Shukaku VS Zeyu

At the sound of Gaara's laughter, everyone present turned to look.

Zeyu's eyes sharpened as he thought, What happened? Why has Shukaku come out?

Temari, who had been resting, and Kankuro, who was busy repairing his puppets, were both startled and jumped to their feet.

They had always kept an eye on Gaara to prevent any accidents.

It had been that way since they were children; only when Gaara became a ninja and grew irritable and bloodthirsty did they stop hovering over him so closely.

They had assumed Gaara was just resting with his eyes closed as usual, never imagining he had actually fallen asleep from exhaustion.

"Gaara! Wake up!" Temari and Kankuro shouted, moving forward to rouse him.

Gaara, controlled by Shukaku, turned his head to glare at them upon hearing their voices. He immediately waved his hand, sending sand surging toward the pair.

The sand wrapped around their bodies and slammed them against the wall, leaving only their heads exposed.

Before they could speak, their mouths were sealed shut.

"So noisy. Once I kill that red-haired brat, I'll deal with you two."

On the other side, Shota nudged Megumi with his elbow and whispered, "Hey, Megumi, isn't he a red-haired brat himself? And he's not even as tall as Big Brother, so why is he calling Big Brother that?"

Megumi replied with a look of speechlessness, "How should I know? He's probably brain-damaged. And you, Brother, you're such an idiot."

"What did I do?" Shota asked, looking bewildered.

"Enough! A bunch of stinking brats, you all deserve to die!" Gaara, possessed by Shukaku, roared.

He then raised his hands, causing sand to hover in the air.

Zeyu's expression turned grave as he prepared for battle.

"You are not allowed to hurt Zeyu!" Hinata activated her Byakugan, assumed her Gentle Fist stance, and shielded Zeyu behind her.

"Hinata..." Zeyu was stunned. Looking at her delicate frame, he felt a moment of trance and murmured.

Hinata said, "Zeyu is a very important person to me. I won't allow anyone to hurt him."

The others also gathered around Zeyu, ready for combat.

"Everyone..." Zeyu said.

"Don't get the wrong idea, I'm here to protect Hinata," Megumi said.

"I feel the same as my sister-in-law; I won't let anyone hurt Big Brother. Oh, and the sister-in-law too," Shota added.

"Yeah, same here," Kiba and Shino echoed.

Megumi gave them a deadpan look, thinking, If you guys mean the same thing as Hinata, this is going to be a real headache.

Shukaku let out a disdainful snort and said, "How interesting. Seeking death in a group? Then I shall grant your wish."

The sand floating in the air began to gather, forming dense, swarming clusters of small sand pellets.

"Oh no!" Zeyu exclaimed, immediately beginning to weave hand signs.

He puffed out his cheeks and spat a large volume of water onto the ground.

Shukaku took a deep breath, his cheeks and belly swelling as he performed his own hand signs.

"Water Style: Water Formation Wall!" "Wind Style: Wind Sand Bullet!"

Shukaku expelled a massive gust of air from his mouth, launching the dense swarm of sand pellets at high speed.

On Zeyu's side, the group had been wondering what Gaara was planning, but as the attack commenced and the sand pellets flew toward them, they were struck with terror. Fortunately, Zeyu had completed his Water Style, and a wall of water rose before them, intercepting the barrage.

The sand pellets struck the water wall, sending up countless splashes.

The sand disintegrated upon contact with the water, carried upward by the flow.

Tch, is this all this body can manage? Shukaku thought.

Hiding behind the water wall, the group watched as the sand pellets flew toward them, only to be blocked at the very last second, leaving them drenched in a cold sweat.

"If it weren't for Zeyu, I'd probably be a sieve by now," Kiba said, trembling.

Shino nodded, swallowing hard.

They looked at Zeyu with eyes full of gratitude.

"Zeyu, thank you," Hinata said.

"It's nothing. It's not over yet, stay alert," Zeyu replied, his eyes locked firmly on Shukaku.

At this moment, Shukaku had already used the remaining sand inside the gourd to wrap around Gaara's left arm. Shortly after, a massive, deep-yellow arm emerged, directly shattering the sand covering the limb.

