Chapter 2

"Here he is - the legendary Sharingan," Mitsuki did not take his shocked, attentive gaze from Uchiha. As his father had said, his eye turned scarlet, and black commas surrounded the pupil. Genin started up and, remembering how dangerous it was to look into those eyes, lowered his head. But Sharingan beckoned. I really wanted to have at least one peek into it again.

Uchiha comes forward. His eye changes again. Sasuke for some reason does not open his left eye, and only the right one can be seen. Now it is black again and only the pupil is surrounded by an unusual scarlet star. A lightning bolt is beating in Uchiha's hand. Sakura-san warns everyone that he can use Chidori as a sword. But the allies will not be surprised by this. Some of them had already faced him in battle. They are more concerned about Uzumaki. Unlike Sasuke, Naruto did not go ahead. He sat down on the ground and froze. Shikamaru-sensei didn't like it very much.

- He accumulates chakra, - Sakura-san says in one breath.

"We have to stop him," Shikamaru orders.

The allies take off, but they can't approach Uzumaki. Their path is blocked by Uchiha and it seems impossible to move him even a step. He is protected from almost all attacks by the Susanoo armor. And only some of them he suppresses with his deadly black flame. Amaterasu divided the clearing into two parts. It is simply impossible to cross the line of fire. But the captains keep saying that Naruto needs to be stopped before it's too late. And a crazy idea comes to mind: to cross to the other side of the clearing by air. He is a genin, a child. No one will pay attention to him. And he doesn't even need to win Uzumaki, just to disturb him. It's not difficult. Mitsuki rushed to the nearest tree, fortunately it was not that far away, ran up one of the branches and jumped forward rapidly. Landing on another part of the clearing, he suddenly clearly realized that he had been missed. Even the black flames beneath him disappeared for a moment. But there's no time to think about it. He must prevent Uzumaki. He is still sitting motionless, which means that they still have time left. Maybe seconds, but that's more than enough!

The seals add up by themselves. The technique is simple, only suitable to disturb. But that's exactly what is needed now!

Hit.

But he does not achieve the goal. Naruto suddenly disappears from view. A moment passes, and Mitsuki realizes that the enemy is behind him. He turns around abruptly and, wide-eyed, staggers back. Uzumaki is covered by a yellow-orange chakra. The scars on his cheeks became wider and darker. The eyes also changed. They turned yellow, two pupils miraculously joined in them. Horizontal and vertical.

- In fact, - Naruto smiles nonchalantly, - a minute is enough for me to collect natural energy. And I started saving it up before you and Sasuke got into the fight. But you were so eager to come to me that we decided to let you through.

Mitsuki's insides turned cold. "We've decided." No! Not true! It couldn't be! They didn't even look at each other!

...But Amaretasu disappeared right under him. And Uchiha didn't try to slow him down. But he could. Surely he could!

... And if that had happened, he, Mitsuki, would not have been cut off from his comrades and would not have been surrounded by the enemy.

...Uzumaki could have already killed him. Surely he could. But he didn't. Why?..

The black flame disappeared, leaving behind a wide scorched strip. Konohamaru-sensei suddenly appeared next to him and in some fractions of seconds moved him to a "safe" place.

"Keep your head down," he ordered softly. It was only then that Mitsuki noticed that his teammates were sitting next to him. They were as pale and scared as he was.

***

- What do you say, Sasuke? - Naruto speaks softly, his allies do not hear him, and, taking advantage of the respite, they try to regroup. Uchiha turns her head slightly, shakes her lips with displeasure.

- Weaklings. I didn't even really attack them.

- Was it different with Raikage? Uzumaki asks with a sneer, but his eyes are not laughing. He understands how dangerous all this is. After all, now they have decided to allow their will to be subordinated. Otherwise, they won't find the one behind Edo Tensei.

"There's no one of Kage's level here," Sasuke chuckled. - But they have Sakura, and she is strong. And with her instant regeneration technique, she can try to stop us. And you know how it will end for her, Naruto.

Uzumaki frowns. He knows and understands everything. But still, deep down, there is a glimmer of hope that Uchiha is biased, that he is wrong.

- You underestimate ... - jinchuriki wants to object, but Uchiha interrupts him.

