Chapter 75: Saiken
Arthur's victory over Utakata wasn't a mere display of power; it was a show of his skill and strategy.
The key to his triumph lay in his unique combination of abilities.
Sage Mode, a powerful transformation granting heightened senses, allowed him to predict Utakata's attacks with impeccable accuracy.
This precognition was further enhanced by his Tamashii, which enabled him to see the subtle shifts in Utakata's body, revealing the Jinchūriki's intentions before they even materialized.
But Arthur wasn't just gifted with exceptional perception. He wielded a truly unique arsenal—six extraordinary weapons, each with a specific purpose.
Witnessing him fight was like watching an athletic army veteran dance. He'd switch between all his weapons seamlessly, exploiting every weakness Utakata presented.
The Blunt Blade's devastating hammer and axe provided close-quarters dominance, exploiting Utakata's momentary openings.
The Long Blade had a wide range of flexibility due to its wires, allowing Arthur to make last-second decisions even while in mid-air.
Hiramekarei was like a sturdy shield, protecting him from Utakata's acidic assault. This also highlighted Arthur's tactical awareness.
The Executioner's Blade was able to unleash devastating attacks that were strong enough to sever the tails. Of course, Arthur had been embedding chakra into it.
Finally, the Boltswords, wielded with precise control, bore natural lightning chakra to neutralize the beast. They were his only weapons that were broken after the end.
Perhaps he could repair them, but it would take a lot of resources—something he didn't have at the moment.
The fight itself wasn't merely a victory; it was a turning point.
Arthur understood the importance of pushing his limits. The prior weeks had been grueling, dedicated to refining his skills even further.
He strived to perfect his Simian Sage Mode, extending its duration and allowing even greater control over his chakra. Weapon tactic drills had become a daily ritual, perfecting his form and his ability to switch between his unique blades.
Finally, he had focused on refining his chakra control, ensuring every attack unleashed the full potential of his diverse arsenal.
This focused training, combined with his already formidable skills, propelled him to this current level.
He wouldn't just be a respected shinobi; he'd become a legend, a figure whose name would inspire awe and even fear throughout the world.
That is, if he wanted to be famous. But he wasn't looking for fame, nor did he care for it. What he needed was to lay low for as long as possible.
Otherwise, the other players would find him, choosing to erase his character. And if they succeeded at that, he would die in real life.
In a remote location.
Arthur, in his Sage Mode, wasted no time. He retrieved the pre-prepared seal from his pouch and walked toward Utakata's unconscious form.
A few hours ago, after his chakra replenished, he teleported both himself and the Jinchūriki back to the spot where he had readied the ritual.
Placing the seal directly over Utakata's chest, he began weaving the hand signs necessary for activation.
'Tailed beast removal jutsu…'
The chakra flowed smoothly, despite never having used this technique before. As the final sign was completed, the symbols on the seal glowed crimson.
Arthur held his breath as the seal flared, tendrils of red light radiating toward the sky.
To his surprise, the extraction process went remarkably smoothly. Unlike other high-chakra-cost forbidden techniques, this one seemed almost effortless, requiring minimal control.
He reached out and touched the center of where he placed the seal on Utakata's chest. His fingers phased through it as if passing through water.
Then he felt something writhing within. With a swift movement, he grasped the formless entity, causing Utakata to wake up and scream!
His voice ripped through the stillness of the night. The seal continued to pulse red in response, momentarily threatening to overload.
But it didn't matter. Arthur maintained his control. More so, they were far out from civilization, on a part of an island where no one was around for hundreds of miles.
Utakata's scream turned bloodcurdling as the ethereal form of the Six-Tails, Saiken, was ripped free from his body. The energy skyrocketed to the sky, somersaulting in the air before solidifying into a giant oozing an unknown substance from its body.
The sheer size of the Tailed Beast was overwhelming. Towering over Arthur, Saiken's massive form was a grotesque amalgamation of a white slug.
This was the power Arthur had read about, witnessing firsthand for the first time. Unlike the sleek, streamlined form presented in the character selection screen of the game, Saiken was a monstrosity of white flesh.
Its slime gleamed under the moonlight, dripping and reeking of decay.
Several gaping maws lined its body, each one emitting a low growl that was enough to make grown men cry.
The raw power radiating from a Tailed Beast was almost palpable—a thick, oppressive aura that felt like a physical weight on his chest.
The primal instinct that emanated from Saiken was simply overwhelming—pure chakra—and Arthur couldn't fathom how anyone could have a Tailed Beast inside of them.
To become a Jinchūriki meant housing this kind of creature? It was a creature honed for destruction—a living weapon yearning to unleash its fury upon the world.
For characters to become hosts for one of these devils was impossible to believe.
Then Arthur's thoughts shifted to Naruto Uzumaki. If Saiken was the sixth strongest and the Nine-Tails was the second (first being the Ten-Tails), Naruto himself was truly a force to be reckoned with.
Curiously, Saiken's first action wasn't to attack Arthur. Instead, it turned its massive head and focused on Utakata's lifeless form.
A primal growl rumbled in its throat, filled with something akin to disgust.
Arthur, momentarily stunned, understood.
Like many Tailed Beasts, Saiken despised its Jinchūriki, trapped within the host's body for years, used as a weapon by shinobi.
Its initial instinct wasn't to fight its way to freedom but to eliminate the host that served as its prison.
This mirrored the story of the Nine-Tails and Kushina Uzumaki. The fox devil, upon its release, had also attempted to kill its host before Minato intervened.
