You keep out of this!
I'll...save Sora!
My Friend
So Sora has impressed the real Jinchuriki, huh?
Return Sora to normal.
There's nothing I can do now.
Soon Sora will break loose and the Hidden Leaf will be destroyed.
I won't let that happen!
Try and stop him!
No way am I getting mixed up in this...
You're not getting away!
Sora!
I got rid of him... I got rid of the Nine-Tails jerk...
And I did it by borrowing your power...
This time I'll loan you my power...
Don't hold back!
Sora!
For crying out loud... wake up already!
Naruto!
You okay?!
Hang in there, Naruto. I'll heal you now...
She doesn't have time to be healing him!
Sakura! Get out of there!
Run, everyone!
Are you okay, guys?!
- Yeah... - We're okay...
Come to think of it, what about Sakura and Naruto?
Naruto!
Sakura. You okay?!
Y-Yeah...
That's good...
More importantly, I need to heal you, Naruto!
You, more than anyone,
should know how quickly my wounds heal.
Anyway, I'll get Sora back, no matter what.
Take care of his wounds...
Naruto...
Okay.
Sora...
- Naruto! - I'll be okay!
You get back to the others. This is between Sora and me...
Right...
How's it going?
My Medical Ninjutsu can't heal it.
Just as I thought...
It's like the time when you got hurt...
It takes longer for wounds inflicted by Nine-Tails Chakra to heal.
A sharp needle-like pain will still linger on the wound.
I'll be okay.
So what then?!
Does that mean Naruto is the only one who can control him?!
That would seem to be the case.
No way!
Naruto...
If I had made sure I defeated you back then...
this wouldn't have happened to Sora.
You should be glad.
That you weren't the one to kill Sora's father.
No, It'll be me... This time for sure I'll...
Still on the Hokage's order?
No!
It's unforgivable!
I can't forgive you for doing that to your own child!
What's with all this parent and child stuff you're talking about?
Will stuff like that change the Land of Fire?
It won't change it. It will make it come together.
Sorry, but I'm going to change this land! And the world!
In order to do that, a king is necessary!
You're wrong!
You're the one who's wrong!
Ninja Art: Super Beast Scroll
Damn it! What's this?!
You sneak out of the hospital in the middle of the night for a stroll?
I couldn't get to sleep with the clamor in the village...
Oh, well.
Now then...
I can have a nice leisurely conversation with you, Kazuma.
I've got nothing to say to you.
Sora.
That hurts!
Remember, Sora...
Remember...when we first met...
Remember when we accidently got into a scuffle with each other...
Remember when you came to help me...
Sora...
Sora.
Sora!
Damn it...
We were mistaken from the start.
Mistaken about what a king refers to in the first place.
We weren't mistaken.
We weren't mistaken, Asuma!
If I...
If I die...what will happen to the Land of Fire?
Nothing will happen.
That's funny...
I don't remember my dad's face very well.
But even now, I can never forget that spotless clean breechcloth.
To me, my dad is that clean white cloth.
Kazuma... Your cause was...
Sora!
Sora.
Who's that?!
Sora.
Oh, it's Naruto...
Let's just calm down now and...
Let's discuss this...
Hey! You're hitting me with your punches!
Man, this guy's so loud...
You okay...Sora?
Naruto...!
You jerk! What're you doing sticking your nose in this?!
As long as I'm here, I have no choice.
He's so meddlesome...
Hey, what happened, Sora?
What happened between you and Asuma Sensei?!
Let go of me, you jerk!
Such an annoyance.
What is it now?!
What in the world is happening up here?
This must be...
Captain Yamato! Sora is acting different from Naruto...
That's right.
This is just a theory,
but I don't think Sora has the capacity to house the Nine-Tails Chakra.
The massive amount of Chakra that has gathered up is now
attempting to escape from Sora's body.
That means...
Sora...that power...
That power won't do you any good.
I will...
all of us in the Hidden Leaf will become your...
We'll become your power!
Naruto!
Lady Tsunade...
Shizune! We're going out!
Y-Yes, ma'am!
What's this...? Is this the Nine-Tails?
What an enormous amount of Chakra.
What?!
What's happening?
Something's not right.
Captain Yamato!
Although it has escaped from Sora's body,
it probably needs a vessel to maintain its form.
Then...
Sora!
You okay, Sora?!
Hey! Can you hear me?
Wake up, Sora!
Sora!
Who's there...?
Somebody's calling... calling me again.
Sora!
Shut up, Naruto!
Oh, you're finally awake!
Naruto...
Now, let's go home, Sora.
Go home... Where am I supposed to go home to?
What're you saying? The Hidden Leaf Village, of course.
The Hidden Leaf... You mean the Hidden Leaf I tried to destroy...
That doesn't matter! You're our friend!
It doesn't matter what people say. We're friends!
- Friends... - That's right!
- He looks okay. - I'm glad...
Sai!
Would you guys include me, too?
Heck no.
What?! No way.
What was so funny about that just now?
Friends, huh...?
Then you're not going back to the Temple of Fire?
Nope.
I want to see more of the world and meet all kinds of people...
And little by little, I want to make friends like you have.
I see...
But make sure you stop by once in a while.
The Hidden Leaf Village will always welcome you...
That's right. Don't hesitate.
Thanks...
See you around.
Say "Hi!" to Old Man Asuma for me.
Sure!
Oh... Come to think of it, next time for sure...
I'll give you a posthumous name.
You jerk. I just heard that's a name you give to dead people!
Took you long enough, you idiot. See you!
That's a first for you,
going with a climbing silver right off the bat.
Let's take it nice and slow. We've got the time, after all.
It's an advance guard for breaking through the enemy's defense.
Sometimes you have to be able to make moves like this.
I thought you didn't like moves like that. Just like me.
Sacrifice is required in order to protect the king when your opponent is skilled.
Is something the matter?
It's nothing...
I just now started to understand the importance of the "king."
Well... The game is over if you get your king taken in Shogi.
If you were to liken the Hidden Leaf Shinobi to a Shogi piece...
Shikamaru... In the end, you would be a knight.
Why?
Although weak in strength,
a knight can advance by jumping over pieces.
This unique movement resembles your flexible thinking.
Then what would you be?
I'm nothing. I'm just...
A sacrificial piece...huh?
Then...do you know who the "king" is?
The Hokage, right?
That's what I thought until just recently...
But it's not like that.
Then who is it?
You'll understand when the time comes.
You dodge well...
My attack speed is the slowest in the Akatsuki.
I just can't hit anything, can I?
I see... I knew you guys were Akatsuki...
You're the only one left.
Well, you're pretty good.
Hey, Hidan.
She's the Two-Tailed Jinchuriki. You'll die if you get careless.
Don't give me that, Kakuzu!
I'd like her to kill me anyway.
Lady Tsunade, the report from Kakashi,
who made contact with Lord Jiraiya, has returned.
Oh, finally. And?
Right. It seems he verified attacks by what looks like the same pair of Shinobi
in seven locations in five neighboring lands.
A pair...?
Yes. Although invasion into the Land of Fire
has not yet been confirmed, it's only a matter of time...
I see... So they've finally gone into action, huh?
Next time: "The Quietly Approaching Threat"