Nine-Tails (2)

"Are you threatening me, human?"

The Nine-Tails fox lowered its head to the ground, its body tense, staring intently at Sakura Haruno with its fierce beastly eyes.

"I'm just stating a fact," Sakura Haruno replied calmly.

Nine-Tails was silent for a few seconds, then suddenly burst into wild laughter!

"Ho ho ho ho--!"

The more it laughed wildly, the more ferocious its expression became!

"You think this kind of threat will work on me, you foolish human!" Nine-Tails finally stopped laughing and said menacingly, "You care about Naruto, don't you? His life is in my hands! If you dare to use your Sharingan to control me, I'll kill him first!"

The girl's eyes widened, and her face instantly turned cold.

"You're asking for it!!" she said coldly, enunciating each word clearly, through gritted teeth.

Sakura Uchiha, standing to the side, also suddenly changed her expression, angrily waving her hand and saying, "Hmph!"

As the girl moved, Susanoo raised its foot and stomped hard on the Nine-Tails' head!

Boom!

In an instant, the earth shook violently, rocks crumbled, and the entire ground trembled!

Once the dust settled, the emerald giant had already trampled the Nine-Tails under its feet, raising its spiraling greatsword high, its sharp edge aimed at the Nine-Tails Fox's head!

"Cough cough!" The Nine-Tails Fox struggled miserably under the giant's feet, turned its head to look at the greatsword hanging in mid-air, and burst into laughter once again!

"Hahahaha--!" The laughter was weak and manic!

It laughed as it said, "Come on! Kill me! If you kill me, Naruto won't survive either, because we're one now!"

Sakura Haruno stared coldly at the crazed Nine-Tails at her feet, her face grim, speechless for a moment.

She assumed that the Nine-Tails was an intelligent beast and could communicate with it, but she overlooked its resentment!

Indeed, legend has it that the Nine-Tails is a collection of extreme hatred, filled with resentment towards everything. It's not so easy to communicate with it!

Over the years, she had never thought of understanding the Nine-Tails, nor had she considered communicating or negotiating with it. Now, facing it as prickly as a hedgehog, she suddenly felt at a loss.

Do we really need to use Kotoamatsukami?

Sakura Haruno hesitated. This move seemed to have an immediate effect, but she knew that Kotoamatsukami should not be used indiscriminately, otherwise there would be endless troubles, which could very well affect her plans for Naruto's future!

While the main character was still hesitating, Sakura Uchiha had already made a decision.

"Nine-Tails, don't underestimate the power of the Sharingan..." she said in a deep voice, touching her left eye, "Don't force me to fight you!"

The more they talked, the more Nine-Tails mistook Sakura's caution for bluffing and cowardice.

"Snort!"

It snorted coldly, and disregarding the fact that it was still being trampled under the giant's feet, it boldly condensed a black Chakra ball!

"Tailed Beast Bomb!"

That solid and dangerous black sphere contained immense power; the Nine-Tails' move was clearly intended to bombard the entire area, including itself!

"Are you willing to attack even at the cost of mutual destruction? What a ferocious and ruthless beast!"

Sakura Uchiha thought to herself, raising an eyebrow, her expression showing no sign of panic, but she was already prepared to respond.

"Genjutsu: Kotoamatsukami!"

"Look me in the eye, you bastard!"

The four windmills within the pupils spun wildly, transforming the strange and eerie pupil power into a gaze that was injected deep into the Nine-Tails Fox's mind!

Incidentally, the giant kicked the Nine-Tails away, Chakra ball shot out, veering off course and into the sea not far away.

The fox demon let out a miserable cry and was sent flying backward!

Boom!

Even before it was fully formed, the Tailed Beast Bomb was already incredibly powerful. It exploded in the sea with Ryūichi, instantly expanding countless seawater into a hemisphere. Intense light burst forth from the water sphere, illuminating Susanoo black and white, with dappled light and shadow and a clear distinction between light and dark.

Nine-Tails Fox, panting heavily, got up from the ground.

"Damn it!" it cried, covering its eyes, its voice trembling with fear. "What did you do to me?!"

