"Boom..."
"Boom..."
"Boom..."
For the past few days, the underground Root headquarters had been echoing with muffled thunder-like sounds.
Not only that, but the surrounding ground would occasionally tremble as if an earthquake had struck.
Inside the Root headquarters, on the training ground.
Kushina's face turned red as she looked at the spiderweb-like cracks spreading from her hands across the entire training ground and even onto the surrounding walls.
"Uh, sorry about that, Lord Danzo," Kushina said, unusually embarrassed. "I guess I didn't control my strength very well."
Danzo, standing nearby, had a dark expression on his face.
He had been training with Kushina for several days now to help her control the Nine-Tails' power.
Just like Naruto in the original timeline, after gaining the Nine-Tails' chakra, Kushina's strength and speed had increased dramatically.
However, this sudden boost in power also made it difficult for her to control, leading to situations where her power would spill out uncontrollably.
For example, a simple Body Flicker Technique might send her crashing into a wall, or a casual strike could nearly demolish the entire Root headquarters.
Faced with this situation, Danzo didn't have many solutions.
The only effective method was to gradually adapt to this immense power through strength and speed training.
It was something that would take time and practice.
However, Kushina had an idea.
"Lord Danzo, do you think sparring with someone might help me get a better handle on the Nine-Tails' power?"
Danzo immediately rejected her suggestion without hesitation.
"No, you're pregnant right now. What if something goes wrong?"
Kushina was five months pregnant, and her belly was already quite noticeable.
If anything happened during an intense fight, both Minato and the old man Hiruzen would probably tear him apart.
But Kushina didn't seem concerned.
"It's fine, Lord Danzo," she said. "We Uzumaki women aren't that fragile."
"I heard from Lady Mito that Uzumaki women could still go to battle even when they were seven or eight months pregnant!"
"Besides, with you watching over us, nothing bad will happen, right?"
Under Kushina's persistent pleading, Danzo finally relented.
"Fine, but if you feel even the slightest discomfort, you must tell me immediately."
"Also, I'll stop the fight at any moment if I think it's necessary."
Kushina agreed without hesitation.
She was really eager to test her true strength through a fight.
As for the baby in her womb?
As she said, the Uzumaki clan's vitality wouldn't be affected by a mere sparring match.
In fact, moderate exercise might even be beneficial for the baby's development.
It just went to show that the descendants of the "Sage Body" were far beyond ordinary people in terms of physical constitution.
"In that case, call En Oyashiro over," Danzo ordered one of his subordinates.
En Oyashiro had been a member of Root for several months now.
His training was nearing its end.
Danzo had originally planned to assign him a few S-rank missions as a final test.
But since Kushina needed a suitable opponent, he decided to let En Oyashiro take on the challenge.
When En Oyashiro heard the news, he felt like the sky was falling.
He had just finished his training!
This was like stepping out of the beginner's village only to be forced to take on a mission to slay the world's most powerful dragon.
Seriously?!
Did they think he was some kind of legendary swordsman?
En Oyashiro really wanted to protest to Danzo. Well, initially..
But instead, he walked up to Danzo and bowed respectfully.
"Lord Danzo, what are your orders?"
It wasn't that he was cowardly—it was just that Danzo's reputation was too terrifying!
In the few months since joining Konoha, En Oyashiro had done everything he could to learn more about his superior.
The more he learned about Danzo, the more he felt a deep sense of fear.
In Danzo, he sensed an unfathomable darkness, yet also a light that transcended human nature.
These two contradictory traits coexisted in one person, creating an aura of mystery and terror that made Danzo seem larger than life—and increasingly...
Terrifying.
Danzo was pleased with En Oyashiro's respectful attitude.
To be honest, he had high expectations for En Oyashiro.
Not just because of his strength, but also because of his business acumen.
Especially now, as Danzo was preparing to reshape the commercial order, he needed talented individuals like En Oyashiro who had both strength and business skills.
"You'll spar with Kushina. If you perform well, you'll become an official member of Root."
"After that, both you and Chino will have access to the top resources available to Konoha villagers."
Although Danzo's offer was tempting, En Oyashiro couldn't help but gulp and hesitate.
"Uh, Lord Danzo, wouldn't it be... inappropriate for me to fight a pregnant woman?"
En Oyashiro tried to protest, but Danzo shut him down.
