If You Can't Win, Get Help!

Now that the Five-Tails had suddenly gone on a rampage, they could hardly keep drinking at their leisure!

The three immediately returned to Ishikawa's village, where they learned exactly what had happened-the Five-Tails, who had been living peacefully in the forest, had suddenly emerged and destroyed the villages around it, then headed straight for the village they were in!

"Well, damn. He's coming for me?" Uzumaki Gamu laughed. There was no need to think about it-the Shukaku incident a little while ago had been a plot targeting him. Of course, it could also have been a coincidence!

But now Five-Tails Kokuō was heading here too. Clearly, once could be a coincidence, but twice meant it was deliberate. The same person had orchestrated both attacks, with the same objective-to kill Uzumaki Gamu!

At that thought, Uzumaki Gamu clasped his fists and said, "Well, damn. You're really not going to give me a moment's peace... Hmph, just don't let me catch your trail!" Whatever the case, since his enemy had made a move, he had to meet it. After all, a mad dog that kept chasing and biting people would never stop unless you killed it!

Uzumaki Gamu turned to Mito. "Come on. Let's see what's wrong with the Five-Tails!"

Mito knew Uzumaki Gamu was the target, so she said nothing.

Beside them, Ishikawa asked in surprise, "You're going to fight a tailed beast?"

"This fight started because of me, so of course I'll go settle the whole thing... I'm not in the habit of shirking my responsibilities and slinking away!" Though Uzumaki Gamu was usually lazy and seemed completely irresponsible, he never backed down from a responsibility that was his to bear!

Seeing how cool Uzumaki Gamu looked, Lala thought, Master is so cool!!

Mito nodded along-her second brother really was that cool!

Ishikawa also sighed inwardly-This kid is so cool~~ Just kidding. Why would a grown man like him think that? His real thought was, Even if he's the target, this is another country's problem. Nobody could blame him for leaving. He did the same thing in the Land of Wind, too, standing up for people he didn't even know... Are there still good people like him in this world? In Ishikawa's eyes, the Shinobi World was a terrible place.

Everyone fought for profit, thought nothing of murder and arson, and treated betraying their loved ones as commonplace. Sometimes, Ishikawa felt this world was beyond saving. But seeing a young man like Uzumaki Gamu made him sincerely grateful... With young people like him around, the world of shinobi still had hope!

So Ishikawa said to Uzumaki Gamu, "Then let your big brother come along!"

Uzumaki Gamu said, "Huh? You don't have to, do you?"

"This is my territory. How could I do nothing? Besides... I was the one who invited you to visit the Land of Earth! That means I have a duty to shoulder some of this responsibility too!"

"All right, let's go together!" Uzumaki Gamu nodded in agreement, then walked over to Mito and Lala and used the Light-Weight Rock Technique on them!

Seeing Uzumaki Gamu use that technique left Ishikawa and Mu, who stood beside him, rather dumbfounded. Ishikawa asked, "Little brother, you know this technique?"

"Sorry. I can pretty much learn most ninjutsu after seeing them once... I learned this one when I met you earlier!" Uzumaki Gamu sounded apologetic. After all, he had stolen their technique, so he did feel a tiny bit embarrassed... Of course, only a tiny bit, and only because Ishikawa had bought him drinks. Otherwise... had Uzumaki Gamu ever shown Master Gate any remorse?

"What astonishing talent!" Ishikawa marveled.

Mu, meanwhile, was utterly speechless. He had put so much effort into developing that technique, and this guy had learned it with a single glance? Comparisons really could drive a man mad!

Just then, Mito asked, "Second brother, surely there's no need to bring Lala along?"

"There is," Uzumaki Gamu told Mito. "Let her see for herself just how dangerous this world is, so she won't start acting recklessly once she gets stronger. Stay with her later and keep her safe!"

Mito frowned. "You don't need my strength to deal with the tailed beast?"

"That depends. Maybe I can talk him into stopping?" Uzumaki Gamu said. Since he bore the Uzumaki name, he had to have faith in his Talk Jutsu!

