Every tailed beast has lived in this world for countless ages, their chakra exceeding that of hundreds of shinobi combined.
Back in the day, the First Hokage, Senju Hashirama, ended the chaos by dividing the tailed beasts among the villages. Since then, each beast has been treated as a strategic weapon.
Gaara is the current jinchūriki of the One-Tail, Shukaku.
Becoming Shukaku's host is an unbearable torment. The tanuki is bloodthirsty and violent, and worst of all, its jinchūriki can never sleep.
The moment the host falls asleep, Shukaku seizes the chance to emerge and wreak havoc.
That is the reason behind Gaara's heavy, permanent dark circles.
...
Outside Konohagakure, after Gaara used the Feigning Sleep Technique, the monstrous tanuki Shukaku was fully unleashed!!
A beast of such size could destroy an entire village with ease, just like the Nine-Tails' rampage years ago that left Konoha weakened and vulnerable.
Shukaku's rampage was the most critical piece of Sunagakure's invasion plan!
"Locked me up for so long—and now I'm free! You're all going to die!! Every last one of you dies!!"
Shukaku's shrill, piercing voice clawed at the ears of everyone who heard it.
In the forest below, Naruto and Sasuke covered their ears.
"Sasuke, what the hell are we supposed to do? What is that monster?" Naruto asked, panic in his voice.
Sasuke scowled. "If you don't know, what makes you think I would?"
Just as they were arguing, Shukaku twitched his massive nose—he'd caught the scent of humans!
The next instant, he opened his jaws wide and slammed his stomach with a giant paw.
"Wind Style: Drilling Air Bullet!"
Whoosh!!
Compressed air blasted out of his mouth in a torrent, surging straight toward where Naruto and Sasuke were hiding.
Trees splintered and snapped under the pressure.
If that high-pressure blast hit a human, the result would be no less than being struck by a tailed beast itself—instant death!
Sasuke yanked Naruto and ran for dear life.
But the more they resisted, the more excited Shukaku became!
He slammed his belly over and over, firing a barrage of air bullets!
...
Suddenly, in the middle of their desperate flight, Naruto skidded to a halt. His eyes twisted into feral, slit pupils.
"Sasuke—we can't just keep running like this!"
A faint red chakra cloak flickered over his body.
Sasuke's eyes widened. "What, so you'd rather just die here?"
"No... maybe there's another way to fight back!"
Naruto bit his thumb, formed the hand seals, and slammed his palm against the ground.
"Summoning Jutsu!!"
During his training at Mount Myōboku, Jiraiya had told Naruto about the terrifying Nine-Tails sealed within him. That was why the villagers had always shunned him since childhood.
Jiraiya had also said that in a dire moment, Naruto could draw on the Nine-Tails' chakra to fight—and that if he used that chakra for a summoning, he could call forth a truly powerful toad.
And now—after the summoning—an enormous crimson-purple toad appeared in the forest!
With a shield strapped to his back and an iron trident in hand, it was none other than Gamaken, Gamabunta's brother!
The moment Gamaken landed, another Drilling Air Bullet screamed toward them.
He whipped out his shield and blocked the shockwave just in time!
"Oi! Don't summon me at times like this! If that had hit me head-on, it would've hurt like hell," Gamaken grumbled.
He glanced down, curious about who had summoned him.
"Huh? Aren't you that red-haired kid's friend? How the heck did you manage to summon me?"
Seeing Naruto, Gamaken blinked in surprise.
"Uh, Gamaken-san, no time to explain! Do you have any way to fight that giant monster over there?" Naruto asked urgently.
...
Just then—
From the direction of the village, a massive disturbance erupted!
Naruto and Sasuke turned, and their jaws dropped at the sight of a colossal wooden giant towering hundreds of meters high!!
"What the hell is that?! (꒪⌓꒪)" Sasuke gasped, terror on his face.
He had lived in the village for more than a decade, but never seen a creature so immense.
"I don't know... but if that thing's on our side, maybe it could squash Gaara's monster with one slap!" Naruto said through clenched teeth.
Gamaken narrowed his eyes toward Konoha.
"Looks like... the First Hokage's Wooden Golem."
Shukaku had also spotted the wooden giant. His eyes filled with horror.
Back in the day, Senju Hashirama had used that very technique to subdue tailed beasts with ease.
Compared to the True Several Thousand Hands' wooden Kannon, a tailed beast was nothing more than a toy—snatched up with a casual swipe.
"Don't tell me... the First Hokage has been revived?! Why am I seeing the Wooden Kannon again?!" Shukaku thought in terror.
He had just tasted freedom—there was no way he wanted that wooden monster interfering!
...
At that moment—
Shinju activated Flying Thunder God, bringing the massive Wooden Buddha directly to Naruto's side outside the village!
BOOM!!!
The towering Kannon of the True Several Thousand Hands appeared!
Naruto, Sasuke, and Gamaken: (꒪⌓꒪) ,∑(✘Д✘๑),(ノ°ο°)ノ
They were completely dumbstruck.
Turned to stone.
"Th-this is... how is this even possible..." Gamaken stammered.
"Is this... the legendary Wood Style? Did the First Hokage really come back to life?" Sasuke muttered.
At that moment, Naruto's eyes snapped to the top of the giant Buddha's head.
There, standing proud with crimson hair flowing—was Shinju.
Naruto froze as if struck by lightning, then shouted, pointing frantically:
"Shinju! Look, it's Shinju! On top of the Wooden Buddha—that's Shinju!!"
Sasuke swallowed hard and followed Naruto's finger. Sure enough, atop the massive statue was that unmistakable red silhouette.
...
They had known Shinju for some time now.
They already knew his ninjutsu talent far exceeded that of normal shinobi. But never—not in their wildest imagination—had they thought Shinju could wield Wood Style.
And not just any Wood Style—this kind of overwhelming, terrifying power!
Unbelievable!!
Explosive!!
...
On the other side, the instant Shukaku saw the True Several Thousand Hands, he turned tail and fled.
He had no intention of letting his hard-won freedom be stolen by that cursed wooden monster.
But Shinju commanded the Wooden Kannon to rise, its colossal arms stretching two to three hundred meters long.
Whoosh!
The giant hand swept down and effortlessly grabbed the fleeing tanuki.
Next to the Wooden Buddha, the tailed beast was no bigger than a housecat in human hands!
After catching Shukaku, Shinju noticed Gaara asleep atop the beast's head.
Determined to get answers, Shinju leapt down from the Buddha's head and drove his fist into Gaara's face!
The punch shattered Gaara's sand armor and jolted him awake—half his face swelling instantly, two molars flying from his mouth.
As Gaara's eyes opened, Shukaku's massive body dissolved into sand and dispersed...
The first thing Gaara saw was Shinju's red hair. Hatred and fear twisted in his gaze.
"You... you... you—"
Before he could finish, Shinju's vines lashed out, binding Gaara's arms and legs. He planned to bring him back to the village for questioning.