He pointed to the numerous cracks on the training ground and the surrounding walls.
"See these cracks? Kushina made them with a single punch."
Danzo's words made En Oyashiro gulp again, his mouth feeling dry.
Kushina, standing opposite him, chimed in:
"Don't worry, just go all out!"
"I'll be fine!"
You might be fine, but I won't be!!
En Oyashiro really wanted to scream at the world.
But after glancing at Danzo and then at the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki in front of him, he let out a deep sigh.
"Understood."
He slowly removed his glasses, revealing his crimson eyes.
"In that case, I won't hold back."
En Oyashiro pulled out a scroll from his clothes.
After unsealing it, a large gourd appeared beside him.
Under his control, the blood stored inside began to pour out wildly.
"Blood Dragon Eye: Crimson Blood Manipulation!"
En Oyashiro announced the name of his technique.
As the blood in the air began to take on various shapes, Danzo nodded slightly.
En Oyashiro's fighting style and technique names were inspired by Danzo's ideas.
They were modeled after a certain fighting anime Danzo had watched in his previous life.
By using the power of the Blood Dragon Eye to manipulate and accelerate blood, Okiro could achieve a variety of unexpected effects.
Feeling the impending danger, Kushina quickly got serious.
A large amount of Nine-Tails chakra surged from her body, forming a thick tailed beast cloak that made her look quite imposing.
"Here I come."
Okiro launched the first attack.
He manipulated the blood from the gourd, forming countless blood droplets that rained down on Kushina from all directions like a storm.
"Blood Rain Cascade!"
These blood droplets, after being accelerated, had the power of armor-piercing bullets.
Even solid walls would be instantly pierced and reduced to rubble!
Seeing this, Kushina's Nine-Tails chakra surged, forming a 360-degree protective armor around her.
The result was clear.
The Nine-Tails chakra cloak was far stronger than any wall, and the countless blood droplets had no effect on it!
"As expected of the Nine-Tails..."
En Oyashiro quickly changed tactics.
He gathered the blood into a massive blood dragon.
Concentrating his power, he launched the dragon at Kushina.
A ferocious blood dragon took shape in the air.
With a terrifying roar, the dragon lunged at Kushina, claws extended.
"Blood Dragon Technique!"
This time, Kushina didn't just defend—she went on the offensive.
The tailed beast chakra surrounding her body condensed into a massive claw.
With a powerful stomp, the ground beneath her shattered from the force.
Using the recoil from the ground, Kushina leaped into the air.
At the same time, the massive claw formed from tailed beast chakra slammed into the oncoming blood dragon!
A terrifying aura erupted.
The ferocious dragon hesitated, as if it had encountered its natural predator.
Seizing the opportunity, the massive claw swung out, striking the dragon's head with precision.
With a single squeeze, the blood dragon let out a mournful cry before bursting like a balloon!
Blood rained down across the training ground.
But Kushina didn't stop there. She continued her charge, covered in tailed beast chakra, heading straight for En Oyashiro.
Seeing this, En Oyashiro's face turned pale.
He quickly summoned more blood, forming thick walls between himself and Kushina.
But these walls were like paper against the Nine-Tails' power.
With a single swipe of the massive claw, they were shattered!
Left with no other option, En Oyashiro resorted to a genjutsu.
A pair of crimson Blood Dragon Eyes opened within Kushina's mental space.
But in the next moment, another pair of crimson eyes, far more aggressive, also opened.
"GET OUT!!!"
The Nine-Tails, having absorbed a large amount of chakra and imprisoned in the sky, let out a furious roar.
The overwhelming aura caused Kushina's mental space to tremble violently, with waves crashing everywhere.
Under such intense pressure, En Oyashiro's mind went blank, and he was forcibly ejected from Kushina's mental space.
Not only that, but the Nine-Tails' full-powered mental assault left him injured—
Blood began to flow from his nostrils.
Kushina, on the other hand, only paused for a moment.
She shook her head, quickly clearing the fog from her mind.
Then she raised her fist, ready to strike again.
Seeing this, En Oyashiro immediately raised his hands in surrender.
"I give up! I surrender!"
But Kushina, still not fully in control of the Nine-Tails' power, continued to charge toward En Oyashiro.
Fortunately, at the critical moment, Danzo stepped in between them.
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