Gaara, wounded once again, was severely injured. Coupled with his inability to accept the fact that his strongest defense had been breached, the power of Shukaku, the One-Tail Shukaku, finally collapsed.
This time, the release of the One-Tail's power was not under Gaara's control, nor through any Feigning Sleep Technique, but rather it completely took over Gaara's consciousness from the very beginning!
"Aaaaaaah!!"
Amidst a frenzied roar, a strange Chakra erupted from the bloody hole in Gaara's shoulder, Setsuna transforming into a massive, patterned, earth-yellow arm.
Immediately afterwards, the enormous, earth-yellow arm enveloped Gaara completely, and the One-Tail Chakra surged wildly, obscuring Gaara's figure entirely.
Almost instantly, the enormous One-Tail Shukaku appeared in the Forest of Death Chunin Ninja Exams!
The Konoha Ninja monitoring the Forest of Death almost all witnessed this scene, and they all showed expressions of horror.
"Oh no! That... isn't that One-Tail?!"
"How could the One-Tail appear in the Chunin Ninja Exams?!"
Everyone wore expressions of disbelief, even the Anbu Ninja in charge of overseeing the entire operation inside the tower revealed a look of horror.
First, a large area of forest was frozen in an instant, then a terrifying forest of bone spurs suddenly appeared, then the ice and the forest of bone spurs all shattered into powder, and finally One-Tail Shukaku suddenly appeared.
This isn't the Chunin Ninja Exams, it's practically the Shinobi World War!
In the Forest of Death.
Looking at the One-Tail Shukaku, which had condensed into an enormous form almost instantly, Hinata's small face showed a look of shock.
"This is..."
With her Byakugan, she could clearly see the immense Chakra contained within Shukaku. Although it was far inferior to Uya's, it was still beyond her reach.
Her Chakra reserves are almost higher than those of Elite Jonin, approaching the level of a Kage, but compared to Shukaku, one of the Tailed Beast, she is still far inferior. Unless she can acquire the Third Stage of Sage Body, she might be able to put up a fight.
"Hahaha!! It's finally out!"
After Shukaku roared to the sky, it let out a chilling laugh.
Its tanuki life has always been very tragic. It has always been sealed away. It was only after being unsealed once that it was beaten up by Uya.
After escaping, it was soon found by the ninjas of Sunagakure and sealed away again, leaving it almost in despair.
During the Fourth Shinobi World War, they finally had a chance to vent their frustrations. After a massacre, they encountered Uya again, and tragedy struck once more.
"That bastard shouldn't be here this time, right?"
Thinking of Uya, One-Tail Shukaku shuddered. Its small eyes darted around, glancing at the Forest of Death before looking at Hinata and the others ahead.
Um.
It's impossible for things to be so unlucky every time. This time, since I've finally gotten out, I should be able to let off steam comfortably.
Thinking this, Shukaku burst into another fit of maniacal laughter, then raised its massive claws, gesturing as if to crush Hinata and the others with a single blow.
Hinata, watching this scene from below, was also startled and showed a frightened expression. After all, Shukaku's enormous size, coupled with its terrifying Chakra, made it far more intimidating than Gaara.
It's terrifying just to look at!
Kankuro, Temari, Kiba Inuzuka, Shino Aburame, and the others were already frozen in fear, standing there stiffly, unable to move.
Looking at the enormous Shukaku, which raised its claws as if about to strike, Hinata was momentarily at a loss for how to dodge. Moreover, she was genuinely frightened by Shukaku's appearance and revealed a weak, almost tearful expression.
But one second, two seconds, three seconds...
Time passed slowly, but Shukaku's raised claws showed no sign of falling; instead, they remained suspended in mid-air, motionless.
At this moment, even Hinata, who was almost scared to tears, sensed something strange, because she had her Byakugan activated, which gave her a 360-degree field of vision.
Her attention shifted slightly from Shukaku, and she noticed a figure that had appeared behind her at some point.
"Don't be afraid."
The familiar voice rang in her ears, instantly dispelling Hinata's fear. A cute expression appeared on her face as she turned around.
"Yu... Teacher Uya."
Hinata, with her Byakugan, had a 360-degree field of vision. Turning around or not made no difference. Seeing Shukaku's massive body still standing there, she couldn't help but feel a little timid. She shrank behind Uya, her small hands tugging at Uya's sleeve, only her eyes showing as she looked at Shukaku.
Kiba Inuzuka, Shino Aburame, and the others, who were utterly horrified, finally showed a hint of surprise when they saw Uya appear.
It's Lord Uya!
The two had met Uya once before, but at that time they didn't know who Uya was. They asked Hinata but didn't get any answers. However, they soon obtained some shocking information about Uya from Kabuto's Ninja Info Card and learned about Uya's identity.
Upon seeing Uya appear, both of them breathed a sigh of relief, but they were still somewhat apprehensive.
Although Lord Uya is the strongest ninja, he is still just a human... while this thing in front of him is a monster. Even if Lord Uya can win, the impact will likely be widespread, and they here will probably find it difficult to avoid being affected.
Compared to Kiba Inuzuka and Shino Aburame, Temari and Kankuro in the distance didn't recognize Uya at all.
While Uya's sudden appearance surprised them, they didn't believe that such a young man could defeat the rampaging Shukaku.
However, what terrified Kankuro and Temari, and also puzzled them, was why Shukaku didn't make any further moves after raising its claws into the air.
Is he gathering his strength?!
In their eyes, Shukaku's enormous body just stood there, its huge claws raised in mid-air, yet seemingly frozen in mid-air.
In fact, if Shukaku had a human form, its expression would definitely be one of utter despair, a far more tragic cry than Hinata had almost been frightened to tears just moments before.
Oh my god!!
Why?!
Why be so cruel to tanuki!
Why is it that every time I go out, I run into the person I least want to see?
Uya stood there, his size smaller than a single finger of the enormous One-Tail Shukaku Shukaku.
However, this very Uya, who is practically a tiny little thing to Shukaku, is someone Shukaku doesn't want to see at all, someone who makes him want to cry whenever he sees him.