At Kumogakure's gates, heavy clouds hung low, and the air was oppressive and grim.
As one of the Five Great Shinobi Villages, Kumogakure's strength was beyond question. Especially after Konoha displayed its terrifying momentum by swallowing up Iwagakure and Sunagakure, Kumogakure's martial traditions, formidable Lightning Release Nintaijutsu, and unique complement of two tailed beast jinchūriki made its military might the greatest among the surviving shinobi villages apart from Konoha.
Two jinchūriki stood at the gates: the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki, Killer B, and the Two-Tails jinchūriki, Yugito.
At that moment, these two pillars of Kumogakure's pride faced two uninvited guests in a delicate standoff on a relatively open stretch of jagged, rock-strewn ground outside the village gates.
On one side stood Killer B and Yugito.
Every muscle in Killer B's body was taut, and several of his ninja blades were already drawn, gleaming coldly. Eerie blue chakra flames rose around Yugito, with the phantom of a massive blue cat's tail swaying behind her.
Both wore utterly grave expressions, as though facing a mortal enemy. They drove their chakra to its fullest, locking onto the figures opposite them without daring to relax for an instant.
Naruto Uzumaki and Uchiha Hikari, however, looked unusually relaxed.
Naruto simply stood there casually, his hands in his pockets and his golden hair stirring slightly in the oppressive wind.
There was even a faint, inscrutable smile on his face. His narrowed eyes calmly surveyed Kumogakure's defenses, as though he were merely a tourist visiting the village.
Uchiha Hikari stood quietly half a step beside Naruto, dressed in simple dark clothing, her black hair cascading down like a waterfall.
Her face was expressionless, and her black eyes were as still as deep pools. She merely looked at Killer B and Yugito indifferently, as though they were two moving statues.