Lin Qianqian looked at the creature that had hatched from the egg. It was a sandy-yellow tanuki.
His body was round and plump, only about a meter and a half tall, with a single tail swishing impatiently behind him.
There was nothing remotely fearsome about his appearance.
If anything, he was... cute?
Lin Qianqian knew this big, fat tanuki was the Beast King of the secret realm.
She hardly wanted to describe a Beast King as "cute."
But the big tanuki before her really was a little cute.
He looked nothing like a Beast King.
If not for the faint pulses of terrifying energy emanating from him, Lin Qianqian might have thought he was just an ordinary mutant beast.
[Beast King: Shukaku] [Level: Second Tier, 1 star]
Beside her, Zhou Fan wore an even stranger expression.
The mutant beast before him looked awfully familiar.
A sandy-yellow body, round and plump, covered in distinctive Cursed Seal markings, with a single tail behind him.
Wasn't this straight-up "Shukaku the Tailed Beast" from Naruto?!
He was just a little smaller-a miniature Shukaku.
And this Beast King's name was actually Shukaku!
No matter how Zhou Fan looked at him, he seemed to be Shukaku the One-Tail!
"Second Tier, 1 star... Looks like he hatched successfully after all."
"But a newly hatched Beast King hasn't matured yet. This is when he's vulnerable." Lin Qianqian was considering how to deal with Shukaku.
Second Tier, 1 star.
For a Beast King, that level was relatively weak.
A proper Beast King was usually well on its way to the Fourth Tier.
Since Shukaku had only just hatched, his weaker strength was understandable.
If he had enough time to develop...
It wouldn't take long for him to grow into a Fourth Tier Beast King!
"Paper Blizzard: Shuriken!"
Lin Qianqian struck first, sending a barrage of Paper Shuriken flying at Shukaku.
Shukaku shot her a contemptuous glance and swept his tail hard, whipping up a gale that effortlessly dismantled her attack.
A Second Tier, 1-star mutant beast wasn't something a First Tier, 4-star fighter could casually challenge.
"Dance of the Shikigami: Moon Wheel!"
With her first attack blocked, Lin Qianqian continued attacking without the slightest hesitation.
An enormous paper wheel rolled toward him.
Shukaku simply dodged it with his nimble speed.
His current body was only 1.5 meters tall, shorter than an average adult.
His compact body gave him greater agility.
A skill with such a small attack area could hardly hit him head-on.
"Paper Shuriken Technique!"
Lin Qianqian unleashed countless Paper Shuriken again.
Shukaku refused to back down and formed Hand Seals with both hands.
"Sand Shuriken!"
A mass of sand formed a dense barrage of shuriken before him, trading fire with Lin Qianqian's Paper Shuriken.
Thwack!
Shukaku's Sand Shuriken were more numerous and more powerful, knocking down every last one of Lin Qianqian's Paper Shuriken.
Many of the Sand Shuriken kept flying toward her!
Lin Qianqian's expression changed, and she hurriedly controlled a mass of paper sheets to block them.
But quite a few Sand Shuriken still broke through her defenses and struck her.
Several wounds immediately appeared on her body.
"Fire Release: Ghost Lantern!"
Zhou Fan finally made his move.
Flaming lanterns with ghostly faces flew toward Shukaku, covering a wide area and cutting off his retreat.
Seeing this, Shukaku formed Hand Seals.
"Wind Release: Drilling Air Bullet!"
His belly rapidly swelled. Then he slapped it hard with his palm, spitting out balls of wind packed with spiritual energy that collided with the ghost-faced flaming lanterns.
BOOM!!!
The Ghost Lanterns exploded in midair, bursting into brilliant flames.
One wind ball even flew toward Zhou Fan, but fortunately, he dodged in time.
"Such powerful Wind Release... He really is Shukaku."
By now, Zhou Fan was almost certain this was the Shukaku he knew!
Wind Release Ninjutsu, sand manipulation... If Shukaku fired a Tailed Beast Bomb next, there would be no room for doubt.
But what good would confirming his identity do?
If they couldn't beat him, they couldn't beat him.
Shukaku held the overwhelming advantage, even fighting two against one.
Second Tier, 1-star strength.
For a Beast King, that was rather unimpressive.
But Shukaku had only just hatched, so his weaker strength was understandable.
Yet even at Second Tier, 1 star, he wasn't an opponent Zhou Fan and Lin Qianqian could easily handle.
They were completely on the back foot.
"Gahahaha! You two think you can beat the great me? Dream on!"
Shukaku continued forming Hand Seals.
"Wind Release: Vacuum Bullet!"
High-speed wind balls hurtled toward them.
Each wind ball packed the power of a bomb.
A direct hit would have unimaginable consequences!
A rare look of gravity appeared on Lin Qianqian's face.
Shukaku's strength exceeded her expectations.
Even working together with Zhou Fan, she couldn't gain the slightest advantage.
Their mission was to defeat the Beast King here.
Only by defeating the Beast King would this secret realm disappear.
Only then could they receive the Esper Bureau's reward.
But now, never mind whether they could defeat Shukaku.
They would be lucky just to survive.
"Dance of the Shikigami: Splendid Bloom!"
Countless sheets of paper transformed into an enormous paper tornado, crashing toward Shukaku like a hurricane.
"Fire Release: Dragon Flame Song Technique!"
Zhou Fan was going all out now too, unleashing one advanced Fire Release technique after another as though they cost him nothing.
This was Shukaku!
Even a miniature Shukaku had Second Tier, 1-star strength.
They couldn't defeat him while holding anything back.
They had to give it everything!
Fire dragons roared forth one after another.
Watching their attacks, Shukaku immediately controlled the surrounding sand, forming an enormous Sand Shukaku Statue before him.
"Shield of Shukaku!"
BOOM!
Lin Qianqian's and Zhou Fan's attacks were all blocked by the Shield of Shukaku.
"Absolute defense-that's my creed!"
"Attacks at your level aren't even enough to tickle me!" Shukaku shrieked excitedly.
Battle delighted him.
"I love fighting more than anything! Now it's my turn!"
Shukaku controlled a vast quantity of sand, engulfing Lin Qianqian and Zhou Fan in an instant like a raging sea.
They had no chance to dodge.
Then Shukaku used the sand to bring them before him.
"Humans, you've lost!"
"Now die!"
The pressure of the sand began to increase.
Lin Qianqian let out a muffled groan, a vivid streak of blood spilling from the corner of her mouth.
Her petite body simply couldn't withstand such immense pressure.
Zhou Fan was suffering just as badly.
Most of his body was trapped in the sand, leaving him unable to use ninjutsu.
In desperation, he suddenly shouted,
"Shukaku, who's stronger, you or the Nine-Tails?"
"Huh? You're comparing me to that stinking fox, the Nine-Tails? Of course I'm stronger!"
Shukaku immediately turned to look at Zhou Fan.
The instant he turned his head, his gaze met Zhou Fan's Sharingan.
"Genjutsu: Demonic Illusion: Shackling Stakes Technique!"
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