Chapter 140: Naruto Is Close to Losing Control
"Surround him from the left! Don't let him escape the village!"
"The Hokage is on his way! Hold him back until he arrives!"
"Wait—why are Root operatives here too?!"
The peaceful stillness of Konoha shattered in an instant.
The tranquil night, once filled only with the hum of insects, now pulsed with frantic footsteps, shouted orders, and flaring chakra. The entire village lit up, flooded in an ominous red glow.
Cloaked in burning scarlet chakra, Naruto looked more beast than boy.
Three tails flared behind him, swaying and lashing like serpents of malice.
Boom. Boom. Boom.
Every time his clawed hands and feet struck the ground, wooden boards and stone alike were pulverized beneath him—shattered like brittle tofu.
His taijutsu, empowered exponentially by the Nine-Tails' chakra, tore through the village like a tank driven by a child with no sense of restraint. And every movement brought more damage—more fear.
Even seasoned Anbu and Root operatives struggled to keep up with his sheer speed. They were left behind in his wake, one by one.
And the aura…
It was suffocating.
Dark. Unhinged. Violent.
For the villagers who had once lived through the night of the Nine-Tails' rampage, the sensation was all too familiar.
The chakra's eerie shriek tore through the silence like a demonic flute—piercing bone, chilling blood.
"Th-the Nine-Tails…"
"That monster… it's that monster again!"
"Run! Run!"
Screams spread like wildfire.
Awakened from their sleep by the crimson light, people fled in terror—haunted by memories they thought had faded.
Yet even as chaos spread, most shinobi held back.
Though many had been roused from their homes, they focused on evacuation—shielding civilians, guiding children and elders to safety. None joined the pursuit.
Only two forces were actively hunting Naruto: the Root and the Anbu.
"All Root and Anbu units, listen up," came Danzo's icy voice, echoing through the field. "Force the Jinchūriki out of the village. Do not allow him to remain within the walls."
His failure to use Kotoamatsukami had frustrated him—but Danzo Shimura was no novice.
He adapted quickly.
If subtlety wouldn't work, brute force would suffice.
He resealed his Mangekyō Sharingan beneath thick bandages, then turned to the assembled shinobi and raised his voice.
"The Jinchūriki is out of control! This is not a drill. We are to drive him out of the village and subdue him outside the walls, where his chakra cannot endanger the populace!"
At first, only the Root responded.
Then—hesitation.
An Anbu ninja, masked and bearing a tiger insignia, stepped forward with narrowed eyes.
"Lord Danzo?" he asked coldly. "When did you receive authorization?"
Danzo's gaze locked with his.
"Tiger," he said flatly, "Naruto is endangering the village. If we delay, and the Nine-Tails is unsealed here, will you take responsibility?"
"But… Naruto doesn't appear to have lost full control."
The Anbu's tone was careful. Too much about this felt off. Danzo rarely appeared on the frontlines, let alone with such timing.
And now, he was leading the charge himself?
Suspicion crept beneath the surface.
"The Jinchūriki is tied to the very survival of this village," Danzo snapped. "We don't have the Fourth Hokage anymore. No Flying Thunder God to remove the threat if it goes critical. As the Hokage's advisor, I order you to follow my command and drive Uzumaki Naruto out of the village!"
He stepped closer, his voice cold enough to freeze steel.
Tiger hesitated… then finally nodded.
"…Understood."
He raised his hands high.
"All Anbu—coordinate with Root to drive the Jinchūriki out of the village perimeter. Do not let him unleash the full Nine-Tails within our walls."
"Yes, sir!"
The response was swift and sharp.
Unlike Root, the Anbu moved openly and with purpose, spreading across rooftops and alleyways to encircle Naruto's route.
Naruto, meanwhile, was enduring hell.
But this time… it wasn't mental agony. It was physical.
He remained partially aware.
The burning cloak of the Nine-Tails wrapped his entire body, simultaneously shielding and scorching him.
His shredded clothes clung to his skin, soaked in blood.
