On the rooftop of the Hokage's tower in Konoha, Tsunade stood there, her face exceptionally grave. Although the location for unsealing the Nine-Tails was in the deepest part of the Forest of Death, and the Barrier Team had sealed off the presence and commotion, she wasn't worried about the presence leaking. Rather… she was worried that the deal with the Nine-Tails would not go as smoothly as expected. That guy was a Tailed Beast, after all.
The values and mindset of a Tailed Beast couldn't be measured by human standards. What if the Nine-Tails immediately regretted it after being released, and Ryoho Kyohiko and Namikaze Minato were unable to stop it? Then, Tsunade and the others would be the second line of defense.
Orochimaru chuckled lightly.
"Don't worry, they'll be fine."
"With Kyohiko and Minato's abilities, even if Kushina went on a rampage and couldn't control herself, they could still suppress the Nine-Tails."
As a researcher, he knew all too well how terrifying Ryoho Kyohiko's current power was. The current Kyohiko… in terms of constitution, was far inferior to Senju Hashirama, but he was already leagues beyond a normal person. Even Senju Tobirama was likely far from being as strong as Kyohiko in terms of constitution. Coupled with Sage Mode, to put it bluntly, the current Kyohiko was a mini-Hashirama. Most of what Senju Hashirama could do, he could do some of, and a lot of what Senju Hashirama couldn't do, he could also do. His versatile strength had basically no shortcomings; suppressing the Nine-Tails would be a piece of cake.
What's more, Namikaze Minato was no slouch either. Although his upper limit was a bit lower, in terms of speed and sealing jutsu, he was slightly more outstanding than Kyohiko and could serve as a deputy to seal the Tailed Beast. Add to that Uzumaki Yuki… with such a combination, let alone one Nine-Tails, even if there were another Eight-Tails, Konoha could probably handle it just the same.
After a long while, Tsunade faintly felt a presence rising, and her expression changed instantly. Blocked by the barrier, the presence was very weak. But for masters like them, such a presence was enough for them to perceive and raise their guard.
"The Nine-Tails! As expected, that guy…"
"Don't be anxious."
Orochimaru was calm. He narrowed his eyes.
"The barrier hasn't broken. It hasn't reached the worst-case scenario yet, and it's possible Kyohiko has already brought it under control."
Although Orochimaru's tone was calm, the hand in his sleeve was toying with a snake. The moment the presence erupted, he instantly squeezed the snake's body, making it twist in pain. It was clear that Orochimaru's mood was also not calm.
One second, two seconds… After a few seconds, the presence that faintly came through the barrier gradually calmed down, and as the presence calmed, the startled birds in the Forest of Death also gradually landed.
"It's fine now."
Orochimaru let out a breath of relief.
Fortunately. It was just a false alarm!
A smile bloomed on Tsunade's face.
"Yes, it's fine now. But I hope the cooperation with the Nine-Tails can also go smoothly. Otherwise, it would be quite a headache if this kind of thing happened a few more times."
"Mm."
Orochimaru closed his eyes and turned around. "I'm leaving. My research over there still needs to be done."
"Thanks."
Tsunade expressed her gratitude.
Orochimaru waved his hand, then disappeared with a body flicker.
*
At the Konoha Ninja Academy, the old folks had gathered on the side and had not yet left. Sarutobi Hiruzen walked down from the stage, chatting with everyone, trying to stall for time as much as possible. He was quite a distance away and couldn't feel any fluctuations at all.
A few seconds later, a voice appeared beside him.
"Sandaime-sama, Kyohiko-sama asked me to pass on a message. They have finished."
"Good."
Sarutobi Hiruzen responded softly.
It was the voice of Gekko Shusaku. He had approached using his Transparency Jutsu, directly informing Hiruzen of the latest news, and then quietly left the scene.
Sarutobi Hiruzen knew. His job here was done. He suddenly felt a bit relaxed, yet also a sense of loss. One thing was… this feeling, he hadn't experienced it for a long time since he was no longer Hokage. Another was, as Konoha grew stronger, the "rules of the game" in the shinobi world also seemed to have changed a bit. The old ways of thinking and routines were no longer applicable now. His own strength also seemed to be gradually becoming useless.
For Konoha, Sarutobi Hiruzen seemed to have become an dispensable old man, and "Third Hokage" had become a respectful title people used for him… Sarutobi Hiruzen sighed softly.
"Hiruzen, what are you thinking about?"
"Oh, sorry."
Sarutobi Hiruzen came back to his senses and began to wrap up his speech.
