"Why?"
As the implications sank in, Naruto's heart pounded with dread. He turned and looked back at the army behind him.
Could it be…?
Could it really be…?
Why?
Why hadn't he sensed even the slightest sign beforehand?
Mei Terumi thought to herself: It seems Konan already knew that Kurotsuchi and I are on Jin's side. Revealing it now is her way of preventing unnecessary casualties once the fighting begins.
Kurotsuchi grinned inwardly: Heh. Blowing up someone's face point-blank—now this is exciting!
The positioning of the Mist and Stone forces within the Allied Army had been carefully arranged. Both armies were stationed along the outer edges of the rear-middle ranks, perfectly situated to encircle the fifty thousand troops from the Sand and Cloud.
Mei and Kurotsuchi exchanged a glance.
Then both women leapt away from the Five Kage formation.
Kurotsuchi shouted:
"Stone shinobi! Move!"
Among the Stone ninja, some hesitated.
Were they really going to do this to comrades who had once fought beside them?
But a shinobi's duty was to obey orders.
More than ten thousand Stone shinobi formed seals in perfect unison. Golden chakra flared around them—the power Naruto had bestowed through the Shinobi Alliance Technique.
Earth Release: Great Earth Flow Wall!
Rumble!!!
The rear of the battlefield shook violently, startling the entire army.
Before the bewildered alliance could react, colossal earth walls rose from the left, right, and rear, enclosing the Sand and Cloud forces like the sides of a massive fortress.
The walls climbed over a hundred meters high.
Together they carried thirty-five thousand Mist and Stone shinobi into the air.
Because of the sheer scale of the technique, some nearby Sand and Cloud shinobi—nearly five thousand of them—were also lifted along with the walls.
They had no idea what was happening.
"What's going on?"
"Whoa, we're so high up!"
"This is incredible!"
"Sorry," said the Stone and Mist shinobi who had already been briefed.
"We're just following orders."
Without further explanation, they kicked the stunned Sand and Cloud shinobi off the walls.
Screams filled the sky as five thousand golden-clad figures rained down like dumplings.
"AHHHH!"
"You've got to be kidding!"
"That's completely dishonorable!"
Fortunately, Naruto's chakra cloaks prevented them from being killed on impact.
Cold sweat trickled down Naruto's face.
"So that's it…!"
Gaara's eyes widened in realization.
"Everyone!" he shouted. "The Hidden Mist and Hidden Stone are not our allies! They've surrounded us with earth walls! Break out immediately, or the consequences will be disastrous!"
"What!?"
The Cloud and Sand forces finally understood.
"Concentrate your attacks on the walls!"
A torrent of ninjutsu crashed into the towering barriers.
Mei Terumi landed atop one of the walls and swept her arm forward.
"Mist shinobi! Water Release! Suppress them from above!"
"Yes, ma'am!"
The Mist ninja lined the edges and formed seals.
Water Release: Heavenly Waterfall Technique!
Roaring torrents poured from all three walls like celestial waterfalls.
The floods extinguished the alliance's fire-based attacks and shattered the formation below.
"AHHH!"
"They've got the high ground!"
"Earth-style users, defend now! We'll be swept away!"
Sand and Cloud earth-style shinobi hurried forward, raising walls of their own to block the deluge.
Meanwhile, Kurotsuchi crouched atop the central wall.
After forming seals, she dropped into a near-perfect split, both palms slamming onto the stone.
Earth Release: Super Weighted Rock Technique!
The massive earth walls glowed and became incomparably heavier and sturdier, transforming into impregnable fortifications.
Kurotsuchi rose and wiped the sweat from her brow with the back of her hand, still wrapped in Naruto's golden chakra.
"Whew. That should stabilize our position."
Darui's face turned dark with fury.
"Tsuchikage. Mizukage. Do you realize what you're doing?"
Kurotsuchi put one hand on her hip and casually flipped the other.
