Chapter 25: Treats and Trials

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Land of Lightning, by the distant seaside far from Amegakure.

Waves crashed against the cliffs, sending towering sprays of white foam into the air as the ten-meter-high waves relentlessly pounded the jagged rocks.

On the shore, the colossal and imposing figure of Matatabi, the Two-Tails, stood on all fours, her gaze fixed on Rinjin not far away.

Rinjin, bare-chested with a serious expression, stared back at Matatabi.

"A deal's a deal. If I lose, I promise never to bother you again. But if you lose, you'll follow me!"

Hearing this, Matatabi nodded slightly, a sly glint flashing in her eyes.

"Alright, it's settled. Whoever breaks the deal is Shukaku's child!" Rinjin shouted loudly.

Matatabi stared at Rinjin with a speechless expression, silently complaining in her heart.

This guy's mouth is even more venomous than Shukaku's!

Without another word, Matatabi opened her mouth and unleashed a massive red fireball.

The orange-red fireball burned fiercely, its flames appearing unusually viscous.

The fireball shot toward Rinjin, who glanced at it before shifting his gaze to Matatabi not far away.

Her entire body was engulfed in blue-black flames, her massive form moving with surprising agility as she followed closely behind the fireball.

Rinjin didn't dodge.

This time, there were no spectators; it wasn't like last time when he only needed to stall Matatabi.

This time, he intended to truly test her strength.

Thoughts flashed through his mind as Rinjin focused on the approaching fireball, quickly forming hand seals.

"Ram."

"Magnet Release: Iron Sand Wall!"

In an instant, a large mass of pitch-black iron sand surged from beneath Rinjin's feet, forming a semi-circular shield in front of him.

This was the maximum effect his chakra reserves could produce.

"Boom!" A loud explosion echoed as the massive fireball collided with the iron sand wall.

Sparks flew, and waves of heat swept across the area.

Watching the iron sand in front of him slowly turn red and begin to melt, Rinjin frowned slightly.

The temperature of the flames was incredibly high, capable of melting steel—and this was just a casual fireball, not even one requiring charge time.

This was going to be tricky.

Without hesitation, Rinjin pushed off with both feet, leaping backward.

A moment later, a sharp-clawed paw slammed down where Rinjin had just been standing, sending rocks flying.

Seeing the aftermath of the paw's impact, Rinjin analyzed again.

Her strength far surpasses mine—at least fifty times greater. Truly terrifying!

Facing a Tailed Beast for the first time, confronting such overwhelming power and near-infinite chakra, Rinjin felt immense pressure.

Even her sheer size was enough to create an oppressive atmosphere, not to mention that Matatabi was an agile cat.

Thinking of this, Rinjin realized he might have underestimated those beyond Kage-level.

Take Hashirama Senju, for example—his massive Buddha statue could grab the strongest of the Tailed Beasts, Kurama, with a single swipe.

And Madara Uchiha? A mere glare from his Sharingan had Kurama obediently under his control.

Damn it, those guys are absolute monsters.

Dodging Matatabi's attacks, Rinjin simultaneously gathered intel and strategized on how to end the battle quickly.

Today was the first day of the Chūnin Exams, focusing on Ninjutsu trials.

Tomorrow would be Taijutsu trials, and the day after that, Genjutsu trials.

By this calculation, he had only two days left—and he had to account for travel time to return.

The longer this dragged on, the more likely the Raikage would return early.

And with Kumo-nin potentially tracking him down, Rinjin calculated that he had to wrap things up by tomorrow evening at the latest.

With this in mind, Rinjin clasped his hands together, forming another seal.

"Magnet Release: Iron Man Technique!"

In the next moment, a large amount of pitch-black iron sand surged from the ground, gathering in Rinjin's hands. The iron sand coalesced into a massive spiked club over five meters long.

Today, no Assassin's Creed—let's go full Berserker's Creed!

Using sheer physical strength alone wouldn't inflict significant damage on a Tailed Beast of Matatabi's size.

But wielding this incredibly heavy spiked club would undoubtedly cause her some pain.

However, just maintaining the massive spiked club was already depleting Rinjin's chakra reserves.

He had to rely on her scorching flames to fuse the club into one solid piece, freeing up chakra for the Flying Raijin Jutsu.

