"Stop that Matsushita Taiichi right now!"
Because the sealing was incomplete, Sand's jinchuriki could only release Shukaku's power in stages. That gave Taiichi a real window to keep attacking. If the jinchuriki died before he fully transformed, Sand would lose face in the worst way. Worse, if it ruined their entire war plan, everyone involved would be branded traitors.
Sand ninja all around turned and rushed toward Taiichi, trying to cut him off before he could land another hit on the jinchuriki.
Taiichi went on full alert. He drew his short sword again and moved fast—slashing, blocking, deflecting kunai and blades coming from every direction. Water bullets formed around him and shot out to knock wind blades out of the air. For a moment he was buried in attackers, forced to defend instead of pressing the jinchuriki.
The golden flames still burned around the jinchuriki. Ryo kept screaming in agony, but Shukaku's power kept regenerating the damage. Burn, heal, burn, heal. He staggered toward the river, barely staying on his feet through the pain. Most Sand ninja were too busy trying to swarm Taiichi to notice. Killing the White Death here would be a huge win for them.
A few farther back did notice something was wrong. The flames were still there, but the screaming had stopped. Bad thoughts started forming.
Before any water-style users could douse the fire, a violent surge of chakra exploded from inside the burning mass. The blast scattered the flames and knocked several nearby Sand ninja flying.
Then the ground itself erupted. Massive amounts of sand and earth poured toward the jinchuriki from every direction. In seconds a fifty-meter-tall monster stood on the battlefield.
The entire field went silent for a heartbeat.
Then a piercing, earsplitting screech tore across the river.
"I'm finally out!"
Shukaku's arrogant roar echoed over both armies. It had broken free of the seal and returned to the open world.
From the Leaf rear, Jiraiya and his group had pushed close enough to see the massive shape clearly through the thinning smoke.
"Sand really fucked up. They let the Tailed Beast go completely berserk."
Jiraiya didn't know yet that Taiichi was the reason it had happened.
"Send word to the front lines. Pull everyone back from the area around the Tailed Beast. Now."
On Sand's side, Rasa and the higher-ups had seen everything. They knew exactly who was responsible.
All of this was because of Matsushita Taiichi. If he hadn't jumped in and interrupted the jinchuriki's transformation, things would never have escalated this far. Now Shukaku was fully loose. It didn't care who was Sand or Leaf. To it, everyone was prey. If anything, it probably hated Sand more for keeping it sealed so long.
"Get the sealing unit ready. We can't afford to lose the Tailed Beast."
Rasa started moving toward the fight but held back from jumping in immediately. He needed to see what Shukaku would do first.
Shukaku didn't disappoint. Standing with one foot in the river, it looked down at the water like it was disgusted, then shook its leg hard like a wet dog. After that it scanned the battlefield, completely ignoring the Sand and Leaf ninja around it. Its gaze locked straight onto Taiichi.
Its giant claws pointed right at him.
"Ah—there you are. Found the one I want to kill!"
Taiichi's face darkened. Fucking raccoon. No sense of gratitude at all. Sand kept you locked up for years and you come out swinging at me?
Shukaku didn't give him time to think. Its stomach swelled, its mouth opened wide, and it fired a huge compressed wind bullet.
Wind Style: Drilling Air Bullet.
Taiichi was already moving. He threw several Flying Thunder God kunai in different directions and teleported the instant the bullet came screaming in.
The explosion ripped a massive chunk out of the ground. Several Sand ninja who couldn't get clear were torn apart by the blast.
Taiichi reappeared and immediately started throwing more marked kunai farther out, using Flying Thunder God to reposition around Shukaku and plant as many escape points as possible.
"You annoying little bug. Let's see you dodge this—Drilling Air Barrage!"
Shukaku started rapid-firing the wind bullets, chasing Taiichi across the field. Both Sand and Leaf forces scattered in panic, running for their lives.
Taiichi didn't make it easy for Sand. He deliberately ran through the densest clusters of their ninja, forcing Shukaku's attacks to tear through their own people. Limbs and bodies went flying.
Rasa had seen enough. Too many of his own were dying to their own Tailed Beast.
Magnet Release: Gold Sand Wave.
A massive wave of gold sand surged out and blocked Taiichi's path while also knocking several of his marked kunai out of the air.
Taiichi was forced to stop. The area around him cleared fast.
Then a familiar blond figure came charging through the chaos.
