Chapter 254: Disposing of the Three-Tails!
Keisuke had no interest in the Three-Tails' power. But as the saying goes, "If you catch it, you keep it." He decided to emulate the First and Second Hokage and "distribute" (i.e., sell) the Tailed Beast to maximize his own profit.
"Ah..." Hearing his Clan Head's proposal, Nara Shikaku was left in a daze. As the Jonin Class Leader, he was privy to a great deal of high-level village secrets, including the records of the first-ever Five Kage Summit.
Back then, after capturing eight of the Tailed Beasts, the First Hokage had originally intended to give the other seven away for free to maintain peace. It was only at the insistence of the Second Hokage that the other villages ended up paying for them. Kumogakure bought the Two-Tails and Eight-Tails, Iwagakure bought the Four and Five-Tails, and Kirigakure bought the Three and Six-Tails. In the end, only the Seven-Tails was left, which was bought by Takigakure.
To put it bluntly, Shikaku felt the First Hokage's thinking had been far too naive. While selling the Tailed Beasts had provided a large amount of capital for Konoha's early development and had ushered in a precious era of peace, it had also planted the seeds for all the future Great Ninja Wars. Looking back, was that peace really because of a "balance of power"? Absolutely not. It was because Konoha had the First Hokage.
If the Tailed Beasts were truly that strong, how could Hashirama have captured eight of them so easily? Imagine if Konoha had kept all eight. Which village would have dared to challenge their supremacy? Even after the First's death, a Konoha with eight Tailed Beasts could have crushed the other four villages.
But he was getting off track. The point was, while the "sale of Tailed Beasts" had a historical precedent, selling a captured Tailed Beast to your own village? There was no precedent for that at all.
"Clan Head, I feel that this matter... requires a more long-term discussion," Shikaku said after a long, conflicted silence. "After all, we are all members of Konoha. Doing business with our own village..."
Keisuke raised an eyebrow. "Then, Shikaku-san, do you think we should just 'selflessly contribute' the Three-Tails to the village for free?"
"Of course not!" Shikaku blurted out instinctively. "That's a Tailed Beast... Ugh, never mind. Clan Head, please decide on this matter yourself."
Shikaku felt he had just been asking for trouble. The conflict between a clan and the village was never an easy problem to solve. For a ninja from a prominent clan, the question of "clan first or village first?" was unavoidable. Before Keisuke, the Nara had always kept a low profile. But now, with a super-powered leader, that was no longer an option. The "Three-Tails Problem" was the first great test. Giving it away was a loss for the clan. Keeping it for themselves would make the village uneasy.
From that perspective, Keisuke's "selling" plan was actually the perfect compromise. It ensured the relationship between the clan and the village remained transparent.
"Then let's go, Shikaku-san," Keisuke said. "The sooner we resolve this, the better."
Shikaku nodded, created a Shadow Clone to handle his paperwork, and left with Keisuke. A Shadow Creature flew from the camp and soared toward the coast.
In the distance, the pure-white Kokuō was lying on the beach. Not far from it, the Three-Tails, Isobu, was half-submerged in the sea. Uchiha Kagami, tasked with guarding it, looked as small as a grain of sand next to the two giants.
Keisuke landed the creature next to Kokuō. "Keisuke, you're here," it greeted him.
"Kagami-senpai," Keisuke asked, "has the Three-Tails regained consciousness?"
"It woke up at dawn," Kagami reported dutifully. "I immediately used a genjutsu to control it and prevent it from rampaging."
"Hm... looks like I was too soft on it yesterday." Keisuke shook his head. "Kagami-senpai, please release—Shikaku-san, would you mind stepping back? Things might get a little messy."
Shikaku's eyelid twitched. He immediately flew a safe distance away.
"Alright," Keisuke said to Kagami. "Please release the genjutsu. And then, leave me and Kokuō some private space."
Kagami, seeing that Keisuke had a plan, had no worries about his safety. He withdrew his chakra from Isobu's mind and flew back to join Shikaku.
The Three-Tails' tough eyelid twitched, and then its single eye snapped open. The moment it saw Kokuō and the ninja on its head, its rage exploded. "Damn—"
"Isobu," Keisuke's cold voice cut it off. "While I'm still in the mood to talk, you should talk nicely."
The voice was like a bucket of cold water on its anger. But what truly calmed it was not his tone, but the fact that he had called it by its name. "How do you know..." it stared at him, then at Kokuō. "Kokuō told you, didn't it?"
"He did," Keisuke said, sitting cross-legged on Kokuō's head, his voice calm. "Though I have no particular interest in your name."
"Arrogant fool!" Isobu muttered, but then it remembered the Kirin from the day before, and fell silent. The man had the strength to back up his arrogance.
"Kokuō, what's your deal?" Isobu asked, ignoring Keisuke. "This doesn't look like you're sealed."
"With Keisuke's help, I have broken free from my seal and regained my freedom," Kokuō replied.
"Freedom?" Isobu glanced at the man sitting on its head. "And your definition of 'freedom' is to hang around with these ninja?"
"Not all ninja are like that," Kokuō shook its head. "To me, Keisuke is special."
"Kokuō, you're making me blush," Keisuke said with a grin, before his face turned cold again as he looked at Isobu. "For Kokuō's sake, I am willing to give you a chance for a peaceful dialogue."
'As if I'm afraid of you!' Isobu's three thick tails swished in the shallow water, and it felt its confidence return. 'The ocean... is right behind me!' As a turtle—ah, no, as a Tailed Beast that excelled at Water Style—its power was at its absolute peak in the water.
With its "home-field advantage," Isobu's tone became much bolder. "I'm only talking to you for Kokuō's sake, too." It subtly kicked its powerful back legs, churning the shallow water. "Speak! What do you want?"
"What I want is simple," Keisuke said calmly. "I'm going to do what the First Hokage once did. Also, stop kicking the sand with your little short legs. I'll give you one more chance. Go out into the deep water. We'll fight, one on one."
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