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Boom! Boom! Boom!
Under the torrent of overwhelming power, the ground shook violently, cracking beneath the strain.
Roar! Roar! Roar!
The Nine-Tails howled in fury, thrashing wildly, trying to break free. But no matter how it struggled, it couldn't escape.
After taking nearly a hundred punches, the Nine-Tails finally seized a sliver of opportunity. Its nine massive tails lashed out in perfect coordination, coiling tightly around Susanoo's descending fist and locking it in place.
Its crimson eyes burned with madness as it threw its jaws wide open, aiming straight for Susanoo's head.
Yin and Yang chakra surged together, spiraling rapidly toward its mouth.
In an instant, a dark violet sphere condensed into existence.
The signature move of the Tailed Beasts—the Tailed Beast Bomb.
"You're seriously forming a Tailed Beast Bomb at this distance? Did I knock the brains out of you?" Akira sneered.
Susanoo's wings snapped outward with a thunderous beat. The shockwave shattered the Nine-Tails' grip, blasting its tails apart and freeing the fist.
The moment the restraint broke, Akira shifted tactics. The clenched fist opened into a palm.
Five fingers spread wide and seized the half-formed Tailed Beast Bomb.
Then, without hesitation, he shoved it straight into the Nine-Tails' gaping mouth. His fingers clamped down hard, crushing its jaws shut so it couldn't open them again.
The Nine-Tails' eyes bulged in horror.
A scorching heat spread inside its mouth, and in that instant it realized just how stupid it had been.
Forming a Tailed Beast Bomb at point-blank range against Susanoo… that wasn't bravery. That was suicide.
Right now, it was like holding a bomb in its mouth that was seconds away from exploding.
It struggled desperately, trying to force its jaws open and spit the unstable sphere out.
But Susanoo's hand was like an iron vise, crushing its muzzle shut.
Boom!
A muffled explosion echoed.
Akira released his grip. Thick black smoke slowly drifted from the Nine-Tails' mouth.
Its eyes rolled back. Its massive head lolled to the side, and all nine tails dropped limply to the ground.
—
While Akira and the Nine-Tails battled within Naruto's inner world, the outside was no less tense.
"Lord Third, under these circumstances… do we still need to deploy the sealing technique?"
The captain of the sealing squad looked toward Hiruzen Sarutobi.
"Wait a little longer. But be ready to seal at any moment," Hiruzen said after a brief pause, brows furrowed. "I've never seen anything like this before."
Truthfully, he was completely baffled.
Naruto was now entirely cloaked in scarlet Nine-Tails chakra. Six tails writhed behind him in the air.
By all logic, once six tails appeared, Naruto should have already gone berserk.
And yet…
He stood there quietly, eyes closed, as if asleep. Not a hint of rampage in sight.
Hiruzen stared at Akira, unable to comprehend what he was seeing.
All he'd done was place a hand on Naruto's shoulder… and somehow he had suppressed a Six-Tails state?
It made no sense.
—
Inside Naruto's inner world, however, the truth was far more brutal.
The reason Naruto hadn't gone berserk despite sprouting six tails…
Was because the Nine-Tails was currently getting beaten senseless.
"Oh? Playing dead now?" Akira smirked, slapping the Nine-Tails across the face. "You really expect me to believe the strongest of all Tailed Beasts would die from detonating one unfinished Tailed Beast Bomb in its own mouth?"
He punctuated the sentence by driving two heavy punches into its skull.
Roar!
Its act exposed, the Nine-Tails exploded into motion. With a furious bellow, it twisted violently and snapped its jaws toward Susanoo's arm.
Bang!
Akira had been ready. With another brutal backhand, he smashed the Nine-Tails' head straight into the ground.
And before it could recover—
Susanoo's massive fist came crashing down once more.
Boom!
A thunderous boom split the air, and a shockwave blasted outward in every direction.
Under the force of that monstrous blow, the Nine-Tails' entire face twisted out of shape.
Good thing it was a being formed from pure chakra. If it had been any other summoned beast, that punch alone would've blasted it straight to the afterlife.
Boom!!
Another crushing fist came down. Akira's voice drifted lazily through the chaos.
"Well? Had enough? Say it—call me Big Bro!"
ROAR!!!
The Nine-Tails answered with a deafening howl.
Boom!!
"Had enough?!"
ROAR!!
Boom!!
"Had enough?!"
ROAR!!
…
Watching the clash between the two colossal figures—
No. Calling it a "clash" was generous. It was a one-sided beatdown.
From a distance, Naruto stood frozen, jaw practically on the floor.
Was this really the same Akira he knew?!
The guy could turn into a two-hundred-meter-tall giant and pin the dreaded Nine-Tailed Fox to the ground like it was nothing.
And he'd actually wanted to challenge Akira to a one-on-one before? What was he thinking? That wasn't confidence—that was suicide.
