Chapter 17: An Unsettling Reunion
The battlefield was a study in hushed despair. Gaara's lifeless body, pinned beneath Deidara's foot, was a testament to their failure. The shinobi of Konoha and Suna stood frozen, a mixture of exhaustion, grief, and hopelessness painting their faces.
Deidara's triumphant laughter cut through the heavy silence. "Another freak bites the dust, hm. Your Kazekage's art ended beautifully."
Sasori, concealed within his Hiruko puppet, remained silent, a far more patient predator.
Suddenly, from the heavens, a voice echoed—calm, low, and laced with a sorrow that seemed to carry the weight of the world.
"…Sorry I'm late, Gaara."
Everyone looked up.
A silhouette stood against the light of the setting sun, descending slowly, his long coat billowing like a crimson shroud. A massive, jagged cleaver rested on his shoulder, and perched atop it, a tiny, pink-haired girl swung her legs with unnerving cheerfulness.
He landed without a sound, his feet touching the ground a short distance from them. His long, sun-kissed blond hair, now streaked with black, fluttered in the wind. His blue eyes, once bright with boisterous energy, were now sharp, cold, and focused solely on Gaara. This wasn't the Naruto they remembered. He was silent. Composed. Dangerous.
"…Naruto?" Sakura whispered, her voice a mixture of shock and disbelief. Hope, fragile and desperate, flickered within her.
He didn't answer. He didn't even look at her. His gaze remained fixed on his fallen friend. He took a slow step forward, his hand tightening on the handle of his blade. The air grew heavy, an oppressive pressure settling over the battlefield that had nothing to do with chakra.
Yachiru reached over from her perch on the blade, gently patting his head. "It's okay, Kenny," she said, her voice soft but clear in the tense silence. "We'll make them pay."
Finally, Naruto raised his head, his cold blue eyes locking onto the two Akatsuki members.
"The Nine-Tails Jinchūriki," Sasori's gruff voice rasped from within Hiruko. "It seems our fortune has turned."
Naruto took another step, placing himself between the Konoha shinobi and the Akatsuki. "Stand back," he said, his voice quiet but carrying an authority that demanded obedience.
"Naruto…" Sakura began again, taking a step toward him, her hand outstretched.
His head snapped in her direction, his gaze a physical force that stopped her cold. It was a glare devoid of warmth, of recognition, of the friendship she had so carelessly thrown away. It was the look of a stranger. A dangerous one.
Sakura flinched as if struck, the memory of her last words to him—hateful, cruel, unforgivable—rushing back with sickening force. 'I wish… I wish you were the one in a coma instead of him!' Guilt and regret twisted in her gut, so sharp it felt like a physical wound. She stumbled back, tears welling in her eyes.
"I have a score to settle with these punks," Naruto stated, his attention returning to the Akatsuki. His voice dropped lower, carrying an unmistakable threat. "All of you. Get out of the way. If you interfere… I won't hesitate to cut you down."
The words hung in the air, chilling and absolute.
Kakashi's single visible eye widened. This was it. The cold, detached warning Jiraiya had given him echoed in his mind with terrifying clarity. 'He won't hesitate if you cross his path... He'll be aiming to kill.' This wasn't the boy he had failed to mentor; this was a warrior forged in a crucible of pain he couldn't even imagine.
Shikamaru felt a cold sweat break out on his brow. 'What a drag… no, this is more than that. This pressure… it's suffocating. This isn't the same idiot who used to charge in without a plan. This is someone else entirely.'
Ino and Choji exchanged a nervous glance, a shared, unspoken fear passing between them. The Naruto they knew was gone, replaced by this intimidating figure whose presence alone felt like a threat.
Just as the tension reached its peak, another group arrived in a blur of motion. Team Guy landed nearby, taking in the grim scene.
"We have arrived to offer our assistance!" Lee announced, his usual fiery spirit dampened by the sight of Gaara. His eyes then found Naruto. "Naruto-kun! You have returned!"
