Hoshino felt the warmth radiating from the twelve golden beads in his hand, his heart full of accomplishment.
The magical artifact, which embodied months of painstaking work, was finally complete.
His first magical artifact would always hold a special place in his heart.
Hoshino called the twelve golden beads the Spirit Control Beads!
Together, the Ox Bead, Dog Bead, Boar Bead, Rabbit Bead, and Rooster Bead could form a powerful defensive formation.
When danger approached, a golden curtain of light would automatically unfold, and it could adjust its defensive limit according to the energy fluctuations of an incoming attack.
The formation made up of the Tiger Bead, Horse Bead, Dragon Bead, Snake Bead, and Monkey Bead allowed Hoshino to use pseudo Magnet Release techniques.
After all, Magnet Release had originally been developed through research on Shukaku, so his Chakra naturally carried its properties as well.
That left the Rat Bead and the Goat Bead.
The former could sense changes in the surrounding environment, while the latter stored Medical Ninjutsu.
When all twelve beads were activated and resonated with Shukaku's Chakra, Hoshino could also enter Tailed Beast Transformation.
How long it lasted depended on the Tailed Beast Chakra remaining in the beads.
At the thought, Hoshino could hardly wait to test the Spirit Control Beads' abilities and limits.
"Gaara, stop sleeping! How can you sleep at a time like this?!"
Hoshino excitedly nudged Gaara, who was curled up in the corner, and called out to him.
The red-haired boy blearily opened his eyes, a hint of displeasure and sleepiness in them.
"Hoshino? Why did you come to my room and disturb my sleep again...?"
Gaara's voice was a little hoarse. Clearly, he wasn't fully awake yet.
"Come on, let's go find Grandma Chiyo. She's already waiting for us at home."
Hoshino pulled Gaara to his feet, his voice full of eagerness.
Gaara nodded with his eyes half-closed and swayed along behind him as they left the underground laboratory.
The two jogged through the streets of Sunagakure, slipping past the crowds around them.
Before long, Hoshino saw Grandma Chiyo waiting at the door. A kindly smile appeared on her face when she spotted the two of them.
"Slow down! Looking at you two, I take it you succeeded!"
"Grandma, you're in for a big surprise!" Hoshino said, brimming with confidence as he shook the chain of golden beads around his wrist.
"Then let's not waste time. Come on, I've already found a place." Grandma Chiyo waved for them to follow.
The three left Sunagakure and headed deep into the desert.
After traveling about fifty li, they arrived at an open stretch of sand.
Far from the bustle of the village, there was nothing around them but endless yellow sand and the howling wind.
It was the perfect place to test a magical artifact.
"All right, let's do it here."
Grandma Chiyo stopped and turned to Hoshino. "Xiaoye, let me see just how powerful your Spirit Control Beads are."
"White Secret Technique: Chikamatsu Ten Puppets!"
Without another word, ten puppets flew from a scroll and rushed at Hoshino.
Hoshino stood where he was, arms folded across his chest and a confident smile on his face.
The Ox Bead, Dog Bead, Boar Bead, Rabbit Bead, and Rooster Bead detached from the chain and floated around him.
Hum-
A golden curtain of light unfolded from the five golden beads, swiftly covering Hoshino's entire body.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
The puppets' iron fists, sharp blades, and poisoned needles struck the curtain of light in rapid succession, making dull thuds.
But the curtain of light didn't budge under the puppets' attacks.
"Not bad. Its defensive power is quite impressive. Next, let's try a stronger attack."
"Puppet Technique: Three Treasures Suction Crush!"
Grandma Chiyo's ten fingers suddenly went taut.
A terrifying suction force erupted from the triangular formation made up of the three puppets: Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha.
The sand beneath Hoshino's feet instantly caved in, and the five golden beads began to emit a piercing sound like twisting metal.
Crack-
The crisp sound of something breaking made Hoshino's pupils contract slightly.
Spiderweb-like cracks appeared on the surface of the Ox Bead, and gaps spread across the golden curtain of light like a spiderweb.
"Very impressive defense!"
Grandma Chiyo stopped attacking, and the terrifying suction gradually faded.
"I didn't expect that even going all out, I'd only just manage to break through the Spirit Control Beads' defense! Xiaoye, this ninja tool of yours is impressive."
Hoshino proudly corrected her. "Grandma, it's a magical artifact!"
Grandma Chiyo laughed. "All right, all right, a magical artifact! Didn't you say there were other things to test? Go ahead!"
"Okay!"
Hoshino gave his wrist a gentle shake, and the Tiger Bead, Horse Bead, Dragon Bead, Snake Bead, and Monkey Bead detached from the chain one after another.
They began spinning rapidly above his palm.
The desert sand seemed to be drawn in by the force, swirling through the air to form a small sandstorm.
"Pseudo Magnet Release: Iron Sand Shower!"
In an instant, the surrounding grains of sand were drawn in by the power of Magnet Release and transformed into countless tiny particles of Iron Sand.
"Go!"
Hoshino swept his hand forward, and the Iron Sand particles poured toward a distant dune like a torrential downpour.
Every particle of Iron Sand carried tremendous penetrating power, instantly turning the dune into a honeycomb.
Grandma Chiyo exclaimed in surprise, "Th-this is Magnet Release?"
Hoshino nodded with a smile. "That's right, it's Magnet Release, but I'm using it through the Spirit Control Beads."
As he spoke, he waved his arm again.
The Iron Sand particles rapidly gathered into a massive azure dragon of Iron Sand, which coiled through the air.
"Azure Dragon: Iron Sand Impact!"
The Iron Sand azure dragon charged at the distant dune.
The tremendous impact instantly flattened the dune, sending sand and dust flying as though a small sandstorm had struck.
Grandma Chiyo and Gaara stood at a distance.
As they watched Hoshino control the Iron Sand azure dragon, wreaking havoc across the sand, both of them showed looks of shock.
"That boy really is a genius," Grandma Chiyo murmured in admiration.
The smile on Gaara's face grew even brighter.
What could be more gratifying than seeing his companion grow stronger?
"Next, the final test... Tailed Beast Transformation."
As soon as he finished speaking, all twelve beads lit up at once. Dark red Tailed Beast Chakra poured out of them and wrapped around his body.
Hoshino's body was instantly covered by a Tailed Beast Cloak, the dark red Chakra burning like flames.
He felt the Tailed Beast Chakra surging inside him, and an unprecedented sense of power filled his heart.
Then he swung his arm fiercely.
The Tailed Beast Chakra condensed into a gigantic claw and slammed toward a distant dune.
Boom-
The dune was flattened, and a deep gash was torn in the ground.
Meanwhile, the Tailed Beast Chakra inside the Spirit Control Beads circling him was being rapidly consumed.
"It's being used up too quickly," Hoshino murmured to himself.
According to his calculations, with the Chakra in the Spirit Control Beads fully replenished, it could be maintained for about five or six minutes.
"Gaara, let Shukaku out to play with me!"
"Okay!"
Gaara nodded and formed hand seals. "Ninja Art: Feigning Sleep Technique!"
As he completed the final seal,
Gaara closed his eyes, his body floating into the air as yellow sand gathered into the shape of a fat tanuki.
Shukaku stared at Hoshino and let out a strange laugh. "Brat, you're using my Chakra against me? You really don't know how high the heavens are or how deep the earth is."