Hatake Tatsuya in Naruto

"Can you share some money you gathered from Cloud Shinobi Village? After all, it takes a lot of money to clean up the mess Yagura and the Blood Mist Village left, right?"

"That girl—no, that kid—is your appointed heir to the Mizukage? Not bad. At least she's better than the other one."

Konoha, Mist Shinobi, and Cloud Shinobi in the valley below had already engaged in battle.

Meanwhile, Tatsuya and Terumi Mei stood on the cliff, watching the conflict unfold.

Tatsuya's gaze focused on the twelve-year-old girl in a pale pink kimono below, a figure from the Snow Clan. She had been secretly designated as the successor to the Sixth Mizukage by Terumi Mei. Much like the Third Mizukage, she possessed a calm and composed demeanor, and, to Tatsuya's surprise, she was far more feminine than Haruno Sakura.

Perhaps Haku must have hidden her true gender to avoid becoming a breeding tool for the Yuki clan, as was often expected of young women with extinct Kekkei Genkai. By binding her chest and dressing as a boy, she kept her secret well-guarded, using her skills and the guise of a male shinobi to protect herself from the fate that awaited many girls in the Shinobi world.

Tatsuya almost regarded her as a woman. It wasn't hard to see why so many fanfiction writers had chosen her as the heroine in their stories.

However, Tatsuya couldn't help but wonder, Could she really handle herself in battle?

"Hey, hey~ I missed you," Terumi Mei said, not hearing Tatsuya's musing. She playfully hooked her arm around his neck.

Tatsuya's attention then shifted to another figure on the battlefield. An eight-year-old girl, Hinata, darted between the enemy forces. Though her moves were still immature, the simple yet direct nature of her attacks caught Terumi Mei's attention.

"Isn't that Hinata?" Terumi Mei asked, surprised. "When did she become so powerful?"

Before Tatsuya could respond, a strange rap-like humming filled the battlefield, reverberating so loudly it seemed to shake the entire canyon.

Following Matatabi, Eight-Tails Gyūki had fully entered tail beast form.

"If Hiruzen's later years were the weakest period in Konoha's history, then Cloud Shinobi is undoubtedly at its strongest under third Raikage," Tatsuya remarked. "With two perfect Jinchūriki like this..."

It's enough to disregard the vast majority of Shinobi, but that's only when compared to Konoha under Hiruzen. The current Konoha, along with the monster sitting in its capital, is on a completely different level from the time when Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara joined forces. Nothing is worse than the past.

One could only say that the Third Raikage, driven by a thirst for vengeance, had kicked a mountain.

Boom!

With a single punch from Eight-Tails, dozens of Konoha and Mist Shinobi were instantly crushed beneath the giant fist, which resembled a falling meteorite.

If not for the mingling of enemy forces with their own, to prevent accidental injuries, Killer B would have already launched a Tailed Beast Bomb.

"Are you going to fight?" Terumi Mei asked, no longer in the mood for playing around. She looked up at Tatsuya, her tone serious.

The appearance of Eight Tails had shifted the tide of the battle in an instant. The nine-tailed beasts, particularly the second-ranked one, were not to be underestimated. It was on a completely different level than the Three Tails in the Hidden Mist Village.

Tatsuya turned his gaze to the south. He vaguely saw a bright light approaching and smiled slightly.

"It seems there's no need for me to intervene."

...

"Killer B, stop playing around and clear the way for Lord Raikage!"

At that moment, Mabui still in his full-tailed beast-like form and engaged with Uchiha Shisui, called out loudly.

Facing Uchiha Shisui, who wielded both the Sharingan and Wood Style—two abilities that were natural countermeasures to tailed beasts—Mabui had made no progress. Even in her perfect form, she couldn't gain the upper hand.

Realizing the urgency of the situation, Mabui made a decisive choice. There was no time to indulge in the battle. The priority now was to break through and secure their leader's escape.

"Damn Sharingan! Damn Wood Style!" she cursed under his breath.

"Alright! I'll clear the way!" Killer B replied, his gaze shifting toward the cliff where Tatsuya and Terumi Mei stood.

A highly concentrated Chakra sphere materialized in front of Eight Tails' mouth.

Tailed Beast Bomb!

However, the target wasn't Tatsuya or Terumi Mei. Instead, it was the mountain wall beneath them. The exit of the canyon had been fully occupied by Konoha and Mist Shinobi, so Eight-Tails decided to clear a new path by blasting the mountain wall beside them.

"Sakumo, be careful!"

Sakumo who had been struggling against the Third Raikage, shouted urgently. After all, this was the second most powerful Tailed Beast Bomb! In the split second of the blast, the Third Raikage lunged forward with a hell stab, forcing Sakumo to retreat yet again.

"Yo, the path is clear, it's my time to shine. The way shall open, and the stars align!"

In the next instant, the Tailed Beast Bomb shot out as a massive beam, heading straight for the mountain wall at Tatsuya and Terumi Mei's feet.

The impact below was so intense that many ninjas were frozen in fear, too scared to even close their eyes. Just as the Tailed Beast Bomb was about to hit, a flash of golden light appeared between it and the two standing on the cliff.

In an instant, the golden flash vanished along with the Tailed Beast Bomb.

Boom!!

At almost the exact same moment, several miles away, a deafening roar echoed, lasting for several seconds, as a massive mushroom cloud began to rise into the sky.

Before anyone could recover from the shock, a blond figure reappeared on the battlefield.

A red pattern on a white background, embroidered with the words "Fifth Hokage" on the back, marked the arrival of the new figure.

"Sorry, everyone, I'm late!"

Minato flashed a bright smile and called out to the Konoha Shinobi below.

"Minato!" On the other side of the battlefield, Jiraiya was beaming with pride, his eyes locked on Namikaze Minato, admiring the imperial robe he wore.

Bang!

But in the next instant, Minato felt a sharp pain radiating from his skin. Tatsuya kicked Minato from behind, sending him straight into the battlefield within the canyon. With a look of disdain, he said, "You can have a reunion with your sensei later. Now get down there to take care of that octopus."

Minato smiled silently. As he fell, he quickly pulled out several new Flying Thunder God Kunai, throwing them toward Eight Tails.

"Be careful, B! That guy will teleport to the kunai positions irregularly!"

In the sealed space, Eight Tails warned Killer B.

"Yo, keep your distance, don't let 'em get near,

Those kunai's dangerous, gotta make it clear!"

Killer B gestured in response, then, in the next moment, he controlled Eight Tails' body to take a deep breath. In less than a second, he unleashed countless small spherical Tailed Beast Bombs.

"Burst Tailed Beast Bomb!!"

The barrage of small Tailed Beast Bombs shattered all the kunai thrown by Minato and continued to rush toward him.

Midair, Minato quickly bit his finger and formed a series of hand seals.

"Summoning no Jutsu!"

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