Yet no one answered.
There was only the crackle of flames around him and distant screams he could barely make out.
The Nine-Tails' tail swept toward him.
"No!!!"
Everything fell silent.
In the distance, Inabi paused midstep when he heard that scream as he rescued survivors.
He did not look back.
He hoisted another injured child onto his back and kept running toward safety.
Suddenly, the Nine-Tails stopped moving.
It opened its mouth, and a massive black sphere began forming before it.
Black and purple mingled across its surface, which churned with violent chakra.
Every ninja present could feel the terrifying energy contained within that sphere.
It was enough power to destroy everything.
"That's... a Tailed Beast Bomb!"
Someone shouted in terror.
"Run! Run!"
But where could they possibly run?
Once that Tailed Beast Bomb struck, all of Konoha would cease to exist.
The Tailed Beast Bomb finished forming.
The Nine-Tails jerked its head and hurled it toward the heart of the village!
The black sphere tore through the night sky, hurtling toward Konoha with enough force to annihilate everything.
Countless people looked up in despair.
It's over!
Just as the Tailed Beast Bomb was about to strike.
A yellow flash streaked past.
The Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, appeared directly in front of the Tailed Beast Bomb.
He formed hand seals, and a massive fold in space opened behind him.
"Flying Thunder God: Guiding Thunder!"
The Tailed Beast Bomb fell into the vast net of folded space and vanished without a trace, as though something had swallowed it.
A second later.
An earth-shattering explosion rang out beyond the village, in the direction of the Forest of Death.
An enormous blaze shot into the sky, lighting up the entire night.
Everyone froze.
Then they saw the figure standing high above them.
Golden hair, a white Hokage Robe, and the large words "Fourth Hokage" across his back.
Minato Namikaze stood there, looking down at the Nine-Tails. His voice was quiet, yet every person heard it clearly:
"On my name as Hokage, I will protect my family in this village."
"That is my duty."
He raised his head and fixed his gaze on the Nine-Tails' scarlet eyes.
"We must seal the Nine-Tails as quickly as possible!"
The moment he finished speaking, space rippled behind him.
The Masked Man slowly emerged from the distorted space.
"I'm your opponent."
"Kamui."
Space began twisting, enveloping them both.
Just before the phasing was complete, Minato activated Flying Thunder God.
With a flash of yellow, he vanished from the twisting space.
Immediately afterward, the Masked Man's figure slowly vanished as well.
A little while later.
The Nine-Tails' scarlet eyes suddenly changed.
The tomoe in its pupils slowly faded.
The Nine-Tails let out a deafening roar, but the madness of being controlled was gone. Only pure ferocity and rage remained.
Standing atop the rubble, Hiruzen Sarutobi's pupils narrowed:
"The control over the Nine-Tails... has been broken?"
He had no time to dwell on it.
"Minato did it!"
He roared.
"Everyone, now!"
Before his words had faded, he bit his finger and formed hand seals.
"Summoning Technique! Come forth, Enma!"
White smoke burst forth, and an enormous ape appeared beside him.
The moment Enma landed, he took in the situation:
"Hiruzen!"
"Use the Diamond Staff!"
Enma nodded, flipped over, and transformed into an enormous iron staff that landed in Hiruzen's hands.
Hiruzen braced the iron staff against his waist, planted his feet, and drew a deep breath.
"Extend!!!"
The iron staff shot outward, slamming into the Nine-Tails' belly.
The tremendous impact made the Nine-Tails roar in fury, forcing its massive body back step after step.
The Nine-Tails was driven clear out of Konoha, leaving a deep furrow in the ground.
Veins bulged on Hiruzen's forehead as he clung to the iron staff and shouted his orders:
"I've driven the Nine-Tails out of the village! Anbu, don't let up! Keep attacking!"
"Yes!!!"
Countless dark figures darted from the rubble and charged toward the Nine-Tails.
Elsewhere, the battle between Minato and the Masked Man finally drew to a close.
Using the Flying Thunder God Mark he had placed on his opponent during their fight, Minato seized an opening and struck the Masked Man with his palm.
"Contract Seal!"
The nine-tails chakra on the Masked Man was instantly stripped away, completely severing his connection to the Nine-Tails.
The Masked Man grunted and looked down at his injuries, knowing he could no longer succeed tonight.
"Fourth Hokage... you really are formidable."
His body began phasing out, his voice growing distant:
"But this is only the beginning."
With that, he vanished completely into the distorted space.
Minato did not pursue him.
He took a deep breath, formed hand seals, and sensed the Flying Thunder God Mark he had left in the village.
A second later, a yellow light flashed, and he appeared in the sky above Konoha.
Outside the village, the Nine-Tails was roaring wildly.
Hiruzen Sarutobi and the Anbu were risking their lives to hold it back.
