Born in Sunagakure, dedicated to antagonizing Konoha for decades

But now that another tailed beast has appeared, he's completely confused.

This matter concerns his decades-long plan, so there can be no carelessness. First, he needs to figure out the origin of the tailed beast in Golden Lion Shiki's possession, whether it shares the same origin as the other tailed beasts. Then, if this tailed beast is like the others, and this monster only has the normal nine holes, where will the extra one go...?

"...I've searched through all the information, but there's nothing about the origin of this tailed beast. What should we do?"

Tuhao Nan shook her head helplessly. During this period, she had practically devoured the Complete History of the Ninja World three times, but she still couldn't find a single piece of information. She had read more books in the past few days than she had in her entire life.

"...Add this tailed beast to the list of targets. Having one more tailed beast won't hurt us."

At this moment, Nagato must be really missing the days when Orochimaru was around. There's no doubt that the Akatsuki team was very capable in combat, but an excellent team is not only good at fighting, but also has a strong cultural foundation. Just like now, the importance of Orochimaru, the top scientist and walking encyclopedia, is evident.

If Orochimaru were here, they wouldn't have to worry so much; they could just ask him any questions they had.

However, there's still no news of Orochimaru from Sasori and Deidara, so there's nothing he can do about it. He originally wanted to find that masked man, since the masked man taught him how to create the world-destroying nuclear weapon using the tailed beasts and also taught him about this giant monster. He figured that the masked man must know a lot about the tailed beasts, but in the past, it was always the masked man who came to find him, so he couldn't find the masked man himself.

Nagato's face darkened at the thought of that masked man. That bastard who always swaggered around in front of him under the name of Uchiha Madara was always hanging around when nothing was wrong, but now that something was wrong, he couldn't find him anywhere.

Looks good but is useless...

1062. The Compassionate Golden Lion

"Black Zetsu, what's going on? Wasn't it said that there were only nine tailed beasts in the ninja world? What's with this one in Shiki's hand?"

Meanwhile, Obito, who was swindling people under the guise of Madara Uchiha, was actually dumbfounded. He, along with the will of the Six Paths and his white-clad underlings, were standing there dumbfounded in Madara's former underground entertainment center, staring at each other in disbelief.

If you were to ask who cares most about the Tailed Beasts, they would care even more than Nagato. After all, this is the most important thing related to their world-destroying mission. Everything was going smoothly. Seeing that Konoha was getting weaker and weaker over the years while the Akatsuki were getting stronger and stronger, they were about to implement their plan. But then, out of nowhere, a new Tailed Beast appeared. What the hell is going on?!

He had studied the Ten-Tails' body. Although he was busy flirting with girls when he was in school, he still managed to pass math. Plus, counting isn't difficult. He was certain that the Ten-Tails had nine holes, but what was going on with the extra one on Shiki's hand? Where was the fortress?

Thinking of this, Obito felt a chill run down his spine...

"There are indeed only nine tailed beasts in the ninja world. As for the one in Golden Lion's possession... regardless of whether it is it or not, we'll capture it first. Better to kill the innocent than let the guilty go free..."

Let alone Obito, even Black Zetsu, who has been hiding for over a thousand years, is completely bewildered. He personally witnessed his nominal elder brother, Hagoromo Tsutsuki, extract chakra from his stomach and turn it into tailed beasts. There were only nine tailed beasts in total, that's for sure.

Later, his nominal elder brother died, and no further action was taken.

But that brat Golden Lion doesn't seem like the type to joke around with his reputation, so what the hell is going on here?

He's starting to get a pretty good idea that Hagoromo Otsutsuki has another illegitimate child besides Ashura and Inshura. This Golden Lion must be the reincarnation of this illegitimate child. Damn it, ever since this Golden Lion debuted, his and Madara's plans have always run into some kind of trouble whenever they encounter this Golden Lion.

"This is the only way..."

Obito nodded in agreement with Black Zetsu's statement. They've come this far, so thinking too much won't solve anything. Anyway, their plan is to take down the tailed beasts, so taking down one more won't be a big deal. They can decide where to put it after they've taken it down.

......

"Haha, Brother Mifune, thank you so much for using your country's territory to hold this auction!"

In the Land of Iron, in Admiral Mifune's mansion, Shinto watched the songstress's "energetic singing and dancing" and smiled at Mifune, who was seated in the main seat.

To put the minds of those from smaller ninja villages at ease, the auction will naturally not be held in the Land of Wind. A neutral country like the Land of Iron is just right. Although it is a neutral country, its overall strength is no less than that of the Five Great Nations. In this way, those who did not manage to buy the Tailed Beasts will not dare to use their weapons in the Land of Iron. Just kidding, although the people of the Land of Iron are all samurai, their ability to kill is top-notch. The last glory of the samurai era is all here.

As for what happens after they leave the Land of Iron, that's up to them. If they don't have the strength to buy a Tailed Beast, they might end up harming themselves and others. It would be better if they died early and were reincarnated to start over in their next life.

The more people who come to the auction for the tailed beast, the more convinced the Six Paths' mother's will will will be that the beast in his possession is a genuine tailed beast. After all, everyone knows that Shiki is a man of pride; how could he possibly risk his reputation?

This auction was really made possible by the help of Admiral Mifune, who contributed both money and effort. Although it took him several meals to coax the old man, he made up for it by eating and drinking at Mifune's place all this time.

"It's nothing, but I'm curious about what's going on with this wild tailed beast. Although I'm not a ninja, I've heard a bit about tailed beasts. Aren't there only nine tailed beasts in the ninja world? How come there's suddenly another one? If I'm not mistaken, that Jinchuriki seems to be Shennong. How did he become like this?"

After watching the "energetic singing and dancing" performance, Mifune waved to send everyone away, leaving only him and his two confidants. Only then did he voice his doubts. After the Golden Lion brought a fool to him to talk about the auction, he deliberately looked up some information. However, no matter how he looked, he always got the same result: there are only nine tailed beasts in the ninja world, and he had never heard of a tenth one.

"Hey! Since we're so close, Mifune, I'll tell you the truth. But I'm afraid you won't believe me. I'm not sure if this is actually a Tailed Beast, but as you've seen, this Shennong has indeed become a Jinchūriki. I'm sure you've heard about the mysterious group that attacked Konoha a while ago. I happened to be in the Land of Fire at the time, so I was curious about who these people were, daring to cause trouble on Konoha's territory with a water vat. I secretly followed them. Apparently, these guys are remnants of the Land of Sky that were wiped out by Konoha during World War II. Now they've risen from the ashes, probably wanting to avenge their country and family. But after I followed them to the old site of the Land of Sky, I saw White Fang's son, 'Konoha Technique!'" Kakashi and Hiruzen Sarutobi's good-for-nothing youngest son were fighting a group of kids against the Sky Ninja when, for some reason, a giant snake that looked like a Tailed Beast suddenly appeared. Then, this guy named Shennong jumped out and sealed the snake inside his stomach, becoming a Jinchūriki. You know, I have a pretty good relationship with White Fang. We've been fighting for so many years, we've developed a bond. I couldn't just watch Kakashi get himself killed, so I came out and gave him a couple of punches. Who knew that even as a Jinchūriki, this guy was still so weak. Two punches and he was a complete idiot. Anyway, there was no point in keeping him around. Over the years, the ninja world has experienced so many wars, and many families have been torn apart. It's pitiful to see those children who have been affected by the war and have no home.

"I thought, since there's no use keeping this thing anyway, I might as well make use of it and sell it to get some money to help those poor children affected by the war. It'll also be a way to do good for my parents and uncle in the underworld."

Shinto looked up at the sky at a 45-degree angle, and a feeling of compassion for all living beings gushed out from the top of his head, moving Mifune's two underlings to tears.

