"What?!"
Hyūga Hiashi's shock had already gone far beyond mere surprise.
First was the Eight Trigrams: Sixty-Four Palms—a technique that even among the Hyūga main family few could master. Then came Rotation—a power absolutely impossible for a branch family member to learn.
And now—Eight Trigrams: One Hundred and Twenty-Eight Palms.
That was a technique Hiashi himself had only just managed to master—and it was currently the most powerful Gentle Fist move the Hyūga possessed.
From the effortless way Neji executed it, Hiashi could tell that, in some respects, Neji's strength was already not much lower than his own.
And Neji was only twelve.
A once-in-a-century genius.
Countless thoughts flashed through Hiashi's mind before he made a firm decision.
I must speak with Neji after this match.
Neji's hands moved like machine guns, his fingertips pounding Naruto's body with a relentless tut-tut-tut rhythm. In the face of this storm, Naruto stood like a candle in the wind—closing his eyes as if resigned to defeat.
"It's over," Hiashi murmured. As the clan head, he knew better than anyone the overwhelming force of the One Hundred and Twenty-Eight Palms.
No one could endure it. No one could defend against it.
Not even that person.
For the Gentle Fist did more than injure—it sealed chakra. Once struck, defeat was inevitable.
But he was wrong.
The moment Neji finished his hundred and twenty-eighth strike, Naruto's eyes snapped open. A burning red chakra cloaked his entire body—and from his back sprouted a single, flaming tail.
A malevolent aura blasted through the arena like a gale.
"The Nine-Tails' power…"
Even the Third Hokage stood at the sight of that crimson shroud.
"Hokage-sama, what's happening?" asked Mr. Hattori, seated beside him. His smile remained—but it was no longer the usual sunny grin. Now, it was the sly smile of a fox.
"N-Nothing." The Hokage waved a hand, failing to notice that something about Hattori was subtly off.
All his attention was on Naruto—or more precisely, on the cloak of the Tailed Beast surrounding him.
Though Sarutobi had heard reports that Naruto could use the Nine-Tails' chakra, seeing it with his own eyes still startled him. Even with just one tail, the power was enough to make him wary.
What neither he nor Danzō knew was that this fearsome energy was actually the weakest power Naruto currently possessed—without exception.
The cloak hissed and bubbled like boiling liquid, releasing the occasional burst of steam.
This was the Demon Fox Cloak—or, as it was known for other beasts, the Tailed Beast Cloak. But Naruto's version was unique to the Nine-Tails.
Dense and searingly hot, the cloak offered formidable defense—ordinary attacks could not even scratch it.
Naruto's eyes turned blood-red, his canine teeth elongating to razor points.
Sensing this familiar yet alien chakra, many in the stands—especially Konoha villagers—were dragged back in memory to twelve years ago, when the great fox had ruled their terror.
Every one of them turned hateful eyes toward Naruto. The malice, already deep-seated, doubled instantly. If that hostility could be measured, Naruto would see +10, +10 numbers popping constantly above their heads.
"This is why… I hate it here."
In Nine-Tails Mode, Naruto was even more sensitive to malice. Disgust flickered in his eyes, and the red of his cloak deepened.
A thousand years ago, the Sage of Six Paths had feared that the Ten-Tails would bring ruin to humanity. Using Yin–Yang Release, he split its chakra into nine parts. These nine gained consciousness—thus were born the first nine Tailed Beasts.
In the beginning, the newborn beasts bore no malice or ill-omen—they were pure chakra, untainted.
The Nine-Tails, most driven by emotion, had upheld the Sage's ideals—indeed, all nine had once shared that vision: to trust and help humanity.
But the Sage underestimated human greed—especially the depths to which those in power could sink.
Over the millennium, the Nine-Tails' faith had been met only with war, hatred, and betrayal.
Its chakra had been gradually twisted until the world called it a mass of resentment and malice.
But those feelings had never truly belonged to the beasts—they were humanity's own, merely reflected back.
The Tailed Beasts were mirrors, showing humanity its own ugliness.
With every ounce of resentment people directed toward them, the beasts' chakra grew a shade "more evil."
And if anyone in the stands was most excited right now, it was Shennong—eyes shining as he stared at Naruto's demon fox cloak with unhidden glee.
Neji, however, wasn't shocked—if anything, he seemed relieved. He had seen Naruto in this form before.
He knew this was actually Naruto's weakest state—slower and less dangerous than his normal self—because Naruto had to hold back, lest he accidentally shatter the cloak with a single punch.
The so-called—Nine-Tails: Chakra Mode.
If Neji couldn't beat even this Naruto, he would be facing "double-intensity training" afterward.
Yes, such training worked wonders for growth. But… in truth, Neji had no desire to go through it a second time.
"Gentle Fist: Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm!"
Neji thrust his palm forward, sending a shockwave of chakra hurtling toward Naruto.
The Vacuum Palm was one of the few long-range techniques in the Gentle Fist arsenal.
Even in his weakest Nine-Tails state, Naruto's chakra carried extreme corrosive and burning properties. If he could help it, Neji preferred not to make direct contact.
Hiashi, still reeling from Neji's earlier display, was less surprised by this move—even though the Vacuum Palm's difficulty was also not low.
"Move."
With a casual wave of his hand, Naruto in his One-Tail form shattered the incoming chakra blast.
Neji continued to dart around, launching wave after wave, searching for an opening.
Then—apparently annoyed by Neji's hit-and-run tactics—another tail sprouted from Naruto's cloak.
Nine-Tails: Two-Tails Chakra Mode.
Now Naruto dropped to all fours, snarling, the two tails whipping behind him like a miniature version of the great fox itself.
Watching him, Neji thought to himself:
You're working hard, Naruto… That must be murder on your throat.
PS: Access advance (100+) chapters at