It wasn't that Shukaku wasn't afraid of death.
It was more that—
Even if its split body had its consciousness altered, as long as the main body still existed, it wouldn't suffer any real loss. But what if the organization Souma mentioned—one that had designs on tailed beasts—also possessed a way to truly destroy them?
In that case, having an extra split was simply another escape route.
At the very least, things wouldn't get worse.
Shukaku was violent and arrogant by nature, but after being thoroughly beaten down by Yagyū Souma, it gradually calmed itself and understood which choice benefited it most.
This was Souma's usual style.
Only after letting the other party make their own decision would he begin acting.
"Then we'll move somewhere else. This place isn't very convenient," Souma said casually.
"Oh, right—if I extract half of you, will he notice?"
He pointed at Gaara, though he was really referring to Sunagakure.
Rasa. Chiyo.
Neither would be easy to deal with.
Shukaku grinned.
"The chakra of a tailed beast is enormous. While sealed, they can't precisely sense how much chakra I have."
"Good. Then there's no problem. I'll add a few simple seals."
"?"
Shukaku thought about it again and again, suddenly feeling like it had dug a pit for itself.
Sure, its split would be freed—but the main body seemed to have fallen into an even more terrifying abyss. From now on, it wouldn't even be able to enjoy the small pleasure of harassing Gaara.
For a moment, it was speechless.
After a long while, Shukaku sighed.
"Fine, fine…"
At least half of it was free, right?
That was how it comforted itself.
Souma took Gaara and headed out, preparing to go to the Forest of Death.
Letting Shukaku out wasn't a small matter.
If it happened inside the village, Tsunade and the Third Hokage would probably think a tailed beast had gone berserk. Then the entire village would be put on alert—and he'd probably have to pay compensation afterward.
Naruto wasn't back yet.
Souma smoothly led Gaara out of the village and into the Forest of Death. Under the watchful eyes of the surrounding insects and Kimimaro, he released part of Shukaku's seal.
Then he formed hand signs and pressed his palm against Gaara's abdomen.
The next instant—
Streams of tailed-beast chakra were gradually peeled out of Gaara's body.
With Shukaku's cooperation, the process was incredibly smooth, encountering almost no resistance.
However—
Even though Souma had set up an isolation barrier, the sheer scale of that chakra still alerted the nearby guard teams. In no time at all, a squad rushed over.
A Yamanaka unit, led by Jōnin Yamanaka Santen.
"Santen-sama, that chakra…"
"It's Shukaku!"
As Santen ran, he activated his sensory ability, panic rising in his chest.
Why was Gaara in the Forest of Death?
Wasn't this a restricted zone?!
Where was ANBU?
What were they even doing?!
Santen couldn't understand it—but then he sensed another presence.
This…
He abruptly stopped.
"What's wrong?"
"Uh… the front should be safe. You don't need to go any farther. I'll check it out alone."
After a moment's thought, Santen waved the others back.
That chakra earlier had probably been deliberately released by Souma.
If it was that person…
Even Shukaku shouldn't be a problem.
He recalled the scene where Souma subdued Gaara and forcibly dragged him back from partial Shukaku transformation.
The others didn't know the situation, but since a jōnin had said so, they could only obey.
Yamanaka Santen advanced alone and soon arrived at Souma's location.
Then—
He saw something horrifying.
A small Shukaku was taking shape.
Not only that—
"Make yourself smaller. Do you want the whole village to know you're out?"
"Roar! This great—"
"Hmm?"
"…This great one obeys."
???
Yamanaka Santen felt like his eyeballs were about to pop out.
This…
This raccoon-looking creature—
Was it really Shukaku?
What the hell?!
Why was it so obedient?!
Isn't it supposed to be a tailed beast?!
Santen was utterly shaken, his mind completely blank.
Then Shukaku glanced over, its eyes flashing with brutality and killing intent.
Santen shuddered violently.
No doubt about it.
The real deal.
Taking a deep breath, his respect for Souma skyrocketed.
Even a tailed beast was this obedient—how terrifying must Souma's strength be?
No wonder Souma dared to release Shukaku.
"Souma-sama."
"Santen-senpai, don't worry. It's just a small experiment," Souma said calmly.
"Its activity range is limited to this area. If it goes elsewhere, my clone and the kikaichū will deal with it."
"Yes!"
Santen nodded immediately, though hesitation still flickered across his face.
Souma smiled faintly.
"You can report everything to the Third Hokage and Lady Tsunade. There's no need to cover for me."
"Please forgive me," Santen said with shame.
"Even though I belong to the Research Division and the Guard Corps, I'm also ANBU and Intelligence. This is my duty."
He felt deeply conflicted.
Souma had treated the Yamanaka clan exceedingly well. Asking him to conceal something like this was emotionally difficult.
But—
This was a tailed beast.
In any village, that was the most terrifying existence.