Saiken opened its gaping maws, unleashing a torrent of noxious fumes. The acidic cloud engulfed Utakata's body, dissolving flesh and rock alike at an alarming rate.
Arthur watched as even the sturdy earth began to melt away.
It would have been profitable had the beast not done that, for he could have collected Utakata's bounty.
He wasn't exactly sure what to expect.
A dramatic battle between himself and the Tailed Beast? Perhaps a desperate plea from Utakata for his life? But the truth was far more horrifying.
This wasn't a noble warrior trapped within a man; it was a creature of pure destruction, and its initial target was its own Jinchūriki.
Saiken watched with detached amusement as the last vestiges of Utakata dissolved into a noxious puddle. It then let out a rumble, the sound vibrating through the earth.
Then, with a suddenness that startled Arthur, the giant Tailed Beast whipped its head around, focusing its face on the small figure standing on a nearby rock formation.
"Y'all think that was somethin' to watch?" Saiken's voice squealed out, unexpectedly high-pitched and laced with a thick Southern drawl.
Arthur blinked, momentarily speechless. Everything he'd read about Saiken spoke only of its destructive power and ferocious nature. Nowhere did it mention the peculiar dialect or surprising conversational tone.
Arthur kept his composure steady and asked, "Are you happy with what you just did?"
Saiken chuckled, causing a geyser of foul-smelling fluid to erupt from one of its many mouths, splattering harmlessly onto the ground below. The scene was enough to scare away an entire village.
"Happy? Me? Don't be ridiculous, kid. That vessel was nothin' but a cage. Now I'm free!"
Tis the end of all Jinchūriki that didn't have a proper bond with their Tailed Beast. While Saiken might have been written to help Utakata on many accounts, that didn't mean the beast liked him.
Arthur, seizing the opportunity, continued to put his plans into motion.
'Sage art: enhancing flattery…'
He pressed on with a carefully modulated voice, saying, "It wasn't my purpose to harm you, Saiken."
When Saiken heard its name, it paused and bellowed, "Whoa there, hold y'er horses! Not that I'm mad since you couldn't scratch me if ya tried, but 'Saiken?!' How'd ya know that?"
"I know about your creator," he continued, pushing out more Sage Chakra. "Hagoromo Ōtsutsuki, the Sage of Six Paths. He believed that one day someone would come along and unite the Tailed Beasts, not for war but for peace."
A tremour ran through Saiken's massive form. The playful aggression had been replaced by a curious silence. It was clearly tense, not having expected this.
With every passing moment, however, Arthur could feel the edges of his Sage Mode begin to fray. He knew he had to secure Saiken's agreement quickly.
"The world is a cruel place, Saiken," he said, feigning sincerity. "Ninjas treat you and your kin as nothing more than weapons. Only by working together can we break free from this cycle of violence."
Saiken didn't respond, but its enormous body turned slowly. Yet, not fully.
Arthur had to say more and push his genjutsu further. So he announced, "Serve me, Saiken. Help me create a world where the power of the Tailed Beasts is used for good, not destruction."
A long, agonizing silence followed. Then, with a deafening rumble that echoed across the landscape, Saiken turned its massive body fully away from Arthur.
The genjutsu had taken hold!
His Sage Mode finally sputtered out, leaving him vulnerable. But it hadn't mattered. Saiken's will had changed.
"Alright, alright, settle down there," Saiken drawled, facing him again. "Ya seem like a persuasive fella. Ya got y'erself a deal. I believe in ya, so I'll stick around for a while, see what kind of world ya plan on buildin'."
Arthur sagged against the rock, his body exhausted from today's events. There was no denying how grand this occasion was.
He had done it. He had not only subdued the Six-Tails, but he had also, through a mix of strategic plays, gained a powerful ally.
Saiken lowered its giant head, surprisingly close to Arthur's small frame. He knew what it wanted—to be petted.
Arthur remained idle at first. This Tailed Beast was now his to take care of. But he still wouldn't underestimate it since, at the end of the day, it was still a devil.
He channeled a thin layer of chakra around his hand, ensuring a protective barrier between his skin and the creature's slime-covered body. Tentatively, he reached out and patted Saiken's massive head.
The Tailed Beast let out a contented rumble that shook the ground beneath them.
"Haha! I like your touch?" it said.
Arthur retracted his hand, maintaining his serious demeanour and said, "There's something you must do for me, Saiken."
The amusement vanished, replaced by a solemn attentiveness.
"Anything, kid… Ugh… Hey, what's y'er name again?"
Arthur, who explained things to Saiken earlier, had managed to sway the beast without even giving it his name. Telling him something to allude it wouldn't benefit him, so he revealed it.
"Arthur, aye?! Well, Arthur, ya just say the word."
"The other Tailed Beasts haven't been found yet," he explained, laying out his plan. "A task of mine is to locate them all. Some of them will likely be hostile and unwilling to cooperate."
"So, you're saying..." Saiken squealed. "I might have to fight my brothers and sisters?"
Arthur met the beast's gaze and said, "That's a possibility. But it wouldn't be for conquest. It would be to free them from the cycle of violence that has plagued them for so long."
Saiken pondered this for a moment. The notion of fighting its kin was jarring, unnatural. But Arthur's conviction struck a chord within the Tailed Beast.
"Alright, alright," it finally decided. "I'll fight. As long as you're safe, I'm in."
Arthur couldn't help but be impressed. Saiken's willingness to put aside his reservations for the sake of his goal demonstrated how loyal the beast had become.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone