Chapter 37: Spare Your Life
The One-Tailed Shukaku actually tried to negotiate peace with Su Xiao, but Su Xiao remained unmoved. Seal other creatures inside his body? And preserve their consciousness? That was nothing short of a fantasy to him.
"Bastard! Where did this monster come from? How can something like this exist in the world? Even that old hag Ōtsutsuki couldn't absorb my source energy."
Shukaku's voice grew weaker as Su Xiao's Azure Steel Shadow level continued to rise.
[Azure Steel Shadow has been upgraded to... Azure Steel Shadow has been upgraded to...]
After the initial adaptation period, Su Xiao increased the force in his hand, and the Devouring Core's absorption power surged. This time, Shukaku couldn't even speak.
The pleasure of absorbing high-level biological energy was indescribable, especially when it also enhanced oneself in the process.
Su Xiao finally understood what Mawen Hua'erzi had said before: one must not lose oneself while absorbing energy, or else they would become a Blade Demon.
Inside the sand sphere, Su Xiao absorbed energy, but outside, it was deathly silent. Deidara flew several hundred meters into the sky, and the Sand Shinobi Village had stopped firing crossbow bolts.
It wasn't because Deidara had flown too high for the Sand Shinobi to shoot, but because of something that had suddenly appeared near the sand sphere in the sky.
"What... the hell is that? Am I dreaming?"
A Sand Shinobi stepped back two paces, the kunai in his hand dropping to the ground. Though battle-hardened, his calves were trembling.
"Is that... the Susanoo of the Uchiha clan? Impossible, Susanoo isn't that huge. And what's with this terrifying pressure?"
Sand Shinobi Maki swallowed hard, staring blankly at the sky.
At that moment, a blue phantom over a hundred meters tall stood in midair. The phantom wore armor, crimson light surged from its eyes, and a long blade hung at its waist.
"Choose me..."
The phantom emitted a call only a certain person could hear, attempting to merge into the sand sphere below.
Boom!
A force repelled the massive phantom. The phantom seemed to lack subjective consciousness, instinctively trying to merge into someone inside the sand sphere.
"Blade Demon, all things can be severed, all withers."
The phantom tried again to merge into the sand sphere, but was once more repelled. As long as Su Xiao's consciousness remained unclouded, the inheritance of the 'Shadow of Law Destruction: Madness' lineage would not merge into him.
Inheritance wasn't necessarily a good thing. Becoming a Blade Demon in fierce battles could lead to mental collapse, causing one to slaughter everything nearby until killed or until the killing stopped—hence the name 'Blade Demon.'
Before long, the phantom in the sky dissipated. This was a test, and clearly, Su Xiao had passed it. From now on, this phantom would not appear unless he completely lost himself while absorbing energy.
Inside the sand sphere, Su Xiao's hand emitted pale blue smoke. The Tailed Beast's unique high-level chakra continuously poured into his body.
This chakra was quickly converted by the energy core near his heart into nourishment for Azure Steel Shadow. The quantity and quality of Azure Steel Shadow energy steadily rose, and its level increased accordingly.
[Azure Steel Shadow upgraded to... Azure Steel Shadow upgraded to... Azure Steel Shadow upgraded to... Azure Steel Shadow upgraded to... Azure Steel Shadow upgraded to...]
Su Xiao exhaled a pale red mist, which contained Tailed Beast chakra.
"Spare... spare me. If this continues, I'll die. Please, spare me."
Shukaku's plea startled Su Xiao. The blue light in his eyes faded, and he focused his mind to enter the consciousness space where Shukaku was sealed.
Inside the consciousness space, Shukaku was locked in a cell. The iron bars of the door were covered in seals. Though the door looked sturdy, it had already been bent out of shape by Shukaku's ramming—nowhere near as strong as the seal containing the Nine-Tails.
Because the One-Tailed Shukaku was sealed inside him, Gaara had to use his consciousness to suppress Shukaku, unable even to sleep, lest Shukaku seize control of his body.
Compare that to Naruto, the Nine-Tails jinchuriki—that guy didn't even know he had the Nine-Tails inside him as a child. The difference in sealing quality was clear.
Su Xiao stood before the cell holding Shukaku. If Shukaku had been 'plump' before, now it was skin and bones. The purple patterns on its body had begun to fade, its ears drooped weakly, like a stray dog that had been beaten up.
