Robbing the Nine-Tails

"Ahhh! Brat, do you want to die?"

Red chakra flared around the Nine-Tails as it glared at Shangguan Yue.

The powerful chakra aura forced Shangguan Yue back two steps. Once he regained his footing, he hurried behind Uzumaki Mito.

"Grandma, you have to protect me. This big fox is bullying me."

"All right, all right. Stand still."

An endless surge of affection suddenly welled up in Uzumaki Mito, and her desire to show off in front of the younger generation reached its peak.

Uzumaki Mito's Adamantine Sealing Chains suddenly multiplied, sprouting several more links that bound the Nine-Tails and sent it spinning three hundred and sixty degrees through the air.

"Uzumaki Mito, are you still a child? Put me down!"

After a while, the Nine-Tails had shouted itself hoarse. Uzumaki Mito found it rather boring and tossed it onto the ground.

The Nine-Tails lay there looking utterly broken, its spirit crushed. When it saw Shangguan Yue make a face at it, it flew into a rage.

"Brat, just you wait."

"I'll wait. But didn't you want to know who I am? So, do you still want to know?"

"Like you'd tell me even if I asked."

"Why not try? Maybe I'll tell you."

"Brat, just what are you?"

"All right. Since you little fox keep begging me, I'll tell you.

"But before I do, you'll have to give me a present."

"Roar! I'm not a fox. What do you want, brat?"

"That depends on what you have. I'm not picky."

"If you're not picky, then look where I am. What do you think I could possibly give you?"

Looking at the Nine-Tails trapped in its cage, its furious and helpless expression made Shangguan Yue burst out laughing.

"I don't care. Give me whatever you can. I'm not telling you for free. We'll trade."

"Brat, I'll give you something. You'd better take it properly, or I'll look down on you."

A ball of chakra formed at the tip of the Nine-Tails' claw. With a casual flick, it sent the chakra flying toward Shangguan Yue.

Watching the chakra approach, Shangguan Yue swallowed. "Chuuni, Chuuni, come out!"

"What is it? I'm still working on the Cultivation Room."

"Can I absorb this chakra?"

"Hmm? Let me see."

Inside the Balance, Chuuni's eyes glowed blue as he stared at the chakra near Shangguan Yue.

"Don't worry. It'll only do you good, no harm at all.

"I'm out of here. You handle it yourself."

Chuuni turned and disappeared. Shangguan Yue gritted his teeth. "That was way too careless. You're just leaving?"

With the chakra right in front of him, he closed his eyes and prepared to face the Nine-Tails Chakra.

"Hm?"

After waiting for a while and noticing nothing happening, Shangguan Yue opened his eyes. He saw Uzumaki Mito had formed a golden chain that held the chakra in midair.

"What's wrong, Grandma Mito?"

"This is the Nine-Tails' chakra. It's an evil force that can cloud your mind and drive you to kill.

"Are you sure you want to absorb it? It could lead you to ruin."

Meeting Uzumaki Mito's concerned gaze, Shangguan Yue nodded firmly.

Seeing his resolve, Uzumaki Mito stopped holding him back and released her control of the Nine-Tails Chakra. It immediately flew toward Shangguan Yue and entered his body.

Uzumaki Mito watched anxiously from the side. The Nine-Tails narrowed its eyes and focused intently on the changes in Shangguan Yue's body.

"Brat, I hope my guess about you is right. Otherwise, you might not make it out alive."

Shangguan Yue felt a chilly energy enter his body, making him shiver all over.

Then his whole body began to tremble, as if something foreign had invaded him. He could feel it racing through his body.

The pain spread from the inside out, growing from a shallow ache to agony at the cellular level.

Shangguan Yue screamed and dropped to his knees. One hand braced against the ground as he struggled to keep himself from passing out.

The pain had gone beyond anything he could bear. He wanted nothing more than to die, but his body told him this was an opportunity.

If he seized it, he could emerge like a butterfly from its cocoon. Shangguan Yue could only force himself to stay alert and fight off unconsciousness.

He kept struggling to stay awake, his whole body trembling. Uzumaki Mito was frantic, unsure what to do.

Outside, Tsunade hadn't gone with them into the space where Uzumaki Mito had sealed the Nine-Tails.

But when she suddenly saw Shangguan Yue trembling all over, his tightly shut eyes twisted with pain, she didn't know what to do.

She examined him carefully and found nothing unusual—he had only gained the Nine-Tails Chakra.

This left her utterly baffled. All she could do was anxiously watch as, somewhere no one could see, Shangguan Yue's DNA sequence rearranged itself.

It was as if something new had merged with him, forcing his genes to change—as though they were being upgraded and reorganized.

It was as if this was how he was meant to be all along, and he had merely been reverted to an inferior state. Now he was simply returning to his original form.

Before long, everything settled. Shangguan Yue felt the pain fade, then collapsed and fell unconscious.

Uzumaki Mito brought Shangguan Yue's consciousness back to his body. The two of them gathered around him, watching with concern.

The guards outside the door showed no sign of coming in, as if they were used to this sort of thing.

Only the Barrier Squad remained busy. The disturbance caused by the leaking Nine-Tails Chakra had been enormous.

Although the sealing barrier in Uzumaki Mito's room contained it, it could not completely conceal the disturbance. After an unknown amount of time, Shangguan Yue slowly woke up.

The moment he opened his eyes, before he could even figure out what was happening, his body suddenly floated into the air. Shangguan Yue panicked and flailed wildly.

"Ahhh! What's happening to my body? Why am I flying?"

Shangguan Yue's cries woke Tsunade and Uzumaki Mito, who had been sleeping beside him.

They opened their eyes and stared in astonishment at Shangguan Yue floating in the air. The next second, he suddenly felt himself falling.

He dropped straight to the floor and landed face-first. Tsunade hurried over to check on him.

The moment she saw Shangguan Yue's face and exposed skin, she was astonished.

"Little man, why is your skin so nice now? It's so pale! And what's that faint vertical mark on your forehead?"

Curious, Shangguan Yue went to a nearby mirror. He was stunned by the reflection.

"Holy crap, why do I look so much like Kaguya Otsutsuki now? Could that vertical mark on my forehead be my Heaven's Eye? Wahahaha!"

Shangguan Yue admired himself, turning this way and that. He lifted his shirt and looked at his stomach.

"Whoa, I even have abs. My physical abilities have improved way too much."