Seeing the look on his face, Cheng laughed. "Are you worried that I'm going to hijack your body?"
"Your paranoia is really getting out of hand. I won't do that, because I still need your help to grow. If I took over your body, your growth would stop, and my evolution would hit a dead end."
"We're in a complementary relationship; there is no superior or inferior, no distinction between species, and no issue of who is raising whom."
"In short, I won't harm you. You don't have to constantly plot against me or Lady Mei. In your own words... that would be really boring."
Gisei took a deep breath and nodded. "So, what you're saying is that I have to stay alive for you to continue evolving. But how can I be sure you're not just lying to me right now?"
Cheng fell into deep thought. After a moment, he looked up. "There's no other way. Let me merge with you once."
Merge?
Gisei shuddered. What kind of monstrosity would a human and a bug turn into if they merged?
"A fusion of consciousness," Cheng said grumpily, reading his mind. "It won't change your physical body."
"And what's the point of that?"
"It allows our minds to communicate directly. Maybe then we can actually understand each other."
Gisei nodded. "Alright. What do I do?"
"Stick your hand out."
Gisei extended his hand, and Cheng did the same. As soon as their hands clasped, Cheng's consciousness body began to change.
It wasn't just shrinking; it was transforming into a substance like flowing water—except this water was swirling with vibrant colors, flashy and garish, just like the clan's ceremonial robes.
From their clasped hands, Cheng gradually flowed into Gisei's consciousness.
When Cheng had completely merged with him, Gisei revealed a look of shock.
His own consciousness body had turned colorful. To be precise, it looked as if he was wearing those brilliant, beautiful clan robes—honestly, it was even more magnificent than Naruto's Nine-Tails Mode.
"This is..."
Gisei closed his eyes.
At this moment, he could feel every thought deep in Cheng's heart, and he knew Cheng could feel his as well.
Mutual understanding, huh?
Gisei finally understood why Cheng kept emphasizing this.
Cheng hadn't lied to him; he had just hidden the full extent of his abilities. If Gisei didn't ask, Cheng wouldn't say anything. But if he did ask, Cheng would try his best to answer.
In the end, it was actually his own fault. Because of Mei, he had always treated Cheng as a potential enemy and never bothered to ask about his thoughts.
I guess that counts as prejudice against Ninja Butterflies.
Gisei smiled bitterly. He exited the consciousness space and discovered that his physical body in the real world had also taken on the appearance of his consciousness form.
Moreover, his body was filled with a different kind of chakra.
Is this Cheng's chakra?
It felt incredibly intimate to him—or rather, it felt like it was originally his own chakra to begin with.
He closed his eyes and began to use his sensory abilities.
Everything in the laboratory appeared clearly in his mind.
He pushed his senses further outward.
Gradually, all of Konoha fell within his range.
Specks of starlight began to light up in the darkness of his mind.
Is this sensation... chakra?
Dense clusters of starlight began to appear. Gisei felt thoughtful and continued to expand his range.
Suddenly, a massive mass of red chakra erupted into his perception. It was thick with malice, and a terrifying beast's roar echoed at the same moment, instantly shattering his concentration.
"This is..."
Gisei's face went pale; his fusion with Cheng was forcibly interrupted.
The Nine-Tails?
Gisei smiled bitterly. "I really sensed something incredible."
In a large mansion in the northeast corner of the village, an old woman walked out of her room.
She was Mito Uzumaki, the Nine-Tails jinchūriki, and currently the strongest person in Konoha.
"The feeling of this chakra... it's a bit like Yukihito Shiraishi. The Butterfly User?"
She fell silent, remembering the person Tsunade had recently mentioned to her.
"That little guy doesn't rest. Konoha can't withstand his tossing about."
The old woman muttered to herself and returned to her room.
Back in the consciousness space, both Gisei and Cheng wore bitter expressions. Neither said a word.
After a few minutes, Cheng hesitated before asking, "Is that the Tailed Beast from your memories?"
Gisei let out a strained laugh. "The ultimate weapon of Konoha, possessing the strongest chakra, an aggregate of pure hatred. The Nine-Tails. It really is..."
He didn't know what to say.
Previously, watching the Nine-Tails on a screen had only given him a conceptual idea of its power. Now that he had sensed the real thing, Gisei finally had a profound understanding of what "strongest Tailed Beast" actually meant.
Separated by such a distance, and even through the seal, a single roar had been enough to interrupt their fusion. It was simply a monster.
Cheng, however, looked suddenly excited. "That feeling... that existence... it's simply wonderful. If I could become an existence like that..."
Gisei looked at Cheng with a mix of suspicion and disbelief. "Keep dreaming. The Nine-Tails is a creature created by the Sage of Six Paths himself."
Cheng narrowed his eyes and smiled. "The Sage of Six Paths in your memory... to me, he's just a slightly higher-level human. I think you have every chance to evolve into a Sage."
Gisei pointed at himself. "Evolve into a Sage? Are you telling me to become the Ten-Tails jinchūriki?"
"No. I'm talking about different life levels. Just like me and Lady Mei—as long as I have enough vitality, I can eventually become an existence like her. It's the same for you."
Gisei looked thoughtful. "Different life levels... what exactly do you mean by evolution?"
"Quantitative change leads to qualitative change!"
Gisei fell into deep thought, and a slow smile gradually spread across his face. "You mean... as long as there is a massive enough amount of vitality, any creature can evolve to a higher level?"
"Exactly. That's how it is for Lady Mei. Your current vitality isn't enough to support my evolution yet, so you need stronger vitality."
Cheng became visibly excited. "Remember the Star Sucking Great Art you conceived? If you can complete that technique, I can become independent of Lady Mei and become a unique existence among the Ninja Butterflies."
"At that point, I will definitely possess the ability to manipulate vitality directly. As long as you are with me, infinite evolution isn't just a dream."
The two looked at each other and laughed silently.
The mutual understanding they had just shared had wiped away all the old grudges. Gisei finally understood Cheng's significance to him.
To some extent, Cheng was like an incarnation of himself, just in a different species. Cheng wouldn't harm him because that would be equivalent to cutting off his own path of evolution.
Only Gisei could provide the vitality Cheng needed; Cheng literally couldn't leave him.
If Gisei died, Cheng would be forced to return to Butterfly Habitat Valley and accept Mei's restraints. But if Gisei lived forever... Cheng would continue to evolve without end.
And Cheng's evolution would drive Gisei's own evolution in turn.
If he could really evolve into an existence like a Sage, it wouldn't be impossible to let Cheng become an existence like a Tailed Beast.