Inside the sealing space.
Toneri had been here for quite some time.
As time passed, however, the Two-Tails could feel that Toneri's body was almost completely recovered. When that happened, as long as Toneri was willing, he could leave.
No, even if Toneri wasn't willing, the Two-Tails would send him out.
This guy talked way too much!
The Two-Tails truly hoped Toneri would leave soon!
After getting through his initial anxiety and struggles, the guy had completely given up resisting and settled into a lazy life.
There was no point worrying, anyway. It wouldn't change anything.
Most importantly... this guy had started telling stories again...
That would have been fine, except they were all stories about cats. The Two-Tails felt like it was about to lose its mind. If those bars weren't in the way, it would probably have charged out and beaten the crap out of him.
"Stop!! Stop, stop, stop!! Hold on. I think telling stories must be tiring for you too. Why don't you take a little break?
Tell me about the method you mentioned that could set me free."
The Two-Tails couldn't take it anymore and forcibly interrupted the still-enthusiastic Toneri.
Toneri, who hadn't had his fill, sheepishly swallowed the words he'd been about to say.
They were such funny stories. He had no idea why the Two-Tails looked so tired.
It was probably exhausted from laughing!
Yeah, definitely!
"Ahem. Since you're more interested in this, I can give you a quick explanation."
Toneri knew he absolutely couldn't lie to the Two-Tails about this. It was a matter of principle.
However... he'd never said he had to get it done in a short time.
At the very least, he needed to show the Two-Tails that it was possible!
"Have you ever heard of a palm technique that descends from the heavens... Pfft, I got carried away. Have you ever heard of a certain ninjutsu?" Toneri asked, sitting on the ground.
The Two-Tails lay down too, shifting its body slightly as it prepared to hear him out.
"Hmm? What is it?"
Toneri didn't keep it a secret. "The Summoning Technique!"
The Two-Tails: "..."
A vein-shaped mark appeared on its forehead.
Seeing the Two-Tails' expression, Toneri didn't look nervous at all. Instead, he waved a hand calmly. "Don't get worked up. Don't get worked up. Hear me out.
"I know that, in your current state, you can't be summoned out completely. Otherwise, there'd be no point in having Jinchūriki.
"But I think we could try a compromise.
"Since we can't summon your full body, we could summon a clone made of your chakra. It'd be a little like the Shadow Clone Technique that ninjas use.
"Only this clone couldn't use too much chakra, or it'd be difficult to summon.
"Besides, your clone wouldn't need to fight. Wouldn't it be enough if it could walk around freely?"
As the Two-Tails listened to Toneri explain his idea, it didn't say anything, but that didn't mean it had no reaction.
Its brow furrowed slightly.
The method sounded pretty good. As for how feasible it was, that remained to be seen.
But... it still wouldn't be its real body, and there'd be too many restrictions.
Compared with its current situation, Toneri's method would be a lot better if it really worked.
But the Two-Tails still wasn't entirely satisfied.
Setting aside whether Toneri's idea was even possible, even if it worked, the Two-Tails wouldn't be especially happy.
No matter what, how could anything feel as comfortable as its own body?
Toneri knew what the Two-Tails was thinking, and smiled. "Big Beauty, don't be unhappy. This is only the first step of my plan. We can't put the rest into action until we've managed this much.
"Three steps! They'll let you spend as much time outside as possible!
"I've already told you the first step. There are still two more!"
"What are the rest?" The Two-Tails was taken aback.
The first method would be quite difficult to carry out, but at least the Two-Tails felt it was possible.
The hardest part was that the Jinchūriki and the Tailed Beast had to communicate as equals!
After Toneri had pestered it relentlessly, he and the Two-Tails had managed to do that to some extent. The rest would require repeated attempts and practice.
A mysterious smile appeared on Toneri's face. "Of course there's more. If I only knew this one step, would I dare promise you freedom?
"Although this method might free half of you—or even less—it still isn't enough.
"But the second step will be much harder than the first. I can't say for sure that it'll work anytime soon, but I know there's a good chance of success. I just need to get my hands on that jutsu!"
Toneri had made it sound so mysterious that the Two-Tails was intrigued. "What jutsu?"