After a few minutes.
"Everyone has already registered. At the latest next week, we should start delivering firewood successively. At that time, there will be genin or students to help chop it…"
Chopping firewood, fetching water. These were originally genin tasks. Now, it was just that a process of having students go up the mountain to cut, deliver, and chop firewood had been added. A burst of cheers came from below.
*
In the depths of the Forest of Death.
As the Nine-Tails disappeared, what remained before them was a dragon-like tree. Kushina looked at Minato, then… she looked at Kyohiko.
"Where's the Nine-Tails?"
Ryoho Kyohiko smiled.
"It's inside. Wait a moment."
On Uzumaki Yuki's face, there were expressions of shock and complexity. Having witnessed the Nine-Tails… she already understood why Kyohiko wanted her to observe this sealing. Yes, observe. Just as Kyohiko had said before, this battle didn't actually require her to make a move. Her presence was just an insurance, and also to let her witness the power of a Tailed Beast.
Now, she had seen it. The Nine-Tails' power was terrifying. The presence in that instant made her feel the advent of death. But Kushina, as the Jinchuriki, could quickly counter the Nine-Tails and reseal a part of it after receiving help. Such power was enough to show the strength and specialty of the Uzumaki clan's sealing jutsu. Uzushiogakure might have been destroyed because of this. Uzumaki Yuki's eyes dimmed.
After waiting for a moment, the fruit in the dragon-shaped tree cracked open, and a rich fragrance emanated from within. Then, two miniature Nine-Tails drilled out from inside. They looked at each other without a word.
"Number 1 Nine-Tails, Number 2 Nine-Tails, do you have anything to say?"
"You!"
The Nine-Tails opened its mouth, its voice incomparably young. It felt as if it had returned to the time it was first created, flustered and at a loss for a moment. How did it become like this? They glared at Kyohiko.
"What did you do?"
Ryoho Kyohiko replied faintly.
"Nothing. As chakra life forms, your life state and presence are actually quite easy to influence. I just applied some seals and added a core to you."
Inside each of them was an amber stone, sealing a portion of the Nine-Tails' chakra. If it were before, he certainly couldn't have done it. But previously, thanks to the Grandmaster-level Strength of a Hundred Healings Technique, Kyohiko's Yin Seal had also reached the Grandmaster level. He was very familiar with how to seal chakra to build a pool. Helping the two Nine-Tails construct a chakra pool was a piece of cake. If not for this, he wouldn't have waited so long.
Nine-Tails #2 reprimanded.
"Shameless! Didn't you promise to set us free?"
Ryoho Kyohiko asked back.
"Are you not free now?"
The two Nine-Tails were choked up. This… strictly speaking, the other party didn't seem to have completely forbidden their freedom. At least he hadn't stolen their chakra and sealed it within his own body. But with this size and voice, where was the imposing manner? They didn't want to speak at all.
Namikaze Minato held back his laughter, clearly understanding how Kyohiko had operated.
"This is indeed a win-win solution. If you really encounter danger, we will definitely help you release the seal. If we completely return the power to you, what if you get angry and hurt people?"
Uzumaki Kushina also agreed. She was speaking to them, but also to the Nine-Tails inside her—she still had half of the Nine-Tails' power in her body.
"AWOOO! I, the great Nine-Tails, have been reduced to this state by you! No, I don't agree, I want to take them back!"
The Nine-Tails roared incessantly, its claws desperately slapping the prison gate. This was too humiliating! If this were seen by others, its lifelong fame would be completely ruined!
Kushina held back her laughter and looked at the two Nine-Tails outside.
"Your main body wants to take you back. So, do you want to stay outside and enjoy freedom, or come back to my side?"
"…"
The two Nine-Tails looked at each other. Good question! They didn't answer immediately, clearly having a trace of wavering in their minds. Go back… now that they were out, who would want to go back?
Ryoho Kyohiko's smile was brilliant.
"You have to understand, your interests and its interests are not the same. You are free outside, while it is still locked up inside!"
Namikaze Minato's mouth twitched. This kid is really bad! Sowing discord so openly, the problem was that this move really worked—whether it was a shadow clone or a Tailed Beast's clone, in essence, each consciousness had slight differences, only the memory was completely consistent. And now they were separate individuals… defeating them one by one was simply too easy.
The two Tailed Beast clones were tempted.
Ryoho Kyohiko's smile gradually became brighter.
"By the way, Sunagakure's Shukaku will also be coming to our village in the future. At that time, I'll give you a chance to step on it hard!"
