Becomes a Rebel Ninja After Annihilating the Hyuga Clan
Chapter 114

“Roar—”

“Roar Roar—”

The frantic roars echoed through the cave.

Uzumaki Hinoka wiped the sweat from her forehead and continued to channel chakra to reinforce the Adamantine Sealing Chains binding Isobu, the Three-Tails.

As time passed, Isobu’s enraged roars gradually weakened. The earlier signs of it breaking free from the seal became less frequent. Nonetheless, Hinoka remained vigilant.

Isobu's strength was quickly diminishing for some unknown reason, but even though Hinoka was an Uzumaki, her chakra wasn’t infinite. There was still a significant chance of Isobu breaking the seal.

“If not for Lord Hashirama’s secret support, Isobu would have broken free by now…” Hinoka exhaled.

This was easy to deduce.

This wasn’t one of the bizarre summoning beasts from the Island of Forgetfulness, but a Tailed Beast standing at the pinnacle of all summoning beasts. She struggled to seal the rapidly growing “Ultimate Summoning Beast,” let alone a fully formed Tailed Beast.

If not for Isobu’s initial weakness and Hashirama’s assistance from below the cold abyss, Hinoka could never have held out this long.

“Ah—”

A clear male voice suddenly came from below.

Hinoka was startled and looked down to see the previously icy cold abyss bubbling like it was boiling. Thin mist spread, and the massive form of Isobu undulated in the abyss, its head emerging and speaking in a human voice:

“Hashirama—”

“—Neiki!!”

“—Madara!!”

Isobu repeatedly called these three names angrily. Hinoka, unaware of the other two names besides Hashirama, was astonished that Isobu could speak.

—She didn’t know that Yagura Karatachi was a perfect jinchuriki.

The Three-Tails couldn’t speak, but the perfect jinchuriki could.

Yes, Yagura’s consciousness had finally awakened.

—Naturally born Tailed Beasts aren’t dominant in the natural world; they are just large chakra conglomerates. In fact, any large concentration of chakra will exhibit some basic effects.

It’s like a single stone can’t grow plants, but mountains formed by countless stones are often covered in greenery.

Tailed Beasts, rich in chakra, are inherently dangerous, but unless their chakra levels reach the scale of the Eight-Tails or Nine-Tails, their danger is generally acceptable to many large shinobi villages.

This is mainly because Tailed Beasts cannot control their wild nature. Although they possess significant intelligence, being smart is one thing, but controlling their instincts or curbing their arrogance to use their intelligence is another.

The difference between humans and beasts lies in the ability to control one's desires.

In front of humans, Tailed Beasts, which are rich in chakra and loyal to their desires, are just stronger beasts.

Only when integrated with a jinchuriki do the Tailed Beasts’ wild instincts get suppressed by human rationality, making them clear-headed and rational. Their precise chakra control becomes exceptional due to the jinchuriki's skills, much like a brute finding the right technique to exert force.

Tailed Beasts imprisoned within jinchuriki, having learned rationality, become exponentially more dangerous.

For example, now sensing that Hinoka was key to maintaining the seal, the giant turtle, realizing it couldn’t break free from the Adamantine Chains, suddenly stared up at Hinoka.

Then, with a furious roar:

“Die!!”

In the cold abyss, giant waves surged, and countless water droplets turned into needles shooting towards Hinoka.

“Even after being sealed with the Adamantine Chains, it can still use chakra…” Hinoka was astonished, then hurriedly dodged.

The water needles were small but sharp, turning the stone walls behind her into sieves. Though she tried to dodge, the needles’ coverage was too vast, and Yagura’s control compressed her space to maneuver.

The mountain was collapsing, the painstakingly maintained Adamantine Chains breaking inch by inch. Hinoka’s body was covered in tiny wounds. Though the wounds weren’t large, their cumulative effect, with the blood spilling out, looked particularly tragic. The water needles were hard to avoid, turning Hinoka into a bloody figure!

Despite this, Hinoka stubbornly summoned new Adamantine Chains amidst her dodging, preventing Isobu from escaping the cold abyss below.

“Sealing Jutsu: Adamantine Sealing Chains!”

