"We need to leave. Now."
Kushina's voice was sharp enough to slice through the cold evening air.
The moment the words left her mouth, a surge of dark red chakra erupted from within her. It wasn't a gentle flare, but an explosion, flooding the clearing in a suffocating wave. The chakra twisted and condensed into the monstrous silhouette of a humanoid fox, tails unfurling behind her.
Nagato, Konan, Yahiko, and Honoka, each of them accustomed to the horrors of war, froze at the sheer malice radiating from her form. The oppressive weight made even breathing feel like an effort, as if invisible chains were coiling around their chests.
But before they could fully process the terror, chakra tails snaked out, wrapping around them. Kushina didn't waste a second. She launched forward, the earth beneath her feet exploding from the force, and the world became a blur.
Wind howled in their ears, the landscape melting into streaks of green and brown. The air and rain were so cold and sharp that they cut at the skin. Yahiko's startled curse was swallowed by the rushing air.
Madara was coming. She didn't need to see him to know. After killing that White Zetsu and taking Nagato, it was obvious.
Her mind raced. She had grown, trained, and fought for years. Even now, she was one of the strongest in the world. But compared to Madara? That gap was still a chasm. Talent, experience, mastery over countless jutsu, and his cursed eyes… there was only one edge she had: her immense chakra. Her Uzumaki blood, combined with Kurama's reserves, made her a walking ocean of energy.
That was why she was running. She couldn't fight, only vanish.
Her plan was simple: reach the ocean, cross it, and hide on one of the uninhabited islands she had read about months ago. With Madara's current chakra reserves and circumstances, he shouldn't be able to cross that distance while water walking.
Zetsu was an issue, but Kushina was probably the only person around capable of sensing them.
She moved as fast as lightning. Trees and branches didn't slow her- they shattered, ripped from the earth under the force of her charge.
Running across the ocean would probably be enough to lose him. Madara might have much more chakra than any kage, but time spares no man. He shouldn't have as much as her, who's an Uzumaki with the Nine-Tails. Not to mention, according to the information Kurama told her, he shouldn't be able to spend that much time away from his hideout.
"What the hell are you doing?!" Nagato's voice was barely audible over the roaring wind.
"Madara Uchiha is coming!" she shouted back, her words whipped away almost instantly.
Nagato blinked, his mind catching on the name like a burr. He'd heard the name, of course. One of the two founders of Konoha. The ghost of a bygone era. But Madara was dead, wasn't he?
"Are you a jinchūriki?!" Yahiko yelled, his voice tight with both disbelief and excitement.
"Yes! I carry the Nine-Tails from Konoha!" she barked without hesitation. At this point, there was no reason to hide it.
That revelation seemed to stiffen their spines. But Yahiko pressed on, shouting, "Wouldn't Madara be an old man by now? You can't even handle him?!"
Kushina scoffed, though it was lost in the wind. Even though Madara's prime time was merely a few decades ago, people have already forgotten his immense power. "Even as an old man, he could beat all five Kage at the same time, dattebane!"
The silence that followed was heavier than their fear of falling from her tails. A sliver of unease filled their hearts. They hadn't known Kushina for long, but she didn't seem like the type to lie, and she would have no reason to right now.
----
Hours passed in a blur of relentless speed. The sun dipped and rose again before the jagged shimmer of the ocean finally came into sight.
Kushina's body burned from exertion. Her lungs drew in deep, sharp breaths, and even her Uzumaki vitality felt the strain. This was the first time she'd pushed her Tailed Beast form like this outside of training.
Behind her, the four Ame shinobi had long since passed out, slumped and limp, though still breathing evenly. She'd cushioned them enough with her chakra tails to keep them from breaking under the speed.
But the moment her eyes caught the glint of water, she felt it- a cold malice, swelling behind her like a rising tide.
Madara Uchiha.
It was closer now, clearer. It pressed against her senses, a suffocating aura that almost mirrored Kurama's, but sharper. It was the feeling of a predator who had never once doubted the inevitability of his kill.
And then, the pressure spiked.
In an instant, his presence was no longer behind her but ahead. One heartbeat, he was distant; the next, he was there, standing atop the wet sand near the ocean's edge, the wind whipping at his long, mostly gray hair. His Sharingan glowed with three tomoe, spinning slowly as his eyes locked onto hers.
Kushina skidded to a halt, the sand exploding under her feet. She threw the unconscious Ame trio and Honoka behind her, forming a barrier of tails between them and him.
