Malphegor
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HSU: Ch. 169
🕑 Added 2025-01-30 21:18:57 +0000 UTCMinato was a quick thinker.
As the Hokage with the simplest combat style in Konoha's history, his ability to react quickly to emergencies was his greatest strength.
He didn't concern himself with how Masashi had earned the Two-Tails' approval. His first thought was the implications of this event.
The Hokages, from the First to the Third, were all known for their focus on balance. When the Five Great Shinobi Villages were first established, the structure of the shinobi world was one where one side dominated while others were strong.
After Madara and Hashirama split ways and eventually left the scene, the latter began establishing balance.
However, balance required conditions. As long as Hashirama was alive, it was impossible to achieve balance from a human perspective. So, he focused on the tailed beasts.
He thought that while they couldn't be used to kill, they could help balance the perceived strength of each side.
At the time, the Nine-Tails was sealed by Mito, and the One-Tails had been captured by Suna, leaving the remaining seven Tailed Beasts to be mysteriously captured and beaten.
At the First Five Kage Summit, during Hiruzen's routine criticism of his predecessors, Konoha shifted from selling the tailed beasts to other villages.
Since Suna already had the One-Tails and wanted land and money, they didn't need any more tailed beasts, so one that was originally going to be sold to them was given to Taki.
This created the external balance Hashirama had in mind.
Tobirama focused most of his energy on internal matters.
By the time Minato became Hokage, the balance in the shinobi world had already been broken. The Five Great Shinobi Villages had clearly differentiated in terms of strength. He wasn't particularly concerned with Kumo losing another tailed beast.
Unlike his predecessors, his goal was to return to the original state of "one strong country, many powerful countries," thereby eliminating potential war risks for Konoha.
His loyalty was to Konoha, not the shinobi world.
Minato was Konoha-centric.
To him, balance only needed to be maintained internally.
However, the Uchiha clan obtaining the Two-Tails' power would, in some ways, disrupt that balance.
The Hokage faction was still strong enough, but it was undeniable that it lacked future potential.
For now, the Hokage faction still referred to the Sarutobi clan.
Minato himself was considered part of the Sarutobi faction.
However, after thinking about it, he figured it might not be so bad.
Every family went through ups and downs. That was just part of life.
Now, many people in Konoha viewed Masashi as a potential candidate for the next Hokage. Even in the Hokage Building, more and more people were starting to believe this.
After Fugaku had exposed his true strength by running for the position of Hokage Advisor, more and more people believed that his real goal was to protect Masashi and make sure he had a smooth path to power.
If the Two-Tails' power belonged to Konoha, it would be more accurate to say it was tied to Masashi rather than to the Uchiha clan itself. This would also subtly reinforce Konoha's unspoken rule: the Hokage must be able to control a tailed beast's power, even indirectly.
Many of the past struggles in the Hokage Building, particularly with the Uchiha clan, had revolved around the ownership of the Nine-Tails, which was also a major driving force behind Konoha's experiments with Wood Style.
The Uzumaki clan, as the jinchūriki, was seen as a safety measure.
In the future, with the leader of the Uchiha clan wielding the Two-Tails, the Uchiha's interest in the Nine-Tails would naturally decrease. The focus would shift to protecting the Two-Tails, and a new balance would be reached.
After running through all of this in his mind, Minato concluded that Masashi's acquisition of the Two-Tails was ultimately more beneficial than harmful for Konoha.
But…
He looked down at the Two-Tails.
No matter how he looked at it, it seemed more like a cat than a tailed beast…
There had long been rumors that the Uchiha clan was a haven for cat lovers, and now, this seemed like confirmation.
He smiled with genuine amusement. "Masashi, I guess your family really loves cats."
"Cats are indeed good friends of the Uchiha clan," Masashi laughed.
He had noticed Minato's reaction earlier.
As an observer in the ongoing struggles between the Sarutobi faction and the Uchiha clan, Minato had always been cautious in using his Hokage authority to ensure both sides, while not openly breaking into conflict, would ease into a state of relative stability.
Once Masashi brought the Two-Tails back to Konoha, the new power balance in Konoha would be officially established.
The Uchiha faction, led by the Uchiha clan, was finally going to be formed.
Having never supported Hashirama's ideal of relying on a "balance" for peace, he also disagreed with Tobirama's approach of blocking the Uchiha's rise. His perspective was similar to Minato's.
