How to Survive as an Uchiha

Atlas had dissolved in an instant, yet Matatabi's chakra armor still enveloped its form.

Standing atop Matatabi's head, Masashi flexed his body to loosen up, the armor on him forming into a protective suit.

Could the Preta Path counter all ninjutsu?

Of course not.

There was no such all-powerful jutsu in existence. The reason gods are gods is that they operate beyond the bounds of the system—they was not even playing by the same rules.

The effectiveness of any ninjutsu counter depended on being in the same power tier.

Even within the same level, the Preta Path had its flaws.

Otherwise, how could the Exploding Flame Formation have crippled Nagato's legs so severely?

Matatabi took a step forward, claws casually raking the ground, flinging entire chunks of earth into the air.

The big cat felt unusually secure now.

She wasn't just any ordinary cat anymore—she was now an armed and armored feline!

Roar!

Matatabi roared at Nagato ahead.

The chakra-filled roar stirred winds rivaling the Great Breakthrough, tearing through the flat ground.

Nagato stood motionless as the winds dissipated just before him, but to either side of him, dirt and rocks were blasted into the sky, leaving chaos in their path.

"As expected of a Tailed Beast. This power truly is the cornerstone of peace," he remarked with admiration, placing his hand on the ground.

The flaw in Chibaku Tensei had already been revealed—there was no need to use it again.

"Summoning Jutsu!"

The characteristic smoke of summoning jutsu rose, revealing six figures.

"So, they've already arrived," Masashi muttered as he observed the six iconic puppets, their distinctive features unmistakable.

Wait, one of them looked exactly the same.

It was the Deva Path puppet made from Yahiko's corpse.

When the Uchiha clan became part of the Hokage's office due to Fugaku being Hokage Advisor, Masashi had reviewed parts of the Akatsuki intel with Minato's permission, including details about Yahiko.

High-definition photos, full-body shots, pixel-perfect clarity.

That level of covert surveillance could probably get someone arrested in another field.

"Nagato, in a way, you could call yourself the greatest puppet master."

As he spoke, his hands formed seals.

The ground quaked.

The once-solid earth began to rise, fall, and stretch, surging toward Nagato and his puppets like waves.

Nagato and the Six Paths scattered to evade the now-undulating terrain. Several puppets simultaneously advanced toward Masashi.

But they would first have to contend with Matatabi.

Tailed beasts were the embodiment of chakra, yet they also possess physical strength matching their colossal size.

When a tailed beast moves, the earth trembles.

Nagato's true body remained at a distance while the six puppets deftly dodged the "stray bullets" in the air, attacking from multiple directions.

Leading the frontal assault was the Deva Path, Yahiko.

"Let's go all out, Matatabi."

"Then don't fall off."

"If I couldn't manage that much, I wouldn't be worthy to stand on your head as your partner."

Masashi clasped his hands together. Streams of icy sand burst forth from the ground around them.

From above, the terrain instantly turned white, as if blanketed by snow.

Like erupting geysers, mounds of earth exploded one after another, releasing even more icy sand that engulfed everything.

"Over there."

Through their mental link, they shared synchronized perceptions, pinpointing the location where Masashi's chakra was vanishing.

This sense of connection was familiar to Matatabi. The Uchiha clan had always bonded with tailed beasts this way—not as jinchūriki, but as riders.

However, experiencing only the sensation of the mental link without external interference was a first for her.

Matatabi's massive paw lashed out.

At the precise spot, a puppet emerged from a scattering of icy sand, its body partly immobilized by the lingering chill that the Preta Path couldn't entirely negate.

It took a direct hit and was sent flying, its body completely shattered.

"The Preta Path is here, which means..."

Another puppet appeared, catching the nearly disintegrated Preta Path puppet.

"Matatabi, again!"

The enormous beast leapt into the air, hurling a massive fireball toward the Animal Path puppet.

If it landed, there'd be no salvaging it—the bones would char and snap, requiring a complete rebuild.

Another puppet emerged from the icy sand, positioning itself in front of both the Animal and Preta Path puppets, raising a single hand.

"Shinra Tensei!"

Boom!

The Deva Path unleashed a powerful repulsion force, scattering the icy sand and halting Matatabi's colossal paw mid-strike.

However, the layered sandstorm had absorbed much of the initial impact. Matatabi's paw paused only briefly before continuing downward.

Meanwhile, the surrounding geysers of sand began to spiral, forming tornado-like columns that surged toward the three puppets.

Two other puppets suddenly emerged from behind Matatabi, having slipped through the sandstorm's blockade.

They exuded chakra from every pore, repelling the icy sand around them as they closed in.

Still, traces of icy sand clung to their forms.

One puppet opened up, revealing weapons that felt jarringly out of place in the world of ninja combat.

Masashi suddenly disappeared from Matatabi's back, just as the beast's massive paw came crashing down.

