Yellow Flash, Naruto Uzumaki Has Arrived

The Nine-Tails Returns!

BOOM—!!!

The instant the ninth crimson fox tail fully unfurled, the ground beneath all of Konoha seemed to be gripped by an invisible giant hand and violently heaved upward.

Rubble on the distant Hokage Rock rattled down. Pedestrians in the streets were all thrown to the ground, while windows in every home shattered at once in a series of sharp cracks.

Inside the stadium, the concrete stands crumbled layer by layer like biscuits, massive chunks of stone whistling down toward the crowd.

"The Nine-Tails! The Nine-Tails really came out!"

"Run! The disaster from back then is coming again!"

"Mom! I'm scared!"

Heart-wrenching cries instantly replaced the previous dead silence.

The spectators in the stands shoved frantically backward, footsteps, screams, and collapsing structures blending into one chaotic din.

"All Jonin! Take your positions immediately!"

"ANBU Teams A and B, seal the stadium exits! Teams C and D, evacuate the civilians!"

"Medical Corps! Prepare to receive the wounded!"

Figures darted out from every direction like ghosts. Konoha's Jonin were deathly pale, but their hands rapidly formed seals as layers upon layers of chakra barriers rose, barely blocking the scattered chakra shockwaves.

Behind their ANBU masks were faces filled with terror. Many of them had lived through the Nine-Tails' attack twelve years ago and had personally seen how that blood-red fox had turned half of Konoha into scorched earth.

Now, the nightmare was repeating itself.

And it was even more terrifying than before.

Back then, the Nine-Tails had a Jinchuriki restraining it. Now, this Nine-Tails had broken free of its seal on its own.

On the main platform, the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, abruptly rose to his feet. His aged hand tore off his Hokage hat and casually threw it to the ground.

He also ripped open the red Hokage cloak that symbolized Konoha's highest authority.

His pipe fell to the ground, scattering tobacco everywhere.

Those eyes that always carried a gentle smile were now bloodshot. Despair, regret, and a bone-deep terror surged within his clouded pupils.

"How... how did it come to this..."

His voice trembled.

Twelve years ago, he had watched helplessly as his most prized disciple, Minato Namikaze, died alongside his wife beneath that fox's claws in order to seal the Nine-Tails.

Before dying, Minato had sealed half of the Nine-Tails Chakra within the newborn Naruto and entrusted Hiruzen with taking good care of the child.

But what had he done?

He had allowed the village to isolate Naruto, allowed those rumors to spread, allowed Danzo to test and scheme against him again and again.

He had thought that giving Naruto a little warmth would be enough to set him on the right path.

He had thought that as long as the seal remained, the Nine-Tails would never emerge.

Now, he knew he had been wrong.

Terribly wrong.

"Sarutobi, are you going to act personally?" Koharu Utatane's voice trembled. She clutched the railing beside her so tightly that her knuckles had turned white. "Even you, facing the Nine-Tails in its complete form..."

"There's no other choice." The Third Hokage took a deep breath. Chakra surged wildly within him, and his aged body erupted with astonishing force. "If we can't suppress him today, Konoha will truly be finished."

He slowly raised his hand, a shuriken already gripped in his palm.

Just then.

Within the shadows.

A flicker of shock flashed through Danzo's lone eye, only to be swiftly buried beneath deep calculation.

He stared at the Nine-Tails' massive phantom that blotted out the sky, feeling the pressure capable of destroying everything. The hand hidden within his sleeve unconsciously clenched.

Memories from twelve years ago flooded into his mind like a tide.

That day, he had hidden in Root's underground base in the same way, listening to the explosions and screams from above as he watched the Nine-Tails destroy Konoha piece by piece.

He had not acted.

Because he knew Minato would.

But now, Minato was dead.

Sarutobi was old.

No one could stop the Nine-Tails.

"Everything is for Konoha."

Danzo murmured softly, his voice so cold that it held not the slightest warmth.

"Only if I live will Konoha have a future."

He silently made a gesture. The several Root members beside him immediately understood and vanished in an instant, like ink dissolving into darkness.

