Two Tailed Beasts clash, a forest nearly disappears, and Souma once again proves that chaos tends to follow wherever he goes.
"Souma, what exactly have you done this time?!"
Tsunade's expression was far from pleasant.
She had skipped work intending to drag Souma out for a drink—talk about Konoha's recent situation and some of her future plans. Instead, the moment she arrived, Souma had presented her with a massive surprise.
Deep within the Forest of Death, the smoke slowly settled.
When the dust finally cleared, an enormous crater remained in the ground. Aside from the two Tailed Beasts sitting inside it, nothing else had survived.
Tsunade's face darkened.
She took several deep breaths before flashing forward with a Body Flicker, appearing beside Souma.
Tenten shrank back in fright at first, instinctively hiding behind him. But a moment later she realized how serious the situation was.
Souma's in big trouble… I have to help explain!
So she stepped forward again, stammering nervously.
"Lady T-Tsunade… Souma was just testing a ninjutsu. Yes, testing a ninjutsu!"
"That's right," Souma quickly added. "Kurama said he had a new Tailed Beast Bomb to test. Then Shukaku insisted on competing with him… and it turned into this."
As he spoke, Souma shot Kurama a subtle look.
Kurama wasn't stupid.
He immediately understood the meaning behind Souma's glance—
If you don't want Shukaku to find out the truth, back me up.
After all, Kurama had only managed to fire that new Tailed Beast Bomb because of Souma's assistance. With the limited power of this avatar, he normally couldn't compress the chakra that quickly.
And more importantly—
The original idea for the technique had been copied from one of Souma's jutsu.
Kurama lifted his head proudly.
"Indeed. I spent a long time thinking and developed a new technique. Naturally I needed a test subject, so I used that stinky tanuki. The results speak for themselves."
He glanced sideways at Shukaku.
"As expected… the stinky tanuki is still weak. Souma, release Gyūki. Let's test it on him too."
"You cheating fox!" Shukaku immediately roared. "There's no way you could fire a Tailed Beast Bomb that fast. How are you stronger than me by that much?!"
Kurama narrowed his eyes.
"I wasn't using twenty percent chakra."
He paused smugly.
"This body only has ten percent of my chakra."
"???"
Everyone present stared in confusion.
Everyone except Souma.
"Yang-attribute chakra," Souma said calmly. "I noticed it when I helped split your chakra earlier. Your main body only contains Yang chakra, while the clone has both Yin and Yang."
"That's because that portion of chakra was collected on that night," Kurama snorted, glancing toward the Hokage Rock.
"That man split my chakra in half. So my true body now only has half of what it once did."
"..."
Shukaku sat down heavily.
He had already shrunk back into his smaller form, but his expression looked completely shaken.
The Kurama he had just fought… only had one-tenth of his former chakra?
But Shukaku himself had half his chakra!
In the past, whenever he lost to Kurama, he could blame it on chakra differences.
But now…
He had just been defeated in a single attack.
Am I really that weak?
Shukaku's thoughts spiraled into chaos.
Kurama actually felt a faint trace of guilt.
After all, he had technically cheated.
When he bragged about defeating Shukaku in one move, part of it was confidence in the new technique…
But the other part was simple reality.
He didn't have enough chakra left for a second shot.
Kurama glanced sideways before stiffly offering consolation.
"Hmph. That's because I know how to innovate. A Tailed Beast like you that refuses to think will always remain at the bottom."
"???"
Shukaku immediately jumped up.
"You fox who can't even use sealing techniques has the nerve to say that? When it comes to thinking, I'm definitely smarter than you!"
Kurama sneered.
"Hardly convincing."
The two Tailed Beasts instantly resumed arguing.
But one thing was certain—
Shukaku's fighting spirit had returned.
The focus of his pride had simply shifted from strength to intelligence.
It could only be said…
Kurama truly understood Shukaku.
He knew exactly how to motivate him.
Standing nearby, Souma struggled to suppress his laughter.
Then he remembered Tsunade was still beside him and quickly forced his expression back into a serious one.
Tsunade's attention had already shifted to Kurama.
She grabbed Souma's arm and pulled him aside.
"Is it true that Kurama only has half his chakra now?"
"Yes," Souma replied quietly. "This clone's chakra probably came from that boy named Sora. That's why the Yin and Yang chakra inside him are unbalanced."
He answered normally without using mental transmission.
After all, Kurama could clearly hear Tsunade speaking. Using secret communication would only look suspicious.
But the next moment, Souma added a mental message anyway.
I suspect the Fourth Hokage did it. The other half of Kurama's chakra should be with him.
"???"
Tsunade stared at Souma in shock.
Kurama's Yin chakra had indeed been sealed inside Minato.
But Minato was already dead.
His physical body definitely didn't contain it anymore.
Which meant…
It could only exist in his soul.
But according to everything she knew, souls sealed by the Dead Demon Consuming Seal were trapped inside the Shinigami's stomach, unable to reach the afterlife.
She remained silent for several seconds before letting out a quiet sigh.
The Fourth Hokage had truly done everything possible for Konoha and Naruto.
Unfortunately…
He probably never imagined that after his death, the Third Hokage and Danzō would treat Naruto like that.
If he had known…
Would Minato still have made the same choice?
Tsunade didn't know the answer.
But if she were Naruto's mother…
If something like that had happened to her child…
She doubted she could make the same decision again.
Just then, several figures appeared nearby.
Tsunade waved them away.
"Ninjutsu testing. Nothing serious. Maintain order and return to your duties."
"Yes!"
The ANBU vanished again.
Tsunade glanced at the arguing Tailed Beasts, then at Souma.
