“Naruto, control it! Don’t let the Nine-Tails’ chakra consume you!”
Kakashi shouted while dodging Kakuzu’s attacks. Over in the distance, Naruto was beginning to be overwhelmed by the Nine-Tails’ chakra.
When they found Hidan and Kakuzu wearing the Akatsuki’s red cloud robes outside a bounty station in this town, they initially planned to ambush Hidan while Kakuzu was inside. They intended to take Hidan down five against one and then do the same with Kakuzu. However, they discovered Hidan possessed an unheard-of immortality. Kakashi’s Chidori pierced Hidan’s heart, but it had no effect, and Hidan could still taunt and attack with his scythe. Thankfully, Kakashi had used a shadow clone to test this and avoided injury.
During the ensuing fight, despite landing multiple fatal blows on Hidan, they couldn’t kill him. Hidan’s reckless, all-offense fighting style made him difficult to handle, even with their combined efforts. But the real problem arose when Kakuzu emerged to assist Hidan, forcing Team 7 to retreat.
Kakuzu wasn’t an ordinary ninja; he could extend numerous tendrils from his body and detach his limbs at will, making him formidable in close combat. Additionally, he wielded five elemental chakra natures at an elite level and could combine them to unleash devastating jutsus. Like Hidan, Kakuzu also seemed nearly invincible.
In the intense battle, they managed to destroy one of Kakuzu’s hearts, representing his Earth nature, but he still had four remaining. The effort drained Kakashi’s chakra, and Yamato was critically wounded by Hidan’s ritual, surviving only due to Sakura’s medical ninjutsu and her summoning slug’s assistance.
Kakashi and Sai were now struggling to hold off Kakuzu while Sakura tended to Yamato, and Naruto faced Hidan alone. Not having yet mastered the Wind Release: Rasenshuriken, Naruto was no match for Hidan’s immortality and was nearing exhaustion. Without Yamato to suppress it, the Nine-Tails’ chakra began to surface.
“Leaf ninja, you should worry about yourself first!”
Kakuzu taunted as he used his tendrils to grab Kakashi, merging his Fire and Wind masks to launch a powerful combined attack.
“Fire-Wind Dual Wave!”
Meanwhile, his Lightning and Water masks relentlessly attacked Sai. Kakuzu, a veteran from the First Hokage’s era, expertly combined his techniques, surpassing typical Jonin levels.
“Finish the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, Hidan. Don’t waste any more time.”
“I know! What a surprise to have a Jinchuriki deliver himself. I’ll offer you to the great Jashin-sama!” Hidan rushed at Naruto, a scythe ready to draw blood for his ritual.
Inside Naruto’s mind, the Nine-Tails’ chakra seeped from the Eight Trigrams Seal, and the beast’s massive head loomed at the gate.
“Use my power, kid. Only my power can save your comrades. Don’t you want to save them?” the Nine-Tails coaxed.
Naruto, enveloped by the Nine-Tails’ chakra, knelt before the seal, losing clarity. Just as he was about to succumb, the Nine-Tails’ chakra vanished, and Naruto regained consciousness.
“Hawking!” Naruto’s eyes brightened, dodging Hidan’s scythe with a Shadow Clone feint before retreating to Sakura and Yamato.
“Naruto, you suppressed the Nine-Tails’ chakra!”
Sakura, relieved, noted Naruto’s clarity. Kakashi had warned that relying on the Nine-Tails could lead to its release, spelling disaster for Naruto.
“What now? The other teams won’t arrive in time,”
Yamato, critically injured, asked. Sakura and her slug summon struggled to keep him alive after Naruto had disrupted Hidan’s ritual.
“The other teams won’t make it, but someone else can. His power can buy us time,” Naruto replied, forming more Shadow Clones to hold off Hidan.
“Who?” Sakura asked, puzzled.
“Hawking!” Naruto bit his thumb, made hand signs, and slammed his hand to the ground.
“Summoning Jutsu: Hawking!”
At Mount Myoboku, just after loading Naruto’s template and reverse summoning himself, Hawking sensed a mental scream from the Nine-Tails.
“No!!!
Why now? Just a bit longer, and I would have succeeded. I almost had it.
Hawking, I hate you!!!”
“What’s the fox ranting about now?”
Shaking his head, Hawking ignored the deranged beast and responded to Naruto’s summon, disappearing from Mount Myoboku.
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