Menma's Display of Power

"Gaara!!!"

After being stunned for a moment, Temari and Kankuro immediately ran over, shouting loudly.

At the bottom of the pit

Gaara's eyes were red as he gritted his teeth, trying to get up. But no matter how hard he tried, he failed.

"Shukaku, help me!"

Seeing that he was too seriously injured to fight any longer, Gaara roared in his heart.

"So troublesome!"

In the sealed space within Gaara's body, Shukaku curled his lips.

He muttered in dissatisfaction, but still lent his power to Gaara.

The next second

A massive surge of chakra erupted from Gaara's body.

With sand rapidly covering him, he transformed from a human into something monstrous in mere moments.

Temari and Kankuro, who had just reached the edge of the pit, barely had time to check Gaara's condition before they heard a loud bang.

A towering figure leaped out from the bottom of the pit, rushing toward the village entrance.

"It's Gaara!"

Kankuro's face lit up with relief.

But Temari couldn't share his joy.

An Elite Jōnin like Gaara was defeated in a single exchange and had to rely on the tailed beast's power?

That meant the intruder was unimaginably strong.

A deep unease settled in Temari's heart.

Meanwhile...

The gathered Suna ninjas, still shaken by the sight of Gaara being overpowered moments ago, now erupted in cheers.

"Lord Gaara, come on!"

"Kill these two intruders."

"Sunagakure is not a village to be bullied!"

Their voices rang loud, yet none of them dared to step forward.

Not because they didn't want to help, but because, from what they had just witnessed, they knew they would only get in Gaara's way.

So instead, they shouted in encouragement, hoping to lift Gaara's spirits.

"Intruder, die!"

Half-transformed, Gaara roared and charged at Menma.

"Oh! You're able to use the power of the Tailed Beast?"

Menma raised an eyebrow, mildly impressed. He knew exactly how strong his last attack was.

Gaara should have been too injured to stand, let alone fight.

And yet...

Not only had he recovered, but he had also tapped into the Tailed Beast's power.

Interesting.

It seems that Gaara hadn't been idle for the past year. But no matter how much progress he had made, it didn't matter.

Not even a full-tailed beast transformation would make a difference. In the face of his power, it was all meaningless.

"A boring little trick."

As Gaara lunged, Menma casually waved his hand. Then, a massive sand palm materialized and caught Gaara mid-charge.

No matter how much Gaara struggled, he couldn't break free.

"Shukaku!!!"

Gaara bellowed.

The next second—

"It's really troublesome. Fine, I'll give it all to you!"

Shukaku's voice echoed in Gaara's head.

Boom!!!

A colossal surge of chakra exploded outward, engulfing the area.

In the open space at Sunagakure's entrance, a massive, towering form materialized.

A tanuki-like beast, tens of meters tall, with wild, crazed eyes.

Shukaku had emerged.

"Ah~! The breath of freedom!"

The beast inhaled deeply, even though it didn't need to breathe at all.

But this was the breath of freedom.

"Shukaku, kill him!"

Gaara's voice rang in Shukaku's mind.

"Idiot human, shut up!"

"I am Lord Shukaku! Do you think you can command me?"

Shukaku was never known for his patience. He'd even pick a fight with the Nine-Tails if provoked.

But winning was another matter entirely.

Gaara, realizing he needed Shukaku's power, wisely held his tongue.

Satisfied, Shukaku turned his gaze to the human standing before him—his expression dark and dangerous.

"Human, I smell something foul from you."

Shukaku's voice was laced with hostility.

"Oh? Is this what you mean?"

Menma smiled faintly.

The next second—

Boom!!!

A monstrous shadow rose from the ground.

A towering black figure, hundreds of meters tall.

Fourth Form Susanoo!

The pitch-black, armored giant loomed over everything.

Shukaku, a beast spanning tens of meters, suddenly looked insignificant.

"It's you!"

The instant Shukaku saw the black Susanoo, his eyes widened in shock.

"Oh~! Looks like you remember me."

Menma's smile deepened.

The next moment—

The black Susanoo's enormous hand shot forward and seized Shukaku.

The mighty Tailed Beast that was fearsome just moments ago, was now like a mere ragdoll in its grasp.

No matter how much Shukaku thrashed and roared, he couldn't break free.

"LET ME GO! DON'T KILL ME!!"

Shukaku's defiance shattered.

He had faced this monster before. He had been utterly crushed then, and now, it was happening all over again.

What else could he do?

He had no choice but to beg for mercy.

Maybe, just maybe, this Uchiha wouldn't find him worth killing.

Just like last time.

Sure, he got beaten to a pulp back then, but at least he was allowed to return to his Jinchūriki.

But this time, Shukaku had a gut feeling that it would be different.

This time, Menma was looking at him with real interest.

And that terrified him more than anything.

Sometimes, whether it is a human or any other creature, in the face of life and death, they will always give up something.

Like... dignity?