"Naruto… you look different," Tenten murmured, unnerved by his cold demeanor.
Neji's Byakugan was already active. His face paled slightly. 'His chakra pathways... they're calm. But there's another energy... a terrifying, golden aura swirling around him like a maelstrom. What has he become?'
Deidara finally snapped, his artistic sensibilities offended by the lack of attention. "HEY! ARE YOU ALL JUST GOING TO IGNORE US?! THE ARTISTS WHO CREATED THIS MASTERPIECE OF DESTRUCTION?!" he shrieked.
That was the final straw.
Naruto's killing intent exploded outward. It wasn't the wild, unfocused rage of the Nine-Tails. It was a cold, sharp, honed pressure that promised nothing but death.
"I SAID GET OUT OF HERE!" he roared, his voice shaking the very air. "BEFORE I START CUTTING YOU ALL DOWN!"
Yachiru, seeing the hesitation, decided to help. She puffed out her cheeks and released a fraction of her own spiritual pressure. It was a different flavor from Naruto's— playful, yet impossibly vast. It felt like the sky itself was pressing down on them. "You heard Kenny!" she shouted, punching the air for emphasis. "Get out of the way so he can beat up the bad guys!"
That was all the convincing they needed.
Kakashi gave the order, his voice strained. "Everyone, fall back. Now."
The Konoha shinobi retreated, a mixture of fear, confusion, and sorrow in their hearts. Before Chiyo left with them, she met Naruto's gaze. "The Kazekage's body… secure it, young man."
Naruto gave a single, almost imperceptible nod.
With the battlefield cleared, only three figures remained against the two Akatsuki members. Naruto, Yachiru, and the body of Gaara.
A feral, eager smirk finally spread across Naruto's face. He shifted Nozarashi off his shoulder, pointing the tip of the massive blade at the duo.
"Alright, you two," he said, his voice dripping with arrogant confidence. "I'll even give you a free hit. Both of you. Do your worst."
Sasori's mechanical voice rasped. "Arrogance. A flaw that often leads to a short life."
Deidara, however, was incandescent with rage. "FREE HIT?! You think you're so high and mighty, hm?! Don't mock my art! I'll blow you to smithereens!"
Without another word, Deidara thrust his hands into his clay pouches. "My art will be the last thing you ever see!" He flung a dozen clay birds into the air. They swooped down on Naruto in a spiraling vortex.
"KATSU!"
A series of powerful explosions erupted, blanketing Naruto's position in a thick cloud of smoke and dust. Sasori didn't wait for the outcome. The mouth on his Hiruko puppet opened wide.
"Prepared Puppet: Eight Waves of Needles!"
A torrential stream of thousands of poisoned senbon shot into the smoke cloud, a relentless, metallic rain designed to shred whatever remained.
The dust began to settle. Deidara was grinning, confident in his assault. "See? That's what you get for underestimating a true artist, hm!"
But as the smoke cleared, his grin vanished.
Naruto stood in the exact same spot, completely unscathed. The ground around him was littered with shattered, bent senbon. Not a single needle had pierced his skin. His golden Reiatsu had flared for a mere instant, acting as an invisible, absolute shield.
Sasori's silence was heavy with meaning. He spoke, his voice low and serious. "Deidara. Be on your guard. Remember this is the boy who defeated both Kisame and Itachi."
Naruto's smirk widened. "Is that really all you've got? I'm starting to get bored already."
"YOU…!" Deidara's face contorted with fury. "Don't get cocky! If I used my best masterpiece, you'd be nothing but dust, hm! You should be grateful we need you alive, or I'd show you true art!"
"Need me alive?" Naruto chuckled, a low, dangerous sound. "That's your first mistake." He took a slow, deliberate step forward. "You're assuming you have a choice in the matter."
His Reiatsu began to rise, the ground cracking under his feet as he raised Nozarashi. "Now then... it's my turn."
Tbc