Chapter 595: Little Nine-Tails, Handled

The purple-haired girl poked her head out in confusion, only to see dreamer after dreamer collapsing before the Nine-Tails statue; her expression shifted slightly.

Sure enough, she had joined the wrong line; this was not the queue for the limited-edition wasabi-flavored popcorn.

"Senior Guang, this is the line for the recruitment event. We should leave quickly."

Uchiha Chiharu, her arms already full of various snacks, reminded Uchiha Guang, who was walking slowly forward.

"We know!"

Before Uchiha Guang could respond, Senju Itama, standing to the side, chimed in first.

"Huh?"

Uchiha Guang stopped in her tracks and tilted her head slightly to look back, her fair face clearly displaying two large words:

【Rivalry】

"If that seafood woman can come, why can't we?"

Uchiha Chiharu, who had been coaxed into coming by the two women, froze at these words; she realized she had been dragged into a troublesome situation and a bitter smile immediately appeared on her face.

"But none of us signed up."

The recruitment for Tailed Beast Knights had caused quite a stir, and even Uchiha Chiharu, who disliked gossip, had heard of it; to participate, one had to pay two million ryo.

"My coming to participate in this activity is the organizer's honor. That big-bottomed brat Danzo wouldn't dare charge me, would he?"

Uchiha Guang curled her lip in disdain; in terms of seniority, Danzo and the others would all have to respectfully address her as their master's wife.

"Then, when we came in just now, those two staff members..."

Hearing this, Uchiha Chiharu blinked in confusion. They had encountered two Shimura clansmen while waiting in line; now that she thought about it, they must have been there to verify identities.

"I used genjutsu."

As it turned out, the reason they were able to join the recruitment line so smoothly was entirely thanks to Uchiha Guang. Faced with the two staff members checking identities, she had merely glanced at them, successfully hypnotizing them and slipping in.

"Ah, this..."

Uchiha Chiharu was full of hesitation. This was her first time doing something like sneaking in without a ticket, and the girl struggled internally, standing rooted to the spot, unsure of what to do.

"Stop spacing out, it's our turn."

Uchiha Guang and Senju Itama did not have as much psychological burden as she did; the two of them only wanted to get in quickly and grab the Tailed Beast Card before Uzumaki Mito.

"Uh..."

Pulled along by Senju Itama, Uchiha Chiharu arrived half-willingly before the highly abstract Nine-Tails statue.

With the girl's keen perception, even without activating her Sharingan, she could feel that trace of soul-devouring malice.

"Didn't they say they were going to buy snacks? How did they end up over there?"

In the spectator stands, Uchiha Gin was so anxious he was scratching his head.

He had to sponge off his little cousin just to afford a 100,000 ryo ticket, yet these three spendthrift women had blown through six million in one go.

At the thought of all that money flowing into little Tuan Tuan's pockets, Uchiha Gin felt miserable all over, as if sitting on pins and needles.

"Big Cousin, when did Sister Guang and the others sign up?"

Uchiha Izuna looked at the restless Uchiha Gin and asked in confusion.

"How would I know? They've been chatting behind my back lately."

With his heart bleeding, Uchiha Gin shook his head in agony. If he had known early on that Guang and the others were signing up, he definitely would have stopped their money-tossing behavior.

"No, I have to go apply for a minor's refund right now."

The more he thought about it, the more uncomfortable Uchiha Gin became; he had to get his little money back.

"Big Cousin is so frugal. No wonder the Land of Waves has such deep pockets; it turns out it was all saved penny by penny by him!"

Watching Uchiha Gin's hurried back, Uchiha Izuna recalled the resplendent palace of the Daimyo of the Land of Waves and couldn't help but shed tears of emotion.

Big Cousin, don't worry, I will help enjoy it along with your share.

"Little Tuan Tuan is really something, not even giving me a heads-up that Guang and the others were participating in the recruitment."

Having located Danzo's chakra, Uchiha Gin walked quickly toward his destination; before long, he arrived in front of a simple room used for meetings.

"Danzo, didn't you say there were no Uchiha participating in the recruitment? What's going on with those three?"

"There truly aren't any. I check the list every day; there is absolutely no one with the surname Uchiha."

"Then they..."

"Snuck in without tickets?!"

Confirming the identities of the people inside the room, he was just about to raise his hand to knock when he heard the conversation from within, and his arm froze in mid-air.

So they were freeloading; that's fine then~

Uchiha Gin lowered his hand with satisfaction. Since they weren't spending money, he would let Guang and the others play as they pleased~

On the other side, the three of Uchiha Guang chatted and laughed as they passed the Nine-Tails statue, leaving the audience, who were waiting to see beautiful women make ugly faces, deeply disappointed.

