Your life is nearing its end

"Huh? Lady Mito, you're going to help me?"

"That's wonderful."

Mito Uzumaki nodded. "Tell me what you need help with!"

"You must be in a hurry, too!"

"Uh..." Katsuyu thought for a moment. That was true enough.

Though, when it came to being in a hurry, Yui was more anxious than she was.

"Here's the situation, Lady Mito."

"I need to use the Summoning Technique to summon two people from Shikkotsu Forest."

"But I don't have enough chakra, so I may need someone else's help," Katsuyu explained.

At that, Mito Uzumaki scratched her head in confusion.

"The Summoning Technique?" she murmured. "I never imagined anyone could reach Shikkotsu Forest, let alone sign a contract with you."

She was rather surprised. After all, that wasn't a place ordinary people could reach.

"Hmm, all right, but..." Mito Uzumaki hesitated. "Those two people..."

"If they're ninja from another country, I'm afraid I can't agree."

After all, she also had to consider Konoha's safety. It was the fruit of his life's work.

"Don't worry!" Hearing Mito Uzumaki's concern, Katsuyu gently explained, "One of them is my friend."

"The other is a ninja from Konoha."

"A ninja from Konoha?" Mito Uzumaki was a little taken aback. "So it was a Konoha ninja who signed a contract with you?"

But how had a Konoha ninja reached Shikkotsu Forest?

"Hmm, in that case, I have nothing to worry about."

"Thank you, Lady Mito."

"Then let's get started!"

"All right..." Mito Uzumaki replied, then picked Katsuyu up from the floor.

"I'll take you out to the courtyard. Tsunade is resting here."

Katsuyu nodded.

Before long, Mito Uzumaki had carried Katsuyu into a spacious courtyard.

"Tell me! How can I help?" she asked the little slug in her hand.

"When I perform the Summoning Technique in a moment, I'll need you to supply me with chakra."

"But..." At that point, Katsuyu hesitated.

"But what?"

At her question, Katsuyu replied, "This summoning may take more chakra."

"Take chakra?"

Mito Uzumaki was a little puzzled. How much chakra could a single Summoning Technique need?

"A lot? Exactly how much?"

Katsuyu fell silent for a moment, then answered uncertainly, "As much as it would take to summon my main body..."

Even Katsuyu felt embarrassed saying that.

Although Mito belonged to the Uzumaki Clan and possessed vast reserves of chakra, given her age, Katsuyu wasn't sure she still had that much.

"Enough chakra to summon your main body?" Mito Uzumaki exclaimed. "Why would it take so much chakra?"

"Are you actually planning to summon your main body here?"

"Uh, haha..." Katsuyu gave a few awkward chuckles.

"It's just a little far away, so it takes a lot of chakra." She delivered that nonsense with a straight face, no longer caring whether Mito believed her.

"Really?" Mito Uzumaki was rather skeptical of Katsuyu's explanation.

If she wasn't summoning her main body, why would she need that much chakra?

"Yes... Lady Mito..." Katsuyu said quietly.

"All right, then!" Mito Uzumaki reluctantly agreed.

Then her gaze swept over the space around them.

"Is this place really big enough?"

"Uh..." At those words, all four of Katsuyu's feelers drooped.

She figured it out.

"Lady Mito..." Katsuyu said solemnly.

"Hahaha." Mito Uzumaki gave an awkward laugh.

"All right, all right. I'll stop teasing you."

Since Katsuyu had said she could perform the summoning, there probably wouldn't be any problems.

In truth, she also wanted to see Katsuyu's main body.

"Then let me get ready first!"

Katsuyu nodded. "Yes, all right..."

"When the time comes, just feed your chakra into my Summoning Contract array."

"Mm..."

After saying that, Katsuyu sprang into the center of the courtyard.

"Be ready, Lady Mito," Katsuyu reminded her again.

Mito Uzumaki's expression grew serious.

"If it needs that much chakra, I'll have to use that power," she murmured.

Then she slowly closed her eyes and sank into the sea of her consciousness.

When she opened her eyes again, she found herself in another place.

The space around her was bright and vast. As far as she could see, there was nothing there, as though it were an enormous sheet of blank paper.

Mito Uzumaki walked forward.

Suddenly, as though ink had stained that blank sheet, a tiny black dot appeared in the distance.

It grew larger and larger.

Only when she drew close did it become clear: an enormous orange-red beast with a savage expression.

Golden chains bound the beast's entire body, leaving no room for movement and pinning him firmly to the ground on his belly.

Seeing her approach, the beast growled, "Mito Uzumaki, what are you doing here?"

Mito Uzumaki shook her head.

"Nine-Tails, after all these years, you still haven't improved at all."

"Don't you know how to show others respect?" she said coldly.

She extended a finger and traced it through the air. A pained groan immediately rang out before her.

"Aargh!"

"Damn you..." the Nine-Tails roared in pain. "What do you want?"

"Did you come in here just to torment me?"

Mito Uzumaki slowly relaxed her hand.

The chains around him loosened, finally giving the Nine-Tails a little room to breathe.

After a brief silence, Mito Uzumaki spoke again. "Nine-Tails, I need to borrow your chakra."

The Nine-Tails froze for a moment, then burst out laughing.

"Hahahaha..."

"Mito Uzumaki, we've known each other for so many years, and you're still like this. Are you trying to insult me?" the Nine-Tails roared.

"When have you ever asked my permission before using my power?"

"If you want to use it, use it. Don't insult me with your hypocritical excuses."

Mito Uzumaki acted as though she hadn't heard him.

She silently recited the name in her mind.

Adamantine Sealing Chains.

In an instant, five or six golden chains flew from Mito Uzumaki's back and wound straight around the Nine-Tails' body.

"I didn't come here today to ask for your opinion. I came to inform you."

"Hmph..." The Nine-Tails snorted.

Only after hearing her say that did he breathe a sigh of relief.

As the strongest tailed beast, he still had his dignity to maintain.

If she took his power by force, that was no fault of his.

Streams of blue chakra were drawn out and guided into Mito Uzumaki's body through the golden chains.

A long while later, the extraction finished, and she withdrew her chains.

Looking toward the Nine-Tails, she shook her head slightly. Then her body gradually turned transparent as she left the space.

"Mito Uzumaki..." Seeing that she was leaving, the Nine-Tails said disdainfully, "Your life is nearing its end, isn't it?"

"Have you found the next jinchūriki yet?"

"Perhaps that will be my chance to escape."

"Hahahaha..."

Mito Uzumaki frowned at his words.

Is he threatening me? She shook her head again.

So what if he was?

The Uzumaki Clan's sealing jutsu would leave him no opening to exploit.

Still, he was right. It was time to find the next jinchūriki.