Published at 16th of September 2024 4:38 pm

Chapter 38 Lost in Reality: Naruto’s Final Stand

This chapter is updated by JustRead.pl

Naruto felt the faint flicker of chakra course through his body, like a long-forgotten friend returning after an absence. It wasn’t much, but it was enough to give him hope. The Syndicate, with their high-tech weapons and ruthless control over the city, had become more than just a problem—Naruto now saw them as a threat to everything this world stood for. And if there was one thing he couldn’t stand, it was oppression.

But Naruto knew this battle wasn’t something he could win alone. The Syndicate was massive, their reach spread throughout the entire modern world. If he was going to take them down, he needed help.

_______________________________________________________________

The days passed quickly as Naruto worked with Kenji, his sister, and a few trusted allies they had managed to recruit. These weren’t shinobi—they were ordinary people, but they had the same fire Naruto recognized in himself. They were tired of living under the Syndicate’s thumb, tired of watching their loved ones disappear without a trace.

Naruto sat with the group one evening, hunched over a map of the city. Akihiro had joined them, his knowledge of the dimensional rifts invaluable. Together, they were planning their final strike: an assault on the Syndicate’s main headquarters. It was located deep underground, in a sprawling bunker beneath the city, where the Syndicate controlled everything—their weapons, their experiments, and their most dangerous secret: the portal.

“The portal’s here,” Akihiro said, pointing to a red-marked spot on the map. “If we can reach it, we have a chance of destabilizing the Syndicate’s power. But getting there won’t be easy. They’ve got security everywhere, and their top soldiers are enhanced with technology that makes them nearly unstoppable.”

Naruto leaned forward, studying the layout. “That doesn’t matter. We just need to create enough chaos to give Kenji and his sister time to get inside and disable the systems. Once we disrupt their operations, they’ll have no choice but to retreat.”

Kenji, who had grown stronger under Naruto’s training, nodded with determination. “We’ll do it. We’ll end this.”

_______________________________________________________________

The night of the mission came, and the city felt eerily quiet. Naruto and his small group moved silently through the streets, avoiding the Syndicate’s patrols. The city had become a battlefield, its once-bustling streets now filled with fear and tension. The Syndicate had increased its presence, sensing that something was coming, but they had no idea just how close the resistance was to striking at the heart of their operation.

Naruto’s heart raced as they approached the entrance to the Syndicate’s underground facility. The massive steel doors loomed in front of them, guarded by heavily armed soldiers in sleek black armor. Kenji took a deep breath beside him, clutching a small device Akihiro had created to disable the security systems.

“Are you ready for this?” Naruto asked, his voice low but steady.

Kenji nodded. “I’m ready.”

Naruto grinned. “Good. Let’s show these guys what real teamwork looks like.”

With a quick signal, Naruto sprang into action, launching himself toward the guards with a speed and ferocity that took them by surprise. His chakra still wasn’t fully restored, but he had enough to summon a single shadow clone, which immediately joined the fray. Together, they tore through the guards, moving with precision and power, overwhelming their opponents before they even had a chance to react.

Meanwhile, Kenji and his sister slipped inside the facility, using the device to bypass the security systems. They moved through the dark, narrow corridors, their footsteps echoing ominously. Every so often, they heard distant alarms and the sound of combat, but they stayed focused on their goal.

Naruto, meanwhile, fought his way deeper into the complex, facing off against more and more of the Syndicate’s elite soldiers. These weren’t ordinary fighters—they were enhanced with cybernetic implants, their strength and speed far beyond that of normal humans. But Naruto had fought stronger enemies before. Even without his full power, he was still the unpredictable shinobi who had defeated gods.

He ducked under a barrage of energy blasts, rolling to the side and launching a kick that sent one of the soldiers crashing into a wall. His shadow clone took out another with a precise punch to the throat. But as the battle raged on, Naruto could feel the strain on his body. He wasn’t invincible—especially not without Kurama’s full power.

Suddenly, a sharp pain shot through his side. Naruto looked down to see a small, sleek blade embedded in his skin, blood staining his orange jumpsuit. One of the soldiers had managed to land a hit, but Naruto gritted his teeth and pulled the blade out, ignoring the searing pain.

“I’ve been through worse,” he muttered, staggering to his feet. “You guys are nothing.”

