Aoki Yoru looked at it curiously; after all, it was formed from human negative energy, feeding on the negative emotions of the human heart and directly converting them into Dark Chakra.
'How does its formation mechanism differ from that of the Evil God? Can I make full use of it to accelerate the formation of the Evil God clone?'
Thinking of this, Aoki Yoru smiled, and suddenly felt that the monster before him looked quite pleasing to the eye.
"Zero-Tails, kill him."
The Zero-Tails let out a roar, swaying its slender body and opening its massive maw as it lunged toward Aoki Yoru.
Aoki Yoru raised nightfall towards it. "Compared to a Tailed Beast, you are far too weak."
As he spoke, two bolts of lightning sprayed from Aoki Yoru's nostrils, and the nightfall in his hand was instantly enveloped in electrical light, the blade rapidly extending within the lightning arcs.
"Lightning Cutter: Chidori Blade!"
He slashed down, tearing a massive wound through the front and back of the Zero-Tails' gelatinous body.
"Roar—"
Severely wounded, the Zero-Tails roared in pain as its body expanded rapidly; seeing this, Aoki Yoru immediately leaped backward to dodge.
Shennong, however, opened his arms to embrace the incoming body of the Zero-Tails and was instantly swallowed up.
Before long, the Zero-Tails' body shrank rapidly, forming a giant cocoon.
Crack—
Shennong squeezed out of the cocoon. He was no longer in the form of a robust middle-aged man, but had become a withered old man on his last legs, with almost all his teeth fallen out.
The Zero-Tails had nearly sucked all the life essence out of him.
"Hahaha! Do you see? This is the power of a Tailed Beast! After I slaughter you, I will destroy Konoha and take revenge for the Sky Ninja Village!"
"Oh? Is that so?"
Immediately, lightning flashed violently on Aoki Yoru's body, but suddenly the barrier symbols around them lit up, and the Lightning Release on Aoki Yoru's body was sucked away.
Subsequently, a yellow tentacle reached out, and Aoki Yoru was caught as if he hadn't reacted in time.
"Hahaha, it's useless! Become nourishment for the Zero-Tails!"
There was no trace of panic on Aoki Yoru's face; he only said coldly, "Is that so?"
Suddenly, an unexpected change occurred.
The Zero-Tails suddenly let out a scream of agony. Its gelatinous body began to stiffen at a speed visible to the naked eye, its viscous frame gradually solidifying until it finally turned into a pitch-black stone statue, completely losing all movement.
Shennong's pupils constricted, and a look of horror appeared on his face, not knowing what had happened.
Crack—
The hand holding Aoki Yoru was shattered by him.
Aoki Yoru walked straight toward Shennong, pressing a hand onto his head to read his memories.
Although this was a secret technique of the Yamanaka Clan, in the end, it was just the application of spiritual energy.
After seeing it a few times, Aoki Yoru had successfully figured it out.
This technique, which could be called the Ninja World's version of Soul Searching, meant he didn't need to bother interrogating enemies at all, saving a lot of trouble.
After a long while, Aoki Yoru opened his eyes, a look of pleasant surprise on his face; this harvest was not small.
'Body Activation Technique'—it directly activates cells, forcibly breaking through the body's physiological limits, allowing one to obtain recovery, strength, and speed far beyond their limits in a short time, even ignoring some fatal injuries.
Although this stimulation accelerates cell division and greatly consumes life force—much like the effect of Hashirama forcibly using Wood Release, leading to an early death—
It can be life-saving at critical moments, allowing for a counter-kill against an enemy.
However, as long as he applied it scientifically, it would greatly enhance his physical strength without consuming life force.
Aoki Yoru's own physical strength was originally quite average, only growing slowly through the nourishment of Yang Release Chakra.
He could use his own Yang Release Chakra and Sage Body characteristics to gently strengthen cell activity within a safe range, keeping cell division and regeneration in a controlled, virtuous cycle.
Furthermore, there was another gain: the cultivation method for the Eight Gates.
He could use it as a trump card later. If he hadn't reached the Six Paths Level by the time the Fourth War arrived and encountered an unmanageable enemy, he could still put up a struggle.
Afterward, Aoki Yoru took out a scroll and sealed the Zero-Tails inside.
Even though it was called a Tailed Beast, it had already been petrified. Combined with the fact that Aoki Yoru's Sealing Technique had made great progress, sealing it into a scroll was now achievable.
He then put it away with satisfaction, planning to give it to his clone later to see if it would be useful.
The moment Aoki Yoru stowed the scroll, the entire Sky Ninja Fortress suddenly vibrated violently.
With the Zero-Tails sealed, the power source supporting the fortress's flight completely vanished. Losing the Chakra maintenance, the floating fortress began to disintegrate at a visible speed, with rubble falling like rain and crashing toward the ground below.
Sizzle—
A bolt of lightning flashed, splitting a giant rock in two, and Aoki Yoru walked out from beneath it.
Looking at the ruins, a look of disappointment appeared on his face: "What a pity. If it could have been preserved, it would have been a formidable weapon!"
Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh—
Konoha's support team finally arrived.
Leading them was Yamato. Seeing that the situation had already settled, he breathed a sigh of relief.
The massive energy of that Chakra Cannon still left him with lingering fears.
Previously, all forces were guarding Konoha; after all, if casualties occurred, it would deal a huge blow to Konoha's prestige.
The Fifth Hokage, Tsunade, had even ordered everyone to stand by, believing that Aoki Yoru could resolve the crisis.
Everyone had been waiting anxiously in Konoha for news of the battle. Only when they saw the floating fortress disintegrate and fall from the sky did their hearts finally settle.
Aoki Yoru looked at Yamato and said, "Search around; there should still be some valuable things inside."
"This was Shennong's headquarters; everything from the Sky Ninja Village was kept here."
Although it was a small nation, Shennong's accumulation over decades still amounted to something.
Unfortunately, he didn't have the chance to scavenge, and now he was too lazy to sift through trash.
Swoosh—
Aoki Yoru's figure appeared on the roof of the Konoha Plaza.
Tsunade said in surprise, "I thought you would come in through the main gate. The citizens are eagerly waiting to welcome you as a hero."
Aoki Yoru curled his lip. "I have absolutely no interest in that."
"Leave that welcome to a hot-blooded youth like Naruto; I'm sure he'll be very happy when the time comes."
Tsunade was stunned for a moment upon hearing this, thinking of Naruto—the boy who had been ostracized by the whole village but still remained optimistic.
If he were cheered by the whole village, he would surely be very happy, as it would mean being recognized by everyone.
"True, his dream is to become Hokage."
"Besides, I feel like it's not over yet."
Tsunade's expression changed instantly. "What's wrong? Did you discover an enemy?"
Aoki Yoru shook his head. "When the Sky Ninja Fortress disintegrated, I sensed a strange Chakra in the distance, but it was too far away and only for a moment, so it wasn't very clear."
"Besides, this opportunity is so rare. If another hidden village were hosting this, I don't think Konoha would pass up the chance to cause trouble."
"After all, as long as a single explosive tag goes off in Konoha, their goal is achieved."
"I will have the Anbu and the Police Force step up patrols."