At this moment, Yamato's palm glowed, displaying the number eight. He stared in shock.
"Eight-Tails?" he whispered, disbelief washing over him. "That means Naruto… is completely out of control. If he keeps growing tails, he'll reach the Nine-Tails… and then… it'll be a disaster for the entire world."
Sweat dripped from his forehead as he realized the scale of the threat. The Nine-Tails' power was unimaginable once it lost control.
On the battlefield, Naruto had already assumed the preliminary form of the Nine-Tails, his immense chakra merging with the beast's. The fusion created a terrifying display of red energy and his own chakra, spewing toward Ashveil.
Ashveil's lips curved into a slight, almost amused smile.
"Eight-Tails, huh? I see… I'll have to push a little harder," he murmured, his Conqueror's Haki radiating like an oppressive aura.
In the sky, Ashveil's Haki fused with the yellow light of the chakra storm, forming a powerful, concentrated strike aimed at Naruto.
Tsunade, watching the scene unfold, froze in disbelief.
"That's… a Tailed Beast Bomb! Ashveil is actually going to endure a Tailed Beast Bomb from the Nine-Tails? No normal human could withstand that… and yet he's facing it directly?"
Even seasoned warriors in the human world would struggle to confront such a force, and Tsunade had never seen anyone dare to challenge a Tailed Beast Bomb head-on.
Deidara, high in the sky, could barely contain his excitement.
"Hahaha! As expected of Ashveil… as expected of Ashveil!" he exclaimed, eyes gleaming with anticipation.
Boom! The collision erupted in the sky. The Tailed Beast Bomb and Ashveil's Haki blast collided with explosive force, unleashing a blinding light that forced even Tsunade to close her eyes.
When she opened them again, her face was pale.
"No… Eight-Tails… Naruto with Eight-Tails… defeated?" she gasped, unable to believe what she was seeing.
On the battlefield, the immense shockwave blasted Naruto backward. The Tailed Beast, now resembling a near-complete Nine-Tails, crashed heavily into a forest, uprooting countless trees. Naruto was rendered unconscious.
Above, Ashveil hovered, radiating Conqueror's Haki like a war god surveying the field.
"Did I overdo it?" he muttered, an edge of amusement in his tone. "And… Naruto's still unconscious? If the Nine-Tails hasn't even fully emerged, this might be a slight loss for me."
But as he observed, Naruto's fingers twitched. Slowly, he rose to his feet. Behind him, the ninth tail had sprouted.
Yamato, still traversing the forest, froze, his eyes widening as the number nine appeared on his palm.
"No… Naruto… he's grown his ninth tail! The Nine-Tails has emerged!" he whispered, paralyzed with fear. Even her Wood Style would be ineffective against the full Nine-Tails.
Tsunade, witnessing this from Konoha, could only tremble.
"No way… the Nine-Tails has appeared! How can we possibly fight this?"
On the battlefield, the Nine-Tails roared at Ashveil, the sheer sound generating gale-force winds and a scorching heat that swept across the terrain.
Ashveil's eyes narrowed slightly.
"Indeed… this Nine-Tails' energy is surprisingly abundant. I wonder what reward awaits once it's dealt with," he murmured, scanning the massive creature with keen calculation.
The Nine-Tails, sensing Ashveil's overwhelming aura, charged instinctively. But Ashveil did not retreat; instead, he extended his Conqueror's Haki, forming a colossal fist that collided with the Nine-Tails' attack.
Boom!
The Nine-Tails was blasted backward, its eyes momentarily dislodged by the sheer force. Its massive body struck the ground, kicking up clouds of dust. Observers were left speechless.
Tsunade's jaw dropped.
"Is this… the Nine-Tails? How can it be subdued so easily?"
The ferocity of Ashveil's power was incomprehensible. Even the Nine-Tails, the strongest of all Tailed Beasts, was restrained with a single controlled blow. Tsunade's understanding of power and combat was shaken to its core.
Deidara, witnessing the display from the sky, could only marvel.
"Sometimes, I feel Ashveil… is the true art itself!" he said, awe evident in his voice.
The Nine-Tails, undeterred, rose again, gathering chakra to form a massive Tailed Beast Ball, intent on overwhelming Ashveil.
Ashveil's eyes narrowed.
"Is that all? Then taste my Conqueror's Haki," he said. Lava and Haki merged into a devastating Haoshoku Lava Bomb, far surpassing the energy of the Nine-Tails' attack.
The two forces collided in midair with a thunderous roar. Rumble… Rumble… The impact shook the ground and sky alike.
The Nine-Tails had assumed it could best a human's power. But now, facing Ashveil, it realized the truth. Even the legendary might of the First Hokage or Uchiha Madara could not compare to the overwhelming force before it.
Boom! Ashveil's attack struck beside the Nine-Tails, creating a pit so deep it seemed to pierce the earth itself.
The Nine-Tails roared once more, but the force hurled it from ground to sky and back down in an instant. The colossal Tailed Beast finally fainted from sheer exhaustion.
Deidara's eyes widened in disbelief.
"I've seen much from Ashveil before… but to defeat the Nine-Tails, the strongest of all Tailed Beasts… instantly?" he whispered, shaking his head in awe. "There's no doubt now—Ashveil's power is unrivaled. Not even the leader of the Akatsuki could hope to challenge him."