Just as he prepared to continue the fight, he heard a voice in his mind—faint but familiar.

“Naruto…”

It was Kurama.

The nine-tailed fox had been silent for so long that Naruto almost couldn’t believe it. But the warmth of Kurama’s chakra was unmistakable, slowly returning to him like a wave of relief.

“About time,” Naruto muttered under his breath.

Kurama’s deep, growling voice echoed in his mind. “You didn’t think I’d let you fight this battle without me, did you?”

Naruto grinned, his energy renewed. He felt Kurama’s chakra surge through him, reigniting the fire in his veins. The wound in his side began to heal almost instantly, the pain fading as Naruto’s strength returned in full.

“Let’s finish this,” Naruto said, his eyes flashing red as Kurama’s power flowed through him.

_______________________________________________________________

Meanwhile, Kenji and his sister reached the heart of the facility—the control room where the Syndicate operated their most dangerous experiments. The room was filled with blinking lights, computers, and strange devices that hummed with an unsettling energy. But in the center of it all stood the portal—a swirling, unstable vortex that pulsed with dark energy.

“We’ve found it,” Kenji whispered, awe and fear in his voice.

His sister moved toward the control panel, her fingers flying over the keys. “We need to destabilize it. If we can destroy the portal, the Syndicate will lose their hold over this world.”

But just as they began the process, the door to the room burst open, and the leader of the Syndicate stepped in—a tall, menacing figure with cold, calculating eyes. His cybernetic enhancements glinted under the harsh lights, and his expression was one of cold fury.

“You really thought you could stop us?” he sneered, his voice dripping with contempt. “You’re nothing but children playing with forces you can’t comprehend.”

Kenji stood his ground, his fists clenched. “We’re not afraid of you.”

The leader laughed, a harsh, metallic sound. “Then you’re fools.”

But before he could make another move, Naruto appeared in the doorway, his body crackling with Kurama’s chakra. His eyes glowed with the power of the nine-tails, and a smirk tugged at the corner of his lips.

“You’re the fool if you think I’m letting you hurt them,” Naruto said, stepping into the room with an aura of raw power.

The Syndicate leader sneered, raising his arm as a weapon unfolded from his cybernetic enhancements. “You may have chakra, but you don’t belong here. This world will never accept you.”

Naruto’s grin widened. “I don’t need this world to accept me. I’m here to protect it.”

With a roar, Naruto charged, his body moving faster than the eye could follow. The Syndicate leader fired off a barrage of energy blasts, but Naruto dodged them with ease, closing the distance between them in an instant. With a powerful Rasengan in hand, he slammed the swirling ball of energy into the leader’s chest, sending him crashing into the wall with a deafening explosion.

The leader groaned, his body sparking with damaged circuits, but Naruto wasn’t done. He leapt forward, delivering a final, bone-shattering punch that knocked the leader out cold.

Breathing heavily, Naruto turned to Kenji and his sister. “How’s it going with the portal?”

“It’s done,” Kenji’s sister said, her voice shaky but triumphant. “We destabilized it. The Syndicate’s control is broken.”

Naruto smiled, relief washing over him. “Good job. Now let’s get out of here.”

_______________________________________________________________

As they left the facility, the Syndicate’s influence crumbled, their forces retreating as their control over the city disintegrated. People began to rise up, no longer afraid of the shadowy organization that had once held them in fear.

Naruto, Kenji, and his sister stood on a rooftop, overlooking the city as the dawn broke over the horizon. The battle was won, but Naruto knew his journey wasn’t over. The portal still existed, and it was his only way home.

“You’re really going to leave, aren’t you?” Kenji asked, his voice heavy with emotion.

Naruto nodded. “Yeah. I have to. My friends are waiting for me.”

Kenji smiled sadly. “I’ll never forget what you taught me.”

Naruto placed a hand on Kenji’s shoulder. “You’ve got a lot of strength in you, Kenji. Use it to protect the people you care about.”

With that, Naruto turned toward the portal, which swirled with the same unstable energy as before. He took a deep breath, steeling himself for the journey ahead. He didn’t know where the portal would take him—whether it would lead him home or to another world entirely—but he was ready for whatever came next.

With one final glance at Kenji and his sister, Naruto stepped through the portal, disappearing into the unknown.

_______________________________________________________________

To be continued...

Share