Chương 76: Tailed Beasts
"Good," he said. "Now, we need to form a summoning contract."
Saiken let out a surprised snort and said, "Summoning contract? You want to call on me whenever you need me?"
"That's right," he confirmed, summoning an empty scroll from his pouch. "With a contract, we can work together more efficiently. You'll be able to lend your power when needed, and I can ensure your safety."
Saiken considered this, its enormous head swaying back and forth. To it, Arthur was indeed a complex character.
The idea of being readily available seemed slightly strange, almost domestic. But the promise of safety—of not being used as a weapon—was a lure.
As such, it stretched out one of its long, slimy tentacles. It oozed a glowing turquoise substance at the tip, extending it towards Arthur.
He placed his hand, palm open, beneath the dripping essence. The sensation felt strange, like tingling electricity.
He gritted his teeth, enduring the momentary discomfort.
With his other hand, he unfurled the scroll. Using a brush dipped in Saiken's essence, he inscribed a summoning sigil onto its surface. As he finished the final stroke, a faint blue light emanated from the inscription.
He then channeled his chakra, performing the hand signs for a basic summoning technique. The scroll glowed brightly in response before suddenly curling up and vanishing in a puff of smoke.
To perform a summoning contract wasn't at all that difficult. To be fair, only one character in the Narutoverse had ever summoned a Tailed Beast without being a Jinchūriki—Madara Uchiha.
Arthur had always wondered how this was possible. Until he remembered the discrepancies in this world and that certain things, like summoning a Tailed Beast without the Sharingan were conceivable, he at least had to test it.
Of course, if it failed, he had other methods to call upon Saiken.
He watched intently as the smoke slowly cleared, revealing an empty space.
"I hope ya don't summon me to the desert," Saiken laughed.
Arthur ignored it to focus mentally. Then, a faint tingling sensation spread through his body, forming a connection between him and the Tailed Beast.
He concentrated further, picturing Saiken's massive form. After breaking that mental connection, it was undeniable that he could now summon the beast. Albeit, at the cost of an excessive amount of chakra.
The contract was a success.
Saiken, towering over him once again, rumbled a low, curious sound. It was clearly in need of attention.
Arthur addressed it directly in a firm voice, saying, "Before I leave, it's important you understand one thing. This land belongs to me."
Its massive head whipped around in surprise. Then it turned back to say in a high-pitched laugh: "Haha! A child owns this whole place? Now that's somethin' I ain't expect!"
Arthur ignored the praise and continued in a serious tone, "I'm telling you this because I don't want you causing any unnecessary trouble. Understand?"
The beast chuckled, practically causing his cells to vibrate.
"Trouble? Me? Nah, Arthur. I ain't here to stir up any dust. Besides, causing trouble ain't exactly my cup of tea anymore."
Arthur surveyed the desolate landscape surrounding them and said, "That's good to hear... This location… I picked it specifically for you. You'll be free to roam as you please."
He gestured around at the barren mountains and rocky terrain—a perfect dwelling for a giant slug.
"Because this land belongs to me, it will be officially closed off. No travelers, merchants, or solicitors will be allowed entry."
"So, you're givin' me my own private island, huh? Now that ain't half bad. As long as nobody comes botherin' me, I'll be happy as a clam."
Arthur nodded. This specific island was far from the main land. If the beast abided by the agreement, it wouldn't be disturbed.
"Just remember, Saiken," he warned. "Trouble won't find you if you don't go looking for it."
The Tailed Beast let out a low growl, a sound that could be interpreted as either agreement or annoyance. Arthur wasn't entirely sure which.
Either way, Saiken seemed content with the arrangement. With a final glance at the hulking slug, he turned and wished the beast well.
He still had a long journey ahead of him.
As he turned to walk a fair distance away, he considered things.
What he had told Saiken was that he was going after the rest of its brothers and sisters. Like the Akatsuki, he knew that to truly control the world, one needed a large abundance of chakra—enough that no one could stop.
And the only thing that carried enough chakra to fulfill his dreams of destroying this world was the Ten-Tails.
Long ago, Hagoromo Ōtsutsuki split the Ten-Tails' chakra into nine entities, the Tailed Beasts, to maintain peace. Unfortunately, men viewed them as monsters and sought to harness their power for themselves.
This led to a cycle of hatred and conflict.
The Tailed Beasts were eventually sealed within hosts, now known as Jinchūriki. However, the Akatsuki sought to capture all the Tailed Beasts for their own nefarious purposes.
This led to the Jinchūriki's eventual sacrifice.
Despite their suffering, the Tailed Beasts eventually found a glimmer of hope in Naruto Uzumaki because the main character treated them with respect and compassion.
Naruto's determination to understand and protect them led to a bond of trust and friendship.
While the Tailed Beasts were once feared and hated, they eventually found peace and acceptance toward the end of the story.
Some, like the Nine-Tails and the Eight-Tails, chose to stay with their respective Jinchūriki, Naruto and Killer B, while others returned to roam the ninja world freely.
It's important to note that the Tailed Beasts are not mindless monsters but rather intelligent beings with their own personalities and emotions. This was evident in seeing how Saiken interacted with Arthur.
The list of Tailed Beasts are as follows:
Shukaku, a one-tailed Japanese raccoon dog with a sand-based ability; Matatabi, a two-tailed devil cat with fire-based abilities; Isobu, a three-tailed giant sea turtle with water-based abilities; Gokū, a four-armed, four-tailed monkey with fire, earth, and lava-based abilities; Kokuō, a five-tailed horse with steam-based abilities; Saiken, the six-tailed slug with acidic-based abilities; Chōmei, a seven-tailed insect with wind-based abilities; Gyūki, an eight-tailed giant octopus with ink-based abilities; Kurama, a nine-tailed fox with fire-based abilities; finally, the Ten-Tails, the original and most powerful Tailed Beast, were sealed within the moon.