Mito nodded in understanding.

With nothing more to say, everyone took flight and headed toward Five-Tails Kokuō.

With both sides heading toward each other, they soon encountered Five-Tails Kokuō!

Five-Tails Kokuō was a pure-white beast combining a dolphin and a horse, with a dolphin-like head and body contours but an overall horse-like form. Kokuō was exceptionally powerful, and the enormous horns on his head could shatter solid rock in an instant. He possessed Boil Release.

When Kokuō saw Uzumaki Gamu, steam poured from his entire body, and he charged at Uzumaki Gamu with a roar.

Uzumaki Gamu immediately broke away from the group and began leading Kokuō all over the place, complaining as he went, "So I really am the target? They're being even more direct this time... Wait, his eyes?" Uzumaki Gamu suddenly noticed the Sharingan pattern in Kokuō's eyes!

Which meant...

Shukaku's voice rang out in Uzumaki Gamu's mind. Someone is controlling him, and they're using powerful visual jutsu!

"An Uchiha." Uzumaki Gamu frowned. "Aside from Madara and Izuna, is there anyone among the current Uchiha who can control a tailed beast? That's impossible!" Many of the old bastards from the previous generation were already dead, and those still alive were weaker than Madara and Izuna. The younger generation lagged far behind those two as well. Where would they find an Uchiha with the ocular power to control a tailed beast?

Could Madara think I've stolen his place in Hashirama's heart, so he wants me dead? Or does he think I don't care about him, so his love turned to hate and he decided to kill me? Although, applied to an Uchiha, that line of thinking almost sounded normal.

But... how could Madara already be that unhinged?

I still think Black Zetsu is behind this. That guy can possess people and control them. He probably used that ability on an Uchiha, then used their Sharingan to control the tailed beast... Going this far just to kill me-how much does he know about me? Has he been hiding around me all this time? That shouldn't be possible. My Six Eyes haven't spotted any strange changes nearby. Damn it, this isn't the time to think about that! Tailed beasts were not easy opponents. Uzumaki Gamu had to focus all his attention on Kokuō.

Just then, Ishikawa flew over and asked, "Have you noticed anything wrong?"

"Someone's controlling him with genjutsu. We need to find a way to break it! That should calm him down!" Uzumaki Gamu answered.

"Genjutsu? There's genjutsu that can control tailed beasts? The Sharingan? Is this the power of the Sharingan?" Ishikawa had also noticed the Sharingan markings in Kokuō's eyes. "Could the Uchiha Clan be behind the attempt on your life?"

"Well... let's calm him down before worrying about that!" Uzumaki Gamu said. Whether it was really the Uchiha was another matter.

"Break his genjutsu? All right, I'll try!!" No time like the present! Ishikawa flew straight toward Kokuō.

Kokuō's attention was entirely fixed on Uzumaki Gamu anyway, and he paid no mind to the mosquito-like Ishikawa. That allowed Ishikawa to land on him easily and use Genjutsu: Release!

Unlike ninjutsu and taijutsu, genjutsu targeted an enemy's five senses, trapping them in illusions.

Skilled genjutsu users could even manipulate the flow of chakra in an enemy's cranial nerves at will. It was a form of combat that required high intelligence and combat proficiency.

There were two ways to break genjutsu: 1. Non-visual genjutsu could be broken by disrupting one's own chakra flow; 2. Visual genjutsu could only be broken by having someone else disrupt one's chakra flow.

Of course, not every genjutsu could control a tailed beast-it was essentially a Sharingan ability. Anyone with a powerful Three-Tomoe Sharingan could use genjutsu to control tailed beasts or powerful summoning beasts, such as the famous example of Sasuke using his Sharingan to control Manda and make him take a hit. As for whether three tomoe could actually control a tailed beast... everyone shown doing so had a Mangekyo, so supporting evidence was lacking.

