Let's turn the clock back a little.
As Souya dealt with the two Uchiha brothers, the battle between Madara and Guy had also reached its final stage.
The sea of burning vines still blazed behind Madara.
Scorching air, swirling ash, and a strange floral scent...
But after Naruto's wooden clone had its Chakra drained by Madara's Wood Dragon, the giant wooden figure he had summoned had long since crumbled apart.
Fortunately, Minato Namikaze relied on the Flying Thunder God Mark he had left on Naruto to successfully teleport him to his side.
Otherwise, Naruto would have fallen straight from the sky into the sea of flames and likely been burned to ash.
Naruto now lay motionless on the ground nearby, seemingly unconscious and gravely wounded from Chakra exhaustion.
At some point, both his hands had nearly been severed in two, held together by only a thin layer of skin. There was also a large gash in his abdomen, exposing his red and green internal organs.
If the power of the half of the Nine-Tails inside him hadn't been completely drained for the time being, Naruto probably wouldn't have ended up in such a wretched state.
However...
Madara's attention had temporarily shifted away from Naruto and the Nine-Tails. Guy stood right in front of him, crouched low with both hands braced against his legs and his right foot set forward, striking a pose like a runner at the starting line.
Guy let out a low cry. "Gather!"
BOOM!!
The red steam swirling around Guy's back suddenly surged upward, forming a thick crimson ring that completely shrouded him.
In an instant, the steam shot skyward like a blazing red flame, its blood-colored haze spreading wider and wider.
ROAR!!!
The immense, surging blood mist finally coalesced into a colossal crimson dragon!
Guy stood