The explorers didn't even have time to turn their vehicles around. The Drilling Air Bullet was simply too fast.
"Turn around!!"
"AHHHHH——!!"
"Shit! Shit!!!"
In an instant, all the explorers panicked.
But just as the Drilling Air Bullet was about to hit them, a figure suddenly appeared, positioning himself between the attack and the three off-road vehicles.
That figure was Amaha Byakuya.
Susanoo!
Byakuya instantly activated Susanoo, using its second stage form to forcibly block the One-Tail Shukaku's Drilling Air Bullet.
"ROAR——!!!"
The One-Tail Shukaku seemed to sense the Quinque aura from Byakuya's body. It let out a roar, and a Tailed Beast Ball began forming at its mouth.
This was compressed from yin and yang chakra, capable of devastating destruction that could level mountains.
Byakuya's expression remained calm. Without a flicker of emotion, he pushed his Susanoo directly to its Perfect form.
This was also his first time manifesting the Perfect Susanoo.
The sparsely populated desert was the perfect location, and facing a Tailed Beast, using the Perfect Susanoo was giving the One-Tail its due respect.
For Byakuya's current level, the Perfect Susanoo posed no significant strain.
The Perfect Susanoo's form instantly reached two hundred meters, wielding two massive swords, its enormous wings blotting out the sky. Impenetrable tengu armor completely encased its body. In height alone, it dwarfed the One-Tail Shukaku by more than double.
Even Shukaku could only look up at Byakuya.
The explorers were even more dumbfounded now.
One monster was already overwhelming enough—and now an even larger one had appeared?!
"Wait! They don't seem to be after us?!"
"You're right! It looks like they're going to fight each other?"
"Quick! Get your phones out! This is unprecedented footage!"
These people had quite the nerve. After realizing the situation, their first thought was to record video. Then again, they wouldn't have ventured into a desert like this if they weren't the adventurous type.
If those two monsters wanted to kill them, there was no escape anyway. So they decided to stay.
Some started filming. Others even started livestreaming.
Meanwhile, Byakuya was already controlling his Perfect Susanoo to bring down a slash on Shukaku.
This single strike seemed capable of tearing heaven and earth asunder.
[Ding! Host has defeated "One-Tail Shukaku." Reward: Summoning Jutsu (One-Tail Shukaku)!]
The One-Tail Shukaku's massive body was instantly obliterated. A vast swath of desert ahead was forcibly leveled.
Originally, this section of desert had uneven terrain, with varying elevations. Now it had been sheared flat by a single stroke of the Perfect Susanoo.
Countless sand particles churned into the air, and after being blasted upward, they came down like a torrential rain.
The explorers' position was inevitably affected as well.
Although Byakuya was somewhat exasperated that these people hadn't fled while they had the chance, he certainly wouldn't leave them to die.
He reached back and grabbed all three off-road vehicles, whisking them away from the area in an instant.
As the vehicles touched down, the Perfect Susanoo's form vanished instantly.
Leaving behind only the utterly stunned explorers.
...
By now, Byakuya was inside the Kamui dimension.
He could feel that he had obtained the One-Tail Shukaku's Summoning Jutsu.
Inside the Kamui dimension, Byakuya directly summoned the One-Tail Shukaku.
Upon seeing Byakuya again, Shukaku instinctively wanted to attack him—only to discover with alarm that its body wouldn't obey. It even felt an involuntary urge to submit to this person.
Seeing Shukaku's bewildered and shocked expression, Byakuya spoke up: "What's wrong? Haven't realized you've been defeated yet?"
"What... what did you do to me?"
Shukaku demanded.
"Basically, you lost to me, and now you've become my summoning beast. That's all."
Byakuya said casually.
"Summoning beast?!"
Shukaku's tone immediately turned furious.
Becoming someone's summoning beast was just as humiliating as being sealed inside a jinchūriki.
Yet no matter how angry it became, it couldn't make any move to harm Byakuya.
The One-Tail Shukaku was now in a state of absolute obedience to Byakuya.
"Don't get worked up. I'm not going to do anything to you—at least not until my plan comes to fruition..."
Byakuya said offhandedly.
"What plan?"
Shukaku immediately asked.
"You'll find out when the time comes."
Byakuya naturally wasn't willing to elaborate.
Then, with some curiosity, he asked a question: "By the way, do you have your previous memories?"
"What do you mean?"
Shukaku didn't immediately understand this random question.
"Literally what I said. For example, before you fought me, what were you usually doing?"
Byakuya clarified.
"..."
Being asked this, Shukaku suddenly felt something was off.
It had originally been sealed inside a jinchūriki. Then it suddenly found itself in an unfamiliar place, saw strangely dressed humans and tools it had never seen before, and then started fighting this person before it...
Where exactly was this place?
Was it still the same world it knew?
"Before this, I was sealed inside a jinchūriki in the Hidden Sand Village of the Land of Wind. Being sealed, there wasn't much to do."
Shukaku answered honestly.
Then it asked: "Is this... still the world I know?"
"No, this is another world. I summoned you here."
Byakuya said.
So... the One-Tail Shukaku from the Naruto world just disappeared like that?
[Ding! The One-Tail Shukaku in the Naruto world has not disappeared. The Host can understand the Shukaku before you as a clone created by the System—identical to the original in memories, abilities, and all other aspects.]
Is that so?
That was good then.
Byakuya was relieved. He didn't want the Naruto world to lose all nine Tailed Beasts because of him—that would definitely have consequences for that world.
"You can actually summon me here... Just what are you...?"
Shukaku couldn't help but ask.
The terrifying chakra within this person, and the Perfect Susanoo that had destroyed it with a single strike—these brought the image of the Sage of Six Paths to Shukaku's mind.
Although the pressure wasn't as overwhelming as the Sage of Six Paths, this was the closest existence to the Sage of Six Paths in its memory...
...
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