The scorching air of the Sea of Death was thick with the sll of blood, dust, and the suffocating, terrifying aura of the Tailed Beasts.
The One-Tail, Shukaku, stood frozen in place, its massive yellow eyes fixed on the distant Ten-Tails and the Dark Nine-Tails. A storm of shock and fear raged within it.
'That damn annoying fox, Nine-Tails! Just seeing it makes sick!' Shukaku cursed internally, but a deeper fear stemd from the Ten-Tails, a creature it had never seen but instinctively trembled before.
Although Shukaku had never laid eyes on the Ten-Tails' true form, all Nine Tailed Beasts were separated from its body. The oppressive feeling of a superior being from the sa origin, branded deep into its soul, made its massive body tremble slightly.
'Wait a minute...' Shukaku suddenly noticed that the dark red Nine-Tails greedily devouring Chakra on the Ten-Tails' back was different, both in Chakra color and the aura it emitted, from the golden, arrogant Kurama it knew.
It felt unfamiliar, tinged with emptiness and savagery.
'This guy... isn't Kurama?'
Just as Shukaku was stunned by this astonishing discovery, the enraged roar from below and the surging tide of gold dust drew its attention.
"Magnet Release: Gold Dust Wave!"
The dazzling gold dust surged skyward like a tidal wave, crashing towards nma, who hovered in the air.
Only then did Shukaku fully focus its gaze on the tiny human before it.
This look made its heart lurch again.
'This human...'
'There was indeed a trace of the Nine-Tails' Chakra clinging to him, but it was different from the one it knew… darker, deeper.'
'What's going on? Who is this brat?!'
Driven by successive questions and an indescribable irritation, Shukaku temporarily suppressed its fear of the distant Ten-Tails and turned its anger towards the airborne nma, letting out a low roar: "Hey! Brat over there! Get out of my way! This great one needs to see what's going on over there!"
Before the words fully left its mouth, Shukaku's massive belly swelled, its huge maw opening. A highly compressed air cannon containing vast chakra instantly took shape!
"Wind Release: Sand Air Bullet!"
The enormous ball of wind shot towards nma with a tearing shriek!
This single strike could easily obliterate a small hill.
Facing this Tailed Beast-level Ninjutsu attack, nma's hovering figure didn't budge. He simply raised the seemingly unremarkable black Chakra Rod in his hand and gave the incoming Sand Air Bullet a light, deflecting tap.
The massive wind ball, capable of splitting mountains and shattering rocks, veered off course as if hitting a billiard cue the mont it touched the black rod.
It flew past nma's side with an unwilling shriek and violently exploded on a distant sand dune!
Boom-!!!
A mushroom cloud of sand and dust billowed upwards, the powerful shockwave palpable even from afar.
"What?!" Shukaku's cross-pupils constricted sharply. This ti, it saw it clearly!
'That... that's a Chakra Black Rod?! How is that possible?!'
Shukaku knew all too well the origin of this ability!
That was a power used by the Sage of Six Paths, belonging to the realm of Yin-Yang Release!
For a thousand years, aside from that long-departed old man, it had never seen anyone else who could condense and use these black rods capable of disrupting, even sealing Chakra!
nma looked at the shocked and uncertain Shukaku ahead, feeling a bit surprised himself.
He hadn't expected Rasa to be so desperate on this mission, even bringing Gaara to the battlefield. Gaara should be about seven years old now, he calculated.
Looking at Shukaku's massive form, a thought crossed nma's mind: 'Perfect. Beat this noisy tanuki back and see what that kid Gaara is like now.'
Shukaku completely discarded any underestimation it might have had and felt an imnse threat.
Anyone who could use the Sage's power was no ordinary Ninja!
Shukaku opened its massive maw. Vast amounts of Chakra began to gather and compress frantically within its mouth. A purple-black sphere of energy, radiating an aura of destruction, rapidly took form.
Tailed Beast Bomb!
"Damn it! Everyone, scatter!" Rasa on the ground saw this and his face changed drastically. He shouted the warning while once again activating his Magnet Release. Golden sand waves, like countless giant pythons, surged towards the airborne nma, attempting to disrupt him and create an opening for Shukaku.
The veins around nma's left Byakugan bulged. He cast a cold glance at the incoming gold dust tide.
"Shinra Tensei."
An invisible, mighty repulsive force erupted from him as the center!
The surging gold dust tide, upon contacting the repulsive force field, seed to smash into an invisible, impregnable wall. It recoiled violently, exploding into a cloud of golden powder!
At that exact mont, Shukaku's Tailed Beast Bomb was fully ford!
"Take this, brat!" Shukaku roared, firing the Tailed Beast Bomb!
Whoosh-
The Tailed Beast Bomb tore through the sky!
However, just as it was about to hit its target, nma's figure vanished into thin air!
Boom-!!!
The Tailed Beast Bomb, having lost its target, slamd into the desert in the distance, causing an earth-shattering explosion!
Blinding light instantly swallowed everything. A massive mushroom cloud mixed with sand and dust shot into the sky. The destructive shockwave spread outwards like a tsunami!
"Argh!"
"Get down!"