Hinoka’s body felt numb, a symptom of blood loss from the numerous non-lethal but numerous small wounds. Her condition was dire, but she believed the talking Three-Tails below was in worse shape!

She didn’t need to hold out long; she just needed to last longer than the Three-Tails!

“You wretched woman!!”

Yagura was furious, his three tails splashing water everywhere. Countless droplets turned into needles shooting towards Hinoka.

If not for the inexplicable loss of most of his chakra and the extreme weakening of Isobu’s aura, how could such a sealing jutsu from such a level of ninja possibly trap him?!!

“I will kill you first, then take revenge on them!! I will tear you all to pieces!!!”

The chains clanked, and the Three-Tails roared, attacking while venting its anger.

“Mr. Hashirama had a reason for trapping you here…” Hinoka took a deep breath.

This Three-Tails had its eyes clouded by hatred. The immense resentment from being manipulated and played with for most of its life had almost become tangible. If it escaped, the entire Land of Waves would indeed be doomed!

This reminded Hinoka of the situation on the Island of Forgetfulness. If the terrifying artificial summoning beast broke free, with its appetite and abilities, it would devastate the entire island, and the countless summoning beasts there would become its prey.

“This kind of thing… I won’t allow it!!”

“Even if it costs my life!!” Hinoka declared firmly.

Countless needles rained down like a storm.

Chapter 116: From Now On, Your Name is Kurome

In this illusory space, everything was gradually being enveloped by an intense, thick whiteness.

Neiki's left hand formed a seal, while countless dark blue chakra waves surged down, eventually being absorbed by his gray-white eyes. The blue chakra swirled into his eyes, resembling the vortex when Obito activated Kamui.

As for Neiki's right hand, a transparent form, identical in color to the dark blue chakra, had begun to take shape, slowly solidifying.

It was as if raw materials were being sent into a factory, processed, and then output as a finished product.

At this moment, the generous dark blue chakra from Isobu, the Three-Tails, served as the raw material for the transparent form under Neiki's right hand, while Neiki's eyes and body acted as the factory itself, working hard to create this unique product.

Unlike replicating a kunai or standard long sword, replicating Neiki himself using the Byakugan's copying ability, though possible, took far more time and chakra than anticipated. Neiki was unsure of the criteria for the chakra and time required by the copying ability. Was it the complexity of the object being copied, or were there other factors at play? Or perhaps it was a combination of multiple reasons?

Neiki didn't know, but fortunately, with Isobu as his chakra provider for the experiment, the situation was manageable. If the chakra wasn't enough, he could cut into Isobu again for a second or third round. A Tailed Beast's chakra was hundreds or thousands of times more than a ninja's, so it was hard for Neiki to truly exhaust Isobu’s chakra.

As time passed, the dark blue shadow below gradually took on Neiki's appearance, with facial features like eyes, nose, and mouth, followed by the body and limbs.

The skin began to lose its transparency, and clothes seemed to grow from the body. The previously blue chakra condensed hands and feet began to differentiate into five distinct fingers and toes, like some kind of detailed supplement. Even the intricate details of the ears became increasingly clear.

Seeing this ethereal body becoming more and more like himself, Neiki felt a strange sensation. It was unlike looking in a mirror, but rather like witnessing his own birth, with thoughts like, “There is suddenly a second me in the world,” and “If he is Neiki, then who am I?” swirling in his mind.

Fortunately, these thoughts were merely idle musings. Philosophical reflection is meant for solving philosophical problems and does not serve as a guiding principle for specific actions.

Especially since the body Neiki was creating could not replicate the Byakugan. Even though it resembled Neiki by about seventy to eighty percent, the emptiness in its pupils was quite conspicuous.

Even in questioning his own philosophical existence, this body was no more qualified to question than a standard shadow clone.

Outside, the previously quiet world suddenly echoed with Yagura's roar.

Followed by the loud sounds of rock collapsing and spring water gushing.

Neiki did not react, still focused on extracting Isobu’s chakra to complete his work, as if he were crafting a delicate piece of art.

