BOOM!
The Two-Tails opened its massive jaws and directly spat out a sphere of blazing blue fire, the searing projectile roaring toward Kiyohara like a miniature sun descending from the heavens.
Kiyohara's figure flickered, vanishing from his original position in a flash as he narrowly avoided the incoming blue fireball.
'Even from here, I can clearly feel the heat contained within those flames.'
Kiyohara mused inwardly.
Among the Tailed Beasts, the Two-Tails could be said to be the most unique.
It was as though she had been sculpted entirely from living fire; that eerie blue flame was no ordinary Fire Release—it far surpassed conventional katon in both temperature and destructive potential.
'But Yugito won't be able to endure this state for long.'
While weaving through the Two-Tails' relentless attacks, Kiyohara continued analyzing the situation with cold clarity.
Without reconciling with one's Tailed Beast, its chakra was inherently corrosive.
When Naruto once erupted into six tails, his very skin had been burned and eaten away in patches by the violent chakra cloak.
Yugito in her current condition was likely experiencing constant cycles of corrosion and regeneration across her entire body.
A berserk Tailed Beast and one under the conscious control of its jinchūriki were two entirely different concepts.
What stood before him now was closer to a riot of chakra than true, deliberate control by the beast itself.
In the shinobi world, those who could truly be called "Perfect Jinchūriki" were exceedingly rare.
Across several decades, only a handful had emerged. Setting aside the yet-unborn Naruto, and the Three-Tails sealed within Rin, along with Yagura of the Hidden Mist, who at present no longer possessed his Tailed Beast's power, only four individuals could genuinely claim that title.
Killer B is one. Bunpuku the One-Tail's jinchūriki imprisoned within Sunagakure could also be counted among them.
As for the remaining two, they were beings whose own overwhelming might left the Tailed Beasts with no room for defiance: Uchiha Madara and Hashirama Senju.
Compared to such legends, Yugito was still too inexperienced.
Even in the future, after years of arduous training, though she would be able to borrow more of the Two-Tails' chakra, she would never truly achieve harmony with it—there would be no shared resonance of hearts.
This, however, presented an opportunity.
A thought flickered through Kiyohara's mind.
He glanced toward Yugito's body, embedded in the mountainside and wrapped in dark red chakra. A Tailed Beast going berserk did not mean the jinchūriki was already dead. If suppressed in time, Yugito could still be saved—but the process required both time and risk.
Kumogakure would have no choice but to divert a portion of its forces to deal with the rampaging Two-Tails. That alone created the window Konoha needed to withdraw.
As for Samui…
Kiyohara's gaze shifted to the blonde girl slumped weakly in the corner of the cave.
She stared blankly at the fully manifested Two-Tails.
He had already extracted sufficient intelligence from her during interrogation.
Bringing back a prisoner held little additional value.
Samui's greatest worth lay only in being Killer B's disciple.
If allowed to return to Kumo then the next time Kiyohara encountered her, he could simply use the Sharingan again to squeeze out fresh ninjutsu or information.
Inside the cave earlier, he had already acquired three new techniques from her.
Among them was Kumogakure's specialized Lightning Release genjutsu—Lightning Release: Lightning Illusion Flash of Lightning Pillar.
Kiyohara refocused on the Two-Tails.
The giant beast lowered its head and opened its maw wide. Black and dark-blue chakra began to gather within, compressing and rotating rapidly into a dense sphere.
A Tailed Beast Bomb.
By mixing Yin and Yang chakra at a precise ratio of two to eight and compressing it into extreme density, the Tailed Beast formed a sphere of catastrophic power.
Kiyohara made an instant decision. His feet left the ground as he soared straight into the sky.
Almost simultaneously, the Two-Tails did not pursue him directly. Instead, it held the half-formed Tailed Beast Bomb in its mouth before abruptly firing it.
Kiyohara had already anticipated the attack and adjusted his trajectory in advance.
The Tailed Beast Bomb streaked forward and ultimately slammed into a mountain peak over a kilometer away.
