Watching Might Guy run with all his might, his body glowing crimson…
Watching Naruto, his body on the verge of collapse, yet throwing his head back to laugh with wild abandon…
Everyone felt their blood boil.
A strange light shone in the Third Hokage's murky eyes. As the Hokage of Konoha, he was very familiar with the Eight Gates Formation. Although it was classified as a forbidden technique, almost no one could master it. The Eight Gates required an extremely high aptitude for taijutsu, and without great perseverance, it was impossible to train. He had thought that opening the Eight Gates would only provide a modest boost to one's chakra. He never expected… that a Guy with just seven gates open was enough to completely dominate him. Even the Naruto he couldn't match had been beaten into such a sorry state.
Although the Third Hokage was old and decrepit, his knowledge and experience were not to be underestimated. Evening Elephant should have been the most powerful technique of the Eight Gates Formation. But from the looks of it, Guy still had another move up his sleeve! What a genius of a taijutsu user.
The laughable thing was… he had never noticed Guy's potential before. Always humble, always training diligently. And now, in Konoha's moment of crisis, he had stepped forward, resolutely burning his own life! This was a true inheritor of the Will of Fire!
The Third Hokage's eyes blurred with tears.
At that moment, Guy had finished gathering his power for the final time.
"Flow!"
With a deafening roar, Guy's speed skyrocketed again. His body, like a giant dragon, hurtled towards Naruto. He was so fast that even Naruto's eyes couldn't track him.
"Bakudo Number 81: Danku." A massive defensive wall appeared in front of Naruto.
"Bakudo Number 61: Rikujokoro." Six beams of light shot towards Guy. He didn't dodge or evade; the chakra surrounding his body simply shattered them on impact.
Naruto's eyes were cold, his mind clearer than ever as he rapidly used another Kido.
"Bakudo Number 99: Kin."
The 99th Bakudo was far stronger than Rikujokoro. Black straps of Reiatsu erupted from the ground beneath Guy's feet, and black nails fell from the sky, attempting to bind him.
"ROAR!" Guy roared and leaped forward.
BANG, BANG, BANG.
The 99th Bakudo couldn't even make him pause for an instant!
Morning is for the Peacock, Daytime is for the Tiger!
This was the final strike of the Sublime Blue Beast.
Night Guy!!!
If Evening Elephant was the limit of the Eight Gates Formation…
Then!
This move, Night Guy, was Might Guy breaking through that limit! It was the final, glorious crescendo to his seemingly ordinary, yet magnificent, youth.
"NIGHT GUY!" With Guy's roar, all of his power converged into his right leg. He descended from the heavens, the immense force even distorting the space around him.
CRASH.
The Danku, which could block a Cero, was utterly useless against this kick. It couldn't even withstand the air currents stirred up by Night Guy, shattering instantly and revealing Naruto's horrified gaze behind it.
A kick like this could take half the life of a god!
And yet…
Faced with this completely unstoppable attack, Naruto let out a hearty laugh.
The crisis of death enveloped him. His muscles tensed, and Kyoka Suigetsu, violently broken by Guy's power, let out a mournful cry. Naruto's body even began to tremble uncontrollably.
Watching Guy draw closer and closer, Naruto's heart was filled with an unprecedented excitement. The swirling air currents were already beginning to tear at his body. But in that moment, the limit within him… broke.
His Reiatsu skyrocketed, and Kyoka Suigetsu underwent an indescribable transformation.
In the outside world, a terrifying aura suddenly erupted from within Naruto. For everyone except Guy, the world seemed to shatter like glass and dissolve into nothingness. Time seemed to stop. Everyone was frozen in their previous actions and expressions. Only Guy continued to close in on Naruto.
Naruto threw a punch, and the entire space cracked and disintegrated.
BOOM.
With a deafening roar, a massive shockwave, like a hurricane, ravaged the entire arena, leaving it in ruins. Even many of the spectators in the stands were caught in the blast.
Time seemed to resume. The crowd was in chaos, people falling over each other, screaming in terror.
The area where Naruto and Guy had clashed had completely collapsed, forming a massive, bottomless abyss.
In that moment, the entire stadium paid their respects.
Might Guy. A ninja with no talent for ninjutsu, a reflection of an ordinary person. But he had never given up. Through endless pain, with sheer effort and perseverance, he had become a true powerhouse!
The dust settled.
Naruto was nowhere to be seen.
Everyone saw, at the edge of the deep pit, a crimson-bodied Might Guy kneeling on the ground, slowly breathing his last. His body began to turn into red steam, gradually dissipating.
