249. I Can Endure… Ahhh~~~

----

After Chiriku finished explaining, Naruto got straight to the point. "Since that chakra never truly belonged to you, I assume it's fine if I take it back?"

The two younger monks scowled, clearly unhappy. Even though they didn't like Sora, the boy had lost control of his power before, causing destruction in the temple they still felt possessive over what had been sealed within him.

This was exactly what Chiriku had meant by greed. They knew they couldn't fully control the power, yet they still didn't want to give it up to Konoha.

Sora was an unfortunate case. He never truly became a Jinchūriki but was forced to experience the discrimination that came with it.

Unlike his disciples, Chiriku was more reasonable. He immediately nodded. "Such power was never ours to wield. Returning it to Konoha is the proper course of action."

"Master Chiriku!" The younger monks looked anxious.

"No more discussion," Chiriku said firmly before turning back to Naruto. "I have heard that when a Jinchūriki has their Tailed Beast extracted, it is often fatal. What will happen to Sora if we remove the Nine-Tails chakra from him?"

Naruto asked Kurama internally. The fox scoffed before replying, "Since he's not a full Jinchūriki, he should be fine. He might feel weak for a while, though."

Naruto turned to Sakura and patted her shoulder. "No worries, this is Tsunade-sama's apprentice we're talking about. She won't let anything happen to him."

Sakura nodded confidently. "Leave it to me."

Chiriku looked relieved. "Then let's proceed. Fetch Sora."

Although reluctant, one of the young monks obeyed.

---

Sora entered the room.

A boy around Naruto's age, Sora was the only one in the temple with long hair, which made him stand out. He was well-behaved in front of Chiriku, but there was a wary look in his eyes.

"You called for me, Master Chiriku?"

Chiriku nodded and explained the situation. He then asked, "I realize this may seem unfair to you. Will you cooperate?"

"Of course!" Sora responded without hesitation. That uncontrollable power had only brought him suffering.

He didn't want it. More than anything, he hated being treated like a monster.

"How do we do this?" he asked, eager to get it over with.

All eyes turned to Naruto.

Naruto smiled. "Just lie down and leave the rest to me."

Sora immediately lay down, exposing his stomach.

Chiriku turned to his disciples. "Stand guard outside. No one is to enter."

"Yes, Master."

Once they left, Naruto examined the seal on Sora's abdomen. "Not bad work."

Then he turned to Sasuke. "Memorize this."

Without asking why, Sasuke activated his Sharingan and committed the entire seal to memory. Kakashi, being the ever-curious shinobi, also took a closer look.

Naruto quickly jotted down calculations, working out the optimal way to break the seal without harming Sora. A brute-force method would be too dangerous.

After finishing his notes, he grabbed a blank sealing scroll and inscribed new formulas on it. This would temporarily store the extracted chakra.

"Alright, let's do this." Naruto's body flared with a red chakra cloak, a manifestation of the Nine-Tails' power.

Chiriku and Sora watched in awe. So this is how that power should be used…

Sakura pulled out a syringe. "Do you want anaesthesia?"

"No need!" Sora clenched his fists. "If it means going back to normal, I can endure anything!"

Naruto placed his palm on Sora's stomach, infusing chakra into the seal.

"Just a little more…" Naruto murmured. "You sure you can endure?"

Sora took a deep breath. "I can endure—AHHHH!!!"

As the seal unravelled, Sora screamed. It felt like his body was being torn apart from the inside.

"Hold him down!" Naruto ordered.

Chiriku, Kakashi, and Sasuke immediately restrained the boy's convulsing body. Sakura monitored his vitals, ready to step in if things went wrong.

"Here we go!" Naruto channelled his chakra, forming a large red chakra hand that reached into Sora's seal.

From within, a mass of red chakra emerged, taking the faint shape of a small fox.

With one powerful yank, Naruto ripped the chakra out of Sora's body.

Naruto slammed the chakra onto the prepared scroll. "Seal!"

The moment he activated the inscription, the chakra was sucked into the scroll. In the centre of the seal, the kanji for 'Nine' (九) appeared.

With the extraction complete, Sora passed out, his robes drenched in sweat.

Sakura quickly checked him. "No major injuries. He just needs rest."

Chiriku let out a breath of relief. "I am grateful for your assistance."

Naruto raised a hand. "Hold on. I said I'd compensate him."

He placed his palm on Sora's stomach again and injected a new chakra source. This time, it wasn't the Nine-Tails'.

Over the past few days, Naruto had stored up a lot of Dragon Vein Chakra, energy from Aincrad (the floating tower). It wasn't as wild or potent as Tailed Beast Chakra, but it was stable and had no side effects.

Giving Sora around 300 units, Naruto figured it might save his life someday.

"Alright, Sasuke, put the seal back together," Naruto instructed.

Sasuke nodded. Having studied both the original seal and Naruto's modifications, reapplying it was straightforward.

Once everything was done, Sora was taken to a resting room.

With that settled, Chiriku returned to their original mission.

"The four sacred tombs are hidden and protected by strong barriers. However, last night, the northern tomb was broken into. The coffin and body of Kitane were stolen."

"Kitane?" Naruto asked.

"Yes," Chiriku confirmed. "The four warriors, Kitane, Nauma, Seito, and Tou'u, were each buried in a different cardinal direction. They perished in the Guardian Ninja conflict years ago and were known for their Lightning Release Jutsu."

Sasuke's ears perked up. "What kind of lightning jutsu?"

Chiriku's expression turned grim. "Together, they could unleash Raimei Raiga (Thunderstorm Rage), a technique powerful enough to wipe out an entire village in a single strike."

Naruto blinked. "Okay, yeah. That sounds dangerous."

Sasuke, however, was intrigued. A lightning technique stronger than Kirin?

"If someone resurrects them," Kakashi said, "they could extract the jutsu formula from their memories. That would be disastrous."

Chiriku nodded. "Judging by the intricate method used to break the barrier, the culprit must be a high-level shinobi. I suggest we investigate the site immediately."

The team stood up, ready to follow Chiriku to the crime scene.

----

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