“AAAAAAAAARGH!!” Jin screams with mixed feelings of pain and fury.

Mere moments before Menma’s jutsu went off, Jin had managed to progress his Susano’o to its musculature state; whether an act of God or through his own skill, Jin had survived. The young man hovers just above the clouds, he trembles in agony as his body is covered in fourth degree burns and an arm and leg are gone; smoke is emitting from his injuries due to his body regenerating from the damage.

“Fuck yoooouu!!” Jin shouts at the top of his lungs. …Oh, shit--is Sasuke alright?

Jin has already healed enough to allow for coherent thought. After cursing Menma, Jin quickly looks back and sees a large, black sphere floating just a few feet behind him; there are no visible signs of damage. Jin has his barrier open up; he spots a pair of Eternal Mangekyo staring right back at him.

“You look disgusting.” Sasuke goads.

“Ha! Like you should talk.” Jin refers to Sasuke’s wings that resemble webbed hands.

As Jin has the barrier fully separated with the orbs returning to their respective positions behind him, his arm has fully regrown, and his leg is still in the process of regenerating the foot. Sasuke is about to descend when the Onikage grabs the rogue ninja by his wing.

“What?” Sasuke asks.

“Stand down and wait with the others… Ayanami and I will handle Menma.” Jin speaks with a calm clarity. “At the moment, we’re the only ones who can take him.”

Sasuke’s stoic expression becomes an irritated scowl. “You may have saved me, but don’t let it go to your head. Don’t underestimate the Uch–”

“Sasuke, shut the fuck up and listen for once in your life…” Jin drops all pretenses. “Not only did I smash through your Senjutsu Susano’o like it was nothing, I protected you from an attack that made me think I was actually going to die. Right here and now, to me, you ARE a child that needs to be protected… Stand. Down.”

Jin can see the frustration brimming in Sasuke’s eyes, the young Uchiha clenches his fists. Jin steels himself and starts infusing chakra, the young Uzumaki is willing to force Sasuke to stand down; the Onikage gives the rogue ninja a stern look and stands his ground. The tension is palpable, their standoff lasts a brief moment before Sasuke finally backs down, reluctantly.

“Fine, I’ll leave the rest to you… for now. You… really have changed since I last saw you, Jin.” Sasuke concedes.

Jin shrugs. “Even cowards can rise to the occasion. Fire Style: Demon Lantern!”

Scores and scores of the ghostly fireballs are formed, they float ominously above the clouds with Jin and Sasuke; the fireballs coupled with the night sky remind Jin of Halloween. With a snap of his fingers, Jin has his Demon Lanterns go off like the Fourth of July, causing the ambient temperature of the atmosphere to rise rapidly and create an ascending air current. The number of thunderclouds increases exponentially.

“You copied my techniques as well? Try inventing your own jutsu for once.” Arms folded, Sasuke scoffs.

“All jutsu are created and then taught--I REALLY don’t see the problem here.” Jin replies with an innocent yet smug grin.

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In the aftermath of their jutsu colliding, Ayanami and Menma are forced away from each other by the subsequent explosion. The kunoichi bounces and skids along the ground before finally recovering and coming to a complete stop.

“No! I won't lose he--AAAAARGH!”

Just as Menma was picking himself up, there was a flash of light; Menma was smashed into the ground with a being composed entirely out of lightning biting down fiercely on his torso. Seconds later, the majestic creature explodes in a brilliant fashion with lightning flying in all directions.

“That was for blowing me up, you son of a bitch!” Jin exclaims, slowly descending.

The Onikage lands gently at his friend's side, his smoke still emits smoke from regenerating. He feels Ayanami’s gaze on him.

“Is Sasuke alright?” The Hyuga asks.

Jin nods with a curt, “Yup.”

Both ninjas keep their eyes fixed on the smoldering crater. Jin’s attack had actually melted the ground Menma was standing on and left some residual electricity that occasionally flickers. They watch the evil Naruto pull himself out of the hole, he is covered in third and fourth-degree burns, lightning sparks off his body, Menma is not happy in the slightest.

“I… I won’t accept this… I… I will NOT lose to scum like YOU…” After his outburst, the doppelganger recomposes himself with a sinister smile. “I’ve STILL got ways of dealing with you.”

