After spending a few days in the Land of Snow helping Kazahana Koyuki get familiar with shadow clones, he returned to Konoha.
As soon as he entered Konoha, he headed straight for Tsunade and Jiraiya's quarters.
"You want to talk to the Nine-Tails?"
The sake cup in Tsunade's hand nearly slipped, and Jiraiya forgot to take a puff of the cigarette between his lips. Both stared at him.
"That's right. The Nine-Tails is getting restless inside Naruto. It's time I had a proper chat with him."
That was true enough, but wasn't the risk far too great? Tsunade and Jiraiya exchanged a glance, neither speaking right away.
"Are you confident?" Tsunade set her cup down securely and stared at him.
"Of course!" Uchiha Yi smiled. He now knew the abilities of his eternal Mangekyō Sharingan inside out. Suppressing the Nine-Tails would be child's play.
Still, he refrained from making such a bold claim aloud. It would be too shocking.
"No, it's too dangerous!" Jiraiya shook his head. "If something goes wrong and the Nine-Tails breaks the seal, it'll be a catastrophe!"
Tsunade fell silent for a few seconds, then turned to Jiraiya. "Given Naruto's current condition, how likely is the Nine-Tails to break loose? If he really does, can we stop him?"
The questions stumped Jiraiya. He opened his mouth but couldn't say a word.
One look told Tsunade everything. Naruto's situation was bad.
She turned back to Uchiha Yi, her tone grave. "This is no joking matter. You have to guarantee that you're absolutely certain you can handle it, or I won't allow it!"
Uchiha Yi said nothing. He merely raised his head.
The scarlet glow of his eternal Mangekyō Sharingan lit his eyes, and Tsukuyomi's illusion realm unfolded in an instant.
In a secluded valley within Konoha that few people ever visited, Uchiha Yi stood beside Naruto. Earlier, he had instantly overawed Tsunade and Jiraiya with Tsukuyomi: Illusion Realm, and both had agreed to his arrangements on the spot.
How powerful was that genjutsu? Even ninjas of their caliber had fallen prey before they could react, which said everything about how absurdly strong it was. Though their lack of preparation had played some part, both knew that Uchiha Yi hadn't come close to using his full strength.
But even with Uchiha Yi certain of victory, neither dared let down their guard. As soon as they chose the location, they dispatched a large force of Anbu to establish layer upon layer of defenses. This involved the Nine-Tails, after all; there was no room for carelessness. Tsunade and Jiraiya even stood guard personally.
Naruto looked around and spoke in utter bewilderment. Everyone nearby was thoroughly concealed. Even Tsunade and Jiraiya remained out of sight, so naturally, he could see no one but Uchiha Yi.
Yet the scatterbrained boy hadn't even considered how Uchiha Yi had brought them here when they'd been at Ichiraku Ramen a moment earlier. All he remembered was Uchiha Yi calling him outside and saying they were going somewhere. He had agreed, and then he was standing here.
Yi ignored the questions filling Naruto's head and got straight to the point. "I brought you here because of the Nine-Tails sealed inside you."
Naruto jumped and blurted out, "What? Yi, you know about the Nine-Tails?"
"Of course I know about that stinking fox. And I have a way to make him behave so he can never bother you again," Uchiha Yi said confidently.
Naruto perked up instantly and slapped his chest. "Really? That's awesome!"
"Would I lie to you?" Uchiha Yi countered.
Naruto rubbed his hands excitedly and nodded over and over. "Great! As long as you can make that stinking fox behave, I'll do whatever you say, Yi!"
Uchiha Yi nodded and said, "Then take a nap first." His eyes changed, and Naruto immediately collapsed into sleep.
With Naruto taken care of, Uchiha Yi gave a low shout. His ocular power stirred, sending his consciousness into the sealing space inside Naruto. This was where the seal lay: an enormous iron gate, a dim passageway, and bottomless darkness beyond the bars.
"Huh? Someone actually managed to get in here?" With a clang, a massive claw slammed into the iron gate, and the Nine-Tails appeared.
"Who are you, brat?" the Nine-Tails roared.
Uchiha Yi said nothing. He simply lifted his head, revealing his eyes. The Nine-Tails' fur bristled instantly, and he roared, "Those eyes... damn you! You're from the Uchiha Clan!"
The Nine-Tails flew into a rage, hammering the iron gate. Uchiha Yi said calmly, "Don't waste your strength, Nine-Tails. You know perfectly well that you can't break this seal."
The Nine-Tails snorted in disdain and stopped attacking, staring coldly at Uchiha Yi. But the sinister aura pouring from him laid his murderous intent bare.
If not for the seal, he would have charged over and torn this Uchiha brat to pieces. Uchiha Yi ignored that aura and smiled.
"Nothing much. I just came to tell you that since you're living in Naruto's body, you should behave yourself and pay your rent on time."
The Nine-Tails laughed wildly, not taking Uchiha Yi seriously in the slightest. "Hahaha! Uchiha brat, do you really think that's possible?"
"I'll slowly gnaw away at this brat's mind, swallow him whole, and escape this damned seal! Once I'm out, I'll wipe out you Uchiha first, then destroy Konoha!"
Uchiha Yi shook his head, his eternal Mangekyō Sharingan turning slightly. "Sigh. Looks like talking people around isn't my specialty."
With a sharp whoosh, space shuddered violently. The Nine-Tails' surroundings changed, and he found himself somewhere new.
"This is... genjutsu? No, this isn't ordinary genjutsu." The Nine-Tails paused in surprise.
Uchiha Yi smiled. "This isn't ordinary genjutsu. It's Tsukuyomi: Illusion Realm. It already has the power to manifest things physically, so it counts as a special real space, not pure illusion."
