How to Survive as an Uchiha

Matatabi was frolicking in Yugito's sealing space.

It was essentially an easily satisfied big cat.

By human reckoning, just a few decades ago, it had been a free and unrestrained feline.

Back then, tailed beasts were mostly left alone, free to choose their favorite environments to laze around or cause some chaos.

Aside from a few exceptional individuals, there were no humans capable of threatening them. Plus, even if they were taken down, tailed beasts would revive in a few years. It was just a matter of time before they were back to their former glory.

But a few decades ago, two monsters emerged among humanity.

At first, it wasn't too bad. Then, one day, the most arrogant and showy member of the tailed beast family, Kurama, was captured by someone named Madara.

And just like that, Kurama became his pet.

Word spread that Kurama was used in a battle against another monster, and then the monster walking him around ended up dead.

Honestly, good riddance. Served them right for their arrogance.

But soon the tailed beasts realized something horrifying—strong humans seemed to have unlocked some bizarre potential.

First, the restless One-Tail, Shukaku, got captured by a group of desert-dwelling people in headscarves.

Then came the strongest of those two monsters—the victor of their showdown.

One by one, he captured the remaining seven tailed beasts.

As if capturing them wasn't bad enough, he had the gall to apologize before sealing them away: "Sorry, friend, but you're too strong and need to be sealed."

Wasn't that just a human way of insulting someone? Such fake courtesy!

The first monster only walked Kurama like a dog, but this second one? He treated them like poultry to be caged!

Where did he get the audacity to say that?

Recently, though, Matatabi hadn't been able to connect with Yugito. The seal had clearly been strengthened. Well, it made sense—it was an Uchiha ninja, after all.

The tailed beasts had excellent memories. Aside from the Sage of Six Paths, the Uchiha clan appeared most often in their recollections.

And those memories were never pleasant. Always with their controlling ways, thinking they could master everything they saw.

Still, if nothing was happening to it, then Yugito was probably fine.

So Matatabi didn't worry. On the contrary, as a naturally solitary creature, it cherished this rare tranquility and embraced its alone time with glee.

In the sealing space, time measurement was tricky, but tailed beasts didn't care.

When bored, Matatabi would sleep. When awake, it would wander aimlessly. This was its happy, solitary routine.

After waking from yet another nap, Matatabi bounded around its space as usual. Just as it debated whether to spit fire for fun, a figure appeared in the sealing space.

"Yugito?" Matatabi lowered its massive head to look more closely at the visitor.

It wasn't Yugito—it was that Uchiha!

"Yo!" Masashi waved at the massive cat. "You must be Matatabi."

Matatabi narrowed its eyes and circled him.

There was an air of grace, calm, and aloofness about it.

Simply put, it was very much a cat—except this cat was engulfed in blue chakra flames.

He found its demeanor incredibly appealing.

He never liked the loud and obnoxious types. Kurama was just too noisy.

"Want to get out of here, Matatabi?"

"You're an Uchiha. I don't trust you," Matatabi replied. "Could you leave? I prefer peace and quiet."

Despite effectively kicking him out, its voice remained gentle.

"Fair enough. Who doesn't like peace?" Masashi was beginning to like this tailed beast.

So he changed his approach.

"Could you give me a portion of your chakra? I'll return it to you."

"My chakra?" Matatabi tilted its head in confusion.

This was its first direct encounter with this Uchiha. Unlike their previous battles alongside Yugito, this one didn't exude an aggressive aura. In fact, Masashi felt entirely different from other Uchiha members.

There wasn't even a trace of malice in him, and tailed beasts were very sensitive to such things.

"Exactly. Sealing you inside a human is a cruel thing to do. I want to invite you to be my companion."

"???" Matatabi tilted its head further, trying to process what Masashi meant.

"You want to enslave me? Like the way you Uchiha handle Kurama?"

"Why enslave you? Others are others; I am me. You nine are all tailed beasts, yet each of you is unique. Humans are the same. Even with the same bloodline, we think differently," Masashi explained, his voice carrying a note of sincerity that surprised even him. "Despite our different forms of life, we're similar because we think and perceive the world. That's what sets us apart from ordinary animals."

"You're an odd Uchiha." Matatabi remained skeptical, elegant yet aloof. "But I don't need a companion."