The Deva Path activated Shinra Tensei once more, obliterating the sand pillar behind the Naraka Path. Both the Deva Path and Naraka Path, carrying the damaged Preta Path, narrowly escaped Matatabi's strike.

Behind them, Matatabi's blow crushed the ground into a massive crater, from which even more icy sand erupted.

In the air, a sonic boom rang out.

Masashi appeared beside the Asura Path, shrouded in lightning. His punch, enhanced by Lightning Release Chakra Mode and immense physical strength, obliterated the puppet's head.

The out-of-place ranged weapons instantly fell silent, but the close-combat blades aimed for Masashi instead.

The armor protected him effortlessly.

The puppet's arms flailed, grasping at air, as Masashi vanished again.

With another deafening impact, a second puppet was sent flying.

This one had been better prepared, but it was useless.

Masashi's speed was too overwhelming, and the sheer power behind his punch too immense.

Although this puppet avoided total destruction, its arms were completely ruined—blocking Masashi's punch had cost it dearly.

Now, only the Deva Path and one remaining puppet remained.

The one he'd just sent flying was likely the Human Path, given its aggressive rush.

The last remaining puppet, yet to act, was likely the Animal Path, capable of augmented summoning techniques.

Through the power of the Sharingan, Masashi could clearly see Nagato's distant true body and the positions of the remaining four puppets.

Taking down just the Preta and Asura Paths felt like a waste.

The Human Path posed no real threat to him—crippling its arms would suffice for now.

And the others could wait, but the Naraka Path needed to be eliminated—it could repair the other puppets.

Teleporting back to Matatabi's head via the Flying Thunder God, he raised his arms and pushed forward.

The earth flipped entirely.

Countless icy sand particles converged into a sea, forming waves nearly ten meters high that roared toward the Naraka Path's position.

At the same time, beneath him, Matatabi opened her mouth.

A Tailed Beast Bomb began to take shape.

And before the icy sands arrived, a biting chill swept in, the kind that the Preta Path couldn't absorb. Neither the puppets nor the main body could handle it.

Nagato's expression grew serious.

He realized he had completely misjudged Masashi.

This wasn't a typical Uchiha. No Uchiha fought like this. And he knew far more than Nagato had anticipated.

It was as if the enemy had complete knowledge of his Six Paths of Pain...

Suddenly, he sensed a massive surge of chakra gathering ahead.

Though his view was obstructed by waves of sand, he didn't need to see it to know what was happening.

Our intelligence is far too inadequate...

Nagato was grateful that he had stayed behind to test the waters. If not, when the real battle came, the current members of Akatsuki would have been walking right into a slaughter.

But he couldn't afford to reveal too much of his own cards, either.

He wasn't about to summon the Gedo Statue here for a showdown—it wasn't worth it.

As erratic as this Uchiha seemed, he was still an Uchiha.

Nagato decided to retreat.

The Deva Path stepped forward, unleashing a powerful Shinra Tensei to block the massive wall of icy sand towering ten meters high.

Behind him, the Naraka Path swallowed the damaged Preta Path and Asura Path with a single gulp, while the Animal Path clapped its hands together, performing a summoning technique.

A massive bird appeared, and Nagato leapt onto its back. Taking one last look at the black sea of sand waves behind him, he guided the bird to take off.

After flying for a short distance, he released the summoning.

A blinding light suddenly erupted on the horizon behind him. The ground shook violently, and as the light began to dim, a mushroom cloud rose with a deafening roar.

Nagato no longer paid attention. He focused on tracking Konan's location, disappearing into the distance in moments.

The light illuminating the sky gradually faded, and the miniature mushroom cloud dissipated, leaving the scattered debris to settle back to the ground.

The only thing that wouldn't fade was the massive crater left behind.

The tidal wave of icy sand advanced across the land, carrying Matatabi.

At that moment, the great cat looked majestic and imposing, feeling quite pleased with itself.

The enemy must've been obliterated by the Tailed Beast Bomb I spat out without even leaving a trace.

As the icy sands dispersed, Matatabi found itself standing on solid ground again, shedding its battle aura.

It felt a pang of disappointment. Having grown accustomed to the weight of its enhanced form, the sudden lightness made it feel less secure.

So it leapt toward the edge of the massive crater.

Swinging its massive head from side to side, it scanned the bottom of the pit. Not a trace of anyone remained.

Masashi stood atop Matatabi's head.

Due to their mental link, he could sense Matatabi's thoughts and couldn't help but feel exasperated.

Seriously? One of the nine tailed beasts, and it's really just a big cat in both temperament and emotions.

Also, that guy didn't die; he just ran away!

Nagato had retreated so decisively, surprising Masashi. Their earlier exchange had been a simple probing skirmish, nothing more.

But Nagato had backed off after only a couple of moves.

Did I come across as knowing too much right from the start? Hm... that may have convinced Nagato to stop revealing more of his abilities.

