Shukaku hated the idea.
But faced with Jie's two choices, it no longer dared to pick a third option.
Who knew how much chakra Jie would take next time?
After a short hesitation, Shukaku gave in. Its body shrank again, then squeezed itself into the small teapot in Jie's hand.
The lid popped up with a soft clink.
Shukaku's round head pushed out from the opening, while its tail squeezed through the spout.
Jie's eyes lit up.
Perfect.
He held the teapot in one hand and rubbed Shukaku's chakra-and-sand head until he was satisfied.
The teapot tanuki was even better than he had expected.
For a moment, Jie even wondered if he should extract the Shukaku inside Gaara after going back. Then he would have two teapot tanuki.
As for Gaara, the original story had already been changed beyond recognition. Rasa was still alive because of Jie, so taking one Shukaku as repayment did not sound unreasonable.
After playing with the teapot for a while, Jie finally set it down with some reluctance.
Then he held the teapot in one hand, rose into the air, and flew toward the nearest tailed beast.
The Seven-Tails.
There were still twenty days left before he returned to his own timeline. Within that time, he had to capture all the tailed beasts and seal them into the Gedo Statue.
Capturing them was not difficult, but he still had to move quickly.
According to the information sent by the Uchiha and Senju, the Seven-Tails was in the area that would later become Takigakure.
Apparently, it had stayed there for hundreds of years.
Jie did not know what was so attractive about that place, and he had no interest in finding out.
His goal was only to capture the tailed beasts.
The Seven-Tails, Chōmei, looked like a giant insect, with six wings on its back and one long tail.
Despite having seven tails, Chōmei was not especially strong among the tailed beasts. Aside from its ability to fly, it would struggle even against Shukaku.
And Shukaku had been beaten down by Jie with almost no effort.
Before long, Chōmei was sealed inside a scroll, unable to move at all. Inside the teapot, Shukaku watched the whole process quietly.
It had still underestimated Jie.
Chōmei might be one of the weaker tailed beasts, but it was still a tailed beast. Yet in front of Jie, it had been sealed without much struggle.
There had been no long battle, no fierce resistance, and Jie had not even used the Rinnegan to suppress it.
For a moment, Shukaku even wondered if that damn fox could really beat Jie.
At the same time, a trace of relief rose in its heart.
For the first time, Shukaku felt grateful for its own appearance.
Otherwise, it might have ended up like Chōmei, sealed completely inside a scroll without even the right to poke its head out.
After putting away Chōmei's sealing scroll, Jie did not stop.
He immediately rushed toward the next tailed beast.
Over the next five days, Shukaku finally understood what kind of monster Jie was. It watched Jie capture every tailed beast from the Two-Tails to the Seven-Tails.
Aside from Shukaku, Jie did not waste words on any of them.
The remaining tailed beasts were sealed one after another, as helpless as chicks in someone's hand. They had almost no power to resist.
Six tailed beasts had now been sealed, and half of Shukaku's chakra was already in Jie's hands.
On top of that, Jie possessed the Rinnegan.
Shukaku began to realize what Jie might be planning.
The thought made it shiver.
No.
It could not let its brothers and sisters disappear like this.
The tailed beasts rarely got along, but they had all been created by the Sage of Six Paths from the Ten-Tails. No matter how much they fought, they were still siblings in a sense.
Shukaku did not want to watch them be turned back into one monster and vanish forever.
Before that could happen, it entered the tailed beasts' shared mental space.
This space allowed the tailed beasts to ignore distance and even seals, projecting their consciousness into one place.
In theory, it was useful.
In practice, they rarely used it.
Most of them disliked one another, and Kurama was the main reason.
That fox always relied on having the most tails to mock the others. Over time, the other tailed beasts became less and less willing to gather.
But today, the space opened again.
When Shukaku entered, it found the Two-Tails through Seven-Tails already there.
Before long, the Eight-Tails, Gyūki, appeared as well.
Only the Nine-Tails was late.
After a while, Kurama's crimson figure finally appeared. "Well, if it isn't the tanuki hiding in the desert. What made you crawl out of your hole?"
Shukaku had not even spoken yet, but Kurama had already started.
Every time they met, Kurama had to throw in a few insults.
"And why is everyone here today?"
Kurama looked around, then sneered.
"Did you run into some human you couldn't beat and come here asking for help?"
Kurama was just as vicious with the others, which was exactly why the tailed beasts rarely used this space.
But today, something felt wrong.
Normally, Shukaku would already be shouting back, and the others would soon be dragged into the argument.
Today, no one reacted.
Kurama finally looked at Shukaku more carefully.
"Hey, tanuki. Why aren't you talking?"
"Have you finally accepted that you're the weakest one?"
If this had been any other time, Shukaku would already have started shouting.
But there was no mood for that now.
"Gyūki. Kurama."
Shukaku looked at the Eight-Tails and Nine-Tails.
"You two are in serious trouble..."
"Someone in the ninja world has awakened the Rinnegan. And aside from me and you two, the others have already been captured and sealed."
"I suspect that human knows the secret of the Ten-Tails. He may be planning to gather us and recreate it."
"If he succeeds, the tailed beasts will disappear, and the ninja world may face a disaster worse than anything before."
Gyūki's expression changed immediately.
Kurama's gaze also sharpened, but after a moment, disdain flashed through its eyes.
"Shukaku, that joke isn't funny."
"You only have one tail. You're weak enough as it is."
Kurama stared at it mockingly.
"If the others were all sealed, why would you be the one left outside?"
"You're all trying to trick me."
"The Rinnegan hasn't appeared since the old man died. How could it suddenly show up now?"
Before Shukaku could answer, Matatabi stepped forward. "Shukaku is telling the truth. There really is such a human and his strength is terrifying."
"If Shukaku is right, that human did not even use the Rinnegan's power when he suppressed me."
After Matatabi spoke, the others also gave their accounts.
Kurama's expression finally changed.
Six tailed beasts had truly been sealed.
Gyūki was silent for a moment, then sighed. "He sealed all of you without using the Rinnegan? And in only five days, he crossed the ninja world and captured you one after another?"
"With that kind of strength, he may already be close to the old man back then."
Then Gyūki looked at Shukaku.
"But if the others were sealed, how did you escape from him?"
Kurama also stared over.
That question was the most important one.
If the other six tailed beasts had all been sealed, then how had Shukaku, the One-Tail, avoided the same fate?
Hearing Gyūki's question, Shukaku's face stiffened.
How was it supposed to answer that?
Was it supposed to tell them that the human had not sealed it because he had taken it as a tamed beast?
And not only that, but a beast kept inside a teapot?
If Kurama found out, it would laugh until the end of time.
While Shukaku was trying to think of an excuse, Chōmei suddenly looked at it. "Shukaku, you were there when I was sealed, weren't you?"
"I think I sensed your chakra from the teapot in that human's hand."
Chōmei tilted its head.
"Were you inside it?"
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