"You will someday. In this era, no one can remain entirely free. Otherwise, why did the tailed beasts lose their freedom in the first place?" Masashi continued, carefully choosing his words. "My clan has a large territory. When you're free, I'll invite you to live there. Anyone who wants to harm you will have to face the Uchiha clan first."

"You just said you're different from other Uchiha."

"True, but I can represent the Uchiha clan and form a lasting alliance with you. If one day you find my descendants unworthy, you can leave."

Madara rode Kurama; was it so unreasonable for me to ride Matatabi? The thought crossed his mind as he watched the massive cat's reactions.

To be honest, the giant snakes of Ryūchi Cave were no longer suitable for his summoning needs. A tailed beast like Matatabi would be perfect.

Because of that, Yugito had to die—if not now, then eventually.

But he'd have to handle this delicately. He wasn't sure what kind of bond Matatabi and Yugito shared.

Perfect jinchūriki like Naruto could become almost like siblings with their tailed beasts.

"We'll see." Matatabi didn't entirely trust him but refrained from mentioning Yugito.

It had grown used to its current container and wasn't eager to switch.

"Alright. Then, can I have a portion of your chakra?"

"Sorry, I refuse," Matatabi said without hesitation.

It didn't care much about its chakra, but since it didn't trust him, it wouldn't comply.

Still, it prepared for a fight.

Masashi didn't attack, though. Instead, his Sharingan stared unblinkingly at Matatabi, making it uneasy.

"Fine, take it! Just stop looking at me like that," Matatabi grumbled. Those eyes... always those eyes.

It reluctantly extended a paw and peeled off a chunk of solid chakra, tossing it before Masashi.

"Thanks." He smiled, his chakra chains swiftly binding the portion of Two-Tails chakra.

With the chakra secured, he vanished from Matatabi's sight, leaving the great beast alone with its thoughts once more.

---

Deep within the underground cells of Konoha's prison, a large group of ninjas from the Police Force and the sealing team had gathered.

"Remember, we need her stable for this," the sealing team leader said quietly.

Their gazes were fixed on two figures at the bottom of the cell.

One was Masashi, one of Konoha's top-ranking ninjas. The other was Yugito, the jinchūriki of the Two-Tails.

When the group arrived, Masashi had immediately used his Sharingan to control Yugito. He then lifted her clothing slightly and placed his hand on her abdomen, which soon began to glow with a brilliant chakra light.

"To think an Uchiha could master this..." one of the senior seal masters muttered under his breath, his eyes narrowing at the display.

The members of the sealing team remained calm, but many of the Police Force ninjas, seeing physicalized chakra for the first time, were awestruck. A young officer leaned forward, nearly losing his balance. "Is this why they say he's different from other Uchiha?"

"Different... and dangerous," a Hyūga observer replied softly, his Byakugan active as he studied the chakra flow.

In the shinobi world, 99% of people would go their whole lives without seeing tangible chakra, let alone its physical manifestation.

This kind of display was a sign of mastery, both in terms of chakra control and sheer volume.

For instance, among the Uzumaki clan, the Adamantine Sealing Chains were a powerful sealing technique that only a rare few could master. The materialized chakra chains were the hallmark of strong Uzumaki clan members.

For ordinary ninjas, a single hit from these chains could spell death or at least serious injury.

Mito, who married Hashirama, had such abilities to back her up. She was a top figure in her clan and had defeated countless enemies on the battlefield with her Adamantine Sealing Chains.

That Masashi could wield this technique was no secret among Konoha's high-ranking officials or the surviving Uzumaki clan members. Yet, witnessing it in person still evoked amazement.

This era had produced such an abnormal Uchiha—a thought that unsettled many. Aside from bloodline limits incompatible with his Sharingan, it seemed there was no ninjutsu he couldn't copy.

Suddenly, the group saw Masashi take a step back.

On reflex, all the ninjas adopted combat stances—prepared to subdue Yugito the moment she so much as twitched a finger.

As for whether they might accidentally kill her... Well, wasn't enhanced resilience a basic requirement for a jinchūriki?

However, they quickly realized their concern was unnecessary.

As Masashi retreated, a blue mass of chakra was pulled out of Yugito's body.

Still under the influence of the genjutsu, Yugito unconsciously let out a rather... improper noise.

Hearing this, the Konoha ninjas silently labeled her in their minds, though their attention quickly shifted to the chakra itself.

"Masashi-sama, is this the Two-Tails' chakra?" a curious Hyūga clan member asked.