As the external sounds grew louder, the replication process neared its end. The body in Neiki's hands, except for the eyes, was now almost identical to himself.

Finally, with a “ding,” the replication was complete. Neiki exhaled heavily, massaging his tired eyes while examining the result.

Possibly due to the extensive use of Isobu's chakra, this body, aside from its outward appearance identical to Neiki, showed various internal differences, both obvious and subtle.

For instance, while Neiki's chakra nature was lightning, the replicated body's chakra nature was water.

Due to perfectly integrating Hashirama's cells, Neiki's physique had significantly strengthened, allowing him to use Wood Release. However, the replicated body showed no signs of incorporating Hashirama's cells, let alone using Wood Release. Compared to Neiki, the replica's demeanor and physique were more delicate and gentle, more akin to Neiki during the night of rebellion.

This made Neiki somewhat dissatisfied. Despite following the analysis results, why couldn't the Byakugan replicate, and why couldn't Hashirama's cells replicate?

The discrepancies between the replica and Neiki indicated that different chakra natures involved in the replication process indeed caused varying results.

Neiki conducted various examinations of the replica until he suddenly exclaimed:

“Huh, what’s this…?”

As if discovering something astonishing, Neiki abruptly raised his hand, placing it on the replica's head. Following his command, the replica extended its hand and slowly formed a seal.

In the next second.

The bubbling red chakra cloak instantly covered the entire replica!

Yes!

The initial mode of Tailed Beast transformation, originally exclusive to jinchuriki—borrowing chakra—was now possible for the replica!!

“And it seems there's more…”

Neiki murmured. Indeed, as he altered his hand seals, the semi-transparent chakra cloak around the replica gradually transformed into an opaque dark red Tailed Beast cloak.

Watching the replica, now in a semi-Tailed Beast state, on all fours and almost unrecognizable as human, Neiki pursed his lips, feeling indescribable emotions.

Initially regretting the replica's inability to use Wood Release, he now saw potential.

“Due to absorbing too much of Isobu’s chakra, it can directly enter a semi-Tailed Beast state…”

Such cases existed in shinobi history. The most famous being the brothers Kinkaku and Ginkaku from Kumogakure, known as the “Two Lights of the Clouds.” After being swallowed by the Nine-Tails, they survived by eating its flesh and blood inside its stomach. Unable to endure the pain, the Nine-Tails expelled them after a month, granting them the ability to enter a semi-Tailed Beast state.

The replica’s ability to enter this state was evidently for similar reasons, even more thorough, as the entire body was infused with Isobu’s chakra.

This discovery made Neiki's eyes light up.

Because if the Three-Tails' chakra could produce a replica capable of semi-Tailed Beast transformation, then the chakra of other Tailed Beasts could likely do the same.

This wasn’t a compulsive need to gather replicas with the attributes of all nine Tailed Beasts, but the original intention behind creating the replicas was to combine them with Neiki's newly awakened fourth ability—synthesis, to merge himself with the replica, thus exponentially increasing his power while maintaining his sanity and normalcy.

Different Tailed Beasts' chakra attributes were highly tempting for Neiki. If the synthesis succeeded, merging two different chakra natures could produce a Kekkei Genkai, while three or more would result in Kekkei Tota, greatly enhancing the basic five nature transformations.

Neiki's thoughts raced, and his focus sharpened.

The replica had no thoughts or will of its own. It was just a specific state of Neiki at a particular moment, a thin slice extracted and made independent.

Bringing it to life, transitioning it from static to dynamic, was something Neiki could do effortlessly.

Raising his hand, three white vines grew from the ground. Two of them pierced into the empty eye sockets of the replica, pushing two ghostly white eyeballs into place. The third vine stabbed into the replica's chest, embedding the Byakugan curse mark onto its heart.

With the infusion of nutrients, the replica's heart began to beat slowly, then faster. It started to move slightly, blood seeping from its eyes, a sign that Neiki's will, through the Byakugan Divine Tree, was taking over the body.

Three minutes later, the replica finally ceased its “struggle.” It and Neiki, like two sides of a mirror, smiled at each other.

“From now on, your name is ‘Kurome,’ and you are a member of the Akatsuki.”