"Shameless!"
Shimizu looked nothing like the fierce warrior from just moments ago, the one who had dominated the battlefield with overwhelming might.
Now, he looked like a completely shameless scoundrel.
"Ahem... he's got a bit of my style," Jiraiya muttered, stroking his chin thoughtfully.
Minato Namikaze, standing beside him, broke out in a cold sweat. His teacher really did have a twisted sense of humor.
Still, Minato couldn't entirely disagree with the "shameless" part. After all, he knew just how often Jiraiya would sneak around to peep on women. It was behavior that many found utterly disgraceful.
Who knew whose mother, wife, or daughter was bathing in those places? Jiraiya's antics were a recipe for disaster.
Unfortunately, those being spied on were usually ordinary civilians—angry but powerless to act.
As Jiraiya's student, Minato had tried to talk him out of it many times, but to no avail. It put Minato in a very awkward position. In the end, he could only pretend not to know.
"Yugito, kill me along with her."
Shimizu's shamelessness shocked even Samui.
But she quickly, shrewdly realized—someone like Shimizu wouldn't just let her go, even if Yugito stopped attacking. He'd definitely drag her back for interrogation.
In that case, she might as well die here.
"Samui..." Yugito's expression softened. Hearing those words made it even harder for her to act.
The chakra she had been gathering halted.
Shimizu noticed the sudden slowing of the Tailed Beast Ball's formation. Realizing Yugito was hesitating, he struck Samui unconscious with a palm strike before she could say anything more.
In his eyes, the black tomoe slowly spun within the blood-red Sharingan. As Yugito stared at Samui, their eyes met.
Shimizu unleashed his ocular power.
Faster than light, more formless than water—
Yugito Nii's Mental Space.
The ground was slick, filled with shallow water that rippled throughout the space.
The damp walls and dim lighting created a heavy, oppressive atmosphere.
"Uchiha..."
Yugito was stunned to find herself inside the spiritual plane she shared with Matatabi, the Two-Tails.
"Your place looks a lot better than the Nine-Tails'," Shimizu remarked, standing in the shallow waters.
All Jinchuriki shared this type of mental realm—a floor submerged in water. Perhaps it reflected the state of their hearts, a symbol of their inner world.
After all, Jinchuriki had always been outcasts. No matter how optimistic they were, the sting of discrimination couldn't be easily shrugged off.
In the world of Naruto, there were no mental health clinics.
Psychological research existed, but it was rudimentary at best.
Only by the time of Boruto did people begin to seriously consider a ninja's mental health. That says a lot about how one-sided development was in this world.
No one ever bothered giving Jinchuriki a few counseling sessions to help them cope.
To the major villages, Jinchuriki were weapons—a means of deterrence. Even Konohagakure was no exception.
"How did you get in here?" Yugito demanded, frowning deeply. She hadn't even realized her mental space had been invaded.
"Everything must yield before these eyes," Shimizu replied coldly.
His three-tomoe Sharingan fixed on her, unfazed by her defensive stance.
He turned away and looked at Matatabi, whose ghostly blue flames flickered in the dim space.
In shinobi folklore, cats were said to understand human nature and distinguish right from wrong. But when a cat's tail split into two, it became a monstrous Nekomata, a symbol of evil.
In Hyakki Yagyō—the "Night Parade of One Hundred Demons"—the Nekomata was a key player. They often transformed into seductive maidens or kindly old women to deceive passersby, luring them in before devouring them mercilessly.
Among the Nine Tailed Beasts, no official genders were ever assigned.
Still, their voices differed. The Two-Tails and Five-Tails had more feminine tones, while the Nine-Tails and Eight-Tails were distinctly masculine.
"Descendant of the Sage of Six Paths... what brings you here?" Matatabi asked gently.
There was no trace of malice, nothing like the evil described in old legends.
Shimizu wasn't surprised. Myths were often distorted over time.
Hidan once joked that Matatabi was some kind of vengeful spirit. In the early story arcs, even Kurama had been labeled a natural disaster—a manifestation of hatred itself.
"I want Yugito Nii to submit to me," Shimizu stated plainly.
"Never!" Yugito shouted without hesitation.
Shimizu had just abducted Samui. How could she possibly serve someone like that?
More importantly, she was the Two-Tails Jinchuriki of Kumogakure!
"Then we settle this with strength."
Seeing her refuse, Shimizu didn't bother talking anymore.
Jinchuriki were paradoxical beings—abused by their villages, yet fiercely loyal to them.
"Demonic Illusion: Sharingan."
Shimizu activated his kekkei genkai's exclusive genjutsu technique, casting it directly at Matatabi.
"ROAR!!"
Matatabi froze for a split second, then roared and counterattacked with a scorching fireball.
This human actually dared to control her!
Shimizu dodged to the right, frowning slightly.
With just the base Sharingan, controlling a Tailed Beast like Matatabi was clearly pushing it.
He could force it through, but at the cost of his eyesight. Unlike Obito or Madara, he didn't have the luxury.
"Is it because they awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan and gained a massive surge in ocular power? Even their three-tomoe form far surpasses that of someone who never reached it..." Shimizu thought to himself.
His plan to directly control the Tailed Beast had failed.
That meant he had to find a way to awaken the Mangekyō Sharingan—and fast.
But the typical method—grief over the death of a loved one—wouldn't work on him. It wasn't that he didn't care...
But in the Naruto world, death was far too reversible.
From Tobirama's Forbidden Impure World Reincarnation to the Rinnegan's Samsara of Heavenly Life, to the Sage of Six Paths' power passed from the Great Toad, Chiyo's One's Own Life Reincarnation, and even Ryūmyaku Reincarnation in Naruto: Blood Prison...
There were simply too many ways to bring the dead back.
When the line between life and death gets so blurry, it erodes any real concept of mortality.
If Shimizu wanted someone to stay dead, then even scattering their ashes wouldn't be enough—someone would just bring them back. How could grief take root in such a world?
Of course, if he could lie to himself at a Sage of Six Paths-level, the odds of success would go up significantly.
!!
Shimizu dodged a barrage of Tailed Beast Balls from Matatabi.
In this mental space, the Two-Tails' strength was significantly diminished—the explosions much smaller than in reality.
With Shimizu's current teleportation and body-flicker techniques, they were easy to evade.
"It's time to end the game."
Now that he'd confirmed how much influence the Sharingan had over a Tailed Beast, Shimizu saw no reason to drag this out.
He released another genjutsu—
But this time, the target wasn't Matatabi. It was Yugito Nii.
Her pupils lost focus, if only slightly.
Genjutsu could impose illusions upon the mind.
It could conjure someone's worst fears—or manipulate all five senses completely.
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