A thunderous roar followed—then a blinding white flash that momentarily stole all vision, illuminating the entire valley like daylight.
The explosion was so immense that even the battlefield ten kilometers away could hear it clearly.
From the point of impact, a circular shockwave expanded outward in all directions.
Everything in its path was erased.
Trees were uprooted. Boulders disintegrated into powder. The earth itself was overturned.
The upper half of the struck mountain simply vanished, while the remaining structure was riddled with fractures, threatening imminent collapse.
Dust and debris spiraled upward, forming a colossal mushroom cloud rising slowly into the sky.
Suspended several hundred meters above, Kiyohara gazed down at the devastation.
This… was the power of a Tailed Beast.
Without the ability to fly, he would not have evaded that attack.
And had he been struck directly, even the dual reinforcement of Steel Release and Earth Spear might not have sufficed to withstand it.
The Two-Tails seemed enraged by its failure to hit its target.
It lifted its massive head, mismatched eyes locking onto Kiyohara in the sky, and began gathering another Tailed Beast Bomb.
This time, however, something went wrong.
As dark red chakra gathered halfway, instability rippled across its surface.
The sphere trembled violently, as though two opposing forces were battling for dominance.
The Two-Tails let out a pained roar, its body convulsing.
Beneath its flowing azure fur, a faint human silhouette struggled—Yugito herself.
She was attempting to reclaim control.
"Raah… no… go… back…"
Within the beast's thunderous cries, Yugito's fragmented voice could be heard.
Two wills clashed fiercely within a single body.
The Tailed Beast sought total liberation, to annihilate everything before it. The jinchūriki fought desperately to suppress it, striving to regain mastery over her own form.
In the end, the unstable Tailed Beast Bomb fired prematurely.
But it veered off course, not toward Kiyohara, instead streaking diagonally into the sky before detonating thousands of meters above, blossoming into a brilliant burst of flame.
Watching this, Kiyohara knew the moment had come.
The rampaging Two-Tails could now be Kumogakure's problem.
Surely the Raikage and Killer B would arrive soon enough to handle it.
Accelerating midair, Kiyohara's figure soon disappeared into the vast snowy plains.
…
Meanwhile, on the main battlefield.
The Fourth Raikage smashed Orochimaru back with a single punch and was about to pursue when he suddenly sensed a terrifying surge of chakra from afar.
He turned sharply toward the depths of the valley.
A dark red pillar of light shot skyward, followed by a deafening explosion and the rise of a mushroom cloud.
"That feeling… the Two-Tails has lost control?"
The Fourth Raikage's expression changed drastically.
As Kumogakure's leader, he was intimately familiar with the chakra of the village's two Tailed Beasts.
The fluctuation just now unmistakably belonged to the Two-Tails—and it was not under its jinchūriki's control. It was berserk.
"Yugito's in trouble!"
Killer B sensed it as well. He ceased his engagement with Minato, retracting his seven blades simultaneously as he leapt backward.
"Brother, over there!"
"I know!"
The Fourth Raikage gritted his teeth and cast a glance over the battlefield.
On Konoha's side, Minato and Orochimaru had both expended considerable chakra, yet they retained substantial fighting capability.
Hiashi and Hizashi Hyuga were injured but still able to fight, and numerous Konoha shinobi remained.
If the battle continued, victory was uncertain.
More importantly, if Yugito's berserk state was not suppressed quickly, the consequences would be unthinkable.
Finding a suitable vessel for a Tailed Beast was no simple task.
"Retreat!"
The Fourth Raikage made a decisive call.
"All Cloud shinobi, regroup at the Two-Tails' location! Suppressing the Tailed Beast takes priority!"
Though confused, the Cloud shinobi obeyed without hesitation. They disengaged in an orderly withdrawal.
Minato and Orochimaru exchanged glances but did not pursue.
They too had sensed the distant Tailed Beast chakra—violent and chaotic, clearly out of control.