Sharingan genjutsu required someone else's help to dispel! Of course, another option was to target the caster-the Fourth Hokage had used his own technique to disrupt Obito's control over the Nine-Tails! However, they could not locate the caster now, so that method was out!

And the result of Ishikawa's Genjutsu: Release was... nothing at all! Kokuō continued raging at Uzumaki Gamu and even shook off the mosquito on his body-Ishikawa.

"No effect?" Uzumaki Gamu asked in surprise. "That shouldn't happen. Or is their ocular power so strong that ordinary dispelling methods won't work?" Even Sasuke's Mangekyo genjutsu had been broken before. Well, not through conventional means, admittedly. So... was the visual jutsu controlling Kokuō too powerful?

No, that's not it! At the last moment, Uzumaki Gamu's Six Eyes had seen what happened.

"I don't know whether it would work, but my chakra never even entered his body!" Ishikawa said after steadying himself in midair. "He's covered in a layer of scorching chakra. My chakra can't penetrate it, so naturally I can't disrupt his chakra to break the genjutsu controlling him."

That's the power of Boil Release! Shukaku explained in Uzumaki Gamu's mind. Kokuō can boil his chakra into steam and wrap it around himself to form Steam Armor. Besides greatly increasing his strength, it protects his body. Ordinary methods can't penetrate the outer Steam Armor to interfere with his chakra!

"Thanks for explaining..." After thanking Shukaku, Uzumaki Gamu shared that information with the others. Of course, he said nothing about Shukaku. (Uzumaki Gamu: I'd have to be out of my mind to tell people there's a tailed beast inside me~)

Nearby, Ishikawa asked, "Then what do we do? Beat him down by force?" Even Ishikawa himself thought that sounded unrealistic.

How could a tailed beast be beaten down so easily? Otherwise, the mere mention of them would not terrify the vast majority of shinobi!

Still, Uzumaki Gamu had apparently subdued Shukaku single-handedly recently... Perhaps he could do it?

In that case, let me see it! The performance of the Federation's mobile suits... no, the true strength of a shinobi from the Land of Fire!!

"Although you look like you're expecting me to handle Kokuō alone, sorry, but I only dealt with Shukaku last time with outside help. Doing it myself would be tough... If you don't mind, big brother, could you help restrict him with a few Earth Release techniques?" Uzumaki Gamu said as he dodged Kokuō's attacks.

Uzumaki Gamu was no fool. He had not expected Reto to help last time purely because Reto could not-a pure Wind Release shinobi fighting Shukaku would just be scraping sand. Yes, literally scraping sand. Aside from opening a path for Uzumaki Gamu with a net-shaped Divine Wind, he could not contribute much. (Reto: ...I did help find a vessel for the sealing, at least. Don't make it sound like I was completely useless!)

Ishikawa was different-Earth Release could always come in handy if used properly.

Hearing Uzumaki Gamu's request, Ishikawa asked, "If I can restrict his movement, are you confident you can wake him up?"

"No, but we have to try!" Uzumaki Gamu answered.

"...All right! Earth Release: Mountain Earth Technique!" Ishikawa began forming hand seals-Tiger, Ram, Rat. Three seals, and then he unleashed a technique capable of suppressing a tailed beast!

This was a high-level ninjutsu that the Iwagakure shinobi Kitsuchi, Ishikawa's great-grandson, excelled at. It created two enormous hemispheres of earth that sandwiched the target between them, immobilizing them. Their size depended on chakra-the more chakra used, the larger they became.

When used by someone as powerful as Kitsuchi, this technique could suppress not only humans but even enormous tailed-beast-level creatures, making it a top-tier immobilization technique. (Kitsuchi had Kage-level strength, but unfortunately, who ever heard of a crown prince waiting sixty years? By the time his father Otsutsuki wanted to step down, he was getting old too. Besides, he did not seem interested in becoming Tsuchikage, so his daughter, the Leg Kage, inherited the position instead.)

