Having tailed beasts inside him was reason enough for them to condemn him to death?
Then why didn't they go to the Great Ninja Villages and pick a fight with their Jinchūriki?
Because they didn't have the strength. Because the Five Great Nations didn't even acknowledge their existence.
So, they came to him for a sense of purpose? Fine. He'd make sure they "existed" all they wanted today.
Indeed, this so-called Divine Guardian Sect had existed for a thousand years, though it had collapsed and re-formed several times. Its doctrines had been twisted beyond recognition. By now, not one of them could even read the ancient oracle bone script.
The Jisshō Ten Ten ("Ten Elephants Heavenly Rotation") was said to be their holiest scripture, yet they worshiped it as an untouchable relic without ever understanding what it contained.
Still, from ancient times one tenet had survived: those who possess tailed beasts—the Jinchūriki—are dangerous.
And if a person contains more than two tailed beasts, and cannot be controlled, they must be executed. Otherwise, peace in the shinobi world cannot exist.
They understood little else, but this law they remembered clearly.
Furthermore, in this generation many of the Divine Guardian Sect's followers had been slaughtered by the Jashin Cult. To re-establish their authority, they needed greater power—like that of a Jinchūriki.
This "banquet" was not only to kill Hyūga Shigeo, but to seize the tailed beast power inside him, strengthening their hold over Yu no Kuni's religious sphere.
Of course, they would never say that aloud.
"You speak that way because you don't know our true power!" the towering figure on the dais suddenly roared.
They might not understand the Jisshō Ten Ten's ancient text, but they had spent years researching ways to suppress tailed beasts.
Tonight's trap had been prepared long ago.
His hands flashed through seals at blinding speed.
A brilliant column of light burst from the ground, piercing the sky.
Shigeo and Itachi looked around—the sealing marks were glowing, ancient runes erupting all around.
It was the divine seal said to have been left by the gods of old to suppress tailed beasts.
After centuries, the sect would finally use it—on him.
"Hyūga Shigeo, today you meet your end!"
Since their talk was meaningless, they would act.
How naïve he had been—to think he could destroy the sect single-handedly. What a joke.
He had never seen what they were truly capable of.
In cruelty and cunning, they were no lesser than the Jashin Cult.
The seal marks blazed under the moonlight.
Shigeo pushed Itachi aside.
The Uchiha's eyes flared crimson with the Sharingan, and he rushed toward the dais—
but the so-called Divine Lord had vanished.
The Yūmeiden Lord lunged forward to engage Itachi in battle.
Then, across the island, a massive chant began—soft at first, swelling until it thundered like war drums.
Black mist surged from every direction, blanketing the mountaintop.
"Itachi! Be careful! That gas is poisonous!" Shigeo shouted.
He himself was immune, having taken the Sennin-purifying pill gifted by the Slug Sage.
But within the black mist lurked something else.
The talismans activated, forming a sealing web around him, suppressing chakra flow.
So, this was the Divine Lord's real power—these talismans were unlike any he'd seen.
But he'd broken Konoha's rectangular barrier seals before. Why fear these?
Chakra surged from his body, colliding with the tailed beasts' own power.
A massive backlash shook the ground.
The barrier trembled under the pressure but did not break.
It weakened, though—two or three more bursts and it would shatter.
The black-robed warriors charged in, perfectly coordinated, attacking from all sides like a practiced formation.
If the fight at Yūmeitō had shown the Divine Guardian Sect's mediocrity, tonight proved they'd evolved.
They had trained for this.
When Shigeo used Jiton (Magnet Release), rear guards countered with Doton (Earth Release) to shield their comrades.
As soon as he reacted, Katon (Fire Release) attacks came from every direction, the flames fusing into a blazing wall that engulfed him.
"Kill him! Dead or alive, kill him!" someone screamed.
Controlled corpses—living puppets bound by chakra threads—rushed at him from all sides.
"Bakuton: Chakra Bakuhatsu (Explosion Release: Chakra Detonation)!"
The explosion roared like thunder. The island itself shook.
Everything nearby was blown apart.
Those closest were vaporized; the outer ranks collapsed.
Underground seals shattered.
High above, the Divine Lord reappeared—now in Cursed Seal form, his body twisted, monstrous, with green luminescent eyes and wings fluttering beneath the full moon.
According to the Yūmeiden Lord's notebook, this man was the very source of all the sect's cursed seals—
a being born able to absorb natural chakra, yet incapable of containing it.
"The Divine Lord has descended!" someone cried.
The island's believers dropped to their knees in worship.
Only the puppets continued to attack.
Meanwhile, on the shore, the Jashin cultists who had been following arrived and froze at the sight.
"When they both collapse, we'll strike," one said.
"If the tailed beasts fall into their hands, we'll lose everything," another retorted.
"Don't forget our creed!" A young man's eyes gleamed with fanatic joy.
The rest roared in unison, "Good! Charge!"
The Jashin cultists never cared for odds. If they couldn't win, they'd still fight. If they died, so be it.
They stormed the island, turning chaos into a frenzy.
From above, Shigeo saw the uproar below and smirked. The Jashin cult has arrived.
The puppets surging from all directions were no match for him.
Itachi had already slain the Yūmeiden Lord; he stood atop the corpses, now battling the transformed Divine Lord.
Below, the Jashin cult and the Divine Guardian Sect clashed, the island engulfed in war.
Above, Shigeo unleashed another Bakuton blast, scattering both sides.
This battle would decide everything.
If the Divine Guardian Sect triumphed, they would seize the tailed beast power and rise to fame.
If they failed—there would be no Divine Guardian Sect left in the shinobi world.
(End of Chapter)
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