Deep night.
The city, perched on the hilltop, slept peacefully. Only a few lanterns glowed on the streets, and the guards marched monotonously along the wall. Even the wind had stilled, as if nature itself was trying to give people a moment of respite.
And then — the sky was torn apart by a blue crash of thunder.
BAAAAM!
A bright lightning bolt struck the left side of the city. Houses shook, roofs shed tiles. A second later another strike came — and another. It seemed as if the heavens themselves had decided to destroy this place.
Moments later, the wail of a siren spread through the streets.
— ATTACK! ATTACK! EVERYONE, PREPARE!
My eyes flew open, my heart pounding as if it was about to burst out.
— What? — came a sleepy voice from the other side of the room.
— Get up, Genma, hurry! — I shouted, leaping to my feet. I ran to the door, flung it open — and chaos immediately crashed down on me.
Shinobi were darting through the streets: some dragged children from their homes, others rushed out of buildings. Lightning fell from the sky, strike after strike, destroying stone roofs and igniting wooden beams. The air reeked of smoke and ozone.
— Protocol 18! — someone's voice shouted from afar.
I froze.
"What protocol? There were only sixteen…" flashed in my head.
Guy and Genma were already up, armed, their faces tense.
— Do you know what that means? — I asked, trying to outshout the noise.
— The 18th means converge at the point of contact! — came a voice from above.
I looked up and spotted a silhouette on the roof of the nearest house. A tall man, cloaked in the city guard's mantle, a sword glinting in his hand.
— Maruboshi! — I recognized him.
— I'll go first! — he said without hesitation. — You — wake everyone still in their homes, and direct them to the left flank! Understood?
We only managed to nod before he disappeared, leaping to the next rooftop.
— You know him? — Genma asked as we rushed forward.
— Yeah. He's from the city guard.
— Then let's move faster! — Guy urged.
We scattered across the nearby streets.
Most shinobi were already awake and outside, but still we found houses steeped in silence. I burst into one, kicking the door wide:
— Up! Out, now! To the left flank!
Sleepy shinobi faces flickered in the half-light: some grabbed weapons on the run, others tried to pull on armor right at the door.
In another house, I found a medic woman asleep at her desk, bandages spread around her. I shook her shoulder:
— Wake up, we need you! Move!
She jolted up, pale, but at the sight of me grabbed her bag without a word and rushed out.
Genma was managing too — I glimpsed him kicking doors down, dragging half-conscious comrades outside by force.
Guy, of course, did things his own way.
— HEY! TIME TO WAKE UP! — Guy's voice thundered through the streets like another siren. It rolled across the walls and rooftops, cutting through the roar of thunder and the cries below, louder than any drum.
People jolted awake as if struck by lightning. Some stumbled to their feet, still rubbing their eyes; others, half-dressed, ran barefoot into the street. Windows slammed open, doors banged, and in the shadows shinobi faces flashed — drowsy for a heartbeat, then instantly sharpened with focus.
Guy wasn't just waking people — he was dragging them out of fear, forcing them to act. Even children, hearing his voice, stopped crying and clung to their mothers, sensing the urgency in his call.
Within minutes the streets were boiling.
Weapons gleamed in the dark, armor straps tightened, scrolls flashed in hurried hands. Dozens of shinobi, armed and ready, grouped into squads and surged toward the left wall. The rumble of their footsteps joined the storm above, merging into a single, relentless roar.
Ten minutes later, we arrived as well.
And what awaited us froze the blood in my veins.
Before the walls, right at the foot of the hill, darkness split open. And out of it rose something… enormous.
A massive eight-tailed beast.
I froze, unable to believe my eyes. The giant monster loomed over the slope, its massive body gleaming in the lightning's glow. Eight long tails whipped the air, smashing trees, raising clouds of dust and dirt. Every movement was like a strike of the elements — unstoppable, destructive.
— Th-this… — Genma's voice cracked, breaking as if he himself couldn't believe the words. — …this is a bijuu.
For an ordinary person, a bijuu is the end of the world. A natural disaster given the shape of a beast, a living embodiment of destruction.
For shinobi of the lower ranks — there's almost no difference. No blade, no fire, no water can stop them. Any technique simply drowns in their overwhelming power…
Only a handful in this world can truly stand against them — or even survive.
And now, as I watch, I begin to understand why…
Guy only clenched his teeth. A flicker of fear flashed across his eyes, raw and unbidden, before it was swallowed by fierce determination.
— Whoa… — I breathed, my chest tightening.
"In the anime, it looked smaller… a lot less terrifying," I thought, instinctively stepping back, as if the air itself pressed against my chest under the weight of its presence.
On the walls, dozens of Konoha shinobi were already in position. Barrier teams formed hand seals, while weapon specialists prepared scrolls. Medics pulled out the wounded, already struck by lightning.
— HOLD YOUR POSITIONS! — a jonin commander shouted, waving his arms.
— Orochimaru-sama is already engaging the bijuu! Be ready to support!
The city came alive before my eyes. But I knew — against such a force, determination alone wouldn't be enough.
— What do we do? — Genma asked, turning to me, his eyes darting, desperate for a plan.
— We wait for orders, — I said, forcing my voice to stay calm, though inside everything was tight. My gaze was fixed on the monster ahead. Barely a hundred meters away, Gyūki, the eight-tailed bijuu, like a force of nature, tore through forest and hills, turning the ground into a slurry of rock and mud.
We didn't have to wait long.
Crack! Crack!
Once again, thunder split the sky, and dozens of lightning bolts rained down. They struck straight into the clusters of shinobi on the walls and at the barriers. The air filled with screams and the stench of charred flesh. Some dropped dead instantly, others tried to rise but couldn't.
— Go! Find who's casting the technique, and eliminate them! — a sharp voice cut through the chaos.
I looked up. On the roof of a ruined house stood a jonin. His silhouette was barely visible in the flashes of light, but he radiated confidence and power. I didn't know his name, but the way the shinobi around responded instantly made it clear: he was in command here, and his orders were law.
"He's strong," I thought. Strange, how easily he kept control while everything fell apart.
— Let's go! — I gasped, rushing toward the forest without delay. Genma and Guy followed silently behind me.