Baki, Pakura, and the other Sunagakure's Ninja who were already injured and closer to the blast center had no ti to mount an effective defense. They were sent flying like leaves in a gale, scattered and falling haphazardly, their cries of pain rising one after another.
Only Rasa, Chiyo, and Ebizo, relying on their strong power and tily reactions, managed to barely keep their footing amidst the shockwave, but they were covered in dust and looked utterly disheveled.
Rasa watched as his forces were instantly halved, completely losing their fighting capacity. His heart felt as if slashed by a knife, his eyes bloodshot.
Gritting his teeth, he made a decision. "Baki! Pakura! Take everyone who can still move and retreat! Now!"
The battle of Tailed Beasts was no longer sothing ordinary Ninja could participate in!
Baki struggled to his feet from the sand, looked at the devastated battlefield, clenched his teeth, helped the heavily injured Pakura nearby, and began organizing the survivors to retreat.
"Elder Chiyo! Elder Ebizo! Cover the retreat with !" Rasa's voice was resolute.
Shukaku, having missed its shot, scanned the battlefield with its large, suspicious eyes. 'That sensation just now... Space-Ti Ninjutsu?! This guy...'
In the mont it was distracted, nma's figure shot out from the still-settling dust like a black bolt of lightning, charging straight towards Shukaku's massive body!
"Damn it! Don't underestimate !" Shukaku roared, slapping its round belly hard with both paws!
"Wind Release: Sand Shotgun!"
Its body inflated rapidly like a balloon. The surface of its body instantly split into countless pellets made of hardened sand. Then, it opened its huge mouth and let out a deafening roar. The violent wind pressure fired the countless sand pellets out like cannon shot!
Whoosh whoosh whoosh-!!!
The dense sand pellets ford a curtain of death, covering all of nma's forward paths like a storm of bullets ant to shred everything!
nma displayed astonishing agility in the air. His figure weaved through the dense hail of sand pellets like a ghost. The few pellets he couldn't avoid were precisely deflected by the black Chakra Rod in his hand, producing sharp clang sounds.
Seeing nma about to break through the pellet storm and close in, a cunning glint flashed in Shukaku's beady eyes instead of panic.
"Hahaha! Fell for it, you idiot!" Shukaku let out a triumphant laugh.
The sand pellets that nma had dodged or deflected suddenly disintegrated mid-air!
Countless fine grains of yellow sand instantly filled all the space around nma, forming a swamp of sand saturated with Shukaku's Chakra, severely restricting his movent!
Simultaneously, Shukaku's paws, planted on the ground, transford into flowing waves of sand. Like living things, they rapidly surged up the sand, instantly entangling nma's feet and swiftly climbing upwards!
"Desert Layered Imperial Seal!"
The flowing sand completely engulfed nma like a tide, rapidly consolidating and compacting, finally forming a massive, pyramid-shaped sand tomb covered in purple curse markings!
The mont the seal was completed, a powerful sealing force perated the area.
"D-did it work?!" Rasa, witnessing this, could hardly believe his eyes, his voice trembling with hope.
Chiyo and Ebizo also stared intently at the sand pyramid, a sliver of hope rekindling in their hearts.
However, that hope lasted only a mont!
Thump!
Thump!
Thump-!!!
Countless pitch-black Chakra Rods, like the spines of a porcupine, suddenly pierced outwards from inside the pyramid!
Instantly riddling the sturdy sand tomb with holes!
"Argh! That hurts! You bastard!" Shukaku let out a cry of pain. The rods not only physically destroyed the seal, but the Yin-Yang Release power attached to them directly interfered with and pained the Chakra connecting it to the seal!
Imdiately after, a layer of pale green light suddenly appeared on the surface of all the rods piercing the pyramid!
From within the pyramid, nma's calm, unruffled voice sounded:
"Silver Wheel Reincarnation Explosion."
Boom-!!!
The massive pyramid was utterly blown apart from the inside by an indescribable force!
Countless Chakra Rods coated with pale green light, wrapped in a violent tornado, scattered outwards in all directions like a burst of shrapnel!
The green tornado tore through the sand tomb, shooting straight into the sky!
"Look out!" Rasa's pupils constricted sharply. He frantically activated his Magnet Release, golden sand condensing into a thick shield before him.
Chiyo manipulated the last few intact puppets to block in front of her.
Ebizo's long eyebrows trembled violently as his hands ford seals, attempting a defensive Ninjutsu.
However, the Chakra Rods imbued with the Tenseigan's Ocular Power were far more powerful than before!
Thwack!
Thwack!
The gold dust shield Rasa condensed was torn through like paper by the incoming rods, forcing him to retreat repeatedly, barely avoiding vital spots, but still receiving several deep, bone-gashing wounds.
Chiyo's puppets were even less effective, shattered effortlessly the mont they touched the green-light rods, turning into piles of fragnts!
One rod shot over like lightning. Chiyo, unable to dodge in ti, had her left arm directly pierced. The intense pain made her grunt, her face instantly pale.
Imdiately, several more rods shot towards her, her mobility compromised!
