Kushina had the chubby cat pinned tightly against her chest.
"So, you're saying you used a reverse summoning and dragged Great-Grandfather away?" she demanded. "That means he's in… Konoha now?"
Minato calmly flicked Naruto's hand away as the boy tried again to sneak food.
"The Elder moves fast," Minato said evenly. "Let's give him a little time."
Kushina let out a long sigh. Her great-grandfather was never reliable. If he truly didn't want to go, no summoning in the world would have worked.
"I'm starving…"
They waited.
And waited.
Still no sign of him.
At last, a patrol shinobi from the Land of Whirlpools rushed in.
"Emergency message from Konoha! The Uchiha and Senju memorial teams were both attacked! One attacker has been confirmed as Uchiha Madara, the other is suspected to be the leader of the Akatsuki!"
Everyone exchanged looks.
Nagato nodded calmly. "Tell them our teacher has already reached Konoha."
Sara rose with a tired smile and went to fetch extra bowls.
"Father won't be back anytime soon," she said gently. "If we wait any longer, the food will go cold. I'll save him a portion, everyone else should eat."
Konan nodded. "That's all we can do. Trouble always chooses the worst timing."
Kushina sighed and kneaded the cat's fur a little too hard.
"He was talking about this reunion meal for days…"
Uchiha Ancestral Grounds
The battlefield was completely unrecognizable.
The clash of five Susanoo had reduced the area to rubble.
Akio's shadow clone finally arrived but instead of revealing himself, he found a concealed vantage point and sat down cross-legged.
"Five Susanoo fighting at once… scenes like this don't come around often," he muttered.
"Mirror and the others can hold for a while. No rush."
He chuckled softly.
"The main body should finish the other fight soon. Might even make it back for a warm meal… Leaving Madara to him, what a generous clone I am."
Grinning to himself, the clone watched the distant battle.
Madara's Perfect Susanoo towered three to four times higher than the others' second-stage forms. The fight looked less like equals clashing and more like an adult fending off children.
Every move Madara made required three of the four to counter together, while the fourth waited for an opening.
That fourth was Obito.
Only Kamui could reliably breach Madara's defenses and force him to react.
"So Fugaku unlocked the Mangekyō too," the clone mused. "Not bad."
"Shisui's second-stage Susanoo is green? …That color's a bit rough."
He sighed.
"Those two never had their curse lifted. Their eyes are about to burn out."
Decision made.
"Alright. When they're about to collapse, I'll make a dramatic entrance. Perfect timing."
Senju Ancestral Grounds
Akio's real body arrived late and found the place just as ruined.
After this year, neither the Uchiha nor the Senju would need memorial sites anymore.
"Senju Nawaki… Daoyama… Itachi… and one kid I don't recognize," Akio muttered, surveying the unconscious shinobi lined up as Katsuyu guided by Shizune treated them.
He then turned toward the battle raging several hundred meters away.
"Twin topknots. Young face. Rinnegan." His eyes narrowed.
"So you're the one from the toad's prophecy. Finally found you."
He clenched his jaw.
"This time, I really owe that stupid cat."
No interest in spectating, Akio vanished in a flash and appeared beside Tsunade.
The young man across the field startled backward, leaping away. Tsunade reacted on instinct throwing a punch.
Akio raised his left hand calmly
and was sent flying.
"…."
Tsunade froze.
"…Was that Uzumaki Akio?" the young man asked, expression tightening.
A moment later, Akio reappeared, rubbing his arm. Tsunade and the enemy were still frozen mid-pose.
"…I tried to take that seriously," he muttered, baffled then stared at Tsunade.
"…Smurf?"
Tsunade exhaled heavily as the blue markings across her body faded.
"It's really you, Great-Grandfather! I don't know why my Sage Mode turned out like this but you're here, thank god. Please deal with that bastard. I need to treat Nawaki and the others they're in bad shape."
Akio burst out laughing.
"So that's why you never showed me your Sage Mode. The Strength of a Hundred Seal messed with it."
He waved her off.
"Go. It suits you. Blue looks good on you too, pfft—HAHAHAHA—"
Tsunade shot him an annoyed glare and vanished.
Akio finally turned to the young man.
"Well then," he said cheerfully, "we finally meet. But tell me, why aren't you running? Feeling confident… or did I get rusty?"
"Uzumaki Akio," the young man replied evenly. "It's been a long time."
Akio frowned. "You look familiar but I'm certain we've never met."
"Is that so?" the young man replied calmly. "Perhaps you've lived too long. Or perhaps I look… different now."
Akio sighed, a bone spike sliding from his palm.
"Enough stalling. Experience says dragging things out leads to surprises. And I'm not the villain here."
He vanished
and appeared above the young man.
"All-Killing Ash Bones."
Clang!
Akio narrowed his eyes at the strange weapon that had appeared in the young man's hands.
"Huh. That actually blocked it. Interesting material… shame you're too weak to use it properly."
He drew back his fist as white light gathered.
"Eighty Gods Vacuum Strike."
"Almighty Push!!!"
The collision erupted like a miniature sun light and force exploding outward in a wave of destruction.
Akio frowned and flashed back to Tsunade's side, erecting a barrier to shield the wounded.
When the light faded, the young man crawled from a massive crater, bloodied and barely standing, leaning on his weapon.
"…As expected," he muttered. "Facing Uzumaki Akio head-on is still too much."
Akio smiled faintly.
"Tough kid. But compared to Madara? You're nowhere close. That old toad really overhyped this."
"Great-Grandfather!" Tsunade called from behind. "Let this kid bite you, he's dying!"
Akio stiffened.
"…This kid?"
"Fugaku's eldest son."
Akio nodded and stepped back, offering his arm just as the young man formed a familiar seal.
A Tailed Beast Bomb erupted from his mouth.
"Almighty Push!"
The weakened blast knocked him flat once more.
But his Edo Tensei succeeded.
Two coffins rose slowly from the ground.
"All set!" Tsunade called.
Akio withdrew his arm and straightened his collar.
"Two Edo summons," he said calmly. "So, who did you bring back?"
He glanced at the young man struggling to rise again.
"…Desperate to the end."
---
[Every 50 Power Stones = 1 Bonus Chapter Drop]
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