"Outrageous! I am actually being looked down upon like this?"
Shukaku roared in anger, a deep growl rumbling from its throat. Its massive body trembled with fury as it glared at Ryūjin.
The tailed beast abruptly pushed itself upright. Chakra gathered rapidly inside its mouth as a dense sphere of destructive energy formed.
A Tailed Beast Ball.
Without hesitation, Shukaku fired it straight at Ryūjin.
"Oh, now you're getting serious?" Ryūjin sneered. "Even if you try your hardest, you're still just a little brother."
His body flickered.
He vanished instantly.
The Tailed Beast Ball that Shukaku had launched also disappeared at the same moment.
Boom!
Before Shukaku could even process what had happened, the Tailed Beast Ball suddenly reappeared.
Right in front of it.
The attack landed directly on Shukaku itself.
The poor tailed beast had only just been blasted away earlier. It had not even recovered yet before being hit by its own attack.
The explosion launched Shukaku through the air once again.
"What happened? What did you do?"
After rolling across the ground for a long distance, Shukaku finally managed to stop itself. It roared at Ryūjin, both shocked and furious.
Ryūjin shrugged casually.
"It was just a simple Ninjutsu. Nothing worth mentioning."
In that brief instant earlier, Ryūjin had used the Flying Thunder God Technique to redirect the Tailed Beast Ball and transfer it directly onto Shukaku.
"You are indeed not ordinary," Shukaku said coldly. "You have some skill. But if you think you can make me submit like this, keep dreaming."
"Not bad," Ryūjin replied with a grin. "The more stubborn you act, the more fun it is for me to tame you. If you surrendered too easily, this would be boring."
He stretched his arms slightly as if warming up.
"Next, let's begin a delightful performance."
"A demonstration of how to beat a disobedient pet."
Shukaku froze for a moment.
Then it finally realized something.
The "pet" Ryūjin was referring to was... probably itself.
That realization immediately made Shukaku furious.
This was an insult to a tailed beast.
It was not some bear.
It was a tanuki, a raccoon dog.
"First move," Ryūjin said calmly. "Let's see how you like the taste of barbecue."
His Sharingan spun slowly.
Then he activated Amaterasu.
Black flames instantly erupted on one of Shukaku's arms.
The tailed beast screamed in pain and immediately began rolling across the ground. It tried to suppress the flames with its chakra, but the attempt was completely useless.
Instead, the black flames burned even more fiercely.
"This... what kind of flames are these?!"
Panic crept into Shukaku's voice.
Ryūjin watched calmly from the side.
"Unless you cut off your arm, it won't stop burning. You'll eventually turn into ash."
"You bastard!"
Shukaku roared angrily.
For a tailed beast, losing an arm was not a serious problem. Its body could regenerate over time.
However, being forced to sever its own limb was humiliating.
Yet the terrifying power of Amaterasu left it with no other choice.
In the end, Shukaku made the decision it hated most.
It tore off the arm that was engulfed in black flames.
The burning limb fell to the ground and quickly turned to ash.
"Next," Ryūjin said lightly. "Second style."
Before Shukaku could react, Ryūjin disappeared again.
In the next instant, a powerful impact slammed into Shukaku's body.
Boom!
Shukaku was sent flying through the air.
Ryūjin had already opened the Sixth Gate of the Eight Gates. Against this weakened version of Shukaku, overwhelming strength was more than enough.
Bang!
Before Shukaku could even land, another kick struck its body and launched it in the opposite direction.
Bang!
Another blow followed immediately.
Ryūjin moved like a blur.
To an outside observer, Shukaku now looked like a giant ball being kicked back and forth in the sky.
After countless strikes, Ryūjin finally ended the assault.
He drove Shukaku straight into the ground with a powerful stomp.
The tailed beast crashed into the earth, leaving a massive crater.
By now, the once arrogant Shukaku was completely exhausted.
"You... who exactly are you?"
Shukaku gasped heavily as it stared at Ryūjin.
At that moment, Ryūjin's Sharingan spun again.
His ocular power surged outward.
Blue chakra erupted around his body and rapidly formed into a towering figure.
Susanoo appeared.
The gigantic armored warrior surrounded Ryūjin like a guardian spirit.
Then the Susanoo reached forward and grabbed Shukaku as if it were picking up a small animal. The enormous hand lifted the tailed beast and brought it directly in front of Ryūjin.
Shukaku's entire body began trembling.
An unpleasant memory surfaced in its mind.
"Outrageous..." Shukaku muttered weakly. "You are even stronger than that person from back then."
Its voice was filled with despair.
That person back then only possessed terrifying eyes.
But the man standing before it now could easily dominate it even without relying on those eyes.
"That person from back then," Ryūjin said with interest, "are you talking about Uchiha Madara?"
He wondered whether the Shukaku created by the Sign in System still carried memories from the original tailed beast.
After all, during the Warring States Period, Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara had once captured the tailed beasts together before distributing them among the villages.
Such an event would naturally leave a deep impression on the tailed beasts.
Shukaku's expression darkened.
"Do not mention that name in front of me."
Ryūjin rolled his eyes.
"Don't look so miserable. It's not like I'm planning to use you as a weapon."
He folded his arms casually.
"Unlike Uchiha Madara, I don't see you as a war machine."
"To me, you are just a pet."
Shukaku stared at him silently.
After a long pause, it finally spoke.
"Is this how you treat your pets?"
Ryūjin snorted.
"You brought this on yourself."
"The moment you appeared, you started shouting about killing me. If I don't teach you a lesson, who will?"
Despite the rough process, the outcome was satisfactory.
Shukaku had finally been forced into submission.
The tailed beast slowly transformed back into chakra and entered Ryūjin's body.
To prevent any unexpected problems, Ryūjin still applied a Eight Trigrams Sealing Style on Shukaku.
After completing the seal, he nodded with satisfaction.
"Alright, Shukaku. Lend me your chakra."
"I want to see what it feels like."
Inside his mental space, Shukaku's voice responded.
"You are already this strong. Why do you still need my chakra?"
Ryūjin grinned.
"Because it looks cooler."
"And besides, aren't you bored staying inside all the time? It would be more interesting if you cooperate with me."
Shukaku snorted.
"Can I refuse?"
Ryūjin's voice remained calm.
"You can try."
"I'm actually curious what interesting things might happen next."
His tone sounded friendly.
Shukaku fell silent.
The threat was obvious.
A moment later, Shukaku reluctantly released its chakra.
Ryūjin immediately felt the surge of power flood through his body.
A bright chakra cloak enveloped him instantly.
The transformation resembled Naruto's Kurama Mode.
However, the color was completely different.
Instead of golden light, Ryūjin's chakra cloak emitted a cement gray glow.
In terms of appearance, it was slightly less impressive than Kurama Mode.
As for power, the difference was even greater.
Even the real Shukaku could not compare to Kurama.
This weakened version was naturally much further behind.
Still, the boost was noticeable.
Ryūjin tested the form briefly.
His speed, strength, and chakra reserves had all increased slightly beyond what Sage Mode provided.
The improvement was not overwhelming, but it was still useful.
As for abilities, everything worked as expected.
He could use all the standard techniques associated with a Jinchuriki.
Even Tailed Beast Balls were possible.
The only difference was that their destructive power was somewhat weaker.