How the Akatsuki were going to conquer the world was that they were going to revive the Ten-Tails by regenerating its form through the Gedo Statue, the husk of the Ten-Tails that remained after its chakra was separated from its body.
Only after several generations, when Madara first awakened the Rinnegan, was he able to break the seal and summon the statue down to earth.
But what did all this have to do with Arthur?
Simply put, he was going to hunt down the devils himself, without the Akatsuki's help.
And his next stop: the Three-Tails, Isobu!
Unlike Saiken, Isobu was known for its aggressive nature. Arthur wasn't positive if a friendly conversation and a summoning contract would suffice this time.
He would have to prepare for a fight.
After returning to Wizened Town, he spent several days preparing.
What he had managed to create this time around was another charm. It wasn't much to look at—a simple pendant carved from smooth wood, etched with swirls.
Yet within its unassuming form lay the culmination of days of research and experimentation.
This charm held the key to his plan of subduing the Three-Tails. It was infused with a portion of Saiken's chakra, extracted, and carefully balanced with Arthur's own.
The first four attempts had gone awry, resulting in either a useless trinket or an explosive mess that had left his hotel room smelling like burnt fish. But the fifth, thankfully, had been a success.
Those failures were a reminder of why he needed a laboratory in the first place.
Now that he had created the charm, he would use it to suppress the will of his most powerful reanimation he had, Minato Namikaze!
With this new charm, he could maintain control over Minato's immense power without needing to constantly resort to Sage Mode, significantly lessening the strain on his own chakra reserves.
After having already tested its potency, he set off for the Three-Tails.
His research had pinpointed its location—a remote, crater lake hidden within a desolate expanse of another island.
It wasn't the only largest lake in the country; in fact, there were two. But unlike its benign counterpart, the lake he was headed to remained eerily deserted, a forbidden zone that the country's officials prohibited others from entering.
This told Arthur everything he needed to know.
When he arrived, he found himself standing on a grassy hilltop. Using his Tamashii, he scanned the area.
Through his vast visual range, he confirmed the presence of a colossal chakra signature nestled deep within the murky depths of the lake—no doubt the Three-Tails slumbering peacefully.
'Summoning jutsu: reanimation…'
Arthur summoned Minato. The coffin emerged from the ground. Wasting no time, he retrieved the charm and pressed it into the back of Minato's skull.
A surge of chakra briefly flooded the area, a side effect of the charm interacting with Minato's reanimated body. Arthur countered it with a sequence of hand signs, easily suppressing Minato's reawakening consciousness.
Just like that, Minato had become a puppet once more. The only problem now was that Arthur had little to no chakra left.
But that hadn't mattered. Standing next to him was an unlimited supply of chakra. And not just from any ordinary character, but from the fourth Hokage himself!
To display how much dominance he held, Arthur channeled a surge of chakra into Minato. The body stiffened, and then the familiar golden aura of the Nine-Tails Chakra Mode engulfed Minato.
The Nine-Tails Chakra Mode is a powerful transformation accessible to those who have the Nine-Tails sealed within them.
Minato had acquired this form after sealing half of the Nine-Tails chakra within him before his death.
He was currently cloaked in a yellow, flame-like chakra, which significantly enhanced his physical abilities and granted him new capabilities.
His appearance had also changed, giving him distinctive markings and horns.
From what Arthur remembered, users in this mode gained increased strength, speed, and durability. The chakra cloak also acts as a protective barrier, shielding them from harm.
Additionally, they can manifest chakra arms for enhanced combat versatility, sense negative emotions, and even release a force that promotes growth in plants.
However, initially using this mode comes with risks. The Nine-Tails might attempt to drain the user's chakra, potentially leading to death.
Arthur didn't need to worry about this happening since Minato had an unlimited supply of chakra. No matter how much the Nine-Tails drained, it would remain in its cage.
Arthur caused a wave of the beasts' chakra to erupt from Minato, spreading outwards and disturbing the stillness of the lake.
Deep within the lake, a tremour ran through the water. Isobu, jolted from its slumber by the sudden burst of power, stirred in the murky depths. With sluggish movements, it began to rise, its massive form pushing aside the water as it surfaced.
Arthur stood tall, arms crossed, as he focused on gathering natural energy.
Just like he had done with Saiken, he planned to address Isobu directly, offering a similar deal: cooperation and freedom in exchange for its service.
However, as he waited for the behemoth to emerge, a jarring sensation prickled at the edges of his perception. It hadn't come from his Tamashii but from Minato's senses, which Arthur could feel.
Curiosity piqued, so he stopped his gathering and focused on probing the source. Whatever it was, it wasn't something his Tamashii could detect—it was a strange negative feeling.
He tried to find it, but he couldn't locate any chakra signatures except the Three-Tails'. Through Minato, a different sense alerted him—an emotional type of feeling being picked up by the reanimated body's Nine-Tails-enhanced senses.
It was a feeling of malice, of disbelief—a not-so-friendly emotion.
Arthur stopped trying to scan for chakra signatures and instead used his Tamashii to visually see physical forms. He focused on exactly where Minato's senses led him.
It was like trying to find a fly in a hurricane. But as he narrowed his senses, he saw two approaching figures walking side-by-side.
Arthur felt dreadful, for he recognized them all too well—Jasper and Alice!
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