"You bastard..."
Shukaku started to speak but noticed Su Xiao staring at it intently, pale blue smoke rising from his left hand.
"So this is a Tailed Beast? A novel species. What kind of life form is this?"
Su Xiao examined Shukaku, as if preparing to dissect and study it.
Shukaku was furious but dared not act out. Three-quarters of its source energy had been drained, and almost all its chakra had been absorbed. If this human continued absorbing its source energy, it would truly die.
"I'll spare your life for now."
Su Xiao's body dissolved into blue smoke and vanished.
"This terrifying human."
Shukaku lay motionless, looking utterly wilted. One could only wonder what Nagato would think if he saw this pathetic One-Tail.
Inside the sand sphere, Su Xiao opened his eyes, a flash of blue light passing through them. Not far away, Gaara had lost consciousness.
He punched the sand sphere, and it shattered with a crack. Yellow sand slid off the back of the clay bird—the clay bird had been carrying the sand sphere in flight, or it would have fallen long ago.
Standing on the clay bird's back, Su Xiao roughly sensed the changes within his body.
Azure Steel Shadow energy surged through him. He could clearly feel that both the quantity and quality of his Azure Steel Shadow were far greater than before.
Now above the Sand Shinobi Village, Su Xiao had no time to check the changes in Azure Steel Shadow. Retreat was the priority.
Holding the unconscious Gaara, Su Xiao directed the clay bird to fly higher.
"Gaara!"
A heart-wrenching cry came from below—it was Temari, her neck wrapped in bandages. If Gaara hadn't tried to save her, he wouldn't have fallen so quickly.
"Stop them!"
Elite Jonin Maki's eyes were bloodshot. If the Fifth Kazekage were abducted, the Sand Shinobi Village would lose immense face.
A volley of crossbow bolts shot into the sky, the explosive tags wrapped around them detonating. The roar was incessant, but unfortunately, Su Xiao and Deidara were flying too high, far beyond the bolts' accurate range.
"Annoying bastards. Let me leave you a parting gift—no, art."
Deidara took out his prepared C18, formed hand seals, and with a puff of white smoke, the explosive puppet C18 expanded and rapidly descended toward the Sand Shinobi Village.
"Something's coming down!"
"Organize defenses!"
A large number of defensive ninjutsu were deployed as the Sand Shinobi used all their strength to defend against Deidara's bomb.
C18 crashed into a layer of earthen walls, and a blinding white light spread. The explosion produced no sound at that moment.
The white light shattered the earthen walls above the village, and the Sand Shinobi below had already taken cover inside buildings.
Boom!
The explosion expanded, the blast wind ruffling Su Xiao's short hair. The Sand Shinobi Village below was engulfed in a massive fireball.
"What a beautiful explosion. Hmm."
A smile appeared on Deidara's face as blood dripped onto the back of the clay bird beneath his feet.
"Cough, cough, cough."
Deidara coughed dryly, pulling open the collar of his clothes. There were clear marks on his chest and abdomen—injuries from Gaara. Deidara had at least seven or eight broken ribs.
Compared to Deidara, Su Xiao's injuries were negligible—just some swelling on his right arm and a few shallow wounds on his body.
After Deidara dropped the bomb, the Sand Shinobi Village didn't counterattack. About two-fifths of the village's buildings were destroyed, and the number of ninja casualties was still unknown.
"Let's go."
Deidara laughed loudly. Su Xiao carried the unconscious Gaara, and the two of them made their escape.
They had launched a frontal assault on the Sand Shinobi Village, and the result was capturing the jinchuriki and retreating unscathed.
The Sand Shinobi Village's miserable state was due to several reasons. First, there was a traitor inside, catching them off guard.
Second, the village lacked high-end combat power—only Gaara and Chiyo. Chiyo had no aerial combat ability, and she sensed that Sasori was nearby, so she held back, ready to counter Sasori's appearance at any moment.
Third, the Sand Shinobi Village wasn't united enough. Calling them a scattered mess was fitting. If Su Xiao's group had attacked Konoha, the outcome would have been vastly different.
But none of that mattered. After this battle, Su Xiao's group would surely be viewed with caution by many ninja villages. After all, madmen bold enough to openly attack a ninja village were rare, at least in recent years.