In the late autumn of Konoha year 55, the bleak wind whipped up dust, adding a touch of chill to Hidden Sand Village.
A brief message from Hidden Sand Village was secretly delivered to Sayo, who was busy with affairs in the Southwest Peninsula.
The content of the message was brief but heavy: Master Bunpuku did not have much time left.
Sayo immediately put down all his work and, alone, rushed at top speed to that lonely Temple hidden within Hidden Sand Village, where he had often come in his youth.
Pushing open the familiar, creaking wooden door, the interior of the Temple still held that faint scent of incense mixed with old wood, though now, it was dominated by the smell of withering life that even herbs could not mask.
Master Bunpuku lay quietly on the humble meditation bed, his appearance gaunt, his breath weak, as if a gust of wind could scatter him.
However, when he saw Sayo walk in, those sunken eyes suddenly lit up with a peaceful and warm glow, like the final flicker of a candle about to burn out.
"You have come… Sayo…" The old man's voice was so hoarse it was almost inaudible, yet it carried a hint of relief.
Sayo walked quickly to the bedside, knelt on one knee, and took the old monk's withered, cold hand.
Feeling that faint vitality slipping away rapidly, Sayo did not hesitate, immediately taking out a small but intricately structured device from his robes—this was the latest life-sustaining apparatus from the Research and Development Department, which, while unable to reverse death, was enough to prolong life by a few months.
"Master Bunpuku, don't speak. I can use this to help you…" Sayo's voice carried a hint of urgency.
However, Master Bunpuku shook his head slightly and used all his strength to gently push Sayo's hand away.
His gaze was clear and firm, without the slightest fear of death, only a sense of release from having seen through everything.
"There is no need… child…" He said slowly, every word seemingly draining his strength, "Wither and flourish… life and death… are all natural laws. This old monk… has lived long enough… witnessed much, and waited for a long time… This physical shell has reached its time…"
He paused, looking at Sayo with loving eyes, as if looking at his most proud Disciple: "To be able to see you grow to this point today… to see the changes you have brought to this land… This old monk… is very comforted."
Sayo's hand froze in mid-air; he looked into the old man's clear eyes and understood his determination.
This was a great wisdom and openness that transcended life and death; any life-prolonging technological means were, to him, a desecration and a burden.
Sayo slowly put the device away, his heart filled with respect and sorrow.
"This old monk… has no regrets in this life," Master Bunpuku continued to say slowly, his breath growing weaker, "Only… one last thing… that I cannot set my mind at ease about…"
His gaze seemed to pierce through the walls, looking toward that partner imprisoned by heavy Seals.
"Shukaku…" Master Bunpuku's voice carried a hint of pleading, "Although it… is a Tailed Beast, violent and hard to tame… but having accompanied me for many years, it is not entirely… without knowing or feeling. After This old monk departs… the Seal will break… At that time, it will surely go on a rampage… causing devastation… which is not what I wish…"
He gripped Sayo's hand tightly, his eyes flashing with a final brilliance: "Sayo… This old monk requests you… help me… after I die, before the Seal completely collapses… release it… into the depths of the desert… give it… true freedom… rather than… falling into the next… cage…"
This request was earth-shattering! Allowing a Tailed Beast to leave was a huge risk that no Village could tolerate!
But Sayo looked at Master Bunpuku's eyes, filled with final expectations, and remembered his childhood, when it was exactly this monk and this beast that taught him his first Sealing Technique and told him the ancient secrets.
To him, Shukaku was not merely the Incarnation of disaster, but also a grumpy yet real "teacher."
He was silent for a long time. Finally, he nodded heavily.
"I promise you, Master." Sayo's voice was low and solemn, "I will send it away, to the deepest part of the desert, a place where no one can disturb it."
A look of immense peace and complete release appeared on Master Bunpuku's face, as if his greatest wish in this life had been fulfilled.
"Good… that is… very good…"
His voice gradually faded to inaudibility, and the hand gripping Sayo's slowly loosened, finally falling limply. Those eyes, filled with wisdom and peace, slowly closed, and his breathing ceased completely.
A generation's great monk had passed away. He had spent his life accompanying a Tailed Beast, imprisoned in a tiny space, yet he harbored compassion, ultimately facing death calmly and securing the best possible destination for his only "partner."
The Temple fell into a deathly silence.
Sayo silently tidied Master Bunpuku's clothing and bowed deeply.
Just then—
"Wooooooo—!!!"
A roar containing endless anger, resentment, and a trace of imperceptible sorrow suddenly erupted from the sealing space beneath the Temple! Powerful Tailed Beast Chakra began to crazily impact the failing Seal like a flood breaking through a dam!
Sayo's eyes narrowed, and he did not hesitate any longer. He quickly formed hand Seals, and Chakra Threads erupted from behind him, instantly connecting to several barrier nodes that had long been prepared inside the Temple.
"Sealing Technique: Four Symbols Space-Time Channel!"
A huge, space-distorting vortex appeared in the center of the Temple. Sayo could feel that Shukaku's massive and violent Chakra was breaking free from its final restraints!
He did not attempt to resist or reseal it, but rather guided that terrifying power, which was about to explode, and forcibly injected it into the space-time channel!
"Shukaku! Go!" Sayo shouted, "Go to the end of the desert! Never come back!"
The other end of the channel was the core region of the endless sea of sand, a place where no one lived, a true wasteland.
Boom!
Accompanied by a deafening roar and the loud sound of space tearing, Shukaku's massive body, composed of sand, wrapped in endless resentment and the freedom it had finally obtained, completely broke through the remaining Seal and plunged into the space-time channel!
The channel closed instantly.
The Temple shook violently for a while, eventually slowly returning to calm. Only Master Bunpuku's peaceful remains and Sayo, standing in place with a complex expression, remained.
He had fulfilled his promise to his teacher, but he had also personally released a terrifying power capable of destroying the Village. Whether the future would bring fortune or disaster remained unknown. But at this moment, his heart was filled more with mourning for the passing of a wise man, as well as a heavy contemplation on life and freedom. The wind passed through the empty Temple, making a wailing sound, as if seeing someone off.