67. The Final Rift

The night sky over the Leaf Village was unusually still, the stars twinkling faintly against the darkness. Despite the calm, an undercurrent of tension filled the air, a collective anticipation that hung over the village like a thick fog. Inside the Hokage's office, Minato stood silently, his gaze fixed on the reports scattered across his desk. The warnings were clear—the final confrontation was imminent.

Ryusei, Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura stood in front of Minato, their expressions reflecting the seriousness of the situation. Each of them had grown immensely during their time apart and since returning, but this time, it felt different. There was no escaping what was coming.

"The distortions are getting worse," Minato said, breaking the silence. "Multiple rifts have been reported at the borders. It's clear now—the enemy is planning something much larger than we anticipated."

Ryusei stepped forward, his voice calm but laced with concern. "The void and time energies are converging. If they manage to open the final rift, it will connect to every timeline simultaneously. We're talking about a complete collapse of reality as we know it."

Naruto's fists clenched, his determination unshaken. "Then we stop them. We've trained for this. We've been preparing the whole village for this moment."

Minato nodded. "That's why we're moving out now. Every available shinobi, including the Anbu and the specialized teams, is being deployed to the borders. We can't let the rift reach full power."

Sasuke's Sharingan glinted in the dim light of the room. "Where's the main source? The one pulling all the timelines together?"

Minato looked directly at Ryusei. "There's a central rift located in the mountains near the Land of Rivers. According to the latest reports, the enemy is focusing their efforts there. If we can close that rift, we'll cut off their ability to manipulate the other timelines."

Ryusei's expression remained stoic. "I'll take Team 7 to the mountains. We'll close the rift and deal with whoever's behind this."

Sakura, standing beside Sasuke, nodded. "We'll stop them. This ends tonight."

Minato's eyes softened for a moment as he regarded the four of them. "You've all come so far. This is the moment you've been preparing for. Remember, you're not just protecting this timeline—you're protecting all of them."

Naruto grinned, his usual energy returning. "No pressure, right?"

Sasuke shot him a look but smirked slightly. "Just focus on not getting yourself killed."

Minato's tone grew more serious. "We'll send reinforcements to the surrounding areas to deal with the smaller rifts. But Team 7—you'll be the ones to face the central threat. The final rift is unlike anything we've seen before. Once you're inside, time itself may not function the way you're used to."

Ryusei nodded, already understanding the gravity of the situation. "We'll be ready."

Near the Land of Rivers – Central Rift

The landscape near the Land of Rivers was eerily quiet as Team 7 made their way through the mountains, the air around them growing heavier with each step. The closer they got to the central rift, the more distorted reality became. The sky above them seemed to flicker, as though struggling to maintain its form, and the ground beneath their feet occasionally shifted, as if it couldn't decide where it belonged.

Naruto glanced around, his brows furrowed in confusion. "This place is messed up. It's like everything's… breaking apart."

Sasuke's Sharingan was already active, his eyes scanning the area. "It's the time and void energy converging. The closer we get to the rift, the more unstable everything becomes."

Sakura reached out, feeling the strange ripples in the air. "We're not just in one timeline anymore. It's like fragments of other realities are bleeding into this one."

Ryusei walked ahead of them, his eyes fixed on the massive rift that loomed in the distance. It was unlike anything they had ever seen—a swirling vortex of black and purple energy, crackling with lightning as it stretched high into the sky. The air around it pulsed with power, bending reality itself in its wake.

"That's it," Ryusei said quietly. "The final rift."

As they approached, the ground beneath them trembled, and out of the swirling vortex, dark figures began to emerge. They were familiar—clad in the dark cloaks of the Akatsuki, but these were not the same enemies they had fought before. These were echoes, pulled from alternate timelines, infused with the chaotic energy of the rift.

Naruto's fists tightened as he spotted the figures stepping forward. "Looks like we've got company."

Sasuke's hand moved to his sword, his Sharingan flashing with determination. "Stay focused. These aren't ordinary enemies. They're fueled by the void."

The figures approached, their hollow eyes locked on Team 7. The echo of Itachi, with his Sharingan glowing red, moved in silence, while the familiar silhouette of Kisame swung his massive blade, Samehada, over his shoulder. A third figure, this one resembling Pain, stepped forward, his Rinnegan gleaming with void energy.

"They're not real," Ryusei reminded them, his voice steady. "They're echoes, pulled from other timelines. But they're just as dangerous."

Without another word, the battle erupted.

The Battle for the Rift

Naruto launched himself forward, his Kyūbi Chakra Mode flaring around him as he formed a massive Rasengan in his hand. "Let's see how these echoes handle this!" he shouted, charging straight for Kisame's echo.

Kisame grinned, his hollow eyes locked on Naruto as he swung Samehada in a wide arc, aiming to absorb the chakra of the Rasengan. But Naruto was faster. He flickered out of sight, reappearing behind Kisame and slamming the Rasengan into his back.

The impact sent a shockwave through the ground, but Kisame's echo barely stumbled. His body flickered with void energy as he turned, swinging Samehada in retaliation. Naruto jumped back, narrowly avoiding the strike as the blade tore through the ground.

Meanwhile, Sasuke faced off against the echo of Itachi, their Sharingan eyes locked in a silent battle of wills. Lightning crackled around Sasuke's hand as he prepared a Chidori, while Itachi's echo formed hand signs for a fireball jutsu.

