Outside, Sasuke was still running deep into the forest, his breath ragged but his pace unrelenting.
Tsunade followed closely behind him.
Sensing that something was wrong, Jiraiya quickly formed a hand seal and called out:
"Ninjutsu—Wild Lion's Mane Technique!"
His hair rapidly extended, transforming into the shape of a lion's head, and lashed forward. It seized Sasuke, who was sprinting ahead. Sasuke suddenly realized that his Susanoo had been ensnared.
"Hn?"
Jiraiya's voice was firm. "Stop!"
With a swift tug, he yanked Sasuke back and hurled him into the air.
Sasuke scoffed coldly, his left Mangekyō Sharingan flashing ominously. The skeletal arm of his incomplete Susanoo, which Tsunade had previously shattered, regenerated instantly. The ethereal sword in its grasp reformed, slicing through the binding hair in a single, decisive stroke.
By this time, Tsunade was already upon him.
"Haaaah! Let's put an end to this!"
She struck Sasuke repeatedly with powerful blows, sending him crashing into the snow-covered ground below.
The sheer force of her attacks fractured his Susanoo, shattering the armored form entirely.
Sasuke groaned, his left eye's pupil power dimming. The half-bodied Susanoo crumbled, leaving behind only its ribcage as his last line of defense.
He lay on the ground, clutching his left eye, his breath labored.
Because the skeletal construct had dissipated, Karin, who had been held in its grasp, tumbled to the ground.
"Sasuke!"
Karin hurriedly scrambled to her feet, her eyes full of concern. She could sense his chakra had weakened significantly.
At that moment, Sasuke felt every cell in his body burning with agony. His breath came in heavy, ragged gasps as a horrifying realization dawned upon him.
"So this is the side effect of Susanoo... Does prolonged use really do this? If this pain is unbearable even in its incomplete state, then just how much suffering did Itachi endure...?!"
As these thoughts clouded his mind, Tsunade and Jiraiya closed in on him.
Tsunade's gaze was resolute. "You must have suffered enough in your battle with the Raikage. If this continues, you already know the outcome. Sasuke, let it go. Accept the sealing jutsu and return to the village. There is still hope for you."
Sasuke lifted his head and sneered. "Let it go? You want me to let go? Let go of the fact that Konoha used Itachi as a sacrificial pawn? Let go of the blood feud where the Senju clan oppressed my Uchiha clan until we were annihilated?!"
Tsunade's expression tightened.
Jiraiya observed him carefully and muttered, "He's not like Orochimaru. Orochimaru left in pursuit of knowledge. But Sasuke... he's completely consumed by hatred."
"Tch. Enough talk. Die, you little bastard!"
From a distance, the Raikage charged forward, his entire body crackling with Lightning Release Chakra Mode. His fist, wreathed in an immense aura of power, drove straight for Sasuke.
Tsunade's eyes flashed. She leaped upward, intercepting Raikage head-on.
A thunderous impact rang through the battlefield.
The two Kage-class figures collided mid-air, their punches generating an immense shockwave that sent a blast of wind sweeping across the clearing.
After landing, Raikage scowled. "Hokage! Are you going to stand in my way?!"
Tsunade flexed her fingers, her rapid regeneration already healing the injuries sustained from the Raikage's attack. Unlike him, she lacked the Raikage's Lightning Armor, meaning the clash had inflicted damage on her.
"This is Konoha's business, Raikage. You don't need to dirty your hands."
Raikage gritted his teeth. "The hell did you just say?!"
C, his right-hand man, rushed forward. "Lord Raikage, please think this through."
Darui, standing nearby, sighed. "Seems like we've got a new combat target."
C glared at him. "Shut it, Darui."
At this moment, Killer Bee's fate was still uncertain. And with two Kage-class fighters from Konoha present, plus the presence of the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki, Konoha's strength was an undeniable factor in any decision they made.
Sasuke slowly stood, his eyes burning with renewed determination. "Karin, step back."
Karin hesitated but obeyed, sensing the ominous shift in Sasuke's chakra. It was turning cold and menacing.
Not far away, Gaara and his team had also arrived, watching from a distance.
Since Tsunade had declared her intent to handle the matter internally, they refrained from interfering.
Shortly after, the Mizukage and Tsuchikage arrived on the scene.
Onoki hovered in the air and scoffed. "Raikage, why haven't you finished this brat off yet?"
Raikage clicked his tongue in irritation. "It would've been done if Tsunade wasn't shielding him! Hmph! Let's see how Konoha's Hokage deals with a traitor in her own ranks!"
In the distance, atop a nearby building, Obito observed the scene.
Black Zetsu murmured, "Are you going in?"
Obito activated his Kamui, his form beginning to distort. "Yes. With the Five Kage present, Sasuke could be killed at any moment. I can't afford to be careless."
Meanwhile, high above the battlefield, hidden from detection, Naruto watched from atop a tower.
His Sage Mode connected him to nature itself, making him undetectable by sensory ninja.
Watching the chaos unfold, an uneasy feeling stirred within him.
"So this is how much pain Sasuke was in back then..."
Had he not been reborn, he would be resting in an inn miles away with Captain Yamato and Kakashi. That night, Uchiha Obito—disguised as Madara—would have come to see him, revealing the truth about Itachi, the origins of the Uchiha-Senju conflict, and the cursed cycle of hatred passed down from the Sage of Six Paths.
Obito had claimed that he and Sasuke were the chosen ones of this era. His plan was to let Sasuke grow in hatred, become stronger through suffering, and ultimately embrace vengeance.
When Naruto was reborn, he had intended to change Sasuke's trajectory. But after his encounter with Nagato, his perspective had shifted.
It was impossible to control the entire ninja world through genjutsu like Kotoamatsukami.
For one, the technique's cooldown was too long. More importantly, altering someone's will through genjutsu made him no different from Madara, Obito, or even Kaguya.
Thus, after convincing Nagato to entrust him with his dream of peace, Naruto cemented his own path forward.
He would still be Naruto—the ninja who aspired to become Hokage and protect everyone dear to him.
But to do that, he needed a force of his own. Power alone would not bring unity, and speaking the truth would not be enough.
Only through shared suffering could the shinobi world truly unite against the true enemy: the Ōtsutsuki Clan.
Thus, he let Obito continue molding Sasuke's hatred. He let Obito reveal the truth to the Five Kage. He let Obito declare war.
Because without pain, there would be no understanding.
And without understanding, there would be no unity.
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