ꜱʜᴀᴅᴏᴡꜱ ᴏꜰ ᴛʜᴇ ᴍɪꜱᴛ | ᴛᴇɴᴛᴇɴ ꜰꜰ|

Chapter 76

The movement of a chakra tail forced Sai back onto his feet. "The air is stinging."

"If the fourth tail appears, he's going to become a harbinger of destruction. And his whole body is going to suffer," Ugetsu thought worryingly.

The wind had become so strong that the trees in the forest behind them started to shake. Orochimaru's smirk grew wider as he entered a staring contest with Naruto.

The blond's chakra surged intensely, causing the ground beneath him to indent and the metallic rods of the bridge railing to snap under the pressure. His rage was building, clouding his mind. In the next few moments, the deadly red aura floating in the air was all sucked into his nine-tails cloak.

"There's no question. It's the Nine-Tails cloak. Three tails," Yamato thought.

"That's the power of the jinchuriki," Sakura gasped mentally, her arm trembling from the sheer force of the chakra. "I can sense it. This terrifying chakra. No one could ever control it."

"So... this is his power," Sai muttered, furrowing his brows. "No. The Nine-Tails!"

Naruto raised his face and let out a blood-curdling scream that was inhumane. It was the voice of the demon inside him.

With his chakra scalpel hand, Kabuto charged at Naruto. The blond immediately spun around and expelled an explosive beam from his mouth. The attack hit Kabuto, exploding with a blinding light and destroying the middle portion of the bridge.

Kabuto flew backward, colliding with Sakura before crashing into the forest. Meanwhile, the pink-haired girl fell onto the bridge and lost consciousness. Yamato and Ugetsu landed away from the chaos. The bridge began to crumble beneath them.

"Sakura-chan!" Ugetsu rushed forward but stopped dead in his tracks when the segment of the bridge ahead started to separate from the rest. Sakura was on that part, close to sliding down.

"Sakura, wake up!" Yamato shouted, but the girl didn't respond.

Sai, who was closest to Sakura, remained in place, unaffected. His eyes were fixed on Naruto and Orochimaru, who were on the other end of the shattering bridge. The Sannin ran into the forest, followed by the jinchuriki.

"Time for my real mission to begin..." Sai took out a scroll. Bit by bit, Sakura was getting closer to falling to her death.

"Sakura-chan!" Ugetsu called in panic and stumbled slightly as the part of the bridge he and Yamato were standing on also began to break apart.

"Wood Style: Jutsu!" Yamato clasped his hands together, and wooden vines erupted from beneath to support the falling bridge. By then, Sakura's legs were dangling perilously over the edge.

"I can't hold it!" he gritted his teeth, straining against the effort.

Sai opened his scroll and drew a bird on it. The ink creature sprang to life, and he jumped onto it.

"Sai! Get her!" Yamato shouted as Sakura began to slip off the bridge.

Ugetsu sighed in relief when he saw Sai's bird beneath the falling girl, but that relief quickly turned to horror when the boy flew past the unconscious girl and headed straight for the forest, away from them.

"Captain Yamato, you'll have to catch me once I grab Sakura!" Ugetsu shouted quickly before he ran toward the bridge and jumped.

"Ugetsu!" Yamato's eyes widened as he watched Ugetsu throw himself to save Sakura.

Ugetsu felt the rush of air whip past him as he soared through the sky. Time seemed to stretch as he descended toward Sakura, determination fueling his every movement. He could see the fear etched on her face, and it broke his heart. He had to save her.