"GUY-SENSEI!!!!" As Rock Lee let out a heart-wrenching roar, Guy weakly gave a thumbs-up, a brilliant smile on his face. His legs began to evaporate, then his body, his arms.
Finally, his entire being, like the setting sun, faded into silence.
A wave of sorrow washed over the entire arena. Everyone respectfully watched Guy's final curtain call.
Konoha, in the end, had won.
But the price paid was a painful one.
Tap.
Suddenly, the crisp sound of a footstep echoed through the air.
Before everyone's terrified eyes, a white figure slowly emerged from the shadows.
"So terrifyingly strong. If I hadn't comprehended Bankai, I might have actually died."
"But unfortunately for you, I already control everything."
Naruto looked expressionlessly at the spot where Guy had died, a look of admiration in his eyes.
"Thank you for letting me experience such a thrilling battle. To show my gratitude, I won't destroy Konoha."
Naruto slowly walked towards Naruto Uzumaki.
In that critical moment just now, he had achieved Bankai. He had deceived time and space, even life and death. Unleashing all of his Reiatsu, he had directly manipulated the rules of the world, rewriting the laws of life and death. This had allowed him to cheat death and survive that god-slaying kick.
But the price… was the temporary sealing of almost all of his Reiatsu and his Zanpakuto's abilities. His Reiatsu still existed, but it was not enough to use any Kido.
But even without his Zanpakuto and Kido, his strength was still not something the ninja of Konoha could withstand.
Watching Naruto approach, everyone's faces were filled with despair.
"RAIKIRI!!!" The piercing cry of a thousand birds rang out. Naruto looked over, his expression blank, to see Kakashi staggering to his feet, a blinding lightning blade once again forming in his right hand. The death of his best friend had awakened this man. He wanted nothing more than to kill Naruto right then and there.
"Still want to attack me? Aren't you afraid of killing another comrade by mistake?" Naruto looked at Kakashi with indifference.
Kakashi hesitated for a second, but still charged forward without a second thought.
Although he couldn't use his Reiatsu, Naruto still easily caught Kakashi's wrist and kicked him in the stomach. With a sickening thud, Kakashi's eyes widened, his body bending into the shape of a bow.
After the earth-shattering battle with Might Guy, facing these small fry, Naruto already felt bored. He casually tossed Kakashi aside and used Shunpo to appear directly in front of Naruto Uzumaki, his arm plunging into his chest.
He easily grasped the power of Ashura in his hand.
"Gahk." Naruto Uzumaki's eyes widened. He felt as if something very important inside him had lost its connection to him. His mind became unusually calm, and memories of the past flooded his brain.
His childhood.
The villagers spitting on him and cursing him.
The nanny mixing sand into his food.
The groceries he bought were all expired, reeking of rot.
Then, he entered the Ninja Academy, but all the prodigies looked down on him. Their parents warned them not to go near him. Through his own efforts, he slowly made friends. And he forgot the past.
"Become Hokage and you'll be acknowledged?"
"No, you have to be acknowledged by the villagers to become Hokage."
He had worked so hard, trying with all his might to be cheerful. But now, reviewing these memories, he became abnormally calm.
To control him, the Third Hokage had plunged his childhood into darkness. It was tragic. He was a victim of Konoha's leadership.
The memories ended. A new, thoughtful look appeared in Naruto Uzumaki's eyes. He looked at the other Naruto, whose expression was placid.
Withdrawing his hand, Naruto turned without hesitation. The black gate he had arrived through reappeared in the empty air. Naruto stepped right through it.
Only after Naruto's figure had completely vanished from sight did Naruto Uzumaki's legs give out, and he collapsed to the ground. No matter how his friends tried to comfort him, he remained silent, his eyes filled with confusion.
The Konoha Crush plan came to an end. After being heavily injured, Orochimaru fled in a sorry state. After an examination, Naruto Uzumaki's body was found to be fine. No one knew what power had been taken from him.
Late at night.
Naruto Uzumaki lay in bed, gradually drifting off to sleep.
Drip. Drip.
The crisp sound of dripping water echoed. He opened his eyes in a daze. Before him was a dim, cold sewer. He knew this was the seal space of the Nine-Tails. He didn't know how long it had been since he was last here. The memory was too distant; he couldn't quite recall it.
Naruto Uzumaki subconsciously began to walk, heading deeper inside.
Suddenly, the view opened up.
He was on a cliff, with a fierce wind howling around him. The scorching sun hung high in the sky.
Naruto, the man who had single-handedly struck fear into the heart of Konoha, was looking at him with a smile.
"I've been waiting for you, Naruto Uzumaki."
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