"Did Kiyohara cause the Two-Tails to lose control?"
Minato gazed toward the horizon, thoughtful and uncertain.
To lure away a jinchūriki and drive the beast into berserk… what exactly had that child done?
"Ohoho… Kiyohara-kun never fails to surprise," Orochimaru remarked with a faint smile. "Now Kumogakure must divide its attention to handle the rampaging Two-Tails. Our ambush has achieved its purpose—we have halted their further invasion into the Land of Fire."
Minato nodded slightly; Orochimaru's assessment was correct.
"The mission objective is complete. Withdraw immediately and return to camp!"
Minato turned to the other Leaf shinobi and spoke in a calm yet decisive tone.
"There's no need for us to get involved over there right now. If we rush in and a Tailed Beast Bomb happens to land on our side, we'll be paying for it with our own lives."
Even with his Flying Thunder God Technique, he could not possibly save everyone at once.
The Leaf shinobi responded in unison and began withdrawing in an orderly formation, maintaining discipline despite the tension that still lingered in the air.
Hyuga Hiashi cast one last glance in the direction where the Two-Tails had gone berserk, then looked toward the horizon where Kiyohara had vanished. His emotions were complicated beyond words.
As the head of the Hyuga clan, of course he wished for his clan to produce outstanding talents.
But the reality was harsh—the Hyuga had not produced a genius on Kiyohara's level in a very long time.
Among the younger generation, there were indeed a few promising main-branch youths who could be considered exceptional by ordinary standards. Yet compared to Kiyohara…
The gap was not merely slight—it was vast.
Hiashi shook his head, suppressing the distracting thoughts, and led Hyuga Hizashi and the rest of the clan members to follow the retreating forces.
"I'll go check on Kiyohara. You all head back first," Minato said.
If anything had happened to that boy, it would be difficult to explain to Tsunade.
More importantly, Minato himself did not wish to see such a brilliant junior fall prematurely on the battlefield.
…
During their retreat, the Kumogakure forces encountered an unexpected obstacle.
As they approached the valley where the Two-Tails rampaged, what greeted them was not the support of their comrades—but indiscriminate destruction.
Though Yugito had temporarily suppressed the worst of the berserk state, the Two-Tails had not fully regained its senses.
She remained in a half-rampage condition, hostile toward any living being that drew near.
"ROAAAR!"
With a single swipe of her massive paw, three Cloud shinobi who failed to evade in time were crushed into pulp.
"Lady Yugito! It's us!"
One shinobi tried to call out, only to be answered by a torrent of scorching blue flames.
"Ahhh!"
His scream was swallowed by the fire as he was reduced to charred remains.
"Scatter! Everyone scatter!"
The Fourth Raikage roared in fury, lightning bursting violently across his body as he transformed into a streak of blue light and charged toward the Two-Tails.
"B! With me!"
"Got it, bro—yo!"
Killer B followed closely behind, his seven blades drawn once more.
The brothers split left and right, maneuvering around the rampaging beast. Their goal was clear: buy Yugito time to reclaim control.
Additional Cloud shinobi attempted to approach from the flanks, only to quickly realize that the Two-Tails' range was far too wide—and she made no distinction between friend and foe.
Chaos spread through Kumogakure's ranks.
"Get the sealing squad here immediately!"
Even as he fought, the Raikage's fury burned hotter by the second. Yet he knew rage would not solve this.
The Two-Tails had to be suppressed swiftly—or the casualties would only mount further.
And all of this… was because of that Konoha brat.
The image of Kiyohara surfaced vividly in the Raikage's mind—the black-haired, red-eyed youth who had flown through the sky with Magnet Release, carrying Samui as he disappeared into the horizon.
"Kiyohara…"
The Raikage ground out the name through clenched teeth.
He would remember it.
That boy had lured Yugito away, triggered the berserk state of the Two-Tails, forced Kumogakure to withdraw, and inflicted severe losses.
If allowed to grow unchecked…
A premonition stirred within the Raikage's heart—one day in the future, that child might become Kumogakure's greatest threat.
