[NTU] [ARC-26] Chapter : 353

"You damned monster—don’t you dare run!"

An enraged roar thundered across the battlefield.

The crisp, metallic rattle of chains rang out, each note vibrating in the hearts of those who heard it.

ROAR!

A beast’s death cry echoed as a grotesque creature—its body nothing but writhing veins and a crimson mask for a face—collapsed with a heavy thud.

Kakuzu smirked darkly.
"The Uzumaki clan’s sealing arts… I’ve heard of them. But what are you going to do? Stay here and die?"

In a blur, he sidestepped and leapt away, moving with the honed precision of a predator. Golden chains burst from the ground beneath him, snapping at empty air. His emerald-green eyes scanned the battlefield, locked onto his next prey.

That woman—the red-haired Uzumaki—was proving troublesome. Her chains weren’t just overwhelmingly strong; they could suppress chakra itself. If not for the regenerative unpredictability of his Earth Grudge Fear, he would’ve been a corpse again already.

"You!"

Kakuzu’s gaze fell on an unfortunate shinobi—a lone elite chunin who visibly tensed under his killing intent.

Too weak.

But in moments like this, any prey would do.

"Consider it an honor… to become part of me."

Feinting to the right, Kakuzu baited the chunin’s guard, then abruptly shifted his momentum. His target stumbled, exposed. Kakuzu’s hand shot out, clamping around the man’s throat.

"Persistent little pests," he muttered, dragging the choking ninja away from the incoming chains. Black tendrils writhed from Kakuzu’s body, lancing toward the man’s heart.

"I’ll… kill you!"

Kushina’s voice cracked with fury as another Allied shinobi fell lifeless, his heart claimed. Her vivid red hair lifted, twisting and thrashing as though alive—like the limbs of a furious crimson octopus.

No—like nine burning tails.

SWOOSH!

The air split with a deafening rush. Kakuzu’s hair whipped free as his expression hardened.

"Hmph… and you call me a monster."

He narrowly slipped past Kushina’s blisteringly fast strike, discarding his now-useless victim. But from the corner of his vision, he caught the golden-red blur behind him, felt the suffocating chakra rolling off it.

His lips tightened.
"That chakra… could it be the Nine-Tails’ jinchūriki?"

BANG!

Ugh!

One of his Earth Grudge hearts was gone in an instant. The blow sent his vision spinning. Were it not for the survival of his earth-natured heart, his Hardening Technique would’ve failed—and the cost would’ve been far worse.

"Impressive… I let my guard down for a moment, and you destroyed a freshly taken heart."

His smirk returned, cold and taunting.
"But this battlefield is my hunting ground. Hearts are easy to replace."

With a wary step back, Kakuzu glanced once more at Kushina’s furious stance… then turned on his heel, charging toward the cluster of Allied shinobi in the distance. A veteran of nearly 80 years, he knew exactly which enemies were worth engaging—and which ones meant certain death.

And escape? That, he could always manage.

"Don’t even think about it!"

Golden-red chakra exploded outward. Six shining chains behind Kushina fanned into a storm of tentacles, lashing toward the retreating Kakuzu. The hunt was far from over.

However, that damned creature always slipped past her strikes—calmly, almost as if he could see them coming before she even moved.

Each failed attempt only fueled Kushina’s irritation, and the sight of him cutting down yet another Allied shinobi made her blood boil.

"Kurama!"

Inside the dark, oppressive cage within her mind, Kushina’s voice thundered. Her intent was unmistakable.

"Hmph. You can’t even deal with a single foot soldier without me? Pathetic. And here you are, holding half of me while the other half lounges with the Eight-Tails—what a joke. He must be laughing himself to death."

The Kyuubi’s enormous eyes cracked open, revealing a sliver of molten crimson. Its voice dripped with mockery.

Yes, she could suppress his chakra… but the fact that she was begging him for help over something like this? That was priceless.

"Enough with the sarcasm! Are you helping or not?"

Kushina’s patience had reached its breaking point. Kakuzu’s abilities were downright unnatural—his survival tricks were endless.

Her strengths lay in her massive chakra reserves, her sealing prowess, and the Adamantine chains at her back. Against straightforward enemies, she was devastating. But this man? He was a veteran predator. He countered her seals with precision, evaded her traps like he’d studied them his whole life, and—infuriatingly—kept finding ways to survive.

"Haha… is this how you ask for help?"

The Nine-Tails’ tails swayed lazily, betraying its amusement.

"That wretched corpse-stitcher… tch, I don’t like him either." After a beat, the Kyuubi added, "For the sake of our… long-standing arrangement, I’ll reluctantly lend a paw."

"Eh?!"

Kushina blinked, stunned. She’d braced for the usual refusal followed by his smug laughter.

"You’re really… a two-faced fox!"

A grin tugged at her lips, her eyebrows curving in genuine delight.

"Watch your mouth, girl!"

Like a cat whose tail had been yanked, the Nine-Tails bristled, rising to its full height inside the cage.

"The lives of you humans mean nothing to me. I just refuse to make a fool of myself in front of the Eight-Tails—and the other me."

"Yes, yes, whatever you say."

Kushina waved off his bluster, unfazed by the outburst.

"Now, leave the rest to me!"

Her consciousness snapped back to reality, and the golden-red chakra of the Nine-Tails surged outward. The air crackled as her form shifted—chakra molding, tails unfurling—until a colossal, glowing Kyuubi stood where she had been.

This was why she needed his cooperation. Borrowing his chakra alone required no permission. But a full-tailed beast transformation? That was impossible without his consent.

"Let’s see where you run now!"

The battlefield trembled under the monstrous fox’s roar.

