A light rain still fell from the sky. Naruto and Sasuke, both panting heavily, stood facing each other on the lake. The ripples made their reflections look terribly distorted.
"Damn it!"
Sasuke muttered under his breath.
He hadn't expected that even after gaining the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan and implanting First Hokage cells, he still couldn't take down Naruto, his former loser of a teammate.
Had Shinji known all along that I wasn't Naruto's match? No, that can't be. How could I lose to an idiot like Naruto? If Hikari and the others found out, how could I ever show my face in the organization again?
The more Sasuke thought about it, the more frustrated he became.
Shinji, Otsutsuki Toneri, Shion, Karin, Hikari, and the other powerful figures had long since raised Sasuke's standards. In his eyes, Naruto was a nobody, so he simply couldn't accept that he was unable to defeat him.
Naruto panted. "We made a deal! If I win, you'll come back to the village with me!"
Sasuke's expression twisted into a snarl. "You arrogant fool. Don't tell me you think you've already won?"
Just then, Menma burst out of Naruto's body and fixed Sasuke with a cold stare. "I'm not like Naruto. I have no interest in persuading you to turn back. Come back with us quietly, and I'll let you off. Otherwise, I'll break all four of your limbs and drag you back!"
"Is that so?" Sasuke sneered, then beckoned to Menma. "Come and try!"
Menma said no more and immediately began forming Hand Seals. "Summoning Jutsu: Nine Mask Svāhā!"
In an instant, a magic circle appeared behind him. The Nine Masked Beasts emerged from it one after another and landed around Menma.
Far away, Might Guy asked, "They're still going to keep fighting!? Lord Hokage,