Minato flashed in beside him. Before he could even speak, another Drilling Air Bullet came screaming in. Taiichi grabbed Minato's arm and teleported them both clear.
They landed fifty meters away and immediately moved again.
"Minato-sensei, what are you doing here?"
"I got here when the jinchuriki first showed up, but I had to circle around the main fight. Then the Tailed Beast went full berserk. I sent the others to different sectors and came alone to check."
Minato spoke fast but clearly. Taiichi glanced at the giant raccoon, then at his teacher. Minato was strong against people. Against something this size, his usual attacks wouldn't do much.
Taiichi pulled a storage scroll from his pouch and tossed it over. "Minato-sensei, I'll keep Shukaku busy. You plant these Flying Thunder God kunai around the area. The more escape points I have, the better."
Minato caught the scroll, understood immediately, and nodded. "Be careful."
He vanished with Flying Thunder God to start spreading the markers.
Rasa had been about to interfere when he saw Minato appear, but the moment he recognized the Yellow Flash he stopped. Those two were too slippery. Better to let Shukaku deal with them. Then Minato just planted a few kunai and left again.
Rasa was about to turn his attention back to the main battle when a loud voice boomed from above.
"Fourth Kazekage! Your opponent is me—Jiraiya of Mount Myoboku, the Toad Sage!"
Jiraiya came crashing down from the sky, hands already forming seals. A roaring storm of wind blades slammed toward Rasa, forcing him to raise gold sand to block. The recoil let Jiraiya land safely.
"Taiichi, keep the Tailed Beast occupied. I've got the Kazekage. The main front is already in our favor. Now we finish them."
Jiraiya's words were for both Taiichi and Rasa. He immediately started pressuring the Kazekage with ninjutsu and closed in for close combat, refusing to let Rasa take to the air.
Back with Taiichi, he finally had breathing room. Jiraiya was handling Rasa. Minato was spreading more markers. Taiichi could already feel the network of Flying Thunder God kunai growing around him.
Time to go all out and see exactly how he stacked up against a complete Tailed Beast.
He scanned the battlefield quickly. Shukaku's Drilling Air Bullets had torn up the riverbed. Water from upstream was flooding the area, turning everything into a muddy, waterlogged mess. Perfect for him.
But he could make it even better.
Taiichi formed the release seal with his right hand.
"Yin Seal—release."
The diamond mark on his forehead spread across his body in intricate lines. Massive amounts of stored chakra flooded his system. If a Byakugan user had been watching, they would've seen his chakra reserves spike to nearly match Shukaku's.
Both the Tailed Beast and Rasa noticed the sudden surge. Shukaku grew wary. Rasa narrowed his eyes—this had to be some kind of secret technique. It couldn't last forever.
Jiraiya recognized it immediately and felt a flash of pride. Taiichi had taken the Yin Seal this far already.
Taiichi didn't waste time. He slammed his hands together.
Water Style: Great Waterfall Wave.
A massive torrent exploded from beneath him, lifting him thirty meters into the air on a pillar of water. The flood kept spreading until it swallowed Shukaku up to its waist, trapping the giant raccoon in a huge, churning sphere of water.
Shukaku's movements slowed immediately. It struggled and fired Drilling Air Bullets into the water, trying to break free.
Taiichi took the opening. He flashed in close, finished another set of seals, and slammed his palms into the water.
Water Style: Water Severing Wave.
High-pressure water jets screamed out and punched clean holes through Shukaku's sand body. Taiichi adjusted the angle and the jets started carving deep wounds across the Tailed Beast. One clean cut even sheared off one of its arms.
Shukaku let out a furious screech. Whether from pain or rage, it stopped trying to dodge. It started gathering chakra for a Tailed Beast Bomb right there in the water.
Taiichi's eyes sharpened. A Tailed Beast Bomb would be way worse than the wind bullets. If it went off inside this water sphere, he wasn't sure the whole thing would hold.
He pulled his hands from the water and sprinted straight at Shukaku. The Tailed Beast Bomb was almost ready. He was still twenty meters away. He pushed Body Flicker to the limit, threw a marked kunai, and teleported the moment he could.
He reappeared right above Shukaku's head—
Only to be met by two massive clawed hands.
Smack.
Shukaku clapped its paws together like it was swatting a fly, trapping Taiichi between them. It started grinding its hands together, trying to crush him into paste.
"Iyaaa! Finally dead! You annoying little bug made me hurt so bad!"