…
At the Konoha forward camp, medical-nin hurried between tents, tending to the wounded.
Logistics teams inventoried supplies and replenished what had been consumed.
Perimeter guards patrolled vigilantly, wary of any possible pursuit.
Kurenai and Rin sat together on a stone at the edge of the camp, both visibly uneasy.
"Kiyohara… he'll be alright, won't he?"
Kurenai had lost count of how many times she had looked toward the valley, her eyes filled with concern.
"He'll be fine. Minato-sensei went to look for him," Rin said softly, though her hands were clenched tighter than she realized.
"Kiyohara-kun is strong enough to draw away a jinchūriki. He'll return safely."
Even so, their worry did not lessen.
Luring away a jinchūriki was an extremely dangerous task to begin with. And so much time had already passed—the distant explosions alone spoke volumes of how fierce the battle must have been.
Nearby, Kakashi leaned against a tree trunk, appearing to rest with his eyes closed. Yet the occasional flicker of his Sharingan betrayed his tension.
He, too, was worried.
"That idiot… don't you dare die," Kakashi muttered under his breath.
At that moment, a commotion erupted at the outer perimeter.
"What's that?"
"Something's in the sky!"
"Enemy attack?"
The guards shouted in alarm.
Kurenai, Rin, and Kakashi all looked up.
A small black dot was approaching from the distant sky.
As it drew nearer, the silhouette became clearer.
A lone figure descended, long black hair dancing in the wind. Though his flak jacket was somewhat torn, it did nothing to diminish the sharp, handsome features of his face.
"It's Kiyohara!"
Kurenai cried out in delight.
Rin nodded quickly, relief washing over her.
Kakashi exhaled softly, the corner of his mouth lifting almost imperceptibly.
Kiyohara descended slowly into the center of the camp.
Aside from torn clothing and a slightly pale complexion, he appeared unharmed.
Many shinobi stared openly.
A flying technique…
In the entire shinobi world, those capable of flight could be counted on one hand.
Yet now they had witnessed a Konoha shinobi descending from the heavens.
Shock, awe, admiration, confusion—emotions rippled through the camp.
"Huh? What's going on up there… cough, cough—"
Asuma had been leaning against a fence at the edge of camp, attempting his first cigarette. The stress had been mounting lately, and he had heard some shinobi claim it eased the nerves.
He had just lit it and taken a tentative puff when Kiyohara descended from the sky, startling him into a coughing fit.
Kurenai ran toward Kiyohara.
Rin instinctively stepped forward as well, but upon seeing Kurenai reach him first, she stopped, biting her lip lightly as she watched the two from a short distance, thoughts unreadable in her eyes.
"Kiyohara, are you hurt?" Kurenai asked anxiously.
Kiyohara shook his head.
Halfway through his flight back, he had encountered Minato. The latter had expressed great surprise at Kiyohara's flying technique, mentioning he had wanted to ask about it earlier on the battlefield but had lacked the opportunity. After exchanging a few words, Minato had gone to scout the surrounding area, allowing Kiyohara to return ahead of him.
"I'm fine. I used a lot of chakra, but I'm not injured."
He glanced at the two girls, then at Kakashi approaching.
"The Two-Tails has gone berserk. Kumogakure won't have the spare strength to focus on our front anymore."
A simple statement—yet it left the three stunned once again.
Luring away a jinchūriki and forcing the Tailed Beast into a rampage…
Such an achievement sounded unbelievable.
Just then, a voice rang out from behind the crowd.
"Move aside, move aside. Why are you all crowding here? Don't you have tasks to finish?"
The gathered shinobi parted as Tsunade stepped forward, her golden ponytail swaying behind her.
As she walked, her slender waist bore its ample burden, her presence commanding attention with every step.
She stopped before Kiyohara, giving him a thorough once-over.
"Looks like you didn't lose any arms or legs. Not bad."