What a compassionate golden lion!

Of course, he couldn't tell Mifune the truth. Madara's white-clad henchmen were everywhere. He had discovered several of them when he first arrived in the Land of Iron, but they were all stunned by his domineering aura. But who knew if those white-clad henchmen would come back to get something from Mifune after he left? If they found out that this tailed beast was a fake, it didn't matter if the plan failed, but if Obito spread the word to the ninja world, would he still have any face left?

"..."

Mifune listened to Masato's earnest nonsense and looked up at the sky speechlessly. He didn't know if this bastard's supposed compassion was genuine, but even if it was, he was still a Jinchūriki, right? You knocked him out with just two punches! How heavy were your punches?!

1063. These samurai are really straightforward.

"Even so, auctioning off a tailed beast is still a bad idea, isn't it? Why not take it back to Sunagakure and reseal it to avoid causing more trouble? Your World Children's Charity Foundation is also a good thing. If you lack funds, I can help you..."

Despite all the nonsense the Golden Lion spouted, Mifune still believed that the guy must have been bankrupted by Tsunade. The charity foundation was just a fancy excuse. After all, Tsunade's extravagance had been well-known in the ninja world for many years. Honestly, given Tsunade's extravagance, she could have squandered mountains of gold and silver.

"It's alright, it's just a little piece of trash. Taking it back won't do it any good. Besides, it's not about the money. Leaving so many children homeless isn't just one person's responsibility, it's everyone's responsibility. I hope this auction will draw everyone's attention to those pitiful children. Next time you do something big, think about the tragedy of families being torn apart, and be more restrained. The fighting between ninjas shouldn't involve innocent parents and children..."

Masato was spouting nonsense with great emotion again. He really didn't expect Mifune to be so straightforward. No, it should be said that all the samurai seem to be so straightforward. Look at Mifune's two trusted subordinates, who were moved to tears by him. No wonder the samurai's fighting power is no less than that of the ninjas. But the samurai era will still be eliminated by the ninja era.

The ninja philosophy is to make the law into law and the limit into limit. They don't have many rules. As long as they can kill the enemy, they will use any means necessary, regardless of whether it is despicable or not. They will even bite with their teeth.

Samurai, on the other hand, were more formal, engaging in straightforward head-on combat, and bound by numerous rules. For instance, even when dueling with a father's killer, one could not gouge eyes, lock throats, or strike groins. Under the influence of such educational rules, they were, to put it nicely, upright and honorable, but to put it bluntly, overly pedantic. Such samurai could survive in ancient times when the average person was not strong, but when the eldest son of the Six Paths created ninjutsu hand seals and everyone learned some ninjutsu, they were inevitably eliminated by the times.

Just like now, he admits that his acting skills are good, and that he hasn't won an award for Best Actor all these years because he's been making commercial films. But look at Mifune and his two trusted underlings, they've been in the ninja world for decades and have seen all sorts of things, like snakes defecating. Yet they were still moved to tears by this heartfelt speech. If it were a cunning old fox like Onoki as the audience, this would never have happened.

Hearing what Masato said, Mifune also felt that it made sense. Over the years, the ninja world had only experienced a brief period of peace when Hashirama Senju was alive. However, after Hashirama Senju died, the ninja world was once again engulfed in war. In fact, the scale of these battles between villages was far greater than during the war-torn era. Even during the peace periods after the wars ended, the ninja world was not truly at peace; the wars were merely shifted from the surface to the shadows. This was not the responsibility of any one person; if we were to investigate, everyone would share the responsibility, even the neutral samurai of the Land of Iron. They rarely considered the safety of civilians during battles, and it was inevitable that many civilians would be affected, leading to the destruction of their families and the loss of their homes.

However, this feat of not taking the tailed beasts seriously is something that only Shiki, besides Hashirama Senju, has ever accomplished throughout history.

...