"Sorry~. I did say we were participating in the war."
"I never said which side we were fighting on."
Darui shouted:
"Uchiha Jin and the Hidden Dark Village are enemies of the entire world! By aiding him, are you leading your villages down a road of no return?"
Kurotsuchi shrugged.
"Sorry~. I never believed Naruto's story to begin with."
"He can't even tell when the people around him aren't on the same side."
"That says enough about his judgment."
"Darui, you should surrender while you can."
"If you continue supporting a man like him, you'll only get your people killed."
Gaara looked at Naruto.
"Naruto, with your current power, you should be able to sense good and evil. Didn't you detect this?"
Naruto clenched his fists so tightly that his hair stood on end.
"No."
He was trembling with anger.
"These people… don't believe in their hearts that what they're doing is wrong."
And that was true.
Mei and Kurotsuchi believed supporting Jin was justice.
Their subordinates believed obeying orders was justice.
Each acted with complete conviction.
Gaara looked up toward the wall.
"So you feel the same way as the Tsuchikage, Lady Mei?"
Beneath her auburn hair, Mei's green eyes were filled with sadness and resignation.
"The reason I stand here with the Hidden Mist is simple."
"I know Uchiha Jin."
"He is not the monster Naruto claims he is."
"He is a dear friend I've known for years."
"I know him better than anyone."
"My true intention is to prevent a tragedy that never needed to happen."
She fixed her gaze on Naruto, who stood with fists trembling and face shadowed.
"Naruto!"
"No one is better than you at delivering stirring speeches."
"But I hope you can recognize the situation in front of you."
"If this battle begins, it doesn't matter whether you can conquer this place."
"The Cloud and Sand shinobi behind you are not like you."
"They do not possess endless chakra."
"They do not have your monstrous resilience."
"Many people will die."
"I don't expect you to abandon your prejudice against Uchiha Jin overnight."
"But at the very least…"
"Take pity on the people standing behind you."
"Think carefully."
"Will you truly allow the Hidden Cloud and Hidden Sand to share Konoha's fate?"
Gaara's eyes trembled as he looked at Naruto, waiting for his decision.
Hovering in the air on paper wings, Konan also stopped weaving seals.
This was Naruto's final chance.
Steam hissed from Naruto's stomach wound as it regenerated.
Then he slowly raised his head.
His voice trembled with fury before swelling into the familiar thunderous roar that defined him.
"Uchiha Jin!"
"He used such despicable methods to stain my Shinobi Alliance Technique!"
"That's right!"
"Only a celestial demon could commit something so shameless!"
"Kurotsuchi! Mei Terumi!"
"I'm sorry."
"But for the sake of the greater good…"
"I'm confiscating the chakra I lent you."
"You are hereby removed from the Shinobi Alliance Technique!"
Naruto thrust out his hand.
The golden chakra cloaks surrounding the Mist and Stone forces vanished instantly.
Then he redistributed that chakra to his true allies.
The golden aura around the Sand and Cloud shinobi blazed even brighter.
Naruto clenched his fist, every word ringing with iron determination.
"And I will not allow the people behind me to die!"
"They will not share Konoha's fate!"
"With the power of this unprecedented Shinobi Alliance Technique…"
"I will protect everyone from harm!"
"Absolutely!"
"Absolutely!"
"This time, I will prove to all of you that the power of unity can triumph over every evil!"
Within Naruto's mind, Hagoromo Ōtsutsuki praised him.
"Firm as steel, unshakable in spirit."
"Well said, Naruto."
Mei lowered her eyes sadly.
So there was no turning him back.
Naruto had become completely trapped within his own convictions.
The clash between his deeply rooted ideals and the reality before him could only end in blood.
She turned to Kurotsuchi.
"Tsuchikage, I propose we withdraw our forces."
"There is no reason for our people to remain on the front lines."
"What do you think?"
It was time.
Time to use the trump card Jin had entrusted to her.
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