While Jiraiya fought the Fourth Raikage, Danzō remained seated in a lotus position with one hand extended toward the massive body of the Eight-Tails.
Although his eyes were closed and nearly all of his attention was focused on the technique, he could clearly sense what each of his clones was experiencing. All twelve continued working on their respective scrolls, completing the complex formulas that formed the enormous sealing formation surrounding Killer B.
The twelve scrolls were positioned at different points across the battlefield. Even though they were separated by a great distance, they were all part of the same technique.
Danzō could also sense that several Kumogakure shinobi had begun to notice that something strange was happening. Some spotted the scrolls, while others noticed the clones positioned around the Eight-Tails. It did not take long for them to realize that Danzō was preparing something dangerous.
"Destroy those scrolls!"
"Stop the clones!"
Several Kumo shinobi immediately changed direction and rushed toward them.
However, Danzō had already anticipated that possibility.
Before beginning the technique, he had ordered several Root members to hide near each sealing point. The moment the enemy shinobi tried to approach, the agents emerged from beneath the ground, from behind rocks, and among the ruins scattered across the battlefield.
Without saying a single word, they attacked.
Kunai, shuriken, and elemental techniques collided around the twelve scrolls as the Root members fiercely defended Danzō and his clones. No enemy was allowed to reach them.
Danzō ignored the shouting, explosions, and sound of weapons clashing around him. All of his concentration remained fixed on completing the formation.
Through one of his clones, he briefly observed the battle between Jiraiya and the Fourth Raikage.
The two appeared to be locked in a stalemate.
Jiraiya relied on his enormous variety of ninjutsu and his experience to contain A's speed, while the Raikage depended on his Lightning Release Chakra Mode, endurance, and monstrous physical strength. However, the longer the battle continued, the more obvious it became that the balance was slowly beginning to tilt in the Raikage's favor.
Jiraiya had already arrived on the battlefield exhausted and had consumed a massive amount of chakra by summoning three giant toads. Although he was still managing to respond to A's attacks, his movements were gradually losing speed.
Danzō slightly opened one eye.
"It seems this old man will have to break the stalemate" he murmured.
He could not allow the Raikage to defeat Jiraiya and rush to Killer B's aid.
The time had come.
Danzō took a deep breath and gathered what chakra he still had left. At the same moment, his twelve clones finished drawing the final symbols across the scrolls.
The formulas began to glow.
Lines of chakra spread outward from each scroll, traveling across the ground and connecting with one another until they formed a gigantic circle around the Eight-Tails.
Danzō raised his voice.
"Sealing Jutsu: Twelve Chains of Suppression!"
The twelve scrolls erupted with intense light.
A moment later, enormous chakra chains burst from each sealing point.
The technique had been created by Danzō himself after studying two of the most powerful restraining abilities in Konoha's history.
The first was the technique once used by the First Hokage to control and suppress the chakra of tailed beasts.
The second was the sealing chains of the Uzumaki Clan, famous for their ability to restrain even tailed beasts.
Danzō possessed neither Hashirama's Wood Release nor the extraordinary life force of the Uzumaki Clan. Because of that, his chains were far weaker than the original techniques that had inspired them.
However, he had compensated for that weakness by creating an enormous formation involving twelve scrolls, twelve shadow clones, and a large number of complex sealing formulas.
A single chain would never have been enough to restrain the Eight-Tails.
Twelve chains acting simultaneously from different directions could.
And Killer B was already occupied by Baku and the Ino–Shika–Chō formation.
With all of those forces working together, Danzō was confident they could win.
The twelve enormous chakra chains appeared around the Eight-Tails' gigantic body.
Each one came from a different direction, extending from the positions where Danzō's clones had prepared their scrolls. The chains shot through the air at tremendous speed and began wrapping themselves around the Eight-Tails.
Several caught its eight tentacles.
Others tightened around its torso and limbs.
One wrapped firmly around its neck.
The chains all tightened at once, dragging part of the Eight-Tails' enormous body toward the ground.
Killer B reacted immediately.
The Eight-Tails released a deafening roar and tried to break free with all of its strength. Its tentacles thrashed violently, tearing through the ground and sweeping rocks, dirt, and broken trees around it.
Every time it tried to move, the twelve chains tightened even further.
The sound of the links echoed across the entire battlefield.
The ground surrounding the scrolls began to crack under the tremendous pressure generated by the Eight-Tails.
Danzō's clones gritted their teeth.
Each of them kept both hands pressed against their scroll while continuously feeding chakra into the formation. If even one of them lost control, one of the chains would disappear and the entire technique could begin to weaken.
"Don't let it break free!" Danzō ordered.
Baku responded with a powerful roar.
The enormous summon increased the strength of its suction, forcing the Eight-Tails to lean forward while the chains pulled it from several different directions.
Chōza also took advantage of the opportunity.
With his body still expanded and supported by Shikaku and Inoichi, he grabbed several of Gyūki's tentacles and used all of his strength to pin them against the ground.
The Ino–Shika–Chō formation moved like a single unit.
Shikaku controlled Chōza's movements through his shadow, Inoichi transmitted information and coordinated their actions, while Chōza provided the raw physical strength necessary to directly confront the Eight-Tails.
Killer B roared again and tried to rise.
The bijū's chakra exploded around its body, causing several chains to tremble violently.
For a moment, it looked as though one of them was about to break.
Danzō immediately increased the amount of chakra he was feeding into the technique.
A thin line of blood began running from his nose.
"You're not escaping" he murmured.
The chains stabilized and tightened around Gyūki once more.
Little by little, the technique began fulfilling its true purpose.
It was not merely restraining the Eight-Tails.
It was also gradually suppressing its chakra.
The enormous layer of energy surrounding Gyūki slowly began to lose intensity. Its movements became heavier, and the force with which it pulled against the chains weakened slightly.
Danzō knew the technique would not be able to keep it restrained forever.
But it did not need to.
He only had to weaken it enough for Baku and the Ino–Shika–Chō formation to finish the job.
Several dozen meters away, the Fourth Raikage and Jiraiya heard the heavy sound of the chains tightening.
Clank.
Clank.
Clank.
Both men briefly stopped moving and turned toward the area where Killer B was fighting.
The Raikage's eyes widened in surprise.
The Eight-Tails' gigantic body was completely surrounded by twelve chakra chains. Several pinned its tentacles to the ground, while others wrapped around its torso, limbs, and neck.
Every time Killer B tried to move, the links tightened even further and released another heavy metallic sound.
The Eight-Tails unleashed another deafening roar and pulled with all of its strength.
The ground cracked beneath its body.
Yet none of the chains broke.
Baku continued pressuring it from the front, while Chōza and the other members of the Ino–Shika–Chō formation took advantage of its restraints to prevent it from regaining its balance.
"B!" the Raikage shouted.
For the first time since his battle with Jiraiya had begun, A completely turned his attention away from the Sannin.
Jiraiya also watched the scene with a serious expression.
He did not recognize the technique.
However, after seeing the chains, the twelve sealing points, and the way the Eight-Tails' chakra was gradually weakening, he immediately understood what Danzō was trying to accomplish.
The twelve chains were not only imprisoning the Eight-Tails.
They were slowly suppressing its power as well.