Gaara Goes Berserk / Kotoamatsukami Again

Three against one. They had thought it would be an easy, one-sided fight, but in reality, one person was beating up three.

The key was that Gaara's chakra seemed endless. He showed no sign of fatigue even now, so their plan to wear him down in shifts had fallen apart.

Luckily, Naruto and Sakura finally arrived, breaking the stalemate.

"Two more people here to die?" Gaara didn't care how many of them there were. The more, the better. That way, he could kill to his heart's content and satisfy the bloodlust of the monster inside him.

"Everyone, from now on, follow my lead!" Keiichi shouted.

The others exchanged glances and realized that Keiichi was the only one they could trust to lead them.

"Right!" all four replied in unison.

"Naruto, use your strongest move and hit him with everything you've got!"

Naruto didn't ask questions. He immediately used the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique, surrounding Gaara with clones.

"Sasuke, get ready. Use that move you've been training so hard to master!"

At this, Sasuke nodded and began gathering the nature-transformation chakra needed for Lightning Style.

Gaara wasn't about to sit still and wait for them to attack. He sent sand rushing toward Keiichi. If he could take Keiichi out, the others would be like scattered sand.

Keiichi had been ready for this. He quickly retreated, but just as he tried to raise his right foot, he realized that sand had somehow wrapped around and pinned his left foot.

Damn it!

"Sand Binding Coffin!" Gaara uttered the three merciless words.

"Eight Trigrams Palms: Heavenly Spin!" Neji appeared in front of Keiichi and immediately knocked the sand apart.

"Thanks!" Keiichi called over his shoulder as he turned and ran.

He knew his role well. He was like the one drawing the boss's aggro in a team fight. Damage wasn't the most important thing; what mattered was giving his teammates time to attack.

Soon, Naruto's clones began blowing on the shuriken in their palms. As Wind Style chakra gathered over them, the shuriken began spinning at high speed, their humming growing louder and sharper.

On the other side, Sasuke was no less impressive. He built up a massive amount of lightning in his hand, the energy crackling against the air like a thousand birds chirping.

The entire battlefield rang with those two piercing sounds!

Yet Gaara was utterly unfazed. He curled the fingers of his other hand like a claw and grabbed at the air. A claw-shaped blade of sand appeared from nowhere, wiping out several of Naruto's clones with a single strike.

But Naruto had far too many clones, spread too widely apart. He couldn't take them all out in a short time.

"Naruto!" Seeing that the moment was right, Keiichi gave the order at once.

"Wind Style: Humming Shuriken!"

Naruto understood immediately. All the clones threw their shuriken at once, swarming toward Gaara like bees returning to their hive.

Gaara snorted. He had seen this move from the stands earlier, and he knew how Neji had countered it. Unmoved, he recalled all his sand and formed a protective shell in front of himself, like an eggshell.

"Shield of Sand!"

Just as expected, the Humming Shuriken embedded themselves in the sand shield. The chakra coating them gradually dissipated as the shield's resistance wore them down.

The Humming Shuriken could have cut down a tree, but now they couldn't even inflict serious damage on the Shield of Sand.

The name "absolute defense" was well deserved!

But a smile crept across Keiichi's face. This was exactly the reaction he wanted!

Now Gaara couldn't move, and Sasuke had time to build up enough power.

"Sasuke!"

The humming of the Chidori grew deafening. A dazzling blue-purple streak cut straight across their vision, tearing a deep trench through the ground as it went. Before anyone could react, half of Sasuke's body had already plunged into the sand shield.

Everyone's eyes widened. Sasuke's left hand, brimming with power, had pierced straight through the Shield of Sand.

Absolute defense had been broken!

Only now did they realize just how terrifying Sasuke's move was. No wonder Keiichi had desperately tried to interrupt him while he was charging it. The consequences would have been unthinkable if he hadn't.

Keiichi smiled faintly. Lightning Style countered Earth Release—that was common knowledge. And the Chidori was a ninjutsu designed for maximum destructive power, so this outcome was only natural.

