Chapter 37: Shukaku Reveals Itself
The night sky was bright, the streets were lively, and the cries of street vendors echoed endlessly. On the surface, the night market seemed completely normal.
Yet Pakura couldn't shake an uneasy feeling—an instinct born from years of being a top-tier shinobi.
"No wonder you're called Scorch Release Pakura. You actually noticed my genjutsu."
A low, ethereal voice suddenly rang out. The moment it did, Pakura realized something was wrong—the once-noisy streets had gone eerily silent. The pedestrians around her, including her student Maki who had been holding her hand, all froze in place. It was as if time itself had stopped.
Pakura's expression turned grave as a tall, shadowy figure began walking slowly toward her. The figure had clearly masked its identity with genjutsu—neither his face nor clothes were discernible. All she could tell was that it was a man.
"Who are you? What do you want?" she asked coldly.
The man was none other than Yusuke. Using his Sharingan, he had pulled Pakura into a genjutsu realm—a space where, no matter how much time passed inside, only an instant would elapse in the real world.
Yusuke's technique was somewhat similar to Itachi's Tsukuyomi, though far less powerful. Tsukuyomi could inflict severe mental trauma and even death. In contrast, Yusuke's version could only create illusions without causing any real harm—but for his purposes, that was enough.
In that fleeting moment of activation, Yusuke also cast a perception-altering genjutsu on himself to prevent anyone nearby from noticing his Sharingan.
"Relax. I have no designs on Sunagakure," Yusuke said in a calm, altered voice. "I only want to show you something interesting."
Pakura scoffed. "Cloaked in shadows, unwilling to show your face—if you have something to say, spit it out."
To Pakura, anyone who could cast genjutsu on her in the middle of Sunagakure's bustling market was clearly no ordinary ninja. And if he had to approach her through such underhanded means, his motives were undoubtedly suspicious.
No sooner had she spoken than the surroundings shifted rapidly. Like scenes from a film, vivid images began to play out before her eyes.
Yusuke projected two key events. First, Pakura accepting a covert mission from Sunagakure's higher-ups to negotiate with Kirigakure. Second, her assassination after falling into an ambush near the border.
The scenes were slightly hazy in parts, but the message was unmistakable.
Pakura narrowed her eyes, recalling her recent clashes with the village leadership. Doubt began to grow in her heart—not just about the scenes' authenticity, but also about how this man had acquired such sensitive intel.
She didn't let it show, though. Instead, she sneered, "So all this genjutsu was just to show me some fabricated nonsense and drive a wedge between me and the village?"
Yusuke chuckled. "Truth or fiction—time will tell."
He knew he had planted the seed. Once Pakura received the mission, she would naturally compare it to what she had seen.
As his words faded, so too did the illusion. The vibrant sounds of the night market returned to Pakura's ears.
"Sensei? Sensei, why aren't you saying anything?" Maki tugged her hand, looking worried.
Snapping out of her trance, Pakura smiled. "Nothing, I just zoned out for a second. Maki, how long was I like that?"
"Wow, even Sensei spaces out sometimes! You came back the moment I called," Maki replied with a grin.
Pakura nodded, but inwardly, she was unsettled. She had spent nearly ten minutes inside that illusion—yet only a blink had passed in the real world.
"Hmm? Sensei, what's that in your hand?" Maki pointed at the small scroll that had mysteriously appeared.
Pakura's eyes widened. She hadn't even realized someone had slipped a scroll into her hand.
I can't believe I was that careless. Sure, I was caught in a genjutsu—but if he could plant this on me without me noticing, then he absolutely had the power to kill me.
With a heavy heart, she tucked the scroll away. She would examine it later, alone.
Meanwhile, Yusuke had already brushed past her, blending into the crowd. The corner of his mouth lifted into a small smile. This encounter had gone more smoothly than he expected.
She's a wildcard I hadn't originally planned on. Whether she becomes an ally or not, I've lost nothing.
Good thing she let her guard down inside the village. Otherwise, trapping her in a genjutsu wouldn't have been this easy. With his back to Pakura, Yusuke disappeared into the night market.
---
By the next afternoon, nearly twenty-four hours had passed since the start of the second Chūnin Exam.
