"Move! Now!" Natsuko yelled before Naruto and Sasuke crashed through the ground sending her crashing back right into Minato and Tobirama who grunted from the impact. Jiraiya having jumped over to help Naruto, at Natsuko's insistence
"Ow. Sorry, you okay?…" She said standing, Minato groaned
"I'm okay, lord 2nd?" He asked, Tobirama just hummed in confirmation. Natsuko nodded, turning,
"I'm gonna go help Naruto with the tu…" Natsuko started before gasping her body moving upwards as black zetsu stabbed her through the back with a long black spear, forcing Natsuko to look up, coughing blood, which dripped down her chin, before looking down, a black spear piercing straight through her abdomen. Minato called her name though he remained unanswered, Natsuko wheezing
"Natsuko-Sensei!!" Yuki yelled her midnight blue hair in a halfup half-dozen braid, as she wore a teal ninja outfit with her forest green chunin vest overtop, her shuriken holsters on either thigh, her kunai pouch on her back. Natsuko took a gasping breath Before yelling as black lines began to crawl across her skin
"You won't be meddling any further." Black zetsu said before attempting to pull his blade from her abdomen,
"Niether… *gasps* will you. 1000 cuts." She said cuts appearing all over the black zestu's body as she stopped his advancement as well as his retreat, using her muscles to her advantage
"Let Go! You stubborn bitch!" He said trying and failing to remove his blade, Natsuko coughing more blood onto the pavement, as Black zetsu noticed the thin paper cuts littering his current form,
"These wounds won't kill me." the black zetsu said and Natsuko nodded, as she coughed blood,
"No, but the poison and hydrofluoric acid might. You should begin to feel it, now…" She said the black zetsu starting to wheeze, tobirama hitting the black zetsu's vital points with his water needle jutsu
"You're still… not… symmetrical. Guess it's… a thing no matter the form" She said before falling forwards, her grip loosening on the black spear as it was pulled from her abdomen immediately,
"Natsuko!" Minato said, grabbing her before she fell over, Yuki helping him set her down gently
"Hey dad. Yuki." She said weakly, her clothes becoming darker and darker as they became dyed with her blood, which spilled onto the pavement.
"Lord 2nd, do you know of a jutsu we could use." Minato asked as Tobirama walked over,
"Dad…" Natsuko said weakly before coughing blood onto the pavement
"Save your energy Natsuko." Minato responded
"My… My chakras being blocked. So.. *wheeze* is Kurama's. It's only a… matter of time… Dad. I'm glad *wheeze* I got to meet you, even if… it was during a war… you know." Natsuko said weakly, Minato nodding
"I'm glad we got to meet too." He said
"Yuki… i'm Glad *wheeze* you allowed me to be your… sensei. All three of you. Need *wheeze, minimal movement, stopped by Minato* to promise me something. Please." Natsuko said
"What, Natsuko?" Tobirama said preparring his jutsu, before placing his hands on Natsukos abdomen, activatinf his medical ninjutsu, which seemed to have no affect on the jutsu used by black zetsu
"Promise… to protect Nar--uto. He'll be… *wheeze* the best Hokage we've ever…seen" Natsuko said,
"Of course" Minato said, Natsuko continuing
"He has a light that attracts people to him like… moths. Remind him. *wheeze* remind him he holds more than one life in his… hands" Natsuko said before her breath left her body, her eyes glazing over as her head fell to the side, towards Tobirama, who was unable to stop the jutsu.
"Sensei?" Yuki said tears rising down her face before she stepped back with Tobirama, giving Minato a moment to say goodbye to his daughter
Minato looked at her a moment, a tear slipping past his eye as he closed hers, Natsukos body already rapidly cooling, moving her hair from her face.
"I've failed once more, please, forgive me Natsuko." He said touching his forehead against hers
"There's nothing to be done… Lord fourth, I'm sorry, but Natsuko is.." Tobirama said and Minato nodded, as tears hit Natsukos forehead before sliding down, mixing with the dirt and gravel below, as he nodded
"I know. Kushina please watch over our daughter." He said
"I promise I'll remember everything you taught me." Yuki said
"You fought well. Natsuko. We will take the fight from here. Rest assured." Tobirama said bowing his head in respect to the 5th hokage.
'Everyone. Black zetsu has been at least temporarily halted by Lady Natsuko's attacks. And the tree is almost completely cut
Through! Our efforts are working!' Ino said in the psychic link. Cheers rang out
"Thats the red flash for ya!" A few leaf shinobi said in the crowd around Temari and Kankuro, both of whom hummed in uncertainty. Kiba who was near Temari sniffed the air a moment before his eyes widened.
"She's…" Kiba said and Temari turned, her eyes widening,
"What? Kiba." She said and Kiba looked over,
"Her scent is going stale… she's either dead or close to it." he replied,
"A death worthy of a shinobi. Mourn her later, we have a job to do right now." Shisui said putting a hand on Kiba's shoulder who nodded,
"Yes sir." Kiba said
"Natsuko? What are you doing here baby?" Kushina said, looking at her daughter, who looked back, glancing around the dark void before coming forward, her clothes which had been ripped and stained, were completely fixed, her light red hair back in it's braids. Across from her stood Kushina, her light green dress with a white shirt underneath, her feet bare of any shoes. As she wore her light red hair down around her waist.
"Mom? There's a war.. Dad and 2nd Hokage tried their best, but the jutsu black zetsu used on me was… well I think it was pure nature energy. You know" she said before running up, hugging Kushina tightly, her light green dress and light red hair ruflling slightly from the movement, Kushina put a hand on Natsuko's shoulder,
"It sounds like you've had quite the journey. Wanna tell me about your life? We have time" She said and Natsuko nodded,
"Okay so…" Natsuko started, telling Kushina of everything not leaving a single detail out, from her early academy graduation to when she became Hokage. She told of what Naruto had accomplished, of the prophecy, everything without leaving a single detail out of the story. Kushina smiled gently as Natsuko gestured grand and small as she talked, scratching her chin as some parts.
"Natsuko! What happened?" Gaara said, his hair falling over his eyes a moment as he looked down, having just come from the battlefield with Madara, Tobirama having left to give him time to escape. Yuki walked over, wiping her face,
"She was hit by an attack from Black zetsu, nobody could stop it… but she did what she could to stall black zetsu even as she died." Yuki said, tears running from her light teal-white eyes, and Gaara nodded, covering Natsuko's torso with sand, gently, as if he were covering her with a blanket. Moving her arms to rest on top of the sand
"I am very sorry I was not there for you, my friend." He said, kissing her now stone cold forehead, allowing the tears to fall from his eyes, hitting her cold skin, before cascading down. Hitting the dirt and soiled concrete of the battleground. The girl he loved… now forever gone. Her light red hair dyed darker at the bottom where it met the ground,