For Kimimaro, what his current or future goal actually was couldn't be said to be completely unimportant—but it was definitely secondary.
The most important thing wasn't what the goal was.
It was whether a goal existed at all.
This was a deeply warped mental state, yet its existence was both reasonable and natural—because Kimimaro had grown up entirely within a similarly warped environment.
So even if Hagoromo had told him something like "Cute is justice. You must become an ally of justice. Even false ideals are worth holding onto," he probably could have talked Kimimaro into following him anyway.
After all, Kimimaro's body really was made of sword-like bones…
Hagoromo's original objective in the Land of Water had yet to be completed, but along the way he had already "picked up" two children. This was an impromptu arrangement for Mirai's sake.
In terms of numbers and composition, the Ginyu Force was now basically assembled.
A four-man squad was the most standard operational unit for ninja.
Still, if Hagoromo happened to run into more talented, teachable individuals like Haku or Kimimaro, he wouldn't hesitate to take them along as well. Kirigakure could only be said to be cursed with bad luck—since he was already doing it once, he might as well keep milking Kirigakure dry.
That said, there was no rush.
Hagoromo hadn't forgotten the real reason he came to the Land of Water in the first place.
That very night, Hagoromo quietly left the Kaguya clan settlement with Kimimaro.
As for when the clan would discover that their cherished "weapon" had vanished—that had nothing to do with him.
By the next day, Kimimaro was carrying Hiramekarei, Haku carried Nuibari, and Hagoromo occasionally carried Mirai on his back as the four of them arrived at a vast lake.
This was where the Three-Tails, Isobu, resided.
"Mirai, can you sense it?" Hagoromo asked.
He had observed and probed the area for a long time by the lakeside, but found nothing. In the end, this still required a professional—reconnaissance was the job of a sensor.
There had originally been two squads of Kirigakure ninja monitoring the area around the clock. But under Mirai's perception, they had nowhere to hide and were easily taken out by Hagoromo.
Given Mirai's abilities, calling her a radar was inaccurate.
Most of the time, she was closer to a remote-sensing satellite.
"I sense it," Mirai said, her small face tense.
"About eighty meters underwater… there's an enormous mass of chakra."
She rarely used words like enormous to describe chakra. Using herself as a reference point, there weren't many beings with more chakra than her—while those with less made up the overwhelming majority.
Despite her young age, Mirai was a member of the Uzumaki clan. The chakra contained within her body alone was enough to crush most of the shinobi world—
Hagoromo included.
Combined with the constant physical stimulation Hagoromo had put her through, Mirai's "head start" wasn't just talk.
Hagoromo's systematic, scheduled, and procedural electric stimulation was far more effective than the secret drugs ninja used to force potential growth.
The truth was simple: even drug-abusing ninja couldn't compete with a child raised like a walking magnetic storm.
Seeing that Hagoromo might not fully grasp what she meant by enormous, Mirai added,
"It's more than Lady Katsuyu plus Wang-chan plus… basically, more than all the chakra in Shikkotsu Forest combined."
As she spoke, she spread her arms wide—
so wide she couldn't even hug it all.
In terms of sheer size, Katsuyu was much larger than a tailed beast. But size was size—chakra was chakra. Comparing a summon to a tailed beast in terms of chakra was fundamentally unreasonable.
Even though Mirai knew how strong Hagoromo was, she had a very concrete sense of comparison. Against the "pet" underwater, Hagoromo's chakra felt… small.
So naturally, she felt a little scared.
"Don't worry," Hagoromo said, patting her head.
"No matter how much chakra it has, it's still just a pet. I've got experience dealing with these things."
He didn't just have experience fighting tailed beasts—
he had extensive experience.
Kimimaro and Haku exchanged looks.
They didn't really understand the conversation.
What was underwater?
What did pet mean?
Was dealing with a free-roaming Three-Tails difficult?
Not really.
Only when a tailed beast merged with a human—forming a jinchūriki—could it truly unleash its maximum potential. This perfectly demonstrated that only the pure union of power, spirit, and flesh could create something transcendent—something taboo.
Based on Hagoromo's information, a lone tailed beast was actually weaker than its jinchūriki form.
After all, no matter how powerful, a tailed beast's combat style was far less flexible than a ninja's.
"You three step back," Hagoromo said.
"I'll blast it out first. Then you can watch something interesting."
Seeing a tailed beast—
wasn't that exactly what watching something interesting meant?
With that, Hagoromo stepped forward.
Strangely enough, violent people tended to reach the same conclusions when fighting tailed beasts.
Hagoromo wasn't the type to shout "Art is an explosion!", but he did enjoy explosive magic from time to time.
Against Isobu, output was everything—and output was something Hagoromo never lacked.
Why bother with strategy?
Just bombard it into submission.
The once-serene lake now looked rough, like a mercury-coated mirror. Hagoromo's reflection on the surface was little more than a vague silhouette—
Because the sudden cold had frozen the lake solid.
But no matter how thick the ice was, melting it posed no difficulty for Hagoromo.
For anyone who witnessed Hagoromo use Lightning Release for the first time, it became a memory they would never forget. Ever since he had bombarded Shukaku, he had practically become synonymous with Lightning Release itself.
For Haku and Kimimaro, this moment was no exception.
Hagoromo's body on the lake shone brighter than the sun.
They didn't even see him move—
Only the thunderous explosion, the scorching shockwave, and towering pillars of water that followed one after another.
Haku hurriedly formed an ice umbrella over Mirai's head.
The waves thrown up by the Lightning Release technique surged nearly a hundred meters high—again and again.
It was a scene that made one think of the Lightning Release technique Princess of Tokiwadai undergoing an esper test.
And with this level of disturbance—
Even a hibernating ancient turtle would be forced awake.
"It's coming out!" Mirai exclaimed.
Now she wasn't scared at all—just excited and intensely curious as she stared at the water's surface.
This was clearly her first time seeing Hagoromo's continuous Lightning Release technique fire. Her earlier worry had completely vanished.
As expected—
Hagoromo was the strongest.
Hagoromo's figure rose and fell with the shattered ice beneath his feet, drifting like duckweed. At first glance, it was hard to tell who was bullying whom.
Then—
A massive turtle shell broke through the surface.
Three flat tails lashed violently, sending waves crashing outward.
At the moment the "pet" fully revealed itself, Hagoromo—judging by size alone—looked pitifully small.
If one ignored the fact that he had just been spamming ultimate attacks, this would have looked like genuine suicide.
Once again—
Who was bullying whom required careful observation.
The dark, spiked armor covering Isobu looked overwhelmingly defensive.
But in the shinobi world, who was the best at breaking defenses?
This "armor" was still chakra in nature. It looked like flesh and blood.
Could it withstand Hagoromo's Lightning Release technique?
He decided to test it.
But before that—
Out of politeness, he figured he should greet his opponent.
So Hagoromo raised one hand and cheerfully said,
"Hi, nice to meet you. Please take care of me."
…He had started talking nonsense again.
Which, oddly enough, was usually a good sign.
The Three-Tails' massive single eye finally shifted, locking onto Hagoromo.
Take care of your leg.
Look at yourself—are you even as big as my eyeball?
That was probably Isobu's inner monologue.
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