For Hiruzen Sarutobi, there were only a few people left who could go head-to-head with Minato right now: the First Hokage, the Second Hokage… and Kushina Uzumaki.
After all, the Uzumaki clan's sealing techniques were no joke.
As long as Kushina could be brought back through Reanimation, Kurama would be nothing more than a lapdog, and even Minato's own Edo Tensei could be undone.
"Stop him!" Orochimaru, disguised as Uchiha Itachi's physical clone, barked out a half-hearted order to Minato to block the Edo Tensei version of the real Itachi.
"Kakashi, go! We have to buy Itachi some time!" Hiruzen gritted his teeth.
"Understood!"
Kakashi charged forward, intercepting "Orochimaru."
Thanks to Itachi deliberately holding back, Kakashi was able to hold his own against the fake Orochimaru—pretty much an even match.
Hiruzen kept his eyes glued to the surroundings, ears tuned to every sound, eyes scanning in all directions, missing nothing.
Any kunai that came near either himself or Itachi was instantly knocked away.
The reanimated Minato couldn't find an opening to attack and could only trade blows with Hiruzen.
"Impure World Reincarnation!" Itachi slammed his hand against the ground, and a coffin slowly rose from the earth.
At that exact moment, Kushina, who had been hiding in a secret spot in Naruto's house, vanished with a puff of smoke.
Inside Naruto, the chakra projection of Kushina froze for a moment and turned to Minato.
"Itachi just summoned my reanimated body."
"Be careful," Minato said gently.
"Relax. I'm not some helpless damsel." With that, Kushina's chakra form closed her eyes.
Inside the massive iron cage, the Yang half of Kurama sensed through their chakra connection that the Yin half had been released. Just as it was about to celebrate, it realized the Yin half had been taken over by Danzo using the Sharingan.
Still sealed inside the cage, Yang Kurama trembled with rage. Cold sweat drenched its body even in the middle of summer, and its limbs went ice-cold.
Damn that Danzo. Damn that Kushina. Damn Mito Uzumaki. Damn Uchiha Madara and Senju Hashirama.
Will Konoha ever stop tormenting me? What do I have to do to survive in peace?!
Tears welled up in its massive eyes.
This village... all it does is oppress me. When will I, Kurama, finally be free to stand tall?
The coffin lid thudded to the ground, and a figure stepped out—just in time to see Hiruzen flying backward and Kakashi staggering, one eye blinded.
"Well, well, if it isn't Old Man Third and Kakashi. Aren't you two a sorry sight!" Kushina strode out with her bright red hair swaying, glancing up at Kurama—and the Danzo standing atop its head.
She had been holding back for 24 hours. Now, she could finally beat the crap out of Danzo with her own hands.
"Kushina..." Hiruzen wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth.
"Whatever's going on with Naruto—we'll deal with that after I kill Danzo," Kushina snapped, shooting Hiruzen a deadly glare.
"Lady Kushina..." Kakashi opened his mouth hesitantly.
"Hmph. Don't 'Lady Kushina' me. I'm not your sensei's wife anymore. Don't try to act close." She didn't bother being polite to Kakashi. She'd treated him well when she was alive, and this was how he repaid her? What a thankless little bastard.
Kakashi: "…"
Hiruzen: "…"
As expected of a mother—nothing made her fiercer than anything concerning Naruto. She'd carry that grudge for life.
"Kushina, we should restrain the Nine-Tails first," Hiruzen pleaded.
"Are you trying to teach me how to do my job?" she asked coldly.
Hiruzen: "…"
"Hmph!" Kushina let out a frosty snort. Though she didn't bother to hide her disdain, her expression became serious.
Because Minato's seal still hadn't been released.
And only she, Kushina Uzumaki, had the authority to direct Minato. No one else!
As for this so-called Orochimaru…
"Adamantine Sealing Chains!"
Hundreds of chakra chains erupted from Kushina's back, surging forth in all directions. They lashed out indiscriminately at both Orochimaru and Reanimated Minato.
Boom boom boom boom boom—!
The chains slammed into the ground like missiles, turning the terrain around Minato and Orochimaru into a blasted wasteland.
The sheer noise and chakra signature instantly drew the attention of Danzo, who was locked in battle with Uchiha Fugaku's Susano'o, as well as Koharu Utatane, Homura Mitokado, and others nearby.
"Adamantine Sealing Chains?"
"An Uzumaki?" Koharu, Homura, and Torifu Akimichi—all bleeding from the mouth—stared in shock at the chains locking down the entire Konoha plaza.
Danzo, Kurama, and Orochimaru had already thrown the village into chaos.
And now an Uzumaki sealing master shows up too?
If this was either Mito Uzumaki or Kushina Uzumaki brought back through Edo Tensei—how the hell were they supposed to win?
Might as well just surrender now!
BOOM! While they stood dumbfounded, several of Kurama's tails came crashing down toward them.
"Watch out, Elders!" Several Anbu leapt in to shield them, only to be instantly incinerated by Kurama's searing-hot chakra, reduced to ash before they even made contact.
"Expansion Jutsu!" Torifu Akimichi ballooned in size, using his massive body to shield Koharu and Homura. He took the full brunt of Kurama's tail strike head-on.
BANG! Torifu staggered backward several steps before regaining his footing.
A sickening hissssss filled the air.
Torifu looked down to see his skin turning red and blistered. His expression changed, and in the next instant, he was forced to cancel his transformation.
Just one hit from the Nine-Tails, and his defenses were shattered. He couldn't even maintain his jutsu.
"Fall back, now!" Fugaku, encased in his Susano'o, stepped forward to block Kurama's next attack.
"Got it!" Homura swung Torifu onto his back and ran.
The flesh Kurama's chakra had touched was already scorched. If they didn't act fast, Torifu could be poisoned.
"Hang on, Torifu—I'll heal you." Koharu pressed her hands to his wounds and began performing medical ninjutsu to halt the spread of the tainted chakra.
But... the corrosive and toxic nature of Kurama's chakra was too powerful. Even top-level medical ninjutsu struggled to slow it down. The wounds refused to close.
"Damn it! Danzo's clearly doing this on purpose—he's trying to get all three of us killed! Of all the places in Konoha to pick a fight, he just had to launch tailed beast bombs and chakra attacks at us! What the hell did we ever do to him?" Homura growled.
"Isn't it obvious? That bastard Danzo's completely lost it. He wants us dead, plain and simple. We need to get out—now!"
"Retreat!" shouted a voice.
The Konoha Military Police—led by the remaining Uchiha—charged onto the battlefield, erecting chakra barriers with their bodies and jutsu to shield the villagers from Kurama's rampage.
Uzumaki sealing formations rose across the battlefield, blocking the Nine-Tails' destructive chakra and protecting the people behind them.
The rest of the Uchiha darted in and out of the barriers, carrying children, injured civilians, and anyone who couldn't move. They coordinated with the Inuzuka clan's search hounds, the Hyuuga's Byakugan, and the Aburame clan's insects to locate survivors and evacuate them to safety.
Medical-nin were already standing by, immediately beginning emergency treatment.
"Thank you… thank you so much…" an elderly woman said gratefully. It was only thanks to the Police Force's sacrifice that she and her family weren't wiped out in the chaos.
"No need to thank us." An Uchiha carefully set a child down from his back. Without even pausing to wipe the blood or dust from his face, he rushed back into the fray to retrieve more injured.
"Bless you all..." Villagers choked back tears, moved by the Uchiha clan's selflessness and bravery.
With people like these guarding them—what was there to fear anymore?