Internal balance was necessary, but externally, absolute dominance needed to be established.
"Hokage-sama, we should head down now," he said.
Though Minato had reassured it, Matatabi was becoming increasingly agitated.
It trusted Masashi, who had fought alongside it, but didn't trust Minato at all.
The very title of Hokage made it highly suspicious and wary.
"I understand." Minato, always perceptive, immediately jumped down.
Matatabi quickly backed away, hissing.
Very ferocious!
Masashi also jumped down and landed beside Minato.
"About the Kumo forces—our ANBU have confirmed their location," Minato said, pretending not to notice the Two-Tails' apparent challenging behavior as it seemed ready to flee at any moment. "The Konoha forces are also in position. I sensed a strong chakra here, and…"
He paused for a moment, then skipped over the rest of the details and said, "Since you've handled things here, let's head over to Kumo."
"Truly a swift ANBU! Efficient as ever!" Masashi immediately praised, standing in front of the ANBU leader.
"Yes, everyone is working hard," Minato replied, his face shining with pride and feeling pleased with himself.
Currently, there was a saying in Konoha about the ANBU.
Their work performance was said to be at the same level as the Advisor's handling of calligraphy.
If you called this an insult… Fugaku's handwriting was said to be priceless.
But if you considered it a compliment… well, it felt wrong.
The Hokage was the direct leader of the ANBU, and with such a review, Minato found himself in an awkward position.
"We shouldn't delay any longer. Let's go," he said.
If he let Masashi continue praising, he feared he wouldn't be able to control his expression.
"Understood, Hokage-sama," Masashi said, pretending not to notice that the current Hokage was struggling to hide his expression. He sighed inwardly at Minato's predicament and said to Matatabi, "Can you walk with us? It'll be quicker that way."
Matatabi looked between Masashi and Minato.
Minato immediately smiled.
"Hello, Matatabi, I'm the Fourth Hokage. You can just call me Minato."
Matatabi immediately looked at him with disdain.
But it seemed to trust him a little more.
A fool like that shouldn't be too bad! It lowered its head, signaling its agreement.
---
The perception of tailed beasts as strategic weapons of a nation arose after the era of individual villages. Before that, tailed beasts were more often regarded as natural disasters in their own right.
Minato was now experiencing this reality firsthand.
The Two-Tails was dashing through the forest.
It was like watching a human exerting all their chakra to sprint across a field—but magnified to an unimaginable scale.
Wherever this giant beast passed, devastation followed.
As Matatabi ran unrestrained, the wind generated from its movements bent the surrounding trees, uprooting some and sending others crashing to the ground. Trees closest to its path were swept into the air by sheer force before slamming back down.
Occasionally, it would leap.
Every time Matatabi jumped and landed, the earth quaked. Its massive weight caused the ground to cave in, and rocks and dirt were thrown skyward. Wherever it roamed, the land bore scars of hurricanes and earthquakes combined.
Standing atop such a lively tailed beast required immense strength.
Only the most powerful shinobi could summon mighty ninja beasts, and this dynamic underscored why. Otherwise, one couldn't even stand firm on their back, let alone fight—these creatures weren't vehicles with stable chassis.
And unless you were at the level of the three great sages of the legendary lands, no ordinary ninja beast could compare to a tailed beast.
In the history of the ninja villages, only Madara was recorded as using the Nine-Tails as a personal summon.
Many believed that the more tails a beast had, the stronger it became. But even the seemingly weakest of them, Shukaku, was never seen with a Kazekage fighting atop its head.
At most, people would stand on Shukaku's head to fight against it—not with it.
The Eight-Tails had a horn broken off by the Third Raikage.
So the idea of standing on a tailed beast's head to battle others?
Far-fetched.
Today, it was generally accepted that only a perfect jinchūriki can fully harness the power of a tailed beast.
"Your appearance before the Kumo ninjas will probably be the biggest blow to their morale," Minato sighed. "You're destined to become a legendary ninja in Konoha's history."
A shinobi who could fully control a tailed beast's power had once again emerged in Konoha.
This was a blessing for the village—but also a significant challenge.
It would shock everyone, including other Konoha ninjas.
"Hokage-sama, this is because the relationship between ninjas and tailed beasts has always been disharmonious," Masashi also sighed. "The two jinchūriki from Kumo who passed away, Yugito and Killer B, were partners who trusted their beasts. Matatabi and Yugito had a good relationship too."
