Chapter 80: Nine-Tails Chakra, Four Tails
The Earth Prison Dome was continuously repairing itself, and Neji's destructive speed couldn't keep up. He had hit it with a Black Panther, but the dome remained completely intact.
Just then, Neji sensed the Third's chakra moving to his feet.
"Earth Style: Swamp of the Underworld!"
He's forming seals with his feet?!
Before Neji could react, the ground beneath him turned into a swamp. In the blink of an eye, he had sunk in up to his waist.
"This is bad!"
The original story had many unbelievable ways of forming seals, such as with one's feet, using another person's hands, or even with one's eyes. Neji had never personally experienced it. But encountering it at a time like this was hardly a welcome surprise.
Taking a quick breath, Neji's body flashed with lightning. Lightning Release counters Earth Release. Instantly, the swamp solidified. But before Neji could recover, Hiruzen was already rushing at him, swinging the Adamantine Staff.
Neji gritted his teeth and burst out of the hardened ground.
SWISH!
Hiruzen swung the staff in a heavy, powerful blow, smashing it down on Neji, who had just freed himself and hadn't regained his footing.
In his haste, Neji could only pull out a kunai to barely block the strike.
CLANG!
The sound of metal on metal rang out from the tempered-steel kunai. A massive force traveled up his arm, sending Neji flying backward, slamming hard against the prison wall.
"His strength is far greater than mine."
His whole body ached, feeling as if his organs had been displaced. A trickle of blood escaped from the corner of his mouth beneath the mask. The Sarutobi clan wasn't known for physical prowess, and the Third himself was small and lean, yet his body held unimaginable power. Neji suddenly recalled that in the original story, the Third had single-handedly used the Adamantine Staff to push the rampaging Nine-Tails out of the village. That strength was equal to, or perhaps even greater than, Tsunade's. It was even possible that Tsunade had developed her Monstrous Strength technique based on what she learned from Hiruzen.
BOOM!
Just then, a loud explosion sounded. The Earth Prison Dome trembled violently and, within a few breaths, disintegrated. Yugito had finally arrived and had broken the prison from the outside.
After smashing the dome with a vicious claw strike, her momentum didn't stop as she lunged at Hiruzen. Unhurried, Hiruzen simply flicked the Adamantine Staff upward. The seemingly soft blow sent the partial-Tailed-Beast-form Yugito flying.
Yugito was flung back dozens of meters, crashing through a row of buildings before finally slamming into the mountain wall outside the village.
Neji's breath caught in his throat, his scalp tingling. From that one exchange, he could conclude that even if he and Yugito teamed up, they were no match for the Third.
Swish! Swish!
Hiruzen waved one hand, sending several shuriken flying at Neji.
Neji slammed his palms on the ground. "Earth Style: Multiple Mud Wall!"
In an instant, several thick mud walls rose to protect him. As the shuriken whistled through the air, Hiruzen completed another set of seals and shouted, "Wind Style: Vacuum Blade! Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
The shuriken multiplied... two, four, eight... in an instant, the entire field of vision was filled with shuriken. Imbued with the Wind Release, the projectiles shrieked through the air, making Neji's expression turn grim.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The cloud of shuriken slammed into the mud walls, exploding like grenades. Shrapnel flew, and dust plumed. The first wall collapsed instantly. The remaining shuriken impacted the inner walls, and the vacuum blades imbued on them began to rapidly slice through the earth.
RUMBLE!
After shattering all three mud walls, the shuriken all fell to the ground, broken to pieces. The power of the Vacuum Blade enhancement was so great that even the tempered-steel shuriken themselves couldn't withstand it.
Neji panted heavily. "I blocked it, but what's next—"
SWISH!
The Adamantine Staff instantly extended, pressing against Neji's chest.
At the same time, the Third stomped his foot, using another Earth Style jutsu. The earth beneath Neji surged up like a python, binding his legs. Simultaneously, an arm extended from the Adamantine Staff and clamped down viciously on Neji's neck.
Hiruzen leaped forward, landing nearby. "Now you have nowhere to run."
Just then, Enma's voice came from the staff: "Sarutobi, something's wrong with this guy."
