Chapter 357: Inferior Product
"As expected, it's you, 'Fox.'"
Facing Kurama's towering fury and pressure, Otsutsuki Urashiki merely casually brushed his sleeves, recovering that cynical, condescending posture.
"Are you worried about that brat? Don't be so tense—relax. Rest assured, I won't take his life. Rather... I now hope more than anyone that he can 'survive.'"
Nine-Tails' fury showed no reduction. It ignored Urashiki's nonsense, again releasing ear-splitting roars.
"Cut the crap!"
"You just said—'this body is mine now'?! What exactly does that mean?!"
Containing extreme anxiety and cold killing intent. Naruto currently hung by a thread in the outside world, fallen into unknown coma, and the culprit stood right here, even speaking arrogantly. According to the words' analysis, could it be... things had truly moved toward the possibility Nine-Tails' heart most couldn't accept?!
Urashiki seemed to enjoy Nine-Tails' furious yet powerless state, surprisingly actually beginning to slowly explain.
"Literal meaning, Fox. Because—Uzumaki Naruto has now officially become my 'vessel.'"
"Yours?! Don't speak as though Naruto's your possession!!"
Nine-Tails' heart had already guessed roughly—this bastard used some bizarre method they didn't understand. At the final moment before body elimination, he forcibly invaded Naruto's body interior with his soul or consciousness core! This wasn't merely parasitism—listening to his tone, he clearly wanted to... steal the body!
Thinking of that possibility—Naruto's consciousness, soul, everything he represented might be thoroughly erased and overwritten by this arrogant alien monster before them... the hatred and fury in Nine-Tails' heart instantly climbed to unprecedented peaks!
Violent self-blame for its own "dereliction of duty" plus bone-deep killing intent toward Urashiki created a terrifying emotional storm! This feeling made Nine-Tails wish to immediately tear at itself—why hadn't it noticed, why hadn't it protected Naruto! Even more—magma-boiling fury all pointed toward Urashiki—dismembering it, burning its soul billions of times wouldn't calm one ten-thousandth of its rage!
"Regrettably, this is cold, merciless reality." Urashiki paid no mind to Nine-Tails' killing intent.
"Our Otsutsuki clan masters a unique secret technique. Its name—[Karma]."
"This technique's essence is to 'copy' and 'compress' the caster's—that is, Otsutsuki clan member's—complete 'data,' including personality, memories, knowledge, power, even life form. Then imprint it into carefully selected, suitable 'vessels'—that is, bearers' bodies."
He seemed to appreciate Nine-Tails' increasingly ugly expression, continuing:
"Of course, to prevent the 'vessel' from being too fragile—unable to bear Otsutsuki's full power at once and collapsing—typically, the Otsutsuki power contained in 'Karma' will 'slowly thaw and release' over time during the 'vessel's' adaptation process, until body and soul completely merge, finally completing 'reincarnation.'"
At this point, Urashiki's tone became abnormally excited. "So—this is simply fate's gift! Miraculous coincidence! Haha!"
He spread his arms. "In my long past life... I've never encountered opponents requiring serious battle!" His words revealed tragic arrogance. "Therefore, regarding [Karma]—this 'life-saving' backup—I haven't completely mastered it, only roughly grasped it. Just now, at the instant before complete annihilation, I barely activated it... I thought I was truly finished this time!"
Arrogance—precisely what nearly dragged Otsutsuki Urashiki into true irreversible doom. Viewing himself invincible, even holding contempt toward the clan's most critical "revival insurance," never deeply learning and mastering its essentials.
"You know how minuscule the probability was of successfully imprinting 'Karma' into this brat just now?!" Urashiki's excitement nearly overflowed. "Because I cannot—like clan elites—slowly compress my power into 'Karma'... so aside from existences similarly possessing Otsutsuki physique, absolutely no 'lower life form' could bear and 'absorb' this violently poured-in power! Forcibly injecting would only result in the 'vessel's' instant collapse!"
"But—this brat did it!! He!! He truly absorbed my power! My complete 'data' definitely exists within his body now!"
"So—" Urashiki's excitement slightly contained. "This is why this brat's currently unconscious with abnormal vital signs. I cannot compress-buffer the power, so now Otsutsuki power is 'forcibly adapting' to this body and soul."
"However, as long as this body completes 'adaptation'... then 'my' personality and will stored in 'Karma' will naturally awaken, occupy dominance, overwrite everything originally belonging to Uzumaki Naruto. And I will—in this perfect body—revive anew!"
"Though I don't know why, this brat's body surprisingly possesses the bizarre trait of autonomously replenishing life energy... This way, even if my 'Karma' is an incomplete inferior product, it can still complete perfect reincarnation!"
The truth—like coldest poison—was fully revealed by Urashiki in near-boasting manner.
"Then... what about Naruto?! What will happen to Naruto?!" Nine-Tails suppressed the impulse about to completely erupt into destroying everything, squeezing this sentence from between teeth.
Urashiki immediately showed an inhumanly smile. "This brat's 'personality'... will naturally be thoroughly erased by 'Karma's' data containing me. Like completely covering old canvas with new paint. This is the 'vessel's' destiny."
"You cannot save him. No one can."
"I'LL TEAR YOU APART!!!!"
Final rationality shattered!
Nine-Tails' eyes thoroughly filled with violent rage's blood red! Nine mountain-range-massive red tails madly, without method, swept, struck, entwined toward Urashiki's tiny figure!
"Heh..."
Facing this world-destroying attack, Urashiki merely chuckled. Golden Rinnegan in his eyes suddenly lit with radiance. Even as consciousness body, he still retained Otsutsuki's power and methods.
However—
Squelch!
The sound of a sharp weapon piercing some "existence" rang out without warning behind Urashiki!
Urashiki's face—that all-controlling smile—instantly froze, eyes flashing incredible shock. He lowered his head, seeing a kunai tip flashing with cold light cleanly penetrating through from his neck position!
No blood, but the "feeling" of being pierced and soul-level stinging were incomparably real!
"I won't let you harm my son."
A calm, low voice—yet containing the same fury and killing intent as Nine-Tails—rang out pressed against Urashiki's "ear."
Minato Namikaze's figure appeared behind Urashiki. He maintained the posture of thrusting Flying Thunder God kunai in. Those azure eyes similar to Naruto's currently contained none of his usual gentleness and tolerance—only soul-freezing coldness remained.
"You... who are you?!" Urashiki was both shocked and furious, attempting to turn his head but movements stiffened due to "vital point" being pierced. "So... there's not just you fox in this brat's body?! But—"
Golden light flashed in his eyes again, body beginning to emanate red chakra glimmers.
"—I said! You can do noth... ?!"
Before finishing his words, the "body" pierced by kunai suddenly transformed into countless crimson chakra paper cranes, nimbly dispersing from gaps between Minato's kunai and Nine-Tails' attacks.
Next second, all paper cranes regathered not far away. Urashiki's somewhat disheveled but undamaged figure condensed again—only his gaze toward Minato already filled with wariness and coldness.
"Hmph... petty tricks." He coldly snorted. "Looks like to smoothly 'take over' this body, I must first clean up some 'remaining pests.'"