"Whew..."
Naruto Uzumaki slowly lowered his hand, sighing softly. "Sasuke... he's even stronger than the version of him I knew in my past life."
"No, his raw power is still a bit lacking," Kurama replied, shaking his head from within the seal. "The current Sasuke hasn't obtained the Yin Power yet. He's this strong because he's mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique and has superior combat skills. In terms of pure technique, he's already surpassed the Sasuke of the past."
That rogue version of Sasuke was only taught by Orochimaru. And what could that guy teach him, really? Besides some strange parenting and making him muscular, what else was there?
Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu? Orochimaru-style swordsmanship? Those were all useless in a battle of this level.
By contrast, look at what the current Sasuke has obtained. From Kakashi Hatake's dedicated training to Minato Namikaze's careful guidance, Sasuke's spatial talent has been perfectly developed. Itachi even secretly left behind a small notebook on the Sharingan, which helped Sasuke become much more proficient with its use.
It really goes to show how important it is to pick the right master.
Naruto felt his chakra gathering once more and smiled. "Alright, let's give Sasuke a little surprise!"
"Yeah!" Kurama agreed. After nodding from within the seal, he turned to look at the trembling Shukaku, Saiken, and Chomei in their water prison. "These guys have been lazing around here long enough. They're completely useless!"
Shukaku watched nervously as Kurama used his claws to open the water prison's seal. "Hey, you smelly fox!" he yelled. "What do you think you're doing?"
Ever since the full-sized Shukaku moved into Naruto's seal space, Kurama rarely bothered Naruto. Whenever he was bored, he'd just grab Shukaku and give him a good beating. Although Shukaku wasn't weak, his power was inferior to Kurama's. Plus, since Naruto's seal space was Kurama's home turf, Shukaku was completely powerless to fight back.
The situation only improved slightly after Chomei and Saiken moved in.
However, that was just how Lord Shukaku's personality was. Even if you twisted his head off, he'd still talk tough. When he had nothing to do, Shukaku would occasionally provoke Kurama.
After yelling at him for a bit, he would just get another beating. He clearly couldn't win, but he still liked to stick his neck out. Kurama didn't even need to find a reason to hit him; Shukaku would proactively offer an excuse to get beaten.
Saiken watched as Kurama grabbed Shukaku by the neck and threw him out. "Kurama," he said cautiously, "in a battle of this level, we can't be of much use, can we?"
Saiken knew better than to challenge Kurama. He remembered a time when he was still lazing around in the Land of Water. A Tailed Beast Bomb released by Kurama had crossed the sea, shooting all the way from the Valley of the End to his location. Saiken and Isobu didn't dare make a peep, staying obediently in their own territory.
But why had Kurama fired a Tailed Beast Bomb to the Land of Water back then? Because Madara Uchiha and Hashirama Senju were fighting in the Valley of the End. Kurama had been controlled and forced into the battle, only to end up getting grabbed by the neck and thrashed around by Hashirama with one hand.
If Kurama, the strongest among them, was treated like that, which other Tailed Beast would dare join the fun at the Valley of the End?
The intensity of Naruto and Sasuke's battle was no less than that original fight. Saiken knew that the two boys outside were also people he couldn't provoke. He couldn't join this kind of excitement. Saiken was already content just being able to watch from a close distance.
Kurama crossed his claws and said contemptuously, "Whether you can be of use is one thing. Whether you're willing to help is another!"
Saiken, Chomei, and Shukaku were all silent.
What does that mean? they all thought. What does he mean, 'even though they're useless, they should still have the heart to want to help'? They were Tailed Beasts. When did they start caring about empty formalities? Can't they just be more straightforward with each other?
"A bunch of unreliable guys..."
Kurama glanced at the three Tailed Beasts in the seal space and slowly extended his claw. A white light appeared on it and merged into Naruto's body. Of course, that wasn't holy light, but the Yang Power that Kurama had painstakingly gathered.
When Naruto once again felt the presence of Yang Power in his body, the golden giant Buddha beneath him, which was already massive, grew even taller.
If the largest creature in the ninja world was the Ten-Tails, the current height of the golden giant Buddha was already on par with it. The enhancement that Yang Power provided to Wood Style ninjutsu far exceeded Naruto's imagination. The purple Perfect Susanoo floating in the air looked smaller than one of the golden Buddha's arms.
Sasuke, sweating, looked up at the even more massive Thousand-Armed Buddha. He saw two of its palms suddenly clapping toward him, forcing him to hastily maneuver his Susanoo out of the way.
Clap!
The two giant golden palms slammed together violently.
Sasuke frantically controlled his Susanoo to avoid the blow. His face suddenly turned ugly, and he muttered through gritted teeth, "That guy Naruto... does he think I'm a mosquito?"
Sasuke abruptly looked up at Naruto on top of the golden Buddha. He controlled his Susanoo to draw its bow, and in the blink of an eye, a purple arrow shot toward Naruto's position.
"This move?"
Naruto frowned. Sasuke's Mangekyo Sharingan ability was bizarre. The moment the arrow was released, it had already flown right in front of him. This dōjutsu was a total cheat. When Sasuke attacked, it was nearly impossible to defend; and when Sasuke defended, it was incredibly difficult to hurt him.
A giant chakra hand shot out, hastily forming a shield to block the purple Susanoo arrow, but that wasn't enough. Naruto quickly formed a Tailed Beast Bomb in his hand, threw it up, and detonated the arrow mid-air.
"I can't let Sasuke keep attacking..."
After resolving his own crisis, the young Hokage suddenly clapped his hands together and shouted, "Sealing Jutsu: Adamantine Realm!"
A dazzling light shone from behind the golden Buddha's head, giving it the appearance of a true deity that inspired awe and fear. Just as Sasuke was amazed by the jutsu's beauty, golden chains shot out from behind the Buddha's head.
No, not just from its head.
The massive golden Buddha's body was suddenly covered with flying golden chains. One after another, they shot out, sticking tightly to the red light of the Four Red Yang Formation barrier and the ground below. Naruto had used the principles of his Adamantine Sealing Chains and Magnet Release to perform a new sealing jutsu, using the golden Buddha as its vessel. The sky-filling golden chains instantly covered the entire area.
The towering Susanoo was firmly bound in place by several golden chains, unable to move or even find an open spot to teleport to. Sasuke could only control his Susanoo to swing its sword wildly, desperately trying to cut open enough space to move.
However, a giant golden palm suddenly drilled through the chains. With the Susanoo's movement restricted, the palm slapped upwards. The trapped Susanoo was instantly sent flying.
It was just like swatting a fly.
The next moment, countless golden chains quickly formed a giant net, catching the Susanoo as it flew backward and trapping it firmly in place.
Sasuke looked up and saw nothing but a sea of gold. His Susanoo didn't even have a chance to gather power to strike. A look of humiliation appeared on his face. "Unbelievable... just how much power has that guy been hiding?"
-----
Bonus:
Kurama: You guys are useless. You can't even help in this kind of battle!
Shukaku: Heh, some guy I know was controlled by the Sharingan to fight in a battle of this level before... and you have the nerve to talk?
Kurama: Tailed Beast Bomb!
Shukaku: You bully! Besides throwing your weight around, what else can you do?
Kurama: Sealing Jutsu: Adamantine Sealing Chains!
Shukaku: You fraud! Is a sealing jutsu something a Tailed Beast should even know?
Kurama: Heh...