Disclaimer: Naruto and all of its characters belong to Shueisha and Masashi Kishimoto. I own nothing but the original characters I create.
"Dialogue"
'Thoughts'
-Author notes-
Chapter 98: Wake Up!
"Ghaaaa!" The One-Tail released an intense blast of wind towards them.
"Water Release… Cannonball!" Gamabunta blocked it with a powerful water jutsu while he jumped in the air.
Once they were a bit closer, they could see Gaara's body more clearly. His torso was poking out of the raccoon's head.
"He is alive!" It was very faint, but Naruto could see his chest moving slightly as he breathed.
"Good, then we still have a way to stop this. If we can wake up the boy, that demon will be forced to retreat into the seal," Gamabunta said.
"Will punching him work?..." Naruto asked.
"Maybe… but it won't be that easy to approach him. The demon will do everything in its power to stop you from getting closer to its vessel," Gamabunta said.
"Mmm?... It's growing again…." Naruto noted.
The One-Tail had lost a lot of its mass due to Naruto's previous fire attack. But now, it was transforming the dirt ground into sand and reabsorbing it into its body.
"We can't let it continue!" Gamabunta rushed at it.
If they allowed the Bijuu to reach its full level of power, then they wouldn't be able to do much to it.
"Then, look for an opening and throw me at its head," Naruto said.
"Throw you?... Are you crazy? If that thing grabs you from the air… you will be crushed," Gamabunta pointed out.
"It won't. Trust me!" Naruto tapped the toad's head. "Come on!"
"Tsk… reckless brat…" Gamabunta grabbed Naruto with his left hand and jumped into the air.
The One-Tail glanced at them and extended both its arms upward to grab the giant toad.
Gamabunta released another water jutsu that was able to stop the Bijuu moves, just for a moment, and used this chance to send Naruto flying at the creature.
Naruto ended up landing on its shoulder and began to move toward its head.
As expected, the One-Tail tried to crush him with its right hand, but just then, Gamabunta landed and grabbed onto the creature.
"Hurry!" The Toad Lord yelled. "My toad hands are not good at holding onto things made of sand!"
Naruto reached the head and got a clear view of Gaara. He was just a short distance away.
But then, the sand beneath him began to move and tried to trap his feet.
Naruto focused most of his energy on his feet and made use of his 'Red Lotus Body Shift.'
This was the movement technique he had mastered during his previous life, and at Great Completion, he could soar through the air faster than the speed of sound, and not even gravity would be able to encumber him.
But with his current cultivation level, he was only able to use it in the most superficial manner.
Even so, it was more than enough to move at several times his normal speed, and could also reach his maximum velocity from the first step.
Naruto disappeared from the spot, leaving an empty void where the sand tried to grab him, and reappeared a short distance away.
Spikes made of hardened sand flew at him from all directions, and Naruto used his technique again.
His muscles cried in pain due to the massive stress he was putting his body under.
'I can use it one more time at most…' Naruto knew his limits… if he tried to push it further, he would break his body.
He made it in front of Gaara. Now all he had to do was give this boy a good punch.
To prevent this from happening, the sand around Gaara began to rise and form a protective wall.
Naruto grinned.
"That won't stop me."
He used the Red Shift once more to gain momentum. He could hear his bones beginning to crack.
"Naruto!" Gamabunta shouted with concern. He was not going to be able to punch through that wall. It was too thick.
The toad tried to help him by releasing another water jutsu in that area, but the One-Tail prevented him from moving. The sand was beginning to wrap around his body in an attempt to crush him.
'If Naruto can't finish this quickly, the summoning will be canceled,' Gamabunta thought.
When a summoned creature takes too much damage, the connection gets canceled, and the summon is recalled back to its point of origin.
"I said I got this!" Naruto shouted.
He stopped just an inch away from the wall and sent a powerful palm strike that struck the sand wall with tremendous force and created a shockwave.
At first, it seemed that nothing happened to Gaara and the wall was able to completely block his attack.
But then… more shockwaves followed after the first one and went through the wall, impacting the boy behind it.
"The Hyugas are not the only ones who know the 'soft fist' style," Naruto said.
He may not be able to close the chakra points without the Byakugan.
But using one's inner energy to send an attack that can bypass a powerful defense and damage the enemy's internal organs was something that many martial artists learned during their careers.
Getting through a wall of sand was a very simple thing for someone like Naruto.
"Ahhhh!" Gaara screamed. As soon as he woke up, he began to spit several mouthfuls of blood. The 'soft first' that Naruto had just used, was designed to destroy the person's internal organs while bypassing any exterior defenses.
"Nooo!" The One-Tail became smaller and smaller as he felt himself being pulled back into the seal. "I was so close to getting free this time!"
"Hpmh! Be a good demon and go wait inside your prison… I will have need of you one day." Naruto wasn't sure if the sand raccoon could hear him anymore.
The creature quickly disappeared, leaving him and Gaara with nowhere to stand on, so they began to fall.
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