I founded the "Bragging Cult" in Naruto.

Chapter 356 After making a fool of oneself in front of familiar people, what one fears most is their pity and comfort.

"ah!!!"

Kushina screamed instinctively, but when she realized her voice had left her mouth, she found herself in her own mental world, and the Vajra Yaksha Myōō was no longer in front of her.

The Vajra Yaksha Myōō, which originally seemed to be about the same size as himself, has now transformed into a mountain. What he has captured is no longer Kushina, but the Nine-Tails.

"Ah! Ah! Damn it! Damn Sakamoto Tatsuma! Damn Wood Release!"

The Nine-Tails roared and struggled, but its body, two hind legs, and nine tails were tightly bound by Kushina's Vajra Seal and Tatsuma's Wood Release. Its two front paws were held by Vajra Yaksha Myōō.

The ferocious Vajra Yaksha King lowered its three heads, biting the top of the nine-tailed fox's head and its two shoulders respectively.

"Aaaaaah!!!"

An angry roar and a painful wail were released together, and the Nine-Tails' mouth was stretched so wide that not only its back teeth but also all its gums were exposed.

Vajra Yaksha King raised his head and tore off three pieces of chakra-condensed flesh from the Nine-Tails' body, chewed them twice, and swallowed them.

Outside, Minato watched as Tatsuma and Kushina were locked in a stalemate. Just as he was getting a little impatient, a large amount of tailed beast chakra was transferred from Kushina to the three-headed, six-armed Tatsuma.

Tatsuma's body was even covered in a fiery red Nine-Tails chakra cloak.

"Hehe~ Hehe~"

The Nine-Tails was panting heavily, seemingly too exhausted to even roar or howl. Composed of chakra, its chakra was constantly being reorganized to repair the wounds torn by the Vajra Yaksha Myōō.

The damaged half of its head and the two dented shoulders that were almost unable to connect with its two front paws quickly recovered, but its overall size seemed to have shrunk a little.

"Sakamoto Tatsuma! Get me out of here! I'll bite you to death!"

Having regained some strength, the Nine-Tails roared again. The middle head of the Vajra Yaksha Myōō opened its mouth wide once more, dripping fiery red chakra fluid, and spoke:

"What delicious chakra, and what boundless life force and power. Nine-Tails, let me see if I can devour you until you are weak and exhausted first, or if you can overeat me first."

What was clearly a Buddha statue enshrined in the main hall was now, in both Kushina's and Kurama's eyes, no longer a deity, but a demon.

"roar!"

The Nine-Tails roared, putting all its strength into resistance. Kushina's face turned pale, and the Adamantine Chains connecting the Nine-Tails trembled continuously. The Wood Release vines binding the Nine-Tails also broke one by one.

Outside, Minato saw that Kushina's body was also emitting fiery red chakra, and he couldn't help but worry. He clenched his fists, thinking of the possibility that Tatsuma had inadvertently thought of when he was talking.

"We absolutely must develop that technique as soon as possible."

As he muttered to himself, the tailed beast chakra that had risen from Kushina's body transferred back to Tatsuma, making the chakra cloak on Tatsuma's body even more dazzling, and two pointed ears grew on his head.

Even behind it, a tail could be faintly seen, sweeping around.

Within Kushina's mental world, she looked at the Nine-Tails, which had shrunk even further, and the Vajra Yaksha Myōō, which appeared even taller in comparison. Kushina's face turned somewhat pale.

As the Jinchūriki, she was well aware of the Nine-Tails' power, but at this moment, the Nine-Tails was being devoured like a snack by Tatsuma's incarnation, the Vajra Yaksha Myōō, which was truly shocking.

And the way they treated the Nine-Tails was far too violent and cruel, wasn't it?

No wonder Grandma Mito said that with Tatsuma's nature and talent, he was the most capable of suppressing the Nine-Tails, but also the least suitable to become the Nine-Tails' jinchūriki.

Tatsuma doesn't treat Kurama as an equal at all, but rather as a toy that he can manipulate, play with, discipline, and even kill and eat—a defeated dog.

If he becomes a Jinchūriki, then the peaceful and equal coexistence between Jinchūriki, and even between humans and Tailed Beasts, that Grandma Mito hoped for will never happen.

For some reason, Kushina felt sorry for Kurama at that moment.

"What kind of monster are you?!"

Nine-Tails shook its head violently, willingly letting Vajra Yaksha Myōō tear off its flesh, and glared angrily at Vajra Yaksha Myōō, who was Tatsuma in disguise.

However, Vajra Yaksha Myōō has three heads, causing the nine-tailed fox's eyes to constantly shift between the three pairs of eyes, making it appear somewhat insecure.

In fact, Kurama was indeed somewhat insecure. When it was being devoured by Tatsuma, a sense of fear suddenly welled up inside it. It was an emotion that Kurama had never felt before, not even when facing Madara Uchiha or Hashirama Senju.

Although those two were stronger and could easily manipulate him when he wasn't sealed, unlike Tatsuma who could only attack his remaining chakra after he was sealed, those two did not frighten Kurama.

Even knowing that the two had the power to kill him, Kurama refused to accept it, even in death. He was stubborn, stubborn even after losing, and stubborn even after being beaten to death. He figured he could just die and wait for his chakra to condense and revive him.

But Tatsuma was different. Tatsuma brought him a sense of fear that even his creator, the Sage of Six Paths, had never given him, as if he would really be eaten like food and then the residue would be excreted.

