After a few minutes, Naruto lay sprawled on the ground, beaten and battered. His chest rose and fell in uneven rhythm, every breath scraping through pain. Dirt clung to his cheek, blood streaked his knuckles, and the world above him spun in soft, mocking circles.
Huff… huff…
He could taste iron on his tongue. His muscles screamed. His clones stood around him in a loose semicircle — silent, unmoving, their eyes empty of pity.
'Fuck… they really put hands on me,' he thought bitterly, a wry smile twitching at the corner of his split lip. 'I'm not done though.'
Then he felt it — a pulse deep inside, low and primal. A foreign energy crawled up from the pit of his gut, threading through his veins like fire given shape. It wasn't his chakra. It was heavier, darker, alive.
A surge of crimson light erupted from his body, making the clones stumble back.
Fwoom!
The air rippled. The dirt under him cracked in a spiderweb pattern. The temperature spiked.
Naruto's fingers dug into the earth as raw power poured through him — wild, hot, intoxicating. His eyes snapped open, pupils slitting into sharp fox-like ovals. His whisker marks thickened, cutting deeper across his cheeks. Every wound on his body sizzled and closed, steam rising as if his very blood burned the pain away.
Crackle… hiss…
"Wh-what the—?" one clone whispered, the edges of its form flickering from the sheer pressure.
Naruto's voice came out lower, distorted, layered with another tone that wasn't his. "You still wanna fight me…?"
The clones hesitated — just for a second — as red chakra flared around him like liquid flame.
Inside his mind, a voice stirred. Deep, guttural, faintly amused.
'So, you finally remember I exist?'
Naruto's teeth clenched. "Shut up," he muttered under his breath. "Not this time."
His hands trembled — not from fear, but from resistance. He could feel Kurama's power pressing against his mind, eager to flood out, to consume. But that wasn't what he wanted anymore.
He bit down hard, forcing his chakra into order, his willpower hammering down on the red tide like a dam. The ground trembled again, then — whoosh — the crimson aura snapped back inside him, vanishing into silence.
The forest grew still. The mist returned. The only sound was the quiet hum of his breath.
Naruto exhaled, his voice steadier now. "Not… today."
His eyes slowly reverted to blue. His whiskers softened, his skin returned to normal — but the air still felt charged, like a storm waiting just beyond the clouds.
He rose to his feet, dust falling from his clothes, shoulders straight. Every wound was gone. He flexed his hands — they felt light, ready.
He grinned, not in arrogance, but in quiet defiance.
'I'm far from done.'
Reaching into his pouch, he pulled out two kunai, spinning them around his fingers until they settled comfortably in his grip.
The metal glinted under the afternoon light.
The clones watched him — expressionless, but something in their stance had shifted, just slightly.
Naruto lowered into a stance again, legs bent, arms relaxed. The air around him buzzed with intent.
"Round three," he said, voice steady, grin widening. "Let's see how long you last this time."
Shff—
He moved first this time.
Naruto dashed forward, leaving a cloud of dust swirling behind him.
Fwshh!
His sandals barely touched the ground — just flashes of motion and impact waiting to happen.
The remaining clones were ready, feet anchored, eyes locked on him. Naruto lunged straight at the one in the center, fist cocked and gleaming with intent.
Thmp!
The clone blocked, crossing its arms — but Naruto wasn't aiming just for that one.
Behind them, his left hand flicked backward with perfect timing. The kunai sliced through the air, spinning end over end.
Whizz—!
It buried itself cleanly into an unsuspecting clone's chest.
Poof!
White smoke exploded outward, scattering leaves and light. The remaining clones flinched, heads snapping toward the sound.
That was all the opening he needed.
Naruto spun the kunai in his right hand once.
shff!
Stepped inside the guard of the middle clone, and drove the blade home.
Thud!
Poof!
Another vanished. Only three remained now.
He leapt back, feet skidding across the dirt, just as one clone whipped a side kick toward his ribs. Naruto blocked with his forearm, but the impact still rattled his bones.
Bam!
They regrouped in a loose triangle, smirking at him — same face, same confidence.
"You said no rules," one of them taunted, voice sharp with amusement.
All three brought their hands together in perfect sync.
Pff—Ping! Pff—Ping! Pff—Ping!
In a rapid burst of chakra light, they each created another clone.
Smoke curled and cleared.
Now six stood before him — six versions of himself, all with the same grin, the same wild glint in their eyes.
The forest went still for half a heartbeat.
Naruto's chest rose and fell, but he didn't waver. His thumb brushed against the flat of his kunai, grounding himself.
"Alright," he said, a grin spreading across his bruised face. "Come and get me!"
He bent his knees slightly, grounding his center of gravity. The clones didn't need a second invitation.
Fwshh!
They came at him from every angle — one high, one low, another circling behind. The sound of feet against dirt and steel against steel filled the air in a rapid, chaotic rhythm.
Naruto ducked under a flying punch — Whoosh! — pivoted, and slammed his elbow into a clone's ribs.
Thud!
Poof!
Another gone.
But before he could move, two more crashed into him at once — one with a flying kick, the other driving a fist into his side.
Bam! Thmp!
Naruto grunted, spinning with the force, using their momentum against them. He rolled across the ground, flipped up onto his feet, and threw a kunai mid-spin.
Whizz—Poof!
The blade found its mark.
"Four down," Naruto muttered, breath hot, eyes sharp.
The remaining two closed in fast — coordinated, relentless. They weaved together, alternating blows like mirror images, forcing Naruto to read their rhythm on instinct alone.
Pak! Pak! Bam!
He parried one strike, sidestepped another, and caught the wrist of a clone trying to gut-punch him. In one fluid motion, he yanked it forward and slammed a knee into its chest.
Thud! Poof!
One left.
The last clone slid to a halt, breathing heavily, kunai in hand. Its grin mirrored Naruto's.
Both of them circled slowly, dirt crunching underfoot, tension thick enough to hum.
Naruto's eyes narrowed. "Guess it's just you and me now."
The clone tilted its head. "Heh. You're tougher than I remember."
Naruto smirked, adjusting his grip. "You'd better be too."
They dashed at each other simultaneously—
Thmp! Whack! Clang!
The clash echoed through the forest.
TO BE CONTINUED