After confirming his condition, she reached out and slapped him firmly on the shoulder.
The force nearly made him stumble.
"Well done."
Just two simple words—"Well done."
Yet coming from Tsunade, they carried immense weight.
Hearing "well done" from her was rarer and more meaningful than hearing a hundred flowery praises from anyone else.
Kiyohara steadied himself after her heavy pat and smiled faintly.
"Just luck," he replied modestly.
"Cut the nonsense."
Tsunade snorted.
"You lured away a jinchūriki and forced them into a berserk state. If that's luck, then everyone in the shinobi world should go buy lottery tickets."
She had already learned from the returning shinobi what Kiyohara had done.
As she spoke, Tsunade paused, studying him thoughtfully as a certain idea flickered through her mind.
After the war ended, she would undoubtedly go gambling again. And with her luck at the tables, debt was practically guaranteed. When creditors eventually came knocking…
If Kiyohara could simply use that flying technique to carry her away, how convenient would that be?
Of course, she didn't voice the thought aloud—she merely entertained it silently.
"Go to the medical tent and get checked. You look fine, but fighting a jinchūriki can leave hidden injuries. After that, rest properly. There's another mission tomorrow."
With a dismissive wave of her hand, Tsunade turned and left.
Kiyohara watched her departing figure, then glanced at the trio gathered around him—Kurenai, Rin, and Kakashi—as well as the other Konoha shinobi in the distance who looked at him with admiration, envy, curiosity, and awe.
"Come on. Let's head to the medical tent. After I'm done, I'll make dango for you."
"Really?"
Kurenai's eyes lit up instantly. She had long wanted to try his cooking.
"Of course," Kiyohara replied with a small grin.
......
Days passed swiftly, as sunrises gave way to moonsets. In the blink of an eye, five days had gone by.
Today was the day the a "Last Will" would arrive.
Kiyohara stood alone in the snowfield. Snowflakes drifted down onto his shoulders and back.
Crackle—!
Blue lightning surged from within his body, spreading outward until it enveloped every inch of his skin. Pale blue arcs of electricity danced visibly across his surface.
"These five days have helped me get much more familiar with it. If I face Yugito again using this, it'll be far easier."
He raised his right hand and clenched it into a fist.
He could clearly feel his muscle fibers strengthened under the stimulation of Lightning Release chakra, his neural responses sharpened.
Unfortunately, it was all temporary. Once he exited Lightning Release Chakra Mode, the enhancement would disappear.
Still, this constant stimulation of the body acted as physical training in itself.
He turned toward a massive rock two men tall ahead of him. Its surface was encased in thick ice, glinting under the sunlight.
Lowering his stance into a basic posture, he struck.
BOOM!
His fist collided with the rock.
Crack.
Fine fractures spread outward from the point of impact, deepening and widening rapidly.
Crash—!
The entire rock shattered into fist-sized fragments, the ice layer exploding into crystalline shards that scattered across the snow.
Kiyohara examined his fist. Only a faint reddish mark marred his skin—not even broken.
"My control has improved quite a bit."
He nodded in satisfaction.
The most difficult part of Lightning Release Chakra Mode was not learning it, but mastering it—balancing chakra output and consumption, maintaining amplification without damaging one's meridians, stabilizing chakra during high-speed movement.
All of it required relentless practice.
Over these five days, aside from essential guard duties, Kiyohara had devoted nearly all his time to honing it.
Of course, he had not neglected his other techniques either.
Forming hand seals again—this time for Lightning Release—he called out,
"Lightning Release: Lightning Ball!"
A fist-sized blue orb of electricity formed beside him, arcs snapping across its surface. It shot forward and struck a withered tree thirty meters away.
Crackle!
The blast left a charred crater in the trunk, flames igniting instantly and spreading along the wood.
"Not bad."
He assessed the result calmly.
During these five days, he had not only improved Lightning Release Chakra Mode but also practiced several Kumogakure lightning techniques he had extracted from Samui. Though mostly C- and D-rank, when combined with Chakra Mode, their power increased significantly.