He doesn't want to become nutrients!!!

For no apparent reason, the Nine-Tails felt an overwhelming fear and rage. It opened its mouth and bit down on the neck of the Vajra Yaksha Myōō's head.

"Click-clack~"

The wooden Vajra Yaksha Myōō could not withstand the sharp teeth of the Nine-Tailed Fox, which pierced into the tree. But why was his own chakra starting to leak out from between the teeth?!

The Nine-Tails opened its mouth, trying to break free from the tree it was biting, but as soon as it opened its mouth, the Vajra Yaksha King's body expanded again, blocking the Nine-Tails' mouth.

The Nine-Tails is now like a person with a light bulb in their mouth—it's inside, but it can't get out.

Vajra Yaksha Myōō devoured the Nine-Tails piece by piece. The Nine-Tails' body shrank continuously as it was repaired, but this was only the portion of its chakra that had escaped after it was sealed, and it did not harm the Nine-Tails' main body.

Only when the Nine-Tails was reduced to the size of a miniature figurine did Vajra Yaksha Myōō pull it off with a mighty tug. The Nine-Tails' sharp teeth remained on Vajra Yaksha Myōō's neck before dissipating as chakra.

Without its teeth, the Nine-Tails was thrown into the water. The water, which was originally barely covering its feet, now almost completely submerged the Nine-Tails, leaving only its head floating on the surface.

"Ding~ [Ninja +99], [Seal +99], Pick up?"

Tatsuma was slightly disappointed that no special talent dropped, but he still picked up the talent dropped by Kurama, which was actually quite generous of Kurama.

If we only consider the talent points dropped by a single opponent, Kurama is undoubtedly the one that drops the most. Moreover, what Tatsuma "defeated" twice was only Kurama's overflowing chakra condensation. If it were the real Kurama, it would probably drop even more.

As Vajra Yaksha Myōō took a step, his figure shrank continuously. He looked at Kushina, who was speechless with shock, and said, "This should last for a month or two, of course, if you don't actively loosen your seal."

How could you?

Kushina gestured with her hands, pointing to Tatsuma and Kurama, who had just been as large as mountains. She could understand Kurama shrinking because it had been eaten, but how could Tatsuma shrink so easily?

Tatsuma said speechlessly, "This is the spiritual world, and your perception has a great influence. You will act according to what you think your size should be compared to that of the Nine-Tails."

If you believe you're taller than the Nine-Tailed Fox, you can become even taller. Or, imagine him as smaller and thinner; I suggest the latter, as it's easier to eat him.

"eat"

Kushina glanced at the Nine-Tails bobbing in the water, her pity growing stronger. For the first time, she felt that the Nine-Tails was actually so pitiful.

"You despicable scoundrel! You wait till I get out of here! I'll eat you alive!!!"

Kurama was dog-paddled in the water, but with only a little chakra left, he couldn't even walk on the surface. Kushina couldn't bear to watch Kurama drown, so she tightened her Adamantine Chains.

The tightening chains pulled the Nine-Tailed Fox away from the water. Kushina, gripping the chains, looked at the Nine-Tailed Fox, which was hanging upside down, only slightly larger than a normal fox and smaller than some dogs. Kushina inexplicably asked with concern:

"Are you alright, Nine-Tails?"

"Don't pretend! I'll kill you too!"

Kurama could sense that Kushina meant him no harm, and even felt some pity for him. But it was precisely this emotion that made Kurama even angrier. He, the mighty Kurama, was always a being to be respected. When did a little girl ever deserve to pity him?!

Doesn't his Nine-Tails have any dignity?!

"I need to go out and deal with the Nine-Tails' chakra first. You can catch up with the Nine-Tails yourself. By the way, if you want to practice controlling the Nine-Tails' power, this is a good time. The Nine-Tails is powerless to resist."

Of course, don't extract too much at once. If you extract all the Nine-Tails chakra that's overflowing from the seal, the seal will become unstable due to the pressure difference between the inside and outside. In short, it's okay to play around, but don't accidentally kill yourself.

After Tatsuma finished speaking, he prepared to leave Kushina's mental world. Kurama cursed loudly, "Who do you take me for?! The one who can kill me hasn't been born yet! If you have the guts, let me out, and I'll devour you alive!"

"Sakamoto Tatsuma! Don't run! Don't run!!!"

No matter how much Kurama roared, Tatsuma did not stay any longer and quickly left Kushina's mental world.

Kushina looked at Kurama without feeling any fear whatsoever. After all, Kurama's fur was soaked and clung to its thin, bony body, making it look extremely disheveled.

Although the Nine-Tailed Fox was still baring its fangs and claws, and constantly doing inverted sit-ups to demonstrate its super-fox-level core strength, it no longer looked ferocious.

"Why don't you just stay like this from now on? You look quite cute like this."

"You're adorable! Your whole family is adorable!"

Kurama's subconscious rebuttal made Kushina raise the corners of her mouth. Only then did Kurama realize that humans and his aesthetic sense were different.

Trying hard to recall Kushina's forbidden words, Kurama roared again, "Put me down, you tomato-faced, violent woman!"

"What did you say?!"

Kushina's fiery red hair suddenly began to flutter, and her figure grew larger and larger. The Nine-Tails, which was originally only the size of Kushina's torso, became even smaller.

"Gurgle~"

Seeing the veins bulging on Kushina's hands and forehead, the Nine-Tails, hanging upside down, couldn't help but swallow.

(End of this chapter)