Chapter 134: The End (Bonus Chapter for Blue Gunwale 20190325)

The battle had finally come to an end. Naruto held Hinata in his arms as he, along with the Anbu members, carried the bodies of the fallen and began the heavy journey back, slowly making their way toward Konoha.

Upon their return, the scene before them was one of utter chaos. The entire village seemed engulfed in endless turmoil and panic; people fled in all directions, their shouts and cries intertwining in a dissonant chorus. Two of the alien robots that had descended from the sky had landed within Konoha itself.

The models were the dreaded Military Blade Storm Alpha—massive, cold mechanical giants resembling towering steel behemoths, exuding an aura of terror. Wherever they passed, ruin and devastation followed, leaving heaps of corpses and rivers of blood in their wake.

Faced with such a formidable enemy, various ninja factions from outside Konoha—such as the Ryuzo-kai, the Crow organization, and sand ninja—who normally bore no allegiance to the village, all rallied together to resist. They had long realized that these extraterrestrial invaders cared nothing for distinctions between Konoha shinobi and others; none could hope to remain untouched in this sudden catastrophe.

"For our home! For peace, we must fight!" The Ryuzo-kai members shouted slogans, their eyes filled with unwavering resolve. Each word seemed a solemn vow echoing through the air.

"We shall not retreat—we will defend our homeland!" declared a Ryuzo-kai member born of the Uchiha clan. Confronted with this external threat, he temporarily set aside his grudges against Konoha and stood guard with his clansmen before their long-abandoned ancestral lands.

Fortunately, many Ryuzo-kai members had some familiarity with spiritual energy techniques, enabling them to inflict damage upon the Military Blade Storm Alpha, preventing their efforts from being in vain.

Nearby, Sasuke stood quietly, his gaze heavy and complex as it swept over the remaining survivors of the Uchiha clan. Though he had long suspected the truth, seeing it firsthand stirred a flood of memories and emotions—past hardships, the fate of his family, and his own choices intertwined in that moment.

Not far off, Uchiha Fugaku and Uchiha Mikoto had just arrived. They looked upon Sasuke with a mix of sorrow and guilt. After a moment’s hesitation, they decided to descend to the battlefield to take command of the Uchiha clan’s defense line. In these perilous times, the safety of their kin was paramount.

Seeing his long-missing father appear, Sasuke sighed softly. Over the years, he had endured countless trials and grown to understand and accept everything.

Those once agonizing struggles now transformed into a single, long exhale.

“The enemy’s weakness lies in spiritual energy, combined with lightning and fire techniques,” Sasuke said slowly as he joined his parents. He had made his decision.

“Watch closely—I have developed a new ninjutsu. Perhaps it will become our clan’s new bloodline limit.”

With that, he unleashed the Blaze Release before the stunned eyes of his kin. The tremendous power erupted instantly, the scorching aura seeming capable of incinerating all in its path. The clan members stared wide-eyed, disbelief etched across their faces.

Meanwhile, the Crow organization members remained silent, yet their actions spoke volumes. Like shadows in the dark, they moved with swift, silent precision across the battlefield.

“Do not hold back. Give it everything you’ve got,” Itachi ordered the Crow members. “These foes are causing more damage than the Ōtsutsuki ever did. We cannot let them run amok.”

The sand ninja, too, stood resolute, fighting shoulder to shoulder with Konoha’s shinobi. Leading them was Gaara’s Jonin sensei, Maki, whose steady and decisive leadership turned the tide.

The main force was Gaara himself, now vastly stronger. Standing firm, he summoned the vast chakra of Shukaku to unleash a terrifying sandstorm.

At Gaara’s side, his older sister Temari and brother Kankuro’s eyes were red-rimmed. They had just received a message from the village ordering their immediate return to the Sand Village. Fireballs had rained down upon their home, from which powerful steel monsters emerged.

Their father, the Fourth Kazekage, had fallen in battle defending against these iron behemoths. The news struck them like a thunderclap, filling them with grief and fury. Temari’s eyes welled with tears on the spot, while Kankuro clenched his fists so tightly fresh blood oozed between his fingers.

Though their father had not been a kind parent, some bond remained.

Now, as the village fought desperately against the steel monsters, they needed the power of the jinchūriki more than ever.

Yet those iron giants blocked their path. Without breaking through their relentless pursuit, the sand ninja could neither leave Konoha nor avenge their fallen Kazekage. This gave their mission a solemn justification.

Gaara did not fully grasp the emotions of his fellow sand ninja, but in their eyes he saw less fear and more hope, which in turn weighed heavily on his shoulders.

“Naruto! What’s going on here?” Kakashi hurried over, dressed casually yet with a face full of confusion and concern.

His eyes betrayed anxiety as his brows furrowed slightly. “Where did these enemies come from? Why is it that whenever I go handle something personal, such powerful foes suddenly appear?” His tone was tinged with helplessness and frustration.

Why did it have to be on the day he was away?

“It’s a long story. For now, our priority is to eliminate these enemies,” Naruto sighed, exhaustion shadowing his face, though his fighting spirit remained undiminished.

“Their bodies are shielded by spiritual energy barriers that must be neutralized with spiritual energy techniques; beneath that, their lightweight yet tough materials require piercing with potent lightning-style jutsu to breach the outer defense and then deliver fire-style ninjutsu inside to trigger an explosion… This is the intelligence I’ve gathered and the Third Hokage himself has confirmed.”

Naruto glanced toward the rear, where Anbu operatives bore the bodies of Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzo Shimura.

Following Naruto’s gaze, Kakashi saw the fallen Third Hokage and Danzo carried behind him. A sudden, indescribable wave of emotion struck Kakashi—familiar shock and bewilderment, the weight of loss hitting him yet again.

He parted his lips as if to speak but found no words. The unspoken feelings stuck in his throat, dissolving into endless silence.

“Let’s move out! Quick and decisive!” Naruto’s command shattered the heavy quiet and dispelled doubts.

Strangely, though Naruto was the youngest and least experienced present—excluding the fainted Hinata—he became the unshakable pillar of resolve for all.

Not only here; once inside the village, Naruto’s figure became the anchor of courage for everyone.

The shinobi had long known Naruto’s identity, and his school record and brief career had earned their genuine admiration and loyalty.

The villagers, witnessing Naruto wield the Nine-Tails’ power without succumbing to destruction, gradually shed their fear, replaced by regret and embarrassment over past judgments.

Through the combined efforts of all the shinobi and Naruto’s timely support, they finally defeated all the robots that had landed within Konoha.

Yet, the village now lay in ruins. Collapsed houses, broken streets—everywhere bore the scars of battle. The once peaceful Konoha, known throughout the ninja world for its tranquility, was now a wasteland even more desolate than the night of the Nine-Tails’ attack.

Survivors looked upon the devastated village with hearts heavy with fear and sorrow.

Their eyes reflected confusion and helplessness, as if they had lost all direction. If Konoha was no longer safe, where in the ninja world could they find refuge?

Such thoughts arose unbidden in the minds of the ordinary villagers. Gazing at the ruins, they were consumed by anxiety and dread for the future.

In this chaotic world, they knew not where to turn or where true safety might be found.