Malphegor
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HSU: Ch. 71
🕑 Added 2024-12-14 14:37:15 +0000 UTCThe massive black-scaled snake instantly drew everyone's attention as it appeared on the battlefield.
"Orochimaru?" This was the Fourth Raikage's first reaction. Several Kumo jonin near him tensed.
"Those scales are different..." one of his commanders muttered, but the Raikage had already dismissed the thought.
Why would someone suddenly attack an ally they had just cooperated with?
If that were the case, what's the point of defecting? Where's the loyalty in the shinobi world?
"Konoha still has someone like this?" he was slightly surprised but unconcerned.
It was just a summoned beast.
"Let Yugito deal with it!" he ordered before turning back to charge toward Jiraiya. Lightning chakra crackled around his body.
His main goal was to prevent the Toad Sannin from powering up like last time.
The Lightning Release Chakra Mode was undeniably powerful and effective in most combat situations. However, its weakness lay in its lack of wide-scale destructive capabilities, making it ineffective as a battlefield sweeper.
Thus, the Fourth Raikage's only aim this time was to stop Jiraiya from activating his enhancements.
Without his Sage Mode, the Fourth Raikage was confident he could prevent Jiraiya from focusing on killing ordinary Kumo ninjas.
With his Lightning Release Chakra Mode fully activated, he tore into the Konoha ninjas' ranks like a hot knife through butter, brushing aside those in his path like paper.
Bodies flew through the air, some still twitching from the lightning coursing through them.
"The Raikage himself!" a Konoha ninja shouted in panic.
"Don't engage! Fall back to formation!" another commander yelled, pulling his subordinates back.
He charged all the way to the base of Gamabunta. The giant toad had no time to react before the Raikage, cloaked in lightning, launched a punch directly at Jiraiya.
---
Elsewhere, the jonin of both sides were locked in fierce battles.
In the distance, Masashi merely glanced at the scene before refocusing on the fully transformed Two-Tails jinchūriki.
On his way there, Kuro had already trampled countless Kumo ninjas underfoot.
Due to the nature of their ninjutsu systems, Kumo and Iwa favored dense formations for large-scale battles.
But the serpents from Ryūchi Cave were natural counters to such formations.
The ordinary Kumo ninjas' Lightning Release Taijutsu was utterly ineffective against the serpent's defenses. And for elemental ninjutsu, mid-to-lower-level ninjas often relied on explosive tags for good reason.
"Reform the lines! Don't scatter!" a Kumo commander shouted desperately.
"It's breaking through everything!" came the panicked response as another line collapsed.
While Lightning Release Taijutsu was among the most cost-effective techniques for genin ninjas, there were limits to its effectiveness.
Additionally, Lightning Release Taijutsu was distinct from the advanced Lightning Release Chakra Mode used by higher-ranking ninjas. Without jonin-level expertise, it was impossible to master the latter.
Most Kumo ninjas practiced a basic form of Lightning Release Taijutsu, using the piercing properties of Lightning Release to enhance their melee attacks.
Technically, the highest level of this art would be something like Kakashi's initial version of the Chidori. Ordinary Kumo ninjas, however, were far from reaching such mastery.
As such, Masashi didn't even bother to equip Kuro with advanced defensive enhancements.
Kuro's path was littered with carnage.
Kumo ninjas were either ignored and crushed underfoot, slapped into paste by its tail, or sent flying with a casual shake. Blood and broken bodies marked its path through their ranks, the screams of the dying mixing with orders to retreat.
Though Kumo ninjas were known for their bravery, they weren't reckless.
Faced with this unstoppable force, the Kumo ninjas retreated in haste.
At the end of the battlefield stood Yugito, fully transformed into her Tailed Beast Form. Blue flames flickered around her massive form as chakra swirled violently.
Like Killer B, she was a perfect jinchūriki, now in the complete form of her tailed beast.
At this moment, she was literally a giant cat.
As this massive cat opened its mouth wide, far in the distance, Masashi clasped his hands together.
The ground trembled as enormous ice-formed arms burst forth, targeting the retreating Kumo ninjas.
In the next instant, the arms swung violently.
A barrage of ice spikes rained down across the battlefield.
The sudden, large-scale attack caught many Kumo ninjas off guard. Those who couldn't escape in time were pinned to the ground, blood splattering everywhere.
Some were pierced through their limbs, others through their stomachs, and some lost their heads entirely.
"When did he set up those seals?" a Konoha jonin whispered.
"He planned this from the start..." another replied, watching the devastation unfold.
Witnessing this, Yugito, enraged, unleashed a Tailed Beast Bomb.
While the bomb took some time to charge, its release was swift. In moments, it reached the black serpent.
But in front of everyone, the bomb was captured by a Flying Thunder God barrier, swallowed whole, and redirected to the icy wasteland created by Masashi's earlier attack.
A brilliant light erupted from the site, blinding all who looked.
The sudden white light caused the ground to quake, twist, crack, and surge.
At the explosion's epicenter, all matter was vaporized. Around it, bodies were flung into the air by the shockwave, only to crash back to the ground.
