Interruption

Naruto POV

As we watched the match between Sasuke and Gaara, I couldn't believe my eyes. Sasuke had unleashed the Chidori, a lightning style technique that Kakashi sensei taught him, and pierced through Gaara's seemingly impenetrable defense. It was a shocking turn of events for all of us.

Gaara let out a piercing scream, yelling, "My BloOD, it'S mY BLOoD!" He then commanded his sand to crush Sasuke's arm, but thankfully Sasuke narrowly escaped as a strange and eerie arm shot out in his direction

"Did he really use that form?!" Kankurō exclaimed in a panicked tone.

"I'm not sure. He seemed injured just now, so it's a possibility," Temari responded with a worried expression.

Baki's mind raced as he thought, 'This marks the beginning of our plans.'

As Gaara's defense began to crumble, Sasuke looked shocked and startled, and that's when it all started.

Smoke slowly filled the arena, and feathers started to fall from the sky. "What's going on with these feathers?" I asked, feeling my eyes start to blur before blacking out.

Hiruzen's POV

My thoughts raced as I turned to face the Kazekage, who had now become my adversary. 'This can't be happening,' I thought to myself.

"Shall we..." the Kazekage trailed off, gazing directly into my eyes. Suddenly, two shinobi from the Sand Village appeared between us and quickly threw a smoke bomb, obscuring our vision.

Swiftly pulling out a kunai, the Kazekage captured me before leaping to the rooftop and out of the smoke. Four ninja from the Sound Village, who I presumed were working with him, also jumped up and landed at the four corners of the roof.

"Initiate it," the Kazekage commanded. Without hesitation, the four ninja crouched down and clasped their hands together, creating a barrier that spanned the entire rooftop.

"Are you truly prepared to start a war with the Leaf, Kazekage-dono?" I asked, feeling a sense of unease.

'This is troublesome,' I thought to myself.

Menma's POV

Observing the entire arena slipping into a deep slumber, I immediately recognized it as a genjutsu. I quickly clasped my hands together and said, "Release!" successfully breaking free from its grasp.

I scanned the area, watching as ANBU members leaped out from the crowd and began attacking all of the Leaf shinobi who had not been affected by the genjutsu.

"It has begun, young one," Kurama spoke to me telepathically.

"Yeah, I'm aware," I responded, looking up to the highest point of the arena. There, I saw the Hokage, Orochimaru, and four Sound ninja within a massive barrier.

'"Kurama, share some of your chakra with me," I asked.

"I may not be overly fond of assisting humans, but if it means prolonging my own life, I suppose I'll endure it," Kurama responded as he transferred a considerable amount of chakra to me.

As I began to say, "Alright, here goe-" my words were cut off abruptly by the sudden appearance of a masked man who grabbed onto my shoulder from behind.

'Shit!' I thought to myself, before being teleported out of the arena and into a dense forest on the outskirts of the village. I immediately swung my elbow at the figure, but it passed right through him as if he were a mere illusion.

Quickly jumping back to create some distance, I armed myself with a kunai and lowered myself into a battle stance, locking eyes with the mysterious man. Despite feeling intense pain in my stomach, I refused to show any signs of weakness.

"It's him!" Kurama growled, his eyes narrowing and teeth gnashing with anger as he seethed with hatred at the sight of the man.

"Calm down, Kurama!" I said, holding in a grunt of pain.

"It appears you've acquired the power of the Nine-Tails," the man stated.

"Shut up! Who are you really?" I demanded, narrowing my eyes at the mysterious figure.

The individual wearing a mask vanished and then materialized on a branch situated behind me.

He responded by saying, "You do not require knowledge of my identity, but as you develop, you will witness the person I will become."

I pondered the significance of his words and questioned, "What do you mean by that?" As I faced him again, I noticed his eyes gleaming a bright crimson shade with three black circles encircling his pupil. Furthermore, his cloak, designed with red clouds, swayed in the gentle breeze as he fixed his gaze upon me.

The masked man asks, "Do you possess a dream? It could be as trivial as daydreaming about consuming candied haws, or as formidable and admirable as striving to become the Hokage. Nevertheless, what matters most is having a dream that motivates you and gives your life meaning."

