Chapter 39

The Sharingan definitely wouldn't work. But Lightning Release, Fire Release, Flying Raijin—any one of those would be enough for her.

And any ability bestowed would only be one tier below his own.

Most importantly, as his level rose, the abilities he gave out would rise with it.

Uchiha Yi didn't hide this from Koyuki. He laid everything out for her. Of course, he didn't mention the system, only saying that he possessed some unusual abilities.

To his surprise, Koyuki shook her head after hearing him out. "Your ability is impressive, but I'm not a ninja. Even if you gave me a ninjutsu, could I use it?"

Uchiha Yi froze.

Right. He had completely forgotten about that.

But her words gave him an idea.

Koyuki was an ordinary person. If he wanted to make her his retainer, the most suitable thing was actually the Eight Gates.

That technique could strengthen the body and allow someone to evolve toward perfection.

Of course, exactly how strong it could make someone depended on their natural foundation.

Before long, Uchiha Yi's first retainer was born.

His own Eight Gates was level 5 and could boost chakra a hundredfold.

When bestowed upon Koyuki, it dropped one level to level 4, with only a fortyfold boost.

Koyuki originally had no chakra and had never received ninja training.

But the moment the Eight Gates took effect, chakra was born within her.

The amount wasn't much, merely average. But with a fortyfold boost, it shot straight up to elite jonin level.

At that point, Uchiha Yi pulled off a rather outrageous move.

Using Koyuki's chakra, he created a Shadow Clone.

The clone was not especially powerful, only at Kage level, and it relied entirely on Koyuki's chakra to sustain itself.

As long as her chakra was not drained all at once, the clone would not disperse.

Just like that, the Land of Snow had gained a Kage-level powerhouse out of nowhere.

But Uchiha Yi found it awkward to look at, so he forcibly made the clone take Koyuki's appearance.

Koyuki laughed at him, saying he was even jealous of his own clone.

But the very next day after he gave Koyuki the Eight Gates, something happened that gave him a headache.

A Shadow Clone stood before him.

It had been formed from the portion of Shukaku's source chakra that he had taken before.

Uchiha Yi had previously wondered whether he could use his own power to nurture that small piece of Shukaku chakra.

To put it plainly, he wanted to cultivate an entirely new Shukaku.

It had initially been nothing more than a spur-of-the-moment experiment.

Yet somehow, he had actually succeeded.

The chakra emanating from the Shadow Clone before him had already reached genuine Tailed Beast level.

Though it was a clone, this thing was somewhat special. It contained a portion of Uchiha Yi's own unique power.

Whenever his main body made a breakthrough, this clone became stronger as well.

Simply put, the Shadow Clone permanently maintained ninety-five percent of his main body's combat strength.

And after he awakened the Rinnegan, that portion of Shukaku chakra seemed to have changed completely.

Creatures like Shukaku had never reproduced normally in the first place. They were monsters that emerged on their own once chakra accumulated to a certain degree.

The portion of Shukaku's source chakra that Uchiha Yi had split off was like a seed buried in the soil. Driven by his ocular power, it grew wildly as if pumped full of stimulants, and it had now fully taken shape.

It was a brand-new Shukaku.

And this thing could actually be sealed inside another person, directly turning them into a jinchuriki.

Once he understood that, the first thought to enter Uchiha Yi's mind was—could he mass-produce jinchuriki?

Produce jinchuriki in batches?

It sounded absurd, and terrifying too.

But after calming down and thinking it over, it actually seemed feasible.

Besides, the Shukaku he had created had no self-awareness at all. It was merely a pure mass of Tailed Beast chakra. "System, does this thing count as a Tailed Beast too?"

Even with the facts right in front of him, Uchiha Yi could not help but ask.

This time, the system did not play dead. It actually answered. "System analysis complete. The mass of Shukaku chakra within your Shadow Clone has independently completed its evolution. The reason is that the power of your Extreme Sharingan interfered with it."

Couldn't you just say it was your damn doing?

Uchiha Yi grumbled inwardly, but continued aloud, "So this mass of Shukaku chakra is not only fine, but can keep evolving?"

"The chakra itself is not a problem and can indeed be classified as a Tailed Beast. However, its evolutionary limit depends on the strength of its source."

"What limit?"

"At most, it can reach Shukaku's level. To break through that ceiling, you would need to upgrade the Extreme Sharingan once more."

At most, Shukaku level?

That was more than enough. It was still a Tailed Beast!

At this rate, mass-producing Tailed Beasts no longer seemed like a dream.

Wait. If Tailed Beasts could be made, could he make a Ten-Tails too?

Uchiha Yi's eyes lit up.

But the system immediately poured cold water over him. "The system advises you to abandon that idea as soon as possible. The Ten-Tails is the source of all chakra. With your current strength, it is utterly impossible for you to create one. Even if you truly created nine Tailed Beasts, they could not fuse into the Ten-Tails. Rather than waste your time on this, you should honestly upgrade your Extreme Sharingan. Once your eyes are strong enough, forget the Ten-Tails—even a hundred Ten-Tails would be yours with a single word."

A four-hit combo.

The system truly was the system. Even when crushing someone's spirits, it did so with such orderly precision.

Couldn't you just say I'm weak?

Damn it.

No, wait.

I already have the Rinnegan, and the system is still looking down on me?

Uchiha Yi completely lost the desire to speak. "The system has detected that the Shukaku within your Shadow Clone evolved on its own. The source was the influence of your Extreme Sharingan."

