The moment the Two-Tails manifested, it wasn't just Yugito Nii's squadmates who froze in shock—
Even Yugito herself was caught off guard.
She had never expected Matatabi, the Two-Tails, to go berserk the instant she was touched.
"What just happened?" Yugito muttered, confused. She only felt some of her strength siphoned away—nothing serious enough to provoke a full Tailed Beast transformation.
"It didn't just take your strength," Matatabi growled, fury lacing its voice. "It stole some of mine too!"
That was the true trigger—
A mysterious ability that had the audacity to extract chakra not only from Yugito, but directly from a Tailed Beast.
Unforgivable.
Unthinkable.
And for Matatabi, it meant only one thing: blood.
As she fully transformed, Yugito spotted a fading trail of footprints fleeing into the nearby forest—
Proof the intruder had fled the scene the moment danger erupted.
"You dare drain my power and run? You're dead."
Blue flames blazed violently around her as if the air itself were flammable.
The Two-Tails had no intention of letting her prey escape.
But then—
Matatabi's enormous feline head snapped to the side.
A radiant figure was dashing toward her squad at breakneck speed.
Not hiding.
Not hesitating.
Shining—like a human sun, pulling all light toward him.
Matatabi's host didn't recognize the man, nor the jutsu he was using, but danger pulsed from him like a second heartbeat.
She knew instinctively: if that man reached her team—they were dead.
Fire exploded from her body, and the beast's monstrous frame launched forward, the sheer momentum carving trenches into the earth.
The fleeing footprints no longer mattered.
The glowing figure ahead was none other than Ishiki Kujo's shadow clone.
He wore a white fox mask, painted with sly, arched eyes.
A small mouth hole let him breathe and speak, but otherwise his face was fully hidden.
The Byakugan still saw clearly from behind it—masks couldn't block its sight.
The light around him was no accident.
It was natural energy, drawn and focused to make him as conspicuous as possible.
The clone couldn't kill Yugito.
Not even close.
But it could draw her attention—
To give Highway Star time to retreat.
Even from brief contact, Ishiki had felt it: the Stand had been burned.
But it would survive.
Its dispersal had stopped the fire from spreading, and even if some damage got through, Ishiki could heal it with Sage Mode and Ripple energy.
Now, he had to buy time.
Glowing in sunlight, standing defiantly, the clone moved not toward Yugito—
But toward her squad.
Force her to choose.
Protect them? Or pursue the threat?
And truthfully, he wouldn't mind eliminating that sensor ninja.
Anyone who could track Highway Star was a future problem.
Better to kill them now.
As Yugito surged forward, the clone's hands flew into a blur of seals.
He breathed deep—
From the mouthpiece of the fox mask emerged a sphere of pale-white fire.
Sage Art: Fire Release — Great Fireball Technique!
A humble C-rank technique, but now charged with Sage Chakra.
No longer orange-red—
It blazed nearly white, temperature soaring past 1500°C.
The Three Cloud ninja below blanched.
They had fought beside Yugito for years.
They'd seen fire.
But this?
This was something else.
No time to dodge.
The fireball was too large, too fast.
If it hit, they'd be cremated.
Two of them began weaving signs.
Water Release!
Their jutsu roared forward in hopes of cooling the firestorm.
The third continued sensing, keeping track of the intruder's chakra signature.
But Ishiki had no doubts.
His flames, powered by solar energy and natural energy, were in a different class.
No standard Water Release would stop them.
And yet—
He hadn't expected Yugito's next move.
Instead of hurling more fire or weaving signs, she threw herself forward—
To intercept the fireball with her own body.
Matatabi's chakra surged.
Yugito blurred forward, intending to take the full brunt of the attack.
Ishiki's clone faltered—only for a second.
But in that moment, excitement flickered behind the fox mask.
He changed strategy.
His hands wove another set of seals.
Chakra blazed.
Sage Art: Fire Release — Dragon Flame Bullet Technique!
From white fire to dragon fire.
The second wave had already begun.