Still, from a positive perspective, Nagato's withdrawal meant Akatsuki was completely out of this particular conflict. That was a good thing for Konoha.

Otherwise, with three—well, technically two—Kage-level mercenaries involved, the mission would've become exponentially more difficult.

Masashi severed his mental link with Matatabi. This particular Uchiha clan technique was incredibly handy; he wondered who had invented it.

The abrupt disconnection left Matatabi puzzled. But by now, it had started to warm up to Masashi's offer of partnership.

After all, this Uchiha hadn't deceived it and had actually helped it fight off an enemy.

That was far better than the treatment it had received from the other Uchihas in the past.

When those Uchiha got involved, the first thing they'd do was subdue a tailed beast with genjutsu and then enslave it as a tool.

So, Matatabi felt a spark of curiosity, a faint hope for its new home.

Turning its massive head upward, it called out to Masashi, "Where's the place you mentioned?"

Its voice held a hint of wariness, though it carefully observed his reaction.

If anything felt off, it was ready to bolt. After all, the Uchiha clan... no, humanity had left it with too many bad memories.

That was just how clever this tailed beast was.

Feigning submission to bad guys and then slipping away on a new journey once their guard was down—this tactic, it knew well.

"It's not too far from here. If I ran on my own, it'd take about three days."

Oh? If it only took the two-legged little beast three days, wouldn't I be even faster?

"Then let's head out."

"Sorry, but you'll have to wait. I need to go back and finish a fight," Masashi said. "I haven't wrapped it up yet."

"Are you fighting the Raikage?"

The era of the Five Kage might have been insignificant in the grand timeline of human history, but for tailed beasts, it was unforgettable.

Because it was during that time that they completely lost their freedom.

The era was filled with human powerhouses who could take them on single-handedly. And if tailed beasts couldn't remember human names, they would certainly remember the titles of the Five Kage—especially that particularly unreasonable Hokage.

"Raikage? He's already gone. I'm going to fight Kumo's ninja army," Masashi explained. He thought for a moment before suggesting, "Let's establish a summoning link first. Then I'll go fight, and once I'm done, I'll call you."

"Then I'll go with you," Matatabi said.

Going to beat up those little Kumo ninja, huh?

Whether it would slip away later could be decided later—it wanted to join in.

Kumo had imprisoned it for quite some time. Those Raikage had a habit of picking fights with it, and it wanted proper revenge.

Cats hold grudges. Matatabi wasn't technically a cat, but it sure knew how to bear a grudge.

"Hmm..." Masashi honestly hadn't expected Matatabi to volunteer to join him in attacking the Kumo ninjas. After all, driving away Nagato only counted as a preliminary step in gaining its trust, making it more willing to listen to him.

Too bad Gyūki was already out of the picture, or it would've been interesting to ask it what it thought of Kumo.

Though Masashi figured that if Gyūki saw him again, it would probably greet him with a Tailed Beast Bomb, considering that its last encounter with him ended in a literal corpse run.

Like a never-ending babysitting job.

"Thanks, Matatabi," Masashi said, settling himself directly onto its head and placing his hand on it. "I'll use a technique to teleport us back to the town we were at earlier. My companions are—"

Before he could finish speaking, a flash of blonde hair zipped past Masashi's field of vision.

Minato appeared beside Masashi.

The sudden presence of a person atop its head made Matatabi's entire body bristle. Its fur flared with fiery chakra, wild and erratic like actual flames. If Masashi weren't sitting securely on its head, it would've slammed straight into the ground in panic.

"Whoa, easy, easy! Don't be scared, Matatabi," Masashi hurriedly reassured the beast. He then turned to Minato with a bit of annoyance. "Hokage-sama, could you give us a heads-up next time? You scared Matatabi!"

Minato was momentarily stunned. He had just teleported over using the Flying Thunder God and suddenly found himself standing on a tailed beast's head.

For a moment, he almost instinctively called his friends at Mount Myōboku to summon a giant toad for a tailed beast-specific beatdown.

"What's the situation with you and the Two-Tails right now?" Minato asked.

"I've reached an agreement with Matatabi. I've invited it to come to Konoha, and from now on, we'll be life-and-death partners," Masashi replied with a cheerful grin.

This mission was truly a jackpot—an absolute win.

"???"

Minato suddenly felt like he was still far too young and naive.

The relationship between ninjas and tailed beasts—could it really be this harmonious?

His experience with the Nine-Tails and his wife was anything but that! The Nine-Tails caused trouble at every turn, though Kushina managed to keep it firmly under control, leaving it no room to act up.

Still, after some thought, he found the situation less surprising.

After all, aside from the First Hokage's Wood Release techniques, the Uchiha clan's Sharingan was the most effective tool for dealing with tailed beasts.

Long before the First Hokage's time, the Uchiha clan had probably studied tailed beasts inside and out.

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