Madara's lips curled into a sneer. "What do you think you're doing with my Rinnegan, little fox?"
Her teeth clenched. "Why can't you stupid old bastards just retire?!"
"Whether it's you, or the other five Kage, I'll crush you all, dattebane!"
The faintest huff of amusement escaped him. Her arrogance reminded him of himself. "Feel fortunate, girl. Few live long enough to know my wrath. No one survives it."
The ocean's crashing waves filled the air, the salt spray stinging Kushina's face. Behind her, Kurama's chakra body rippled and condensed until his human form stood beside her- tall, broad-shouldered, and radiating killing intent so dense it warped the air.
Madara's Sharingan glinted as he took in the sight. "The Nine-Tails, walking in a man's skin… amusing. I almost missed you."
Kurama snarled, "An evil old ghost like you should've stayed dead!"
In the same instant, they moved.
Kurama closed the distance in a blur, his kick aimed at Madara's head. The Uchiha ducked under it, countering with a spinning sweep that Kurama vaulted over, twisting midair to drive his heel toward Madara's chest. The impact sent a shockwave through the sand, forcing the older man back several steps.
Kushina was already in motion, chakra tails lashing out from behind her. Madara weaved through them with almost lazy precision, but a single tail brushed his sleeve, tearing the fabric. His eyes narrowed slightly- acknowledging that her speed was far from trivial.
"You've trained," Madara said, blocking Kurama's punch with one hand while catching a chakra tail with the other. "But it's wasted on you. Power without purpose is nothing."
Kurama snarled, feinting high before driving his elbow into Madara's ribs. The Uchiha grunted- not from pain, but from the force. It cracked at least a few ribs. Kushina used that moment to whip a tail at his ankles, forcing him to jump.
She leapt after him, meeting him midair with a spinning kick. He caught her leg, twisting, and threw her into the sand hard enough to crack it beneath her.
"Kushina!" Kurama was already there, intercepting Madara's follow-up strike. His fist connected with Madara's forearm, cracking it, the clash echoing like thunder. "You'll have to go through me first."'
Madara's lips curved. "Gladly."
For several minutes, the fight became a blur of motion. Kurama's superior speed forced Madara to stay defensive, while Kushina harried him with her unpredictable tails. They almost looked like they were winning- until the Uchiha's eyes shifted.
The three tomoe spun. Kurama's step faltered, and his breath hitched, his pupils shrinking.
Kushina's heart lurched. "Kurama-!"
He didn't respond, frozen mid-guard.
Madara's smirk deepened. "Even the mightiest beast can be put on a leash. Before these blessed eyes, you're merely a slave!"
Kushina roared, launching herself at him with every tail extended, trying to push him away from Kurama. Madara's Susanoo ribcage flared into existence, blocking her strikes effortlessly. In a single motion, his blade swept through the air, carving a deep slash across her side.
The pain was white-hot, stealing her breath and buckling her knees. Blood poured down her flank, staining the wet sand.
Somewhere inside Kurama, a part of him that was still aware of the outside world snapped.
The illusion around him cracked and shattered, his eyes blazing with unfiltered rage. In a blink, he was behind Madara, his kick slamming into the Uchiha's ribs with enough force to send him skidding across the shore. The ocean erupted where Madara's body hit the waves.
"Don't touch her," Kurama growled.
Madara emerged from the spray, unfazed save for the blood on his lip and his slightly caved-in chest. "Ah… there it is. The beast's true snarl."
Now they moved in unison. Kushina's tails lashed out in patterns that forced Madara to evade into Kurama's strikes, while Kurama's speed created openings for her to drive her chakra-enhanced blows home. The shoreline exploded with shockwaves, water and sand blasting into the air with every collision.
But even together, Madara was relentless. His Susanoo expanded, deflecting their attacks with spectral armor. Every swing of its blade sent walls of water crashing onto the shore.
Finally, after another brutal exchange, Madara leapt back, his Sharingan locking on Nagato's unconscious body.
Kushina's eyes widened. "Don't you-!"
In a blur, he was gone from in front of them, reappearing at Nagato's side. His hand shot forward, and when he straightened, the boy's eyes were gone.
"Rinnegan… reclaimed," Madara said softly, almost reverently. Then he looked at them, his smirk returning. "Another day, foxes."
Before they could reach him, his form dissolved into nothingness, carried away by some jutsu.
Kushina stood there, side burning, tails trembling with frustration. Kurama was beside her, fists clenched so tight his knuckles cracked. The waves crashed and receded, the only sound left in Madara's wake.