And Souma had extracted it—how would Sunagakure explain this?
All of it required prior preparation.
"Oh, right," Souma added.
"This Shukaku is only half its chakra. I simply used a secret technique to split it. Shukaku agreed to it and is willing to cooperate."
He nudged Shukaku with his foot.
"Make a sound."
"Yes! This great one is willing to cooperate! So stop treating me like a criminal—this great one finds that very irritating!"
Shukaku roared.
But its body was small, and its voice wasn't loud.
Rather than terrifying, it felt… oddly cute.
Santen repeatedly reminded himself—
This is a tailed beast. This is a tailed beast.
Even if it acted like a pet in front of Souma, once Souma was gone, it was still a genuine tailed beast.
Even at half strength.
"I'll take my leave."
"Go ahead."
Souma nodded.
After Santen left, only Souma, Shukaku's split, and Gaara remained.
Shukaku curled its lips.
"We could've extracted more, you know."
"If I took more, you'd get exposed on that end. Rasa would come looking for trouble," Souma replied flatly.
"Right now, you only have forty percent of the main body's chakra. The rest is supplied by me."
Shukaku really didn't think about consequences.
Then again—
If trouble came, it would be Konoha's problem. What did it have to do with Shukaku?
Shukaku's eyes rolled.
"Then go steal some from Kyūbi. Convert it and give it to me."
"Heh."
Souma let out a cold laugh, face expressionless.
Shukaku immediately backed down.
"I'm kidding."
"I'll bring the Nine-Tails to see you another day. When that happens, seize the opportunity and mock it properly."
"Absolutely!"
Shukaku grinned.
That was the real reason it was willing to cooperate.
Just imagining Kyūbi being locked up while it could roam freely in the forest—
The happiness level skyrocketed.
Once everything was handled, Souma first brought Gaara back to his room.
Gaara was about to wake up.
The real purpose of this trip wasn't Shukaku—it was Gaara's mental treatment.
Souma knew exactly where Gaara's problem stemmed from.
Back in the room, Gaara soon regained consciousness.
He opened his eyes and looked at Souma, fear and confusion flickering within them.
Why…
Why was this person so strong?
"You're awake? Good. Then let's talk properly," Souma said lightly.
"You've been interacting with Naruto a lot recently, haven't you? You should already know his true identity."
"..."
Gaara didn't answer.
But he knew.
Naruto was also a jinchūriki.
That tailed-beast chakra aura—and the way Shukaku grew violent whenever it got close—
All signs pointed to Naruto housing Shukaku's enemy.
"Oh, right. I took care of things a bit," Souma continued.
"The tailed beast inside you won't interfere with you anymore. From now on, you'll be able to sleep properly every night."
"Why?"
Gaara looked at him in confusion.
"Aren't we enemies?"
"A good question," Souma said with a chuckle.
"If it were Naruto, he'd probably say something like, 'Even if we're enemies, I understand you.'"
"But I'm not that kind of person. I don't empathize with you."
"Mm."
Gaara nodded.
Naruto would feel that way—because Naruto had lived that life himself.
But Souma saying this…
To Gaara, it sounded hypocritical. Disgusting.
"Act normal. It benefits everyone," Souma said seriously.
"A weak Sunagakure isn't something Konoha wants to see."
"And there's an organization targeting the Nine-Tails. I have reason to suspect their goal is all tailed beasts—they just haven't made a move yet."
"..."
Gaara finally reacted.
After a few seconds, he spoke softly.
"Thank you."
"Heh. No need to thank me," Souma said with a wry smile.
"From Sunagakure's perspective, I'm probably not a good person."
Gaara didn't know how to respond.
"I'm leaving."
Souma stood up. At the door, he paused and added,
"I don't know what happened to you—but I don't think Rasa was a good father."
"..."
Gaara looked up.
Souma was already gone.
He turned to the window.
Outside, Naruto and Jiraiya were walking down the street, each holding a popsicle, laughter bright on their faces.
He couldn't understand it.
They were both jinchūriki.
Why was Konoha's jinchūriki so different from him?
When Naruto returned—
Gaara opened the door and stepped out. He saw Naruto being escorted back by Jiraiya.
In the corridor, the two jinchūriki locked eyes.
Then—
"Why are you so well-liked?" Gaara asked.
"Huh?"
Naruto was confused at first, then fell silent for a few seconds. His expression darkened slightly—before he smiled again.
"We're all the same, really. It's just that… if you keep doing things sincerely, people will gradually come to understand you."
"Sincerely?"
Gaara frowned.
"I tried. And all I got was betrayal."
"Maybe I just got luckier," Naruto said after thinking.
"When I needed it most, a teacher told me I was his best student. He even protected me…"
Gaara opened his mouth—then closed it.
He returned to his room in silence.
Bang.
The door shut.
Gaara sat with his back against it, staring blankly ahead, unable to speak for a long, long time.
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