As Naruto and Sasuke were sent back to the remaining Allied Shinobi Forces, Tsunade and Sakura immediately began working to restore their stamina and chakra.
In the previous clash of Tailed Beast Bombs, even though the bombs weren't directly aimed at them, Naruto and Sasuke still had to give their all to barely withstand the massive explosion caused by the collision.
Of course, some of the medical personnel didn't have to engage in defense, they were simply tasked with restoring Naruto and Sasuke after their withdrawal from the battlefield.
"Hey, aren't you guys worried about your Hokage?" the Fourth Raikage asked, glancing toward the four incoming Tailed Beast Bombs and Natsuro, who stood alone facing them.
Mei Terumī nodded at his words. Although she knew the Sixth Hokage was strong, was he really much stronger than Naruto and Sasuke?
After all, based on what they'd seen earlier, Naruto and Sasuke's strength had already impressed countless people, including Mei herself.
"Believe in the Sixth Hokage. His strength will not disappoint us," Gaara said at this moment. He recalled past events—though those incidents might not seem so powerful now, the impression Natsuro had left on him was unforgettable.
Moreover, Gaara never believed Natsuro hadn't made any progress. After all, he was only one year older than him.
"That's right. Believe in Natsuro. He's never let us down," Jiraiya added. Previously, he hadn't been much help, his Needle Jizō was only good for self-defense, so all he could do was contribute with a simple Earth Wall jutsu...
"Tch, looks like you all really believe in your Hokage..." Ōnoki glanced around and noticed something: the expressions on the shinobi from different villages varied widely.
The Konoha shinobi all wore expressions full of confidence and hope, that was trust in their Hokage. Even in the face of such a crisis, they firmly believed he could resolve it.
Ōnoki had initially wanted to scoff. Didn't they see how powerful the enemies were? These guys were stronger than any threats ever faced before.
But soon, he noticed that quite a few Sand Shinobi shared similar expressions… though some also looked hesitant. None of them, however, seemed as despondent as the shinobi from the other three villages.
"Because he's done so many unbelievable things, and he's never failed. So, we have no reason to believe he'll lose this time," Tsunade said.
"Let's hope so," Ōnoki nodded after hearing the princess of Konoha say that. A flicker of hope rose in his heart.
The Fourth Raikage and Mei Terumī also turned to look at the lone figure in the distance. A glimmer of hope appeared in their eyes as well.
...
As the Allied Shinobi Forces discussed, Natsuro also gazed at the four incoming Tailed Beast Bombs and spoke to the Yin Nine-Tails sealed within him.
"Do you believe now?"
"Even if I do, so what? Even if I agree to help you, we can't achieve the perfect sync that Naruto and I had. Plus, our cooperation time is short, so it won't last long," Yin Kurama replied.
"Don't worry. As long as you're willing to cooperate, leave the rest to me," Natsuro said. In the next moment, a powerful surge of natural energy burst from him, quickly resonating with the Yin Nine-Tails' chakra.
"This is…" The Yin Nine-Tails was shocked as it watched the natural energy perfectly merge with its own chakra.
"This is chakra that's most compatible with you," Natsuro replied.
The Yin Nine-Tails was at a loss for words. If that was true, then perhaps... its cooperation with him might be even more perfect than with Naruto. Not due to unity of will, but because of Natsuro's unique abilities.
Under Natsuro's control, natural energy could transform into any type of chakra he had seen before. Now, with the Yin Nine-Tails inside him, he could naturally simulate Kurama's chakra.
From the Yin Nine-Tails' perspective, it wasn't even "compatibility", Natsuro practically was another Nine-Tails. No wonder he could control the chakra so perfectly.
"Truly… unexpected," the Yin Nine-Tails muttered, finally understanding why its other half and Naruto trusted this guy so deeply. It had only been with Natsuro a short time but had already been shocked several times.
"In that case, let's go!" the Yin Nine-Tails declared, finally unleashing all its chakra into Natsuro's body.
In the next instant, Natsuro's body was enveloped in golden light. His entire form was cloaked in golden chakra, with black tomoe gradually forming around him. His usual white divine robe turned golden, yet the five large characters "Sixth Hokage" on his back stood out in vibrant red.
The tails of his divine robe split into nine appendages resembling fox tails, each one lifelike and freely moving under Natsuro's control.
Slowly, Natsuro opened his eyes, they were still his usual eyes, unchanged by Sage or Tailed Beast modes, though now tinged gold from the light.
He looked at his hands, where black lines ran across his palms.
"So this is the Sage Fox Mode, almost the strongest form beneath the level of the Sage of Six Paths," he muttered.
At that moment, Natsuro looked up at the four Tailed Beast Bombs in the sky and snapped his fingers.
Immediately, four of the tails behind him transformed into massive hands, stretching upward and pressing down on the bombs.
The four Tailed Beast Bombs vanished on the spot, gone as if they'd never existed.
The Allied Shinobi Forces were stunned. Just like that? That was four Tailed Beast Bombs! Earlier, it had taken their combined strength just to barely block one.
And now, in mere moments, all four were gone, dispelled by the Sixth Hokage alone. The contrast was so stark they didn't know how to react.
Some of them now understood why Konoha's shinobi, and even some from Suna, had such unwavering faith in their Hokage. With someone like this, trust wasn't a choice—it was natural.
And maybe… they, too, could choose to believe in the Hokage.
"Brace yourselves. A powerful wind is coming," Natsuro's voice echoed in the ears of all the allied forces.
Right after he spoke, the four bombs exploded over an unknown part of the ocean, unleashing a fierce shockwave that tore through the sea and came howling toward the battlefield.
Thanks to his warning, all combat-ready forces moved to the front lines in time and used their jutsu to shield the medical team from the oncoming blast.
