"Aaargh!"
The Eight-Tails–transformed Naruto howled at the moon.
In that moment, his heart — his pain — was completely drowned in the malevolent chakra of the Nine-Tails. All he wanted was to end the agony by destroying everything in sight.
"So… this is the Nine-Tails…"
Yukito swallowed hard. The gap between the Seven-Tails and the Eight-Tails was already vast — but this?
Just moments ago, she had been confident. As a perfect jinchūriki, even if the Nine-Tails was stronger than Matatabi, she believed she could subdue it.
But now, she was utterly shaken by the scene before her.
Worse still, the Eight-Tails–form Naruto had noticed her.
"Raaagh!"
The roar alone crushed Matatabi's spirit. Naruto's massive claws shot out toward the beast.
"Beast Bomb!"
Seeing this, Yukito had no choice but to combine forces with Matatabi, unleashing the Beast Bomb she'd prepared for Sarutobi Hiruzen — firing it directly at Naruto.
Boom!
With a swipe of his claws, Naruto batted the Beast Bomb away like it was nothing. It streaked over the skies of Konoha and crashed into the northern forest.
Rumble!
The explosion blasted a column of fire into the heavens, turning night into blinding day.
More people saw it with their own eyes — and fell into despair.
Two tailed beasts were wreaking havoc in the village. The Fourth Hokage, Namikaze Minato, was nowhere to be found. The Third Hokage was an old man, a candle in the wind.
Hyūga Hiashi, Hyūga Hizashi, Akimichi Chōza, Nara Shikaku, Yamanaka Inoichi — even these elite jōnin stared, stunned.
This power was far beyond anything they'd imagined.
Forget subduing the Nine-Tails — they couldn't even think of a way to limit the destruction.
No one here had the strength to stand against it.
No one could use space–time ninjutsu like the Flying Thunder God to send the rampaging Naruto outside the village.
Even Hiruzen was down, lying on the ground.
Suppressing Naruto had already drained a massive amount of his chakra, and then he'd taken Yukito's Fire Release attack head-on.
Now, the Third Hokage couldn't even stand, let alone muster chakra for another jutsu.
"Konoha's… end…"
Hiashi sat half-upright, watching in helpless horror as Naruto's rampage tore the village apart.
"Haruto…"
It was Hizashi who suddenly whispered the name.
"Who?" Shikaku landed beside him, confused.
Hiashi froze for a moment.
Senju Haruto — the one who'd saved Hinata, the one who'd saved Hizashi's life.
Hiashi hadn't witnessed it himself, but clan members had told him the truth. Haruto had stepped forward and convinced both the Hyūga Main House and Konoha's leadership to abandon the plan of sacrificing Hizashi.
But reality was cruel.
Haruto wasn't here. No one knew where to find him.
And this overwhelming chakra blanketed the entire village.
If Haruto were in Konoha, he couldn't possibly miss sensing it.
The fact that he hadn't appeared meant one of two things — either he wasn't here… or he was afraid of this power and didn't dare come.
Hiashi swallowed. "It's the Nine-Tails, after all…"
Haruto could save Hinata and Hizashi — but back then he'd only faced Cloud shinobi or the Hyūga clan.
Neither could compare to the Nine-Tails.
For a boy barely twelve or thirteen to fear it was only natural.
Even the elite jōnin present were sinking into despair.
Rumble!
As Hiashi resigned himself to that thought, Eight-Tails Naruto seized Yukito by the throat and slammed her hard into the ground.
Shockwaves blasted out in all directions, hurling countless ninja away.
Matatabi thrashed, trying to break free from Naruto's grip, but the power difference was overwhelming.
Bam! Bam! Bam!
Naruto hammered fist after fist into Matatabi, wringing cries of agony from both beast and host.
Each blow's shockwave flung back any ninja daring to rush in. Even thrown kunai and shuriken were blown away in the backlash.
Within seconds, casualties mounted faster than ever before.
"Is… this really the end…?"
Hiruzen stared at the Eight-Tails–formed Naruto, feeling his chakra still rising.
It wouldn't be long before Naruto fully became the Nine-Tails.
When that happened, Konoha would be wiped from the map.
And because Naruto himself was the jinchūriki vessel, Hiruzen couldn't even use the Dead Demon Consuming Seal to re-seal the beast.
"Raaagh!"
Under Naruto's relentless assault, Matatabi soon lost the will to fight.
Eight-Tails Naruto roared again, gathering chakra — forming a Beast Bomb identical to Matatabi's.
No…
Naruto's Beast Bomb was dozens of times more powerful.
Countless ninja dropped to their knees, staring in despair.
If that chakra sphere detonated here, there'd be nothing left — not even ash.
It was over…
"No!"
Hiruzen refused to accept it. He forced himself upright, gripping the adamant staff.
At the very least… he couldn't allow the Beast Bomb to detonate inside the village.
"Enma…"
But just as he aimed the staff at Naruto, his legs gave out. He dropped to one knee, the massive weapon slamming into the ground.
"It's over…"
"No one can stop the Nine-Tails…"
Every ninja present drew a sharp breath, the bitter truth settling in.
Hizashi forced his way to Hiashi's side. If he had to die, he would die before his brother's eyes.
Boom!
The massive Beast Bomb left Naruto's jaws, hurtling toward Hiruzen and the others.
Unprecedented despair smothered everyone.
And then — just as they thought the entire village would vanish in the blast —
A colossal wooden dragon surged forward, its jaws snapping shut around the Beast Bomb.
With a mighty heave, it soared into the sky, where it exploded beneath the moon.
The shockwave crashed downward, scattering the ninja even more — but thanks to that wooden dragon, Hiruzen and the others still lived.
Konoha still stood.
Every gaze turned upward, stunned.
Even the gigantic Nine-Tails froze, unable to comprehend how its strongest attack had been stopped.
Then, a boy descended from the sky, landing before the entire crowd, shielding them all behind him.
Who else could it be but Senju Haruto?