Danzo gave the Third Hokage, who was preparing to die on the main platform, one last glance, then looked again at the blood-red fox. A faint, imperceptible sneer curled at the corner of his lips.

Then he turned and melted into the shadows behind him.

No one noticed.

Just like twelve years ago.

At the center of the stadium.

Kurama's crimson vertical pupils swept over the panicked Konoha ninja, his gaze filled with undisguised contempt.

A pack of ants.

Then his gaze landed on Shukaku nearby, frozen stiff with fear.

"Little tanuki, weren't you yapping quite loudly just now?"

Kurama's voice ground like millstones, thick with mockery.

The yellow sand covering Shukaku's body trembled violently. It stared at Kurama, its lantern-sized eyes full of terror, but it still roared stubbornly, "Kurama! Don't get too arrogant! I'm Shukaku, the One-Tail! The strongest of the Tailed Beasts!"

"Oh?"

Kurama tilted his head.

The next second.

BOOM!!!

The enormous phantom formed from Nine-Tails Chakra took a massive step forward.

The ground instantly caved in.

Shukaku let out a shriek and stumbled three steps backward uncontrollably, nearly falling over.

It might have talked tough.

But its body was honest.

It knew the Nine-Tails' strength all too well.

When the Sage of Six Paths had divided the chakra back then, the other eight Tailed Beasts combined had not possessed as much as the Nine-Tails alone.

Even with only half of the Nine-Tails Chakra inside Naruto now, it could easily fight four Shukaku at once.

"The strongest Tailed Beast?" Kurama snorted. "You worthless thing that can't even control your own Jinchuriki?"

Before his words had even faded.

Kurama vanished from where he stood.

Shukaku's pupils shrank sharply as it hurriedly tried to gather sand for defense.

"Awooo—!!!"

A miserable scream pierced the heavens.

Kurama's enormous jaws clamped down on Shukaku's nape, his sharp fangs effortlessly piercing its sandy body.

Then.

He shook his head.

Like tossing aside a torn sack.

BOOM!!!

Shukaku's enormous body was hurled directly a thousand meters into the sky, becoming a tiny black dot before everyone's horrified eyes.

Kurama slowly raised his head as crimson chakra rapidly gathered within his mouth.

A pitch-black Tailed Beast Bomb spun into existence at high speed.

"Goodbye, little tanuki."

WHOOSH—!!!

Trailing a long black tail of flame, the Tailed Beast Bomb shot toward Shukaku in the air like a meteor.

BOOM—!!!!

A deafening explosion thundered through the sky.

An enormous black mushroom cloud slowly rose, and the violent shockwave tore the clouds overhead completely apart.

Shukaku's scream abruptly stopped.

Its chakra rapidly dissipated at a visible rate, and its massive body dissolved into a rain of yellow sand falling from the sky.

A small figure fell from within the sand.

It was Gaara.

His eyes were shut, his face deathly pale. He had completely lost consciousness.

"Gaara!"

Rasa, the Kazekage whom Orochimaru had not yet killed, went pale and instantly shot upward in a blur, catching Gaara in midair.

He checked Gaara's breathing, then sensed the chakra within his body, finally letting out a sigh of relief.

Shukaku had been beaten back into the seal and had fallen asleep.

Gaara had been seriously injured, but at least he had kept his life.

Holding Gaara in his arms, Rasa looked down at the blood-red fox below, his expression incomparably complex.

Shock.

Fear.

And a trace of relief.

Relief that the Nine-Tails' target had been Shukaku rather than him.

After dealing with Shukaku, Kurama flicked his tails in satisfaction.

He lifted his head and released an earth-shaking roar at the sky.

Awooo—!!!!

The roar spread throughout Konoha and even reached the forests outside the village.

The last wisp of cloud in the sky was scattered, revealing a clear blue expanse.

The entire world seemed to have fallen silent.

All of Konoha's ninja stood frozen in place, not daring to even breathe.

As they looked at that majestic Nine-Tails, only one thought remained in their minds.

It was over.

Konoha was truly finished.

Just when everyone thought the Nine-Tails would proceed to slaughter Konoha.

