Nine-Tails Settled

While Ning Qi moved through the battlefield in the Uchiha District, gathering Sharingan, on the Nine-Tails battlefield outside the village, perhaps Fugaku had gradually weakened to the point where he could no longer restrain the Nine-Tails, or perhaps, pressed by the battle, he had deliberately loosened his control over it to crush Sarutobi sooner.

In any case, the Nine-Tails' attacks were becoming increasingly violent and reckless. Fur had nearly covered its entire body, and Sarutobi felt unprecedented pressure facing the Nine-Tails in such a state.

Boom—

The Tailed Beast Bomb exploded thunderously, its shockwaves shaking heaven and earth.

Sarutobi looked behind him. An entire mountaintop had been flattened by that immense power.

His face darkened. If that attack had been unleashed upon Konoha, the entire village would have been wiped from the world.

"Fugaku..."

He had no idea how many times he had uttered that name today. He had been thoroughly prepared for the Uchiha Rebellion, but from the moment Naruto was kidnapped, the entire situation had fallen apart. No one had expected Uchiha Fugaku to possess such audacity.

His ambitions were immense.

His methods were unconstrained.

If you, Fugaku, had possessed such resolve long ago, why had you waited until now to stage a coup?

And why would you have been forced onto the path of rebellion in the first place?

For now, there was no answer to that question.

Another Tailed Beast Bomb was gathering, its terrifying power making hearts tremble.

Sarutobi had driven every Konoha ninja away and faced the nearly complete Nine-Tails alone outside the village.

At worst, they would perish together, he thought.

Taking a deep breath and focusing his mind, Sarutobi prepared to evade at any moment as he shouted at the Nine-Tails.

"Naruto, are you still there? Wake up!!"

"Nine-Tails, I know you're regaining consciousness! Are you really willing to be controlled by the Uchiha?"

He exhausted himself shouting until his throat was nearly hoarse, yet apart from the hatred in the Nine-Tails' eyes growing stronger at the mention of "Uchiha," there was no other change.

The Tailed Beast Bomb came crashing toward him like an unstoppable chariot, flattening every obstacle in its path.

Sarutobi continued flickering away.

But this time, the Nine-Tails seemed to have learned its lesson. The Tailed Beast Bomb exploded before it had traveled very far!

Though Sarutobi was not at the center of the blast, the spreading shockwaves were like wind blades—impossible to evade no matter what.

The surrounding trees were almost directly severed.

Earth Style: Earth-Style Wall!

The earthen wall was shredded by the blast wave, and Sarutobi beneath it was sent flying!

Only after the Adamantine Staff plunged into the ground did he barely manage to steady himself. He spat out a mouthful of blood.

He was in poor condition now. Both his stamina and chakra reserves had reached dangerous levels.

Watching the Nine-Tails continue gathering another Tailed Beast Bomb, Sarutobi gave a helpless, bitter smile.

The Nine-Tails was mad, but not mindless. It had already learned how to use Tailed Beast Bombs to truly harm this irritating ant called Sarutobi. The next one would definitely not be so easy to avoid!

...So this was his limit?

That Fugaku... had actually endured longer than he, the Hokage, had?

Sigh.

Though unwilling to accept it, Sarutobi knew clearly that now was the best time.

He could not force himself any further.

"Sarutobi!" Sensing his old companion's resolve, Enma could not help but speak.

"Say no more." Sarutobi shook his head and said firmly, "We can't drag this out any longer. This is the only way."

If he delayed any further, he feared he would lose the chance to use the Reaper Death Seal.

Sarutobi looked at the Nine-Tails. Perhaps he had remembered something, or perhaps death was simply drawing near, but he said wistfully,

"Actually... I should have died during the last Nine-Tails Rebellion."

"I should have been the one to use the Reaper Death Seal then."

"Minato had only just become Hokage. He was still so young, and he clearly had such a promising future ahead of him."

"If this old man had stepped forward back then, perhaps a disaster like today's would never have happened..."