"Nee-san!" Ebizo cried out. Almost without hesitation, he abandoned his hand seals. His body erupted with his last bit of strength, using the Body Flicker Technique to appear directly in front of Chiyo!
Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!
Several rods rcilessly pierced through Ebizo's body!
Blood instantly stained his earth-yellow flak jacket.
"Ebizo!!!" Chiyo let out a heart-wrenching wail, seeing her brother pierced by the rods, shielding her.
Ebizo opened his mouth to say sothing, but only a gush of blood ca out. He looked at his sister, a trace of reluctance and release in his eyes, before finally collapsing powerlessly beside Chiyo. His signature long eyebrows drooped limply.
"No... no..." Chiyo held her brother's still-warm body, tears streaming down her aged face.
She had lost her son and daughter-in-law. Her only grandson, Sasori, was missing. And now, this last remaining family mber had died protecting her, right before her eyes.
Boundless grief and despair instantly overwheld the weathered old woman.
nma's figure slowly descended from the dissipating green tornado, a faint green glow emanating from his body.
He glanced at the grief-stricken Chiyo and the deceased Ebizo, his eyes showing not a flicker of emotion.
He did feel so internal reflection, 'This Shukaku, although its Chakra Reserves were the lowest among the Tailed Beasts, its combat intelligence and thods were indeed remarkable. Not only was it proficient in multiple Ninjutsu, but it also knew how to set traps.'
'Kyu-chan is fully focused on absorbing the Ten-Tails. It's best not to borrow its Chakra if possible.' nma thought.
'Although I can't fully enter the Tenseigan Chakra Mode yet, borrowing the power of the Giant Tenseigan to simulate part of its prowess is enough to handle the current situation.'
His gaze turned to Shukaku, who appeared sowhat listless after its seal was broken and its Chakra injured. The corner of his mouth lifted:
"Well then, it's my turn now."
Before the words faded, nma's figure vanished from the spot!
'So fast!'
Shukaku's yellow eyes widened in shock. It couldn't even track the other's movent!
In the next instant, nma appeared directly in front of Shukaku's huge face!
His right fist was clenched, covered in a dense pale green light, concentrating the power of the Tenseigan Chakra!
"Take this punch!"
The fist, imbued with Tenseigan's Ocular Power, landed squarely and solidly on Shukaku's snout without any fancy technique!
Thud-!!!
A dull, heavy impact sound!
Shukaku's massive head, made of sand, exploded like a waterlon hit by a sledgehamr. A large portion of its head instantly burst apart, turning into a shower of sand particles flying everywhere!
Shukaku let out an extrely shrill, pained howl!
But it wasn't over!
nma's figure moved like a phantom, darting rapidly around Shukaku's enormous body. Fists covered in green light fell like rain!
Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump!
Each punch contained Tenseigan Chakra. Shukaku's body was riddled with holes, sand chunks flying off, unable to form an effective defense.
It waved its claws futilely, unable to even touch nma's clothes, only able to continuously emit pained howls.
But it was also a testant to Shukaku's astonishing defensive power, being able to withstand so many of nma's punches and still attempt to resist.
Rasa on the ground stared dumbfounded at this scene, his entire body cold.
'Hand-shredding a Tailed Beast?!'
'What kind of terrifying power and speed was this?!'
He couldn't even clearly see the other party's movents!
Rasa glanced again at Chiyo, holding Ebizo's corpse, already having lost the will to fight, imrsed in imnse grief. He knew the situation was hopeless.
Although he was the Kazekage, he could only suppress Shukaku using gold dust and tea kettle seals, not beat it into such a wretched state.
"Let's go!" Rasa gritted his teeth fiercely, no longer hesitating.
He grabbed the ntally absent Chiyo, slung Ebizo's corpse over his shoulder, took one last look at the dozen or so bodies left behind in the desert, and used the Body Flicker Technique, fleeing headlong towards the direction Baki and the others had retreated without a backward glance.
At this mont, any dignity as Kazekage, any ambition to capture the Ten-Tails, had vanished without a trace in the face of the absolute power gap and heavy losses, leaving only the instinct to survive.
On the battlefield, Shukaku was being beaten without any ability to fight back. Its massive body was in tatters, even its tail broken off a section. It was finally beaten into submission.
'This human was ridiculously strong!'
'I simply couldn't fight him!'
"N-no more! This great one won't play with you anymore!"
Shukaku let out a roar filled with fear and frustration. Its enormous body instantly disintegrated, turning into countless streams of sand that rapidly receded like a tide back into the unconscious Gaara's body.
Losing the support of Shukaku's Chakra, Gaara's small body fell powerlessly from the air.
nma's figure flashed, catching the falling Gaara gracefully.
He looked at the seven-year-old child in his arms, red-haired, with heavy dark circles, frowning even in unconsciousness, then lifted his gaze to the direction where Rasa and Chiyo had disappeared. He had no intention of pursuing.
Suddenly, nma felt his foot step on sothing. He moved his right foot and looked down. It was a small teddy bear.
nma crouched down, picked up the teddy bear, and placed it beside Gaara. The previously frowning Gaara, now holding the teddy bear, relaxed his brow and seed to sleep more peacefully.
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