"This thing is far inferior to the real Tailed Beast."

All three of them had personally subdued Tailed Beasts before; a mere wisp of chakra carrying malice didn't even pose enough of a threat to make them perk up.

Passing through the pitch-black tunnel, the view suddenly opened up. The examination hall was massive. The people who had passed the assessment were gathered in the center, where a high platform was placed. The Tailed Beast Card, radiating a soul-devouring aura, sat securely on top of the platform.

Below the platform, several members of the Sealing Squad in white uniforms were focused on maintaining the barrier, carefully ensuring that the Tailed Beast chakra, which leaked out from time to time, did not escape.

"Why are you here?"

Uzumaki Mito, who was examining the Tailed Beast Card, stiffened. Her good-and-evil perception radar kicked in, and she immediately turned her head, precisely locking onto the two sources of malice directed at her.

"Why can't we be here?"

Uchiha Guang raised an eyebrow. The moment the two locked eyes, an invisible flash of lightning crackled, and the atmosphere instantly became scorching.

"Exactly, you didn't organize the event."

Senju Itama also stepped forward, refusing to be outdone. On this matter, she had already decided to form a temporary front with Uchiha Guang to jointly resist the foreign "tall mare" Uzumaki Mito.

"Little Chiharu, long time no see."

Uzumaki Mito's gaze swept past their indignant faces and finally landed on the purple-haired girl in the back holding the snacks, a brilliant smile blooming on her face.

"Long time no see."

Uchiha Chiharu nodded politely. She and Uzumaki Mito could be considered old acquaintances; the two had interacted decades ago when they were covering for the Hagoromo clan.

Is Senior Guang and the others trying to pick a fight with this woman?

Because Uchiha Gin and Uzumaki Mito had always kept their relationship underground, Uchiha Chiharu did not yet know that this voluptuous red-haired mature woman in front of her was also her rival.

"Sister Chiharu, don't be fooled by her. This red-haired monster has a thing with that curly-haired baboon."

Seeing that her teammate had no sense of crisis, Senju Itama hurriedly explained.

"Ah!?"

"Uh..."

Uzumaki Mito, who was preparing to continue the pleasantries, froze. Another coordinate appeared on her good-and-evil radar, and the malice value was no less than that of Uchiha Guang and the other.

"Have the enemies increased again?"

Uchiha Chiharu, eyes half-closed, exuded a cold and obscure aura; in terms of intensity alone, it was not inferior to Uchiha Guang.

Seeing this, Uzumaki Mito raised an eyebrow, her full red lips curling slightly, and there was a bit more mockery in her eyes as she looked at Uchiha Chiharu.

Gin-san's charm is truly not small~

Just as the women were at each other's throats, the white-haired one not far away was jumping up and down in a panic.

"Damn it! How can that curly-hair not even watch over a person?"

Watching her own sister blatantly participate in such a high-profile activity, she was instantly furious, shifting all the blame onto the equally bewildered Uchiha Gin.

Senju Itama also felt someone watching her and subconsciously turned her head, precisely locating a familiar white-haired figure among the sparse crowd.

The two nodded at each other, a silent greeting.

Some time ago, introduced by Senju Toka, the two had recognized each other. As an aunt, Senju Itama had a strange feeling about this suddenly appearing niece, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it.

"Boom—"

Suddenly, the tunnel door behind them closed, and Danzo appeared with his subordinates.

"Congratulations to you all for successfully passing the test."

Danzo looked at the few people in the arena, his smile growing even wider. The Uzumaki clan's sealing jutsu was indeed effective; a single statue could eliminate 99.99% of the contestants, greatly shortening the assessment time while reducing the loss of funds.

"Huh? Just this many people? I remember there were over five thousand applicants, right?"

The people in the spectator stands were also caught off guard by the suddenly closed tunnel door. They had thought the first trial would at most weed out more than half of the slackers, but it had ended up being a mere fraction.

"Truly strict. So many Jonin didn't pass the test; what kind of monsters are the ones who stayed?"

Even ninja at the Jonin level would feel fear when facing the malice of the Nine-Tails.

Once negative emotions appeared, elimination on the spot became a certainty.

"Next, you will face the Nine-Tails directly. I hope everyone cherishes their lives; if you really can't take it, you can forfeit."

Although everyone present had signed a life-and-death waiver, a loss of life would ultimately have a negative impact on subsequent activities, hindering his future money-making.

For the sake of sustainable development, he had to ensure that nothing went wrong with this event.