Wounds opened across his chest, arms, and back like ragged tears—only to heal seconds later, the chakra stitching them shut again and again in a cruel loop of destruction and regeneration.
His pain was endless.
But he gritted his teeth and kept running.
"Try to restrain yourself."
Ryosuke's voice returned, steady as ever.
"The tailed beast chakra has eroded you too deeply. If a fifth tail appears… you may not be able to keep your mind."
He couldn't feel Naruto's pain. But he could sense his vitality slipping.
This wasn't sustainable.
Naruto was burning through his own life.
"I… I can't hold it back anymore," Naruto rasped, his voice barely audible even in his own mind.
Laughter—bitter, breathless—escaped him.
"I know the Nine-Tails isn't affecting my mind as much this time… because of you, Ryosuke.
"But the more I borrow its power, the less control I have. I can't stop the changes. I can't release the chakra. It just keeps flowing."
It was like a dam had burst.
Once the transformation began, there was no going back—unless something stopped it for him.
The Nine-Tails' chakra didn't ask permission.
It consumed.
Far across the village, Ryosuke frowned deeply.
This wasn't right.
He hadn't anticipated this.
Naruto's partial transformations had only recently started manifesting. The original timeline left too many gaps—too few clues to predict what would happen in real time.
Which meant…
It was time to see for himself.
Ryosuke closed his eyes.
The whites of his Byakugan glowed brighter—then flared.
In the span of a single breath, he plunged into Naruto's spiritual world.
The seal was no obstacle.
Tick. Tick.
The air was damp and thick.
Dripping water echoed endlessly.
He opened his eyes and found himself in a vast sewer-like corridor, lit by a faint, flickering light.
And at the end of it—massive, dark, and humming with rage—
A towering cage.
The Nine-Tails.
Information is lacking, Ryosuke thought, but I'll confirm it myself.
He stepped forward, his footsteps silent in the ankle-deep water.
If he couldn't understand the mechanics of Naruto's transformation from the outside…
He would study the contract—the balance—between the Jinchūriki and the beast directly.
Taking slow steps on the water, Ryosuke's spiritual form approached the cage—though to call it a "cage" was an understatement. It stood like a towering gate from a ruined city, forged of darkness and despair.
Within the iron bars, there was no light—only pitch-black nothingness.
A storm of emotion radiated from inside: murky rage, twisted resentment, primal fury. The feelings pressed against Ryosuke's senses like invisible hands, testing, probing, trying to unsettle him.
"You have a very strange look in your eyes."
A heavy, gravelly voice rumbled from the dark.
Scarlet beast-like eyes flickered into existence. The Nine-Tails had awakened.
From the shadows, its enormous form emerged—massive, crimson-furred, malevolent. It rose from its resting posture with slow menace, blood-red pupils locking on to Ryosuke, scanning him like a predator analyzing a rival.
Waves of raw chakra rippled outward, crashing across the spiritual space like invisible tsunamis.
But Ryosuke remained still.
Composed.
Even the water beneath his feet did not ripple—like his presence rejected the influence of the fox's chakra.
"Put away your intimidation tactics. I'm not here to arm wrestle."
He calmly shifted his gaze from the fox to the cage itself.
"Interesting seal…" he murmured, eyes narrowing.
It was a unique configuration—one rooted in the Four Symbols Seal, but heavily modified with the Eight Trigrams Seal.
Minato's craftsmanship was evident.
He had split the Nine-Tails' chakra between himself and Naruto, then sealed one half into his son using this hybrid method.
It allowed Naruto to forcibly draw on the beast's chakra under pressure. But rather than borrowing it through negotiation, it was more like plundering.
Naruto could access the chakra.
But the Nine-Tails couldn't control how much was taken, nor stop the process once it started.
And if Naruto lost control?
Then neither host nor beast could stop the flood. The seal would keep extracting chakra until something—or someone—intervened.
---
"Hey!"
The fox growled in irritation.
Seeing that Ryosuke was ignoring him entirely, the beast began to speak again—but before he could finish, Ryosuke's spiritual form faded away like smoke on water.