Curiously, I maintain my posture and inquire, "What is your point?"

"My aspiration is for a world of absolute peace, and I am determined to bring it into existence, even if it means resorting to violence."

"As for you, or more accurately, the ENTITY dwelling within you, it is essential in accomplishing my objective, and I am prepared to seize it through coercion," declares the masked individual.

"I'm up for the challenge," I replied, attempting to conceal my apprehension.

"Okay then," replied the masked man, still situated on the tree branch. His red eyes gleamed as he said, "Let's get started."

I muttered "Kurama" under my breath, sensing an increase in chakra. I firmly grasped my kunai and readied myself to attack.

Sasuke's POV

Ignoring the pandemonium that had erupted in the arena, my attention remained solely fixated on the entity in front of me.

'What was that?' I pondered, transfixed in place. "Those eyes... they weren't human; they belonged to a monster."

"Take Gaara and leave. I have some unfinished business," declared the masked man, before gazing towards the stands and disappearing into thin air.

"We need to move fast and take Gaara with us!" Kankurō exclaimed, grabbing hold of the unconscious boy.

"R-right," Temari stuttered, lending her aid in carrying Gaara as they leapt out of the arena and fled into the surrounding woods.

'Dawn it! I can't let them get away,' I thought, and immediately set off in hot pursuit.

3rd Person POV

As Sasuke pursued the sand siblings, the arena became a frenzy of confusion. Sakura stood motionless, bewildered by the tumultuous events unfolding before her. Abruptly, two sound ninja lunged towards her, but before she could respond, Kakashi intervened and swiftly eliminated the assailants.

"Listen closely, Sakura," Kakashi warned, poised for further attacks. "Dispel the genjutsu and awaken Naruto and Shikamaru. This will be your first A-class mission since the one at wave," he commanded, effortlessly felling another sound ninja.

"Goodness! Are we seriously receiving missions at a time like this?" Sakura asked, her confusion evident in her tone.

"At present, Sasuke is in pursuit of the sand siblings, and you must dispel the genjutsu on Naruto and Shikamaru before locating him," Kakashi replied.

"But how are we supposed to find him amidst all this chaos?" Sakura questioned.

"I have that covered," Kakashi reassured her, placing his hand on the ground and invoking the "Summoning jutsu" As Kakashi gave the command, a diminutive dog materialized in a cloud of smoke through the use of Summoning jutsu.

"Pakkun is adept at tracking Sasuke's scent," Kakashi informed the pink haired girl. "You know what to do. Go."

Sakura nodded and lowered herself onto her belly, then proceeded to crawl across the floor towards Naruto.

Upon reaching him, she formed a seal and concentrated, silently thinking the command to herself. "Release!" she whispered, touching him on the back.

Naruto woke up, rubbing his eyes in confusion. "Huh? Sakura-chan, what's going on?"

"Get down and stay low. I'll explain later," she whispered urgently, cautioning him to remain silent.

Naruto listened to Sakura and together they made their way over to Shikamaru. Upon closer inspection, Sakura realized that he wasn't trapped in a genjutsu and called him out on it.

Despite her efforts to get a response from him, Shikamaru remained unresponsive, prompting Pakkun to approach him and bite his leg. Shikamaru jolted upright, shouting in pain.

"Why were you pretending to be under a genjutsu if you weren't?" Sakura demanded to know.

"I didn't want to be attacked, obviously," Shikamaru retorted, wincing as he pried Pakkun off his leg, earning another bite. His yelp drew attention to them, causing a sound ninja to appear behind Naruto, poised to attack.

Sakura's urgent warning rang out, "Naruto, behind you!" in response to which Guy appeared out of nowhere and swiftly delivered a punch that sent the ninja hurtling through the wall.

Kakashi joined them and quickly reiterated the mission details, following which they made their way through the hole in the wall to pursue Sasuke.

Shikamaru, however, let out a sigh and muttered, "What a drag," before reluctantly trailing behind the others.

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The fight between Hiruzen and Orochimaru had just begun when Orochimaru summoned two coffins, which made a loud, eerie sound as they opened.

Hiruzen grimaced upon seeing the contents of the coffins, muttering to himself, "Out of all the people, it had to be those two..."