That same sharp, piercing voice Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura, and Kakashi had heard before rang out once again—
["This great one is finally out!!!"]
No matter the world, Shukaku was still as boisterous as ever.
Sasuke Uchiha asked his other self,
"That thing is the real Shukaku?! The monster inside Gaara?!"
Sasuke replied casually, "Yeah. Kinda surprising how upbeat he is, right?"
"..."
Sasuke Uchiha couldn't understand how his counterpart from another world could joke so lightly. No matter how you looked at it, that massive monster was terrifying.
["The one I want to kill is right there!!"]
Shukaku pointed straight at Gamabunta, along with Naruto Uzumaki standing on top of his head.
Naruto muttered, "That's almost exactly what he said last time."
Deep inside his mind, he spoke to Kurama.
"So far, I've only met Shukaku, Isobu, and you. Shukaku's kind of dumb, Isobu's surprisingly sharp-tongued and sneaky, and you're just super unstraightforward. You all have such strong personalities. It's actually pretty interesting."
["This old man only admits that the stupid tanuki is dumb and weak! Isobu is weak too, though his sharp tongue is real! But!! Calling this old man unstraightforward… are you trying to die?! Are you looking for death?!!!"]
"…Yeah, I'll just stop talking."
["Wind Release: Drilling Air Bullet!!"]
"Water Release: Iron Cannonball!"
The ninjutsu of two monstrous beings came crashing down like a raging storm to the tiny ninjas below.
Team 7 from the other world, along with Sasuke Uchiha, Sakura Haruno, Temari, Kankurō, Shikamaru Nara, and Shino Aburame from this world, were drenched through and through.
But no one cared.
All of them stared at the shocking battle unfolding before their eyes, nearly forgetting how to speak.
"Hey!" Sasuke Uchiha shouted at his other self and the Naruto from that parallel world.
"Didn't you say you fought Gaara like this in your world too?! Did you beat that monster back then?!"
Sasuke answered honestly, "We did. The 'thing' inside Naruto helped out."
"You mean…"
Sasuke Uchiha and Sakura Haruno both went pale.
"There's a huge monster like that inside Naruto too?!"
And maybe one even stronger than Shukaku of the Sand.
Naruto scratched his head.
"That time was kind of special. I've still got a long way to go before I really make peace with that unstraightforward guy. Last time, I only won because I completed a mission. The reward was that my future self lent me Kurama's power for a while. That's how I managed to beat Gaara."
After saying that, he looked at his other self, who was wobbling unsteadily on top of Gamabunta.
"Honestly… without that stroke of luck, I don't know if I could've beaten Gaara."
Naruto sounded a little regretful. When it came to fighting, he still preferred winning through his own strength and will.
["Drilling Air Bullet!!"]
"Iron Cannonball!"
Attacks of that level were being fired off again and again, as if the two giants had endless chakra.
Wave after wave of violent shock blasted over everyone watching the fight.
"Looks like Naruto's toad can't beat that monster called Shukaku," Sasuke Uchiha said, forcing his Sharingan open with what little chakra he had left so he could see more clearly.
Kakashi said calmly, "Based on last time, Naruto needs to get close to Shukaku, reach Gaara, and wake him up. Releasing Shukaku should've already drained nearly all of Gaara's strength and chakra. One decisive hit should be enough to settle it."
Gamabunta knew this as well.
He had told Naruto Uzumaki to go and beat Gaara awake, but Shukaku kept firing Wind Release attacks nonstop, making it extremely hard for them to get close.
Its massive body could take a Drilling Air Bullet. It would hurt, but it wouldn't be fatal.
But if Naruto Uzumaki were hit by one…
With a human's fragile body, it would mean ruptured organs and shattered bones, no question about it.
"Then how am I supposed to go wake him up?! Boss!" Naruto Uzumaki shouted.
Being called "Boss" by his underling, the huge toad, exuding a rough aura of honor and loyalty, replied with a single word.
"Wait."
The moment he finished speaking, he relied on his nimble footwork and a toad's incredible jumping power. With several Water Release attacks as cover, he exploited Shukaku's sluggish movements and successfully closed the distance.
The toad got close.
Their clash made the entire forest tremble. Almost every strike, every leap and landing from the toad sent powerful shockwaves rippling through the trees.
