Tentacles in the Cold Wind

"We failed. Bee... Minato Namikaze must have saved them."

"I never expected the Flying Thunder God to be able to transport other people as well!"

The Eight-Tails could vaguely sense Kato Xu's sudden disappearance. Its tentacles flailed, pounding the ground as though venting its frustration over the failure.

Jiraiya frowned deeply as he watched the Eight-Tails begin to rage.

"Why... did the Eight-Tails fire a Tailed Beast Ball at Minato's subordinates..."

Jiraiya recalled the look in Minato's eyes. It was as if Minato had known in advance where the Tailed Beast Ball would be fired, but Jiraiya knew him well. Minato did not possess such an ability.

Confusion filled his eyes. Gamabunta seemed to have sensed something and replied, "Jiraiya, you know about Susanoo, right..."

"You mean?"

Jiraiya looked at Gamabunta in confusion. Although that blue giant had looked very similar to Susanoo, he could tell that it was definitely not Susanoo.

"That massive energy form resembling Susanoo... the instant it looked at me, I felt the aura of death... The difference was that it felt as if my entire soul were about to be dragged out of my body..."

"A soul... Minato's subordinate... Could it be him..."

Jiraiya thought of Kato Xu, whom he had met once before. He was Dan's nephew, but Jiraiya had never heard of the Kato Clan possessing such a secret technique. He frowned, recalling the methods Dan had once used, yet found nothing.

"Minato went to rescue them. They should be fine..."

"The Eight-Tails sent us such a 'grand gift.' Now it's our turn!"

Gamabunta planted his short blade before him and braced himself with one hand. A cold gleam flashed in his eyes as he answered in a low voice, "Toad Taro sent word. They're ready..."

"Good!"

Jiraiya stared at the Eight-Tails, a cold light flickering in his eyes. If the Cloud Shinobi who had deployed the Tailed Beasts were to unleash such a Tailed Beast Ball within Konoha's camp, the consequences would be unimaginable.

"Ninja Art: Four-Corner Barrier!"

Silver-white light suddenly emerged from the four corners surrounding the Eight-Tails, continuously connecting together.

On the ground in all four directions, countless sealing characters emerged from unfurled scrolls. Sitting atop the "barrier" character at the center of each scroll were four head-sized toads. Their expressions varied, yet each carried an air of tranquil ease.

The sealing characters seemed to come alive, flowing from the scrolls toward their bodies.

"Ribbit, ribbit, ribbit..."

The four toads began croaking without pause. Their grating sound waves battered the Eight-Tails, leaving it dizzy for an instant as the barrier rapidly unfolded.

"Not good! A barrier technique!"

Without Minato holding him back, A charged toward Jiraiya. But the abruptly rising silver-white barrier made his expression change drastically, and his heart sank.

Bee had only recently become a perfect Jinchuriki. He should not have been sent into battle so soon. If Bee were captured by Konoha because of this and the Cloud Shinobi lost the Eight-Tails, then A would become a sinner to the Cloud Shinobi!

A faint trace of regret surfaced in his heart...

"Damn it! Damn it!"

"Bee, you idiot! Wake up already!"

Wrapped in crackling lightning, the enraged A sprinted toward Jiraiya. He understood that if he wanted to save the Eight-Tails trapped within the barrier, he had to restrain Jiraiya.

"Lightning Release: Lightning Oppression Horizontal!"

A suit of lightning armor covered his body. A leaped high into the air like a thunderbolt descending, his savage hand chop shooting straight for Jiraiya's chest.

"Jiraiya, I'll stop him!"

Jiraiya leaped down from Gamabunta's head, his hands rapidly forming seals.

Gamabunta drew his blade and slashed at A. The instant A's hand chop collided with the short blade, Gamabunta was forced to retreat again and again. He had not expected A's attack to be so violent.

A thick plume of smoke burst from Gamabunta's nostrils, and a bead of cold sweat slid down his brow.

"Fire Release: Flame Bullet!"

At that moment, Jiraiya swiftly expelled a blazing fireball from his mouth, forcing A back.

"Gamabunta... that was pathetic..."

"Shut up!"

The Eight-Tails also recovered from its dizziness. Its eight tentacles continuously struck the inner walls of the barrier, making the entire barrier tremble violently.

