----
This might be the last peaceful morning before the war.
Minato, Kushina, Kimimaro, Haku, Karin, Naruto, and Fuu, who were temporarily staying at Naruto's house, gathered around for a cheerful breakfast.
Two small foxes sat on the table, munching on their food. These were Kurama's miniature clones.
Inside Fuu, Chomei (the Seven-Tails) watched enviously. Apparently, it had recently started learning Kurama's special tail beast clone technique.
At first, when Naruto suggested Kurama could show his mini-clones in front of Fuu, Kurama adamantly refused.
"I have my dignity! If Chomei sees me like this, I'll never live it down!"
But Naruto persuaded him.
"Come on, you two have been buddies for ages. You knew him when he was just a crawling bug. Did you mock him back then?"
Kurama thought about it.
"Hmph! I've always been the best-looking of us. Why should I care about others' opinions? The Sage of Six Paths adored me!"
And so, he stopped overthinking it.
Now, his mini-clones ate and played as usual. He even wanted to go bully Shukaku, but Naruto stopped him there were more important matters at hand.
As the small foxes wiped their mouths with tiny napkins, breakfast officially ended.
Naruto helped clean up, mainly by disposing of food waste via Kamui.
Inside his Kamui dimension, Naruto had designated a section as a landfill, complete with separate areas for:
Dry waste
Wet waste
Hazardous waste
Recyclables
The stench was overwhelming, and Naruto's clones, who had to check in daily, protested.
So they created a barrier to block the smell, using a sealing technique inspired by how Naruto once sealed Jiraiya's drunken stench with blankets.
Still, space was limited.
Naruto figured he'd ask Itachi to burn it all with Amaterasu later.
Unlike normal fire, Amaterasu would incinerate everything without producing harmful gases.
For now, the storage, rest, and entertainment zones remained off-limits.
He wasn't about to let enemies take advantage of his space.
---
Just as Minato was about to give orders.
Knock, knock!
A voice from outside called, "Hokage-sama, urgent intel from the border!"
The atmosphere instantly tensed.
"Come in!" Minato ordered.
A messenger from the Intelligence Division entered and handed Minato a note.
"This message was sent via Ninja Hawk from the border. There was an attack early this morning!"
Minato read it, while Naruto sneaked a peek.
> At dawn, over 100 strange beasts attacked Border Zone 11. They are causing mass destruction. The situation is dire. The enemy appears to be controlling them. Requesting reinforcements.
"The Akatsuki?" Minato murmured.
He knew one of Pain's bodies specialized in summoning creatures.
But why attack the border instead of sneaking into Konoha first?
"Naruto, send your clones to investigate!"
"On it! There's a warp point near Zone 11."
Naruto immediately sent out five clones to scout.
Minato folded the note. "Everyone, prepare for battle. We may deploy at any moment."
The entire household dispersed grabbing gear, changing into battle outfits, and getting ready.
Meanwhile, Naruto suddenly realized…
His clones had gone barefoot.
"Hope those idiots don't step on something sharp and dispel themselves…"
Minutes later, two clones returned dragging a beast behind them.
It was the same wolf-leopard hybrid Guren had introduced to the Akatsuki.
Naruto's clones nicknamed it "Brester."
Everyone gathered around to examine it.
Minato asked, "What's the situation?"
One clone reported:
A horde of similar creatures invaded the Land of Fire.
Ten figures followed from a distance.
One was clearly Deidara.
The others had unfamiliar chakra signatures.
The clones captured a sample and sent another team to evacuate the wounded.
Minato frowned. "Deidara… That's the Tsuchikage's former disciple. So it's definitely Akatsuki."
He turned to Brester, who was snarling and struggling against the clone.
"Are all the creatures like this?"
The clone replied, "This one is one of the smaller ones. The biggest is about a third the size of Gamabunta.
They're all weird hybrid creatures stitched together from different animals."
"Strength-wise… an average Chunin like Iruka-sensei might struggle against them."
Naruto scratched his chin. "This reminds me of Hiruko's experiments…"
That guy also made stitched-up mutant monsters.
But Hiruko was burned to ash long ago.
"Maybe someone got their hands on his research?"
Minato nodded. "That's possible. But for now, we can't let them advance."
"Everyone gather your teams. Naruto's clones will escort you to the battlefield."
"I'll organize additional reinforcements immediately."
"If you encounter Akatsuki, do NOT engage recklessly. Confirm their identities first then act accordingly."
"Understood!" The group saluted and rushed off.
Fuu, who had been poking Brester's fur, jumped up excitedly.
"What about me? What about me?! I wanna help too!"
Minato thought for a moment. "…For now, you'll join Haku and Karin's team."
"Since Kurenai can't fight, Haku will be the squad leader."
"Yes! I'll listen to Big Brother Haku!" Fuu cheered.
Naruto stiffened.
…Did she just call Haku 'Big Brother'?
Immediately, he imagined Haku's Gentle Fist precision jabbing his pressure points.
Naruto barely stopped himself from groaning.
As everyone scattered, Naruto's clones escorted them.
Minato pointed at the captured Brester.
"Send this to the Inuzuka Clan."
They weren't just dog trainers they had vast knowledge of wild beasts, and the village's best veterinarians worked there.
They'd know how to handle this creature.
One of Naruto's clones sighed. "…Fine."
Honestly, they had wanted to roast it and see if it tasted good.
As the battle teams mobilized, Naruto's clones stayed ahead of the monster horde leaving marker points along the way.
This ensured that Konoha's reinforcements could reach them quickly.
The Akatsuki's invasion had begun and now, Konoha was moving to stop them.
----
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