The girls calmly jumped off Susanoo and headed towards the Nine-Tails.

"Kotoamatsukami," Sakura Uchiha was walking ahead, said meaningfully, "I've already warned you."

Nine-Tails' movements suddenly froze.

"You've changed my will?" it growled.

Sakura Uchiha smiled slightly.

The girls were barefoot, their smooth, white feet treading lightly and briskly on the pebbly ground. The pebbles crunched softly and rhythmically under their delicate feet, a sound that annoyed Nine-Tails.

Sakura walked slowly and gracefully toward the Nine-Tails.

"No," Sakura Uchiha raised her index finger and shook it, saying, "I told you, this is just a warning."

"I've merely added a necessary dose of calm to your frenzied mind, temporarily." She paused, tilted her head slightly, and said, "Of course... there's also a little fear of me!"

The fox spirit's breath hitched.

"Fear?!" it roared, its eyes wide as it stared at the girl walking in front. "Would I, an old man, fear a little girl like you?"

It swung its claws fiercely, the sharp tips striking the ground in front of the girl with a hair's breadth of accuracy. Its beastly eyes, larger than cartwheels, stared threateningly at the girl before it.

Believe it or not, I'll kill you right now!

Sakura Uchiha didn't take the Nine-Tails' threat seriously at all. She smiled easily and said, "At least you're starting to learn to stay calm, aren't you?"

Nine-Tails stared at its own claws, speechless for a moment.

Indeed, if it were the same animal from before, upon hearing such provocation, it would have attacked without hesitation, instead of precisely striking with its claws in a position that wouldn't hurt anyone!

A voice in my mind stopped its excessive behavior.

Calm down before you can think.

For the first time in years, Nine-Tails felt its thinking was so clear!

As for fear...

Despite his stubborn words, deep down, does Nine-Tails truly harbor no fear of the girl?

A single glance changed his mind (though he didn't secretly reject this change)!

These terrifying Mangekyō Sharingan reminded Nine-Tails of its experience of being enslaved by that person decades ago. It was the most humiliating experience of its life and one of the sources of its resentment!

The girl before them, though perhaps not stronger than that man, possessed Genjutsu technique that was no less powerful.

The Nine-Tails refused to admit it, but it was the truth; it was deeply afraid of those eyes!

"I have been controlled and enslaved by the Sharingan several times! The last time was more than ten years ago during what you call the Nine-Tails invasion. When I awoke from the Genjutsu, I found myself being attacked by you humans, and finally sealed inside Naruto Uzumaki by the Fourth Hokage..." The Nine-Tails finally calmed down and said coldly, "That's why I hate the Sharingan!"

"I hate being controlled by you humans using your Sharingan even more!" The fox demon dug several deep furrows in the ground with its claws, then said bitterly, "I am not your human tool, much less a pet or slave enslaved by the Sharingan!"

Sakura Uchiha's smile faded.

She took a deep breath and slowly said, "Nine-Tails, I didn't mean to control you with the Sharingan... I just hope you can return to Naruto's body and restore the Jinchūriki's sealed state!"

Nine-Tails Fox chuckled.

"I barely escaped that prison, do you think I'd go back?"

A flash of anger crossed the girl's face, and she said in a deep voice, "Don't push your luck, Nine-Tails Sharingan! I said I don't want to use the Sharingan to control you, but that doesn't mean I can't!"

"You've already experienced the power of Kotoamatsukami! To be honest, I only used a tiny bit of my eye power just now. If I were to go all out, I could control you forever without any problem. I'm speaking to you politely for Naruto's sake, so don't push your luck!"

The girl roared angrily at the Nine-Tails!

The fox demon's face instantly turned extremely ugly.

The anger in her heart surged wave after wave, but it could not break through the dam of "calmness" in her mind! Therefore, Nine-Tails was able to control her actions and force herself to listen to her continue calmly.

Sakura Uchiha took a deep breath and softened her tone. "I know you're resentful! But Naruto is your Jinchūriki. If you break the seal, Naruto will die. So this is my bottom line. You absolutely cannot completely break the seal and kill Naruto!"