Enma's hand tightened on Neji's neck, but instead of the sound of a snapping spine, Neji's body dissolved into a flash of lightning.
"A Lightning Clone?" Hiruzen's eyes sharpened as he scanned the area. "He must have made it while he was hiding behind the mud walls." His gaze landed on a spot in the three o'clock direction, and he pointed the staff.
His hiding spot exposed, Neji grimaced and stepped out from a ruined house. "Lord Hokage's strength is truly unfathomable."
Hiruzen chuckled. "These old bones... I'm not what I used to be."
BOOM!
At that moment, a massive blue beast appeared on the mountain wall outside the village. Yugito had entered her full Tailed Beast form and was charging toward the battle.
Neji glanced around, his expression darkening. The Third had stalled him long enough for all the Leaf ninja who had been lagging behind to arrive.
Swish! Swish! Swish!
Dozens of figures dropped from the sky, landing beside Hiruzen. Neji's chakra was almost gone. Hiruzen alone was more than he and Yugito could handle, and now hundreds of elite Leaf ninja had arrived. Leaving the Third aside, Might Guy alone was strong enough to tip the scales of the entire battle.
After a quick assessment, Neji concluded his chances of escape were miniscule. But even in a desperate situation, he wouldn't give up. The worst-case scenario was being captured alive, after which he'd have to let the Fourth Raikage ransom him.
"Why isn't the Nine-Tails helping me?" Neji sighed inwardly and thought hard. The Nine-Tails was violent and hated humans, but it had no reason to break their agreement. "Could it be..." A possibility occurred to him. He narrowed his eyes and decided to enter Naruto's spiritual space to find out.
Just then, the Third spoke to the ninja beside him. "All of you, stand back."
Yamanaka Inoichi spoke up. "Lord Hokage, we can help!" This involved the Nine-Tails; all the clans were prepared to fight with all their strength.
Hiruzen shook his head slowly. "Just surround the area. Don't let them escape." His gaze was sharp; he had already seen that Neji was a spent force, no longer a threat. And while the Two-Tails Jinchuriki was strong, he wasn't afraid of her. The Uchiha incident had made him realize that his prestige as Hokage had waned. Now, by having the Leaf ninja stand guard while he stood at the front and took on two opponents at once, he intended to restore his authority.
Neji let out a small sigh of relief. The fact that they weren't all attacking at once was good news. He then used the Cursed Mandala Sealing Heart to send a message to Yugito: "Yugito, I need you to stall the Third."
"Understood." Yugito didn't know what Neji was planning, but at this point, she could only trust him.
ROAR!
With a deafening roar, the ground shattered beneath the blue cat demon's feet as it lunged at Hiruzen. At the same moment, Neji's consciousness arrived in Naruto's spiritual world.
Neji got straight to the point. "Nine-Tails, why?"
The Nine-Tails folded its arms, its voice haughty. "It's not that I'm breaking my promise. After you left, the Fourth strengthened the seal. Even if I wanted to help you now, I can't."
Hearing this, Neji looked at the cage holding the Tailed Beast and saw that it was indeed different from the last time he was here. There were two new sealing formulas on it.
"It really was the Fourth. It could only be him. Kushina was originally a ninja from the Land of Whirlpools; she cares more about Naruto than Konoha and wouldn't have stopped me from taking him."
He sighed. This was an unforeseen complication in the most critical part of his plan. He examined the two new seals and sighed again. Even with his mastery of the Iron Armor Seal, he had no way of breaking them.
After a moment of thought, Neji's eyes lit up. He shouted at the cage, "Minato Namikaze! You've seen how Naruto has been treated all these years! Don't you regret the decision you made?"
As he finished, an angry and sorrowful voice echoed from the cage. "I do regret it. I've regretted it more than once. I shouldn't have sealed the Nine-Tails in Naruto, and I shouldn't have killed myself. I realized I made a terrible mistake, but it was already too late."
"Then why did you stop him from taking Naruto?" a confused female voice asked.
"Kushina, if Konoha loses the Nine-Tails, its strength will plummet, and it will lose its title as the number one village. I am a Leaf ninja. To protect Konoha, I sacrificed myself, and I sacrificed my son. No matter how flawed Konoha may be, I will not allow anyone to harm it," Minato said after a brief hesitation, his tone indisputable.