"Look, I don't want to kill them either. Don't you believe me? "What is it?" he asks almost inaudibly.

Naruto stares at his best friend. His gaze is attentive and heavy. Finally, jinchuriki nods slowly.

- I believe.

And Sasuke himself does not notice how easy it becomes on the soul. How anxiety and excitement disappear. Naruto believes him and shares his decisions. Even in spite of death, he remains on his side. It's stupid to dream of more.

Uzumaki is too hot as always. It's his idea to let Edo Tensei take over them completely. It's risky and dangerous. But if they delay, the enemy will surely call them off. And then they won't be able to do what Naruto wants so much: help the allies.

- Be ready to kill those whom you consider friends, - Sasuke cautioned quietly, reluctantly, allowing the enemy to subordinate himself to his will.

Naruto freezes in place for a moment. The body does not obey him, the mind does not belong to him either. Regret and resentment overwhelm the heart. It's not fair. Unfairly. Not only were they resurrected, they were also deprived of their own will. They made puppets in the wrong hands.

Hurtful.

***

Shikamaru gritted his teeth. It was a mockery: to resurrect war heroes and deprive them of reason for the sake of their incomprehensible purpose. But this is not the time to think about it now. The enemy has already taken a break and is again trying to subdue Naruto and Sasuke. And subdue, as it is not sad. Therefore, we must act immediately. While Uchiha and Uzumaki give them time.

It's unpleasant, but it seems that the wait-and-see tactic is the best right now. They need to hold the line until the Kage of the five villages come here. They should have been sent the latest news by now.

High earthen ramparts protected the allies, but Shikamaru decided that this was not enough. He ordered everyone to retreat, and in a matter of seconds a moat filled with water was created. Just in time. Just at that moment, the first wall of the fortifications was destroyed.

- Sakura!

It was unnecessary to continue. Kunoichi was already folding the summoning seals. Katsuya reappears and is already divided into many parts without any questions. Her little copies cling to every Shinobi.

Nara nods with satisfaction. Now we need to decide how to defend ourselves. In the current situation, it is difficult to come up with a coherent plan. It remains only to build walls and stall for time. The Shinobi of the water element are preparing to reflect a likely fireball. Ninjas with the earth element are in a hurry to erect the highest possible barricades. Shinobi with the wind element accumulate chakra in order to repel the first attack. Everything happens in an instant, but it seems that it lasts forever.

With a loud crack, another wall shattered into several parts. One of its fragments flies straight into Uzumaki. It will not be difficult for him to dodge such nonsense, but Naruto does not move from his place, and Uchiha, without hesitation, incinerates the stone with his Amaterasu. Someone, trying to prevent Sasuke, throws shurikens at him. Uzumaki "comes to life". Kunai appears rapidly in his hands. The clink of metal. Shurikens fall to the ground without even scratching any of them.

... Although why be surprised?..

- why? Mitsuki exhales in shock. The shelter where they hid the genins was destroyed by one of the fragments of the protective wall. - Why are they protecting each other?

- Because they are friends, - Sakura hits the ground with her hand with force. - Because the body moves by itself! - endless bitterness and despair can be heard in her voice. But she's not crying anymore. Resolutely looking forward, clearly preparing for close combat.

The Allies are building a new wall. It is lower than the previous ones and it seems not so strong anymore. It is easily destroyed. There is no doubt that Naruto and Sasuke are attacking her together. And they also destroyed others together. They are in no hurry to attack. It's like they're warming up before a real battle.

We need to separate them!

Funny. As if they have a chance to beat them one by one…

Naruto is silent. It's so unnatural for him! The look is empty and cold. He's never had eyes like that! Anger rises from the depths of the heart. And the promise is formed by itself in the head. They will destroy whoever is behind Edo Tensei. They will wipe off the face of the earth anyone who dares to mock the memory of their precious friends.

The main thing is to survive now.

Another wall has been destroyed, and there are no more forces to build new fortifications. They are too easy an obstacle for the heroes of the Fourth World War. The moat with water is the last frontier. And then useless. After all, Naruto levitates in the air. Five Sage spheres appeared behind him. On the sixth is Uchiha. They are subject to the air. They don't need to walk on the ground.

