Chapter 61: Crippling the Beast
A visible distortion, like a vortex rippling across the surface of a pond, appeared in the air around the Nine-Tails' head. Space itself seemed to become a liquid, twisting and warping inward toward a singular, annihilating point.
The fox's massive skull contorted, its flesh and bone beginning to spiral into the spatial maw.
"ROOOOAR!"
A scream of pure, primal terror erupted from the beast. In the ultimate crisis of life and death, its immense will shattered the last remnants of Fugaku's genjutsu. With a violent, desperate wrench, it tore its head sideways, pulling it just out of the Kamui vortex's event horizon.
The distortion snapped shut on empty air with a sound like tearing canvas.
Space-time distortion… The Nine-Tails' single remaining thought was icy fear. No amount of chakra or durable flesh could survive being erased from existence by twisted space. That attack could have killed it.
Seeing his chance vanish, Akira didn't falter. He immediately shifted his aim. His left eye, now streaming a thin line of blood from the strain, refocused. His gaze locked onto the thick pillar of the Nine-Tails' right foreleg, just above the knee.
If I can't take the head, I'll take its mobility.
He gathered his chakra and ocular power again, the Kamui's unique energy pooling in his Mangekyō. He wasn't concerned about the severed limb ending up in the Kamui dimension. The odds of it coincidentally striking Obito, who phased in and out of that space, were astronomically small.
Simultaneously, Fugaku, panting and bleeding from both eyes, acted to cover the maneuver. He fixed his right eye on the Nine-Tails' face once more. "Amaterasu!"
WHOOSH!
Black flames burst into existence across the fox's muzzle and eyes. The sudden, searing pain made the beast recoil, its focus fractured.
"GRRAAAAGH!"
The Nine-Tails roared in fury and agony. In response, its body performed a grotesque, fluid transformation. The flesh and fur of its head where the flames clung dissolved into pure, bubbling scarlet chakra, which then erupted outward in a geyser. It shook its head violently, whipping its neck like a tornado. The Amaterasu flames, clinging to the ejected chakra, were flung away in sizzling, blackened globs that scattered across the battlefield.
But in that moment of reactive defense, it was vulnerable.
Akira's eye finished its charge. The same spatial vortex, smaller but no less deadly, manifested around the Nine-Tails' right thigh.
SHLURP-CRUNCH!
A sickening, wet tearing sound echoed, followed immediately by the Nine-Tails' most piercing shriek yet. Its colossal body lurched forward, thrown off-balance completely.
"ROOOOOO—!"
A muffled THUD shook the earth as the fox crashed onto its chest and chin. Its severed right foreleg, from the thigh down, dropped to the ground with a heavy, final sound, a pool of vivid, chakra-infused blood already spreading beneath it.
The mighty Nine-Tails, the ultimate symbol of raw power, had been crippled.
"Incredible…" Fugaku breathed out, his Susanoo flickering out of existence as his chakra finally bottomed out. He stared at the writhing beast and then at Akira. That's his ocular power… the distortion of space itself. To think such a technique exists.
"DAMNED UCHIHAAAA!" The fox's roar was now a mixture of earth-shaking rage and something new, something raw: fear. It had genuinely faced oblivion.
The scream cut through the chaos of the other two battlefields. Through the gaps in the towering walls of Amaterasu fire, the massive, thrashing form of the fallen Nine-Tails was just visible.
Hiruzen's heart leaped into his throat. Have they done it? Did Akira actually manage to kill it?
Might Dai, his hand paused at the final gate's threshold, saw the beast fall. A wide, relieved grin split his face. "It seems the young ones have things well in hand over there! My own springtime of youth must not lose to theirs!" His resolve to open the final gate wavered, replaced by a fierce pride.
On the isolated space-time battlefield, Obito allowed Minato's latest thrust to phase through him, his single visible eye narrowing as he looked toward the source of the scream. An advanced space-time ninjutsu… one of the Uchiha there possesses a rare and dangerous power. The fox has been grievously wounded.
"You see, 'Madara'?" Minato said, his voice calm but carrying a blade's edge. "I told you I had faith in my comrades."
"Don't celebrate prematurely, Hokage," Obito sneered, the distortion in his voice mocking. "Remember the price. Uzumaki Kushina dies the moment the beast is fully extracted."
Minato's expression didn't change, but the air around him dropped several degrees. A cold, focused killing intent radiated from him like winter frost. Kushina was his absolute limit.
Then, a change came over Minato. Subtle orange pigmentation spread around his eyes, and a more profound, balanced power swelled within him.
Sage Mode. Activated.
"I've never been the best at maintaining this," Minato admitted, his senses expanding exponentially, "but the boost in perception and power is exactly what I need to end this."
Dozens of his special Three-Bladed Kunai, their edges now humming with wind-nature chakra enhancement, shot toward Obito not in a throw, but in a sudden, omnidirectional net from multiple angles at once.
Sage Mode! Obito's mind raced. Of course he has it. The boost is substantial… his speed is even more inhuman now.
He let the kunai pass through him, analyzing. He's faster. More precise. My original plan… should I use Izanagi to fake my death and lure him in using his own mark? Or retreat and concede this round?
After two more blinding exchanges where Minato's Sage-enhanced movements pressured him relentlessly, Obito made his decision.
If the Uchiha in the village have informed him of Izanagi's effects, using it would be a fatal mistake. It would only make him hyper-vigilant. Better to sacrifice this body… to let him believe he has won the moment.
The memory of their first clash—the surprise of the Flying Thunder God Second Step, the Rasengan to his back, and the hidden mark left upon him—played in his mind. A fey, white part of Zetsu had later discovered the lingering chakra signature.
A cold, calculated smirk formed beneath Obito's mask. That mark, teacher… you think it's your anchor for victory. But it will be the hook on which you are caught.
Minato-sensei, you could never imagine that the seal you so carefully placed will become the instrument of your end.
Back at the main battlefield, Akira wiped the trail of blood from his left eye. He looked at the Nine-Tails, which was struggling to rise on three legs, its roars now filled with pain and frustrated fury. A grim smile touched his lips.
With its mobility shattered, the beast was no longer an unstoppable force. It was a wounded, cornered animal.
Now, we drive it toward Kushina. Reseal it. Then, with Minato, we turn our focus to Obito. Once Obito falls, Nagato is isolated and outmatched.
The path to ending this nightmare was finally clear. The tide, at long last, was turning.
(End of Chapter)
✨If you're enjoying this story, consider supporting me on Patreon —
Patreon.com/TofuChan
💕Patreon members get early access to chapters, bonus content, and voting power on future ideas.💕
Every bit of support helps me write more and faster. Thank you so much for reading! 🥰
Bonus Chapter For Every 100 Power Stones
Lets hit the goal of 200 Patreon Members now for 5 Extra Chapters 💕