With the auction of the tailed beasts drawing ever closer, many leaders of small ninja villages or heads of small countries have already arrived in the Land of Iron with sacks full of cash, waiting for the auction to begin. This has indirectly boosted the economy of the Land of Iron, while Shinto is also getting tired of living at the Mifune family's residence.

To be honest, the Mifune family is quite comfortable, but a bit decadent. Masato is genuinely worried he might succumb to depravity if he continued living there. Although they are very wealthy—even their toilets are gold-plated—they can't compare to the old noble families of the Land of Iron in terms of luxury. The Mifune family alone has over a hundred servants, far more decadent than the Hyuga clan, let alone the Miyako clan. They must be self-sufficient...

Fortunately, the auction started as scheduled after the last two days of the stay.

"First of all, thank you all for traveling from afar to the Land of Iron to attend this 'World Children's Charity Auction'. As the organizer of this auction, on behalf of all the poor children, I would like to thank you all again for coming."

"...Ahem, everyone's here, so I won't ramble on about Wen Suosou. I'm sure you all don't want to waste time. Let's get straight to the point. This tailed beast is an unclaimed item that I discovered. Since it's unclaimed, we can't just take it back to Sunagakure. We should give everyone a fair chance to compete. As the saying goes, the capable should win. So, the starting price for this auction is one billion, and each bid must be at least one hundred million. The highest bidder wins. Does anyone have any objections?"

At the auction, Shindou looked at the leaders of various countries present. Several of them were familiar faces, including the leader of the Land of Commerce. However, he didn't recognize this leader. It had been decades since the Land of Commerce had hired Kakuzu. The Land of Commerce was located in a remote area and never participated in the wars of the ninja world. Of course, with their weak strength, they couldn't participate anyway. However, it was normal for them to have a friendly match or two with the neighboring countries every now and then. In this day and age, wherever there are people, there is a jianghu (martial arts world). People in jianghu usually don't live long. He wondered which generation this living dead from the Land of Commerce was.

The person over there is also a very familiar person, the leader of Takigakure. However, it is strange to Shinto. Ever since Takigakure asked him to take away the Seven-Tails, they have been serving as Konoha's underlings for all these years and have been living quite comfortably. Konoha has been rebuilt twice, and there has not been a single safety incident in Takigakure. Isn't that great? Why did they come here to fight the main body of the Tailed Beasts?

Could it be that after all these years of not doing anything, he feels like he's back to his old self?

But why is it wrapped up like a rice dumpling? It's almost as big as the Second Tsuchikage...

There were also leaders from various villages, including the Grass Village, the Hot Spring Village, the Moon Country, and the Frost Village. They were either heads of state of small countries or leaders of small ninja villages. It was estimated that most of the small countries and ninja villages in the ninja world had come. As for the people from the other four major ninja villages, not a single one was seen.

However, Shinto didn't care about any of that. He didn't really do all this for the money; he just wanted to get Obito and Nagato, the rice carriers, to pay attention to the tailed beast.

Although the people present are not of high rank, their sheer number is enough for him to give this artificial tailed beast a reasonable birth and identity.

At least in the eyes of the Six Paths Old Man's mother, he, the mighty Golden Lion, wouldn't dare to boast and brag in front of so many people...

1064. Takikage: I have a small dream

"Lord Golden Lion, before the auction, could you please tell us about the origin of this tailed beast? As we all know, there are only nine tailed beasts. Although we trust you, the sudden appearance of an extra one makes us somewhat suspicious."

No sooner had Masato finished speaking than Takikage, who was wrapped up like a dumpling and thought no one would know he was Takikage, asked impatiently.

Although Takikage said this, his tone was firm. As long as the origin of this tailed beast was legitimate, he would sell everything he owned to get it.

Since taking over as the leader of Takigakure, he has had a small dream: to lead the village to restore its glory as the sixth greatest ninja village in the ninja world and become the first person in Takigakure's history, no longer serving as a subordinate to Konoha in the past. To restore its former glory, he naturally needs to improve the village's strength. As for how to improve the village's strength...

