As Hashirama and Naruto approached the scene of the battle, two ever so familiar people came into view. Above their heads, the dark clouds circled angrily, spitting out bolts of lightning. Naruto would have eagerly leapt towards the pair had the chakra presence not been as heavy as it was, it almost made him question whether or not he should interfere. Apparently Hashirama had been thinking the same thing and both of them stopped a good distance away from the center.

"Pity." Madara commented mockingly. "Lived a thousand years only for it to end by your own hand." He smirked.

Nina remained silent, he could practically see the chakra rolling off of her in waves. No doubt, this would be her last attack.

"Madara." Nina emerged from behind, stepping to stand beside him. He gave a hum of recognition. "Why did you agree?" She inquired in her usual tone.

He didn't need to ask to know what she was referring to, after all, it was just a few days ago when he had finally agreed to join forces with the Senju.

"I've been asking myself the same." Once upon a time he would never have imagined he would give in to Hashirama's persistent talk of peace, but recently he'd been doubting himself. Perhaps the Senju, as annoying as he was, had a point. "If this village is successful, it could lead to a better world for the children who live in it. They won't have to know pain, they won't grow up in war like you and I did." He stated, gazing over the empty field where their village was soon to stand.

"I never knew you cared so much about your clan." Nina commented, an amused smile on her face.

"Woman, do not test me." His tone lowered, earning a chuckle from the woman.

"You are much kinder than you make yourself out to be." She mused, turning to leave before he could snap at her again.

The static in the air slowly grew thicker and thicker, so much so that, combined with the immense presence emitting from the two, it would have felt nearly impossible to breathe.

Both shinobi readied themselves for what they knew was coming.

Nina sat cross-legged on the roof of the newly completed Hokage Tower, underneath her hundreds of red tiles gleamed in the afternoon sun. It was an excellent vantage point to oversee the village. From this angle, she could see compounds that were both completed and in progress, she could see people who were moving their belongings into their new homes, she could see the nearby stream rushing about as it always did.

What else did she see? Well, for one, there was a rather foul-looking Uchiha stomping through the village. It wasn't much of a mystery anymore, he would often come out of meetings with the same bitter face when something didn't go his way.

Even from a distance, their eyes locked and she beckoned for him to come. In an instant, he appeared beside her, glare still in place.

"What do you want?" He questioned impatiently.

The woman only patted the spot next to her.

Taking a deep breath, he lowered himself down and sat on the warm red tiles.

"Did you and Hashirama have another disagreement?" She asked, eyes still focused on the passerbys below.

A grunt confirmed her suspicion.

"The Senju wants the training fields by the Uchiha compound to become public once the village begins to grow." He stated with clear disapproval.

"And you want it to be reserved for your clan." She sighed. "Madara, you really must learn to compromise. Things will be much better within this village if its leaders don't argue over everything."

A frown made its way onto his face.

"A house divided in itself cannot stand."

"Do not lecture me, Nina."

She was almost surprised to hear him call her by her name instead of the usual "woman."

"I am not lecturing, only giving advice. As a friend." She assured him.

He scoffed and rolled his eyes.

"You think I consider you a friend?" He questioned mockingly.

Nina turned to him and analyzed his expression, a small smirk appearing on her lips.

"Of course you do." She stated, only causing Madara to give a 'tsk'. A light smile rested on her face. "At least that's what I think of you." She shrugged, turning back to gaze at the glowing orange sun as it lingered just above the horizon.

Unbeknownst to her, a light flush crossed the Uchiha's face as he turned away.

"Foolish woman..." He muttered lowly.

Naruto and Hashirama exchanged uneasy glances when the air grew heavier and heavier. Neither of them knew what was happening nor what to expect. What they did know was that with those two going all out, something bad was bound to happen.

The clouds swirled angrily as if they themselves were seeking revenge.

"Do you really intend to die by your own hand?" Madara questioned with mock sadness. "What an honor to be able to be a part of this." He smirked. Nina shot him a glare, her grip on the staff tightening. A bolt of lightning broke through the clouds and struck the earth between them.

"An honor indeed..." A new voice echoed deeply.

Both shinobi tensed as a black shadow began creeping over the Uchiha's body. The vague shape of two eyes and a mouth formed from the black creature. Once it had fully covered Madara's body, it grinned sharply.