"Minato, so cold and ruthless, and yet so impossible to refute," the Nine-Tails swished its tail, its voice carrying a mix of respect, fear, and faint mockery.
"Hahaha!!!" Neji suddenly burst out laughing. "Minato Namikaze, you want to protect Konoha? Fine. Then let's see if anyone can stop the Nine-Tails a second time."
"You... you're going to release the Nine-Tails?" Minato's voice was frantic, but he quickly realized something. "No, you can't break the Eight Trigrams Seal. Otherwise, you wouldn't be in here."
"Hmph." Neji sneered confidently. "I only came here to confirm a suspicion. It's true I can't unseal it, but I can destroy it and free the Nine-Tails. The Cloud Village wants the Jinchuriki, but letting the Nine-Tails destroy Konoha is also within the scope of the plan."
The Eight Trigrams Seal was a combination of two Four Symbols Seals, far more complex than the Iron Armor Seal. Neji couldn't undo it. As for whether he could destroy it, he'd have to try to find out. But there was no way Hiruzen would just stand by and watch him do it. He was bluffing, gambling that Minato wouldn't dare take the risk.
The Nine-Tails squinted at Neji, its massive jaw splitting into a grin. It also understood exactly what Neji was doing.
The spiritual space fell into a long silence.
"Cloud brat, you win."
As he spoke, the two new sealing formulas on the cage slowly peeled away. Minato had finally compromised.
The Nine-Tails had already destroyed half the village and killed thousands. If it were truly released now, no one could stop it. Even if Minato was almost certain Neji was bluffing, he couldn't take that risk. Neji was willing to gamble; Minato was not. If he was wrong, Konoha was finished.
"Get the Nine-Tails' chakra and leave this place as fast as you can. Many of the people in this village are innocent," Minato added.
Kushina quickly said, "Take care of Naruto. Please."
Compared to the village, Kushina was far more concerned about Naruto.
Neji didn't respond to Minato, but said to her, "I've already arranged a new home for Naruto. I'm sure you'll be satisfied."
"Your promise is enough," Kushina said, her voice emotional. "Thank you."
Real World.
The giant cat demon opened its mouth, and a massive amount of chakra converged into a small, dark purple orb radiating terrifying energy.
"It's a Tailed Beast Bomb! Stop her!"
Hiruzen's expression changed. He leaped high into the air and brought his staff down with all his might, smashing it onto the cat demon's head. With a dull thud, the beast was slammed into the ground. The Tailed Beast Bomb, which had not yet fully formed, dissipated instantly. Yugito was not a perfect Jinchuriki, after all. In her full Tailed Beast form, just staying conscious was her limit; she couldn't freely wield the beast's power.
"Adamantine Prison Wall!"
At the same time, Hiruzen threw the staff, which multiplied into dozens of copies in mid-air, weaving together to form a cubic cage that trapped Yugito.
Seeing this, the surrounding Leaf ninja's spirits soared. The Tailed Beasts were called natural disasters, but before the "Strongest Hokage in History," even they had to submit.
Guy smashed his fist into his palm. "Kakashi, that's Lord Hokage for you!"
Kakashi ignored him. The Two-Tails was in the lower tier of the nine Jinchuriki; he had fully expected the Third to suppress it. His focus remained on Neji, who was still standing motionless.
"Guy, why isn't that masked man attacking with the Jinchuriki? Doesn't he know that if they're picked off one by one..."
He didn't finish his sentence. Kakashi froze. Not just him, but Hiruzen, who had just trapped Yugito, and all the surrounding Leaf ninja—even the new reinforcements—all froze.
Because they all saw an orange-red Tailed Beast chakra suddenly erupt from Naruto's body.
It was a chakra that reminded every single one of them of the Nine-Tails that had ravaged Konoha five years ago. A chill ran down their spines.
The Nine-Tails Jinchuriki... has lost control?
In the next instant, something even more unbelievable happened.
The chakra that had been coiling around Naruto's body bizarrely transferred itself to Neji.
The Nine-Tails was generous. The Tailed Beast chakra enveloping Neji grew denser and denser, finally stopping when four tails erupted from his back.