After absorbing the complete power of all nine tailed beasts, the Gedo Statue underwent an almost instant transformation.
Its form rapidly shifted into the complete version, its body becoming tall and massive with near-human arms and legs, a stage often referred to as the fourth form before the Divine Tree.
This was the Ten-Tails in its complete form, its size reaching over a thousand meters. The next step would be its final form, the Divine Tree.
The reason the Ten-Tails did not need to gradually gather power to evolve was that Shinji had given it the full power of the tailed beasts in one go.
This was the same as when Madara Uchiha became the Ten-Tails' jinchuriki, instantly transforming the Gedo Statue into the complete Ten-Tails.
As for the final form, the Divine Tree, Shinji had no use for it. He is not going to grow a tree and use it to harness Chakra fruit or something.
[Alert! Host has successfully restored the Gedo Statue into the Ten-Tails. Reward: 200 points!]
[Alert! Host has redeemed "Physique ×630", deducting "Points ×630". Remaining points: 400!]
[Alert! Host has redeemed "Hashirama Cells ×40", deducting "Points ×400". Remaining points: 0!]
[Physique +630]
[Hashirama Cells +40]
[Physique: 1808]
[Hashirama Cells: 100]
As the Ten-Tails completed its evolution, Shinji also prepared to become its jinchuriki.
Although his Rinnegan came from Madara, with the system's help, they fit him perfectly, as if they were his own eyes, much like the double Kamui he possessed from the beginning.
In theory, he could become the Ten-Tails' jinchuriki just as smoothly as Madara did, without struggling like Obito.
Still, to minimize any possible accidents, Shinji chose to raise his stats as much as possible.
[Alert! Host's Hashirama Cells have reached 80. Reward unlocked: Wood Release: Wood Dragon Technique!]
[Alert! Host's Hashirama Cells have reached 100. Reward unlocked: Wood Release: Flower Tree World!]
With the sharp increase in Hashirama Cells, Shinji gained new Wood Release techniques.
However, just as Shinji was about to use the "Six Paths: Ten-Tails Coffin Seal" to absorb the Ten-Tails into himself, things took a little unexpected turn.
A petite figure glowing with faint green light suddenly descended from the sky, landing right in front of the Ten-Tails.
It was none other than Tatsumaki, the Tornado of Terror.
"So this is the monster causing trouble this time? It's pretty big, but I wonder how strong it actually is."
Then she spotted Shinji standing on the ground before the Ten-Tails. "Huh? You again?"
Shinji sighed. Man, her timing could not be better.
"What are you doing here?"
Shinji was genuinely surprised to see her.
He sealed away all the tailed beasts as quickly as possible using Chibaku Tensei, then immediately summoned the Gedo Statue to start the Ten-Tails fusion. He wanted to avoid attention and hoped things would go smoothly like before, but the moment Shinji spotted this little green head, he knew he had to deal with trouble.
In truth, she had just happened to be at Hero Association headquarters, so the moment she heard about a dragon-level threat, she rushed straight over.
"Looks like you can't handle this big guy after all. In the end, you still need me. Let me take care of it."
Tatsumaki had no idea the 'big guy ' she was referring to was there for the said Shinji. Seeing the battlefield scars left behind by Chibaku Tensei, she assumed Shinji had gone through all this trouble but still couldn't beat the massive monster.
"I'm in the middle of something important, don't get in my way…"
Shinji didn't want to waste words with her, focusing instead on forming the necessary hand seals.
"What's with that attitude?!" Tatsumaki snapped, clearly annoyed.
She raised her hand, unleashing her psychic power to fling the obstructive Shinji aside so she could take on the massive monster herself.
Tatsumaki's action immediately caused a misunderstanding about the Ten-Tails. Although it was definitely under Shinji's control, that didn't mean it was just a mindless puppet. It still kept awareness deep inside and instinctively obeyed him.
So the moment it sensed Tatsumaki might harm Shinji, it attacked her without hesitation.
"Roar!"
The Ten-Tails let out a deafening roar and unleashed "Catastrophic Planetary Devastation."
In an instant, it triggered multiple natural disasters at once: earthquakes, lightning strikes, tornadoes, and tsunamis, all aimed at Tatsumaki.
"Oh?"
Seeing such a vast and large-scale display of natural calamities suddenly unfold, Tatsumaki's lips curled into a faint smirk, her interest clearly piqued.
After all, when it came to natural disasters, this was also her specialty.
She immediately raised both hands, using her overwhelming psychic power to conjure tornadoes even larger than the ones before her, countering the threat. The lightning strikes were blocked by the protective barrier enveloping her body.
For the first time in a long while, the Ten-Tails had presented her with an opponent worth some attention.
Unlike the monsters she had defeated in the past, even dragon-level threats had never given her a real challenge.
"..."
Shinji, on the other hand, was far from pleased. His brow furrowed slightly.
Just as he was debating whether to stop the Ten-Tails from fighting Tatsumaki, the system suddenly chimed in.
[Alert! Host has triggered the special event "Ten-Tails vs. Tatsumaki." Reward: Physique +100, Hashirama Cells +20!]
[Physique: 1908]
[Hashirama Cells: 120]
[Alert! Host's Hashirama Cells have reached 120. Reward unlocked: Wood Release: Wood Human Technique!]
"Bro, really?" Seeing this, Shinji made up his mind to wait and watch. "Welp, I won't say no to free points then."
As long as it was before Boros arrived, the exact moment he became the Ten-Tails' jinchuriki didn't matter.
If the battle between the Ten-Tails and Tatsumaki could bring him more rewards, then there was no harm in letting it play out.
Shinji didn't believe the Ten-Tails could defeat Tatsumaki, but he also knew she couldn't kill it either. In truth, the Ten-Tails was essentially immortal. Even if she managed to tear it apart, he could instantly revive it.
With that in mind, Shinji sat down right where he was, pulling out a bag of sunflower seeds from the Kamui space and cracking them leisurely.
"That's more like it. Sit there quietly and watch me perform."
Noticing Shinji's relaxed posture, Tatsumaki showed a faintly smug expression.
But as she was busy countering the disasters, the Ten-Tails' mouth shifted and grew into a massive cannon-like muzzle, gathering an enormous Tailed Beast Bomb.
This bomb was so large it exceeded the Ten-Tails' own size, and it launched straight toward Tatsumaki, who was hovering in the air.
At that moment, her previously casual expression turned serious.
She could feel the terrifying energy stored within that massive Tailed Beast Bomb and knew better than to rely on her barrier to take it head-on.
Tatsumaki immediately dodged, but the distant mountain behind her was not so lucky.
Boom!!!
The explosion was like a nuclear blast, no, far beyond one. The impact radius stretched for at least a thousand kilometers, the fireball piercing through the clouds, an attack worthy of wiping out an entire nation.