Chapter 343: Becoming Strong

Chapter 343: Chapter 343: Becoming Strong

Amid a deafening roar, the One-Tail Shukaku lunged ferociously at Hyuga Kagami.

Yet Kagami’s expression remained unchanged. The corner of his mouth curled upward into a faint, disdainful smile as his hands rapidly formed seals.

"Sealing Technique: Four Symbols Seal!"

In an instant, lines of sealing formulas resembling flowing black ink descended from the ceiling of the cavern.

These ink-like sealing formulas took the shape of chains. As they dropped from above, they quickly wrapped themselves tightly around the enormous body of the One-Tail Shukaku.

Some of the sealing formulas bound Shukaku’s arms and hauled them upward, while others coiled around his torso, firmly pinning him in place.

This Four Symbols Seal was the same one Kagami had previously placed on Gaara. At this moment, Kagami had merely used his visual prowess to manifest the Four Symbols Seal within Gaara’s mental world.

Because the seal was already active in reality, the moment it manifested here, it instantly subdued the One-Tail Shukaku, restraining him so completely that he could not move an inch.

After temporarily suppressing Shukaku, Kagami swept his gaze around his surroundings.

Gaara’s mental world could only be described as a complete wreck.

Everywhere he looked were shattered, uneven rock walls and a ground riddled with pits and craters. There was practically nowhere that remained intact.

Compared to Naruto’s mental world, where the Nine-Tails was locked behind a massive iron gate, the difference was like heaven and earth.

The appearance of a person’s mental world was, in fact, a reflection of their mental state. From the utterly devastated cavern around them, it was clear that Gaara’s mind had long since been pushed to the brink of collapse.

"I’m gonna kill you! I’m gonna kill you!"

Even while restrained by the Four Symbols Seal, the One-Tail Shukaku continued roaring incessantly. It struggled violently, desperately trying to break free from the seal’s restraints.

However, the Four Symbols Seal was one of the sealing techniques specifically developed by the Uzumaki Clan to restrain Tailed Beasts. Moreover, the one who had applied it was Hyuga Kagami, who had thoroughly mastered the Four Symbols Seal.

Thus, no matter how fiercely Shukaku struggled, it could not break free from the sealing formulas binding it.

Listening to Shukaku’s incessant roaring, Kagami frowned before snapping his fingers.

Immediately, another sealing formula descended from the ceiling of the cavern and wrapped tightly around Shukaku’s mouth.

The deafening roars echoing throughout the cavern abruptly came to an end.

Kagami curled his lips and sighed.

"Having to listen to this guy roar every single day... Who could possibly put up with that?"

Only after entering Gaara’s mental world did Kagami truly understand just how powerful the boy’s willpower was.

If it were him, with some guy rampaging and roaring inside his body every single day, Kagami genuinely wasn’t sure how long he would be able to endure it.

At the same time, he felt incredibly fortunate that the Dragon Vein was basically a lazy bum.

Whenever it was inside his body, it would usually just curl up in some corner and sleep soundly, barely paying any attention to him at all.

If the Dragon Vein had the same temperament as the One-Tail Shukaku, Kagami would have had one hell of a headache on his hands.

A short while later, Kagami arrived at the crevice where Gaara was hiding.

He extended a hand toward Gaara, who was crouched inside.

"I’ve already subdued it. Come on out."

The Gaara within his mental world was even more timid and vulnerable than the Gaara in the real world.

He looked apprehensively at Kagami for a moment before finally taking his outstretched hand and stepping out of the crevice.

When Gaara saw the One-Tail Shukaku firmly bound by countless sealing formulas, he let out a long sigh of relief.

Kagami asked, "Do you know how to become a proper Jinchūriki?"

Gaara shook his head and answered honestly, "I don’t know."

"Interacting with the Tailed Beast inside you, communicating with it—those things may be important..." Kagami paused, then softened his tone. "But the most important thing is making the Tailed Beast understand that you’re not someone it can mess with!"

With that, Kagami activated his Susanoo and used the ocular power of his Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan to summon a golden flame.

Gaara stared blankly at the golden flame Kagami was casually playing with in his hand.

For some reason, his instincts screamed at him that the golden flame was terrifyingly dangerous. Yet something so dangerous was unbelievably docile in Kagami’s hand, creating such a bizarre contrast that Gaara couldn’t help but find the sight almost absurd.

Kagami continued, "Tailed Beasts aren’t nearly as terrifying as you imagine. In my eyes, they’re nothing more than oversized batteries. So don’t be afraid of them!"

"B-But... that’s Shukaku!"

Gaara was utterly confused.

What Kagami was telling him was completely different from everything Sunagakure had taught him since childhood!

In Sunagakure, Shukaku was regarded as their ultimate weapon. In the original timeline, one of the reasons Sunagakure had agreed to cooperate with Orochimaru in his Konoha Crush plan was because they genuinely believed that Gaara possessed the power to destroy Konoha.

From this alone, one could see just how highly Sunagakure regarded the One-Tail Shukaku.

"So what if it’s Shukaku?" Kagami smiled. "At their core, Tailed Beasts are nothing more than masses of chakra. To the weak, they’re monsters. But in the eyes of the strong...

"They’re nothing more than toys."

Kagami chuckled softly, then flicked his finger.

The golden flame in his hand immediately shot toward the One-Tail Shukaku.

Driven by the ocular power of his Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan, the golden flames rapidly spread across Shukaku’s body. Within just a few breaths, the One-Tail was completely engulfed in fire.

Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!

Scorched by the golden flames, Shukaku immediately began struggling like mad.

For a moment, the entire cavern shook violently, as though even the Four Symbols Seal was beginning to have trouble restraining it.

Seeing Shukaku thrashing wildly, Gaara’s face filled with fear, and he hurriedly hid behind Kagami.

Kagami turned around and crouched down. Placing both hands on Gaara’s shoulders, he asked, "It’s the one tied up and being burned. It’s the one writhing in pain. So why are you afraid?"

Kagami was doing this precisely to establish a psychological advantage over Shukaku in Gaara’s mind.

As he spoke, he gently pushed Gaara forward.

Watching as Shukaku struggled again and again, yet remained completely unable to break free and could do nothing but endure the scorching golden flames, Gaara revealed a look of astonishment for the first time.

"Do you see now? Even Tailed Beasts can be subdued. Even they can be punished!"

Standing behind Gaara, Kagami spoke calmly.

Gaara looked up at Kagami with eyes full of hope and eagerly asked, "C-Can I... do something like this someday too?"

"Of course." Kagami continued, "Otherwise, why would Lord Kagami have saved you? You’re someone Lord Kagami sees potential in. Don’t disappoint him!"

Gaara seemed somewhat uneasy.

"Does Lord Kagami really believe in my abilities?"

Glancing at Gaara, Kagami smiled and nodded.

Gaara turned once more to look at the One-Tail Shukaku, which was howling and struggling within the golden flames.

Gradually, the timidity and unease in his expression faded away, replaced by unwavering determination.

He murmured to himself,

"I won’t disappoint Lord Kagami. I’m going to become strong!"

At that moment, Gaara seemed to have finally found a reason to keep living.

And within his eyes flickered a newfound hope for the future...