The Advancing Nine-Tails

One month later, in a cave not too far from Konoha.

"Little Naruto."

Minato held Kushina's hand as she lay on the birthing bed, both of them beaming with happiness as they looked at the chubby boy in Sarutobi Biwako's arms.

"Alright!" Biwako carried the child away, and Minato turned around, placing his hand on Kushina's stomach.

"I know you're exhausted from the birth, but we need to reinforce the seal now," Minato said with a smile.

"...Ah!"

Just as Minato began to apply the seal, a sudden scream erupted from behind him.

"Biwako-sama!"

Minato turned around in a hurry, only to find Biwako lying on the ground, her life status unknown.

And his and Kushina's child had fallen into the hands of a figure wearing a black robe and a cloud-patterned mask!

Needless to say, this sudden intruder was none other than Uchiha Xia.

"My apologies, Fourth Hokage. Please step away from the jinchuriki immediately, or I might just kill this child."

Xia held Naruto in one arm while placing her other hand on his forehead, speaking in a rough, gravelly voice.

Damn it!

Minato's expression darkened. How did this guy get through the barrier? Who exactly is he...?

Whoosh!

Before Minato could think it through, Xia forcefully threw the infant Naruto toward the outside of the cave.

"Naruto!"

Minato was startled; unable to care about anything else, he lunged toward Naruto in mid-air.

"Oh no!"

The moment he caught Naruto, Minato's pupils constricted—the baby's swaddling clothes were covered in Explosive Tags.

Whoosh!

With lightning reflexes, he tore off the swaddling clothes and threw them into the distance, then activated the Flying Thunder God Technique to transport himself and Naruto to a safe location.

Taking advantage of the distraction, Xia abducted Kushina, carried her outside the cave, and bound her between several stone pillars.

"What exactly are you trying to do?!" Kushina demanded weakly.

Xia ignored her.

She had gone to great lengths to lure Minato away; she had neither the time nor the need to explain anything to Kushina.

"Unsealing Method... Come forth, Nine-Tails!"

Uchiha Xia formed hand seals, her Sharingan spinning wildly as she forcibly pried open the seal on Kushina's body.

"Ugh, aaaaaaah!"

Amidst Kushina's agonizing screams, a mass of orange light burst from her stomach and shot toward the nearby wasteland.

"Awoo!"

Under the bright moonlight, the orange mass expanded rapidly, instantly transforming into a colossal demon fox. It bared its fangs and roared at the moon, saliva dripping everywhere.

Gazing at the gargantuan beast, Uchiha Xia commanded, "Nine-Tails, sever one of your own tails!"

Rip!

Reflected in the Nine-Tails' eyes, the three tomoe spun as it turned without hesitation and swung its sharp claws, slicing off one of its own tails.

The moment the tail was severed, it lost its physical form and transformed into a mass of pure, orange-red chakra.

"Seal!"

Seeing this, Uchiha Xia pulled out a prepared scroll, formed hand seals, and sealed the Nine-Tails' chakra inside.

"Heh, I'll collect a portion of the Nine-Tails' chakra first, just in case."

Whoosh!

The chains binding Kushina slowly vanished, and just as she began to collapse toward the ground, Minato appeared in the nick of time and caught her.

"Minato, is Naruto okay?" Kushina asked weakly as she lay in his arms.

"Yes, Naruto is fine. He's in a safe place now," Minato comforted his wife, his heart aching for her.

"Minato, you have to stop that guy... and the Nine-Tails..."

"Alright, leave it to me!"

Minato glanced back at Xia, the coldness in his eyes sharp enough to freeze the air.

He would never let anyone who dared to harm his wife and child get away easily!

Whoosh!

Minato vanished with Kushina in his arms, clearly heading off to secure her safety.

"The Yellow Flash, truly living up to his reputation," Kasumi murmured as she watched Minato vanish.

"Tonight is a rare opportunity; I might as well test the strength of Konoha."

Kasumi looked toward the Nine-Tails at her side and issued a new command: "Nine-Tails, try leveling Konoha for me!"

"Roar!"

The Nine-Tails let out a thunderous howl, its four claws digging into the earth as it launched its massive body forward, crashing through countless giant trees as it charged madly in the direction of Konoha.

In Konoha Village, it was another peaceful and serene night, with no one realizing that a crisis was imminent.

Kakashi walked down the street, glancing at the energetic Guy beside him with deadpan eyes.

"Guy, I really have no energy left. Why don't we just settle this with rock-paper-scissors today? I just want to go home and sleep."

"Again? Isn't there any more passionate way to compete?" Guy stomped his feet in frustration. "Genye is like this, and you're like this too. How are you supposed to be my rivals if you act like this?"

"You're at the age where your blood is boiling with nowhere to vent it—how can you even sleep at a time like this?!"

Kakashi: (ーー゛)

BOOM!

Just as the two were bickering, a deafening roar erupted from not far away.

A colossal demon fox howled at the sky, houses appearing like mere toys before it, its hideous form coming into everyone's line of sight.

"Ah! The Nine-Tails... that's the Nine-Tails!"

"What the hell, am I drunk again?!"

"You idiot, don't just stand there, run!"

After several decades, humanity once again recalled the terror of being dominated by a Tailed Beast.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The Nine-Tails ran frantically through the village, its sharp claws and tails lashing out incessantly.

Whether it was sturdy houses or fragile crowds, nothing could withstand its power; everything was destined to be crushed.

Hokage Office.

A ninja stumbled inside, shouting in panic, "Lord Third, the Nine-Tails! The Nine-Tails... has appeared in the village!"

"I know."

Sarutobi Hiruzen had already changed into his combat gear, tightening the armor on his arms as he said in a low voice, "I will suppress that thing. You are responsible for protecting the villagers."

He appeared calm and collected, but his heart had sunk to the bottom. Did all those precautionary measures prove useless... Biwako...

On the street.

"Damn it! Nine-Tails!" Guy waved his fists, delivering a passionate declaration.

"Now is the moment to unleash my burning energy! Bring it on, Nine-Tails, I shall be your opponent!"

"Guy, don't be impulsive!" Kakashi frowned. "The Nine-Tails could swat you dead with a single paw."

At that moment, Yuhi Shinku ran past from another street and shouted sternly upon seeing the two.

"Don't just stand there! Get to the assembly point immediately! This is an order from Lord Third!"

"Did you hear that, Guy? Let's go, don't stay here and get in the way!" Kakashi said.

On the rooftops nearby, ninjas sprinted past, shouting continuously.

"Do not act on your own! Assemble at Lord Hiruzen's location and wait for Lord Minato to return!"

BOOM!

A sound capable of piercing clouds and shattering stone rang out, and Kamisato Ayaka vanished from Genye's side in an instant.

(̿▀̿̿Ĺ̯̿̿▀̿ ̿)̄

Genye rose from his bed with a grim expression, his eyes fully activated as he looked toward the outside.

"Damn! The Nine-Tails' attack?!"

Upon realizing what was happening, Genye drew a sharp breath.

This was complete nonsense.

He had practically bent Obito to his will, so who the hell started the Nine-Tails' attack?

Following the shouts of the ninjas outside, Genye decided to head to the assembly point first to see what was happening before deciding on his next move.

If nothing went wrong, tonight might be a great opportunity to show off—pfft, I mean, a great opportunity to farm some favorability!