In an instant.
"Deal!"
The two Nine-Tails said in unison, without any hesitation.
Namikaze Minato secretly gave a thumbs-up. Good heavens, Kyohiko really has his ways, to actually think of this move… However, what was going on with Sunagakure's side? He didn't rush to ask, but looked at the two Tailed Beasts, thinking about how to allocate and manage them. Even if it was just a quarter of the chakra, with his sealing ability without the Adamantine Sealing Chains, he might not be able to reseal it after it was released.
"You two can go back first. Minato and I will discuss with these two how to arrange things later."
"Alright."
Kushina and Yuki exchanged a look.
Ryoho Kyohiko sent the two of them over without another word.
"I'll send you to the Hokage's tower. It's a good time to help report on the work."
Namikaze Minato was slightly relieved.
"Kyohiko, thank you!"
He understood that the reason Kyohiko had brought Uzumaki Yuki over was to hopefully ease the relationship between her and Kushina. In fact, this clanswoman was indeed a knot in Kushina's heart. Although she usually didn't say it, she had always kept it in her heart, unable to let it go for a long time.
"Alright, now let's talk about us."
Ryoho Kyohiko sat down on the ground and looked at the two miniature Nine-Tails.
"I am very democratic and have always respected others' opinions. Now you can choose for yourselves. Who wants to follow me, who wants to follow him, or you can both follow him, I don't object."
Pressure instantly came upon Namikaze Minato. One… he was already a little worried. If two came, what would happen? What was the difference between that and just throwing the Nine-Tails at his house!
The two Nine-Tails naturally didn't want to go to Kyohiko's side. This guy was too strong! Even at their full strength, they had no confidence in defeating Kyohiko, let alone now that they only had a quarter of their chakra, and most of the chakra in their bodies was still sealed. Following Kyohiko would be very stressful. But correspondingly, it would also be safer, and at critical moments, they might be able to get some fresh air. The two foxes were conflicted and couldn't decide.
Nine-Tails #2 raised its hand.
"I will!"
Ryoho Kyohiko nodded.
"Alright, then it's you. Minato, the other one is up to you to take care of."
"Mm."
Namikaze Minato naturally had no objection.
*
At the Hokage's tower, outside the office, the two red-haired women looked at each other, neither speaking for a moment. Kushina was thinking about how to break the stalemate. But—before she could think of an answer, the door opened with a "squeak."
Shizune opened the door and made a "please" gesture.
"You two, why are you standing at the door? Please come in."
The two nodded. Entering, before Kushina could organize her words, Tsunade had already started with a barrage of questions.
"How is the situation? The matter of the Nine-Tails, is it handled?"
"Uh…"
Kushina was stunned for a moment. She… didn't seem to have much strong consciousness at the time.
At this moment, Uzumaki Yuki spoke.
"It's handled, Hokage-sama. The situation is like this…"
She recounted the situation at that time in an orderly manner. Basically, it was without omitting any details. The stone hanging in Tsunade's heart was finally put down, and at the same time, she was secretly surprised—Orochimaru was right! Just Kyohiko alone might be able to handle the Nine-Tails. Of course, according to Yuki's description, Kushina should have also restrained a part of the Tailed Beast's chakra. If it were the complete Nine-Tails, even Kyohiko might have had a very hard time.
The subsequent "Little Nine-Tails" made Tsunade want to give a big thumbs-up even more. What she had the biggest headache about was how to deal with the separated Nine-Tails. Letting it go free, but also restricting its movements… that was a Tailed Beast! The current solution couldn't be more perfect.
A brilliant smile appeared on Tsunade's face.
"Kushina, you've worked hard. Tonight, I'll treat everyone to dinner to reward you all properly!"
Kushina gave a dry laugh.
"Where… I didn't do much!"
She felt that she hadn't put in much effort, just slightly relaxed her spirit and the seal, allowing half of the Nine-Tails' power to come out. After that, it was all Kyohiko's show.
Shizune's face was expressionless.
"Tsunade-sama just wants to drink. But Tsunade-sama, you still have a debt to repay to Jiraiya-sama this month. Your balance is already insufficient."
"Shizune!"
Tsunade slammed the table, then her tone quickly softened. "We can use next month's, right? Anyway, it's almost here."
Kushina and Yuki exchanged a look, feeling they couldn't get a word in. And this situation was really a bit unexpected. Especially for Uzumaki Yuki. She hadn't expected that Tsunade-sama was actually like this in private, completely different from her usual solemn and majestic image.