More importantly, his understanding of Lightning Release's nature transformation had deepened.
After a while longer, he exhaled softly, donned his coat, gathered his tools, and prepared to return to camp.
Training was essential—but so was rest. His body and chakra needed recovery.
Kurenai's birthday was approaching soon. Kiyohara planned to look around for materials to weave her an anklet or bracelet.
...
Upon returning to camp, he learned Tsunade was looking for him.
He made his way to her tent.
Inside, Tsunade stood before a map, arms crossed, brows slightly furrowed.
"Sensei."
"You're here."
She pointed to a location marked on the map.
"The Land of Waterfalls, near the border of the Land of Grass. Three days ago, our intelligence operatives found traces suggesting possible activity by descendants of the Uzumaki clan."
Kiyohara's heart stirred.
The Uzumaki clan—rumored to have been wiped out.
Yet he knew that wasn't entirely true. Karin's mother, Nagato, and even Uzumaki Honoka from the Sea Country's summoning island in the anime adaptation—survivors scattered across the world, living in obscurity since the fall of Uzushiogakure.
Konoha had long sought them, especially now. Strengthening the village barrier and sealing techniques for tailed beasts required advanced fuinjutsu knowledge and the Uzumaki were masters of it.
"You want me to confirm it?" he asked.
Tsunade nodded.
They were currently near the Land of Iron. Adjacent lay the Land of Waterfalls, and beyond that, the Land of Grass.
"I'm going too."
She paused, meeting his eyes.
"The Two-Tails injured the Fourth Raikage last time. Kumogakure has been quieter lately—good timing for an excursion."
"I see."
Kiyohara nodded.
"When do we depart?"
"Tomorrow at dawn. You, me, Shizune, and Kurenai, a four-person squad."
She handed him a scroll.
"No problem, Sensei. I'll notify them."
As he turned to leave—
"Wait."
He looked back. "Yes?"
"Let's gamble a few rounds. Same rules as always."
Tsunade pulled out dice, a bottle of sake, and two cups. The alcohol was for her; the other, filled with water, was for Kiyohara if he lost. To be "fair," his water cup was significantly larger.
With no casino nearby, Tsunade had been nearly suffocated by boredom.
"..."
Kiyohara reflected that Tsunade was living quite comfortably in Konoha—drinking and gazing at the sky, taking life one easy day at a time.
"What? You're disobeying your teacher?"
Feigning anger, Tsunade stepped closer and ruffled his hair.
"Of course not."
Kiyohara met her beautiful face and shook his head slowly.
Gambling one-on-one with Tsunade?
Wasn't that basically a guaranteed win—even blindfolded?
...
Reality proved him entirely correct.
Tsunade lost spectacularly. Kiyohara didn't drink a single drop of water.
She emptied the entire bottle herself.
Her lips glistened with the sheen of sake, their lines clearly defined.
Supporting her as she swayed, Kiyohara noted her cheeks flushed like ripe peaches, warmth radiating from her skin.
She mumbled drunkenly for him to escort her back.
He had no choice but to agree.
With her leaning against his arm, her pale skin gleaming under the moonlight, the situation was… overwhelming.
He could only describe it as being sandwiched between soft cushions—literally.
Even faint veins were visible under the silvery glow.
By the time he settled her into bed and covered her with a blanket, night had fully fallen. He summoned Shizune to watch over her and informed her of the mission.
"Thank you, Kiyohara," Shizune sighed at the sight of Tsunade once again drunk.
He nodded, then sought out Kurenai to inform her as well.
Once everything was arranged, he returned alone to his tent.
He was waiting.
Today was the final day.
[Please retrieve your alternate future self's last will and urn. Make sure to properly take care of their remains.]
The familiar synthetic mechanical voice echoed in his mind.
A new future had arrived!
Excitement surged within him.
What kind of future would this one be?
Now, the most thrilling moment each month was the instant he received the a new " Last Will."
(End of Chapter)