Sure enough, the sand shield in front of Gaara crumbled, exposing what lay inside. His chest was severely wounded, as though a hole had been torn through it, and blood ran from the corners of his mouth.

His head hung low, making his expression impossible to see.

Sasuke panted heavily. This was his first time using the Chidori, and the fight had already drained most of his stamina. After using the move, he was completely spent. He had staked everything on that one strike.

Now that it had worked, he raised the corner of his mouth in a satisfied smile.

But his smile suddenly froze. His eyes widened as if he'd seen something impossible. He hurried to pull his arm free, only to find that fine sand had wrapped around it, holding him fast.

"I'm hurt... It hurts... It really hurts... You actually dared to hurt me?!" Gaara suddenly began to pant violently, his eyes wide as though he'd encountered something unimaginable.

He had never been hurt before—not once in his life. This was the first time he had ever felt pain.

Sasuke continued to struggle, but he couldn't pull his hand free. The fine sand wrapped around his arm like a python, seeming intent on crushing it.

"I'm going to kill you. I have to kill you!" Gaara's voice had changed. It sounded as if two people were speaking at once, one of them with a piercing tone.

Fear filled Sasuke's heart.

What kind of monster was this?!

Luckily, Keiichi suddenly appeared beside him and kicked Gaara off balance. Sasuke was finally able to escape.

Yes, in Sasuke's eyes, this wasn't a person anymore. It was a monster!

Soon, everyone saw what he had seen. Gaara's body began to change drastically. Sand gathered over him, his arm twisted into a horrifying shape, and his body swelled at a terrifying rate.

As the transformation continued, Gaara let out a pained wail, his consciousness growing more and more clouded.

"What's happening?" Sasuke stared at the change, dazed.

"Ah, looks like I was right after all. We've reached this point. Gaara's going berserk," Keiichi sighed helplessly.

He had put all his hopes on Sasuke's Chidori, because it was the only way to break through Gaara's absolute defense. But in the end, it still hadn't been enough to defeat him completely.

"Going berserk?"

Chapter 80: Gaara Goes Berserk

"Long, long ago, there were terrifying monsters in this world, as if disaster itself had descended. They were scattered across the lands. Though they looked different, most were violent and bloodthirsty. Nothing survived in their wake—not even grass or livestock. Countless villages and cities were destroyed, and the people suffered terribly. That's why they were called Calamity Beasts," Keiichi said slowly.

"What does that have to do with Gaara?"

"The Calamity Beasts were active all over the world, causing unimaginable destruction. Someone couldn't bear to see the people suffer, so they gathered strong fighters to kill them. But they discovered that even if they paid a terrible price to kill a Calamity Beast, the very same beast would return to this land after three years and continue laying waste to the world."

"But why have I never heard of Calamity Beasts before?"

"Because the Calamity Beasts were dealt with. Someone came up with a solution: if they couldn't be killed, why not seal them away?"

Hearing this, Naruto seemed to suddenly understand. He instinctively touched his stomach, where a seal had been ever since he could remember.

"Exactly. For some reason, a Calamity Beast could only be sealed inside a human body. Gaara must be the vessel containing the Calamity Beast of the Land of Wind. Now that we've damaged the vessel, the beast may reappear in this world!"

The explanation made sense. Everyone nodded. No wonder Gaara had such an absurdly powerful defensive technique. Its real purpose was to prevent the Calamity Beast from escaping. It was a lock on the cage that held it.

This was a cage built with the strength of an entire village. So it was only natural that they, the best of their generation, couldn't break through it, wasn't it?

Keiichi obviously couldn't reveal the truth about the Tailed Beasts. He could only explain it by drawing on legends that really existed among the people, and he had deliberately blurred many key details.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to explain how he'd learned about it. After all, the Tailed Beasts were highly classified secrets in every country.

Naruto watched Gaara struggle desperately and suddenly felt a pang of sympathy. So you and I are alike. We're both vessels used to seal away a "Calamity Beast"...

I think I can understand why you turned out this way...

"Damn it, Sunagakure sent Gaara into Konoha disguised as an examinee. They must have been plotting something all along!" Sakura seemed to realize what was going on.

