“Worse. A parasitic chakra construct. It feeds on fear and doubt, then manifests as your worst nightmare made real. The last time it nearly escaped, an entire platoon of jonin was mentally shattered. You’re not going to fight it. You’re going to reinforce the seal. And Naruto…” Tsunade’s gaze hardened. “You’re the biggest risk. The Nine-Tails’ negative emotions attract it like blood in water.”

Inside the darkness, he saw every fear he’d ever had: Iruka disowning him, Jiraiya’s body floating in the rain, Hinata dying to protect him, the village spitting on him again. But he didn’t flinch.

Naruto scratched his head. “So we fix the seal. Why the whole team?”