Menma said, "It's impossible to let you go. But don't worry, I won't just kill a tailed beast like you."

When he heard that Menma was not going to let him go, Shukaku's heart went cold.

But soon, when he heard that the other party did not intend to kill him, he immediately came back to life.

"You really don't want to kill me?"

Shukaku asked with a naive face.

Menma asked, "Do I need to lie to you?"

Shukaku quickly shook his head.

This Uchiha really had no need to deceive him. But why did he want to capture him?

Shukaku couldn't figure it out.

Could it be that he is going to give him as a gift to some other person?

Shukaku thought of such a possibility.

After all, no matter how weak Shukaku is, he is still one of the Nine Tailed Beasts, right?

The Uchiha in front of him is too strong to be interested in drawing power from him.

But it's impossible for his juniors to be as strong as him, right?

Shukaku looked at the appearance of the Uchiha in front of him and estimated that he was only in his twenties.

So, his descendants might only be in their teens.

In this case, asking One Tail to protect a ten year old brat seemed believable, right?

Thinking of this, Shukaku felt that he should have guessed the truth. He secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Just don't kill him.

As for being sealed in another body, Shukaku didn't care at all.

After all, he was not very comfortable in Gaara's body. It would be nice to live somewhere else.

Menma noticed that Shukaku had a strange expression on his face.

He thought that Shukaku might have misunderstood something. But it doesn't really matter what Shukaku thinks.

Anyway, he just needs to catch Shukaku. Other things have nothing to do with him.

"Let's go."

Menma grabbed Shukaku with one hand, and spoke to Tobi below.

Then, he controlled the black Susanoo, which was hundreds of meters tall, walking towards the depths of the desert.

Behind, the ninjas in Sunagakure stared wide-eyed, and some even sat on the ground, their legs too weak to stand.

Watching Shukaku and Gaara being captured, none of them dared to stand up and stop them.

It wasn't until more than ten seconds later that Temari and Kankuro reacted, as if they had just woken up from a dream.

They immediately shouted, "Save him!"

Then, they prepared to give chase.

"Don't go!"

At this time, an old voice suddenly sounded, and several figures stopped Temari and Kankuro at the same time.

"Lord Ebizō?!"

Temari and Kankuro turned their heads and saw Ebizō approaching with a cane.

They said anxiously, "Gaara was captured by that man, we have to rescue him."

"It's useless."

Ebizō shook his head, sighed, and said, "The other party is an Uchiha who has awakened the Mangekyō. Even Shukaku was manipulated like a plaything in his hands. Rescuing Gaara from him is impossible."

"But—"

Temari was anxious and wanted to say more.

But Ebizō interrupted her, saying, "Temari, Kankuro, give up. The village can't afford any more losses."

"Although we lost Gaara and Shukaku today, at least the other party did not wreak havoc in the village. At least the backbone of the village is still here."

Temari loudly asked, "Then we just leave Gaara alone?"

Ebizō sighed and said nothing. He didn't want Gaara to be taken away either.

After all, Gaara was the only Kage-level ninja in the village now.

Ebizō had even been trying to convince the daimyo of the Land of Wind to allow Gaara to become the Kazekage.

But...

The opponent is too strong!

Even if they sacrificed all of Sunagakure's forces, it would be impossible to bring Gaara back.

What difference was there between this towering black Susanoo and the Super Wood Golem from over a year ago?

Both were forces they had no power to resist.

The weak can only keep their heads down and act cautiously in this world.

No matter how unwilling or angry they feel inside, they have to hold it in.

Ebizō could only accept this reality.

When Temari saw that Ebizō remained silent, she turned to look at the other Suna ninjas.

But whether they were close friends, or Elite Jōnins with significant roles in the village, all of them turned their faces away from her gaze.

That's right!

They thought the same as Ebizō.

They were terrified!

They didn't want to die!

Seeing their expressions, how could Temari not understand what they were thinking?

"If you won't go, then I will!"

Temari glared at them, then turned around.

She pushed past the Suna ninjas blocking her way, and ran in the direction the black Susanoo had gone.

"Temari!"

Kankuro tried to catch up, but a hand held him back.

"Kankuro, Temari is a woman, and she's acting emotionally. As a man, you should know what the right choice is."

Ebizō looked at Kankuro.

To be honest, he had never liked Kankuro much before.

His talent as a puppet master was just average.

Compared to his sister and a genius like Sasori, the difference was too great.

Because of this, Ebizō had never considered entrusting the village's future to Kankuro.

Even if he was the eldest son of the Fourth Kazekage, the position of a Kage is not hereditary.

But now, the village's talented ninjas were few in number, and Gaara, whom he had hoped to make Kazekage, had been taken away.

And Temari, who was better than Kankuro, had also left.

The look in her eyes before leaving told Ebizō that even if she returned, she would hold resentment over today's events.

From this perspective, Ebizō found himself helplessly realizing that the only one left to rely on was Kankuro, the one he had previously looked down on.

***

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