Almost instantly, the Nine-Tails' chakra began to surge wildly through Setsuna's meridians.
The Nine-Tails had been preparing for this moment for a very long time.
Now, thanks to a freak accident—Namikaze Minato using Flying Thunder God to pull both Setsuna and Kushina out of the sealing barrier—it had seized this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity without hesitation.
Pain.
So much pain.
Unbearable pain.
Setsuna felt as though he had been thrown into a boiling cauldron. His entire body burned from the inside out, agony flooding every nerve.
And along with the pain, a voice echoed endlessly in his mind.
Look…
They imprisoned you…
Locked you inside this cage…
They pretend it's for your own good—
But in truth, they're only afraid of our power…
Come.
Let's destroy it.
Destroy them.
Destroy Konoha.
Destroy this disgusting village!!
Setsuna clutched his head tightly, desperately holding onto the last shred of clarity he had left. Staggering, almost crawling, he forced himself toward the outside.
No…
No…
Not here.
I can't rampage here…
This is a residential area…
If I lose control here, it's over.
So many people will die…
As far as I can get…
Even one step farther…
Seeing Setsuna sway unsteadily, his posture barely holding together, Wave instinctively thought he was sick. She hurried forward, reaching out to support him.
But a hand pressed firmly down on her shoulder.
Namikaze Minato stared at the struggling child with a grave, shocked expression.
That chakra—
There was no mistaking it.
It was the Nine-Tails.
Minato's own son, Namikaze Menma, was a jinchūriki. He knew this chakra better than anyone.
To suppress the Nine-Tails purely through one's own will…
This child—
Though Minato didn't yet understand why this child was a jinchūriki, he knew one thing for certain:
He had made a terrible mistake.
"Wave, don't go over there,"
Minato said softly.
"Leave this to me."
But Wave stood frozen, staring at the boy dragging himself away, his movements desperate and broken. Her azure eyes trembled with panic.
Sharp as she was, the signs were impossible to miss—the unstable posture, the suffocating, ominous chakra filling the air.
She remembered what the Third Hokage had once told her.
Setsuna didn't just carry the Nine-Tails…
He carried the weight of the entire village.
Tears welled up and spilled from Wave's eyes.
She had known the Nine-Tails was powerful—terrifyingly so—but only now, feeling that chakra firsthand, did she truly understand.
So this…
This is the Nine-Tails…
Setsuna…
You've been enduring this pain alone all this time…
How…
How did you even manage to do it…?
Wave took a step forward instinctively—
And in that instant, Setsuna let out a feral, beast-like roar toward the sky!
The violent howl shattered every window in the surrounding residential area!
A massive wave of chakra erupted from Setsuna's body, condensing into a tangible shroud that completely engulfed him!
Impossible?!
He skipped the chakra-cloak stage entirely and jumped straight into the Four-Tails state!
Minato stared in horror at the spherical mass of chakra before him, his heart sinking.
He had handled many emergency Nine-Tails rampages before.
But every time, Menma would first go through the one-tail, two-tail, three-tail cloak stages—only then approaching four tails.
Once a jinchūriki reached four tails, their danger level skyrocketed.
But this—
This was the first time Minato had ever seen something like this.
There was only one explanation.
This child was innately compatible with the Nine-Tails.
His body could accept the Nine-Tails' power far too smoothly.
For a jinchūriki, that was both a blessing and a curse.
The blessing: mastering the tailed beast's power would be easier.
The curse: before that mastery, once the beast rampaged, it could seize control of the body with terrifying ease.
The Nine-Tails' rampage instantly alerted Konoha.
Red signal flares exploded one after another in the night sky.
Level One Alert.
Minato looked up at the flares, his expression darkening.
This is really…
A disaster.
"Kushina, assist me,"
Minato said instinctively to his wife.
But then he noticed—something was wrong.
Kushina stood frozen, staring at the black chakra sphere. Tears flowed uncontrollably from her clear gray-brown eyes.
She felt it.
The pain this child was enduring.
So that's how it is…
No wonder his chakra was identical to hers.
No wonder he felt so much like herself.
I see now…
This child is me.
Kushina could clearly sense it—
Even while suffering pain like boiling water pouring over his body, Setsuna's only thought was to escape somewhere far from crowded areas.
"Minato,"
Kushina wiped away her tears and spoke firmly.
"We need to save him."
"…Yes,"
Minato replied just as resolutely.
"That's exactly what I intend to do."
Cracks—white, jagged fissures—spread across the pitch-black chakra sphere, like a chick breaking free from its shell.
As the fractures multiplied, a crimson, bestial claw burst out—no longer human in shape at all!
"Now!"
Minato shouted, disappearing in a flash.
"Adamantine Sealing Chains!"
Kushina's gaze hardened. Her hands flew through seals as dozens of golden chains erupted from her body, forming a vast net that surged toward Setsuna—now fully transformed into a small Four-Tails Nine-Tails—from all directions!
She had long since mastered Adamantine Sealing Chains. Normally, seals weren't even necessary.
But this time, she did form them.
Because a version activated with hand seals was far stronger than one without.
"ROAR!!!"
The four-tailed Nine-Tails let out a furious howl, swinging its beast-like claws.
A violent gale erupted from nowhere, and the golden chains actually showed signs of being blown apart!
Kushina's expression sharpened. She forcefully stabilized the chains, and they shot forward like arrows loosed from a bow!
At the same time, Minato perfectly synchronized with his wife.
A massive Rasengan formed in his hand—
And he slammed it down onto the Nine-Tails' back!
Pain!
So much pain!
Kushina felt as if she heard Setsuna's scream.
Her chakra faltered for a split second.
Just that instant—
The chains, moments away from fully binding the Nine-Tails, hesitated in midair.
See?
Kid, they don't care about how you feel at all…
They just want to drag you back into your cage…
Come.
Let's destroy this village together…
The voice echoed again in Setsuna's mind, a devil's whisper.
Shut up…
Shut up…
Shut up!!
I don't want this…
I don't want to become this…
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