"What… an old acquaintance?" Naruto Uzumaki froze, shocked by the long-unheard words.
Who could possibly be called an old acquaintance, and make the Nine-Tails this excited?
Thinking carefully, it seemed that it had been a very long time since the Nine-Tails had shown such enthusiasm.
"Of course, it's a very familiar old acquaintance!" the Nine-Tails grinned, as if recalling something extremely amusing.
In the mental space, it lazily scratched its neck with its hind paw, then comfortably lay on the surface of the water, sending out ripples in all directions.
It knew in its heart that since this person had arrived, nothing unexpected would happen next.
Yet, the Nine-Tails was also filled with awe!
That little guy, who had once seemed so immature in its memory, had now grown so powerful.
Thinking back, Genya had once only been able to absorb its chakra by telling stories, and back then, he had been so naive.
But now… this little guy had grown into someone as formidable as Uchiha Madara.
Even the current Hyuga Neji was being completely overwhelmed by him, unable to fight back.
Genya was practically a prodigy!
Even if the Nine-Tails himself faced him in a full-scale battle, it feared it would win far less than it would lose.
For the usually proud and arrogant Nine-Tails to hold Genya in such high regard, it showed just how highly it valued him, even admitting calmly that it was no match for Genya.
"Nine-Tails… who exactly is here? Just say it already!" Naruto, on the other hand, could not remain calm.
He circled the Nine-Tails in the mental world, continuously asking, "Who is it? If that person is here… could they harm Neji?"
After all, Neji was Genya's good friend, and as a friend of a friend, Naruto deeply did not want Neji to suffer even the slightest harm.
"Don't worry… they're here to help Neji!" the Nine-Tails squinted, its expression lazy as it spoke slowly.
"At this moment, Neji's mind has been taken over by hatred and an extremely subtle chakra. That person is driving away that dangerous aura and restoring Neji's consciousness!"
The Nine-Tails rarely explained things so seriously, and Genya's arrival and the power he displayed far exceeded its expectations.
"Helping Neji regain his senses?" Naruto spoke slowly, filled with disbelief, as if he had heard something impossible.
"You don't understand. If I were to fill your body with chakra and influence you… you would also lose your mind!" the Nine-Tails explained patiently, like a teacher in Naruto's mental world.
But then it continued, "Normally, once this person's chakra runs out, Neji would regain his senses. But this person… went straight to using force…"
"Uh?"
Uzumaki Naruto muttered under his breath, his face full of confusion. He had to admit… some things were still far too complicated for him to understand.
Seeing this, the Nine-Tails grew tired of explaining and simply lay on the surface of Naruto's mental world, resuming its half-sleep. Yet its heart remained uneasy.
It couldn't help but think silently: since when did the ninja world become so dangerous?
Anyone who appeared casually now possessed frighteningly powerful strength, far surpassing even the era of Madara and Hashirama.
Especially Genya—his talent had already exceeded that of Madara and Hashirama.
The future of the ninja world was unpredictable. Staying safe in the mental world didn't seem so bad, at least it meant not being used like a tool by someone like Madara.
Closing its eyes, the Nine-Tails quietly observed the battle from afar.
So strong!
Inside the Eight Trigrams Formation… Hyuga Neji continued his reckless assault on Genya, his eyes still wild with fury.
Yet every attack he launched was effortlessly swatted away by Genya.
Still, it was as if he felt no fatigue or pain, gritting his teeth and charging at Genya again and again.
However, as the battle dragged on second by second, the malice in Neji's eyes slowly began to fade, replaced by pure struggle.
A hint of clarity appeared in his gaze, as if he were fiercely resisting some force controlling him.
At that moment, a small clay bird suddenly flew across the sky. Flapping its wings, it hovered lightly above the Eight Trigrams Formation. When it saw Genya, the bird blinked with a lively motion, almost as if greeting him.
"I'll handle this. You stop anyone from outside!" Genya said softly, his voice quiet but exuding a calming steadiness.
The clay bird seemed to understand completely. After circling above the formation a few more times, it turned and flew away, its figure gradually shrinking until it disappeared from view.
"Uh… what is this?"
As Neji was again knocked away by Genya, his gaze slowly landed on him. His eyes were full of shock and confusion.
"Ge… Genya? How… how are you here?"
Neji, just coming to his senses, could never have expected Genya to appear here.
"Just now, you seemed out of your mind. What happened? What made you lose control?"
Genya's eyes met Neji's, filled with concern, his tone serious as he asked.
Even with Neji's usually calm demeanor, he wouldn't have lost control so completely, not even if his mother had passed away.
"I… I just now…" Neji seemed lost in deep thought, his mind replaying the events that had just occurred.
Finally, he spoke slowly, "I used my Shikotsumyaku to pierce their bodies… to absorb the energy in their Byakugan. But later, I couldn't control that power!"
As he spoke, a bloody glint still flickered in Neji's eyes, an eerie, unnatural light.
At this moment, his Byakugan was no longer the pure Byakugan of before. It felt tainted by some dark force, almost unfamiliar.
"Shikotsumyaku? Neji can absorb the Byakugan power of Hyuga clan members?" Genya repeated, his eyes lighting up as if he had glimpsed a ray of hope in the darkness.
In a flash, he appeared in front of Neji like a black lightning bolt, lightly placing his fingers on Neji's forehead.
A thread of chakra slowly entered Neji's body, carefully probing the state of his eyes.
Indeed, those eyes held terrifying power. Could it… be evolving? The thought crossed Genya's mind.
"How many Byakugan have you absorbed?" Genya asked softly.
"The power of ten people… after that, I couldn't absorb any more," Neji shook his head, a hint of exhaustion and helplessness on his face.
"I see…" Genya murmured, frowning slightly, lost in deep thought.
At the same time, bone spikes began to slowly grow from his own body, piercing through his skin and glinting with a cold, icy light.
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