Akira could probably flick him with a single finger and send him flying.
So… does this mean I'll never beat him? Naruto thought miserably.
Over on the battlefield, after taking dozens of bone-shattering punches, the Nine-Tails' head was so warped it barely resembled a fox anymore. Most of its teeth were gone.
But its mouth? Still stubborn as ever.
Every time Akira demanded, "Had enough?" the answer was the same furious roar. There was a grim, unyielding pride in it—die before surrender.
"Oh, so we're doing this?" Akira's temper flared. "Fine. I'll beat you till you admit it!"
He grabbed the Nine-Tails and unleashed another savage barrage.
ROAR! ROAR! ROAR!
The beast's eyes burned blood-red as it glared at Akira atop Susanoo's head. No matter what, it refused to bow.
Submitting to this brat was humiliation beyond words.
Boom!!
After one final earth-shaking punch, Akira stopped. The Nine-Tails still hadn't yielded.
"Still not giving in? Guess I'll have to try something else."
He paused, then a slow, wicked grin crept across his face.
"Oh, I just thought of something fun. You're gonna regret this."
Seeing that malicious smile, the Nine-Tails felt a chill shoot up its spine. A terrible premonition spread through its body.
Instinct screamed at it: Back down now. This is your last chance.
The thought flickered—
—and was immediately crushed.
Acknowledge this little punk as Big Bro?!
In your dreams!
It was the strongest of the Tailed Beasts, an ancient existence that had lived for over a thousand years. Even when facing Uchiha Madara or Senju Hashirama, it had never truly submitted. It had only been overpowered and captured.
Die before kneeling.
There was no way Akira had anything worse than death up his sleeve.
Right?
Bang! Bang!
Under the Nine-Tails' bewildered stare, Akira split into two shadow clones.
Crack—crack—crack—
Two purple giants rose from the ground as both clones activated Susanoo. Not the full form—just the fifth stage. Smaller, no wings—but more than enough.
After all, this wasn't about fighting.
"You think numbers will force this old man to submit?" the Nine-Tails scoffed. "Naive. No matter how many of you there are, I won't bow to a brat!"
Inside, it sneered. It had expected some horrifying, twisted technique.
But this?
Please.
It wasn't afraid of dying. Why would it fear a few extra punches?
Akira ignored it.
One clone guided its Susanoo to sit squarely on the Nine-Tails' head. Its feet pinned down the beast's front paws while both hands shoved hard against its back, forcing it flat against the ground.
The other clone mounted its back, stomping down on the hind legs. Then it wrapped both arms around the thrashing nine tails and locked them tight.
The whole process was absurdly easy. After that brutal beating, the Nine-Tails was too weakened to resist effectively.
The original Akira, controlling the complete Susanoo, stepped up behind the fox. He shot a look at the clone.
The clone nodded.
With a sharp yank, it hauled the captured tails upward.
The Nine-Tails' rear was lifted high into the air.
Now fully exposed.
To its mild disappointment, Akira noted that as a being of pure chakra, the Nine-Tails didn't exactly have… anatomy.
No matter.
The base of the tails would do.
"W-What are you doing?!" the Nine-Tails shouted, mortified.
Animals took this position when they—
No. Don't tell me—
Its eyes widened in horror.
"You—you depraved little brat! I'm a Tailed Beast! I don't even have a gender! Don't you dare!"
Akira's face went dark.
"What the hell are you thinking?! I'm not some freak who's into beasts!"
The Nine-Tails exhaled in visible relief—
Only to see Susanoo's massive hands form a seal.
That hand sign…
A jutsu?
Before it could process further, four enormous fingers snapped together, forming something like a towering pillar.
Then, with lightning speed, they thrust forward.
"Hidden Leaf Secret Taijutsu… One Thousand Years of Death!"
Thwack!!!
Direct hit.
The instant it landed, the Nine-Tails' orange-red face drained of color. Red turned to white—white to purple.
Its expression twisted into something beyond fury.
It was pure, unspeakable agony.
The next instant—
"ROOOAAARRR!!!"
A shriek of absolute agony tore through Naruto's inner world.
It was so piercing, so visceral, that Naruto—watching from a distance—felt goosebumps explode across his skin. He instinctively clenched up, his whole body tightening in sympathy.
"That move is way too brutal…"
For the first time, he actually felt a little sorry for the Nine-Tails. Of all the people it could've fallen into the hands of, it had to be Akira.
Good thing I never dueled him. Otherwise, that treatment might've been mine.
Even as he thought that, Naruto silently made a decision.
From now on, I'm never fighting Akira. Ever.
Pop!!
Akira withdrew Susanoo's finger. Where the Nine-Tails' rear had once been smooth and unblemished, there was now a massive crater.
