Chapter 92: The Raikage's Concern
Morning.
Konoha.
Outside the Hokage's office, Kato Dan, with his signature blue hair, arrived early.
Knock knock!
"Come in."
"Hokage-sama."
The Third Hokage looked up from his documents. Upon seeing Kato Dan, a hint of pleased surprise crossed his face. He removed the pipe from his mouth, stood up, and with a slightly guilty expression said, "Dan, you've made your decision already?"
"I have, Hokage-sama."
Kato Dan nodded firmly, without hesitation. Standing tall, he declared, "My answer is the same as last night. For the safety of Konoha, I am willing to learn that jutsu—even if it means perishing with the enemy."
"I'm lucky Konoha has a shinobi as brave and responsible as you."
The Third nodded in satisfaction, circled around his desk, and placed his firm hands on Dan's shoulders. With a sigh, he added, "It's a heavy burden, child."
Hearing those words stirred something within Dan. He subconsciously straightened his back and responded resolutely, "It's not a burden—it's the duty of every Konoha shinobi. I'm fortunate to sacrifice myself for Konoha."
"Good boy!"
The Third Hokage patted his shoulders again, then returned to the desk, pulling out a scroll from the drawer—the Reaper Death Seal—and handed it to Dan.
"Konoha's future safety will rest on you."
"I will master the Reaper Death Seal as soon as possible and eliminate Li Yao for the good of the village."
Dan solemnly received the scroll and departed.
Last night, the moment Dan returned to Konoha, the Third had informed him about Li Yao—and why he had been recalled.
At that time, Dan had expressed the same unwavering determination to learn the Reaper Death Seal and to die with Li Yao if needed.
"What a fine young man…"
"It seems my decision was right all along."
The Third was extremely pleased with Dan's loyalty.
Back when he rewrote the Will of Fire and had it canonized as a school textbook—mandatory daily reading for all academy students—he'd been somewhat anxious about how overt it all was.
He had worried the plan might face resistance. Fortunately, few seemed to take the book seriously.
By the time anyone realized the indoctrination had taken root, it was too late. Even Lady Mito hadn't objected, and with no protest from the clan heads, there was nothing left to say.
Dan's unwavering resolve now proved how wise that decision had been.
He wasn't the first child willing to die for Konoha, and he wouldn't be the last.
The Third Hokage believed many more shinobi who inherited the Will of Fire would step forward, and that Konoha would become even stronger.
And with that, his own position as Hokage would become unshakable.
The Uchiha still wanted to challenge him? Laughable.
…
Kumogakure, Cloud and Thunder Canyon.
The Valley of Clouds and Thunder—location of Kumogakure.
At this moment, in the surrounding mountains, deafening explosions rang out. Even from kilometers away, the earth's tremors could be felt.
"Disgusting human!"
"Stop dodging like a damn rat!"
The Eight-Tails roared, pounding the ground furiously with its massive fists. But no matter how hard it struck, a blue, lightning-covered figure danced through its blows with ease, infuriating the beast.
Wrapped in Lightning Release Chakra Mode, the Third Raikage darted about with incredible speed. While dodging the Eight-Tails' blows, he calmly called out, "Hachibi, return to Fukai. You know you can't beat me."
"Bastard!"
"A mere human dares to insult me like this! Who do you think you are—Hashirama?!"
The Eight-Tails' fury exploded again, pounding away even more wildly. Only the man known as the God of Shinobi had ever shamed him like this.
Yet… it was true. He had never once beaten the Third Raikage. The best he'd managed was a draw.
The thought enraged him even further.
Seeing no way to deal with the Raikage's slippery speed, the Eight-Tails leapt into the air, head raised, jaws wide open. A terrifying mass of chakra began condensing in its mouth.
A Tailed Beast Bomb.
But there was no way the Third Raikage would let such a catastrophic attack fall. A single miscalculated angle could blast Kumogakure off the map.
Before the bomb could fully form, the Third Raikage vaulted up and smashed a powerful punch into the Eight-Tails' jaw.
BOOM!
The massive chakra sphere burst in the beast's mouth. Black smoke curled from the corners of its lips as its eyes rolled back. The Eight-Tails fell from the sky and slammed into the ground, completely incapacitated.
Thud!
The Raikage landed beside the beast. Bent slightly forward, he panted heavily as the Lightning Release chakra around his body began to fade.
That one strike had pushed his body to the limit after three days and nights of relentless battle.
But, as always, the berserk Eight-Tails was subdued without casualties.
Soon, the beast's form began shrinking, revealing a man with half white, half dark green hair.
This was Fukai—the current Jinchūriki of the Eight-Tails.
"Boss!"
"Boss!"
Kumogakure's shinobi, who had been watching from a distance, quickly rushed in. The sealing squad moved to reinforce the seal on Fukai, while others surrounded the Raikage.
In Kumogakure, everyone called the Raikage "Boss" instead of "Raikage-sama."
"I'm fine."
The Raikage waved off his son's support and stepped over to Fukai.
"Is he okay?" he asked.
"He's stabilized. No life-threatening injuries," replied the captain of the sealing squad.
"Good…" the Raikage nodded, finally relaxing as he watched the squad restore the seal. "Let's go home."
Back in the village, once Fukai was safely secured, the sealing squad captain followed the Raikage into the office.
"Tell me—what caused this?"
Standing at the window, the Third Raikage looked down over the village and asked.
"Boss," the captain began, "it was a fusion error in the chakra suppression seal. The Eight-Tails' chakra overpowered Fukai's consciousness, taking control of his body and going berserk."
Taming a Tailed Beast had always involved two core challenges:
First—how to seal its massive chakra within a Jinchūriki.
This required not only a compatible host but an immensely strong sealing technique.
Second—how to suppress the Tailed Beast's chakra from eroding the host's own.
Even while borrowing power, the Jinchūriki's chakra was constantly under siege. It was a mental tug-of-war that lasted a lifetime.
If the host's will lost ground, the beast would consume them entirely.
Fukai's predecessor had failed that test—becoming nothing more than the Eight-Tails' nourishment.
That's why a sealing technique wasn't enough. They needed one that not only trapped chakra, but also repelled it.
Kumogakure had long been behind in sealing arts. Most of the time, they had no choice but to trap the Eight-Tails inside the Amber Purifying Pot—rarely finding a Jinchūriki who could hold it.
So when Iwagakure suggested joining forces to destroy Uzushiogakure, even though they were mortal enemies, Kumo had agreed without hesitation.
After the war, they gained access to many of the Uzumaki clan's sealing techniques.
Unfortunately, most of the advanced ones had been destroyed. They were left with only the basics.
Even so, those basics dramatically raised Kumo's sealing knowledge.
Given enough time, they believed they could recreate superior sealing methods.
This latest berserk incident happened while modifying the seal inside Fukai's body.
"How long will it take to fix?" the Raikage asked, turning around.
"Uh…" the captain hesitated. Seeing that, the Raikage waved it off. "Forget it. Dismissed."
Perfecting the seal to control the Eight-Tails was now a race against time.
The Raikage hadn't forgotten—they weren't the only ones who had obtained Uzumaki sealing knowledge.
Iwagakure and Kirigakure had also taken a great deal during that battle.
Especially Iwagakure—their greatest rival.
If Iwa succeeded first, if they created a host who could perfectly control a Tailed Beast like Mito had, they wouldn't hesitate to unleash it against Kumogakure.
Two Iwa Jinchūriki launching Tailed Beast Bombs from afar?
That kind of power could annihilate an entire nation.
So—before Iwa succeeded—Kumo had to develop a perfect sealing technique of its own.
(END CHAPTER)
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