The extreme heat and pressure distorted the surrounding air. Debris, dust, and fragments of the ground rose high into the sky, forming a mushroom cloud.
The Kumo ninja army at the site was completely obliterated.
Despite the lack of full charge time, Yugito's Tailed Beast Bomb demonstrated the strategic value of jinchūriki as weapons of mass destruction.
Unfortunately for her, not a single Konoha ninja was killed.
An icy wall, creaking and groaning, had blocked the deadly shockwave from reaching the Konoha forces.
Meanwhile, Kuro, now clad in the chakra armor of Sage Art: Majestic Attire, gleamed brilliantly under the sunlight.
Obediently following Masashi's orders, she charged toward the distant tailed beast.
The Majestic Attire hadn't slowed it down in the slightest, and now, no obstacles remained.
The faces of the Kumo jonin changed drastically at the sudden turn of events.
---
The Fourth Raikage stared at the battlefield.
"Flying Thunder God?"
Having once lost to Minato in terms of speed, he had thoroughly investigated his rival's abilities.
As one of the Five Kage, he had access to the intelligence networks necessary to uncover the truth behind the Yellow Flash.
Thus, he knew that Minato's speed was not simply due to raw ability, but because of a space-time ninjutsu: the Flying Thunder God.
"Support Yugito!" he ordered decisively.
He turned and prepared to rush back to aid her.
"Hold them off!" Jiraiya commanded simultaneously.
Abandoning his earlier cautious approach, he leaped from Gamabunta's head. The Sage Toads from Mount Myōboku perched on his shoulders, their combined efforts finally activating Sage Mode.
His toad-like eyes opened wide as he charged toward the Raikage.
The Konoha jonin acted swiftly, intercepting the Kumo jonin and holding them back with all their might. Everyone on the Konoha side knew that as long as no one interfered, Yugito would inevitably fall to Masashi.
This guy was even stronger than during that fateful night.
Still, the Konoha forces couldn't help but feel a bit disheartened. The top prize for this battle's merit?
Out of reach now.
No chance of competing for it.
They'd have to settle for second place, losing out on ten million ryō.
After all, this was an Uchiha. Geniuses were churned out every generation—it was just how it was.
A mere 19-year-old Kage-level ninja? Sure, why not.
With these thoughts in mind, the jonin from various clans fought fiercely, determined to hold off the Kumo jonin.
Though Jiraiya couldn't match the Raikage in speed, his Sage Mode gave him enough power to hold his ground, creating a stalemate between the two.
---
Meanwhile, Kuro under Masashi's control coiled tightly around Yugito, restraining her.
Before she could break free, his hands flashed through a series of seals, summoning water serpents that erupted from his palms and shot toward their target.
With supernatural speed, the water serpents latched onto Yugito, their fangs sinking deep into the Tailed Beast's Chakra Form. Where they bit, ice and dark sealing marks spread in tandem, forming patterns across her massive body.
She roared in fury as the Two-Tails chakra weakened with each new seal, ice crackling as it spread alongside the marks.
In that frozen moment of vulnerability, countless more water serpents erupted, forming a massive net that trapped her.
Kuro quickly coiled tightly around the enemy, immediately starting to constrict her own body.
Though the snakes of Ryūchi Cave were extraordinary creatures nurtured by natural energy, they still retained many of their original animal instincts.
Masashi watched as her movements followed the same pattern he'd studied countless times.
For example, relying on judgment during battle.
They would strike to kill only when confident of a one-hit kill—when holding an absolute advantage—using their judgment and focus to secure victory.
If it were a typical living creature, being wrapped by Kuro like this would mean either death or being left with "half a life."
The snake's crushing force could pulverize rock, let alone flesh and bone.
Unfortunately, the complete Tailed Beast Transformation was essentially the ultimate version of the Tailed Beast Chakra Cloak.
Thus, for Yugito, as long as this chakra cloak wasn't destroyed, she'd be perfectly fine.
What really posed a threat to her were the "sealing snakes" wielded by Masashi.
These snakes were sealing off her control over the tailed beast chakra.
---
The Two-Tails, Matatabi, sealed within her, was very familiar with this kind of technique.
"Yugito, these snakes are likely his version of the Uzumaki clan's Adamantine Sealing Chains. They can seal our chakra." Matatabi, whose voice was distinctly feminine, appeared as a large cat covered entirely in blue chakra flames.
Her tone was gentle, unlike the rough-and-tumble vibe of her single-tailed "brother."
Shukaku was the type to start spouting gang jargon as soon as it opened its mouth.
Still, even Matatabi was getting anxious now.
It wasn't for its own sake—after all, being a tailed beast, it couldn't die anyway.
But it didn't want Yugito to die. Since its creation, it had had many hosts, but Yugito was the only one it genuinely cared for. Their bond went beyond mere container and contained—they were true partners.
To be blunt, the tailed beasts had different temperaments. The more docile ones had grown somewhat accustomed to being sealed over the years. Their expectations had shifted—from "not being sealed at all" to simply hoping their hosts had a pleasant personality.
