"Ugh… ah…"
A strained, muffled sound forced its way out from between Samui's clenched teeth.
Sweat burst forth instantly, soaking through the lining of her clothes and her white flak jacket. The damp, chilling fabric clung tightly to her skin.
Her short, pale-gold hair stuck messily to her cheeks, and a few strands were even caught unconsciously between her lips, bitten down by her own teeth.
"I assume you don't wish to continue experiencing the pain of interrogation."
Kiyohara spoke calmly.
Because this was genjutsu, it merely deceived the brain into believing such torment was occurring; in reality, there was little true physical damage.
Of course, that also meant Samui could endure a much longer session of this so-called "electroshock therapy."
"I… won't talk…"
The words were forced out through trembling lips. Her blue eyes stared fixedly at Kiyohara, though her pupils were already slightly unfocused from the agony.
In the fleeting gaps between waves of pain, Samui kept biting the tip of her tongue. The sharp, self-inflicted sting helped her resist slipping deeper into Kiyohara's hypnosis.
Countless images flashed through her mind.
The towering Raikage Rock of Kumogakure, gleaming brilliantly beneath the sunlight.
On the training grounds, Killer B-sensei's clumsy rap verses mixed with his stern instruction.
Yugito demonstrating taijutsu with a cold expression, yet secretly slipping her an extra ration pill during breaks.
And the comrades she had grown up with—sitting around a bonfire between missions, sharing the fiery liquor that was a specialty of the Land of Lightning…
Bonds.
This was what a Cloud shinobi treasured above all else!
Kiyohara raised an eyebrow slightly.
An ordinary jōnin should have collapsed long ago under this level of genjutsu interrogation.
"Interesting."
He noted that Samui's willpower was quite impressive. However, pressed for time, he simply increased the output of his genjutsu.
The moment her consciousness wavered—
He seized the opportunity and began extracting intelligence.
Samui's gaze gradually turned vacant.
Whatever Kiyohara asked, she answered.
"How many came?"
"We came…"
"What ninjutsu can you use?"
"I can…"
"Are there any reinforcements still on the way?"
"…"
Just as Kiyohara continued pressing for information, an enraged shout echoed from outside the cave.
"Let go of Samui!"
Yugito had finally arrived.
Kiyohara withdrew his ocular power. Samui collapsed to the ground in relief, gasping for breath, her body still trembling faintly.
With difficulty, she lifted her head toward the cave entrance. Hope flickered in her eyes.
Lady Yugito… has come…
She was saved!
Kiyohara turned around and looked toward the entrance.
Nii Yugito stood there—but her condition was completely different from before.
Dark red Tailed Beast chakra flowed over her body like liquid, cloaking her form. She crouched on all fours, hips raised high, a tail formed of chakra swaying behind her.
Feline whisker-like markings appeared on her cheeks. Her pupils had become vertical slits, and her teeth had sharpened into fangs.
She looked like a wild beast coiled and ready to spring.
"What a fierce little wildcat."
Kiyohara commented lightly.
The true form of the Two-Tails, Matatabi, was that of a monstrous demon cat.
In the myths and legends of the shinobi world, such demon cats were harbingers of misfortune.
Hearing herself called that, the ferocity in Yugito's eyes intensified.
She could see Samui's miserable state inside the cave—
The tear stains not yet dry upon her face, the sheen of sweat, the way her flak jacket clung tightly to her body after being drenched…
This brat from Konoha had dared to treat Samui like this!
"You will regret this."
Yugito clenched her fists in fury.
"Will I?"
Kiyohara replied calmly.
As the Two-Tails' jinchūriki, Yugito was not a perfect host like Killer B, but she could still draw upon a considerable portion of her Tailed Beast's power.
Such an opponent was extremely dangerous.
If she were to unleash a Tailed Beast Bomb, not only this cave but the entire valley might be flattened.
Yet Kiyohara showed no panic.
The Sharingan—
In a sense, it was the contingency the Sage of Six Paths had left behind for all the Tailed Beasts.
Uchiha Madara could control the Nine-Tails with his Sharingan. Uchiha Obito could control the Three-Tails. Naturally, Kiyohara also had a way to deal with the Two-Tails.
Of course, those two possessed the Mangekyō Sharingan.
But merely interfering with the Two-Tails—Kiyohara could still manage that.
He only needed a brief moment of disruption. With his mobility, escaping would be easy.
"Die!"
Yugito wasted no more words. Her four limbs pushed off the ground simultaneously.