Gulp—

The contestants who had barely passed the first trial felt their hearts sink at these words. They looked up at the Nine-Tails Card shimmering with golden light in the sun and subconsciously swallowed hard.

"Go for it!"

The first Senju clansman to pass the test gritted his teeth. He had already come this far, how could he retreat now? While others were still watching, he leaped forward, his fan-like hand reaching straight for the Nine-Tails Card on the high platform.

The future of the Senju clan was bet on this card!

"Uncle Kenta..."

In the spectator stands, Tsunade crossed her hands nervously, her watery eyes fixed on the leaping Senju clansman, praying devoutly in her heart.

"Kenta is still too impulsive."

Senju Toka, sitting beside Tsunade, frowned slightly and shook her head.

It was not that she did not have high hopes for Senju Kenta; on the contrary, compared to Senju Hizumi, who had asked to borrow money from her to enter the competition, she trusted Kenta, the current top expert of the clan, more. However, the situation was unclear, and acting so rashly would likely not end well.

"Hmph!"

Sure enough, the moment Senju Kenta was about to touch the Nine-Tails, a monstrous malice erupted, and countless negative emotions surged toward his brain like a tidal wave.

"Ah!!!"

In less than a second, the negative energy radiating from the Nine-Tails card knocked Senju Kenta unconscious; as an elite jonin, he did not even have a chance to resist.

"Quick! Form the formation, guard the barrier!"

The Nine-Tails let out a hum inside the Tailed Beast card, and the sealing squad outside was struck as if by a heavy blow; the red-faced captain of the sealing squad roared.

To prevent the leaking Tailed Beast chakra from escaping, he ordered all members to maintain the barrier beneath their feet; the purple light screen became increasingly solid, blocking the fiery red chakra within the barrier.

"Mental exhaustion, brain damage, chakra pathway reversal."

The medical team, having waited for a long time, quickly stepped forward to perform a preliminary diagnosis on the unconscious Senju Kenta; the series of critical indicators made the hearts of the eager contestants nearby race.

"As you have all seen, you must act according to your abilities."

Shimura Danzo looked at Senju Kenta being carried away, a strange look flashing in his eyes.

The strongest of the Senju, nothing more than this.

The Senju clan has fallen.

"I forfeit!"

Soon, someone stood up again, but instead of moving forward, they retreated; a member of the Yamanaka clan, who had passed the Nine-Tails statue test by relying on strong mental power, raised their hand.

The Yamanaka clan members, who made their living through mental power, did not want to gamble the rest of their lives on an ethereal knight's dream.

"I forfeit as well."

After all, with Senju Kenta's injury as an example, it was not long before half the people chose to withdraw.

"You go first?"

Of course, there were those who remained unmoved; Mito Uzumaki raised an eyebrow at Uchiha Hikari with a calm expression.

"Are you sure? I'm afraid you won't have a chance."

Uchiha Hikari curled her lips; if she accepted the other party's concession like this, she would not feel right even if she obtained the Tailed Beast card.

"Then I'll go first?"

"No!"

"Then let's see whose hands are faster~"

"Nine-Tails! Can you hear me?"

The scene fell into a stalemate once again, but Senju Hizumi took the opportunity to contact the Nine-Tails inside the Tailed Beast card.

"Eh? Human, who are you? How do you know this channel?"

The Nine-Tails, who had been dozing in the card, felt a familiar aura and scrambled to its feet; its massive beastly pupils were full of surprise.

"It's me!"

"You... you were a male before, right? How come that's gone too?"

The Nine-Tails looked at Senju Hizumi in surprise; it saw a male soul within this human female.

Old man, can you see how wild humans are playing?

"Hoo... we'll discuss this in detail later. I'm here for the Knight System now. Nine-Tails, are you willing to fight with me again?"

Senju Hizumi let out a breath of stale air and solemnly extended an olive branch to the Nine-Tails.

"Since that's the case, this great one will make do."

The Nine-Tails pondered for a few seconds and nodded with a serious air.

That white-haired one down there seems easy to boss around, and anyway, since that star of disaster Uchiha Madara isn't here, I can finally turn things around and be the master~

"Good, I'll be there soon. Hold on, don't get subdued by anyone else."

"Who are you looking down on? I, the Nine-Tails, the super-duper Tailed Beast, have never been afraid of anything since I grew up—waah! ~"

The Nine-Tails patted its chest in assurance, but the next second, it felt the world spinning.

Opening its eyes again, the Nine-Tails discovered in horror that the card it lived in was being pinched by two women at the same time.

"Maybe you shouldn't come; I'm afraid they'll misunderstand." (End of chapter)