Minato had once had a disciple from the Uchiha Clan. Though that boy, Obito, had died early during a mission, it was precisely because of that guilt that Minato's relationship with the Uchiha Clan had remained far better than Sarutobi's.

[ ]

Sarutobi felt that if he had stepped forward to use the Reaper Death Seal back then, the Uchiha Clan would never have risked the lives of the entire clan to take such a desperate gamble today. Even if the clan members were dissatisfied, they would likely have tried to communicate with Minato rather than directly choosing rebellion.

Unlike now, although Sarutobi had consistently played the role of a moderate during the Uchiha Rebellion, he had never received even the slightest attempt at communication or testing from the Uchiha.

Clearly, the Uchiha had been utterly disappointed in him as well. They had even believed that every act of suppression against the Uchiha had been secretly ordered by him, the Hokage. Thus, he had become one of the primary targets to be eliminated in this coup.

"I'm sorry, Naruto... Minato..." Sarutobi murmured softly.

In the distance, the Nine-Tails had nearly finished charging its Tailed Beast Bomb. Sarutobi began forming hand seals.

Snake—

Boar—

Ram—

Rabbit—

Dog—

Rat—

Rooster—

A total of nine seals. Just as Sarutobi formed the eighth, it was as though a pair of phantom hands covered his, stopping him from continuing.

At that moment, a voice seemed to drift in on the wind.

"Third Hokage..."

Sarutobi knew that voice very well. He raised his head in confusion and discovered that the Nine-Tails before him had stopped charging at some point. Fur had covered its entire body; it was now the complete Nine-Tails. By all reason, Naruto's consciousness should have been completely consumed by the Nine-Tails... so why?

The Nine-Tails no longer paid attention to Sarutobi. It was ravaging the surrounding mountains and forests as though crazed.

The mountain range was destroyed, countless towering trees were uprooted, and dust billowed into the air. The final reflection of the Sharingan in the Nine-Tails' eyes had completely faded, leaving behind only a blood-red color filled with pure malice and hatred.

"Uchiha..."

"Minato..."

The Nine-Tails spoke from deep within its throat.

These were the two names the Nine-Tails hated most.

Now that both had appeared, Sarutobi finally remembered the source of that familiar voice from before.

Minato Namikaze.

But why...

Sarutobi looked confused, but under Enma's urging, he finally lowered his hands without forming the final two seals of the Reaper Death Seal. He watched the Nine-Tails from afar.

Sure enough, not long afterward, accompanied by an unwilling roar, the Nine-Tails rapidly shrank until it became a child and fell to the ground.

Overjoyed, Sarutobi hurried over and confirmed that the Nine-Tails seal on Naruto's body was completely intact.

"Naruto?"

Naruto woke up and looked at Sarutobi in confusion.

"Third Grandpa?"

"Was that just a dream?"

"I saw a yellow-haired man who looked a lot like the Fourth Hokage on Hokage Rock. He said he was my dad, and I hugged him inside and cried..."

As though suddenly coming to his senses, Naruto froze for a moment before grabbing Sarutobi's hand and asking directly,

"Third Grandpa, was what he said true?"

"That Fourth Hokage... was he really my dad?"

Sarutobi did not dwell on the form of address. His emotions were simply too complicated at that moment. Looking at the expectation in Naruto's eyes, his guilt at failing to use the Reaper Death Seal in Minato's place grew even deeper.

He nodded. "It's true. Your father was the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze."

Naruto stood stunned for a long time. Then tears began falling onto his hands, one drop after another. He tried to block them with the back of his hand, but no matter what he did, he could not stop them.

After a long while, Naruto finally calmed down and said,

"He... he also told me to tell you after I came out, 'It's alright. I will always respect you, Third Hokage.'"

This time, Sarutobi was the one who froze. He remembered that voice in the wind, those seemingly nonexistent hands pressing upon his while he formed seals, and his thoughts became a mess.

He let out a deep sigh.

"Naruto..."

Sarutobi took Naruto's hand, wanting to say something.

But an ANBU appeared at the most inopportune moment.

He reported,

"Lord Hokage... the Hyuga clan... something has happened to the Hyuga clan!"