BOOM!
The earth exploded beneath her feet as she crossed twenty meters in an instant, claws slashing toward Kiyohara's throat.
Her speed was so great it left afterimages trailing behind her.
Kiyohara did not dodge.
He raised his right arm in front of him.
In that instant, the skin of his arm turned pitch-black, gleaming with a metallic luster.
Steel Release!
Earth Release: Earth Spear!
Double hardening!
Clang!
A deafening metallic crash echoed through the cave.
Yugito's sharp white claws raked fiercely against Kiyohara's arm, sending brilliant sparks flying.
Her pupils shrank.
Her claws could easily tear through steel, yet now they left only faint white scratches on his arm—and those marks were already fading at a visible speed.
"How is this possible…?"
"Little wildcat, being this impatient won't earn you an owner."
Kiyohara spoke coolly as his right arm suddenly surged with force, knocking Yugito's claws aside.
He had not relied solely on Steel Release—Earth Spear jutsu had reinforced it as well.
Mere tearing force was insufficient to break his defense.
Yugito stumbled back two steps. Suspicion flickered in her eyes, but soon transformed into a cold smile.
"A hardening-type technique? Impressive. But how long can you maintain it? It consumes chakra. Can you outlast me?"
As a jinchūriki, her chakra reserves far surpassed those of ordinary shinobi.
In a battle of endurance, she held absolute advantage.
The next moment, Yugito lunged again.
But just as her claws were about to touch Kiyohara's throat—
A faint rumble of thunder sounded.
Crackle!
Blue lightning erupted from Kiyohara's body, flowing like liquid and enveloping him entirely. His black hair danced within the electric glow, arcs of azure lightning leaping across his skin.
Lightning Release Chakra Mode!
"What?!"
Yugito's claws struck his body—but instead of tearing flesh, she felt a sharp numbing sensation.
Startled, she immediately halted her assault and leapt backward.
She recognized this technique all too well. It was Kumogakure's Lightning Release technique and not just any technique but the signature ability of the Raikage through the generations!
Ordinary Cloud shinobi could only stimulate parts of their bodies. Only the Raikage and a select few prodigies could cloak themselves entirely in Lightning Release chakra, gaining unparalleled speed and defense.
How could this brat from Konoha possibly have mastered it?
"You… where did you steal that from?!"
Yugito's voice trembled with undisguised shock.
Kiyohara casually rotated his wrist, the lightning flickering across his body flowing and shifting with the motion.
"Steal? I saw it openly on the battlefield. As for why I learned it…"
He paused briefly.
"I'm a genius. I learned it at a glance. Is that so hard to understand?"
The statement was half true, half false.
The Sharingan had indeed copied the chakra circulation pattern when the Raikage used the technique, but truly mastering it required extraordinarily refined chakra control.
Kiyohara just happened to possess both. The Sharingan provided the template; his spiritual energy and natural affinity for Lightning Release chakra allowed him to reproduce it.
Yugito's heart trembled violently.
She had seen many prodigies before, but a monster like Kiyohara, someone who could learn Lightning Release Chakra Mode after seeing it only once, she had never encountered.
Lightning Release Chakra Mode might be classified as a B-rank jutsu in terms of difficulty, yet in reality it demanded terrifying prerequisites.
Three conditions had to be met to master it.
First, one needed a chakra reserve far beyond that of ordinary shinobi.
Second, one had to release chakra throughout the entire body—requiring extremely fine chakra control.
Third, one needed a strong physical constitution; otherwise, the lightning coursing through the body would backfire and cause self-inflicted injury.
"Even if you've learned Lightning Release Chakra Mode, so what?"
Yugito suppressed her shock and once again assumed a combat stance.
"You just learned it. How much of its power can you truly bring out?"
Her chakra surged continuously. The Two-Tails' chakra mixed into her network of meridians and spilled outward.
Before her words had fully settled, she charged again.
This time she was faster—stronger. The chakra coating her claws had grown so dense it was almost tangible.
Kiyohara did not retreat. Instead, he stepped forward to meet her.
He raised his hand, clenched his fist, and slightly lowered his stance.
Then—he threw a punch.
Magnet Release: Magnetic Field Rotation!
An invisible magnetic field radiated outward from him, and the ground beneath his feet trembled faintly.
This was not ordinary magnetism manipulation. He borrowed the power of the earth itself, rotating the magnetic field to amplify his own physical force.
There were no flashy techniques—only pure strength and speed.
Fist and claw collided in an instant.