The chakra was stunningly beautiful.

It resembled a flame but was undeniably solid.

"Yes, isn't it pretty?" Masashi replied with a smile before taking out a sealing scroll and sealing the chakra within it.

Obtaining this chakra served two purposes: research and, more importantly, a means to locate Matatabi quickly upon its eventual resurrection.

Of course, his original plan had been purely for research.

He recalled vividly how, in the original timeline, Naruto had gained Six Paths power. A critical prerequisite was having chakra from all nine tailed beasts.

Through these chakra fragments, Naruto connected with the tailed beasts' true forms, effectively becoming the jinchūriki of all nine.

The chakra of the tailed beasts was one of the fastest paths to attaining Six Paths power.

And when Sasuke betrayed him later, the first thing he did was seal away eight and a half of the tailed beasts.

Otherwise, what chance would he have stood? Even with the Rinnegan and Perfect Susanoo, it wouldn't have been enough against Naruto's nearly infinite reserves of chakra.

After sealing the Two-Tails' chakra, Masashi stored the scroll and released the genjutsu on Yugito.

With her connection to Matatabi severed by the Uzumaki sealing technique, she was utterly unable to resist Masashi's genjutsu.

However, she was fully aware of what had just transpired. Her eyes, though weary, burned with anger.

"What did you do to Matatabi?" she demanded, struggling to keep her voice steady.

"Don't act like you two are genuinely companions," Masashi replied flatly. "That's just a convenient narrative you tell yourselves. In reality, you're merely weapons of Kumo. I don't blame you for it, but it's the truth."

"Masashi-sama," one of the sealing team ninjas called out, saluting him. "Are you sure we don't need to keep this woman sealed any longer?"

Hearing this, Yugito's expression briefly brightened. She was eager to reconnect with Matatabi as soon as possible.

"No, keep her sealed," Masashi said casually. "I was just teasing her. She's dreaming if she thinks she'll be unsealed while still in prison."

Yugito's face fell.

This guy was a scumbag, playing with her emotions! Wait... was that really the issue?

Before she could respond, Masashi had already vanished.

Left with no choice, she watched stoically as a group of sealing team ninjas approached her. "Please cooperate. It will be over quickly. Don't force us to use violence."

Above, the Police Force ninjas cracked their knuckles, their faces practically screaming, "Are you thinking of resisting? Go ahead and try!"

Suppressing her irritation, Yugito sat down heavily on a nearby bench and spread her arms.

"Fine! Get it over with!"

While Yugito endured another round of sealing maintenance, Masashi used the Flying Thunder God to return to the Uchiha clan compound.

This time, he had left a mark in the prison, saving himself future trouble.

As soon as he returned, he noticed Kakashi had come back.

"What is it?" Masashi asked, then suddenly remembered. "Oh, my bad! I'll write to Jiraiya right away to see if he has any new works."

At his words, the surrounding women—older ladies and young girls alike—turned to look at Kakashi with knowing expressions.

"Masashi-sama, what are you talking about?" Kakashi, not yet as thick-skinned as he would become, sounded flustered. "I came to tell you that Kumo's envoy has entered the forest."

"Oh, they've arrived? Which gate are they headed to?"

"The north gate."

"Got it. I'll go now," Masashi said with a glint in his eye. As he prepared to leave, he paused to pat Kakashi on the shoulder. "By the way, who's in this envoy?"

"Huh?" Kakashi blinked. "Just their official envoy and some accompanying ninjas. About a dozen people."

"Who's their envoy?"

"Kumo's head ninja. Why?"

"See? This is what I mean by lacking awareness," Masashi said with mock disappointment. "Such a glaring flaw, and you didn't notice? By protocol, as the victors, we sent a jonin to Kumo to sign the treaty. So, if Kumo is coming to Konoha, shouldn't their envoy be one of their higher-ups at the very least?"

"Sorry, I overlooked that," Kakashi replied, finally understanding Masashi's point. He had no desire to follow this line of reasoning. "If there's nothing else, I'll take my leave."

"Go ahead."

Masashi let him off the hook with a kind smile.

Young people needed more experience, after all.

As for the impostors pretending to be Kumo's envoys, it was naturally up to someone as considerate and village-minded as him to handle them.

The friendship between Konoha and Kumo must not be tarnished by shady individuals.

Currently 80 advance /Malphegor