"How wonderful it is to finally meet you." It eyed Nina with both caution and malice.

"And who might you be?" She asked, able to keep a calm visage.

The being laughed.

"You don't know me?" It chuckled to itself. "I suppose you wouldn't. I am none other than Kaguya's will!" It proclaimed with a cackle.

Nina's eyes narrowed at the name.

The creature continued, "Yes, the great Princess of your very own clan. I've been watching you closely. Indeed, I was surprised at first. Your existence was a surprise to me. I was my mother's secret weapon, I suppose you would be Hagomoro's." It grinned wildly as Nina's fists clenched.

'Kaguya created this being? Impossible. Hagomoro would have mentioned it...'

"As much as I would love to keep watching this battle, I have something I must do."

Madara's body lifted into the air. It seems the creature was controlling him and he couldn't fight back. It turned to face the moon that was blocked by the dense clouds, Madara's Rinnengan both pulsed, the moon mirroring their actions.

A ray of bloody red light pushed through the blanket of heavy clouds and something inside Nina immediately screamed danger.

...not yet...

...not yet...

...not yet...

Now.

Nina brought down the earthen shield she had formed around herself and looked at the aftermath in terror.

Enormous branch-like structures spiked from the ground, each one with hundreds of white cocoons hanging to it. She could see a core of chakra inside each and every wrapped figure.

'...impossible...' She grit her teeth.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" She turned to see the figure of Madara coated by the same black creature. "I only wish there could have been an audience for this, but I suppose Mother would much prefer to see a fellow clansmen."

Nina didn't have time to question what that meant before Madara's form began swelling and contorting. His body quickly expanded to a terribly unnatural size and, still covered with the black shadow, started emitting a strong chakra presence.

"Finally..." The shadow hissed as it dripped down from the Uchiha's body. "Finally..."

A bright light suddenly consumed his form, so bright that Nina had to shield her eyes. When the light faded, what she saw made her body numb.

A woman. Two horns protruding from her forehead, flowing kimono embroidered with royal purple tomoe and other bright colors. Long white hair splayed behind her as she rested just above the ground, her pale white eyes turned to Nina. Her eyes narrowed as she scanned the familiar woman. Her cold gaze shifted to the shakujō beside her.

"Hagomoro's staff..." Her voice was soft yet filled with hatred. "The orphan girl. Why are you here?"

Before Nina could answer, she spoke again.

"This chakra... why do you have their chakra? My sons, I see both their powers within you."

Nina found her voice and tightened her jaw.

"Hagomoro and Hamura gave parts of their chakra to revive me."

The princess stared emptily.

"Is that so? Indeed I almost see myself in you."

Keyword: almost.

"You were unaffected by the moon's light, but I will now reclaim my chakra." She took a step forwards.

"Sensei!" A shout made both women turn their heads. A blur of yellow dashed across their vision and a figure appeared between the two. "Are you ok?" Naruto turned, scanning her for any injuries.

Nina frowned.

"Leave now." She commanded bluntly.

Naruto shook his head.

"I'm not g-"

"Leave. Now." She cut him off. She wasn't joking in the slightest, her eyes told that much.

"Sorry Nina, I couldn't convince him to stay behind." A voice appeared at her side.

"As if you tried, Hashirama." She shot angrily, only receiving a sheepish grin in return. "Take him and leave. Teleport to the others." She said.

"I doubt he's going to-"

"Shut up."

Hashirama glanced at her, surprise evident in his face. Never, in all their years together, had she snapped at him before.

"You don't understand what you are dealing with. You don't know how powerful she is." Her gaze was fixed on Kaguya. "I will not let him be harmed." She stated.

There was a silence among the three.

Then a chuckle.

"Heh, you don't have to worry about me, Sensei. I know I can help, believe it!" Naruto grinned a wide grin.

Nina let out a shallow breath, there was no way she was going to get him to leave. She would just have to make sure Kaguya didn't touch him.

"Hashirama, I am trusting you to keep an eye on him. Don't let him do anything stupid." She stepped forward to face the older woman.

"I see in your eyes that you intend to fight." Kaguya stated. "I see no need for that, I will offer you the chance to surrender now and you will feel no pain."

Nina frowned at the statement.

"I'm not one to give up so easily." She stated with unbridled resolve.

