Tailed Beast

File:BijuuandJinchuuriki.png

The nine tailed beasts and their jinchūriki.

The tailed beasts (尾獣, bijū) are nine giant demons that serve to drive the plot of the Naruto series. They are differentiated by the number of tails they have, with each possessing an amount from one to nine. The tailed beasts are large, living forms of chakra, sometimes referred to as "Chakra Monsters" (チャクラのバケモノ, Chakura no Bakemono), giving them power that far outmatches most shinobi. However, this immense strength is tempered due to their bestial nature, which restricts them from being intelligent enough to use it effectively. When the tailed beasts are sealed within humans, they are able to benefit from the knowledge of their hosts, giving them the ability to speak and better utilize their powers. Akatsuki has been capturing the tailed beasts and their hosts, and as of the Fourth Great Shinobi World War possess seven of the nine beasts.

History

See also: Jinchūriki In the beginning of ninja history, centuries before the founding of the ninja villages, there existed one demon, the Ten-Tailed Beast, that plagued the planet until the Sage of the Six Paths defeated and sealed the beast within himself, making him the first jinchūriki. On his deathbed, he divided the Ten-Tails' chakra into the nine other tailed beasts and sealed its body in the moon.

By the time of the formation of the shinobi villages, Hashirama Senju, the First Hokage, managed to capture and control some of them with his Wood Release techniques, and used them as peace treaties to the other great shinobi nations in order to stabilize the balance of power between them. After his death, however, the shinobi nations couldn't control these giant demons themselves and they began to run wild, so the nations instead moved to seal the tailed beasts within humans.

The Tailed Beasts

One-Tailed Shukaku

Main article: One-Tailed Shukaku

Two-Tailed Monster Cat

Main article: Two-Tailed Monster Cat

Three-Tailed Giant Turtle

Main article: Three-Tailed Giant Turtle

Four-Tailed Monkey

Main article: Four-Tailed Monkey

Five-Tailed Dolphin Horse

Main article: Five-Tailed Dolphin Horse

Six-Tailed Slug

Main article: Six-Tailed Slug

Seven-Tailed Horned Beetle

Main article: Seven-Tailed Horned Beetle

Eight-Tailed Giant Ox

Main article: Eight-Tailed Giant Ox

Nine-Tailed Demon Fox

Main article: Nine-Tailed Demon Fox

Ten-Tailed Beast

Main article: Ten-Tailed Beast This Ten-Tails (十尾, Jūbi) is the Tailed Beast incarnation of the God Tree previously cultivated by Isshiki Ōtsutsuki and Kaguya Ōtsutsuki; the latter having eaten its chakra fruit and later merged with the God Tree in a battle against her sons, Hagoromo and Hamura. It is regarded as the progenitor of chakra according to legend, and is tied to the tale of the Sage of Six Paths and the birth of shinobi.

Trivia

• Only four people are said to have full control of the tailed beasts. They are Madara Uchiha (through his Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan), Hashirama Senju (through his special Wood Release technique), and two jinchūriki: Yagura and Killer Bee.
• Several non-jinchūriki shinobi, such as Kisame Hoshigaki and the Fourth Raikage, have been said to hold chakra levels comparable to that of a tailed beast.
• In the anime, before Taka began working with Akatsuki, Akatsuki was said to have seven tailed beasts. When Taka is sent to capture the Eight-Tails, the group has only six, the seventh missing beast being the Six-Tailed Slug.
• In the second Shippūden movie, it features a creature called the Zero-Tailed Masked Leech. Despite having a numerical tail name, it is not a real tailed beast and it has characteristics that are quite different from the true tailed beasts.
• It appears as though the tailed beasts are stronger as the number of tails increases. This is confirmed as the eight tailed giant ox and nine tailed fox have yet to be captured.