Ninjutsu rained down on the Nine-Tails, but none of it could stop the rampaging tailed beast.
Every sweep of its tails struck dozens of ninja, sending them coughing up blood.
"Damn it! Where's Minato?"
Hiruzen gritted his teeth, veins bulging on his forehead.
"At this rate..."
Before he could finish, the Nine-Tails opened its mouth.
Black-and-purple chakra surged together, rapidly forming a massive Tailed Beast Bomb inside its mouth.
The terrifying surge of energy made everyone's heart tremble.
It's over.
If that Tailed Beast Bomb hits...
"Summoning Technique!"
An enormous cloud of white smoke burst forth, and a mountain-sized toad fell from the sky, crashing onto the Nine-Tails!
BOOM!!!
The Nine-Tails was crushed flat against the ground.
Gamabunta clenched his pipe between his teeth and pinned the Nine-Tails down.
Minato looked at the Tailed Beast Bomb still forming in the Nine-Tails' mouth, a glint of resolve flashing in his eyes.
"Sorry, but I can't let you run wild."
He formed hand seals.
"Flying Thunder God!"
Yellow light flashed.
The Nine-Tails' enormous body vanished, along with the Tailed Beast Bomb in its mouth.
A second later.
An earth-shattering explosion rang out even farther from the village.
An enormous blaze shot skyward, and the shock wave swept across all of Konoha like a gale, leaving countless people struggling to stay on their feet.
Once the blast's aftermath had subsided, Minato appeared again.
Carrying Kushina and Naruto, he landed a short distance from the Nine-Tails.
Its Tailed Beast Bomb had missed again, and the Nine-Tails immediately roared in fury.
But before it could move, a golden chain wound tightly around it.
"Adamantine Sealing Chains!"
Kushina lay on the ground, so weak she could barely lift her head.
Golden chains extended from her body, binding the Nine-Tails firmly in place.
"I... can still do this, Minato."
She panted, her voice coming in broken gasps.
Minato looked at her, his eyes reddening.
He knew Kushina had reached her limit.
With the Nine-Tails torn out of her and her forcing herself to use Adamantine Sealing Chains, her life could slip away at any moment.
Kushina lifted her head and looked at Minato, forcing a weak smile:
"I'll drag the Nine-Tails... back into my body and die with it."
"That way, it'll take longer for the Nine-Tails to revive."
She paused, her gaze turning to Naruto in Minato's arms, her eyes full of tenderness:
"With the little chakra I have left, this is... the only way I can help you."
"Minato, thank you for everything."
Her voice grew fainter, tears shimmering in her eyes:
"If I have any regrets... it's that I wish I could... see Naruto all grown up."
Tears spilled from Minato's eyes.
"Kushina... you don't have to die with the Nine-Tails."
"I'll incorporate all your remaining chakra into the Eight Trigrams Sealing Style and seal it inside Naruto."
"That way, someday in the future, you'll be able to meet Naruto when he's grown up."
He took a deep breath, his gaze turning resolute:
"After that, leave the Nine-Tails... to me."
He swiftly formed hand seals.
"Dead Demon Consuming Seal!"
An enormous spectral Shinigami slowly appeared behind him.
He had a pale body and a hideous face, with a short blade clenched in his mouth. One deathly white hand pierced Minato's body.
Minato's face instantly turned pale.
The Shinigami plunged his other hand into the Nine-Tails and tore viciously.
Half of the nine-tails chakra was forcibly ripped out and sealed inside Minato.
The Nine-Tails let out a furious, defiant roar:
"You bastard... Fourth Hokage!!!"
Fighting through the excruciating pain, Minato formed hand seals again.
A pedestal for the sealing ritual appeared, bearing the formula used to seal a tailed beast.
The Nine-Tails' pupils contracted as it instantly realized his intent.
"Bastard! You're trying to seal me again... inside that brat, no less!"
It thrashed wildly, but the Adamantine Sealing Chains held it fast, leaving it unable to move.
Just then.
Kushina's body finally gave out.
The chakra inside her faltered for an instant, and the golden chains slackened slightly.
The Nine-Tails seized that fleeting opportunity!
"Now!!!"
It raised its enormous claw and brought it down viciously toward Naruto!
That strike carried all its rage.
Minato's expression changed drastically.
With no time to think, he lunged toward Naruto.
Shhk!!!
The Nine-Tails' claw pierced his chest.
Blood gushed out, dripping down the enormous claw's tip.
But the Nine-Tails did not stop.
Its claw kept driving forward.
Kushina immediately threw herself in front of Naruto too!
The blood-soaked claw was about to impale her as well.
Just then, a figure appeared beside the Nine-Tails like a ghost.
It was Gentō!
At the sight before him, his pupils constricted.
With no time to think, he poured chakra into his left eye.
"Yomi-no-Mikoto!"
Before you continue