Strategizing his next move, Rinjin swiftly dodged another lightning-fast swipe from Matatabi's claws.

With the spiked club in hand, Rinjin swung it backward.

"Whoosh!"

The club tore through the air with a piercing whistle, smashing into Matatabi's paw with tremendous force.

"Thud!" Matatabi's massive form staggered slightly.

But Rinjin had no time to celebrate, as a searing heat spread through his palm.

Looking at the club, he saw that the point of impact had already turned red-hot.

Instead of panicking, Rinjin felt a surge of excitement.

Her body temperature is this high? Perfect, just what I need to forge my weapon.

While he was momentarily distracted, Matatabi's other paw swung toward him.

"Bang!" The sound of flesh meeting force echoed as Rinjin was sent flying, tumbling along the ground before crashing into a cliffside, kicking up a cloud of dust.

Seeing her strike land, Matatabi felt a flicker of joy.

Opening her mouth, she unleashed a barrage of blue fireballs, each the size of a fist.

"Fire Rat Ball!"

With a crisp shout, the countless blue fireballs accelerated, resembling a storm of bullets as they rained into the smoke.

"Boom... Boom... Boom..."

A series of explosions erupted endlessly.

Meanwhile, in the cliffside crater, Rinjin's hand crackled with sparks and emitted wisps of smoke.

In his grasp was a glowing red spiked club, radiating intense heat.

The earlier barrage of Fire Rat Balls had been entirely blocked by the club.

The molten iron sand could no longer be controlled with Magnet Release, but that didn't matter—Rinjin wasn't afraid of burns or pain.

Looking at the fused club in his hand, Rinjin grinned and quickly formed seals with his free hand.

"It's my turn now! Flying Raijin Jutsu!"

In the blink of an eye, a massive cloud of white steam rose from the ocean.

The quenching process was a success!

"My move!"

With an excited roar, Rinjin charged across the sea, wielding the enormous spiked club.

"Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

"Pop... Pop..."

Amid the sound of air bursting, three clones appeared, each holding a brick in their hands as they spread out, charging toward Matatabi from different directions.

Matatabi, who had been preparing a Tailed Beast Bomb, didn't expect Rinjin to recover so quickly. Her chakra surged as the Tailed Beast Bomb's formation accelerated.

Facing the incoming Tailed Beast Bomb, Rinjin let out a rare burst of laughter, his eyes gleaming with exhilaration.

"Bring it on, Matatabi!"

In the next moment, the clones took their positions, hurling Flying Raijin-marked bricks at Matatabi's head.

Simultaneously, the Tailed Beast Bomb erupted, its overwhelming force tearing through the ground as it shot toward Rinjin.

Facing the massive, Raikage Tower-sized, chakra-laden projectile, Rinjin extended his left hand and shouted.

"Now! Flying Raijin Jutsu!"

In an instant, Rinjin vanished before the Tailed Beast Bomb.

When he reappeared, he was high above, his spiked club crackling with blue lightning as it descended.

"Thunder... Roar... Eight... Trigrams!"

"Boom!" The massive spiked club struck Matatabi's head with a resounding impact, accompanied by a shockwave of energy.

Matatabi staggered, her front legs giving way as she knelt on the ground.

"Sure, it's a bit over-the-top, but damn, it feels good!"

Grinning at the slightly glowing spiked club in his hand, Rinjin quickly descended.

Still in midair, he formed seals and disappeared once more.

Time was tight, and the mission was urgent—he had to make every second count.

When he reappeared, Rinjin was already on Matatabi's back, wielding the spiked club.

A series of thunderous impacts echoed, accompanied by Matatabi's yowls, lasting an entire day and night.

By the next noon, Matatabi sat before Rinjin with a pitiful expression, her head covered in lumps.

Meanwhile, Rinjin stared at his palms in frustration.

He'd had so much fun that his hands were now blistered and raw.

"Whatever, they'll heal anyway." Rinjin's hands trembled as he looked up at Matatabi.

"I'm starving! Are you hungry?"

Matatabi nodded pitifully.

Technically, she hadn't lost. Rinjin's spiked club, though powerful, wasn't enough to deliver a fatal blow to a Tailed Beast of her size.

But she surrendered anyway—after all, being pounded on the head with a club for an entire day and night would break anyone.