BOOM!
A terrifying shockwave exploded outward from the point of impact. The cave walls cracked like spiderwebs, and chunks of stone rained down.
Samui was blown backward into the stone wall with a thud before collapsing onto the ground again.
Outside the cave, the snow was blasted away in an instant, revealing the frozen brown soil beneath.
Disbelief appeared on Yugito's face.
Her chakra claws shattered.
A sharp pain shot through her right hand as she was sent flying backward.
The Two-Tails' chakra could enhance both the strength and length of her nails, and once imbued with Tailed Beast chakra, they were harder and sharper than most ninja tools.
"Lady Yugito!"
Samui cried out.
Yugito adjusted her posture midair and landed on her feet, but she still slid backward more than ten meters before stopping, carving two deep furrows into the ground.
She looked down at her right hand. One of the bones was broken.
Tailed Beast chakra rapidly began repairing it, but the pain remained sharp and vivid.
She lifted her head and stared into the cave at Kiyohara.
He stood amid the dust, lightning crackling continuously around him.
"Impossible…"
Yugito muttered to herself.
She was the Two-Tails' jinchūriki! With Tailed Beast chakra augmenting her, her physical strength surpassed that of many Cloud shinobi.
Even if he had used Lightning Release Chakra Mode and some kind of strength-enhancing technique, he should not have been able to shatter her chakra claws with a single punch and send her flying that far.
Kiyohara, however, did not pause. He pressed the attack.
Caught off guard, Yugito had no time to breathe before being struck by another punch.
This time, however, she reacted more quickly. Just before crashing into a tree, she twisted midair like a cat and landed gracefully.
Lightning flashed—and Kiyohara was already upon her again.
Her shattered nails had regrown, and she clashed once more against his fist.
The sounds of repeated collisions echoed continuously.
"Your strength is impressive," Kiyohara remarked casually, "but you're too young."
Yugito was even younger than Rin; naturally, she could not fully withstand the burden of Tailed Beast power.
With Kiyohara holding the advantage in speed, he pressed her relentlessly, never giving her the opportunity to form a Tailed Beast Bomb.
"And your chakra control is crude. The Tailed Beast chakra gives you vast reserves, but your utilization remains at the level of a beast's pounce."
Those words struck directly at Yugito's pride.
She was Kumo's pride!
What right did this Konoha brat have to judge her?
"Hmph."
The crimson chakra around Yugito suddenly shifted to a deep, ghostly blue.
Like blue flames, it enveloped her body, black curse-like patterns swirling across its surface.
A second chakra tail slowly formed behind her.
Seeing this, Samui felt a flicker of relief.
Two tails—this was Lady Yugito's semi-Tailed Beast transformation state.
In this form, her strength, speed, and recovery would surge dramatically.
"Lady Yugito, you can do it!"
Samui shouted, hope rekindling in her blue eyes.
Yugito did not respond. Her focus was entirely on Kiyohara.
His movements were too fast—any distraction would mean being struck.
She had already been hit several times.
The immense defensive power and regenerative capacity granted by Tailed Beast chakra allowed her to continue fighting.
She seized a fleeting opening and formed hand seals.
"Fire Mouse Hairball!"
She opened her mouth and expelled dozens of blue chakra spheres the size of basketballs.
The spheres scattered through the air as if alive, then attacked Kiyohara from all directions, each radiating terrifying heat.
More frightening still, chakra threads extended from Yugito's ten fingers, manipulating each sphere's trajectory.
These blue chakra masses could be remotely controlled at will, adjusting angles instantly and making them nearly impossible to guard against.
Kiyohara gazed at the dozens of incoming blue fireballs without changing expression.
He inhaled deeply, his chest swelling, and completed his hand seals.
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"
Blazing flames poured from his mouth like a waterfall—not merely a fireball, but a roaring torrent of fire.
Fueled by his chakra, the fireball expanded beyond ten meters, like a surging inferno that swallowed every blue chakra sphere whole.
BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM!!!
A chain of explosions reverberated through the valley.
Blue and red flames intertwined, and the intense heat vaporized all the surrounding snow.
When the flames dissipated, Kiyohara still stood in place. The hem of his clothing bore scorch marks, but he himself was uninjured.
Yugito's pupils contracted sharply.
Just how much chakra did this guy possess?
And that size—was that truly the Great Fireball Technique?
She had fought Uchiha shinobi before, but she had never seen anyone produce a fireball of that magnitude.