Furthermore, when used against humans, it could also serve as an attack, since anyone caught between the mountains would ultimately be crushed by the pressure. It cost chakra not only to activate but also to maintain. Investing a large amount of chakra could expand its scale. If activated after receiving Naruto's Nine-Tails Chakra, it could even restrain the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path. (The classic scene of Kitsuchi using the Mountain Earth Technique to suppress the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path.)

The Mountain Earth Technique rose from the ground and clamped Kokuō between both sides like an animal trap, restricting his movement!

"Nice work! Leave the rest to me!" Uzumaki Gamu immediately released the gold dust he carried from its sealing scroll, then used Magnet Release to wind it around Kokuō.

But there was not enough gold dust-not even enough to make ropes for a tortoise-shell bondage tie. What could he do with that? Kinky play?

Of course not. The gold dust was only a medium. His real purpose was to use it to spread Shukaku's Magnet Release sealing jutsu all over Kokuō's body!

As he used the technique, Uzumaki Gamu thought, To break the genjutsu on Kokuō, we first need to suppress his power and stop his chakra from pouring out... Shukaku, will your technique work?

Of course. When it comes to sealing jutsu alone, my techniques are the strongest! Shukaku answered. In that respect, he had absolute confidence!

The only drawback was that this Shukaku was merely one-fiftieth of the original... Could his power alone suppress Kokuō?

Well, there were no guarantees, so this was where Mito's help came in-Adamantine Sealing Chains, activate!!

Under the combined power of Uzumaki Gamu, Ishikawa, and Mito, Kokuō gradually became unable to move.

This won't do!! A certain hidden individual was unwilling to let his plan be ruined so easily.

At his prompting, Kokuō suddenly erupted with powerful chakra!

Boil Release: Unrivaled Strength! A ninjutsu that brought chakra to boiling point all at once, instantly increasing the strength of the entire body. The Five-Tails Jinchuriki had once used it to concentrate steam in his foot and send Naruto flying with a single kick. Later, Naruto, in Six Paths Mode, had also borrowed Five-Tails Kokuō's chakra to use this technique, melting the enormous block of ice in which Otsutsuki Kaguya had trapped him, then knocking Kaguya away head-on when she charged at him.

When Kokuō himself used this technique, his strength was astonishing. In terms of raw strength alone, he might have been the strongest of the nine tailed beasts!

The instant his strength reached its peak, the Adamantine Sealing Chains snapped first. Ishikawa's Mountain Earth Technique shattered like tofu, and finally the Magnet Release Uzumaki Gamu had wrapped around Kokuō was thrown off too!

"Damn, what kind of monstrous strength is that!!" Hey, your technique isn't working either!! Uzumaki Gamu complained inwardly.

Damn it! If I weren't short on chakra, how could I fail to hold him down?! Shukaku said angrily.

After seeing all three techniques broken, Ishikawa flew beside Uzumaki Gamu and asked, "What now?"

"...Get help!" Uzumaki Gamu invoked the power of unity. If you could not win, find backup. Whether that backup would actually help... was another question!

"Help from whom?" Ishikawa asked in confusion. He was already the strongest person in the Land of Earth, and nobody in the surrounding small countries was stronger than him. Who could they possibly call in as reinforcements?

Surely they could not lead Kokuō back to the Land of Fire to find Hashirama? Well, it was not impossible. After all, Kokuō was like a raging bull right now, charging blindly at Uzumaki Gamu alone!

But honestly, the Land of Fire was too far away. The journey could cause considerable destruction-nobody knew whether their opponent would get desperate and start firing Tailed Beast Bombs in rapid succession. If that really happened, the Land of Fire's map would need redrawing!

With distant help unable to solve the immediate crisis, whom would Uzumaki Gamu turn to for reinforcements?

Just then, while dodging Kokuō's attacks, Uzumaki Gamu asked, "There's another tailed beast in your Land of Earth, right? Where does he live? Just point me in the right direction!"

"...You mean to...? I understand!" With the situation so urgent, Ishikawa wasted no words and immediately pointed out the direction!