The worst part was that she couldn't even hit Rinjin.

Though his chakra reserves were only at the level of an average Chūnin, his chakra recovery speed was no joke—practically infinite.

With infinite chakra and the Flying Raijin Jutsu, Rinjin could appear anywhere marked with the technique.

Midway through the fight, Matatabi had even tried going berserk, attacking everything in sight.

But the result was disastrous: she ended up crouching with her head in her paws, yelling out her surrender.

Even now, her head was still buzzing.

Seeing that Matatabi was also hungry, Rinjin clasped his hands together, summoning a shadow clone.

"Tell the guys to prepare a feast. I'm treating the kitty to a meal."

The shadow clone nodded and disappeared instantly.

Matatabi, meanwhile, looked at Rinjin with a puzzled expression.

"When did you learn to cook?"

Hearing this, Rinjin gave a carefree smile and said, "Just now, when I let my clones do the cooking..."

Before he could finish his sentence, Rinjin's expression suddenly turned peculiar.

He had just realized something—his own cooking skills were atrocious, downright embarrassing. Which meant... his clones' cooking skills were just as bad?!

As Rinjin stood there dumbfounded, his clones began appearing one after another, each carrying a giant pot, large enough to fit a person.

One pot was filled with fish stew, another with boiled meat, and yet another with... something unidentifiable.

Looking at the bizarre assortment of dishes, Rinjin scratched the back of his head and gave Matatabi an awkward smile.

"Want to try some?"

Sniffing the air, Matatabi immediately shook her head like a rattling drum.

"No, no, no! You eat it yourself. Just the smell alone is enough to make me nauseous," a crisp, childlike voice came from the feline's mouth.

Hearing this, Rinjin's face darkened. Without a word, he reached into one of the pots and pulled out a pig leg.

Yuck! No salt, but sugar?! What the hell is this abomination?

Pinching his nose, Rinjin began gnawing on the pig leg furiously.

He was starving!

Watching Rinjin devour the food like a ravenous beast, Matatabi couldn't help but feel a bit tempted.

Using her paw, she scooped up a pot of fish soup and poured it into her mouth.

"Bleh!"

Matatabi immediately stuck out her tongue, furiously pawing at her mouth with her fluffy claws.

"This is disgusting! Your clones' cooking is garbage. Wait... doesn't that mean your cooking is garbage too...?"

As she spoke, Matatabi's eyes suddenly lit up with mischief, and she turned to look at Rinjin with a sly grin.

Hearing this, Rinjin's body stiffened. Then, feeling guilty, he buried his head into the pot to avoid her gaze.

Seeing this, Matatabi burst into laughter, rolling on the ground like a playful kitten.

At that moment, Rinjin suddenly lifted his head from the food, looking at Matatabi with curiosity.

"Hey, kitty, last time you were so furious. Why aren't you angry at all this time?"

Hearing this, Matatabi let out a proud huff.

"What's the point of getting angry with you? You won't die anyway!"

...

As night fell, the Third Raikage was in his office, fuming with rage.

This was the second time—yes, the second time in just half a year.

Yesterday morning, the guards at the Temple of Wind and Thunder had been knocked unconscious, and the Two-Tails had been released once again.

And this time, the situation was even worse than last time.

The previous time the Two-Tails had gone berserk, it had at least been in a state of uncontrollable rage, attacking everything in sight.

The Third Raikage wasn't afraid of that kind of rampage. After all, he could take on the Eight-Tails head-on; the Two-Tails was no big deal.

But this time was different. Everyone had been knocked out, not killed.

The Two-Tails had broken free of the Wind and Thunder Chains and left the Sealing Fire Cave, but it hadn't gone on a rampage.

Even the statue that had been placed above the cave had merely been pushed aside, not destroyed.

What did this mean?

It meant the Two-Tails had left in a calm and rational state, likely in collaboration with the intruder.

This suggested that the intruder and the Two-Tails had reached some kind of secret agreement.

As the Third Raikage fumed, a middle-aged man burst into the office, panting heavily. He rushed to the Raikage's side.

"Lord A, the Two-Tails has returned!"

The Raikage whipped his head around to look at the man in front of him.

"Tsuchinobu, what's going on?!"

Tsuchinobu lowered his head, his expression a mix of awkwardness and frustration.