Kurama's voice suddenly rang out in Naruto's mind, his tone instantly shifting from the Tailed Beast King who looked down upon the world to an old man demanding updates:

"Alright, alright, I've had my fun."

"Kid Naruto, remember to download the latest episodes of Empresses in the Palace for me tonight. Last time, I got to the episode where Zhen Huan returned to the palace. It was getting good."

"And bring me a couple of those novels written by Tomato too. I want the ad-free ones! That ad lasted three whole minutes last time. It nearly pissed me off."

Naruto: "..."

The corner of his mouth twitched.

What happened to that world-destroying aura from just now?

So he had come out just to beat up Shukaku and then ask Naruto for TV dramas and novels?

"Got it," Naruto replied helplessly in his mind.

"That's more like it." Kurama snorted in satisfaction. "You can clean up the rest of this mess yourself. I'm going back to watch my shows."

As his words fell.

The surging crimson chakra rapidly receded like a tide.

The enormous Nine-Tails phantom gradually dissipated as well.

The chakra around Naruto slowly returned to its warm golden color before completely withdrawing.

He landed on the ground and dusted off his clothes.

The entire stadium fell into dead silence once again.

Everyone stared at him in stunned disbelief.

Where had that world-destroying Nine-Tails gone?

Why had it suddenly disappeared?

Naruto swept his gaze across the stadium.

The villagers who had been filled with resentment and fear toward him moments ago all lowered their heads, not daring to meet his eyes.

The Jonin and ANBU who had been preparing to act also stood frozen, having even forgotten to finish forming their techniques.

Even the Third Hokage remained in the posture of preparing to attack, rooted to the spot in a daze.

A cold curve appeared at the corner of Naruto's mouth.

"The trial match is over."

His voice was not loud, yet it reached every person's ears clearly.

Gekko Hayate also had the sense to immediately announce:

"Winner of this match: Naruto Uzumaki. Due to the severe damage to the venue, the final selection tournament will be held one month from now."

Naruto nodded. He did not look at anyone else and turned to leave.

His steps were calm, his back solitary and proud.

It was as if the person who had released the Nine-Tails and nearly destroyed half of Konoha had not been him.

No one dared to stop him.

No one dared to speak.

Throughout the entire stadium, only the echo of his footsteps could be heard.

As Naruto walked, he sneered inwardly.

"That Jonin leading the Hidden Grass Village team... looks like he's taking Karin away today..."

"Then... today will be the day you die!"

Outside Konoha.

On a secluded path.

Karin followed behind the Hidden Grass Village Jonin, her head lowered, lost in thought.

As he walked, the Hidden Grass Village Jonin cursed under his breath. "What rotten luck! I was planning to squeeze some benefits out of the Chunin Ninja Exams, but I ran into this monster! The Nine-Tails Jinchuriki is actually this terrifying! If I'd known, I never would've come!"

"Karin, hurry up! Stop dragging your feet! Once we get back to the village, just see how I deal with you!"

He turned back and shouted at her.

Just then.

Karin suddenly stopped.

The Hidden Grass Village Jonin frowned. "What are you doing?"

Karin slowly raised her head.

The usual timidity and obedience were gone from her face.

In their place was an icy calm.

"Deal with me?"

She spoke softly.

The next second.

A sharp dagger suddenly appeared in her hand.

Squelch!

The dagger plunged into her own chest.

The Hidden Grass Village Jonin froze.

"Y-You... are you insane?"

Before he could finish.

BOOM!!!

Karin's body suddenly exploded, turning into a cloud of white smoke.

A stream of information instantly reached the mind of the original body still in Konoha.

"Location confirmed."

"Target status: unguarded."

"Execute elimination."

A golden flash.

A streak of golden light instantly appeared behind the Hidden Grass Village Jonin.

Naruto's figure slowly materialized.

In his hand, he held a kunai glinting with cold light.

The Hidden Grass Village Jonin spun around sharply.

When he saw the familiar golden chakra around Naruto's body, along with that incomprehensibly fast speed—

His pupils suddenly contracted.

His face was filled with stunned terror.

He opened his mouth and, using every ounce of strength he had, forced out a single sentence.

"Konoha's... Golden Flash!"