Naruto immediately snickered. "Hah! Stinky Sasuke, you failed, didn't you? Serves you right for bragging!"
Natsuki, however, noticed something off. "Sasuke, what happened?"
Sasuke sighed. "The Three-Tails resents me. I sealed it, which cut off its free life, so it dislikes me. Even when it was surprised I knew its name, it still rejected me. Also… it seems scared of me."
Scared? Right—scared.
Natsuki clicked. "That fits. The Three-Tails used to be sealed in the Fourth Mizukage, but he was controlled by the Sharingan. After the Fourth Mizukage died, the Three-Tails finally got free. You're an Uchiha with Sharingan; it would naturally be wary. In fact, with Mangekyō Sharingan, you could directly control it and force a 'perfect Jinchūriki' state. But that would only deepen a Bijū's (Tailed Beast's) resentment."
Back then, the Three-Tails had been sealed into Rin; she died because of it.
For revenge, Obito used his Sharingan to control the Fourth Mizukage and sparked the Bloody Mist era, hollowing out Kirigakure. The Three-Tails was under Sharingan control in that period.
Facing Sasuke—who now had Sharingan—it was only natural for the Three-Tails to fear him.
Sasuke slowly shook his head. "If possible, I'd rather become a perfect Jinchūriki through friendship."
This Sasuke wasn't extreme. He hated the idea of controlling others; the one he despised most—Danzō—had tried to use Shisui's eye to control people. That alone made Sasuke reject the tactic on instinct.
Which… made success harder.
Natsuki exhaled. "Then let's use a trump card. Sasuke, try using your eyes to pull everyone and the Bijū together—group chat style. Can you do that?"
"That shouldn't be hard."
The Sharingan has strange powers. In the original story, even with just three tomoe, Sasuke could barge into Naruto's inner world and—well, awkward phrasing—crush the faux fox-avatar formed by Kurama's chakra.
With Mangekyō Sharingan now, yanking everyone and every Bijū into a group conversation wasn't hard at all.
Sasuke opened his Mangekyō. Their vision dimmed—and then each of them found themselves in a strange inner space. Besides the others, there stood a colossal fox, a gigantic turtle, a towering chitin-winged insect, and a hulking tanuki.
He'd actually pulled them all in!
The Bijū noticed one another instantly, tempers flaring on cue.
Shukaku barked, "Well, well! If it isn't the stinky fox, the old turtle, and the big bug!"
Isobu and Chōmei both sighed. "Shukaku, your mouth is still foul."
Kurama snorted. "Hmph! A bunch of short-tailed weaklings. Especially that one-tail trash—pathetic."
"Nani?! Say that again, you mangy fox!"
Shukaku exploded. "Don't think more tails makes you tough! Shukaku-daiya can weave seals and cast ninjutsu—something you brainless musclehead can't match!"
Kurama grinned wide. "Only the ones with not-enough chakra need to learn the ants' ninjutsu."
"You're 'strong,' huh? Then why are you sealed by humans? Oh right—you got chopped into halves. Not even a proper Nine-Tails anymore! Hahaha! Music to my ears. Which human did the world a favor?"
Kurama's killing intent spiked. "Rotten tanuki—looking to die?"
"You first! Wanna throw down now? Shukaku-daiya will crush you!"
"Can't even fight in here," Isobu and Chōmei interjected. "And quit screaming. We were invited. Let's hear what the little ones want."
The colossal figures turned, looming.
Naruto gulped, nerves jangling.
Fū, by contrast, ran up with a wave. "Hi, Chōmei! Are these your companions? Can I be friends with them, too?"
"Oh, it's Fū," Chōmei replied kindly. "I wouldn't recommend it. These few are all weirdos."
"Lucky Seven, Chōmei," it added with a breezy self-intro.
Lucky… Seven? Self-proclaimed, huh.
Still, everyone could tell Chōmei was gentle compared to Shukaku and Kurama—no wonder such a sunny girl like Fū had befriended it.
Kurama looked down on the humans, voice dripping murder. "Hmph! A gaggle of antlings daring to scheme!"
Isobu cast Sasuke a wary glance and kept silent.
Shukaku, however, recognized Natsuki—and practically jumped. "You're that water-ball brat! What are you doing here? Don't tell me you came to kill Shukaku-daiya! "
Kurama cackled at Shukaku's fear. "You decrepit tanuki—afraid of a human ant?"
"You know nothing, flea-bitten fox! That brat's water spheres outclass my Bijūdama (Tailed Beast Ball). Your 'three little tricks' wouldn't survive a single hit!"
"I'd lose to a human's single move? Don't be ridicu—"
"Shukaku's right," Natsuki cut in, calm. "Kurama, you're not my match. And spare us the bluster. When Madara controlled you with Sharingan, where was that big mouth? When Hashirama pinned you with Mokuton (Wood Release), why didn't you taunt him? Hashirama said: 'Kurama, you're too dangerous; you'll have to be sealed.' "
The moment Natsuki dredged up the past, Kurama's eyes went blood-hot. Hearing that familiar line, it roared.
"Damn human! Are you here to mock me?! Fine—once I get out, I'll slaughter you all! Just you wait!"
Natsuki flicked a finger in his ear, done wasting time. "Let's get to it. Shukaku, Isobu, Chōmei, Kurama—I called you for one reason. Someone's collecting Bijū to fuse all nine back into the Jūbi (Ten-Tails)."
The four titans froze, every muscle tight.
Chōmei's voice cracked. "H-hey, that's not funny!"
Isobu shrank further. "Which lunatic would attempt that? That's a death sentence for us!"
Shukaku clammed up for once, brooding.
Kurama stared straight at Natsuki. "You tell us this—what do you want?"
"No tricks," Natsuki said plainly. "Just cooperate with your Jinchūriki. When necessary, lend them power—at least enough to resist capture. You know what happens if you're taken and reforged into the Jūbi: you die. Period."
(End of Chapter)
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