"Sarutobi hasn't arrived yet," Danzo's voice was cold, decisive. "But this mission must be completed immediately—and without mistakes."

"The task of subduing the Jinchūriki was entrusted to me by Sarutobi himself. The boy's emotional state has grown dangerously unstable."

He glanced toward the earth wall in front of them, face grim beneath his mask.

"We must suppress his power before he completely loses control… before the Nine-Tails fully corrodes his mind. If he snaps, we all die here—Konoha included."

---

Despite trying to restrain himself, Naruto's senses had sharpened even further under the influence of the tailed beast chakra.

Even with an earth wall between them, he could hear everything.

Danzo's words. The underlying fear. The arrogance.

Did the Third send him?

The thought barely surfaced in Naruto's hazy consciousness before it was swallowed by a surge of dark emotions—fuelled by the Nine-Tails' chakra. His mind spun deeper into paranoia and fury.

Of course. There's no other explanation.

The Third Hokage hasn't shown up yet. He's scared… scared to face me. He wants to get rid of me.

The image of Hiruzen—appearing in his home in the dead of night—flashed in his mind. That wasn't a coincidence. It was all premeditated.

He wants to kill me!

The thought echoed endlessly, warping into a mantra. Rage boiled in his chest, pushing the Nine-Tails' chakra to the surface. Even the slight calm earlier was shattered.

Crack—

His skin began to tear, the outer layer splitting and peeling away from his face. Beneath it, raw flesh shimmered with red chakra, like molten lava beneath cracked stone.

He was losing himself.

Losing his humanity.

Becoming a beast born of chakra and hatred.

Gravel lifted from the ground, only to be disintegrated mid-air by the chaotic energy now radiating from him. Shockwaves exploded outward, slamming into the earth wall with deafening force.

---

"All Anbu, fall in under Danzo's command!"

A voice called out from beyond the wall. Sharp. Commanding. And all too familiar.

Naruto's claws extended instinctively, digging into the earth. The voice belonged to the same Anbu who had sworn cooperation minutes ago.

Hypocrite.

He saw Hiruzen's face behind the words, that false smile—always promising, always manipulating.

His claws tore deep trenches into the ground. Hatred flared within the blood-red chakra coiling around him like a storm. His entire body tensed, ready to lunge.

They're all liars.

"The Sandaime is on his way. The center of the village isn't exactly nearby. He'd need time to receive the message, let alone make it here. Besides, he's not known for speed."

Ryosuke's voice came through the mental link like cold water over a fire—sharp, steadying.

Naruto froze.

He blinked.

His thoughts, so clouded moments ago, slowly started to clear. Right… my house is in the outskirts. It took me ten minutes to run from the village with tailed beast speed. The Sandaime's older, slower… there's no way he'd be here already.

Danzo's presence wasn't proof of anything. It was all misdirection. Confusion.

He's trying to turn the others against me before Sarutobi arrives.

Despite the rage bubbling inside, Naruto gritted his teeth and tried to hold on to that sliver of logic.

"I..."

He tried to speak, his voice trembling in the mental link.

He wanted to ask for help.

Not from anyone.

From him.

Ryosuke.

"Since you've chosen to trust the Sandaime... then keep holding on," Ryosuke replied gently. "Wavering now will only make things worse."

"Don't think about anything else. Focus on the people in front of you."

As if on cue, dozens of figures leapt onto the earth wall, black silhouettes against the moonlight.

From Naruto's vantage point, they looked like ants swarming a mountain.

With the withdrawal of the highest-ranking Anbu officer, Danzo now had full authority on the scene. Unsurprisingly, he gave the command:

Seal the Jinchūriki.

Whoosh!

The sound of kunai slicing through air echoed in all directions.

They came like a tidal wave—Root and Anbu operatives, each one no less than Chūnin-level, chakra flaring as they coordinated their assault.