He glanced down at the Two-Tails, whose pace had slowed noticeably, and asked, "Matatabi, am I wrong in saying this?"
He knew the beast could hear him.
For humans, sensing chakra required effort. But tailed beasts were chakra.
"Yugito was a good person," Matatabi replied before speeding up again. "But I hate being sealed by you humans."
"Hokage-sama, you see," Masashi spread his hands, "sealing tailed beasts yet expecting them to cooperate with humans is inherently absurd. The very idea of 'taming' them is subjective. If you truly saw them as partners, you wouldn't lock them up and treat them as tools. Who considers someone who chains them up a friend?"
"…"
Matatabi's speed picked up again. The outline of a town appeared ahead.
According to Minato, the town was completely abandoned.
Matatabi charged in, and the buildings exploded into debris upon impact.
Masashi began calculating the cost.
The original residents wouldn't foot the bill. Konoha wasn't like Kumo—they had integrity and wouldn't leave allies to clean up their mess.
He concluded that Kumo should pay, as Matatabi had been brought here by Yugito.
The Two-Tails barreled through the town but seemed disappointed at not encountering any Kumo ninjas.
Masashi quickly reconnected mentally with Matatabi, allowing it to sense the Third Hokage and others nearby.
Invigorated, the beast dashed out of the town, heading north.
---
To the north, near the Land of Frost's southern border fortress, the forces of Konoha and Kumo had abandoned all pretense of stealth.
They were now fully exposed to each other.
The Kumo ninjas had entered the Land of Hot Water from the repaired southern fortress. They had already learned that their negotiating team was nearly annihilated, and the Raikage was dead.
The survivors, led by Dodai, had no intention of seeking immediate revenge. Their goal was to retreat as quickly as possible.
But the Konoha ninjas, led by the Tobirama Squad, blocked their path back to the fortress.
Neither side had yet to engage, but they were now within visible range of each other.
Dodai decided to order a breakout.
Head-on combat wasn't an option—they couldn't win. Hiruzen was present, and Akatsuki had withdrawn, citing significant intelligence failures and even offering reparations.
Whether reparations were paid or not was another issue. For now, his priority was ensuring as many Kumo ninjas survived as possible.
Just as he was finalizing the breakout plan, a familiar roar echoed.
He turned sharply to see a massive beast charging across the landscape toward the Kumo forces.
"The Two-Tails!?" Dodai exclaimed.
Indeed, the beast charging their way was none other than Matatabi.
He was stunned. He had assumed Konoha would capture and seal Matatabi on the spot.
The other Kumo ninjas were even more confused, as Dodai hadn't had time to explain Yugito's fate.
"Dodai-sama, is that Yugito-sama?"
"No, she died when the Two-Tails went berserk," Dodai said.
The Kumo jonin who asked gave him a skeptical look. "That doesn't make sense—perfect jinchūriki don't lose control."
"Konoha must have tampered with something," Dodai added offhandedly.
He wasn't sure, but accuracy wasn't important right now.
"Damn Konoha ninjas!" the Kumo ninjas roared in anger.
"We can't let the Two-Tails fall into their hands!"
"Yeah!"
"Let's fight! If the Two-Tails goes to Konoha, we'll die together!"
Dodai grumbled internally. Fools, if Konoha gets their hands on the Two-Tails, they'll just create a new jinchūriki on the spot. Wait… hold on!
Suddenly, he had an idea.
Creating a new jinchūriki took time. During that window, Konoha would lose one combat-ready ninja. If they timed it right, they could strike and eliminate both the new jinchūriki and the Two-Tails.
"Alright! Today we stand our ground. Lend me your strength!" Driven by duty to his village, he decided to redirect the Two-Tails toward Konoha.
The Kumo ninjas immediately began surrounding it.
But as they moved closer, Matatabi suddenly halted.
Dodai felt a wave of dread.
The front-line ninjas, oblivious to the danger, continued advancing.
Suddenly, flames erupted from Matatabi's head.
By the time most of the Kumo ninjas noticed, it was too late.
Bright orange threads of chakra shot from Matatabi's head, connecting to them before they could react.
The flames concentrated and then split into countless fiery lines, each targeting a different Kumo ninja with terrifying precision.
"It's the Dragon Flame Jutsu!" Dodai shouted. "Masashi is here!"