"Jiraiya... it seems we'll have a hard time taking down the Eight-Tails today..."

"Minato still hasn't arrived after all this time. It seems his chakra has run out, and he can no longer use the Flying Thunder God over such a long distance..."

"With just the two of us, I'm afraid it'll be difficult to defeat the Third Raikage's son and completely seal the Eight-Tails at the same time..."

Gamabunta was battle-hardened, and his judgment of the situation remained sharp. A's earlier attack had also made him realize that the Third Raikage's son was not merely the musclehead he appeared to be.

"What a pity... that technique still hasn't been mastered..."

Jiraiya inwardly sighed with regret. If he had mastered his Senjutsu, he would not have feared the two of them joining forces.

He could roughly guess what had happened. Minato's three subordinates were likely too severely injured, so Minato had sent them directly back to camp and could not rush over for the moment.

If that was the case, then there seemed to be little point in continuing the battle.

"Gamabunta, go back first..."

Gently patting Gamabunta's webbed foot, Jiraiya concealed a mark on his body.

"Eight-Tails, even if I can't seal you, I'll still make you shed a layer of skin..."

"Then be careful..."

Gamabunta understood immediately. After giving A one final glance, he exhaled a cloud of smoke through his nostrils and vanished from the battlefield.

"Barrier! Lockdown!"

Jiraiya roared, and the silver-white barrier instantly contracted. Countless chains crisscrossed out from within it. The Eight-Tails kept dodging, but the cramped space made it impossible to avoid them all. Chains tipped with sharp hooks pierced into its body.

"Bee, these chains carry sealing runes! They're devouring my chakra!"

"Little Eight, the barrier seems to have loosened a little. These chains have consumed a tremendous amount of the barrier's energy!"

Bee carefully examined the area around the barrier, and suddenly found a flaw.

"There!"

The eight tentacles gathered together like an unopened lotus flower and began spinning at high speed. The soft, whip-like tentacles now seemed to shine with the luster of steel.

"Break!"

"How could it be that easy..."

Jiraiya chuckled.

The opening in the barrier was naturally a flaw he had deliberately exposed. The previously interwoven chains began tightening without pause.

In an instant, the silver-white barrier walls transformed into countless wind blades, slicing through the Eight-Tails' body. Its chain-bound body was shredded to pieces by the countless wind blades.

"Bee! The barrier is gone! These wind blades and chains... damn it!"

"Use the Tentacle Substitute!"

The Eight-Tails' body suddenly contracted. The chains snapped shut, but all they caught was a massive octopus tentacle. Killer B soared into the air, shifted back into human form, and drew the Eight-Tails back into his body.

"Jiraiya truly lived up to his reputation. He actually forced Little Eight into such a state..."

Killer B landed and charged at Jiraiya at high speed, one arm raised high. His thick arm resembled the gnarled trunk of an ancient tree, brimming with power.

The chains dragged the Eight-Tails' tentacle along as they rapidly retracted into the scroll. The silver-white chains had completely turned into black runes, forming a massive "seal" character within the scroll.

The four toads immediately rolled up their scrolls and leaped away. A cloud of smoke rose in the air, and the four toad brothers abruptly vanished within it.

"I didn't expect an unexpected gain..."

Having sealed one of the Eight-Tails' tentacles, Jiraiya looked quite pleased. He narrowed his eyes at Killer B and A, who were charging at him one after the other, pressed his palms together, and immediately connected his chakra to the mark hidden on Gamabunta.

"Eight-Tails, I'll let you off for today..."

The moment his words fell, A and Killer B, who had been rushing toward him, slammed their arms together like two iron boulders. The shockwave caused the already barren ground to sink even further.

"Double Lariat!"

Killer B and A's powerful strike hit nothing but air. Jiraiya had already vanished amid a cloud of smoke.

"It's the Reverse Summoning Technique..."

"Damn it!"

A biting wind blew in from beyond the mountain forest, making A's clothes flap loudly. As he finished cursing, the last trace of sunset slipped beneath the horizon, and night gradually began to envelop the sky.

The remaining four Jonin who had hurried over slowly appeared behind A, silently staring at the forest that had nearly become a wasteland.

The six stood silently in the cold, harsh wind, looking at one another without a word...