And such scale inevitably meant greater chakra consumption. Yet Kiyohara had already used Lightning Release Chakra Mode and Magnet Release, and still showed no sign of strain.
Could he be a jinchūriki as well?
No. Impossible.
Konoha had only the Nine-Tails' jinchūriki—a red-haired woman. It was not him.
"You—"
Yugito had just begun to speak when Kiyohara moved.
This time, his speed reached an entirely new level.
Magnet Release!
Leaf Body Flicker Technique!
Lightning Release Chakra Mode!
Though his Lightning Release Chakra Mode was not yet fully refined, it still granted significant enhancement.
Yugito saw his figure blur for a split second—then he was already in front of her.
So fast…
The thought had barely formed in her mind before his fist slammed into her abdomen.
Bang!
A dull impact resounded.
Yugito's body bent forward as the ghostly blue chakra cloak around her midsection rippled violently.
She was blasted backward, crashing through three dead trees before finally stopping.
"Cough… cough…"
She struggled to rise.
Impossible…
Tailed Beast chakra stimulated her cells, enhancing her physical abilities across the board.
Her current speed surpassed that of many elite jōnin.
Yet she had not even clearly seen Kiyohara's strike.
This monster… what exactly is he?
Kiyohara continued moving at high speed, lightning trailing behind him in long streaks.
The Sharingan's powerful dynamic vision allowed him to control his current velocity perfectly.
He smiled faintly. Yugito, in her current state, simply could not fully withstand the Tailed Beast's power.
Once chakra exceeded a certain threshold, it would tear at the body. Tailed Beast chakra was inherently corrosive as well.
When Naruto lost control, Yamato had once explained that the Tailed Beast cloak constantly tore Naruto's body apart even as it healed him, because the human chakra system was not designed to handle such overwhelming chakra.
Excess chakra would leak outward, and that dispersed chakra, seeking stability, would naturally gather back around the jinchūriki's body.
Only complete Tailed Beast transformation could truly unleash a Tailed Beast's full power.
Samui sat frozen in place on the cold cave floor.
Her blue eyes reflected the battle unfolding before her, her pupils slowly widening.
Lady Yugito… was actually being suppressed?
Samui bit down hard on her lower lip until the skin split, the salty, metallic taste of blood spreading through her mouth.
She wanted to stand. She wanted to help. But her body simply refused to obey her will.
The earlier genjutsu interrogation from Kiyohara had placed a heavy burden on her mind, and then she had been blasted into the cave wall by the shockwave of their clash.
Now every bone in her body ached as if cracked, and the flow of her chakra was in utter disarray.
"How… how could this be…"
Samui muttered under her breath.
In her understanding, Yugito was Kumo's pride.
At only twelve years old, she could already wield the power of the Two-Tails.
But now?
That Konoha shinobi named Kiyohara was pressing Lady Yugito down without mercy.
His speed was simply too fast. Yugito had no time to use anything beyond Fire Mouse Ball.
"Is this… the power of the Uchiha?"
Samui recalled the rumors within the village.
Kumo had clashed with Konoha many times. The name of the Uchiha clan was far from unfamiliar.
They were renowned throughout the shinobi world for their Sharingan and their mastery of Fire Release. Many powerful figures had emerged from that clan.
But someone like Kiyohara—who possessed Magnet Release, the Sharingan, and could replicate Lightning Release Chakra Mode after seeing it once—such a monster was unheard of.
On the battlefield, Kiyohara and Yugito continued their relentless clash.
Kiyohara began experimenting with Uchiha-style taijutsu against her.
He was practically treating Yugito like a high-durability training dummy, honing his own close-combat skills.
Yugito saw only a blur before Kiyohara appeared to her left, his ninja blade slicing toward her neck, wind-nature chakra flowing along its edge in a sharp current.
She hurriedly raised her left arm. Ghostly blue flames condensed over it, forming a dense layer of chakra.
Bang!
At the instant of impact, Kiyohara had already pivoted, using the rebound force to spin. His left leg lashed out like a whip toward Yugito's waist.
Lightning Release chakra coiled around that kick as well, its speed so extreme the air itself exploded with a sonic crack.
Yugito hastily blocked with her right arm.
Crash!
She staggered to the right, a bone-splitting pain erupting through her arm.
"Ah!"
She cried out and rolled twice across the ground before barely managing to rise.
She panted heavily, cold sweat beading across her forehead. The wounds along her back slowly knitted together under the Two-Tails' chakra, but the pain remained vivid.
Humiliation.
