Starting with rogue ninjas, building the insect kingdom.

Chapter 98 Establishing the Holy Land: The Seven-Tailed Metamorphosis

So he granted him the permissions.

Seven-tailed Fox immediately pounced on the edge of the pool and began to drink it in large gulps.

The golden pool water flowed into her mouth, transforming into boundless energy that flowed through her body.

Her carapace began to glow, the purple patterns grew brighter and brighter, and her six wings slowly unfolded, each flap bringing a gentle breeze.

"So comfortable...so comfortable..."

She kept muttering to herself as she drank, unable to stop.

A moment later, the pool water level dropped significantly.

Aburame Zhicheng's expression changed.

"stop!"

Seven-tailed Fox reluctantly raised its head, golden water droplets still clinging to its lips.

"Just one more sip... just one more sip..."

"You drank almost two thousand years' worth of energy in one go!"

Yu Nu Zhicheng looked at the obviously dropping pool water and felt a pang of heartache.

What could have accelerated time by more than three thousand years is now reduced to only a few hundred years.

Seven-Tails let out a burp, its eyes drooping with sleepiness.

"So sleepy..." she murmured, "I want to sleep..."

As soon as she finished speaking, her massive body collapsed with a thud, and she fell into a deep sleep. Aburame Zhicheng quickly moved her out of the golden finger.

Seven-Tails lay on the ground of the fiftieth floor of the underground palace, its massive body rising and falling slightly, sleeping like a child.

Yu Nu Zhicheng wiped the sweat from his forehead.

"You're sleeping soundly."

He looked down at the swirling purple cricket beside him. The little girl had been standing quietly to the side, her eyes full of curiosity.

"Let's go." He took her hand. "There's still a lot to do."

In the days that followed, Yu Nu Zhicheng was extremely busy.

The fiftieth floor was completely transformed into the Seven-Tails' lair. He used Earth Release: Insect Technique to carve countless holes in the stone wall as habitats for the dragonflies, and reinforced the entire space with sealing techniques to prevent chakra from leaking out.

The most crucial thing is that psychic scroll.

He promised the people of Kusagakure that there would be a séance site called Dragonfly—and he meant what he said.

A massive scroll, ten meters long, lay on the ground. Aburame Shicheng bit his finger, using his blood as ink, and painstakingly carved the spirit contract. The scroll was intricate and delicate; the slightest mistake would render the entire work futile. He carved for a full day and night before finally completing it.

"alright."

He stood up, looked at the scroll, and nodded.

Next came the dragonflies. He used his remaining primal energy to perform a time-catalyzing process on nearly a hundred dragonflies. The newly hatched creatures grew rapidly under the nourishment of the golden energy, their bodies becoming larger and their wings more powerful.

Those with exceptional talent even began to absorb natural energy on their own, and a faint green light appeared on their bodies—the rudiments of Sage Chakra.

"good."

Looking at them, Yu Nu Zhicheng felt a surge of accomplishment.

These dragonflies are the trump card of the future.

To prepare for this catalysis, he used up all the Hero's Water he had collected over the past few days, and all kinds of materials were also exhausted. It can be said that he has emptied his coffers to build the Dragonfly Sanctuary.

But it was worth it. He watched the fluttering dragonflies and the sleeping seven-tailed fox, and nodded silently.

A day later, Nanami woke up.

The first thing she did when she opened her eyes was to check her body.

"what?"

She was stunned.

Its body had grown larger than before, its carapace was harder, and its wings were more powerful. What surprised her most was that real flesh and blood had begun to grow inside its body—no longer a pure chakra body, but an existence between the real and the illusory.

"this……"

"You've drunk so much primal energy, there should be some changes by now," Aburame Shisei's voice came from the side.

Seven-tailed Fox turned its head and saw him sitting not far away, surrounded by a group of dragonflies.

"Children!" Nanami exclaimed excitedly, wanting to rush over, but suddenly stopped.

She looked at the dragonflies, then at her own enormous body.

"I...I'm too big, I'll hurt them..."

Yu Nu Zhicheng laughed and said, "No. They're sturdier than you think."

A dragonfly flew to Seven-Tailed Fox and gently landed on her nose. Seven-Tailed Fox remained motionless, her eyes crossed, staring intently at the little creature.

"It...it's looking at me."

"Um."

"Does it like me?"

"It should be."

Nanami suddenly laughed.

That was the first time Aburame Shisei had seen the Tailed Beast laugh—its huge compound eyes curved into crescent shapes, and its six wings vibrated gently, emitting a pleasant buzzing sound.

"I'm pregnant," she murmured. "I really am pregnant..."

She suddenly looked at Aburame Shisei, her eyes full of sincerity: "Thank you."

Aburame Shisei shook his head: "We are partners."

"Yes, partner." Nanami nodded, then her eyes lit up. "Could you give me a little more of that energy?"

Aburame Shisei looked at her warily: "What are you doing?"

"I feel that if I drink another hundred servings of that energy, I can re-egg and complete my metamorphosis!" Seven-Tails' eyes sparkled. "Then I'll be stronger and more useful to you!"

One hundred portions?

The little energy that Aburame Shisei had left wasn't even half of what he needed.

"No," he refused outright.

"How about ten portions?" Nanami bargained. "Actually, ten portions are enough."

Aburame Shisei said, "As long as you can assist in the psychic battles, you will be able to obtain a continuous source of energy in the future."

"Really?" Nanami's eyes lit up.

"real."

"Then what are we waiting for!" The Seven-Tails leaped to its feet, its six wings unfurling dramatically. "I feel like I can tear the Nine-Tails apart with my bare hands. Let me onto the battlefield! Now! Immediately!"

Aburame Shisei: "..."

This tailed beast has an insatiable thirst for battle.

"There will be opportunities," he reassured, "but not now."

Time was of the essence. Aburame Shisei calculated that two days had already passed since the agreed-upon one-day meeting with Negishi Kusanagi. The Kusanagi Village was probably already in complete chaos.

"It's time to go back."

He stood up, ready to leave.

A small figure blocked his way—it was the Whirlpool Purple Fly.

She lowered her head, her small hands tightly gripping the hem of her clothes.

"What's wrong?" Aburame Shisei squatted down and looked into her eyes.

After a long silence, Ziling finally mustered the courage to speak: "I... I'm not qualified to become a Jinchūriki. Are you... going to give up on me?"

Yu Nu Zhicheng was taken aback upon hearing this. Looking into the little girl's anxious eyes, he suddenly understood.

This child had been displaced and abandoned too many times since childhood, making her sensitive and suspicious. She was waiting for me to speak up, waiting for me to say, "You're still useful."

But he's been too busy these past few days—building the sacred site, catalyzing dragonflies, and communicating with the Seven-Tailed Fox.

Her feelings were completely ignored, which she perceived as a sign of being abandoned.

A feeling of guilt welled up in Yu Nu Zhicheng's heart. He reached out and gently stroked her head: "Ziling."

The purple cricket raised its head.

"You're very useful." Aburame Shigeaki looked earnestly into her eyes. "Moreover, you'll become an expert who can help me."