"Such a strong defense… Is this the power of the One-Tail?"
Killer Bee, blades flashing, became a whirlwind of steel as he slashed at the massive sand beast. But every swing landed like cutting into water—fluid, formless, unscathed.
"In that case... I'll break it with force!"
Bee sheathed his swords and leapt backward. Chakra surged as a destructive aura erupted around him!
From his back, eight massive tentacles unfurled like a peacock's fan. In the next instant, Bee disappeared—transformed completely into the monstrous form of the Eight-Tails, Gyūki—a towering beast with a bull's head and octopus body.
"L-Look! What is that?!"
"A monster! A demon! How could something like that be on the battlefield?!"
Sand Shinobi panicked as the true form of the Eight-Tails rose into view. For a moment, many faltered—allowing Cloud shinobi to strike them down mercilessly.
"Haha! Bunch of rookies. That's our Killer Bee-sama, baby!"
A Cloud shinobi sneered down at a fresh corpse, then looked up at Gyūki with pure admiration.
Cloud shinobi didn't fear monsters. They admired them. Power was their creed.
Inside the swirling body of golden sand, Bunpuku sat cross-legged, hands folded, face calm despite the chaos. He stared at Gyūki's immense form and sighed quietly.
"Amitābha… If this is the end, let all sins fall upon me."
The One-Tail, Shukaku, was an impatient, volatile beast—always luring his Jinchūriki toward madness and destruction.
To resist that temptation, Bunpuku had lived a life of restraint. A self-imposed cage. So much so that most of Sunagakure didn't even know his name—only Shukaku-sama.
On his palms were the words "heart" and "receive." Pressed together, they formed the character for love.
That was his belief: even tailed beasts longed to be loved.
Even Shukaku had once admitted—Bunpuku's heart reminded him of the Sage of Six Paths.
But now…
"Shukaku," Bunpuku whispered. "The rest is up to you."
He lowered his head, fell silent… and surrendered control.
The sand surged.
The two-meter raccoon cat ballooned in size as enormous waves of sand poured forth—etching dark patterns across its skin, sharpening its claws, lengthening its tail. In seconds, an enormous tanuki stood opposite Gyūki—equal in size, equal in fury.
Shukaku, the One-Tail, had joined the battle.
"Ahaha! I'm finally out again!"
The battlefield trembled with Shukaku's roar.
"That damn monk sealed me up for nearly a hundred years!"
"As payback… I'll KILL YOU ALL! AHAHAHAHA!"
His chakra flared like a wildfire, and the sand around him went berserk—rising, twisting, condensing and scattering with his every word.
"What the hell is that?!"
"They sent out their Jinchūriki too?!"
Some Cloud shinobi panicked.
But others, seasoned and scarred, held firm.
"So what if it's One-Tail? Killer Bee-sama's the perfect Jinchūriki! We've got this!"
Meanwhile, the squad leaders—veteran jōnin—had already begun yelling for retreat.
They weren't sticking around for a tailed beast showdown.
That was a death sentence.
"Kill who?"
A low, rough voice rumbled from across the field.
"Shukaku… long time no see. Still throwing tantrums, huh?"
"Huh?"
Shukaku's rotating eyes snapped to the speaker.
"Oh, it's Gyūki. Why the hell are you here?"
Gyūki rolled his eyes—or at least, the side of his head that passed for them.
"Wow. You really have been locked up. You don't even know what's going on out here?"
He flicked a tentacle.
"How 'bout this? You come with me, I'll give you something better than this dump: freedom."
Shukaku snorted. "Freedom? You mean stick me in a different meat puppet and call it 'liberation'? Nice try."
"You really think a raccoon can't see through a con?"
"I'm done with cages. I'm gonna smash this battlefield, drag the monk's corpse with me, and take a vacation."
Gyūki sighed.
"Still stubborn as ever, huh?"
"Well then... let's settle this like old times."
Eight massive tentacles launched at Shukaku.
"You trying that again?!"
Shukaku's eyes narrowed.
When they were young, Gyūki had often tied him up with those same tentacles—usually to stop one of his tantrums.
And every time, he'd had to admit he was wrong to get free.
Not. This. Time.
"Wind Style: Drilling Air Bullet!"
Shukaku slammed a paw against his belly and fired a compressed air cannon straight at Gyūki!
BOOM!
The blast hit Gyūki's coiled tentacles head-on, kicking up a storm of dust.
"That's it? You call that an attack?" Gyūki smirked. "Tickled a little."
"You—you oversized cow!"
"Wind Style: Infinite Dust Great Breakthrough!"
Shukaku sucked in a lungful of wind and sand—then exhaled it all in a roaring storm.
A dust cloud exploded across the battlefield, blocking sight completely.
"Nice," Gyūki muttered. "Solid for vision disruption. Still weak, though."
He wasn't worried.
If anything, he was a little impressed.
Shukaku had grown—slightly.
"Heh… too confident, Gyūki!"
"Sandstorm Layer Burial Seal!"
RUMBLE!!
Shukaku poured an ocean of chakra into the sand. The ground trembled violently as waves of it surged up, trapping dozens of ninja—enemy and ally alike.
Before Gyūki could react, the sand wrapped around him—burying him under a titanic pyramid of hardened sand!
BOOM!
Shukaku clapped his hands together, grinning with satisfaction.
"That's what you get for underestimating me!"
Then he turned toward the battlefield.
His eyes locked on the Cloud ninja side.
"Well, I was planning to squash some Sand ninja first…"
"But if Gyūki's gonna help them, guess I'll just kill Cloud shinobi instead!"
He stomped forward, tail swinging like a wrecking ball, laughter echoing across the desert.
To Be Continued…