An unprecedented humiliation.
As the Two-Tails' jinchūriki of Kumogakure, when had she ever been suppressed like this?
And by someone nearly her own age?
Yugito glared at Kiyohara, fury blazing in her eyes.
The Tailed Beast chakra within her began surging more violently. Ghostly blue flames roared upward around her body, and the second chakra tail solidified completely.
"I'm going to… kill you!"
She stared at him with murderous intent.
Kiyohara stood still, breathing slightly heavier now.
'The chakra consumption is higher than expected. Lightning Release Chakra Mode boosts speed and defense, but its chakra drain is severe. Add to that the constant use of the Sharingan, Magnet Release, and Steel Release…'
He assessed the remaining chakra within his body.
'A jinchūriki's reserves are truly terrifying. If this continues, I'll exhaust myself first.'
He reached a swift conclusion.
His objective had already been achieved.
Drawing Yugito away to relieve pressure from the main battlefield.
A fair amount of time had passed since the battle began.
With Minato and Orochimaru's abilities, that window was more than enough for them to accomplish many things.
It was time to withdraw.
Kiyohara began forming hand seals.
The skin of his right arm darkened, taking on a metallic black sheen as Steel Release chakra fully infused it.
At the same time, Magnet Release chakra formed an invisible magnetic field around his arm.
The field began rotating at high speed, generating immense magnetic force.
These forces were precisely controlled along the surface of his arm, forming an invisible acceleration field.
Finally, Lightning Release chakra surged in.
Blue electricity crackled violently, merging with the magnetic field and producing an even stronger electromagnetic effect.
"Magnet Release: Electromagnetic Fist!"
Kiyohara shouted as his right fist shot forward.
This punch surpassed all his previous strikes in speed.
Yugito did not even see the motion of his arm—she only felt a crushing pressure descend upon her.
Her beast-like instincts screamed at her: do not block this head-on!
She tried to evade, but her body could not respond in time.
The fist was already there.
The two chakra tails behind her morphed into hand-like shapes, shielding her body.
Samui's eyes widened as she watched Kiyohara's fist collide with the Tailed Beast chakra.
BOOM!
From the point of impact, a visible spherical shockwave expanded outward in white rings.
The ceiling of the cave began collapsing. Massive stones crashed down.
Samui was hurled once more into the rock wall by the blast.
But she ignored her own injuries, forcing her eyes open to stare at the center of the battlefield.
Dust filled the air, obscuring everything.
When it finally began to clear, Samui saw a scene she would never forget.
Yugito's body was sent flying like a kite with its string cut, tracing a long arc through the air before smashing into the ground.
Cracks spiderwebbed across the frozen earth.
"Lady Yugito…"
Samui's voice trembled.
But there was no response.
Yugito was embedded in the mountainside, eyes closed, seemingly unconscious.
However, her body began to change.
Through the Sharingan's ability to perceive chakra flow, Kiyohara observed her closely.
Deep within, from the center of her abdomen, a mass of chakra began rapidly spilling outward.
'So that's the location of the seal?'
He pondered inwardly.
A seal, in essence, should function similarly to Tsunade's Strength of a Hundred Seal.
After all, a Tailed Beast was fundamentally a mass of chakra gathered together.
Only this mass possessed form—and consciousness.
'A pity. If I had a way to extract chakra, I could study the Two-Tails' chakra.'
He watched as more and more chakra poured from Yugito, growing denser and thicker.
Simultaneously, her body began swelling, enveloped by an expanding cloak of Tailed Beast chakra.
Samui's face turned deathly pale.
"This is bad… the Two-Tails… it's going berserk…"
As a Cloud shinobi, she knew exactly what that meant.
When a jinchūriki lost control, the Tailed Beast's will would dominate—transforming into a monster driven only by destruction.
The chakra continued expanding until it completely enveloped Yugito's body.
Then it began to solidify—forming muscle, bone…
A gigantic feline form emerged within the valley.
Its body stretched over twenty meters long, covered entirely in flowing azure flames marked with black patterns.
Two tall ears stood upright atop its head.
Its tail split into two massive appendages, each as long as its body, swaying slowly behind it.
Its eyes were heterochromatic—one green, one yellow.
That was the complete Tailed Beast form… the Two-Tails.
"ROAAAAR!"
The Two-Tails threw its head back and unleashed a deafening howl, the sound shaking the entire valley.
It lowered its massive head.
Its mismatched eyes locked onto Kiyohara.
(End of Chapter)