"What does it matter to me whether Naruto lives or dies?" Nine-Tails sneered. "Naruto's dead, I'm free now!"

"Wrong, you will never be free!" The girl looked dangerously at the Nine-Tails.

She pointed to her eyes, where astonishing pupil power and Chakra circulated slowly, radiating a terrifying pressure.

"What astonishing Chakra!" Nine-Tails instinctively bristled its fur and tails, letting out an uneasy growl.

"If you dare to do anything, I will search the ends of the earth to find you and use Kotoamatsukami to completely twist your will, so that you will never be free or at peace again!" She glared with her eerie Sharingan, her expression cold and stern, and said, "Think it over carefully. You are Tailed Beast with a very long lifespan! Do you want to suffer the torment of Kotoamatsukami for countless years to come, or do you want to return to Naruto's seal and endure it for a while?"

"You must understand, human lifespan is short and limited... it's only a few decades!"

"I'll say it again! I have no intention of using my Sharingan to control or enslave you, unless you cross my bottom line!"

A carrot in one hand and a big stick in the other... wait, there's no carrot, but the stick is thick and hard. If it were the Nine-Tails from before, it would probably have charged straight at him, venting its anger without a care!

But after calming down, Nine-Tails realized that it had no other choice.

Sakura Uchiha continued to persuade her, "Nine-Tails, you've seen it too. Recently, a powerful organization in the Shinobi World has been collecting Tailed Beast! If you dare to break free of your seal, even if I don't find you, you'll be captured sooner or later and become their tool, slave, or even... material!"

The fox spirit's eyes began to flicker.

"It's the Akatsuki organization..." it said slowly. "Jiraiya told Naruto about it. Were you fighting them just now?"

The Nine-Tails Fox turned its gaze toward its true form.

"Yes..." Sakura Haruno stepped forward and said in a low voice, "I fought against Pain, the leader of Akatsuki..."

She glanced at the clone's eyes, and the girls exchanged a look. The original said quietly, "The opponent possesses a pair of eyes called the 'Rinnegan,' which are extremely powerful, even surpassing the Perfect Mangekyō Sharingan!"

Nine-Tails stiffened almost imperceptibly when it heard the Rinnegan.

Isn't that... his eye?

"You actually managed to escape with your life right under those eyes... truly remarkable!" Nine-Tails sneered, his words ostensibly approving, but his tone sounded like he was lamenting why Sakura Haruno hadn't died at Pain's hands.

"Very well, I shall continue to reside within the Jinchūriki's body for the time being!"

For some reason, Sakura Haruno always felt that Nine-Tails's words sounded a bit weak and insecure.

Although she hadn't noticed the change in Nine-Tails's expression, the girl keenly sensed that the word "Rinnegan" seemed to have frightened Nine-Tails, making it completely determined to hide back inside Naruto's body...

"It seems to know about the Rinnegan." Sakura Uchiha added silently as she watched Chakra gather its Nine-Tails and slowly reveal Naruto.

"After all, it's a demon beast that came back to life from ancient times," Sakura Haruno nodded in agreement.

Sakura Uchiha shrugged.

Let's go.

She took the real person's hand, a flash of red light in her eyes.

Inside the sealed space within Naruto's body.

The figures of the girls suddenly appeared in this dark prison cell that was neither real nor fake, neither tangible nor intangible.

The place was a complete mess.

When the Nine-Tails' power broke through the seal, the rampaging Chakra destroyed everything here.

However, with the return of Nine-Tails, and with the help of the Sharingan and Yin Release, everything here is rapidly being restored. The railings reappear, and Nine-Tails's figure is once again locked in the huge cage.

Finally, only the most important lock remained—

The Eight Trigrams Seal.

"This is troublesome... We don't know how to do this!" Sakura Uchiha bit her nails. "But if we don't lock it, it's like the Nine-Tails could break free at any time!"

"Um."

Sakura Haruno responded thoughtfully.

"Then, what should we do?" Sakura Uchiha tilted her head.

The two of them turned their heads at the same time, as if by telepathy, and looked in a certain direction.

"Leave this problem to me."

A man's voice came from there.

[I've had a few exams recently, so updates are inconsistent.]