"Uh... Lord A, the Two-Tails came back on its own. It..."

"It what?! Stop stammering!" the Raikage roared.

Straightening up immediately, Tsuchinobu replied with a serious face, "Reporting, it came back on its own and willingly went back into the Sealing Fire Cave! When I was chaining it up with the Wind and Thunder Chains, it even told me not to tie it too tightly because it was uncomfortable. It said it just went out to play for a bit!"

The moment he finished speaking, an eerie silence filled the Raikage's office.

The Raikage stared at Tsuchinobu with a strange expression, his eye twitching uncontrollably.

Uncomfortable...

Went out to play...

The Raikage was speechless.

What had happened to the Two-Tails? How had it gotten so... unserious in such a short time?

Was this still the Two-Tails from their village?

What kind of nonsense had the intruder fed it?

The Raikage rubbed his forehead with his right hand, deep in thought.

No, this couldn't go on.

The Two-Tails had to be sealed. They needed a Jinchūriki to contain it!

...

Time flew by, and before anyone knew it, a new day had arrived.

After a night of rest, Rinjin made his way to the Cloud and Thunder Gorge as scheduled.

Today was the third event of the Chūnin Exams: the Taijutsu trial.

The thought of competing against a bunch of kids left Rinjin with a strange expression.

Yesterday, he had beaten up the Two-Tails, and today he was participating in the Chūnin Exams. Wasn't his undercover life getting a bit ridiculous?

The trial began quickly.

Sticking to his persona of not harming his comrades, Rinjin grabbed each opponent by the collar and kicked them out of the ring.

Before long, Rinjin had made it to the finals.

His opponent was none other than the Third Raikage's nephew, the Fourth Raikage's cousin, and the future Jinchūriki of the Eight-Tails, B. Of course, for now, he was still called Fukai.

Soon, Rinjin stepped onto the stage.

Standing across from him was Fukai, his expression as cold as ice.

As the signal to begin sounded, Rinjin remained motionless, standing in place.

Fukai, on the other hand, stared at Rinjin coldly and spoke in a low voice.

"Liar."

"Huh?" Rinjin tilted his head, confused.

"Liar. Let me be blunt—I hate you. You disgust me."

Hearing this, Rinjin was utterly baffled.

What was this about?

While Rinjin was still trying to process what was happening, Fukai continued coldly.

"You're a fraud. All that talk about becoming the strongest shield in front of Lord Raikage—it's laughable."

"Really?" Rinjin scratched his head awkwardly, feeling an uncontrollable urge to dig his toes into the ground.

"And disappearing for two days straight, skipping both the Ninjutsu and Ninja Taijutsu trials—you think I don't know what you're up to? You're trying to skip straight to winning the Taijutsu trial to become a Chūnin. Am I right, liar?"

"Right!" Rinjin nodded repeatedly.

This kid's sharp. Must've been drinking some genius milk as a baby.

"I'll tell you this—it's not happening!" Fukai sneered.

"Why not?" Rinjin asked, genuinely puzzled.

"Because you'll never be the strongest shield. You don't even know Taijutsu!"

With that, Fukai charged at Rinjin with a cold glare, his fist swinging toward him.

The crowd erupted into cheers.

Hearing this, Rinjin quickly raised his hand.

"Wait... wait! What does being the strongest shield have to do with knowing Taijutsu? Isn't it just about being tough enough?"

Fukai froze mid-step, staring at Rinjin like he was an idiot. He sneered, "No Taijutsu, no Ninjutsu—how can you be the strongest spear?"

"Huh? When did I ever say I wanted to be the strongest spear?" Rinjin's scalp tingled as he awkwardly retorted.

"The strongest shield and spear are one and the same."

Looking at Fukai's fervent expression, Rinjin felt a headache coming on.

"Do I really have to be a Spartan warrior? Can't I just be the Shield Hero?"

"Idiot! They're inseparable!"

With that, Fukai swung his fist again, charging at Rinjin.

As the fist closed in on his face, Rinjin finally took off his shoe, letting his bare foot touch the ground.

A soft "crack" echoed.

Before Fukai could react, a thin crack appeared on the stone platform beneath Rinjin's foot, quickly spreading forward.

Moments later, a massive fissure split the platform, and Fukai, unable to dodge, fell right in.