Fifty miles outside Konoha.
The shockwaves from the Tailed Beast Bomb's explosion gradually faded. The earth was cracked, and the forest had been reduced to ash.
Kushina stood on Isobu's turtle head, forming Hand Seals. Her red hair moved in the windless air, while thick golden Adamantine Sealing Chains stretched across the sky behind her, tightly binding One-Tail Shukaku!
Shukaku struggled wildly, howling and begging for mercy. But under the Uzumaki Clan's Sealing Technique, his entire body rapidly shrank. His round, chubby belly in particular deflated like a leaky balloon, shrinking at a speed visible to the naked eye.
A relieved smile flickered across Kushina's face, but just then...
An invisible vortex suddenly spread through the air.
"I've finally found you, Nine-Tails Jinchuriki."
In a chilling voice, a twisted plume of black smoke quickly emerged from the vortex.
"It's you!!"
Kushina's expression darkened the instant she saw him.
The man before her wore a black robe and an orange spiral mask. He was unmistakably the one who had attacked her more than a decade ago, when she had given birth to Naruto!
In other words... Obito Uchiha?
"Obito, is it really you? Why did you attack me back then? What happened to you?!" Kushina asked in a grave voice, speeding up her "recovery" of the One-Tail as she tried to distract Obito Uchiha.
Obito Uchiha seemed to see through her little ploy. He sneered, formed Hand Seals, and slapped the ground. "Summoning Technique!"
Boom!
A huge cloud of smoke exploded behind Obito Uchiha.
Kushina looked up and saw a massive shadow take shape within the smoke!
"This Chakra Aura..."
Isobu's single eye glinted with recognition. "It's Gyuki!"
"Roar!!"
Amid a furious roar, a gigantic octopus monster emerged from the smoke, swinging several thick, vicious tentacles at Kushina and Isobu.
Isobu