"Chidori: Void Surge!" Sasuke shouted, launching himself forward. The Chidori, now infused with void energy, crackled with destructive power as it clashed with Itachi's fireball. The resulting explosion sent both of them skidding back, the ground beneath them cracking from the force of their attacks.

Sakura, meanwhile, faced Pain's echo head-on. Her fists glowed with chakra as she charged forward, dodging the spikes of gravity being launched at her. She leapt into the air, bringing her fist down with a Delayed Impact Punch, sending a shockwave through the air that knocked Pain's echo off balance.

The battle raged on, each member of Team 7 pushing their limits as they fought the echoes. But as the fight continued, the rift in the distance grew larger, the energy swirling around it intensifying.

Ryusei, keeping his distance from the main fight, focused on the rift itself. He could feel the power radiating from it, a pulse that connected to every timeline, every reality. If they didn't close it soon, the convergence of time and space would spiral out of control.

"Naruto! Sasuke! Sakura!" Ryusei called out, his voice carrying over the battlefield. "We need to close the rift now!"

Naruto, barely avoiding another swing from Kisame's echo, glanced over at Ryusei. "Got it!"

Sasuke nodded, his eyes locked on Itachi's echo as he prepared for one final strike. "Let's end this."

Sakura leapt back from Pain's echo, her eyes filled with resolve. "Let's go!"

The three of them moved in unison, breaking away from their individual fights and converging on the rift. As they gathered around it, Ryusei stepped forward, his hands glowing with a combination of time and void energy.

"We're going to need all of our power to close this," Ryusei said, his voice calm but urgent. "Focus your chakra on the center of the rift. I'll guide the energy, but you have to stabilize it."

Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura nodded, their expressions serious as they gathered their chakra. The ground beneath them trembled as they unleashed their energy, directing it toward the rift.

Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura poured their chakra into the swirling vortex of the rift, the combined energies of time, void, and their unique abilities crackling in the air around them. The rift flickered violently, responding to their power, but it was unstable, threatening to tear apart at any moment. Ryusei stood at the center, guiding the flow of their chakra as he tried to close the tear between dimensions.

Sasuke's Sharingan glowed with intense focus as he funneled his void-infused lightning toward the rift. "It's working, but not fast enough. This rift is more powerful than anything we've faced before," he muttered through gritted teeth.

Naruto, standing beside him, growled as he pushed more of his Kyūbi chakra into the effort. The air around him burned with golden energy as he tried to stabilize the swirling chaos. "We've just gotta hit it harder! There's no way we're letting this thing tear apart our world!"

Sakura, sweat dripping down her face, held her hands out, focusing her chakra into a steady stream, but she could feel the strain. "We're doing everything we can, but this isn't just any enemy. It's like we're fighting against the entire universe itself."

Just as their combined power seemed to be making progress, a massive surge of energy erupted from the rift. The ground beneath them cracked, and the rift grew even larger, pulsating violently. In the blink of an eye, a blinding light shot out, enveloping the entire team.

For a moment, everything froze.

When the light faded, Sasuke and Sakura found themselves standing in an empty, desolate landscape—an alternate reality, an unfamiliar world with distorted skies and fractured earth. The rift was gone, but so was everyone else.

Sakura looked around in shock. "Where are we?! What happened?"

Sasuke's Sharingan spun as he surveyed the area, his face grim. "It's not our world… we've been pulled into a different timeline. Somehow, the rift must have dragged us through."

Sakura's heart raced, her eyes wide with panic. "But… what about Naruto and Ryusei? Are they still back there?"

Sasuke's gaze hardened. "I don't know. But we can't waste time panicking. We have to find a way back—before this entire timeline collapses around us."

Before they could move, a dark figure appeared in the distance, walking toward them. Sasuke narrowed his eyes, preparing to fight. "Looks like we're not alone."

Meanwhile, back in the original timeline, Naruto blinked his eyes open, finding himself standing in the center of the forest. The rift was gone, but Ryusei, Sasuke, and Sakura were nowhere to be seen.

"What the hell just happened?" Naruto muttered, looking around in confusion. "Where did everyone go?"

Suddenly, a familiar voice called out from behind him.

"Naruto!"

Naruto turned around and saw Hinata running toward him, her Byakugan active and concern etched across her face. Relief flooded him at the sight of her, but something felt off. He could feel the energy of the rift still lingering in the air.

"Hinata!" Naruto called back, his voice relieved but laced with urgency. "Where are the others? Something went wrong!"

Hinata stopped in front of him, catching her breath as her Byakugan scanned the area. "The others… they're gone. I can't sense them anywhere."

Naruto's heart sank. "Gone?"

Hinata nodded, her face pale. "There's more. My Byakugan is picking up strange disturbances nearby. They're not natural. It's as if… multiple realities are overlapping."

Before Naruto could respond, the ground beneath them trembled violently, and the sky above them began to crack. Dark energy surged through the air, and in the distance, another rift began to open.

Naruto's eyes widened in horror. "No… not again!"

Hinata's hand trembled as she gripped Naruto's arm, her voice barely a whisper. "Naruto… what do we do?"

Naruto's fists clenched as he stared at the growing rift. His heart raced with the fear of the unknown, but he knew they couldn't hesitate.

"We fight," Naruto said, his voice steady despite the chaos surrounding them. "No matter what. We fight."