Three-Tails

He worried that if he waited any longer, Naruto would truly lose control.

Yet, he had no idea what he could even do if he rushed over.

After shattering all the surrounding ice mirrors, Naruto seemed to want to calm down.

But just as his eyes were about to return to normal, the Nine-Tails' chakra surged out even more frantically.

Soon, a second fox tail condensed into existence.

The two-tailed form was already beyond what Naruto could control at this age.

"Roar!"

He threw his head back and let out a terrifying bestial howl.

The sound shattered the surface of the bridge once again.

Ripples appeared across the surface of the sea.

The roar alone possessed such terrifying power.

Kakashi, having arrived in front of Naruto, wore a grave expression.

"Naruto, wake up!"

But the rampaging Naruto turned to look at Kakashi without recognizing him.

Or rather, the beast's instincts had already taken over Naruto's consciousness.

Naruto's consciousness was being suppressed.

The seal on Naruto's abdomen was loosening further.

More and more chakra poured out.

"Roar~"

Seeing Kakashi, Naruto let out a roar and charged straight at him.

Seeing this, Kakashi hurriedly raised his Kunai to block.

"Boom~"

A terrifying force slammed into Kakashi.

The moment they collided, Kakashi was sent flying hundreds of meters, landing beneath the bridge and skidding across the sea for hundreds of meters, kicking up a spray of water dozens of meters high.

When he finally came to a stop, the clothes on his chest were completely scorched.

His chest was burned as well.

Black smoke rose from his body.

The intense pain nearly left Kakashi unable to catch his breath.

"Such, such immense power. To be this terrifying with physical strength alone—is this the power of the Nine-Tails?"

"And this is only the two-tailed state; it's hard to imagine what the Fourth Hokage faced when dealing with the full-bodied Nine-Tails."

After just one exchange, Kakashi felt the gap between them.

The physical strength alone was enough to leave Kakashi with no way to fight back.

"Even if I wanted to apply a sealing jutsu to Naruto, I can't even get close to him."

"Besides, my sealing jutsus are far too weak to seal a Tailed Beast."

Kakashi spat out a mouthful of blood.

His hands were trembling uncontrollably from the excruciating pain.

He had already exhausted a great deal of chakra fighting Zabuza earlier.

"Damn it, I can only use Lightning Blade one more time at most. But can Lightning Blade even stop Naruto?"

There was another way to deal with a rampaging Tailed Beast: defeat it, beat it into submission, and force it back into the Jinchuriki's body.

The Third Raikage had done exactly that.

He exhausted the power of the rampaging Eight-Tails until it was finally sealed back into the Jinchuriki.

Or, like Sunagakure sealing the One-Tails Shukaku, one could use absolute power to beat Shukaku until it retreated back into the Jinchuriki.

But could Kakashi really accomplish such a thing?

Watching the third tail beginning to condense behind Naruto, Kakashi gritted his teeth. "No, I absolutely cannot let him condense another tail. The two-tailed state is already this powerful; if the three-tailed state forms, Naruto will never have a chance to control the Nine-Tails again."

Naruto's consciousness was already fading in the two-tailed state.

If he entered the three-tailed state, Kakashi didn't even dare to imagine if Naruto would have any consciousness left at all.

The only remaining sliver of hope was for Naruto to rely on his own will to activate the seal and lock the Nine-Tails back inside.

Kakashi began to weave hand signs. "I must stop him."

"Lightning Blade!"

Kakashi unleashed the Lightning Blade.

"As long as I can shatter your third tail with this strike, there is still a chance."

Kakashi channeled his chakra into his feet, exerting force in an instant.

He transformed into a blur, vanishing across the surface of the sea.

In a flash, he appeared behind Naruto.

Naruto's eyes shifted to the side.

The moment Kakashi appeared behind Naruto, his expression brightened. "Success!"

BOOM.

Just as Kakashi believed he was about to succeed, one of the tails beside him suddenly expanded, growing over ten meters long and two or three meters thick.

With a single sweep, the tail sent Kakashi flying.

The force of this blow was even heavier than the last.

Kakashi was sent flying for hundreds of meters, blasting a water spout over a hundred meters high into the air.

The Lightning Blade on his hand vanished, though stray arcs of electricity still flickered across his palm.

Kakashi nearly lost consciousness.

Several of his bones were broken.

Kakashi coughed up blood, struggling to stand, but the excruciating pain left him unable to move.

"Such... such intense vigilance."

The Nine-Tails' chakra was filled with absolute malice, yet it was also incredibly sensitive to malicious chakra.

Kakashi's speed could not keep up with the Nine-Tails' perception.

A single tail strike was enough to strip Kakashi of his ability to fight.

Having failed to stop Naruto, the third tail behind him successfully took form.

ROAR.

Another guttural howl erupted.

This time, the bridge deck within a hundred meters of Naruto shattered completely, and waves several meters high churned on the sea.

The surging waves spread for over a thousand meters.

Terrifying chakra dissipated into the air.

Even those who were not sensory-type ninja could feel that chakra laden with absolute malice; terror, slaughter, and every form of extreme evil could be felt in that moment.

Zabuza, who had been hiding to the side after rescuing Haku—intending to move in for the kill once the Nine-Tails wounded Kakashi—was caught in the aftermath.

Although Naruto did not attack him, he was only two hundred meters away, which was far too close.

The extreme, malicious chakra radiating from the Nine-Tails slammed into his brain.

It even made him feel as though he had been caught in a genjutsu; memories of his days slaughtering his comrades in Kirigakure flooded his mind, and no matter how hard he tried to suppress them, he could not stop the visions.

This sensation made Zabuza deeply uneasy.

While carrying the unconscious Haku and gripping the Kubikiribōchō, he could feel the hair on his body trembling.

Though he had never fought the Nine-Tails, the mere aura of its chakra was enough to fill Zabuza with immense dread.

"The Nine-Tails' chakra is actually this much stronger than the Three-Tails'."

"Even the Three-Tails in its complete form couldn't radiate such terrifying chakra."

He had once attempted to assassinate the Xidai Mizukage; although he failed, he had witnessed the strength of the Xidai Mizukage's Three-Tails chakra.

But it was absolutely not as terrifying as this.

This chakra was so suffocating it made it difficult for him to breathe.

"I don't want any part of this situation anymore."

"Regardless, once the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki goes on a rampage, this bridge will be destroyed, and Kakashi will likely die here anyway."

"I suppose that counts as completing the mission."

Zabuza took one last look and prepared to leave with Haku.

Just then, Naruto, standing on the bridge pier, turned his head toward his position.

The bridge deck had already been shattered by his roar.

After Sakura rescued Sasuke, she intended to save Kakashi as well.

Kakashi was not unconscious, but he lay on the surface of the sea, unable to move.

And since Sakura had not yet learned how to walk on water, she could only swim to reach him.

Sakura had been protecting Tazuna the entire time, but in this situation, she was the only member of Team 7 still conscious and uninjured; she could not simply leave Kakashi there.

Who knew if the rampaging Naruto would charge over and kill Kakashi?