"Yo, long time no see, Matatabi."
"It feels like forever since we last met. I was seriously counting the days."
The first to speak was still Chōmei. The moment he saw Matatabi, all the shock in his mind vanished, replaced by pure joy. With his six massive wings gently flapping, he flew over to her, almost leaning in.
"Whap!"
A blue-flamed paw came down and swatted Chōmei—along with his wings and insect-like body—clear across the space.
"Chōmei, behave yourself! Is this space meant for you to mess around in?"
"Hmph!"
Matatabi spat at him in irritation, the flames roaring out and nearly scorching Chōmei through.
Kazuyama Gekkō watched the two Tailed Beasts bicker like an old married couple and sighed helplessly. On the other hand, Yugito, experiencing this communication platform for the first time, looked around in amazement.
"So this is the space we built? Incredible!"
"Chōmei! Don't bully Matatabi! Or I'll beat you up!"
Yugito wasn't afraid of Chōmei at all. Thanks to Kazuyama, she had come to see Matatabi as her closest companion. As a Jinchūriki, her Tailed Beast was a part of her, and Matatabi had started to genuinely like her as well. Hearing Yugito's words, Matatabi smiled gently, then climbed down and lifted her up with a front paw, setting her on top of his head.
With one girl and one cat settled, they waited quietly for Kazuyama to speak.
Seeing that Matatabi and Yugito were ready, Kazuyama quickly stopped Chōmei.
"Chōmei, cool it. This is meeting time."
"Mess around later."
Chōmei steadied himself and awkwardly floated to the back, mimicking Matatabi by settling down—but Kazuyama didn't hop onto his head.
Instead, he walked slowly over to Matatabi and began.
"I know all about the nine Tailed Beasts. Don't bother asking how—I just know. And I know more than you do."
"The Sage of Six Paths split the power of the Ten-Tails into nine Tailed Beasts—you. That means if your powers are ever gathered again, the Ten-Tails can be revived."
"During the battle between Madara Uchiha and Hashirama Senju, Madara faked his death and managed to obtain Hashirama's cells."
"The combined power of Uchiha and Senju allowed him to awaken the Rinnegan and push further toward the power of the Sage of Six Paths."
Matatabi and Chōmei's expressions grew more serious. Kazuyama clearly knew a lot—things even they were aware of. After all, they were fragments of the Ten-Tails' power, and the Sage of Six Paths was their creator. In simpler terms, he was their father.
"Wait, Sensei, if Madara isn't dead, just how old is he?"
"He'd be ancient by now—how is he even still moving? That's just not possible, right?"
Yugito voiced the same question both Matatabi and Chōmei were wondering. None of them believed a human could live that long. What was he—immortal?
Kazuyama let out a cold chuckle and continued.
"Hashirama's cells gave him the Wood Release Kekkei Genkai, and with it, extended vitality. That's how he awakened the power of the Six Paths."
"And with that power, the first thing he did was create the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path from the shell of the Ten-Tails—stripped of its chakra."
"As long as he's feeding off the Demonic Statue, he can't die—unless he takes himself out."
"Of course, it also means losing his freedom. The statue limits his movements."
When they heard "Demonic Statue of the Outer Path," both Matatabi and Chōmei grew even more grim.
Only Yugito still looked a bit lost—it was all a bit much for her age.
"No need to ask—I know what you're wondering."
"The Demonic Statue is the Ten-Tails' husk, just without its chakra."
"It's one of the natural enemies of the nine Tailed Beasts. It's practically a Tailed Beast itself. If someone with Six Paths power activates it, for the Tailed Beasts, it's a catastrophe—one they can't defend against."
As Kazuyama finished, the room fell silent. Even Yugito's mouth dropped open in shock.
She was a Jinchūriki too. She knew how strong Matatabi was.
But a mere shell could beat them that badly? What were they supposed to do?
"Kazuyama, if everything you're saying is true, aren't we in a terrible position right now?"
"If worse comes to worst, couldn't we just run? As long as he can't find us, we'll be safe, right?"
"I can fly. I'll take Matatabi and Yugito—we'll escape."
"If we never get caught, his Six Paths power won't be complete. The threat won't be as bad."
Chōmei finally spoke after a long silence. Being someone who avoided fighting, his first thought was to flee.
He could fly, after all. High mobility. Even if the enemy had Six Paths powers, they couldn't catch him if he just kept moving.
Kazuyama rolled his eyes and snapped:
"You planning to hide for the rest of your life?"
"And don't act like you've forgotten what the Uchiha are capable of. A fully evolved Susanoo has wings."
"Can you imagine the two of us flying, with some glowing giant chasing after us nonstop?"
Chōmei immediately deflated like a wilted flower.
He knew what Susanoo was—that was peak Uchiha power. Just one Susanoo might be enough to take him down.
Sure, he could fly, but his combat strength… well, let's not talk about that.
Matatabi said nothing. Her strength wasn't anything special either—not even among the top of the nine Tailed Beasts.
"So what are you suggesting? If that day comes, do we just give up?"
Matatabi's voice was filled with worry, but she wasn't ready to accept defeat. She felt certain Kazuyama had a plan.
After all, he wouldn't have gone to the trouble of kidnapping Yugito from Kumogakure without a reason.
In that moment, she finally understood why someone like Kazuyama—a fellow Jinchūriki—would go so far to bring Yugito to his side.
"Of course not. And I don't care if you believe me or not, but Madara Uchiha has already made his move on me and Chōmei."
"He didn't act personally, but he used the Sharingan to control the Third Mizukage."
"And the result? The two of us took down the Third Mizukage."
"The fact that he's made a move means he's already begun his plan. If we want to survive, we need to strike back."
"That's why I brought Yugito here. I need power—power to fight against Madara Uchiha."