Of course, getting along wasn't enough to achieve Perfect Jinchūriki status. It was only one of the necessary conditions. The host also had to possess the ability to perfectly control the tailed beast's chakra.
Yugito, struggling against the sealing technique, was taken aback. "How can an Uchiha know Uzumaki sealing techniques?"
The Uzumaki clan had been destroyed long ago, though that wasn't entirely accurate.
Uzushio had indeed been destroyed, and many members of the Uzumaki clan had been scattered across various countries, living under assumed identities.
Among them were even direct descendants. However, some had chosen to join the Land of Fire. A few of them, those with intact legacies, joined Konoha.
Though they had difficulty accepting the fall of Uzushio emotionally, they didn't hold Konoha responsible.
After all, Konoha had arrived late but hadn't been indifferent.
Even from a pragmatic standpoint, Konoha couldn't have allowed the Uzumaki clan to disappear completely. Such an outcome would have tarnished not just its reputation, but that of the Hokage's lineage.
Faced with the near-universal assault on the Uzumaki clan by the shinobi world at the time, Konoha's decision was to deploy troops to aid them.
The Third Hokage had even prepared for an all-out war with Kiri.
During that war, Danzō fought at the frontlines, losing an eye in battle. If it hadn't been for Kagami, he would've died.
Those who survived built a new shrine within Konoha's territory and reorganized Konoha's sealing squad. Before this, the sealing squad was not an independent department but merely a unit type within the Konoha forces.
From then on, the Uzumaki clan's sealing techniques were integrated into Konoha in a relatively complete form.
This marked the beginning of Konoha's dominance in the field of sealing arts in the shinobi world.
However, the surviving Uzumaki clan members remained haunted by memories of the past. They no longer organized themselves as a ninja clan, and many ceased to be shinobi altogether.
During the Third Hokage's tenure, aside from Kushina, there wasn't a single prominent shinobi with the Uzumaki name in Konoha's forces.
As Minato became Hokage, the Uzumaki survivors began reconsidering direct service to Konoha.
It seemed that when Kushina transitioned to being the Hokage's wife, the Uzumaki clan started becoming more open to the idea of identifying as Konoha shinobi.
However, the Adamantine Sealing Chains, a core legacy of the clan, were beyond even Minato.
In the original Uzumaki clan, very few people had mastered this technique.
Compared to techniques like the Reaper Death Seal, which demanded life as its cost, the Adamantine Sealing Chains were the true hallmark of the Uzumaki clan.
During the Warring States Period, Uzumaki clan powerhouses used chains instead of ninja tools in combat. Once struck, their enemies were effectively finished.
Yugito had certainly heard of the Adamantine Sealing Chains.
"So, this is the Uchiha's version of Adamantine Sealing Chains?" Yugito realized.
While it was true that the sealing techniques of Kumo were inferior to those of Konoha, the fact that they had managed to produce Perfect Jinchūriki showed their proficiency in sealing arts. Thus, her knowledge and instincts were sharp.
The sealing arts of all Five Great Villages weren't lacking—Konoha's were just so strong that they made the others look weak.
When Masashi unleashed his sealing snakes, Yugito knew she was up against a formidable foe.
She had been resisting, but it felt like tug-of-war. When you saw the other team's arms were thicker than your team's legs, you pretty much knew the result in your heart.
Struggling was human nature.
Only when facing death could one realize how skilled they were at clinging to life.
In her fully transformed tailed beast state, she activated the corrosive effects of her chakra cloak. Blue flames intensified, eating away at everything they touched.
Kuro screeched in pain, scales sizzling under the caustic chakra.
"Sorry, Kuro," Masashi muttered, glancing at his summon. Manda's going to be insufferable about this. He decisively dismissed the summoning.
The next time he encountered Manda, he was sure to be cursed at.
Kuro vanished back to Ryūchi Cave in a puff of smoke, and he began to fall.
Using the momentum of his fall, he gave a mighty tug, trying to pull Matatabi's chakra downward.
Yugito initially rejoiced, but quickly realized something was wrong.
Reacting swiftly, she adjusted her body to follow Masashi's downward pull.
Otherwise, her Tailed Beast Chakra Cloak might have been stripped away.
After all, it was merely a layer of chakra attached to her body, not the real Matatabi.
Landing on the ground, Masashi noted that the chakra cloak had remained intact. He quickly formed a single-hand seal, summoning multiple arms from the surrounding area that grasped toward her.
At the same time, an icy snake emerged from the ground beneath him, mirroring Kuro's previous movements as it coiled around Yugito.
Standing atop the snake's head, he met her gaze directly.
The fiery Sage Markings on his face seemed to truly burn, a reflection of Sage Mode pushed to its peak. Chakra swirled around him in visible waves.
The Sharingan's tomoe spun rapidly as they met the fierce gaze of the Two-Tails' host.
Masashi could only use Kagutsuchi in Sage Mode for a simple reason: with Sage Mode's amplification, his Sharingan's ocular power could reach the base level of the Mangekyō Sharingan.
This revelation had come to him during his time studying the Sage Mode.
Illusionary techniques through the Sharingan were pushed to their limit, assailing Yugito's will.