Seeing that the previous attack had concluded, Zeyu immediately began forming hand seals at high speed.

"Water Style: Water Dragon Bullet!"

A dragon head coalesced from the wall of water, charging directly toward Shukaku, who had just finished manifesting one arm.

Damn it, if Gaara is attacked now, he'll wake up, and all our efforts will have been for nothing. Where did this brat come from? He's so sharp, and to be able to use such a powerful Water Style in a place like this...

As Shukaku thought this, he raised his right hand and summoned a wall of sand in front of him, resting his hand upon it as the sand enveloped his arm.

The Water Dragon Bullet slammed directly into the sand wall. The immense force shattered the barrier and struck Shukaku, lifting him off the ground.

By now, Shukaku's face had also finished transforming, and he grinned broadly with a chuckle.

"Heh heh heh, interesting. It's been a long time since I've felt this excited."

Everyone looked closely and saw that Shukaku had placed his left hand in front of his stomach, blocking the head of the water dragon.

Just as his right arm finished manifesting, he grabbed the water dragon by the neck. With both hands exerting force simultaneously, he gave a violent squeeze, and the water dragon exploded, sending water splashing everywhere.

Everyone present was drenched.

Shukaku shielded his face with his massive left hand, peering through his fingers at the group opposite him.

"Hahaha, brat, let me—" Shukaku looked at the group, but the flash of red he had seen earlier was gone. He froze, his smile stiffening.

He quickly pulled his hand away, searching carefully for Zeyu.

Looking up, he saw Zeyu flying toward him through the air.

"Heh, you stinking brat, you're too slow!" Shukaku said, reaching out his giant hand to grab Zeyu.

He snatched Zeyu right out of the air.

"Zeyu!" Hinata cried out in panic.

The others looked over, their faces filled with shock as they saw Zeyu held firmly in Shukaku's grip.

Seeing this, Hinata immediately rushed forward.

"Damn it, let my big brother go!" Shota shouted, clenching his fists as he charged in as well.

"Urgh." Zeyu, held tight, wore a pained expression and was unable to move.

"Hahaha, I'll kill one of you first, and then it'll be your turn soon enough," Shukaku sneered.

"No!" everyone screamed.

Just as Shukaku prepared to strike, the corners of Zeyu's mouth, held within that giant hand, suddenly curled upward.

Shukaku had only just caught sight of Zeyu's expression and hadn't even had time to react when a fist wrapped in chakra arrived at the side of his right cheek.

Shukaku caught a glimpse of it in his peripheral vision just before the punch landed.

An explosive sound rang out. Shukaku's face was distorted by the blow, and his entire body was sent flying.

The Zeyu in his hand dissolved into water.

The massive shockwave kicked up a fierce gust of wind. Hinata and Shota, being closer, were blinded by the debris and shielded their faces with their arms.

"Impossible!" Shukaku roared.

The flying Shukaku crashed through the wall of the lounge, stirring up a cloud of dust as he continued to sail into the main hall.

The gourd on his back turned back into sand, shielding Gaara's body.

He finally landed in the hall, the floor beneath him already covered in sand.

"Impossible! You damn brat, mark my words! I will have my revenge! I will kill you sooner or later!!!" Shukaku roared with his mouth wide open.

Soon after, his pupils returned to their original state, and his tanuki face and giant arms slowly faded away.

Gaara slowly opened his eyes and began to cough violently. He turned his head to the side, spat out a mouthful of blood, and gasped for air.

Zeyu pulled back his fist, shook his hand, and looked at the others.

"Is everyone alright?"

"Yeah... we're fine," they replied in unison.

Hinata went straight to Zeyu's side, asking with concern, "Zeyu, are you okay? Was that a clone just now?"

Zeyu pulled Hinata into a hug and smirked.

"Why don't you feel for yourself if this body is a water clone?"

Hinata's face turned bright red, and she whispered, "Ah, um, it's definitely Zeyu, and... everyone is still watching."

Zeyu looked at the others.

They all turned their heads away, signaling that they hadn't seen a thing.

"That guy, he has no sense of propriety," Megumi muttered under her breath.