Raikage fell silent for a moment.
Konoha had a "Little Two-Tails"? And it possessed the power of a Hollow?
That statement nearly made his mind freeze.
Could it be that Konoha's research into Hollow powers had already gone beyond human limits… and reached the stage of fusing them with tailed beasts?
But tailed beasts were already extremely dangerous.
If a Jinchūriki lost control, it could cause massive destruction to the village.
If the Kage wasn't strong enough—or if something unexpected happened—the village could suffer heavy losses.
And now Konoha was adding Hollow transformation to an already dangerous tailed beast?
Were they trying to make the potential damage from a rampaging Jinchūriki even worse?
Even he, the Raikage, would specifically designate sealed and isolated zones for safe training in Hollowfication—especially for the two Jinchūriki in his own village.
Yugito Nii had been temporarily barred from Hollow training because she and the Two-Tails had never reached perfect synchronization.
What's more, the Two-Tails itself was strongly resistant to Hollow power, rejecting any trace of it.
"Where did this Little Two-Tails come from?" Raikage asked sternly, his eyes fixed on Yugito.
"Back then, the Two-Tails did lose a portion of its power. I reported it to the village. Today, the Two-Tails told me it sensed a familiar presence—its own chakra—from someone in the Konoha delegation. So I came to check it out," Yugito replied seriously.
"That Nara Kagetsu… he really did summon a creature that looked like the Two-Tails."
But as she spoke, her voice grew hesitant.
"That version of the Two-Tails… it felt more like a summoned beast entirely infused with Hollow energy. Its power was strong enough to make the real Two-Tails inside me feel threatened… and uneasy."
"A man-made tailed beast?" Raikage tilted his head slightly.
At first, he had thought Konoha had somehow stolen power from their Two-Tails.
But from what Yugito described, it sounded more like Konoha had used the Two-Tails as a blueprint to create a Hollow-infused replica—some sort of Hollow tailed beast?
Unable to make sense of it, Raikage decided to stop thinking too deeply for now. He would just confront the Konoha delegation directly later.
But before that, he had to figure out how to tear down the web surrounding Yugito.
"Lord Raikage, it's best not to remove the net from her body."
Minato Namikaze, urged by Kagetsu, awkwardly braced himself and stepped forward to speak to Raikage A.
"Why?" A's tone carried a hint of displeasure.
In front of so many people, seeing his own Jinchūriki restrained by this net—and now being told it couldn't be removed—was nothing short of humiliating for him as the Raikage.
"Because the Two-Tails inside her is only being temporarily suppressed by the Spirit Suppression Stone. If the net is removed, the beast might try to seize control of her body again."
Kagetsu's voice rang out from behind Minato, which made him let out a relieved sigh and step aside, allowing Kagetsu to come forward and speak directly to the Raikage.
This was already the second time the Raikage had heard the name "Spirit Suppression Stone" from Kagetsu's mouth.
Judging by the way he spoke, this stone seemed to have a powerful suppressive effect on Tailed Beasts.
"This Spirit Suppression Stone… it can suppress a Tailed Beast?" Raikage A asked loudly and directly.
"To be exact, it forces all chakra into a dormant state—in other words, it renders it 'powerless.' As chakra-based lifeforms, Tailed Beasts are affected even more severely." Kagetsu answered honestly without holding back.
On his shoulder sat a black kitten, no bigger than a palm, lazily licking its paw. Two nimble tails swayed gently behind it.
"My chakra flow has definitely been suppressed. I can barely use any ninjutsu I've mastered—it feels like I'm under a sealing technique that blocks chakra completely," Yugito Nii added through gritted teeth when she saw her Raikage looking her way.
If she could still use chakra or any ninjutsu, she could have torn through the net herself.
Instead, just standing upright was draining her physical strength and willpower.
If the Spirit Suppression Stone could be mass-produced, it would be the perfect ninja tool for imprisoning shinobi.
Shackles made from it could rival even the Blood Prison of Kusagakure in terms of security.
"I know Kumogakure is trying to master the power of Hollowfication, especially the Hollowfication of Jinchūriki," said Kagetsu, looking calmly at the Raikage, whose expression was unreadable.
He spoke softly, "Since Konoha and Kumogakure have signed the highest-level alliance, aside from the Gelel Stone, Konoha is also willing to regularly provide a batch of Spirit Suppression Stone to you. I believe Raikage-sama understands the value of such stones."
Of course the Raikage knew what the Spirit Suppression Stone could do.
Though he appeared rough, impulsive, and reckless on the surface, anyone who could become the leader of a village and hold the position firmly was no fool.
He wasn't any less intelligent than the other Kage.
Kumogakure's reputation for being brash and aggressive often misled the rest of the Shinobi World.
The Spirit Suppression Stone could suppress the rampage of Tailed Beast chakra.
More importantly, they could influence chakra itself.
That meant, with their aid, the difficulty of training in the Hollowfication state could be greatly reduced—and the damage caused by it could also be minimized.
Right now, every Kumogakure shinobi undergoing Hollowfication training needed the Raikage himself present.
He had to assist them, remind them of key points during the transformation, and—more critically—step in to suppress them by force if they lost control.
He would knock them out of the Hollowfied state before the power completely consumed them.
The entire process of training in the Hollowfication mode was one of the most classified secrets in Kumogakure.
Besides facing one's inner self beneath the Falls of Truth to control the enhanced dark side caused by Hollowfication, they also needed advanced sealing techniques to suppress that power at the critical moment and restore their consciousness.
Currently, many shinobi in Kumogakure were undergoing Hollowfication testing.
But in the end, the only one who had successfully and somewhat perfectly mastered it... was the Raikage himself—A.
Even Killer Bee could only achieve an imperfect state.
He could enter the Hollowfied mode in battle, but if he didn't defeat his opponent within a certain time, his consciousness would be overwhelmed by the Hollow power.
Eventually, he'd lose all will and become a true Hollow—mindless and uncontrollable.
If a shinobi didn't possess a strong enough will, once they began Hollowfication training, it was a path of no return.
Each session dragged them deeper into the abyss—just like an imperfect Jinchūriki who became a ticking time bomb for their own village.
The Raikage's decision to form an alliance with Konoha wasn't just because the information they offered was shocking.
It was also because Konoha had far superior Hollowfication techniques—and they were willing to share them.
Watching a powerful force slip through their fingers, being unable to wield it despite holding it in their grasp—was something Kumogakure simply couldn't accept.
Especially since they had already poured their hearts, efforts, and heavy sacrifices into this power.
****
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