Sasuke Uchiha, Sakura Haruno, Shikamaru Nara, Shino Aburame, Temari, and Kankurō all unconsciously edged closer to the area where Team 7 from the other world was standing.
It felt like being near them was at least a bit safer.
Sakura looked at the expression on the other Sakura Haruno's face and said,
"Pretty shocking, right? But the fight on our side back then was even more intense."
"What?!!"
"More intense than this?" Sakura Haruno asked in disbelief.
Sakura nodded.
"On our side, both tailed beasts used Tailed Beast Balls. I can't really describe what kind of move it was, but that battle turned the sky upside down and destroyed a huge portion of the forest. In the end, Minato-sama said we were lucky the two Tailed Beast Balls collided and flew into the sky together. Otherwise, half of Konoha would've been wiped out."
She still clearly remembered that strike tearing open the darkened sky, restoring its clarity.
At least for now, this battle hadn't reached that level yet.
There was too much information packed into Sakura's words. Sasuke Uchiha caught onto one key point.
Both sides had tailed beasts.
His heart shook violently. Naruto had said he was the village's ultimate weapon. Did that mean there was a monster sealed inside him too, something as huge and terrifying as Shukaku?
Staring at the battlefield, Sasuke Uchiha knew that after this fight, many things would change. His understanding of his enemy, of Itachi, of Naruto, of the village…
All of it.
After a feint, Bunta leapt directly in front of Shukaku, grabbed its shoulder, and gave Naruto an opening to jump over and punch Gaara awake.
But things didn't go the way he imagined.
Shukaku was clever too. He shrugged his shoulders. The toad's webbed feet were slippery, and he instantly lost his grip, nearly falling. Luckily, his powerful hind legs saved him, and he bounced away, narrowly dodging Shukaku's counterattack.
"Boss! Don't move!" Naruto Uzumaki complained.
"No good! I'm a toad. I don't have claws or fangs. I can't grab him!" Gamabunta said. "Use your Transformation Jutsu. Picture me as part of it too. Only a huge beast with claws and fangs can restrain that guy!"
A combined transformation?!
Team 7 from the mission scroll world had never even imagined such a move.
"Transformation Jutsu can be used like that?" Sakura asked.
"It's actually no different from a normal transformation," Kakashi explained. "Think of it like Naruto turning into Sasuke. If only his body changed and his clothes didn't, he'd be exposed instantly. That's why we all learned this kind of transformation back in the Academy."
"It's just that the toad is a bit bigger," Sasuke said, glancing at Naruto beside him. "Trying to transform something that massive has a pretty high chance of failure."
On the battlefield, Naruto Uzumaki was desperately trying to imagine some enormous creature with sharp claws and deadly fangs.
Sasuke Uchiha, Shikamaru Nara, and Sakura Haruno watched tensely, unsure what Naruto was about to turn into, or whether it could really stop Gaara.
Naruto was nervous too. He replied to Sasuke,
"It… it should be fine. Out of the Three Basic Jutsu, Transformation is what I'm best at. The one I'm worst at is Clone Jutsu."
"..."
Temari fell silent.
"..."
Kankurō fell silent too.
Worst at Clone Jutsu?
Doesn't saying that hurt your conscience at all?!
Whether his conscience hurt or not, the Naruto Uzumaki on the battlefield was genuinely panicking now. He still hadn't figured out what to turn into that was both huge enough and capable of stopping the monster in front of him, and the boss toad was already charging in.
"Something big with claws and fangs!! Something big with claws and fangs!!"
Shino Aburame said quietly, "He's not going to turn into a hundred-meter-tall Akamaru, is he?"
"........."
Sakura Haruno didn't dare say it out loud, but what came to her mind was a hundred-meter-tall Sexy Technique.
Sasuke Uchiha didn't dare say it either. What he imagined was Naruto's old ninja-cat transformation. That ugly cat.
If it were a hundred meters tall, it would be more than enough to burn your eyes.
"Now's the moment!" Bunta shouted. "Transform!!!"
At that instant, both Naruto Uzumaki and Naruto were sweating from nerves.
The tension pushed their minds to the brink of shutting down.
All sound faded away, leaving only emptiness in their consciousness and…
That fiery orange-red color, blazing like autumn winds and raging flames.
…