Naruto's body tensed. The fourth tail had begun to take shape—its silhouette flickering behind him like a half-drawn brushstroke. It shimmered with unstable chakra, threatening to manifest fully.

"I shouldn't fight them like this…" he muttered.

Even a moment of emotional instability could hasten the transformation.

One more spark, and the Fourth Tail would solidify. At that point, his human consciousness might completely vanish.

He could feel it—his body strained to the edge of collapse.

If not for Ryosuke's steady presence anchoring his mind, he would've already lost control.

"…In your condition, I agree," Ryosuke said. "You're not suited for a battle of this scale right now."

A pause.

Then, hesitantly, "But if you trust me… if you're willing… I can take over."

Naruto blinked.

"I can guide your body for you," Ryosuke continued, "direct your power without risking your sanity. You can rest your mind, and I'll fight in your place."

He had never proposed something like this before.

To Naruto, who had always fought alone—always bore the burden of power and pain—this suggestion was unthinkable.

Even in the Hyuga branch family, where submission to the clan head was normal, such a request could feel like a betrayal of the self.

Trusting someone to control your body… it wasn't a small thing. It was a bond deeper than blood.

Like borrowing money from a friend—you might get it back, but the relationship changes.

Naruto hesitated.

"…Huh?" he murmured, taken aback.

Ryosuke hadn't expected him to react like this.

He replied at first with confusion, eyes wide, voice trembling slightly.

"Ryosuke… are you saying—you can control my body? Help me fight this battle?!"

There was disbelief in his tone, but only for a moment. Then, with a surprising steadiness, Naruto said:

"Why didn't you tell me earlier?! If this was possible, I wouldn't have had to push myself so hard to accept the Nine-Tails' power... I wouldn't be this close to losing control."

Far away in the village, Ryosuke stood in stunned silence, momentarily unable to respond.

That level of trust…

It reminded him of Tamao—another person who had once entrusted him with everything, even knowing the risks. Yet unlike Tamao, Naruto shared no blood with him. Their bond was forged not by clan, duty, or birthright, but by choice.

Just two boys. Just… friends.

A connection that, by all logic, should be fragile—yet here it stood, unshakable.

"What do I need to do?" Naruto asked again, his voice firm now.

The wind howled outside. The Root and Anbu forces were closing in, slowly advancing despite the pressure from the waves of tailed beast chakra.

"Free your mind," Ryosuke said calmly. "Let me in."

He'd never tried this before. Controlling someone with a tailed beast sealed inside was risky. The resistance… unpredictable. But he had no other choice.

"HEY! Did either of you ever consider my feelings?!"

The booming voice of the Nine-Tails rang out, echoing across the sealed space like thunder.

Kurama's eyes narrowed, fur bristling. His tone was harsh, but there was something else beneath the snarl—hesitation.

He was no longer the arrogant demon of old. His body language, his expression… they resembled a human being more than a beast.

He was angry—but not irrational.

And deep down, even he seemed wary of Ryosuke's presence. Or perhaps it was that familiarity, something in Ryosuke's chakra that kept the beast from acting on impulse.

But no one acknowledged him.

Naruto let out a breath and released his tension.

And just like that, Ryosuke's consciousness slipped into place—seamlessly.

The moment control was transferred, Ryosuke's chakra surged through Naruto's body. The Byakugan's power awakened instantly, fusing into Naruto's physical form like a dormant weapon coming online.

"As a friend," Ryosuke whispered, "I've never given you anything. Let me make up for it all—right now."

Three distinct forces pulsed inside Naruto's body.

Blue—his own chakra.

Red—the furious power of the Nine-Tails.

And now, a pale, brilliant light—the legacy of the Ōtsutsuki clan—brought forth by Ryosuke.

"Wh—what is this?!"

Kurama's voice rang out in disbelief.

The unstable transformation… began to stabilize.

The corrosive influence of the tailed beast chakra slowed, then halted. Bloody gashes sealed. Flesh knit back together. Bones realigned.

The beast form was no longer spiraling out of control.