Back in the real world, Ryosuke exhaled softly, eyes narrowing.
"So that's how it works… That simplifies things."
He spoke to Naruto through their link.
"To interrupt the tailed beast transformation, we need to reinforce the seal. But for now, I'll apply a partial Five Elements Seal. I won't completely cut off the chakra—there are too many enemies chasing you. Without it, you wouldn't stand a chance."
"Once the Third arrives, I'll help you end the transformation."
Naruto had already fled the village perimeter and entered the dense forest beyond.
His chakra, massive and turbulent, surged outward like a tidal wave. Trees snapped and collapsed in all directions, the sheer pressure too much for the landscape to withstand.
"…I'll try," Naruto grunted.
He skidded to a halt and clenched his fists, trying to rein in the storm.
But behind him, a fourth tail began to manifest.
The negative emotions of the Nine-Tails, riding through the chakra like a parasite, were sinking into his thoughts.
Whoosh!
The sound of movement in the trees.
Root and Anbu operatives appeared from every angle, surrounding Naruto like a living wall.
But none advanced.
They simply waited—tension thick in the air—awaiting new orders.
"Seal team, move in! Prepare to restrain Uzumaki Naruto!"
Danzo's voice rang through the forest as he arrived at the scene, his tone sharp and commanding.
But as soon as his words reached Naruto's ears—
Boom!
The red chakra exploded outward in a shockwave.
Massive trees that had barely held against his presence moments ago were obliterated in the blast, reduced to splinters.
"Earth Release: Earth Flow Wall!"
A series of earthen barricades rose in an instant, shielding the sealing team from the blast.
The wall encircled Naruto, temporarily containing the violent chakra.
Then, a voice broke through.
"I want to see the Third Hokage!"
Naruto's voice was hoarse but forceful.
Every ninja present heard it.
Danzo opened his mouth to issue another order—but was quickly cut off.
"Wait!"
An Anbu commander—Tiger—leapt atop the earth wall and called out.
"Uzumaki Naruto! The Third is on his way! Can you still control yourself?"
The clearing fell silent.
No answer.
But Naruto slowly curled into himself, his breath ragged, and the red chakra… stopped expanding.
He was holding back.
"He's still conscious!" Tiger declared. "Stand down! No one act without my command!"
He turned to the crowd and barked, "Deploy a sealing formation immediately—but do not provoke him! We must wait for the Hokage's arrival!"
Then, his eyes locked on Danzo.
"We need to be prepared. If he loses control, no one here will be able to stop it."
Danzo's jaw clenched.
"Tora, this will be your responsibility—"
"I'll take it," the man replied without hesitation.
He faced Danzo directly, eyes hard. "As the former head of the Anbu appointed by the Nidaime himself, I still hold the authority to command all current Anbu in times of emergency. That's the right the Sandaime gave me when I stepped down."
His words struck like a blade.
Even among Konoha's elite, this man held seniority. In age and status, he was Danzo's equal—if not superior.
Danzo scowled.
"Tora…"
He bit back the rest. In truth, this man had already been a legend during the Second Hokage's era. Danzo could not override him.
And with only Root operatives under his command, Danzo knew he couldn't subdue Naruto alone—especially not with the eyes of so many witnesses.
If Hiruzen arrived…
Danzo's thoughts raced.
No.
This plan can still be salvaged.
"Actually…" Danzo's voice lowered, feigning gravitas. "Tonight's mission was a covert order from the Sandaime himself."
He drew attention from the surrounding shinobi.
"The Hokage entrusted me with ensuring the containment of the Jinchūriki. He asked me to take necessary measures to ensure the boy can be turned into an effective weapon against future threats."
Danzo turned his gaze back to Tora, then slowly pulled out a scroll from his cloak.
"This document bears the Hokage's official seal."
Step by step, he approached.
As he walked, his fingers reached for the edge of the white bandage covering his face—unraveling it slowly.
The air thickened with tension.
The truth—or a lie—was about to unfold.
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