It's simple in some ways, but difficult in others. All they need is for Takigakure to produce a double-flowered red-stick ninja, just like when Hanzo of the Salamander appeared in the Land of Rain. After their Seven-Tails was taken away by Shiki, Hanzo of the Salamander rose to power and took over their title as the sixth greatest ninja village.

But making these double-flowered red sticks sounds simple, but it's actually quite difficult!

Over the years, the only person from Takigakure who became a Double Flower Red Staff was Kakuzu, the super rogue ninja, because he obtained their secret technique. I don't know if it's a matter of feng shui, but over the years, their village hasn't produced a single genius who can be considered respectable.

He worked hard his whole life, barely managing to get the rank of Red Stick; he had no hope of ever getting the Double Flower rank.

So since this path is blocked, the only option is to try bringing back a tailed beast to make the village a nuclear ninja village, just like before. However, their Seven-Tails is currently in Sunagakure. The Seven-Tails has been in Sunagakure for so many years now, it is impossible to bring it back peacefully through diplomatic means. And it is even more wishful thinking to try to bring it back by force. Shiki is not dead yet. He personally witnessed Shiki beating the Seven-Tails so badly that it cried and surrendered. Although he was young at the time, he will never forget that brutal scene.

With only a few years left until his retirement, it was thought he would enter his coffin with regrets. Unexpectedly, Golden Lion actually obtained a wild tailed beast and even put it up for auction.

This was something he hadn't expected. No village would ever have too many high-end nuclear weapons like the Tailed Beasts, and anyone who got one would secretly hide it away. But this Golden Lion, for some reason, actually decided to put it up for auction. Judging from his background, he didn't seem like someone who was short of money.

But none of that matters. What matters is this wild tailed beast!

So when he heard that Shiki was going to auction off the tailed beast, he immediately ordered the village to gather funds and came over in person. This time, he was going to play it big!

Serving as a subordinate to Konoha over the years has its advantages. His energy has been drawn away by the elder brother, and with no threat from the tailed beasts, Takigakure has been working diligently for decades. Although its strength hasn't increased, its economy has developed rapidly, giving him enough confidence to not even put the Land of Commerce in his eyes.

The Land of Merchants is indeed wealthy, known as the second richest country in the ninja world after Sunagakure. However, the wealth of the Land of Merchants doesn't lie in the country itself, but rather in its merchants. The people of the Land of Merchants aren't ninjas in the traditional sense; most are merchants. Establishing a "Merchant Ninja Village" and calling it a "Merchant Ninja" is merely keeping up with the times and following the trend, much like the small ninja villages in other small countries. Many small countries establish ninja villages even when there's no real need for them, and they rarely have any special missions. Even their daimyo would go to a major ninja village for missions. Their ninjas are treated like civil servants, supported by the state, receiving a basic salary plus social security and housing fund benefits, and even being allocated a wedding home...

Even so, the daimyo were still willing to spend more money to preserve these ninja villages. The Land of Commerce was similar to these small countries, mainly because of face. A country without a ninja village was like a dwarf.

Back when Orochimaru wanted to establish a ninja village in the Land of Rice Fields, the daimyo of the Land of Rice Fields, knowing full well that Orochimaru was a super rogue ninja from Konoha, didn't give him any special treatment and went out of his way to help him. Orochimaru kept asking the daimyo of the Land of Rice Fields for money for his research projects, and the daimyo of the Land of Rice Fields would always take it without a word, without even frowning.

After all, Orochimaru is a true double-crown ninja; once the village is established, the Land of Rice Fields can become the seventh great nation in the ninja world, just like the Land of Rain...

“This brother is right! I think if I don’t explain the origin of this tailed beast clearly, many people won’t believe me.”

Masato glanced appreciatively at Takikage, who was wrapped up like a mummy. He hadn't expected Takikage to be so sensible.