"A soul space?" The Nine-Tails seemed to realize something, then burst into delighted laughter. "Hahaha! You've made a mistake, Uchiha brat! I'm a tailed beast, a being made entirely of chakra. Pulling me in here has given me a chance to escape the seal!"
"Now that the seal no longer binds me, all I have to do is get out of here to escape the Fourth Hokage's seal completely. Then I'll be free!"
"But..." Uchiha Yi interrupted him calmly. "I already know that!"
Uchiha Yi gave a slight nod. "You think you have what it takes to escape this place?"
The Nine-Tails scoffed, the nine flaming tails behind him suddenly lunging forward. "Heh. Looks like you're underestimating me. You're far too arrogant, Uchiha brat. Do you think you're Madara Uchiha?"
"Die!"
Uchiha Yi shook his head lightly, his gaze abruptly sharpening. "Tch. I'm the one being underestimated!"
"Lightning Release: Black Dragon!"
A lightning dragon covered in surging black scales slammed into the Nine-Tails, instantly knocking his tail strike aside. But the next second, the Nine-Tails spat out a pitch-black Tailed Beast Bomb, its energy making the space itself tremble.
Uchiha Yi's pupils contracted. That was even more chakra than he had expected. "Kamui: Reversal!"
Space twisted into a vortex and swallowed the Tailed Beast Bomb. Before the Nine-Tails could react, the same bomb crashed down from above his head, blasting his chakra body and making it shudder.
"It's you?" Staring at that spatial ability, the Nine-Tails suddenly remembered something. "You're Obito Uchiha?"
"No, I'm not." Uchiha Yi denied it outright. Without giving the Nine-Tails a chance to ask more, he flashed forward and drove a fist at him.
He actually dared to confront the king of tailed beasts with his fists? Anyone watching would have thought it was a joke.
But a moment later, the Nine-Tails nearly exploded with fury-the force of that punch was more than ten times what he had expected!
Bam!
The blow made the Nine-Tails reel. Before he could react, Uchiha Yi's fists came down like a string of firecrackers, punch after punch hammering his chakra shell.
Although the Nine-Tails had no physical flesh, the pain nearly drove him mad. The beating left him completely dazed, even questioning everything he knew. With violence like this, which of them was supposed to be the tailed beast?
After pounding away for a while, Uchiha Yi frowned and cursed inwardly. This chakra shell is ridiculously tough. No, he doesn't even have skin!
He landed another punch, then stopped. "Nine-Tails, do you yield?"
"Like hell I do!" the Nine-Tails taunted deliberately. "I'm made of chakra! What can your fists do to me? Blow me apart if you've got the guts!"
Uchiha Yi wasn't provoked. He knew that if he really blew the tailed beast apart, the Nine-Tails might be able to regenerate inside Naruto's body. He couldn't let him get his way.
"Looks like I'll have to try something else."
Uchiha Yi's eyes suddenly shone. The patterns of his eternal Mangekyō Sharingan faded, replaced by the profound rings of the Rinnegan. "Wood Release: Binding Wood Dragon!" "Wood Release: Giant Wood Mountain Guardian!"
An enormous Wood Dragon instantly coiled around the Nine-Tails. Thorny wooden branches constricted him so tightly that even his chakra wavered, and a giant wooden figure pressed down, pinning him to the ground.
"Wood Release? You can actually use Wood Release? What's your relationship with Hashirama Senju?" the Nine-Tails demanded in shock.
"You don't need to know. I'll ask you again: do you yield?" Uchiha Yi's tone remained calm.
"Hmph! You think this little trick can hold me? How naive!" The Nine-Tails snorted, his chakra suddenly surging. His sinister aura churned, and he actually began straining free of the Wood Dragon's restraints.
Uchiha Yi's expression darkened. The Nine-Tails truly was the king of tailed beasts. His chakra reserves far exceeded Yi's estimates. Though he was currently in a half-yin, half-yang state, his chakra density was even greater than Yi's.
He had thought his own chakra approached Six Paths level and could even overpower the Nine-Tails. Now, it seemed he had been wrong.
"But even so, it's enough to suppress you."
Uchiha Yi formed hand seals. "Wood Release: Gate of the Great God!"
Boom! Boom! Boom!
More than a dozen red torii gates fell from the sky, bearing terrifying sealing power. They pinned the Nine-Tails down completely, making it difficult for him to move even a single tail.
Now the Nine-Tails finally stopped struggling. At last, he noticed Uchiha Yi's eyes. "The Rinnegan? You actually possess the Rinnegan?"
"Heh. Not only do I have the Rinnegan, I also know your name is Kurama." Uchiha Yi raised an eyebrow and smiled.
"What? You... who exactly are you?" The Nine-Tails was utterly stunned. No one in the Shinobi World besides the other tailed beasts knew his true name.
The Nine-Tails fell silent. He had yielded. He knew the power of the Rinnegan, and he was no match for it.
"My terms haven't changed. Cooperate with Naruto and don't cause trouble. In five years, I'll set you free." Uchiha Yi offered his bargaining chip.
"Do you mean that? You'll set me free in five years?" The Nine-Tails was so excited that his chakra wavered.
"Of course," Uchiha Yi said firmly. "If I wanted to, I could seal you completely inside Naruto right now. This is your only way out."
There was nothing wrong with that statement. But if Uchiha Yi sealed the Nine-Tails completely inside Naruto, the Nine-Tails would become nothing more than a chakra battery, useful only for pumping chakra out.
All Naruto could do was draw out chakra. If the Nine-Tails refused to help, though, Naruto could forget about using Nine-Tails Chakra Mode!
Before you continue