Evil Uchiha Itsuki

"Jiraiya!" 

Sarutobi Hiruzen shouted, "Take action!" 

Itsuki Uchiha stood silent, smiling as he watched Jiraiya, waiting for him to make a choice. He was intrigued. 

Jiraiya's face was twisted in agony. 

Minato was already dead, and now his only child—the one he believed was the child of destiny—would he really have to kill him with his own hands? 

But if he didn't act, how could they possibly deal with Itsuki Uchiha? This ridiculously strong Uchiha was being called the second coming of Madara Uchiha. 

And they had no second Hashirama Senju. 

Other than the Nine-Tails, who could possibly stand up to him? 

No one. 

Even with the Nine-Tails, no one could be sure they could handle Itsuki. 

"Jiraiya!" 

Sarutobi shouted again, "If you don't act now, are you just going to stand by and watch Konoha be destroyed?" 

Jiraiya closed his eyes in pain. 

Naruto was confused. He had no idea what was going on. His opponent was Hinata, a girl he liked. 

She had never looked at him with disgust, and in front of him, she always seemed so pure. 

So even though they were opponents, and he had to defeat her, Naruto kept smiling. Hinata was one of the few people who showed him kindness. 

But something was wrong with the Nine-Tails! 

From the moment Naruto arrived, he sensed that something was off with the Nine-Tails. Its power surged uncontrollably, even though he was facing Hinata, of all people. 

There was no need for the Nine-Tails' power to fight her! 

But the Nine-Tails' power was going berserk. 

"Pervy Sage!" 

Naruto instinctively looked over at Jiraiya. 

What he saw, though, was an image he'd never forget. Jiraiya had red marks on his face and suddenly attacked a ninja from the Fire Village, one who resembled Itsuki Uchiha. 

He knocked the ninja over near him, and then... 

Everything that followed felt unreal to Naruto. 

He wished he hadn't understood what was happening. But! 

Ever since Itsuki Uchiha talked to him, Naruto started to learn about the parts of Konoha he didn't know, and about his own past. From that moment, it was as if his mind had awakened. 

Many things became clear. 

Itsuki looked at Naruto with a smile, "Naruto, did you see that? Do you understand now? Jiraiya has betrayed you. From the beginning, he's been using you." 

Naruto stared at Jiraiya in shock. 

Jiraiya couldn't bring himself to meet Naruto's eyes, keeping his head down. 

But the power within Naruto began to rage. 

Inside him, the Nine-Tails roared in pain and anger, its chakra surging out and enveloping Naruto. The Tailed Beast Cloak began to form around him. 

Itsuki watched with a relaxed smile. 

Naruto wearing the cloak was no threat to him. Even if Naruto were more powerful, he wouldn't be afraid. 

Honestly, Itsuki thought that Sarutobi Hiruzen and the others should've attacked while he was still injured. The effect would've been better. 

But now? 

Too late. 

As a top-tier medical ninja, and a sage at that, Itsuki had already healed his wounds. 

He spoke softly, "Jiraiya, you're truly Sarutobi Hiruzen's student. You're just like him, through and through." 

That comment darkened the faces of several people. 

Orochimaru laughed out loud. 

"Roar!" 

A beastly roar came from Naruto's mouth. 

"What... what's happening?" 

The rest of the Konoha Twelve were nervous, completely lost about the situation. 

Shikamaru, however, understood and looked even more grim, fear flickering in his eyes. 

He knew too much. 

Would his dad be able to protect him? 

"Shut up! Fall back!" 

Kakashi and the other Jonin shouted, leading them to retreat. 

Only one person didn't back down and instead charged forward. 

Sasuke! 

He shouted, "Naruto!" 

Itsuki twitched his lips. 

Could you at least care about your village leader once in a while? 

Poor me! Kage doesn't compare to best friends, huh? 

Itsuki glanced at Temari. 

She was watching him with concern. 

Itsuki smiled slightly, whispered a few words, and seeing the understanding in her eyes, Temari bit her lip and started to retreat. 

Kankuro followed her. 

Only Gaara stood still, his eyes locked on Naruto with murderous intent. 

"Roar!" 

The Nine-Tails-empowered Naruto let out another roar. 

But! 

To Sarutobi Hiruzen and the others' surprise, despite the Nine-Tails taking control of Naruto's mind, it didn't attack Itsuki. 

It didn't even glance at him but instead coldly focused on Jiraiya. 

"This... this..." 

Sarutobi and his group were at a loss. 

Their plan had been simple: provoke the Nine-Tails' chakra, let it manifest, then trap it with Itsuki, assuming the two would fight. 

If the Nine-Tails won, they would seal it in Danzo. If it lost, Itsuki would be weakened, and they could finish him off. 

But now, with the Nine-Tails not attacking Itsuki, their plan was falling apart. 

"The Nine-Tails is out of control," Jiraiya growled, frustrated. "What now?" 

He had triggered the Nine-Tails' chakra, but things weren't going as expected. 

Was he just a fool in all of this? 

"Heh, Jiraiya, don't be in such a rush!" 

Orochimaru's raspy voice sounded, "I knew you couldn't be trusted, so I made preparations ahead of time." 

Jiraiya glared at Orochimaru but remained silent. 

"Orochimaru!" 

The Third Hokage and Danzo looked at him with relief and excitement. 

Orochimaru's slitted eyes locked onto Naruto, and strange symbols began to flicker in his pupils. 

"Roar!!!" 

Naruto suddenly clutched his head in pain and dropped to the ground. 

"Huh?" 

Itsuki looked at Naruto in surprise, then glanced at Orochimaru, impressed. "As expected of my teacher. You thought of using a curse mark to control the Nine-Tails?" 

Orochimaru grinned, his long tongue flicking out. "I wouldn't say control—just guiding it." 

He knew better than to think he could fully control the Nine-Tails. At best, he could nudge it in the right direction—toward attacking Itsuki. 

"That's still impressive," Itsuki remarked calmly, watching the Nine-Tails-empowered Naruto. 

At this point, five tails had formed around Naruto, and his eyes were locked on Itsuki with fierce intent. 

"Come on!" 

Itsuki held out his hand toward Naruto and muttered, "The power of the Nine-Tails... I'll take some of that." 

By gathering the power of the Nine Tailed Beasts, he could form a different kind of Sage power. 

He already had two of the Tailed Beasts' power. 

From his last battle, he had absorbed some of the Eight-Tails' power. 

Now, he just needed the Nine-Tails. 

And the One-Tail was right here too. 

Just a little faster and he'd have almost half of them. 

"Roar!" 

The Nine-Tails let out another roar and lunged at Itsuki, its massive claw slashing toward him. 

"Wham!" 

Suddenly, a slender hand slapped Naruto hard across the face. 

The precise strike caused Naruto to stagger, halting his attack. 

Everyone was stunned. 

Because the person who attacked Naruto wasn't Itsuki. 

It was... 

Hinata! 

Hinata Hyuga had hit Naruto! 

(End of the chapter)