Uzumaki Gamu said nothing more and flew straight that way!

Kokuō followed close behind. Just like that, a man and a giant dog raced toward the rocky regions of the Land of Earth's mountain ranges!

-Equipping ninja tools-

"Yawn..." Four-Tails Son Goku was yawning listlessly inside his Water Curtain Cave. For him, it was another terribly boring day!

Four-Tails Son Goku was an enormous red ape who lived in a place called the Water Curtain Cave in the Land of Earth's mountains. He prided himself on his monstrous strength. He had a bold, uninhibited personality and spat molten flames from his mouth in battle. (Supposedly, he was the Four-Tails because the Dragon Ball owned by Son Goku in Dragon Ball was the four-star ball.)

Like most tailed beasts, he was currently free and unsupervised. He did not enjoy bothering humans either, so he lived peacefully in his own little corner! Every day consisted of sleeping, then more sleeping... It was simply too boring!

If I go out for some exercise, humans will treat me as an enemy and attack me... Better not cause unnecessary trouble! Sigh, when will these days ever end? Son Goku thought idly as he toyed with the ground.

Just then, Son Goku felt tremors travel from the ground into his fingers... Was it an earthquake?

"No, that feels familiar. It's Kokuō... Hm? Why do I sense Shukaku too? How did those two end up together? And they're racing toward me." Son Goku was rather bewildered. Brothers he had not seen in ages had suddenly appeared and were hurtling toward him together... It hardly looked like a family visit.

Then what had those two come here to do?

I've got a bad feeling about this... Wait, that sensation-is that a Tailed Beast Bomb? The moment he sensed a Tailed Beast Bomb forming, the mountain housing his Water Curtain Cave began shaking violently... The sky was falling, the earth was trembling, and someone had come to demolish his home?

To keep his home from being destroyed, Son Goku hurriedly leaped out of the Water Curtain Cave. He then saw Kokuō chasing a human flying through the sky! At the same time, Son Goku sensed Shukaku inside that flying human.

Having already spotted Son Goku, Uzumaki Gamu greeted him. "Yo, hello there~"

Son Goku was bewildered by the human's enthusiastic greeting. There were actually humans who were not afraid of him?

Still, considering the Shukaku chakra inside him... this human was Shukaku's Jinchūriki!

Just then, a miniature Shukaku emerged from Uzumaki Gamu's body, stood on his shoulder, and greeted Son Goku. "Long time no see, monkey!"

"Uh... you're hanging around with a human now?" Son Goku asked in confusion.

"That's right... This is the human I chose. Pretty awesome, huh!!" Shukaku bragged!

"..." Son Goku was speechless. After all these years apart, this guy still loved showing off~

Just then, Uzumaki Gamu said, "Let's save the chat for later, big brother Four-Tails! Help us hold down big brother Five-Tails... no, big sister, rather~" Since Kokuō had a female voice actress, she was probably female, right? (Although tailed beasts apparently had no such thing as gender...)

"Huh? What's going on?" As soon as he said that, Son Goku noticed that Kokuō was being controlled by ocular power!

Shukaku added, "This kid wants to break the genjutsu on her. Lend us your monstrous strength!... Consider it a favor I'm asking of you!"

"...Since you're putting it that way!" For Shukaku's sake, Son Goku said no more. He leaped straight over and pitted his own monstrous strength against Kokuō!

Under normal circumstances, Son Goku was probably the strongest of the nine tailed beasts, so before Kokuō could use Unrivaled Strength, she was pinned down by Son Goku's power!

Uzumaki Gamu seized the opportunity and immediately entered Sage Mode. (As mentioned earlier, gaining the Six Eyes had accelerated his entry into Sage Mode. Through his recent training, he could now enter it in a second!)

Then Uzumaki Gamu charged forward and used Frog Kata to drive senjutsu chakra into Kokuō's body. "All right, break!!" Under the impact of that powerful force, the genjutsu on Kokuō was dispelled!