Naruto could no longer see any racers ahead.
Compared to the high-speed pod racers, his little tricycle might as well have been a snail trying to race a hawk.
He kept going, pushing the engine as fast as it would allow, but after nearly twenty minutes, a familiar sound sent chills down his spine.
A sharp, sizzling motor roared behind him.
Naruto turned his head—
Sasuke was closing in fast, his sleek pod racer a blur of black and red streaking across the desert.
The speed was unreal.
And worse—he wasn't slowing down.
Naruto's heart pounded. "Is he—he's not gonna—?!"
Before he could react, Sasuke's pod shot forward like a hawk diving for its prey.
Naruto flinched, bracing for impact—
But at the last second, Sasuke smirked and twisted the controls. His pod racer flipped midair, doing a full 180-degree turn as it soared clean over Naruto's head.
The wind pressure alone nearly sent the tricycle rolling.
Sasuke landed smoothly, his voice echoing behind him. "Give it up, Naruto. You'll never catch me. Go home."
And just like that—he was gone, disappearing into the dust.
Naruto's grip tightened on the handlebars.
He had barely started, and Sasuke had already lapped him.
The weight of reality hit hard. At this rate, there was no way he could win.
Should he give up?
Like hell.
Naruto gritted his teeth, channeling chakra into the engine. The tricycle trembled—then shot forward with a sudden burst of speed.
In the stands, murmurs started.
"Wait—look at that!"
"Did he just boost? On a tricycle?"
Someone scoffed. "Must be using a chakra engine. Rookie move."
A few people laughed. "Yeah, what an idiot. Everyone knows you save chakra for the final stretch. He'll burn out before halfway."
Sakura clenched her fists, whispering under her breath. "Come on, Naruto. You have to win. You have to bring Sasuke back."
Meanwhile, Yoruya, the race official, was already issuing orders. "Keep an eye on contestant 21. If he collapses, pull him out."
"Understood."
But things weren't going as expected.
Naruto wasn't slowing down.
His engine roared as he continued feeding it chakra, and shockingly—the tricycle started gaining on the last-place pod racer.
In the audience, a stunned hush fell over the crowd.
"No way. He's actually catching up?!"
The last-place racer turned his head—and his eyes widened in disbelief.
A tricycle.
A freaking tricycle was closing in on him.
Humiliation burned in his chest. There was no way he could let this happen.
With a snarl, he reached into his belt, pulling out a kunai wrapped with an explosive tag.
With a flick of his wrist, he hurled it straight at Naruto.
"Naruto, look out!!" Sakura's scream cut through the air.
Naruto's reflexes kicked in, and he slammed the brakes.
The tricycle skidded hard, nearly flipping—
BOOM!
The kunai exploded on impact, blowing apart the rear wheel.
Naruto crashed, rolling across the sand before landing hard on his back.
Gasps filled the stands.
Sakura bolted from her seat. "Naruto!!"
Yoruya was already moving. "Get a med team out there!"
Before anyone could reach him, Naruto sat up, groaning. His clothes were scorched, sand stuck to his face, but he wasn't injured.
He glanced at his tricycle—
It was missing an entire wheel.
Naruto clenched his fists. "Can I still race like this?"
Yoruya hesitated, then shrugged. "As long as it has an engine and wheels, it's a vehicle."
Naruto's eyes lit up. "Then I'm not done yet."
Ignoring his bruises, he hauled the busted tricycle upright. But the moment he tried channeling chakra—
Nothing.
He was running on empty.
Yoruya placed a hand on his shoulder. "You've done enough, kid. No shame in stopping here."
Naruto shook his head. "I can't stop. Not yet."
He closed his eyes, reaching deep within himself—
And there it was.
A dark gate. The iron bars rattling. The massive figure waiting behind them.
Nine-Tails grinned, sharp teeth gleaming. "So, you need my power again, huh?"
Naruto's eyes were filled with determination. "Lend me your chakra."
Nine-Tails let out a low chuckle. "And what if you can't handle it? What if it kills you?"
Naruto didn't waver. "I won't die. I still have a dream to chase. I still have to bring Sasuke back."
Nine-Tails' gaze narrowed—then, slowly, he grinned. "Heh. Fine, brat. Take as much as you want."
A surge of dark red chakra exploded from Naruto's body.
The crowd gasped as the sinister energy wrapped around him like flickering flames.
Yoruya took a wary step back. "What… the hell?"
Naruto pressed his hands to the tricycle's engine.
The moment the tailed beast chakra infused into the machine—
BOOM!
The tricycle—now missing a wheel—launched forward like a missile.
The sheer force kicked up a massive wave of sand, blinding the onlookers.
Every jaw in the stadium dropped.
"What did he just do?!"
"That speed—it's insane!"
Naruto shot through the track like a bullet, moving faster than anyone could comprehend.
Naruto clenched the handlebars tighter, feeling the raw power coursing through his veins.
"Sasuke… I'm coming for you!"
Naturally, this situation was passed on to Mufasa by ANBU operatives secretly monitoring Naruto.
Mufasa was in his underground laboratory, poring over research notes while his assistant, Kurotsuchi, stood nearby.
They were analyzing the properties of chakra-infused materials, a technique rumored to be perfected by Iwagakure and Deidara.
Mufasa examined the samples, comparing them to the data he had gathered.
"Hmm... it appears Onoki wasn't exaggerating. This technique is highly volatile."
According to their findings, once chakra was infused into a substance, it would eventually become unstable and detonate on its own.
The level of destruction depended on the type of material used.
It was far from the vision Mufasa had—where matter could be freely molded and manipulated at will.
Kurotsuchi furrowed her brow. "Maybe the missing component is... a soul?"
Mufasa tapped his chin, intrigued by the thought.
"A fascinating theory. The question is... how do we control it?"