"Your tailed beast form isn't bad, Naruto," Ryosuke said absently, "but your physical conditioning still needs work."

He flexed Naruto's claws, adjusting posture.

The beast eyes—once wild and bloodthirsty—now glowed with a steady, unnatural red. Under Ryosuke's control, there was no rage. Only precision.

Only clarity.

The eyes of a tactician. The eyes of a warrior who had tasted countless battles.

Calm.

And behind that calm... a flicker of excitement.

For so long, Ryosuke had hidden his full strength.

He couldn't afford to expose everything. Couldn't afford to let the world know what he truly was—not yet. But this opportunity? This moment?

With Naruto's tailed beast form as a medium—he could finally move freely.

Finally fight the way he wanted.

He rose from all fours, slowly straightening. The ground cracked beneath him with every shift.

Tailed beast chakra surged outward like a boiling sea, flowing around him in unnatural ripples. Massive scarlet claws formed from the aura, reaching toward the oncoming wave of ninjas.

"Fire Style!"

"Water Style!"

"Earth Style!"

"Wind Style!"

"Lightning Style!"

Shouts echoed from every direction. The shinobi let loose their elemental jutsu all at once, their techniques raining down like a coordinated storm—mud, flame, stone, lightning, and blades of wind.

But it was useless.

Utterly useless.

The chakra claws swept through them like paper.

Flames flickered and vanished. Lightning bent around the barrier of red energy. The water sizzled to mist. Stone shattered on impact.

Naruto's body didn't move.

He just stood there—unshaken.

"So this… this is what it feels like to have chakra that you don't need to ration…"

Ryosuke's voice was almost breathless with wonder.

Even with all his training and evolution, his chakra reserves had always been a limiting factor. But Kurama's chakra…

It was bottomless.

Like a divine forge. Like a sea without end.

The temptation was overwhelming.

Let's try this...

From Naruto's hands, scarlet chakra twisted outward, shaping itself into small fox-shaped constructs. Dozens of them. Lifelike, nimble.

They darted forward, dancing between the enemy ranks.

Nimble, elegant, deadly.

With a flick of Ryosuke's thoughts, they pinned the nearest attackers to the ground—immobilizing them without fatal injury.

Efficient.

Precise.

"Holy crap… I didn't know chakra could even do that," Naruto murmured from deep within, awe in his voice.

His consciousness hovered in the background, stunned into silence.

Even Kurama said nothing. The massive fox simply lay back down in the sealed space, eyes half-lidded.

Something had changed.

Something big.

---

"When you truly master chakra form manipulation," Ryosuke said, "this level of control is just the beginning."

With barely a flicker of energy, he extended another tail.

Five now.

Five tails whipping through the air like whips of raw chakra, their force enough to create shockwaves that staggered even the most seasoned Anbu.

The enemy hesitated.

Even Danzo, standing behind the lines, clenched his fists in alarm.

That calm… those eyes…

That wasn't the wild boy they were meant to subdue.

That wasn't an unstable Jinchūriki.

That was a warrior.

A threat.

Danzo's face darkened.

Impossible. Naruto can't control the Nine-Tails… not like this! He doesn't have that kind of training!

There had only been a few Jinchūriki in history who could subdue their tailed beasts.

But Naruto? How? When? Where did he learn this?!

And then, Ryosuke looked up.

Past the army.

Past the wall of Root and Anbu.

His eyes locked directly onto one man.

Danzo Shimura.

"You're next," Ryosuke said softly.

No malice. No wrath.

Just a simple statement of fact.

The skirmishes so far? Just warm-ups. A prelude. A rehearsal.

The real fight was about to begin.

With surgical control, Ryosuke had made sure no one had died. Not yet. But that mercy? It had an expiration.

After all, these were just pawns.

The real game piece was still hiding in the back.

The moment lingered—quiet, tense, heavy.

And then—

Boom.

Naruto's body vanished in an instant, launching forward in a blur of red light.

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