Reborn in the Shinobi World with an Arceus Inside

Kaito used Submission, and the effect was outstanding!

His body seemed to contain a black hole, continuously absorbing the Nine-Tails' chakra from Nawaki's body. Soon, the number of tails behind Nawaki decreased from five to four, and then from four to three.

Inside Nawaki's consciousness, the Nine-Tails' eyes widened in disbelief. This is impossible! Why can he absorb my chakra?! This irresistible feeling… it's like facing that old man of the Six Paths. But he should have died long ago!

In its shock and uncertainty, all of its overflowing chakra was absorbed completely. The Nine-Tails could only let out a low, unwilling roar from within its cage.

"Phew, the gamble paid off. Good thing my luck is much better than Tsunade's. Thank you, Arceus!" Kaito held the unconscious Nawaki and breathed a sigh of relief.

Looking at the boy in his arms, whose skin was completely marred, he shook his head with a sigh. "So you're Nawaki? You're quite good at causing trouble. By my count, I've saved you twice now."

Before he could even catch his breath, Tsunade and a large group of people arrived. The most conspicuous figure in the crowd was a man holding a golden staff and wearing black battle armor.

The strongest Hokage, the Third, Sarutobi Hiruzen?

Kaito sat up a little straighter and gently placed Nawaki on the ground.

"Nawaki!" Tsunade rushed past the others to his side, immediately crouching down and looking at Nawaki's pale face with concern.

"Don't worry, he's fine." After saying this, Kaito deliberately covered his mouth and chest with his hand and coughed twice.

Tsunade checked Nawaki's condition, and the anxiety on her face lessened considerably. She placed her hands on Nawaki's chest and began to treat him, while giving Kaito a sincere nod. "Thank you for saving Nawaki. How are you? Are your injuries serious?"

"I'm fine. Don't forget, I know medical ninjutsu too," Kaito said softly, standing up. "Konoha must be very busy right now. I won't disturb you any longer. I'll come and visit again when I have time."

Tsunade was stunned for a moment, then nodded. "Mmm, alright..."

"Wait a moment." The Third Hokage landed in front of Kaito, his golden staff held behind his back, blocking his path.

He glanced at Nawaki and, after confirming that his breathing was normal, a smile appeared on his face. He turned to Kaito and said, "You must be Kaito. I've heard about you from Jiraiya and the others. I originally thought it was an exaggeration, but you truly live up to your name. To be able to single-handedly subdue a rampaging Nawaki—you are indeed worthy of the title 'Number One Genius of the Shinobi World,' personally recognized by Hanzo!"

"You're too kind, Lord Third Hokage," Kaito said, a flawless, polite smile on his lips. "Nawaki exhausted his own stamina; it had very little to do with me."

"There's no need for modesty. I know you deserve the most credit," the Third said, shaking his head. "To express Konoha's gratitude, please follow us back to the village. We will be sure to reward you handsomely."

Kaito glanced at the Konoha ninja who had surrounded the area, then at Tsunade, who was focused on healing Nawaki. A brilliant smile bloomed on his face. "Since the Hokage himself has personally invited me, it would be too ungracious of me to refuse. As it happens, I have nothing urgent to attend to, so I might as well stay in Konoha for a while."

"Welcome!"

Just how strong was the Third Hokage, now in his prime at over forty years old?

Kaito didn't know.

But when they stood face to face, even though the Third's smile was gentle, the pressure he exuded was no less than that of the five-tailed, rampaging Nawaki—in fact, it was even greater.

In this era, with Madara Uchiha clinging to life in the shadows and the Sages not making appearances, perhaps only the Third Raikage could be considered his rival. Even Hanzo and the Third Tsuchikage were a notch below.

So why didn't the Third personally participate in the Second and Third Great Ninja Wars? With him on the field, Konoha would surely have won more easily and with fewer casualties.

He didn't know.

If he had to find an explanation, it would be that the power of a single individual wasn't particularly significant in a war. Even someone as strong as the Third Raikage had died when swarmed by other ninja. At the same time, if the Hokage, as the supreme leader of Konoha, personally took to the field, it might make other nations think that Konoha was already giving its all. It might encourage them to push just a little bit harder to crush the village, needlessly boosting enemy morale. By staying back, Konoha maintained its greatest trump card, projecting the calm and confident demeanor of a great nation.

Probably.

In any case, at the Third's "cordial" invitation, Kaito "smilingly" entered Konoha.

The Third had originally planned to arrange for Kaito to stay in the guesthouse reserved for distinguished visitors, but Tsunade took the initiative and invited Kaito to stay at her residence. The Third had no reason to refuse and gave his permission.

"Kaito, you can stay in this guest room for now. If you need anything, just let the maids know. I still have to go to the hospital to look after Nawaki. I'm really sorry. I'll come back in a few days to apologize properly!"

After leading him to the house and saying these few words, Tsunade hurriedly left.

"Alright, then." Looking at the magnificent room, Kaito grudgingly accepted the arrangement.

He dismissed the beautiful, older maids and lay down on the bed. He first took a long, refreshing nap to recover his energy, not waking up until evening. After dinner, he set about replenishing his completely depleted energy reserves.

By midnight, Kaito had finally returned to his peak condition.

"Now I don't have to worry about them trying anything funny."

He stretched his stiff joints, concentrated, and activated his Aura, taking in everything within a nearly one-kilometer radius.

"One, two, three... a total of three squads, twelve people? They really think highly of me," Kaito shook his head, not surprised. At such a tense time, they would never let someone as powerful as him run around freely. But who was it that ended up alone with Nawaki in the end? It was understandable that the Third was worried he might have done something to Nawaki... understandable, my foot!

Kaito pouted, annoyed. He immediately closed his eyes to inspect the huge prize he had fleeced from Nawaki.

Entering his inner space, his eyes immediately went wide. The chakra plate, which had previously only been slightly lit, was now more than half-full. He estimated it was about seventy percent complete.

Tailed Beast chakra originally comes from the Ten-Tails, which is to say, the God Tree, the source of all chakra. It's normal for it to have such an effect. So, if the chakra plate can absorb Tailed Beast chakra, doesn't that make me the bane of all Tailed Beasts?

But that wasn't the most surprising thing.

On the previously blank chakra plate, a cute little fox pattern had now appeared.

Kurama? Did a part of its will enter the plate along with its chakra?

As he pondered this, Kaito reached out and tapped its little nose. "Hey, can you move..."

The instant his finger touched the plate, the scene before his eyes changed dramatically. A living, breathing little fox was now snarling at him.

"Hey, you brat! Where is this place? Did you lock me up?!"