Ryo wasn't particularly surprised by the tiger's enormous size.
After all, he had already sensed it when he extended his spiritual perception.
What did catch his attention, though, was the faint trace of chakra within the tiger's body.
Although the amount was minimal—probably not even as much as what the kids at the Ninja Academy could muster—it was still surprising.
A wild beast possessing chakra meant it could already be considered a summoning beast.
Even if it was just barely qualified, it still counted.
What puzzled Ryo was how such a creature had appeared here in the first place.
Gaining chakra was no easy feat for wild animals.
Though chakra made creatures in this world naturally stronger, that wasn't the same as having chakra within their bodies.
With chakra inside, a creature could enhance its physical capabilities through chakra augmentation.
Compared to those without, the difference was massive. Simply put, a beast gaining chakra was akin to a mutation—an extremely rare occurrence.
Otherwise, summoning beasts wouldn't be so rare in the world. Without strong connections, most people couldn't even obtain one.
"Everyone, be careful. This tiger is no ordinary animal."
At the front, Akio turned and warned the group seriously.
The others nodded, their expressions becoming even more tense.
"Same as always. Weepinbell, I'm counting on you."
"Bobo!"
Weepinbell nodded and was the first to launch an attack, sending vines whipping toward the tiger.
Seeing this, the rest of the group quickly spread out, finding safe positions and readying their handmade bows and arrows.
"Roar—!"
The tiger let out an enraged roar when it saw the vines coming toward it.
It raised its razor-sharp claws, thin threads of chakra visibly coating them, and slashed toward the incoming vines.
But even with the chakra enhancement, its claws couldn't slice through them.
The tiger responded swiftly, realizing it couldn't cut through, and leapt backward to dodge.
Though the vines were sturdy, they were clearly lacking in speed—especially against a quick creature like the tiger.
Watching from the side, Ryo shook his head slightly.
That brief clash had told him a lot. The vines were durable, a result of continuous training during hunts.
But their speed hadn't been refined at all. There was no emphasis placed on developing that aspect.
"Everyone, fall back!"
Akio's eyes narrowed, and he immediately called out to the scattered hunters.
Those who had been waiting with drawn bows quickly pulled back and regrouped around Akio.
He glanced nervously at the tiger.
His heart was growing uneasy. Aside from Vine Whip, Weepinbell's only other attacking moves were Wrap and Acid.
Wrap required physical entanglement or binding with vines—against this speedy tiger, that was practically impossible.
As for Acid, it would melt the target's flesh… which defeated the whole purpose of hunting for meat. If the meat was dissolved, what would be the point?
"Damn, I'll have to try Sleep Powder… If that doesn't work, we may have to engage in close combat—or worse, retreat."
Muttering under his breath, Akio quickly began issuing new orders.
"Weepinbell, get close and use Sleep Powder!"
"Bobo!"
Weepinbell responded and moved toward the tiger.
Its speed far surpassed an average person's, but compared to the chakra-empowered tiger, it still fell short.
Though the tiger had only a trace of chakra, its base speed was already high. With chakra amplification, even a Weepinbell nearing Chūnin-level was still slightly outmatched.
As Weepinbell approached, the tiger grew warier.
That vine attack had clearly made it feel threatened, so it didn't dare to charge in recklessly.
Its hesitation was good news for Weepinbell.
Getting in close, Weepinbell released a cloud of Sleep Powder at the tiger.
The drifting particles looked entirely harmless, floating slowly through the air.
Seeing this, the tiger didn't dodge and allowed the powder to drift toward it.
Akio's eyes lit up. If the tiger had dodged, he wouldn't know what to do next.
But since it stayed still, things would be much easier.
"Weepinbell, use Vine Whip again!"
"Bobo!"
Weepinbell obeyed and lashed out with its vines once more.
The tiger, sensing danger, made a move to dodge.
But just as it tried to shift its footing, it suddenly felt dizzy. Its steps faltered as its head began to spin.
Whoosh—
That slight stumble was all it took—Weepinbell's vines struck true.
"Nice one! Wrap it now!"
Weepinbell nodded, controlling its vines to wrap tightly around the tiger.
"Roar—!"
The tiger roared furiously, but it couldn't break free from the binding. All it could do was struggle and howl in frustration.
Akio turned to the others. "Everyone, attack!"
The villagers immediately responded, drawing their bows, taking aim at the restrained tiger, and letting their arrows fly.
"Roar—!"
The tiger howled in pain as arrows pierced its body, its bloodshot eyes filled with murderous intent.
But the villagers ignored it and kept firing.
Even with chakra, which gave the tiger greater defense than most beasts, it wasn't invulnerable.
Their crude arrows were still enough to pierce its hide.
For several minutes, the group rained arrows down on the beast. When the tiger's body was riddled with arrows and blood flowed freely onto the ground, it finally stopped breathing.
Everyone let out a sigh of relief. The powerful tiger was finally dead.
Akio's face lit up with joy. Looking back at the others, he said, "We did it! That tiger alone will feed all of us for at least two days. What a haul!"
"Yeah! I've never seen such a huge tiger before!"
"Exactly! With all that meat, it's been ages since I've had tiger meat!"
"This is great. We just got started and already landed a prize like this. We can take it easy for the rest of the day."
Hearing their cheers, Ryo also smiled—but then his expression changed.
Sensing something, he turned to Akio. "Let's get out of here quickly. The thick scent of blood will draw more beasts."
Akio nodded and began organizing the group to carry the giant tiger out of the forest.
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