The doppelganger crouches down, placing his hands on the ground. Moments later, a colossal tree bursts out of the ground with four large flowers growing out of its trunk. Each of the flowers amass enormous amounts of chakra for four simultaneous Tailed Beast Bombs.

“Heh heh heh… You’re all gonna die here. I’ll make sure of it.” Menma giggles, twistedly.

Their adversary rises into the air and rotates, launching chakra receivers in six different directions. While wearing a determined expression, Menma weaves several hand signs in quick succession. An even larger and more powerful Crismon Ray barrier forms over the entire battlefield, entrapping all combatants in with the tree.

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I know what to do… Echo contemplates, gazing at the red barrier.

The time-traveler coldly turns and walks away to the surprise and confusion of Yomi. Their battle is now as good as over.

“Running away, are we?” Moryo’s second-in-command mocks.

Echo looks back with a cold, venomous glare. “Fry, bitch.”

Not bothering to say another word, Echo disappears in the form of a flicker. Left to his own devices, a perplexed Yomi turns away and watches the kaiju fight in the distance; Mecha-Kurama grabs hold of the fire dragon and suplexes the beast hard into the ground before disappearing in the same manner as Echo.

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--there’s no exit for the energy, it’ll just follow and vaporize us… Rito broods over a way to save himself and his friends. Hmm… maybe I SHOULD just wait for Naruto and his ol’ man to save us?

“I take it Tsume’s summoning time ran out?” Echo asks, appearing right behind the boy.

Rito looks back. “Hmm? Nah yeah, she went back to wherever I plucked her from.”

“I have a way to save us, but I need the power of your Nine-Tails cloak.” Echo holds out his hand.

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“This is bad…” Ayanami mutters.

The four Tailed Beast Bombs have grown in size, they look as if they are almost ready to launch. Menma has already encased himself in a protective barrier made from his Truth-Seeker Orbs.

Jin reassuringly tells her, “Don’t worry, I’ve–”

“I’ve got it covered.” Echo interrupts.

The time-traveling Jin of the future grabs them both and before they know it, they are in an entirely different location. Where they have just been transported to is all too familiar to Jin; they are deep inside a cave, surrounded by a thick, foreboding fog, one so thick they can’t even see a few yards ahead themselves.

“So where are we?” Rito asks, breaking the silence.

Echo, of all the places you could’ve teleported us to, why’d you send us here? Wearing a blank expression, Jin answers with a curt, “Ryuchi cave.”

“So this is where you trained to be a snake sage? It’s kinda gloomy here.” Ayanami chimes in.

“Yeah. Don’t eat any of the food they offer you.”

“I thought that voice sounded familiar…” Says the disembodied voice of an elderly woman. “It’s been a long time, boy.”

The fog mysteriously begins to clear, revealing the team’s surroundings. Rito, Ayanami, and Mecha-Naruto notice how Jin and Echo are gazing at the top of a flight of stairs. They look in the same direction and see a pair of giant, amber eyes staring right back at them.

The owner of the eyes is an extremely large, albino, Japanese rat snake. She wears a turban with two pointed edges and a red orb on top along with an orange headdress. She also wears a chain with a green orb around her neck. The snake sits leisurely upon her sacred seat, smoking her cigarette contentedly.

Jin gives a polite bow. “Master White Snake Sage, long time no se–”

“Now, Jin, you should know well by now that all who come to learn sage mode must first pass the trials. I won’t make any exceptions for your friends.” The White Snake Sage puffs forth smoke.

The Onikage detects a twinge of annoyance in her voice. Since her face is that of a snake, Jin is unable to measure how upset she truly is.

“Oh, no, no, we’re not here for that--sorry to intrude. We’ll be on our way now. Goodbye!” Jin nervously shakes his head.

“C’mon guys, let’s go!” Jin beckons everyone over.

“Uhhh… How exactly are we supposed to get back to the battlefield?” A stretching Ayanami asks.

“I know a guy.”

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Several meters outside of Menma’s Crismon Ray barrier, someone digs his way out from underground; it is another Jin. He hurriedly crouches down, infusing chakra.

Jin quickly presses his hand against the ground. “Summoning Jutsu.”

A jutsu formula forms on the ground and seconds later, the team appears in a puff of smoke. To his confusion, Echo looks back and sees the other Jin crouched down.

“Why didn’t you tell us you had an emergency clone stashed away?!” The masked man questions, angrily.

“Because YOU teleported us before I could say or do anything!” Jin snaps back.