As for Natsuro himself, such a wind couldn't affect him in the slightest.
At that moment, Six Paths Obito emerged from a black sphere, which reformed into eight Truth-Seeking Orbs. There should have been nine, but after Natsuro took one away, Obito, who couldn't actively generate new ones, was left with only eight.
Obito stared at the golden-glowing Natsuro in shock. "There's another Nine-Tails?!"
"Thanks to you, on the night of the Nine-Tails' attack, the beast was split in two. One half was sealed in Naruto. The other… into a certain shinobi's body," Natsuro replied.
"So the one I fought earlier was just half a Nine-Tails?" Obito's voice grew complicated. After all, he had the full power of eight complete Tailed Beasts, yet he had struggled… against just half of the Nine-Tails? Even with Sasuke's help, it stung his pride.
"Correct." Natsuro smiled. Honestly, not only Obito found this absurd, they, the ones who had read the original story, had felt the same way when they learned about it...
"Phew!" Obito let out a deep breath, his eyes turning resolute. Gripping his Six Paths staff, he stared at Natsuro, "No more words. Let's settle this in battle, Sixth Hokage!"
Obito didn't order the Ten-Tails to fire any more bombs, he understood now that unless the Ten-Tails could fire dozens at once, Natsuro could neutralize them all with ease.
Rather than waste chakra, it was better to conserve it for direct combat.
"Just what I was hoping for!" Natsuro replied, forming a hand sign with one hand.
"Swift Release: Instantaneous Steps!"
In an instant, Obito's eyes widened. He raised his Six Paths staff in defense.
Natsuro had appeared before him, and their weapons clashed, Obito's staff versus his Rasengan.
"So fast!" Obito was stunned by his speed, but then smiled slightly.
"But… not powerful enough!"
As for Natsuro, who had remained standing still, he gradually faded into a blur, just an afterimage left behind by his burst of speed.
Although he still couldn't use Divine Steps, the upper limit of his Instananeous Steos had been significantly enhanced thanks to the properties of Sage Fox Mode. At this point, Natsuro's speed was enough to make him unrivaled in the shinobi world.
Yet even so, Six Paths Obito was still able to react.
He was slightly surprised, so it was true that becoming the Ten-Tails' jinchūriki brought a full-spectrum enhancement: speed, reaction time… everything.
"Bang!"
Soon, Natsuro's Rasengan was shattered by Obito's Six Paths staff, and Natsuro himself was knocked back midair.
As Obito charged toward him, seemingly unwilling to let go of the opening created while Natsuro was airborne and less mobile, he stayed calm. The nine tails of light behind him suddenly flared and slashed at Obito from nine different angles.
"Wind Release: Shattered Space!"
"Tch!" Faced with the nine incoming strikes, Obito was forced to halt. He dared not be careless against Natsuro's attack. The Truth-Seeking Orbs floating around him instantly formed a protective shield in front of him.
"Boom!!"
The nine tails imbued with Shattered Space slammed against the shield of Truth-Seeking Orbs. Natsuro immediately felt a tingling numbness from the recoil of chakra.
"Damn, that's tough!" he muttered.
Although his techniques all contained Sage Chakra, which could break through the immunity of a Ten-Tails jinchūriki, just because the immunity failed didn't mean the defensive power of the Truth-Seeking Orbs vanished.
Breaking through them head-on was still extremely difficult. But...
Natsuro noticed the imprint left in the air around Obito, formed from materialized chakra. A grin formed at the corner of his mouth.
The Nine-Tails could release chakra into the air and form materialized energy constructs. Normally, if the Nine-Tails didn't retract this chakra, it would dissipate after a short while.
Natsuro had exploited this. While delivering the nine slashes, he simultaneously released materialized chakra, and under his control, it slowly took shape into a marking.
It wouldn't last long, but it didn't need to.
A fiery red vortex flared to life in Natsuro's hand as he vanished from his current spot.
At the same time, Obito was staring at the cracks now forming on his Truth-Seeking Orb shield. He was shocked by the power of Natsuro's jutsu, no wonder it was Wind Release, the style most adept at cutting. It had actually managed to put a dent in the Truth-Seeking Orbs.
Still… it wasn't quite enough. While Obito couldn't generate new Truth-Seeking Orbs, repairing the existing ones was still possible.
But then, he looked up, and his pupils shrank sharply.
Hovering in the air, he saw the golden chakra imprint Natsuro had left behind. And he recognized it.
He had seen it once before, on Hidan's bloodstained Triple-Bladed Scythe.
That was… Natsuro's Flying Thunder God mark!
"Impossible!" Obito cried out in disbelief. Could someone really leave a Flying Thunder God mark using chakra suspended in air?
Regardless, it was already too late to erase the marks. Obito could only raise his Truth-Seeking Orbs again to defend.
Sure enough, Natsuro's figure reappeared at the location of the chakra mark. Glancing at Obito, who had already deployed his defense, Natsuro once again marveled at his opponent's reaction speed. Still, without hesitation, he pressed the fiery red and golden Rasengan in his hand directly onto the shield of Truth-Seeking Orbs.
"Sage Art ~ Fire Release: Blaze Rasengan!"
Faced with the Sage-enhanced Blaze Rasengan, the defensive barrier formed by the Truth-Seeking Orbs began to crack.
"Crack... crack..."
Before Obito's horrified eyes, the fractures in the shield rapidly spread—and in the next moment, the barrier shattered completely.
Even though the Blaze Rasengan's force was somewhat reduced, it still continued bearing down on him.
Obito could only raise his Six Paths staff to block it.
"Boom!"
In an instant, Obito's body was blasted from the sky, slamming into the ground below, shrouded in a cloud of dust.
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Currently on Chapter 421 - Aizen and Natsuro's First Meeting