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After a short while, the raging winds vanished, and the crimson pillar of light that had shot into the sky also disappeared.
Naruto's figure reappeared within Kagaya's line of sight.
His outward appearance was more or less the same as before. White, skeletal bones still surrounded his body. The only difference was...
"Five tails now, huh." Kagaya murmured in a low voice.
Generally speaking, the number of tails did not represent the strength of a Tailed Beast, but rather the amount of chakra it possessed. However, placed in the context of Naruto's current situation, this was no longer the case. Naruto was borrowing chakra from the Nine-Tails sealed within him. The complete form of the Nine-Tails possessed nine tails. Therefore, the closer Naruto got to nine tails, the more chakra he was borrowing. To put it plainly, for a completely berserk Naruto, the more tails he manifested, the stronger he became.
Whoosh!
The Tailed Beast-transformed Naruto sprang into action. After transforming into a Tailed Beast, his body seemed to possess an extraordinary, boneless suppleness. His movements were utterly unlike anything a human body should be capable of. In this very moment, his entire being was truly like a speeding arrow, tearing through the air with a series of sonic booms as he instantly crashed into Kagaya's Susanoo!
BOOM!!!
The Susanoo was directly forced back over ten meters by the impact, carving a long, deep furrow across the earth.
"Huff... huff... huff..."
Even Kagaya was panting slightly. Although he hadn't suffered any injuries because he was inside the Susanoo, the sheer concussive force of that impact had truly made him feel quite unwell.
"Is the body after Tailed Beast transformation... How utterly absurd" Kagaya couldn't help but speak with a tone of astonishment.
Just now, Naruto's speed had simply been far too fast. So fast that it had surpassed the limits of an ordinary human. In truth, Kagaya could also achieve that kind of speed if he disregarded everything else. But the consequence would be that his physical body would directly collapse and break apart.
That level of speed was absolutely not something a normal human body could withstand.
This was also one of the reasons why Kagaya believed that, in the later stages, the Flying Thunder God surpassed the Body Flicker Technique—precisely because the Flying Thunder God transcended the physical limitations of the human body when it came to speed.
But the current Tailed Beast-transformed Naruto seemed to have forcibly broken through the limits of the human body, unleashing a speed that left even Kagaya utterly dumbfounded.
"Rrraaahhh—" Naruto raised his head. A black dot began condensing above his mouth.
Tailed Beast Bomb!
It condensed extremely quickly. In the very next second, a black Tailed Beast Bomb was fired directly at Kagaya's Susanoo.
But that wasn't the end. Immediately after the first, a second and a third followed in rapid succession!
Three Tailed Beast Bombs in total.
BOOM!
BOOM!!
BOOM!!!
A blinding, piercingly bright light erupted with Kagaya's Susanoo at its epicenter. Along with it came a colossal, cataclysmic explosion!
"Damn it! Is this the best you can manage?! No! That kind of ability... I must kill that brat!" The Nine-Tails spoke, its voice dripping with boundless hatred.
The appearance of the Susanoo had completely and utterly struck the Nine-Tails' most painful, sensitive nerve. The memories of being driven and used like a mere beast of burden by that man back then were still as vivid as if they had happened yesterday.
To humans, Madara's era was something that had occurred nearly a century ago. Although not incredibly distant, it certainly couldn't be called recent. Many people no longer carried any memories of that era. What had been passed down were only a few legends.
After all, this was the era of shinobi. Many shinobi didn't live to a ripe old age; they were very likely to die young during a mission. Thus, in the shinobi era, generational changes happened very quickly. Roughly twenty years could be considered one era. Twenty years passed, and it was on to the next.
Take Kakashi and Naruto, for instance. Their age difference was only about thirteen or fourteen years. Yet, most people would consider Kakashi as belonging to the previous era, while Naruto was of the next.
Seen in this light, Madara's time wasn't all that far removed from the present. But due to the unique nature of the shinobi era, very few people possessed clear memories of that time.
After all, shinobi died far too quickly. For a group whose average lifespan wasn't particularly high, a period of nearly a hundred years was indeed an extraordinarily long time.
But to an immortal, undying being like the Nine-Tails? A hundred years? That was practically no different from "yesterday"!
The hatred and revulsion it had felt when Madara had driven it—the Nine-Tails still remembered it all with searing clarity.
The so-called "Armored Susanoo" of the later period—its original name hadn't been that at all. It had been called "The Calamity of the Beast."
Just looking at that name was enough. Madara had never once regarded the Nine-Tails as anything resembling a person. He hadn't even treated the Nine-Tails as a living creature with sentience. Madara had utterly and completely viewed the Nine-Tails as nothing more than an animal.
How could the Nine-Tails not be infuriated? How could it not be enraged? How could it not hate?
That was precisely why the Nine-Tails had exploded with such fury the moment it laid eyes upon the Susanoo.
Yet, the Nine-Tails was currently in a sealed state. No matter how desperately it struggled, it could only transmit as much chakra as it had right now. It simply couldn't transmit any more. It was, after all, still sealed. The current seal had not yet loosened to the point where the Nine-Tails could send more power.