"Fortunately, this isn't happening inside the village. Otherwise, the Nine-Tails Fox disaster from back then would be happening all over again." Neji sighed, completely unaware of the complicated look on Naruto's face behind him.

"What do we do now?" Naruto looked torn.

"If that monster really gets released, we won't stand a chance against it. Even Kakashi would have to retreat," Keiichi sighed helplessly.

"So we're just supposed to run away and leave him like this?"

"There's only one person here who can stop the Calamity Beast." As he spoke, Keiichi turned his gaze to Naruto.

As if they'd understood, the others turned to look at Naruto as well, their expressions strange.

There had always been a rumor in the village that Naruto was the incarnation of the fox demon. At first, no one had taken it seriously, dismissing it as nonsense. Now, after hearing Keiichi's explanation, they seemed to understand.

So...

Was Naruto Konoha's Gaara?

Just then, Sakura suddenly stepped in front of Naruto and glared at Keiichi. "I don't agree! I won't let you use Naruto as a sacrifice!"

She thought Keiichi wanted to release the Nine-Tails Fox to fight the Calamity Beast of the Land of Wind.

"That's right. Naruto hasn't done anything wrong," Sasuke said, taking his place beside Sakura.

"No. I think sacrificing one person to protect more people is worth it." Neji was the only one who sided with Keiichi.

Keiichi glanced at Neji. So you've decided where to stand?

You're willing to bet on me instead of Naruto, the one destined to become Hokage? Looks like all my persuasion wasn't wasted.

But if Naruto really sacrificed himself to keep the village from being destroyed, then there would be no future Hokage anyway. Was that what Neji had been thinking?

Keiichi smiled faintly and asked Naruto, "What do you think?"

Naruto looked at everyone helplessly, his smile stiff. "I... I don't know... But if it's for the village..."

"Don't listen to him! He's trying to guilt-trip you!" Sakura panicked, interrupting Naruto. She was afraid he would make an irrational choice under the pressure of his sense of duty.

Sasuke struggled to take a fighting stance, even though he could barely stay on his feet.

Glancing at Gaara, who was still transforming, Keiichi made a calming gesture. "Relax, relax. I never said Naruto had to sacrifice himself. But the solution really does lie with him."

"What solution?" Sasuke frowned.

"Naruto, come over here. There's something I can only tell you."

"Keiichi..." Naruto ignored Sakura's attempt to stop him and walked over, his smile a little awkward.

"Remember the Summoning Jutsu Lord Jiraiya taught you? It's time to use it. Don't forget to ask that Stinky Fox to pay rent." Keiichi leaned in and whispered.

At this, Naruto's eyes lit up.

"Isn't he trying to hypnotize you or something? Don't listen to him!" Sakura cried anxiously.

"Don't worry. I'm going to surprise you all!" Naruto turned to them and flashed a brilliantly confident smile.

Then he closed his eyes and sank his mind deep into the depths of his consciousness, repeatedly calling out, Stinky Fox, Stinky Fox...

Who's disturbing my rest?

"I'm your landlord... your landlord... landlord..."

"Get lost! Stop bothering me!"

"You owe me rent... pay the rent... the rent... rent..."

This brat... He's so annoying!

"Rent... rent..."

Fine. It's only a single hair. Take it, you little debt collector...

Naruto's eyes snapped open. Red chakra radiated from his entire body, and even his eyes had turned red. He looked like a wild beast!

"Naruto, don't! Stop!" Sakura was so frightened she stopped breathing. She thought Naruto was about to turn into someone like Gaara.

"Don't worry... Watch this..." Naruto bit his finger, then slammed it against the ground.

"Summoning Jutsu!"

"Everyone, spread out!" Keiichi thought in an instant.

The others scattered in every direction. A gigantic Toad suddenly appeared in midair and dropped straight toward the ground.

Chapter 81: Kotoamatsukami Again

Konoha, in front of the Hokage Building ruins.

Hiruzen gripped Aburame Tatsuma by the throat. The latter was badly burned, and the ninja insects that had been hidden on his body lay scattered across the ground. He was clearly in no condition to fight back.