Honestly, this wasn't his arrangement. Takikage is just a natural actor!

"Before discussing the origins of this tailed beast, let me first tell you about the origins of the other tailed beasts. Historical records state that after the Six Paths Sage established the Ninja Sect, the world suddenly underwent a great change. The chakra in the ninja world became extremely concentrated, causing many wild beasts to become increasingly powerful due to the influence of the chakra, wreaking havoc everywhere and severely impacting the ecological balance of the ninja world. The Six Paths Sage realized that this couldn't continue. If humans were eaten by these wild beasts that had become stronger due to the chakra, wouldn't the ninja world be doomed? So, the Six Paths Sage devised a plan: he absorbed the excess chakra in the ninja world that could affect wild beasts into his own body, and then used the absorbed chakra as a seed to nurture nine small lives... That's right! Strictly speaking, the Six Paths Sage should be considered the father of those tailed beasts!"

Masato said in a serious tone, spouting nonsense.

Even a well-read top scientist like Orochimaru doesn't know the origin of the Tailed Beasts, let alone these roughnecks who can't even write their names properly and only know how to chop their friends.

"No way! Lord Golden Lion, how could the Sage of Six Paths possibly give birth to nine Purple Stars? And what does this have to do with the tailed beast we have now?"

Shindou's words completely shattered the worldviews of the audience. This guy can give birth to a beast! The Sage of Six Paths is truly a unique person!

However, the group became puzzled again. They hadn't heard the Golden Lion recount how the Sage of Six Paths transformed that chakra into nine lives. One-Tailed to Nine-Tailed was correct, so what did that have to do with this tailed beast...?

"Don't rush, let me finish. The Six Paths Old Man is a legendary figure. I'd like to ask you, have you ever seen him? Have you ever seen him? And how do you know that the Six Paths Old Man is just like us, with two arms, two legs, two eyes, and one mouth? Even the nine sons of the dragon are all different, let alone the great Liu Dao Immortal. What's so strange about him giving birth to several different... species..."

1065. So cheap! Golden Lion is such a good person!

Hearing him say that, everyone nodded in agreement. They all knew the Sage of Six Paths was a legendary figure, the ancestor of ninjas, yet there wasn't even a portrait of him, nor was there any stipulation that the Sage of Six Paths was a human like them...

"Originally, everything was fine. After realizing that he would soon die, the Six Paths Sage successfully released the nine tailed beasts. Although the general illiteracy at that time meant that the Six Paths Sage's math skills were not great, the uneven distribution of the beasts led to constant fighting among them. However, overall, the ninja world was no longer plagued by wild beasts. Days passed by like this. No matter how strong the Six Paths Sage was, he could not ultimately defeat the passage of time. Finally, one day, the Six Paths Sage collapsed. As you know, when you get old, you inevitably have some digestive problems, such as bloating. Just as the Six Paths Sage collapsed, he didn't pay attention to his image and inadvertently burped."

"Attention everyone, this isn't an ordinary hiccup. It turns out that when it absorbed chakra from nature, it absorbed too much, and even after distributing it to the nine tailed beasts, some chakra remained in its body without it even realizing it. If you don't understand, just imagine you haven't finished pooping... This hiccup before it died, because of its unique birth, carried some impure energy at birth. Over thousands of years, this impure energy seems to have acquired an evil attribute that easily influences people's minds. Coupled with the lack of care from the Six Paths Sage, it took hundreds and thousands of years of gestation to finally take human form, becoming the tailed beast in my hands. When I encountered it, it had probably only recently taken human form and was still in its naive stage, which is why that weakling Shennong used sweet words to deceive and seal it inside his stomach. However, because Shennong's foundation was too weak, he couldn't withstand the slightly evil power of this tailed beast and was affected in his mind, breaking the law everywhere. It just so happened that I came across it; otherwise, who knows how many families would have been destroyed and how many poor children would have been homeless..."