But... five tails? And only five tails in a miniature Tailed Beast transformation state? How could that possibly be enough to kill that brat?!
The Nine-Tails didn't know the full extent of Kagaya's strength, but it knew very, very well what the Susanoo was!
It had personally experienced the terrifying defensive power of that ability before.
A five-tailed Tailed Beast transformation... could never kill that brat!
Yet the seal restricted the Nine-Tails, preventing it from transmitting more chakra.
"Naruto... it's still not enough! As you are now, you still can't bring that brat back! You need even more of my chakra!" The Nine-Tails bared its massive, fang-filled maw and spoke toward the bowed head of Naruto before it—Naruto, who had lost consciousness and was now left with nothing but pure instinct.
Before the Nine-Tails' cage, Naruto's head hung low. His blue pupils had turned crimson. Completely berserk, he had utterly lost all awareness.
"Still... not enough..." Naruto repeated the Nine-Tails' words purely on instinct.
The Nine-Tails laughed, its voice dripping with enticement as it spoke.
"Yes! It's still not enough! You need to borrow even more of my power! Come... loosen the seal! Let me grant you more chakra!"
The massive head of the Nine-Tails, formed from crimson chakra, loomed menacingly outside the cage. Its terrifying jaws hovered extremely close to Naruto, as if it could swallow him whole in a single gulp.
Although the seal had not yet loosened to the point where the Nine-Tails could break free, as things currently stood, it had indeed loosened considerably. The Nine-Tails could now use its chakra to form its gigantic head outside the cage!
"Loosen... the seal..."
Naruto repeated the Nine-Tails' words, his eyes completely devoid of light.
The Nine-Tails' grin grew even wider. It seemed Naruto had truly been beguiled by it. This was a golden opportunity! Perhaps it could even break through the seal in one fell swoop!
"Yes! That's right! Come... lift your head! Do you see that seal on the door? Tear it off! Then I can help you bring that brat back to the Leaf Village! Heh heh heh..."
Crimson chakra surged toward Naruto, lifting him high into the air, right up to the very center of the cage door. There, affixed to the door, was a slip of paper with the character for "Seal" written upon it.
This was the Fourth Hokage's sealing formula.
Slowly, a hand lifted... and then stopped!
One hand came to a halt right before the head of the Nine-Tails, which was protruding outside the cage.
"It seems... you've gotten a little too carried away, Nine-Tails."
Standing upon the water's surface, Kagaya gazed expressionlessly at the Nine-Tails.
The Nine-Tails' eyes constricted sharply.
"Uchiha brat... your Sharingan..."
Kagaya smiled.
"What's the matter? Didn't expect my Sharingan to have reached this level, did you? Surely you didn't think I merely had something like a three-tomoe Sharingan, right? The moment I activated my Susanoo... you should have obediently tucked your head away and avoided me. It's a shame. Earlier, you still had a chance to steer clear of me. But now... there's no chance left."
An emotion named fury blazed up from the depths of the Nine-Tails' heart.
"Those eyes of yours... they're a Mangekyo, aren't they?! Such complex patterns... they really are just like those eyes of his! I'm going to kill—"
Kagaya pushed his hand forward, pressing it right above the Nine-Tails' muzzle.
"Go back where you belong."
The crimson Eternal Mangekyo flashed. In an instant, the Nine-Tails' head, which had been protruding outside, completely collapsed and dispersed!
Naruto, who had been lifted aloft by the Nine-Tails' chakra, also instantly lost his support and tumbled to the ground.
"Wicked Uchiha brat... you—"
Within the dark confines of the cage, the Nine-Tails' true body rose to its feet, its crimson pupils staring fixedly, murderously, at Kagaya.
Kagaya brushed off his hands.
"I don't have time to play with you right now. If you don't want to experience the feeling of being controlled by the Sharingan again... then I strongly suggest you obediently go back inside that cage. Oh, and let me tell you something."
Saying this, Kagaya smiled a strange, eerie smile and spoke with pointed implication.
"These eyes of mine... are of the exact same level as those of the 'he' you speak of."
The Nine-Tails' eyes instantly flew wide open.
"The feeling of being controlled by the Sharingan?! You little brat... do you know about Uchiha—"
Kagaya raised a hand, cutting the Nine-Tails off.
"Whether I know or not isn't important. All you need to understand is this: I have the ability to make you experience that feeling from back then all over again. To be honest... I bear you no ill will. So, I also hope you bear me no ill will. If you do... well, you're welcome to try me."
"You're threatening me, brat!"
"Yes. I am threatening you. On this point, I don't want there to be any misunderstanding. I want you to know, with absolute clarity—I am threatening you! After all... the very moment I entered this place, I saw the killing intent toward me in your eyes. I'm not quite sure why. Between you and me, there's no grudge or enmity. Why would you harbor killing intent toward me? Of course, whether I understand now is no longer important. Since you've already developed killing intent toward me, don't expect me to show you a pleasant face. I'll say it once more: don't misunderstand. I am threatening you!"
"Brat! I'm going to kill—"
Before the Nine-Tails could finish its words, in the very next second, its eyes transformed into eyes exactly identical to Kagaya's. And then, it found itself completely and utterly unable to move!
