"Last chance." Utakata's voice hardened. "Negotiate?"
"Sure." Tsunade's smile was sharp. "Beg me to adopt you, we'll talk. Try to touch my patient?" Her eyes went cold. "We fight. I don't compromise on this. Ever."
The words hit like a gavel.
Utakata's expression didn't change. He raised his blowpipe.
"As expected of a legendary kunoichi." He bowed—formal, final. "Forgive me."
The pipe swung forward.
"SCATTERED NAIL FORMATION! KILL THEM ALL!" His voice cracked like a whip. "Except the Three-Tails. No survivors."
"Defensive circle!" Tsunade's command was ice-calm. (Ten years off the field. But I haven't forgotten.)
"Hold formation. I'll end this."
She launched herself at Utakata.
(Kill the head. The body dies.)
"Water Release: Bubble Technique."
Utakata didn't flinch. He blew into his pipe—casual, almost lazy.
Bubbles erupted. Hundreds. Thousands. Shimmering, beautiful.
Tsunade skidded to a halt.
(Too pretty. That means—)
"Romantic, right?" Utakata's smile was thin. He formed a seal.
The world exploded.
Fire. Shockwave. Sand turned to glass.
When the smoke cleared—
Tsunade lay in a spreading pool of red.
"Lady Tsunade!"
Kakashi's voice cracked.
But the Kiri youth were already moving.
He ripped off his bandages. Drew his blade. Positioned himself over Rin's stretcher.
(I won't fail again.)
The enemy formation was wrong.
They should've concentrated force. Broken one point. Shattered the circle.
Three-man cells. Darting in. Striking. Vanishing.
Hit-and-run. Over and over.
(Wasps killing a bull.)
Each pass took one Konoha nin. Or left another bleeding.
Kakashi's jaw clenched.
(We can't chase. Can't break formation. They'll pick us apart.)
Forty defenders. A hundred attackers.
The math was brutal.
"Tch." Utakata's voice drifted across the sand. "Now Suna's involved too? Annoying." He raised his voice. "Finish it! No witnesses!"
Kakashi's eyes locked on him.
(Kill the leader. End this.)
He shifted his weight—
—and Utakata flew.
Backward. Tumbling. Like a truck had hit him.
A figure rose from the "corpse."
"Rusty." Tsunade cracked her neck. Purple light blazed on her forehead. Black marks crawled across her skin. Her wounds hissed—steam rising as flesh knit itself whole. "Ten years of stored chakra. Good thing I'm paranoid."
Strength of a Hundred Seal.
Utakata coughed blood. Laughed.
"Stupid." His voice was ragged. "Of course you wouldn't go down that easy. One of the Sannin." He grinned through red teeth. "I got cocky."
"Yeah." Tsunade cracked her knuckles. "You did."
Reappeared beside him.
Her fist—glowing with chakra—slammed down.
A tail. Slick. Dripping.
Her punch created ripples. Nothing more.
White smoke rose from her knuckles.
"Acid—!" She jerked back.
Utakata was changing.
Crimson chakra wrapped him like a second skin. His body swelled. Bones cracked. Reshaped.
A guttural roar tore from his throat.
"Partial transformation." Tsunade's eyes narrowed. "Not bad, kid."
She bit her thumb. Smeared blood across her hand.
"Sorry, Katsuyu. I know you hate deserts." Her voice softened. "But I need you."
"Summoning Technique!"
A mountain of pale flesh materialized.
"Lady Tsunade." Katsuyu's voice was gentle.
"Help me take him down."
Katsuyu's eyes—dozens of them—focused on Utakata.
Who was still growing.
White light consumed him. His form exploded outward—
—into a six-tailed slug. Massive. Translucent. Wrong.
"Six-Tails Saiken," Katsuyu murmured.
"I... cannot defeat her." Katsuyu's tone was apologetic. "We are both slugs. But she is a beast."
"Don't need you to win." Tsunade's smile was grim. "Just keep her busy."
Kakashi glanced at Tsunade. (She's okay.)
Then at his line.
Half his forces were down. The rest—bleeding, exhausted.
Pain lanced through his shoulder.
(Doesn't matter.)
He grabbed his blade. Charged into the melee.
Faster. Faster. FASTER.
Obito stumbled through the sand. His body—half-crushed, half-healed—screamed with every step.
(Rin. Rin. RIN.)
When Madara told him—when he heard—
Kiri was moving. To take her. To kill her.
(Let me go. Let me save her. Please.)
(Unexpectedly)—
"Cherish that bond. It's precious." His voice was soft. "But your body's broken. You can barely walk." A pause. "Black Zetsu will help."
The shadow crawled up Obito's skin. Wrapped him. Fused.
Half his body turned black.
"Go." Madara's eye gleamed. "You'll make it."
"Don't leave regrets."
Through sand. Through pain.
Toward the girl he loved.
(And the tragedy Madara had orchestrated.)
[Strategic Setup: Tsunade's fake death = bait to draw Utakata close (classic feint). Hundred Seal = trump card held for decade (Jinghang knew she had this). Katsuyu vs. Saiken = stalling tactic, not victory condition (someone else coming?). Guerrilla tactics = designed to bleed defenders dry before reinforcements arrive. Obito's timing = Madara calculated it perfectly (will arrive to see Rin die/captured).]
[Character Arcs: Tsunade = choosing principle over survival (will die before abandoning patient). Kakashi = redemption attempt (failed Rin before, won't again). Utakata = professional soldier (respects Tsunade but mission > honor). Obito = puppet on strings (thinks he's saving her, actually walking into Madara's trap). Madara = orchestrating Obito's breaking point (loss will forge him into tool).]
[Foreshadowing: "Someone will deal with it later" = Tsunade expecting reinforcements? "Don't leave regrets" = Madara ensuring Obito has regrets (will witness failure). Black Zetsu fusion = permanent corruption beginning. Obito's desperation = setup for traumatic failure (classic tragedy structure).]
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