—

Unlike Kushina, who only grew mildly irritated before retaliating with her Tailed Beast Transformation, Tsunade stood poised, her golden-brown eyes scanning every corner of her surroundings. Against her second grandfather, there was no room for carelessness—only a heavy, aching weight in her chest.

"Here he comes."

No sound, no movement. And yet, the instant her instincts screamed, Tsunade spun without hesitation, her leg snapping upward in a whip-like kick aimed squarely at the back of a head that wasn’t there.

It was almost unreal—despite being well past fifty, her body moved with the grace and flexibility of a kunoichi in her prime.

Bang!
In that same moment, space shimmered. The air rippled—then the blue-armored Nidaime appeared exactly where her kick landed. The force sent him skidding away, though not for long.

"Flying Thunder God… Kabuto, you sly bastard."

Tobirama was already back in front of her, the pressure in the air tightening like a vise. Even so, Tsunade noticed his speed was being deliberately held back. If he’d gone all out, she wouldn’t have lasted this long.

"Almost… I’m getting used to this rhythm."

A quick glance at her shredded clothing made her grit her teeth. Each tear was a reminder of his “lessons.”

“Tsunade, you’re far too careless,” Tobirama’s voice was as cold as the sea in winter. “For a ninja, your reactions are pathetic. You shame not only yourself but also my brother and me. At this rate, you’ll end up dead to some nameless nobody—and we’ll be the laughingstock of every village.”

He had even left openings when using the Flying Thunder God, deliberately controlling his strength, yet she still got injured. Disappointing. Unacceptable. And as for her age? That didn’t even factor into his judgment.

“…Tch.”
Tsunade bit back a retort, listening in silence while cursing Kabuto in her heart… and Jiraiya, just because she could.

“I’m sorry,” she finally said, her tone dry. “I haven’t fought seriously in years—I’m rusty. But I’ll take this on.”

Her breathing steadied, her movements adjusting as her body slipped back into the deadly rhythm of life-and-death combat. She might not be able to defeat him or seal him away, but blocking his next move? That, she could do.

Her gaze flicked briefly to the Allied Shinobi huddled behind her, then to the black seal burned into her shoulder. This battle wasn’t over yet.

"I'm serious."

Forming a hand seal, she released the Yin Seal—its deep violet diamond spreading into glowing, intricate markings across her skin.

“Oh? Drawing on the chakra of the Yin Seal now?” Tobirama’s sharp eyes glimmered faintly. As the original master of forbidden techniques, he knew exactly what this meant. For the first time in their clash, his expression shifted, a spark of anticipation breaking the cold mask.

"I hope she won’t disappoint me this time…"
Whether he could return to rest depended entirely on her. Otherwise, he would remain under the control of that vile puppeteer—a humiliation beyond words for the creator of the Edo-tensei.

"Tsunade… long time no see."

The sudden voice—a warm, steady male tone—cut through the tension like a blade. Tsunade’s breath hitched. She’d just drawn in a massive surge of chakra, but her knees faltered and her face drained of color.

“…Dan!”

Tsunade’s teeth clenched lightly, a trace of crimson blooming at the corner of her lips. Her voice trembled as she spoke the name that had haunted her heart for years.

His long blue-white hair cascaded over his shoulders, his slender figure poised yet carrying that familiar warmth—tinged with an almost imperceptible fragility.

“Dan… I never imagined we’d meet again under such circumstances.”

She brushed at the corners of her eyes, forcing a faint smile that didn’t quite reach them. Everything about him matched her ideal type. And every time she looked at him, even this fiery, short-tempered woman felt the inexplicable urge to shield him from the world.

“…Who are you?”

His sharp, sword-like brows furrowed slightly. The Second Hokage studied the suddenly appearing Dan with a piercing gaze before his eyes flicked, almost imperceptibly, toward a certain spot nearby.

After his recent battle alongside Tsunade, he had already weighed in as a grandfather—silently acknowledging the man who might one day be his grandson-in-law. Yet here stood someone who should have been long dead, sharing a history with Tsunade that no one could ignore.

Meanwhile, Jiraiya, locked in a fierce exchange with both his teacher and the Third Raikage, caught a glimpse of his wife from the corner of his eye. His weathered face shifted through a storm of emotions—shock, unease, and something dangerously close to jealousy.

“How many times have I told you—don’t lose focus in the middle of a fight?!”

With a single blow, Hiruzen sent his most reckless disciple flying. Then, noticing Jiraiya’s lingering glance toward Tsunade, the Third Hokage’s expression changed. Recognition flickered in his eyes.

“That really is… an incredible jutsu,” he murmured. He smacked his lips knowingly. Jiraiya had married the most beautiful woman in Konoha—only to run into her former flame here. A cruel twist of fate.

“I don’t have time to play around with you two relics!”

Jiraiya hurled himself forward, clashing with the advancing Raikage.

“Seal!”

The shout cracked like thunder. Chakra flared around his hands as he slammed them into the Raikage’s lightning armor. The strike rang out like an eggshell breaking—yet the armor, the pride of Kumogakure’s strongest, held firm.

The “Five Elements Seal” failed to shatter it completely, but Jiraiya’s follow-up sealing technique drained the armor’s lightning flow just enough. His next punch sent the Raikage skidding back across the battlefield.

“What’s with him? That surge of power… unbelievable,” the Raikage muttered, pushing himself to his feet.

“What else could it be?” Hiruzen’s gaze drifted between Jiraiya, Dan, and Tsunade, a faint, knowing smile tugging at his lips. “Men…”

The Raikage frowned, puzzled.

And in that silence, the air between the three—Tsunade, Dan, and Jiraiya—was thick with an unspoken history, ready to ignite at any moment.