The Jinchuriki's Battle

After a few seconds of silence, an astonishing roar of discussion erupted from the spectator stands.

Some were speculating about the relationship between Naruto and the Fourth Hokage, but more people—especially the Daimyo—were concerned with the fact that "someone else has learned the Flying Thunder God Technique."

"This is truly astonishing, Lord Hokage."

In the stands, the Fourth Kazekage said to the Third Hokage, "I never expected that someone who inherited this technique from the Fourth Hokage would appear, and at such a young age!"

"Haha..."

The Third Hokage let out a dry laugh. "Naruto is still young. Even if he has inherited the Fourth's technique, he still has a long way to go before he reaches the Fourth's level."

The Fourth Kazekage smiled and said nothing, turning his attention back to the arena.

Gaara also saw Naruto's entrance, but he didn't take it to heart; all his thoughts were currently focused on one question.

He strode up to Naruto, ignored the referee standing nearby, and asked, "Uzumaki Naruto, is there also a monster inside your body?"

"A monster?"

Naruto looked at Gaara, quickly understood, and then frowned slightly. "I am indeed a Jinchuriki, but I don't think the Tailed Beast is a monster."

"Why?"

Gaara stared fixedly at Naruto. "They are so ugly, and they possess the power to easily destroy everything. Why don't you think they are monsters!?"

"Whether a Tailed Beast's appearance is beautiful or ugly depends on each person's aesthetic. You think they are ugly, but I think they look quite cool."

Naruto answered patiently, "As for possessing power, haven't they been sealed by us humans using sealing techniques? That just shows that the power humans possess is even greater than that of the Tailed Beasts. By your standards, the people who sealed the Tailed Beasts should be the ones called monsters."

"..."

Gaara felt that what Naruto said made a lot of sense, and he was left speechless.

"Sunagakure actually sent a Jinchuriki..."

The referee nearby had overheard the entire conversation between Naruto and Gaara. He was worried that the people from Sunagakure would cause trouble, but he didn't forget his duty and shouted, "The match begins!"

"Although I don't know what else you wanted to say, let's start the match first."

Naruto said with a smile, "After we finish, you can ask whatever you want, and I will try my best to answer."

"Fine."

Gaara calmed down, and the sand around his body gradually began to increase.

Naruto threw a Kunai, but before it could touch Gaara, it was blocked by the sand.

"Hmm?"

Naruto looked at the sand around Gaara's body with some curiosity. "This sand protecting you isn't your technique."

Gaara stood where he was, motionless. "The Shield of Sand is the power of that mon... of Shukaku inside me."

"That's not right."

Naruto said firmly, "Shukaku can indeed control sand, but he is sealed inside you; his chakra wouldn't leak out so casually. Besides, you don't seem to get along very well with Shukaku. Why would he use his own power to protect you?"

It was a simple logic. Gaara was stunned for a moment, then immediately sought confirmation from Shukaku within him: "Shukaku, is the Shield of Sand that protects me your power?"

"Hahaha!"

Shukaku laughed loudly and cursed, "You idiot, I'm dying for you to get beaten half to death so I can get out and get some air! Why would I use sand to protect you?!"

Gaara: "It's not you? Then what exactly is the Shield of Sand..."

"Hey, hey, hey!"

Naruto's voice exploded directly into Gaara's consciousness. "You're actually spacing out while fighting me? Is the pressure I'm putting on you too little?"

Gaara's consciousness pulled back from the Sealing Space, only to see Naruto's fist punching through the Shield of Sand. Before he was hit, Gaara controlled the sand to push himself backward.

"This is the first and last warning."

Naruto said, somewhat annoyed, "If you space out again, I'll press a Rasengan directly onto your face!"

"Sorry..."

Gaara apologized honestly. "Next, I will go all out."

After saying that, Gaara put on a serious expression. He held his hands out flat with his palms facing up, consuming a large amount of his internal chakra. The gourd on his back turned into sand and wrapped around him. The ground began to tremble, and then sand started to emerge bit by bit: "Quicksand Waterfall Flow."

The sand emerging from the ground suddenly gushed out like a fountain, turning into a "sand wave" that rolled toward Naruto.

The referee on the side couldn't stay on the ground any longer and jumped onto the wall surrounding the arena. "As expected of a Jinchuriki from Sunagakure, to use a technique capable of changing the terrain so casually."

"That's exactly what I need!"

Naruto created two Shadow Clones and performed hand seals together: "Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"

Three massive whirlwinds collided head-on with the sand wave, continuously churning the sand into the air. The arena seemed to turn into a desert, with wind and sand dancing together and dust flying everywhere, making visibility extremely poor for a moment.

"(Expletive)!"

The referee standing on the wall moved to an even higher position, struggling to steady his body to avoid being blown away by the sandstorm. "I forgot that we have a Jinchuriki on this side too!"

"Wind Release, huh..."

Gaara put his hands together and performed a simple seal: "Sand Shower!"

The sand grains caught in the gale coalesced into small spheres, rising above Naruto's head before raining down upon him in a rapid, relentless downpour.

"A decent technique, but too slow."

Relying on his sensory abilities to pinpoint Gaara's location and track the incoming Sand Shower, Naruto and his two Shadow Clones threw a Kunai with one hand while molding a Rasengan in the other, vanishing from the spot just before the sand could strike.

Gaara lacked specialized sensory abilities; seeing only the Kunai flying out from the dust ahead, he did not dodge, knowing his Shield of Sand would defend him automatically. He adjusted the trajectory of the Sand Shower to concentrate the attack, his gaze fixed on the direction from which the Kunai had come.

But the next second, all three Narutos simultaneously flickered to the side of the thrown Kunai, grabbed them, and thrust their Rasengans forward.

"So fast! Body Flicker... no, it's Space-Time Ninjutsu! That's the technique he used when he entered the arena!"

Gaara thought at full speed, his eyes locking onto the Rasengans: Such powerful chakra. Neither the Shield of Sand nor the Armor of Sand will be able to stop this. I cannot let them hit me!

His hands moved in a rapid blur of seals.

Under the combined "grinding" of the three Rasengans, the Shield of Sand held for only a second before being completely shattered. Less than half a second later, the three Rasengans struck Gaara, but he transformed into a pile of scattering sand.

Sand Body Flicker.

Gaara's true form appeared beside a mound of sand behind the three Narutos, immediately wrapping himself in sand to form an airtight sphere.

At the same time, the sand beneath the three Narutos began to coil upward around their feet, while sand erupting from the ground surged in from all directions, overwhelming them—Sand Binding Coffin!

"I see. As long as there is sand as a medium, most techniques can be cast directly. No wonder he spent so much chakra turning the arena into a desert."

Naruto scanned his surroundings, realizing he wouldn't have time to escape even if he threw his Kunai, so he dispelled his Shadow Clones to recover some chakra: "But with such a large range, I just need to break through at a single point."

He pressed his palms together, rapidly condensing a Rasengan larger than the standard version, continuing to pour in chakra while compressing it with all his might...