By July, while having dinner with Uchiha Ashikaga, Rokuro learned that the clan leader had welcomed another son. He immediately realized—it was the birth of Sasuke.
That, in turn, reminded him of Indra's chakra.
"Should I try to poach him early?" he mused, smirking to himself. "Probably not yet. They say Itachi's a doting brother—but Sasuke's no less of one. Until the great 'Elder Brother' wipes out the clan, that wall's not going to crumble no matter how hard I dig. Oh well, there'll be time for that later."
Though Sasuke's birth was nothing more than idle dinner talk between mother and son, Rokuro knew it was a sign—because with Sasuke born, Naruto's turn was coming soon.
The next day, Rokuro broke his years-long routine. After school, instead of heading straight for training, he wandered through the streets of Konoha like an aimless child.
But in truth, he was laying out a sealing array.
Using Konoha's main streets as the framework, he constructed an intricate barrier that encompassed the entire village.
Every twenty meters, he placed a sealing tag infused with a bit of chakra.
Once the tags were placed, they blended perfectly into the environment—unless someone crouched down to inspect them, they'd look no different from the stones by the roadside.
Because his chakra reserves were limited, Rokuro could only place three seals a day. It took him nearly two months to complete the array.
"Phew... finally done," he exhaled. "Good thing this formation allows for staged chakra infusion. If it needed to be done all at once, even human monsters like Naruto, Tsunade, or Kisame wouldn't be able to handle it."
By now, it was the end of September, Year 51 of Konoha. The Night of the Nine-Tails was less than half a month away.
Rokuro returned to his daily rhythm—studying sealing formulas during class, then training his body techniques after school.
Ten days later, his careful observation paid off: the Fourth Hokage's wife had gone into seclusion to give birth.
"Looks like it's happening any day now."
And so, October 10th arrived.
That evening, Rokuro was enjoying fried chicken with Uchiha Ashikaga. He had just raised a drumstick to his mouth when a thunderous explosion split the air—followed by a roar so powerful it shook the walls.
Ashikaga's face paled. She leapt to the courtyard—and froze.
Before her eyes loomed a crimson fox the size of a mountain.
"The Nine-Tails?! How is it out here? Did the jinchūriki lose control?!"
Rokuro, still gnawing on his chicken, tugged her back inside.
"Mom, get to the basement and activate the formation. I reinforced it myself. Even if a Tailed Beast Bomb hits dead-on, you'll be fine. It's completely safe down there."
"You little brat—don't tell me you're planning to go out there?! Are you trying to die?!"
No one knew her son better than she did. The moment she heard his tone, Uchiha Ashikaga realized he was about to do something reckless.
"Mom, I've been waiting for this day for a long time. There's no way I'm missing it. I'll explain later—just go!"
Lightning flared. Rokuro entered Lightning Release Chakra Mode, his power surging.
He lifted his mother effortlessly, carried her to the basement, sealed the door, and activated the defensive array.
Once that was done, he activated Flying Thunder God, teleporting instantly to a rooftop two hundred meters from the rampaging beast.
The sight before him stole his breath.
"That's... the complete Nine-Tails. Not the half-sealed version inside Naruto—the real thing. The databooks say it's around seventy meters tall, but looking at it now... no way. It's easily over a hundred. Guess seventy was only half of it. The strongest of all Tailed Beasts, indeed."
As he watched, he caught the reflection of its eyes—crimson irises, patterned with the unmistakable three-tomoe Sharingan.
"Heh, well there's no washing this one clean. With those eyes on display, the Uchiha are about to be blamed for everything. Danzō's going to love this."
And right on cue, chaos erupted across the village.
Third Hokage Sarutobi Hiruzen had just strapped on his battle gear when Danzō Shimura appeared at his door.
"Hiruzen, what the hell happened?! The jinchūriki was supposed to be under your protection—how did the Nine-Tails get loose?!"
Hiruzen's tone hardened.
"Danzō, is this really the time for blame? Gather Root and help drive the Nine-Tails out of the village! And—get the Uchiha to assist. Their Sharingan can restrain it."
"Absolutely not!" Danzō snapped. "Precisely because the Sharingan can control a Tailed Beast, we can't risk them getting involved. If they seize control, it'll be an even greater disaster!"
For years, Danzō had coveted the power of the Tailed Beasts. There was no chance he'd let the Uchiha intervene. To him, the lives of ordinary ninja and civilians were trivial compared to his goal of claiming that power—and the Hokage's seat.
"Then what do you propose?" Hiruzen shot back, his patience wearing thin.
"Keep the Uchiha confined to their compound. I'll send Root to surround them. Handle the rest yourself."
With that, Danzō turned and left. Hiruzen hesitated but didn't stop him—silently allowing the move.
Meanwhile, the Fourth Hokage, Namikaze Minato, had just rescued his newborn son from Obito's grasp.
After ensuring Naruto's safety, he donned his Hokage cloak once more and faced his former student—their battle a deadly clash of space-time ninjutsu.
While their high-level duel raged, the destruction wrought by the Nine-Tails below was catastrophic.
Under Obito's Mangekyō Sharingan control, the beast had become a monster of pure wrath. Its nine tails slammed into the ground, leveling entire districts of Konoha in seconds.
Dozens of ninja rushed forward—some hurling shuriken and kunai, others launching Fire Release: Great Fireball Techniques, their attacks raining down on the beast.
The Nine-Tails roared, the sound shaking heaven and earth.
The shockwave blew away every projectile, scattering fireballs like sparks in a storm. Their combined assault hadn't even singed a single hair.
Then, with terrifying agility, the Nine-Tails surged forward. One massive paw came crashing down—flattening a three-story building and sending five shinobi flying like autumn leaves.
Three of them were already in pieces before they hit the ground.
The gale-force winds swept over Rokuro too.
He tried to brace himself using Lightning Chakra Mode, but was instantly blown away.
Fortunately, he activated Flying Thunder God just in time, narrowly avoiding injury.
"So this... this is the power of the complete Nine-Tails," he muttered, awestruck. "It's like a walking natural disaster. Forget genin or chūnin—even most jōnin wouldn't stand a chance. No wonder Minato had to stake his life on the Reaper Death Seal. Against a full Nine-Tails, unless you're Hashirama or Madara—any normal Kage would be crushed."