It had been controlled!
"Lie down!" Kagaya barked in a low, commanding voice.
Immediately, the Nine-Tails wordlessly lay down within the cage.
"This is merely a warning. Remember it."
With that, Kagaya released his control. The Nine-Tails' eyes slowly returned to normal.
But even though Kagaya had released his control, no further sound whatsoever emerged from within the cage. It was deathly silent.
Kagaya closed his eyes, and withdrew from that space.
With his Eternal Mangekyo, he was capable of seeing the Tailed Beast within a Jinchuriki's body and entering the sealing space.
In fact, forget the Eternal Mangekyo—in the original story, Sasuke had even managed to do this with a three-tomoe Sharingan. So, for Kagaya, entering the sealing space within a Jinchuriki was truly, ridiculously simple.
Returning to the outside world, the dark crimson chakra began receding from Naruto's body, ultimately vanishing completely, leaving behind an unconscious Naruto.
Kagaya also deactivated his Susanoo. Although he had just taken three Tailed Beast Bombs head-on, at the very last moment, Kagaya had armored his Susanoo with its protective plating, so he had suffered no significant harm.
Letting out a sigh, Kagaya extended his senses. Jiraiya was still present in the distance. Paying Naruto no further mind, Kagaya departed with Karin and Haku.
Toward Naruto's act of helping Haku, Kagaya was very grateful. But unfortunately, he couldn't possibly return to the Leaf Village. Helping to suppress the Nine-Tails would have to serve as a small token of his repayment.
Jiraiya looked out over the vast swaths of land that had been completely leveled and razed flat. He couldn't help but draw in a sharp breath.
"To single-handedly subdue a rampaging Jinchuriki... Uchiha Kagaya... just what level has your current strength reached?"
In truth, Jiraiya himself could also subdue a rampaging Naruto. But at most, up to around three or four tails. As for five tails... that would truly be too much for Jiraiya to handle.
It wasn't that it was absolutely impossible. If he staked his life on it, he probably could. But there was absolutely no way he could do it as effortlessly and nonchalantly as Kagaya, without sustaining even the slightest injury.
For a fleeting moment, Jiraiya even felt as though Kagaya was the Tailed Beast, and the Nine-Tails was just an ordinary shinobi.
An ordinary shinobi challenging a Tailed Beast with everything they had—now wouldn't that be perfectly normal?
*****
Year 62 of the Leaf Calendar.
This was the year that plunged every single underground organization into utter despair.
Within a short span of just half a month, the underground organizations were nearly entirely wiped out, almost to the point of complete annihilation. This was something beyond imagination.
"Did one of the great nations make a move?"
"Probably. Which great nation do you think it was?"
"Silence!"
Throughout the shinobi world, most people above the rank of Chunin were discussing this matter. Yet almost no one dared to say too much. After all, this incident involved far, far too many things.
For instance, what exactly did these so-called "underground organizations" do? Simply put, they handled affairs that couldn't see the light of day.
And among them, quite a few specifically served and carried out tasks for various great nations.
Back when Kagaya was still in the Akatsuki, he himself had also accepted missions from great nations, things like that. In short, there were far too many to count or describe clearly.
Therefore, the annihilation of the underground organizations directly implicated the Five Great Nations.
Who would dare to speak recklessly about a matter of this magnitude?
Amidst this storm, only a very few organizations were spared—such as the Akatsuki.
"We didn't participate." Obito spoke thusly. Wearing his mask, he made it impossible for Kagaya to see his expression.
Kagaya let out a cold laugh.
"Is that so? Are you sure?"
"Of course. Our Akatsuki didn't participate in this matter at any point whatsoever."
"Naturally, I don't suspect the Akatsuki. The Akatsuki's objective isn't me. The one I suspect... is you!"
Beneath Obito's mask, his eyes flickered with an almost imperceptible ripple.
"If you're unwilling to believe me, then there's nothing I can do about it."
Kagaya narrowed his eyes and stared at Obito, sneering coldly.
"You... will definitely pay the price for what you've done. Uchiha..."
For the final two words, Kagaya didn't utter them aloud. Instead, he merely mouthed them silently.
Then, Kagaya departed.
Although Kagaya deeply suspected that Obito was the one who had acted, now was truly not the time to excessively target Obito. If pushed too far, and they prematurely resurrected Madara, it would be a complete disaster. A resurrected Madara would possess the Rinnegan.
Nagato having the Rinnegan was something Kagaya didn't particularly mind. But once Madara obtained the Rinnegan, he would be a true, invincible final boss.
The day Kagaya himself obtained the Rinnegan... that would be the day he settled accounts with Obito.
After Kagaya left, an immense, overwhelming terror arose from the very depths of Obito's heart. His eyes flew wide open, so much so that countless bloodshot veins became visible.
"Th-this... this bastard..."
At the very end, the word Kagaya hadn't spoken aloud—Obito had seen them with perfect clarity.
The name Kagaya had mouthed at the end... hadn't been "Uchiha Madara."
It had been "Uchiha Obito."
"How does he know?!"