After all that, weren't you just trying to say it was your achievement?

Uchiha Yi mocked it inwardly, while his mouth kept moving. "So this Shukaku chakra is not only harmless, but can continue improving?"

"The chakra itself is pure and qualifies for use as a Tailed Beast. But how far it can evolve depends entirely on whether the source material can support it."

"What material?"

"At the absolute most, it can reach Shukaku's level. To break through that ceiling, Host, you must first upgrade your Extreme Sharingan by another level."

At most, Shukaku level?

That was still a genuine Tailed Beast!

Mass-producing Tailed Beasts really might be possible!

Wait, if Tailed Beasts could be made, then what about the Ten-Tails?

Uchiha Yi's eyes suddenly lit up. As though it could read his mind, the system immediately splashed him with cold water. "If the Host has designs on the Ten-Tails, I advise you to give up that notion early."

"The Ten-Tails is the ancestor of chakra. With your current abilities, you cannot even come close."

"Even if you truly gathered nine Tailed Beasts, they would not be able to become the Ten-Tails."

"Instead of wasting time thinking about this and that, hurry up and upgrade your Extreme Sharingan. Once your eyes are powerful enough, forget the Ten-Tails—even a hundred of them could be made with a casual pinch of your hand."

Four consecutive critical hits!

The system was indeed the system. It could crush someone's spirits this thoroughly—why not just say I'm weak and be done with it?

Damn, something was off!

I already have the Rinnegan, and it still looks down on me this much?

Uchiha Yi did not feel like responding. "If I can't make the Ten-Tails, then I'll make a few more of the other Tailed Beasts to fill the numbers."

With a turn of his thoughts, he thought of Konoha.

There seemed to be a strongest Tailed Beast sealed there.

Harmless jinchuriki.

That was the label Uchiha Yi placed on the Tailed Beasts he created himself.

With no self-awareness, a jinchuriki would not have to worry about backlash at all.

Thinking of it that way, he felt a little regretful.

If he had known sooner, he should have turned Koyuki into this kind of jinchuriki as well.

That way, there would have been no need to painstakingly train her. She could have directly possessed Kage-level strength herself.

But he quickly tossed the thought aside.

It was enough for her to stay alive. Why did she have to be so strong?

He had no intention of sending his woman onto a battlefield.

Even if Koyuki really were nothing but a pretty ornament, he would still like her and cherish her.

It was not as though he could not afford to support her.

Besides, was a queen-level ornament something just anyone could have?

After staying in the Land of Snow for a few days and waiting for Koyuki to become fully familiar with that Shadow Clone, Uchiha Yi set off back to Konoha.

As soon as he arrived, he went directly to find Tsunade and Jiraiya. "What? You want to speak with the Nine-Tails?"

Upon hearing that Uchiha Yi wanted to talk with the Nine-Tails, not only Jiraiya but even Tsunade was stunned. "That's right. The Nine-Tails inside Naruto has already been acting up. I think it's time to meet it and have a proper talk."

Jiraiya and Tsunade exchanged a look. They understood the reasoning, but the risk was no joke. "Are you sure?" Tsunade asked. "Of course."

Uchiha Yi smiled. "I have now completely mastered the power of the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan. Suppressing the Nine-Tails will not be a problem."

Forget suppressing it—beating it up would be easy too.

But he did not say that aloud. "No. This is far too risky. If anything goes wrong and the Nine-Tails breaks free of the seal, no one can bear that responsibility."

Jiraiya shook his head, his attitude resolute.

Tsunade was silent for a while before asking, "Jiraiya, given Naruto's current condition, how likely is the Nine-Tails to go berserk? If it really does, do you have a way to suppress it?"

"This..."

Jiraiya froze and did not answer.

Tsunade understood at once—Naruto's situation was worse than she had imagined.

She turned toward Uchiha Yi, her expression grave. "Uchiha Yi, this is no small matter. If you are not completely certain, I will not agree to let you do this."

Uchiha Yi said nothing.

He raised his head.

The Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan activated.

Tsukuyomi: Illusion Realm.

The Nine-Tails was blasted into the ground and rolled several times, smashing out a huge crater.

It had only just steadied itself and had not even caught its breath when a black figure charged toward it over the rubble.

A fist.

A fist so simple and brutally direct it was taken to the extreme.

The punch slammed into the Nine-Tails' head, and the shockwave it unleashed uprooted the surrounding forest.

The Nine-Tails' pupils contracted sharply. Its entire face was knocked to one side by the blow, and its body flew out of control once more.

It smashed through three mountain walls before finally becoming lodged in a massive boulder. "Roar—"

The Nine-Tails flew into a rage.

After living for so many years, when had it ever been beaten like this?

Chakra surged out wildly. Blood-red energy condensed over its body, and each of its tails rose upright.

But that person did not give it any chance.

The pursuing figure twisted through the air, then planted a foot directly on the Nine-Tails' face, crushing its newly rising momentum with a single stomp.

"That's it?"

"That's all you can do?"

The voice carried a note of flippancy, plainly humiliating it.

The Nine-Tails trembled with fury and immediately opened its mouth, forming a Tailed Beast Ball.

A black-and-crimson sphere of energy rapidly took shape in its mouth, its light compressed to such an extreme that it was painful to look at.

Yet the man did not dodge. Instead, he stood there with both hands in his pockets, waiting.

"Go on. Spit it out. Try it."

The instant the words fell, he raised a hand and slapped it.