She couldn't help sighing.
"Even if this was just testing a jutsu, try not to make such a mess next time. The commotion was huge—I thought a Tailed Beast had gone berserk."
"Yes, yes. I'll be careful next time."
"There's a next time?"
"..."
Souma fell silent and nodded obediently.
Tenten, standing nearby, struggled to hold back her laughter.
But when the Tailed Beast Bomb had exploded earlier, the pressure had truly been terrifying.
For a moment she had nearly lost control of the barrier, allowing the Tailed Beast chakra to leak out.
Souma must have helped stabilize it.
She glanced at him, feeling a sudden sense of regret.
Tenten, Tenten…
You can't keep obsessing over ninja tools forever.
You need to study harder and master Flying Thunder God as soon as possible.
Starting today—
She would reduce the time she spent forging and researching weapons.
That decision settled firmly in her heart.
"Lord Souma," Kimimaro said quietly. "If there's nothing else…"
"Go get some rest," Souma nodded. "I'll discuss a plan with Lady Tsunade and talk with you later about your condition."
Kimimaro silently nodded and returned to the small cabin deeper in the forest.
Tsunade watched him leave.
"You've already come up with a treatment plan?"
"Yes. But I'll need your approval. Otherwise we'll have to settle for a second-best option."
"Let's hear it."
"The first plan is the one I mentioned earlier—using the First Hokage's cells."
Souma began explaining his analysis.
Hashirama's cells possessed tremendous vitality.
They could compensate for Kimimaro's deteriorating body, while Kimimaro's own bloodline ability might suppress the uncontrolled growth of Hashirama's cells.
Tsunade walked slowly through the forest as she listened.
When Souma finished explaining the first plan, she thought for a long time.
"Your theory is based on speculation," she said finally. "What if you're wrong? What if the First Hokage's chakra causes his bloodline limit to evolve even further?"
"That's possible," Souma admitted calmly. "If that happens… we can only say his luck was bad."
Kimimaro's condition was already critical.
If Souma hadn't sealed the curse mark earlier, he might already be dead.
Every extra day he lived was borrowed time.
Using Hashirama cells…
Was still a gamble.
Tsunade considered it before asking,
"What's your second plan?"
"Using my cells… along with the cells from Danzō's arm."
"???"
Tsunade stared at him.
Then she remembered—Souma's cells also carried unusual vitality and some characteristics of a Sage Body.
He had mentioned it before while discussing modifications to the Curse Mark.
After thinking for a moment, she shook her head.
"Not suitable."
"Hm?"
"Your cells resonate strongly with natural energy. If transplanted, they might strengthen the Sage transformation tendencies of the Hashirama cells in that arm."
Tsunade spoke seriously.
"I'll research it for a while and see if I can develop a safer method. He still has one or two months left, right?"
"Yes."
Souma nodded.
Tsunade hesitated, then added quietly,
"If we could obtain the original cells from that arm, that would be ideal."
"I'll look into it," Souma said. "The old base might contain relevant records."
"Good."
After agreeing, Tsunade finally revealed the real reason she had come.
A forbidden technique.
Mutually Multiplying Explosive Tags.
The jutsu belonged to the category of forbidden techniques, but Tsunade suspected Souma might improve it.
And some of the knowledge behind it might prove useful to him.
Souma listened carefully and quickly grasped its principles.
The Second Hokage truly had been a genius.
At its core, the technique was a variant of the Summoning Technique—creating a chain of endlessly summoning explosive tags.
He accepted it without hesitation.
Tsunade didn't bother asking whether he had memorized it.
Questions like that only made her feel worse.
"This isn't really a reward," she said with a smile. "Just an exchange. I couldn't think of anything else to give you."
Souma nodded.
"I understand. Don't worry—I won't misuse it."
"Before today, I would have believed that," Tsunade replied dryly.
Her eyes drifted toward the giant crater left by the Tailed Beast Bomb.
It was still there.
Souma coughed awkwardly.
"That was Kurama's fault. I really couldn't refuse."
"Sure," Tsunade said with a cold smile.
"Come on. Let's get a drink. With you and Jiraiya both gone, I can't even find anyone to drink with anymore."
"Lady Tsunade… I'm still a minor."
"Minor my foot," she scoffed. "What kind of child acts like you?"
She slung an arm around his shoulders.
"We're going to your house."
"Maybe yours instead," Souma replied quickly. "My place is a little small."
"Oh right."
Tsunade smacked her forehead.
"I nearly forgot. Move out of that tiny place already. With all the money you have, it's ridiculous to keep using village subsidies."
"Then I'll have to buy a house…"
"No need."
Tsunade waved her hand.
"I've already prepared one for you. Shizune cleaned it up recently. It used to belong to my grand-uncle."
Souma froze.
"The Second Hokage's house?"
"Yes. The important books have already been moved away," Tsunade said casually. "What's left isn't anything special. You can have them."
"..."
Souma stared at her in shock.
Even if the most important texts were gone…
They were still Tobirama's books.
That alone made them priceless.
"That's more than enough," Souma said gratefully. "Thank you, Lady Tsunade."
"Save the thanks," she replied. "Just try not to cause trouble. The situation with the Hidden Cloud isn't even resolved yet, and now you've created another Tailed Beast incident."
Souma didn't have the heart to tell her—
He had originally planned to create a third Tailed Beast as well.
But now…
He had to reconsider.
Too many Tailed Beasts in the Forest of Death wasn't stable.
And Gyūki was different from the others.
His loyalty to Killer B was absolute.
Convincing him to cooperate with Souma would be extremely difficult.
Maybe…
It was better to handle Gyūki another way.
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