The Two-Tails didn't know many jutsu, but as a Tailed Beast, it had never had a weak Jinchūriki. They knew plenty of powerful jutsu, and it had heard of, or even seen, things like the Summoning Technique and Clone Technique.
"Nine Mask Svāhā!"
The words slipped right out of Toneri's mouth.
The Two-Tails looked confused.
"Nine Mask Svāhā? What kind of jutsu is that?"
The more time the Two-Tails spent with this human kid, who didn't have a single drop of chakra, the more it felt it couldn't figure him out.
This inexperienced child had an incredibly strong will. He could withstand its death glare and chakra corruption, and wasn't the least bit afraid of it. He had no chakra, yet knew so many jutsu that even ordinary ninjas couldn't name—especially this so-called Nine Mask Svāhā.
Of course, most importantly, his sense of aesthetics was incredible!
The Two-Tails had gradually accepted the nickname "Big Beauty." Or maybe Toneri had simply gotten used to saying it, and the Two-Tails couldn't be bothered to correct him anymore. Who wouldn't want to be praised all the time?
Anyway, none of that mattered...
"It's a jutsu that can draw out all your abilities as a Tailed Beast. But getting that jutsu really depends on fate." Toneri spread his hands, showing that he was helpless too.
The Two-Tails nodded. "What about the third step?"
If the second step was that impressive, perhaps the third could really set it free?
The Two-Tails was looking forward to it.
Toneri stared blankly at the Two-Tails, his eyes full of confusion. "What third step?"
The Two-Tails: "..."
That urge to strangle him rose from deep within once more. But before it could act on it, its expression gradually turned strange. It looked as if it wanted to laugh, but was holding it in.
"What..." Toneri started to ask, but suddenly the scene before his eyes began to warp.
His heavy eyelids slowly opened as Toneri struggled to lift them.
The first thing he noticed was the pungent smell of disinfectant mixed with alcohol.
Then a few figures came into view.
The moment he saw them, Toneri recognized them!
The Third of Konoha, Hiruzen Sarutobi!
The leader of Root, Shimura Danzō, who had placed the Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal on him!
And the utterly useless Hokage Advisors who sometimes made him want to beat them to death, Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu!
Their appearances differed a little from how he remembered them, but not by much—especially their clothes.
They probably hadn't changed in ages.
But gradually, Toneri noticed something strange about their gazes.
It seemed...
Their attention wasn't on his face.
He struggled to sit up.
"!!"
Toneri's eyes went wide. What was he looking at?
Little Toneri was proudly displaying his talents in the breeze...
His whole body shuddered!
He immediately grabbed the blanket beside him and covered himself, making sure to cover Little Toneri!
Just thinking about being watched by a bunch of men and women in their forties made goose bumps rise all over Toneri's body.
He shivered instinctively, forcing the thoughts out of his mind.
"Where are my... clothes?" Toneri asked slowly.
The people, who had been staring at the sealing formula on Toneri's lower abdomen, were immediately interrupted by his movement.
Then they all looked at Toneri with disdain.
It was just a young body.
It wasn't as if they'd never seen one before...
"Ahem. Well, young man, it's not that we didn't give you clothes. When we found you, you... weren't wearing any." Shikashin Nara stepped out from behind the important figures, rubbing his nose.
Seeing Shikashin Nara's outfit, Toneri immediately understood. He was the one in the green flak jacket Toneri had seen earlier!
He even looked a lot like Nara Shikaku, as Toneri remembered him.
"Then... how did I get here?" Toneri suddenly seemed to realize what the key question was.
"Oh, that? I carried you back. It's fine, young man. You don't need to thank me." Shikashin waved a hand, wearing an expression that said Toneri didn't need to thank him too much—just a little token of appreciation would do.
Toneri: "..."
So he'd come all the way to Konoha with his bare butt hanging out?!
"??!!"
Jin Mu was wrong, so everyone should stop nitpicking about the Third. It was Kishimoto's fault, actually. Even he said he couldn't explain it away!
And now, about yesterday's votes: they weren't enough!
Am I, Jin Mu, not sweet enough, or have you found another author?! Want me to whimper for you?!
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