Due to the vast expanse of the Demon Desert, each genin squad had entered from different locations. So far, the two Konoha squads had not yet regrouped.
Thanks to his two genjutsu crow clones, Yusuke had a clear picture of their movements.
The team of Mizuki, Hayate Gekkō, and Yugao Uzuki was in good shape. All three were top-tier genin, particularly strong in taijutsu—a crucial advantage in the early stages of a ninja's career, when ninjutsu and genjutsu were still limited.
In less than a day, they had already obtained the required scroll and were now hiding in a secure location. Their strategy: avoid combat and survive the remaining days.
The other team—Itachi, Anko, and Kyoko Kurama—had ran into trouble. They were ambushed by a seeded Sunagakure team. During the fight, Anko's overuse of chakra triggered her cursed seal, knocking her out of commission.
Thankfully, Itachi's overwhelming prowess and Kyoko's unexpectedly strong genjutsu helped them win the battle. Unfortunately, the enemy's scroll was the same type their team already possessed—so they'd need to fight again.
Seeing Anko's condition, Yusuke felt a pang of guilt. He had overlooked her cursed seal. After the exam, he would have to help her deal with it properly.
The Heaven's Curse Seal on Anko's body was an incomplete version—worthless to her, but useful to Orochimaru as a potential vessel for resurrection. Unlike Sasuke, Anko couldn't draw power from it. Instead, it flared up when her chakra ran low, causing excruciating pain and rendering her unable to fight.
At a teahouse in Sunagakure, Yusuke casually chatted with Hayama Shirakumo while mentally broadcasting everything his crow clones observed.
Then came a transmission—one of the crows in the Nara Desert had spotted signs of Shukaku.
Yusuke's eyes lit up. He immediately ordered all nearby crow clones to converge and sweep the area.
By nightfall, he had narrowed down Shukaku's rough location. Leaving behind a fire-style clone at the inn, Yusuke raced to the desert himself.
Reaching the vicinity, he recalled all his scouting crows, which dove into his body one by one.
Looking out over the endless dunes, Yusuke knew Shukaku was buried somewhere beneath. But exactly where, he couldn't say.
Guess I'll have to draw him out. With that, Yusuke formed a rapid string of hand seals. When done, he slammed his palm into the sand.
"Blaze Release: Scorched Earth Seal."
Black sealing patterns rippled out from his palm, quickly spreading across a radius of 500–600 meters. The golden sand shimmered red as heat surged upward—Yusuke had superheated the ground beneath.
The technique consumed nearly 70% of his chakra—but with the Yin-style chakra battery from the Nine-Tails sealed inside him, it wasn't a serious problem.
Suddenly, an earsplitting shriek tore through the air:
"YAAHHH!!!"
Startled, Yusuke nearly jumped. Thankfully, the Nara Desert was far from Sunagakure—otherwise that shout could've drawn the whole army.
The glowing sand began to churn, and a massive, round tanuki burst forth with a thunderous roar:
"IT'S TOO HOT!!!"
The creature towered dozens of meters tall—smaller than the Nine-Tails, but massive nonetheless. Its round body was the color of sand, adorned with swirling purple markings. Its thick tail was longer than its body and extremely muscular.
Watching the enormous tanuki burst from the sand, Yusuke murmured:
So this is Shukaku, the One-Tail? Judging by the voice, it seems... oddly cheerful.
But Shukaku quickly locked eyes on Yusuke.
"HEY! YOU'RE THE ONE WHO HEATED UP THE SAND, AREN'T YOU?!" it roared, pointing a giant clawed hand at him.
Yusuke had no time to answer. Shukaku, known for its violent temper, immediately launched an attack.
"Wind Release: Drilling Air Bullet!"
It slapped its belly, and a massive ball of wind chakra shot straight toward Yusuke.
Though not as powerful as a Tailed Beast Bomb, the Drilling Air Bullet was easy to fire and extremely fast—perfect for a creature like Shukaku.
Yusuke responded by transforming into a genjutsu crow clone, letting the attack pass through harmlessly. The wind blast tore through the sand, throwing up a towering cloud of dust.