Black Ops: Anbu Naruto

If someone could peer beneath Madara's mask, they'd see a furrowed brow.

What he least wanted to remember was the endless war between clans. He wanted a world—a peaceful one, fully under his control.

No one would dare to defy him, and no war would ever be waged again. That would be true peace.

To achieve this goal, he would pay any price. But first, he needed to gather all the tailed beasts.

With feigned regret, he told Kabuto that once this war was over, there would be no more wars.

There would be no more deluded idealists like Nagato attempting to reshape the world, because true peace had no need for free will. He would create a world without conflict.

Until then, he would use Kabuto to further his hidden agenda, letting him revel in the chaos yet to come.

He would let Kabuto enjoy everything, for once the plan succeeded, he would never feel joy again.

This wasn't a battle for personal gain, but indeed a means to build an army—one that would uphold order in the new world when it emerged.

The immediate priority was eliminating Nagato. He couldn't be controlled anymore, nor would he follow Madara's orders, as clearly shown by his reckless actions.

He was extremely dangerous, possessing both the Rinnegan and formidable power. With Konan assisting him, defeating him wouldn't be easy.

Perhaps this war had only one true purpose: to eliminate a major nuisance standing beside him.

This war needed to mean something, didn't it?

## Dawn - Northwest Border of the Land of Fire ##

This was a chase steeped in despair.

Naruto couldn't believe how fast Gaara could move. When the sun peeked over the horizon, Naruto finally caught up to him.

He landed on the branch just as Gaara was about to leap, turning to face his friend.

"Gaara, wait! Let's talk!"

Gaara stopped but stared at Naruto coldly, his expression blank.

"Step aside, Naruto, unless you're here to help me."

"Of course I'll help!" Naruto said, panting heavily.

He'd been chasing Gaara non-stop since midnight. Now the sun had risen.

"But at least wait for the others! Head to Sunagakure together with them! It's too dangerous for you alone, Gaara. This might be a trap!"

"That's not what I meant," Gaara said, folding his arms. "Haven't you noticed the direction we're heading? This isn't the way to Sunagakure. We're going to Amegakure. I will destroy it myself and kill Pain with my own hands!"

"You... you're actually going to..." Naruto stammered, stunned by his words.

"Gaara, don't do anything stupid! You can't go to Amegakure, especially not alone! Calm down, we can—"

Before he finished speaking, Gaara's sand burst from his gourd, knocking Naruto off the branch.

Gaara looked down at Naruto and withdrew the sand.

"We've wasted too much time already talking, Naruto. We waited far too long before acting on your warning about Amegakure."

He said resolutely, "If you're not going to help me, then go help my village or just go home. I *must* do this."

With that, he resumed leaping from branch to branch, heading toward Amegakure.

[Wind Release: Wind God Fist!]

A blast of compressed wind erupted through the trees. A powerful gust struck the branch beneath Gaara's feet, forcing him to veer off and land at Ground Level, face-to-face with Naruto.

"What are you doing, Naruto?"

Gaara's sand grazed Naruto's face, leaving shallow cuts, but Naruto brushed them off without a second thought.

"I can't let you go to Amegakure, Gaara. You won't win—you've got *no chance*!"

"You were defeated, but that doesn't mean I'll lose too," Gaara replied as sand poured violently from his gourd.

"You'll *die* a horrible death!" Naruto shot back. "Do you even realize how lucky I was to come back alive? And you don't even have my reinforcements! Pain will treat you the same way he treated me—he'll rip Shukaku straight out of you! If you die, who will be Kazekage?"

Gaara shook his head, tears streaming down his cheeks.

"I'm still alive, but what kind of Kazekage am I…? If I can't even protect my own village, how can I even call myself Kazekage? The only thing I can do now is avenge them, Naruto…avenge them all!"

"I understand how you feel, Gaara."

Naruto said sadly. He didn't want to stop Gaara, but he knew Gaara's path led to certain danger. He couldn't stand by and watch it unfold.

"We'll avenge them together, but not *this* way. You can't defeat Pain in Amegakure. He defeated me, and he also defeated Master Jiraiya."

Gaara seemed momentarily hesitant, and Naruto thought he had convinced him.

"Come back with me—we'll go to Sunagakure. Your people need you."

"Fight me, Naruto!" Gaara's voice left no room for negotiation.

"What?" Naruto was caught off guard by Gaara's demand.

"If you want to stop me…" Gaara continued, more sand spilling from his gourd, "...if you want me to listen to you, then defeat me and prove I can't win."

"What does a fight prove anyway?" Naruto shot back.

"If you can beat me, then your warning means nothing, because it'll show that I'm stronger than you." Gaara explained calmly, though Naruto could see he was already growing impatient.

Naruto gritted his teeth and tightened his fists.

"Fine," Naruto reluctantly agreed.

If Gaara didn't receive an immediate response, he would surely continue heading toward Amegakure.

At least for now, Naruto still had a chance to stop him before Gaara went too far.

The moment he accepted the challenge, Gaara's sand came flying at him like cannonballs, with such force that it shattered a massive tree behind Naruto in half.

Noticing that Naruto had jumped onto another tree and used chakra to stabilize himself with one hand, Gaara spoke.

"You've gotten faster than before—even faster than during our fight in the desert. But this time is different from our first battle, Naruto. You won't break through my sand this time."

In Amegakure, Gaara's sand becomes useless.

As soon as he enters that area, Pain will summon the rain.

At that point, Gaara will already be at a complete disadvantage—even without Pain resorting to his Six Paths techniques. He won't even have the chance to deploy his sand.

"I don't need to get through your sand, Gaara," Naruto said, narrowly avoiding another of Gaara's attacks. "If it comes to that, I've got my own ways!"

Gaara's sand had grown faster and stronger—that was the result of his relentless training.

The sand struck again, forcing Naruto to leap onto another tree just in time to evade it.

Throughout the entire fight, Gaara hadn't budged an inch. His sand remained locked onto Naruto like a predator stalking its prey.

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