The battlefield had become a wasteland.

What had once been a vast forest now lay in ruins, the ground shattered by countless explosions and shockwaves. Smoke rolled across the plains in heavy waves, broken trees and torn earth scattered in every direction. The air itself felt heavy with chakra as shinobi of the Allied Forces struggled to hold their positions against an enemy unlike anything they had ever faced.

Far in the distance, the towering form of the Ten-Tails loomed over the battlefield like a living calamity. Every movement of the creature sent tremors through the land. Every pulse of its chakra made the air tremble.

Yet even amidst the chaos of war, something unexpected had happened only moments earlier.

Across one of the shattered ridges, three figures had briefly stood together again for the first time in years.

Naruto Uzumaki, Sakura Haruno, and Sasuke Uchiha.

For a moment, despite the destruction around them, it had almost felt like the old days of Team 7.

Almost.

Sasuke’s sudden arrival on the battlefield had sent shockwaves through the Allied Shinobi Forces. Many shinobi had barely processed the sight of the rogue Uchiha now fighting alongside them.

But there had been no time for questions.

Not when the Ten-Tails was still rampaging across the warzone.

Now the battle had scattered everyone once more.

Across the battlefield, shinobi shouted orders, regrouping their forces while trying to avoid the next devastating strike.

Nearby, Kakashi Hatake moved between units, his Sharingan scanning the chaos while coordinating with other commanders.

“Spread out!” he called over the noise of battle. "Don’t cluster together!”

Farther ahead, Naruto stood near the front lines, golden chakra flickering faintly around him as he kept his senses focused on the countless chakra signatures scattered across the battlefield.

The moment of reunion had already passed.

The war was far from over.

Elsewhere among the ruins, Sakura rushed between wounded shinobi, kneeling beside another fallen soldier as her hands lit up with green chakra.

Her movements were quick and precise.

“You’re stable,” she said after sealing the wound, pulling her hands away. “Stay with the other medics.”

The soldier nodded weakly as Sakura stood. Before she could take another step—

The Ten-Tails moved.

The colossal beast shifted its massive body, one enormous limb slamming into the ground with apocalyptic force.

For a single moment, the battlefield fell silent.

Then the shockwave erupted.

A violent surge of chakra blasted across the plains, tearing open the ground as dust, shattered rock, and debris were hurled into the air.

“Look out!”

The blast slammed into Sakura, throwing her off her feet as the terrain around her cracked apart.

She hit the ground hard, the breath driven from her lungs as dust filled the air around her.

For a moment she couldn’t move.

The battlefield disappeared behind a storm of smoke and falling debris.

Slowly, Sakura forced herself onto her elbows, coughing as she tried to regain her breath.

Then the light dimmed.

A shadow passed over her.

High above, a massive slab of broken stone—torn free by the Ten-Tails’ attack—was now plummeting straight toward her.

Her eyes widened.

Her body refused to respond fast enough.

Too exhausted.

Too slow.

The boulder came crashing down—

CLANG.

A sharp metallic sound cut through the chaos.

A flash of steel sliced through the dust-filled air.

The massive slab split cleanly in two.

Both halves slammed violently into the shattered ground on either side of Sakura, the impact shaking the battlefield once more.

For a moment, only drifting dust and settling debris remained.

A blade lowered slowly after the strike.

The wind stirred a long, dark cloak as the smoke shifted around them.

Then, briefly, the light caught a face.

The engraved symbol of Konohagakure flickered through the haze—

A deep slash carved straight through the leaf. And a familiar face beneath.