The wind howls. Allies simultaneously use one of their most powerful techniques. If she reaches the goal, then even Uchiha and Uzumaki will not stand on their feet. They will be thrown back, and they will all have a chance.

... If it were that simple…

Everything subsides suddenly. The wind technique disappears as if no one has used it. The war heroes are standing where they were before. And only Sasuke's left eye is open. Rinnengan. One of its possibilities is the absorption of the chakra. And these are mere trifles compared to what this eye can actually do. And Uchiha undoubtedly knows how to use it. He had already used it against Kaguya... and against Naruto.

Earthen walls are useless, but they slow down the enemy a little. Everyone understands this. As well as the fact that the main thing for them now is to stall for time. When the enemy loses control, they can take a break. Therefore, despite the fatigue, the Shinobi continue to build fortifications. But this time they don't have time. Naruto is incredibly fast, and Sasuke has mastered the technique of moving. They are transferred to the rear of the allies and strike their first terrible blow.

The earth is shaking. The clearing increases dramatically in size: the attack of Uzumaki and Uchiha touched even part of the forest. The Allies are barely standing on their feet. Someone is lying motionless on the ground. There's blood everywhere. Small copies of Katsui treat the seriously wounded. Thanks to Sakura, there are almost no dead. But there are too many wounded.

"Let's separate them," Shikamaru says softly to those who happened to be nearby.

He still doesn't believe that they will be able to defeat Uzumaki and Uchiha alone, but he knows for sure that they will lose if they continue to allow Naruto and Sasuke to attack together.

- If we seal one, it will be easier, - they agree with him.

- Let's do it! - picks up the sealing squad from the Hidden Sand.

The plan is extremely simple. There is absolutely no time for complex strategies right now. They will drive the enemy into a trap. It doesn't matter who, Naruto or Sasuke, you don't need to focus on this. One of them has to expose himself, and then the shadow imitation will stop him, and the sealing squad will finish the job. The main thing is not to delay a moment. So that the second one does not have time to come to the rescue.

But it's not so easy to catch shadow imitations of war heroes. Both are fast and impetuous. Both feel the danger perfectly, deftly avoid traps, and respond with lightning attacks themselves. And each time it's harder and harder to get back on your feet.

Scary.

It's scary to have to fight Naruto. That she and Sasuke are so strong.

They seem to have guessed their plan. That they want to separate them. And as if in mockery of all the allies, they divided themselves. Now everyone was on their own. And there was no need to succumb to everyone's surprise. Who better than them, the Shinobi of the Leaf, to know that Uchiha and Uzumaki are lone fighters.

Susanoo Uchiha divides the clearing into two parts. "Two fronts" - that's what I want to call them. Uchiha attacks on one, Uzumaki attacks on the second. Chakras are not to be taken from both. So it was when they were still alive. Naruto is in no hurry to engage in close combat. He attacks with his famous Rasen-shuriken, and it seems impossible to hide from their destructive power. Sasuke, on the contrary, comes closer. He moves rapidly through the clearing, simultaneously using the effect of surprise, taijutsu and favorite Chidori.

Uchiha and Uzumaki do not stand still, they constantly change the "front". And then their style of attack also changes. Naruto invades the ranks of allies barely standing on their feet, allows someone to block a blow, attacks someone with a giant Rasengan, someone gets a terrible blow of toad taijutsu. And he's still incredibly fast. His speed seems to be comparable to Uchiha's lightning-fast movement.

Sakura is shouting something. And Shikamaru himself has already lost his voice, giving instructions. It is incredibly difficult to calculate the next step of the most unpredictable ninja Konoha. It's hard to predict how his slightly eccentric best friend will behave.

A fireball sweeps across the clearing. He is stopped by the shinobi of the water element. It takes an unacceptable amount of effort to repel this attack. The Allies are slowly retreating. Someone is dragging his leg, someone's arm is hanging limply, someone is coughing up blood every now and then.

... And there is no time to heal the wounds…

Konohamaru is drawn into a melee by Naruto. He tries to shout to jinchuriki, but he is deaf and dumb. Dodging toad taijutsu is hard, but Konohamaru is doing something. Perhaps Uzumaki managed to tell him something about this technique. Rasengan meets Rasengan. Everything flashes with a bright light. Konohamaru jumps back, throws a kunai at random, and it unexpectedly hits the target. The weapon gets stuck in Naruto's chest. A moment passes, and he disappears into a characteristic white cloud.