"There. All complete. Helped you open up a proper 'exit.' No need to thank me."
Akira spoke generously.
"You wretched brat!"
The Nine-Tails roared through gritted teeth, each word sounding like it might shatter its own jaw.
"I will kill you. I swear I will kill you!!"
Its resentment surged like a tidal wave, flooding its entire body. Its eyes turned blood-red.
Boom!!
A terrifying burst of chakra exploded from within the Nine-Tails.
The two Susanoo pinning it down were flung away instantly.
"ROAR!!"
The Nine-Tails dropped to all fours and let out a thunderous bellow at Akira.
With that overwhelming surge of chakra, all its injuries regenerated completely.
"…So this is the legendary power-up. As expected of the protagonist's cheat ability."
Akira raised an eyebrow, watching the Nine-Tails' chakra swell to even greater levels than before.
"ROAR!! Now it's your turn to pay the price, you miserable brat! Prepare to die!"
Power overflowing, confidence restored, the Nine-Tails was ready to grind this annoying kid into the dirt.
…
One minute later.
The same familiar position.
The Nine-Tails was once again slammed into the ground, pinned by Susanoo controlled through Akira's shadow clones. Its rear was lifted high into the air.
"In the face of absolute power, it doesn't matter how much you power up."
Akira smiled lightly at the utterly defeated fox.
Then, under the Nine-Tails' horrified gaze, Akira once again formed that infamous hand sign.
"W-Wait! Hold on! Stop! I give up, I give up!!"
The Nine-Tails hurriedly shouted.
It absolutely did not want to relive that humiliation.
Left with no choice, it swallowed its pride.
Because having a forced 'opening' carved into you…
It freaking hurts.
…
"Oh? Weren't you all tough and unyielding? Said you'd rather die than submit? Why the sudden change of heart?"
Akira chuckled.
"Go on. Show me that backbone again. I kind of liked the look of you refusing to bow."
"ROAR! I said I surrender! Don't push it, you hateful brat!"
The Nine-Tails snarled.
"Sounds like your mouth surrendered, but your heart didn't."
Susanoo's finger aligned with the freshly regenerated target… and thrust forward again.
"Hidden Leaf Secret Taijutsu Ultimate Technique—Thousand Years of Death!!"
"AAAAAARGH!!!"
"Thousand Years of Death!!"
"AAAHH! I surrender, I surrender! Stop!"
"Thousand Years of Death!!"
"STOP! I said I surrender!"
"AAARGH—!!"
…
Expressionless, Akira calmly directed Susanoo to unleash the technique again and again.
After the tenth time, the Nine-Tails wailed:
"I was wrong! Big Bro, I was wrong! Please stop!!"
Hearing it call him "Big Bro" at last, Akira nodded slightly.
Now that was genuine submission.
Beaten into it, anyway.
He withdrew Susanoo's finger and finally stopped.
Looking at the enormous spectral finger, Akira grimaced in disgust.
Even if it wasn't a real… anything, it still felt kind of gross.
Good thing he was using Susanoo and not doing it himself.
If the next target happened to be human, no problem. He could always let a shadow clone handle it.
Shadow Clone: What the hell did I do to deserve this?!
…
Whoosh!!
Watching Akira dismiss Susanoo and stand below, the Nine-Tails had a powerful urge to slap him into a pulp.
But after considering the likely consequences, it forcefully strangled that suicidal thought.
Whoosh!!
Akira bent his knees and lightly leapt onto the Nine-Tails' head.
He tapped the massive skull with his foot.
"Alright, Little Nine (Kurama). Take me to Naruto."
"Bastard…"
The Nine-Tails muttered through clenched teeth, barely suppressing its fury.
"Hm? What did you just call me?"
Akira's brows furrowed.
"…Big Bro. You must've misheard."
A stiff, ingratiating smile stretched across the Nine-Tails' face as memories of being dominated by the Thousand Years of Death flashed through its mind.
It immediately complied, carrying Akira toward Naruto.
As it walked, silent tears of humiliation streamed through its heart.
From now on… it really had to acknowledge this damned brat as Big Bro.
Unbelievable.
The mighty strongest Tailed Beast… reduced to this.
…
"Alright, Naruto. The Nine-Tails has willingly acknowledged me as Big Bro now."
Akira hopped down from the fox's head and spoke casually, as if nothing unusual had happened.
Naruto blinked, still trying to process everything.
And judging from the Nine-Tails' thunderous scowl, it definitely didn't look "willing."
"From now on, you two are on the same side."
Ignoring Naruto's dazed expression, Akira continued:
"Naruto, you'll train under Little Nine from here on out. It'll be your best teacher."
Then he turned to the Nine-Tails.
"Little Nine, make sure you teach him properly, got it?"
His eyes glinted dangerously.
"If Naruto's strength doesn't improve for a long time… heh."
"..."
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