Kaguya was unaffected.

"Then we will continue this elsewhere."

The next thing they knew, they were standing above a raging ocean.

"Woa-!" Naruto was stunned for a spilt second before realizing that he was plummeting straight into the violent waves below. He squeezed his eyes shut, waiting for the splash of impact.

When it didn't come, he dared to crack open his eyes. Under his feet was a strange black disk that kept him floating in the air. Besides him was Hashirama who had one under him as well. They looked at each other with shared relief.

A few meters away were the two women who were locked in a stare-down. Kaguya was the first to break it, bringing her hand in a downwards motion. Nina was hit by an invisible force that shoved her a good five feet closer to the treterous sea below before she let a pulse of chakra, negating the force and regaining her balance. She gripped her staff and twisted her wrist. Instead of the chime-like sounds it made earlier, hundreds of tiny glimmering spikes shot out from the center of the ring on the shakujō, all headed straight for Kaguya. The princess held out a hand and the spikes crashed into an unseen wall, falling to be swallowed by the waves. Something shot past her neck and she narrowed her eyes; somehow one spike had gotten past the barrier.

"Interesting." Kaguya mused as she pointed two fingers at the other woman, a red light emerged from her fingertips and darted towards its target. Nina held out her staff which now glowed with the same red light, it spit out an identical pillar of light and the two sides collided. Intense heat was released as the beams battled one another, even the water below them began bubbling. Nina silently cursed her situation. She had already used some of her chakra in her fight with Madara and now she had to find a way to reseal Kaguya, not to mention she didn't have access to her underground chakra reserves while she was in this dimension. She would have to be careful with her strategy.

'Quite the task.' She frowned.

"I do not understand why you keep fighting." A voice broke through her thoughts. "Though you may have my sons' chakra, you could never match their power. Why is it that you believe you can succeed against me?" Kaguya questioned, expression remaining blank and stoic.

Nina remained silent for a moment.

"I may not be as strong as they were, but I trust that Hagomoro left me with all I needed to know. Even against you." She stated with full confidence in her old friend.

The princess frowned ever so slightly, perhaps the first sign of emotion she's displayed since her revival.

"You always did seem closer to Hagomoro, though you were fond of Hamura as well." She remembered.

Nina was surprised, bringing up the past at a time like this?

"They were lonely before, they only had each other, so when Hagomoro told me they had made a friend, I was quite happy.

"When I first met you, I saw the look in Hamura's eyes. It was unmistakable, as young as he was. He had taken a liking to you, one that he himself didn't notice at the time. It was then that I began hating you. You would take my sons away from me, that was something I could not allow."

Impossible.

Hamura...

"It seems even this reincarnation has inherited his affection."

Nina looked up to see Kaguya staring at her own hand. She suddenly realized what she was talking about.

"Madara..."

"So it seems." The princess' cold gaze returned to Nina. "Now I will reclaim my sons' chakra." An unveiled anger overtook her voice.

Nina was flung back by a blast of chakra and nearly fell into the tides below had it not been for the five remaining orbs behind her repositioning themselves under her feet. She was crouching with a hand over her mouth to suppress a cough. Upon removing it, the blood on her palm didn't surprise her too much, it had been a while since she's taken a hit like that.

As Nina pushed herself up and stared at the princess, an idea came to mind. A small smile spread across her lips.

"You want my chakra?" She took a step forward and disappeared.

"Take it."

Kaguya heard the voice from behind her and spun around, ready to attack... only to find that she couldn't move.

Nina's hand was pressed against her back and a massive amount of dense chakra had been injected into her body. As expansive as the princess' reserve was, adding this much would shock her body and paralyze her for just a few seconds.

A few seconds.

That was all she needed.

Nina was noticeably more tired now, a bead of sweat rolled down her neck and her breathing was erratic. She had to hurry, she had used most of her chakra. A black seal appeared around her hand and it glowed a deadly red.

"This is not our time, we should return to where we belong." Nina said as she placed her other hand over her own chest, the same seal spread across the white fabric.

Her eyes met Naruto's as both she and Kaguya began to fade. The terror on his face made her heart sink, yet she knew she couldn't stop now.

"Three eighty north, forty eight west. Good luck, Naruto." She smiled weakly as she disappeared, taking Kaguya with her.