Naruto: Konoha’s Trickster, Starting as the Seven-Tails Jinchūriki

After Kinrin burst onto the scene, its massive body began rampaging through the center of the Iwagakure forces.

Its destructive power was off the charts. And that wasn't all—the tunnel Kinrin had dug turned into the perfect entry point for Konoha's ambush units.

Following its path, a wave of Konoha shinobi charged straight into the heart of enemy territory.

Seeing this, Shibito Azuma and the other commanders grew grim.

"Yabee, send every last poison bee! Push them all into Konoha's lines!"

"Han, Rōshi, get ready to move."

The battlefield was turning out even worse than Azuma had anticipated.

Not only had the poison bee swarm failed to cripple Konoha, but that unknown Fire Release technique had decimated them.

Originally, Azuma hadn't intended to deploy the Tailed Beasts—not unless absolutely necessary. The risk to their own forces was too high.

But at this point, he had no choice.

Yabee nearly cursed aloud when he heard the order.

Send more poison bees? What poison bees?! Aside from the Poison Bee King beside him, all the others were already deployed. Even the elite from his Kamizuru Clan had rushed forward and were fully engaged in controlling the swarm.

At the far rear, Han and Rōshi nodded and began to move as soon as they received Azuma's command.

Kazuyama, using the Hive Mind, had been monitoring the battlefield. The moment the enemy Jinchūriki stirred, he was already beside Tsunade.

"The enemy Jinchūriki are moving."

"Got a plan, Commander Tsunade?"

Tsunade smashed an Iwagakure shinobi skyward with a punch. That poor soul probably didn't even know if he was headed to heaven—or straight to hell.

Kazuyama glanced at the unfortunate man and shook his head. Getting KO'd by Tsunade in one blow... brutal.

"What plan? We fight, obviously!"

"Don't you have a bunch of snakes? And can't your Flying Thunder God Technique teleport Tailed Beasts?"

"Go! I believe in you!"

Tsunade looked at him with absolute confidence. After all, everyone in the village had heard what went down on the Land of Rivers front.

Even Minato himself had praised Kazuyama's mastery of the Flying Thunder God Technique.

And if he could really teleport a Tailed Beast—even for just a short time—it could completely flip the tide of battle.

"Sigh... cursed to a life of toil, I swear."

"If I die heroically out there, Tsunade, make sure to bring my legacy back to the village and get them to sing ballads about me."

Kazuyama's face was full of grief and righteous indignation, like a warrior walking off to certain death.

Then—he vanished.

Tsunade spat in the direction he'd disappeared and barked, "Heroic, my ass! You're not dying anytime soon!"

"That little brat can really run when he wants to!"

This war was far more brutal than any before. With Iwagakure launching an all-out assault and the added chaos of the poison bee swarm, the pressure on Konoha was beyond words.

Tsunade understood all too well—if both Tailed Beasts joined the fray now, the consequences would be catastrophic.

That's why she had no choice but to pin her hopes on Kazuyama Gekkō. Without realizing it, this legendary kunoichi—one of the famed Sannin—had come to trust him more than ever.

If Orochimaru were here, he'd probably beam with pride and say, "My disciple! A fine student raised by an even finer master. Brilliant!"

...

As Han and Rōshi charged into the battlefield, their first target became obvious.

Right in the center of the Iwagakure forces—Kinrin.

"Rōshi, that snake's yours!"

"Understood!"

His crimson body surged forward, massive fists clenched and ready.

Kinrin, still in a wild frenzy, suddenly felt an overwhelming pressure that made her heart lurch. A split second later, the crimson figure appeared right in front of her.

"A Tailed Beast?!"

"Crap! Kazuyama! Help me!"

Just like that, Kinrin's ferocity vanished. She might be a golden python trained in Senjutsu, her body a tank of raw power, but she wasn't stupid.

She knew exactly what kind of monster a Tailed Beast was—and she wasn't about to pretend she could take one head-on.

The Four-Tails, Son Gokū, returned to the battlefield, his fists flying in a brutal combo that hammered Kinrin without mercy.

Crack...

"Damn it!"

A sharp shattering sound rang out as shards of crystal armor scattered everywhere.

"Oh? This snake's got armor? Fancy."

"Taking a few of my punches without going down—that's impressive. Too bad the armor's gone now."

Rōshi actually gave her a rare compliment before rearing back for another blow—but the scene before him suddenly shifted.

"Huh? Where'd she go?"

"What... is this?"

All he saw was a vast field of blue, and then he felt it—freefall.

Only then did Rōshi realize he'd been teleported thousands of meters into the sky and was now plummeting fast.

"Damn it… Konoha's Ghost, huh?"

Iwagakure had done its homework on Konoha's twin prodigies. Both of them could use the space–time ninjutsu Flying Thunder God Technique.

He hadn't expected to experience it firsthand.

"Tch tch tch… Kazuyama, not bad at all."

"Send Son Gokū up here, then let him fall? If he crashes down, Iwagakure's forces below are screwed."

Chōmei's voice rang out just as Kazuyama Gekkō soared high above, wings spread wide on a massive crystal bird he'd created with Crystal Release. He'd flown thousands of meters into the sky, then used Flying Thunder God twice—first to teleport to Kinrin's side, then to warp Son Gokū up into the sky.

Now he hovered above the battlefield, calmly watching as Son Gokū dropped like a meteor.

"This is just the beginning. Kinrin's already moving."

"Son Gokū's fall will take a while. Let's go deal with Kokuō."

Kinrin had already burrowed back underground, furiously tunneling deeper into the earth.

She carried one of Kazuyama's marked kunai—clear proof she was acting on his orders to retreat and dig.

That was Kazuyama's whole plan.

One sent into the sky, the other into the earth.

He couldn't toss them into a desert like he had with Shukaku back then, so he had to improvise with what was available.

Back on the ground, the Iwagakure shinobi were stunned. Their precious Tailed Beast had just... vanished?

Shibito Azuma reacted immediately. He knew exactly which of Konoha's "Twin Stars" was responsible.

"Han! Speed burst, now!"

"Everyone else, find those two bastards!"

"Rōshi's fine—he's just been teleported somewhere."

"The rest of you—attack, now!"

Han responded with a fierce roar.

The pure white Five-Tails, Kokuō, took the field.

But just as he appeared, two massive water cannons slammed into him, sending water crashing everywhere.

"Water Release: Water Gun!"

"I am the Toad Sage of Mount Myōboku, also known as the Great Toad Sa—"

"Shut it, bastard! One more word and I'm tossing you off!"

"..."