harder!" Hinata asserted, reciting the song. "Fuck me harder!" she dared to challenge.

In response — his heart drumming in his ears — Naruto clasped her hair and pressed her back down, her ass propped up. Hinata's body flushed deeper as he drove his pelvis forward, his steely rod thrusting deep. Again and again he rammed her. He watched that lewd interaction between her tight pussy and his cock, wet flesh over hard steel.

Hinata cried out endearingly when he drove his hand down on her defenseless behind, those round cheeks giggling as his body slammed into her over and over again. He was mindless and fierce — a sensual beast who cared about nothing else but driving her over the edge and leaping off behind her.

TAP-TAP-TAP-TAP-TAP!

The erotic sound filled the room. But still he ponded, lifting her higher. Then Hinata came apart around him, a violent orgasm that threatened to rob her of her consciousness. But she desperately clung to the realm that gifted her with such ecstasy, losing her voice, instead. The princess went pink in the face as Naruto continued his delicious onslaught. He was like an unchained animal, viciously taking what he desired, and she openly relished his intensity. She longed for it.

Finally he stilled, his body quaking as he shot his warm seed deep inside her womb. Then Hinata breathed, finally able to pull a lungful of air into her lungs.

The princess's legs trembled under the weight of what he had given her. Even as her orgasms collectively stole her strength, she kept her muscles together, eager to experience her newest obsession. And when Naruto replaced the plug with the real thing, an amorous moan spilled from her throat.

Love me, love me, love me

Harder, harder, harder

Ariana's voice spilled out from the stereo, ushering the couple even deeper into ecstasy's dark embrace. Naruto tilted his head back as he sought for control, his lean length and width slipping into Hinata's forbidden chambers. Just the thought of that had him standing precariously on the razor's edge, staring into the sweet abyss, ready to cum.

Hinata was drunk.

Her eyes gleamed and her mouth went agape. Her pussy clenched as her dreamboat of a husband filled her rear with his godly pole. And a whimper escaped sultry lips as he slowly began his conquest.

"Yes! Yes! Yes! Fuck yes!" Hinata chanted mindlessly, dropping to her forearms as pleasure replaced energy.

She buried her face in the sheets and screamed as Naruto gradually increased his slow pace. With each tantalizing thrust, Hinata found the waves getting stronger, intent on knocking her off her crudely made raft. But the princess was too intoxicated to care.

Recklessly, she snaked a hand between her legs, tiny fingers playing over her clitoris, which stroked the waves even higher. And Naruto heaved a curse beneath his breath when she tightened around him, a fierce storm engulfing them both.

"I'm going to cum!" Hinata cried out adorably.

And, as if her lewd outburst was the trigger, Naruto gripped her close and stilled, his hot semen filling another hole. "Oh, fuck, Hinata! I'm cumming in your ass!"

The words tore raspingly from his throat, his body quaking violently against her. As their bodies hummed a tone that no musician could emulate, they both fell off the razor's edge together, tumbling high and low, out of bounds, beyond reason. To a place where all that held form was a web that weaved them together inside a cocoon of sensual love and unity.

---

From atop the newest addition to the stone faces, Sakura gazed down upon the bustling metropolis that was Nuwtopia, liquid emerald eyes worshipping the breathtaking view.

"Amazing, isn't it?"

The small voice came from Hinata who sat next to her, their legs tangling off the edge like a pair of lovesick school girls. Sakura smiled mischievously when she spied the telltale of a postcotial glow tinting the girl's voluptuous features. "Your cheeks are awfully rosy today, Hinata."

Our Snugglie Wugglie blushed even deeper, completely caught off guard. Then her brows furrowed with evident challenge when she noted similar traces upon her nosey friend. "You're not one to talk."

Sakura chuckled gleefully, impressed by the princess's gusty comeback. And she pulled the girl into a playful embrace, their cheeks squished together. "Have you guys been trying?"

Hinata nodded exuberantly. "Have you both been, as well?"

Standing behind them, Naruto and Sasuke bumped fists with a smog smile, winning an icy gaze from Sakura. And the girl couldn't help but heave an exasperated sigh. "Why do I get the feeling this is just another competition between them?"

Hinata giggled endearingly, then she learned in for a quiet whisper. "I think I like this kind of competition…"

Sakura pulled back in evident shock, then she looked away sheepishly, a finger beneath her lip. "I can't deny that I like it, too," she whispered back, stealing a peek at her White Knight.

Naruto elbowed him teasingly, and then threw an arm around his shoulder. "Man, who would've thought. You gave all the girls such a cold shoulder back in the day, I almost thought you were gay."

"What the hell?" Sasuke shrugged him off. "At least I wasn't a pervert like you!"

Our Golden Knight laced his fingers behind his head and laughed out loud, the merry sound bringing a smile to everyone's lips.

---

Thousands of miles away — basking in his glorious second form — Kurama stood firm atop a familiar cliff overlooking the broken city of Exzzodia. Upon his back were the children of the two most powerful shinobi to ever walk the face of the planet. And today, right here, right now, the kids intended to fulfill a promised that was made little over twelve years ago.

A single droplet in an endless ocean will create and endless ripple. It was time the cycle of hatred and revenge be replaced with effusive acts of kindness.

---

In a remote corner of Mount Myōboku, a prominent old sage and author deftly added the final stroke to an alphabet. With a contented smile, Jiraiya placed his pen aside and closed the cover of a brand new novel he just got done writing.

Like a mother adoring her newborn child, the man gently skimmed his fingers across the title of his final masterpiece — Hinata's Sensual Adventure: The Chronicle's End. "Well then, I guess it's about time I reconnected with the world."

---

Author's Notes:

---

Dem feelz, man... dem feelz.

I know the type of tune your heart is playing right now; I've been working on this fanfiction for ten years. As I wrote the last few words, I felt a bittersweet sting in my heart – but just mostly happy I was able to finish.

Thank you so much for reading, especially to those awesome people who have been with me since the very first chapter. This journey has been a wonderful learning experience. Your interactions have been my fuel. Your comments motivated me to push forward and continue refining my skills as a writer.

I would also like to apologize, though. I'm so sorry that it took so long for me to finish. I mean, the series ended egos ago. But, as some of you know, between school and working multiple jobs for a few years, I've been ridiculously busy.

I honestly enjoy writing fanfictions, and I would love to continue doing so. But, I've decided its time to weave my own original tale so that I can leave my mark in the world like other prominent figures such as Masashi Kishimoto, Eiichiro Oda, and Akira Toriyama.

To that end, I recently (2023) started working on my own anime series. At the moment, the title is "Hacking the Game Didn't Turn Out the Way I Intended", and it's going to be an isekai based in the world of Sehreneti Online - a VRMMORPG. I've set the release date to the end of the year so that I'll be way ahead with the light novel. In addition, I've published a few novels on Amazon.

Links can be found in my bio. Join the family so that you will be afloat with all the latest updates. Your support would mean the world to me \('w')/

In conclusion, I would just like to once again extend another big "thank you" for all your support over the years. I'm looking forward to everyone's response to the final chapter, as always – and I hope that I will continue to be in your care as I press forward upon my journey to please and appease.

Love you all.

Take care.

Discord Link: https://dsc.gg/vaughnschneider

https://youtu.be/nk5hIL8_HTQ