Shadow clone.

When was it created? And more importantly, where is the real one?

A murmur passes through the clearing. Uchiha does not allow you to recover from the shock. Fortunately, he does not invade the ranks of confused allies. Now Sasuke prefers to keep his distance. His Susanoo seems huge and unwieldy. And even knowing perfectly well that this is not the case, for some reason it is impossible to get rid of this thought. Gigantic hands slowly rise. They comfortably hold a bow and arrow. The bowstring is being pulled. A deadly arrow is about to be launched.

A shocked sigh sweeps across the "second" front. Uzumaki is sitting on the wall - the highest place here. He is completely covered by the nine-tailed chakra, and now he looks like a fox more than ever. Nine tails gather overhead, a dark, almost black chakra accumulates rapidly between them. The bomb of the Tailed One.

...If they only had to stop one person, they would still have a slim chance.

Calling Uzumaki Naruto and Uchiha Sasuke heroes of the Fourth World War, no one has ever been lying. They defeated Kagyu and dispelled the Endless Tsukiyomi. They were strong enough for that. The last thing I wanted to experience was their most powerful attacks. But there is no time to think. We need to decide immediately how to defend ourselves. These hastily erected earth walls are useless. It's scary to imagine what will happen when Uzumaki and Uchiha techniques collide.

... Is it really going to end here and now? In this golden time. A time where the Shinobi Alliance is stronger than ever, when peace between the five hidden villages seems to have been established forever. A time in which there is no place for bloody wars…

A minute passes, another. Nothing happens. The Tailed Bomb does not fly to the allies. Susanoo's arrow does not cut through the air. As if something had happened. Something broke. A sigh of relief sweeps over the battlefield. Time is still on their side. The enemy has lost control of the war heroes. There was no deadly attack. Even more. The armor of Susanoo disappeared, and the cover of the tailed one dissipated. They are saved again.

… But the fight is not over.

Uchiha quickly moves to the wall to Naruto. They exchange glances. Uzumaki says something briefly to Sasuke. A satisfied grin appears on their faces at the same time. And my heart aches with longing, so familiar is this look of theirs. How annoying he was when they were kids! How they all disliked constantly being inferior to team number seven in some way!

...Again! Memories are coming back. But the time has not yet come for them…

Taking advantage of the sudden respite, the sealing squads quickly fold the seals. That's right. While there is a chance, they need to seal at least one. But Uchiha does not think to help them. Even though he was a war hero, he still remained a renegade Konoha. Those who deprived the Hidden Leaf of the Seventh Hokage. Those who are now depriving them of even a ghostly chance to cope with them.

The black flame of Amaretasu destroys the "savannah". The Shinobi preparing the sealing technique are flying in different directions. Even without mind control, Sasuke won't allow them to be sealed. So how do you win then?

- It wasn't necessary to do that at all, Sasuke!

Naruto is outraged. He looks defiantly at Uchiha and seems to be trying to drag him into a fight now.

- If we let them seal us now, the Uchiha is not being provoked. He is calm and dispassionate - then we will not be able to finish what we have planned.

Uzumaki snorted, shook his head, and jumped lightly to the ground. The distance between him and the allies was small. There was a deceptive impression that it was easy to defeat him now.

- You did a great job, guys, - Naruto smiled broadly as always. - Don't worry. He won't be able to control us anymore.

- Are you sure? Sakura asks incredulously, slowly taking a breath. She is in no hurry to cancel her technique. And correctly. Who knows what will happen in a minute.

- Yes, - Uzumaki, in his favorite gesture, Li raises up the thumb of his left hand and immediately switches to his student. "You've grown up a lot, Konohamaru.

"You're still stronger," Konohamaru says with slight annoyance, carefully hiding his embarrassment. But those who know him well know how important Uzumaki's praise is to him.

- Of course, dattebayo! - Naruto laughs sincerely and it is impossible not to answer him with a smile. "Take a rest," he continues, laughing quite seriously. - You deserve it. And it's time for us, - Uzumaki returned to the wall to Uchiha in a few jumps. - We have found where the enemy is hiding. Now let's get rid of him.