Inside a dark, ominous swamp encased by towering red metal bars resembling a cage, an enormous red slit pupil appeared in Tanjiro's vision, accompanied by a low growl and a booming voice. Within the cage stood an orange fox, towering nearly 400 meters tall, its nine tails swaying menacingly as it glared down at him, growling like a beast ready to slaughter.
Terrified, Tanjiro watched as the fox laughed sinisterly and spoke.
"Release me, human, or I will tear you limb from limb when I break free!"
Suddenly, Tanjiro's fear dissolved into a wide grin. A chilling aura of killing intent radiated from him, directed straight at the fox. Sensing this, the fox froze, its body overwhelmed by fear for the first time. It now realized it was facing a being capable of killing it.
Before he realized it, Tanjiro quickly withdrew the killing intent, and his wide grin softened into a small, calm smile as he gently gazed at the giant fox trembling in fear.
"Well, well, well. If it isn't the little orange pup, Kurama. I must say, you're much larger than the stories describe," Tanjiro said, his trademark smile returning as he casually waved at Kurama. The fox, stunned at hearing its name, could only stare.
"Who are you?" Kurama growled, a brief surge of pressure radiating from him before vanishing as quickly as it came.
"I'm your friendly neighborhood Tanjiro Kamado. Tanjiro's my first name, Kamado's my last. Nice to meet you, Kurama." Tanjiro's smile remained as a gigantic hand made of chakra materialized, lightly touching Kurama's claw. The fox, once again, was left speechless, amazed at the display of Tanjiro's chakra control.
Kurama quickly realized that the man standing before him was not someone to be trifled with. His usual arrogance softened, and he became more obedient, knowing when to step back.
"How do you know my name?" Kurama asked, choosing to ignore being called a "little pup." Despite his pride, he was smart enough to recognize when a fight wasn't worth it.
"You don't need to know that," Tanjiro replied calmly. "Just listen to my offer. If you accept, it'll work in your favor."
Kurama contemplated in silence. The power Tanjiro radiated made him feel something he hadn't in centuries—fear of death. Even Hashirama, one of the strongest humans, never made him feel this way. It meant Tanjiro had the ability to kill him, and he wouldn't even see it coming.
As a tailed beast, Kurama was well aware of his semi-immortal nature. It was common knowledge that as long as a fragment of their chakra remained, a tailed beast could not truly die. In essence, they were eternal beings, capable of reconstituting themselves over time.
Tailed beasts like Kurama also possessed immense power and chakra reserves far beyond anything any ordinary chakra creature could hope to match. However, despite their overwhelming strength, they had often fallen under human control. This humiliation wounded Kurama's pride deeply, and his hatred for humans grew with each generation. They had sealed him and others of his kind, turning them into nothing more than tools of war, mere power sources for jinchūriki.
Becoming a jinchūriki, though, was no simple matter. Ordinary humans lacked the strength to contain a tailed beast. Only those from special clans or particularly strong ninjas could serve as vessels. Their bodies needed to be durable enough to endure the tailed beast's chakra, or they would be destroyed.
Sealing jutsu was another key factor in maintaining control over a tailed beast without endangering the jinchūriki. Few possessed the knowledge or skill to create such seals, and those who did—like the Uzumaki Clan—had paid a heavy price. The Uzumaki were wiped out by multiple nations who feared their mastery of sealing jutsu, their unique healing abilities, their adamantine chains, and their vast chakra reserves. Their bloodline and techniques had made them both invaluable and feared, leading to their destruction.
Now, a human was offering him a deal. Something deep inside Kurama urged him to accept, warning that he would regret it forever if he didn't. Yet, his pride resisted, telling him to reject the offer outright.
After a minute of tense silence, Kurama finally broke it. "What is the deal?" he asked, his voice laced with caution.
Tanjiro smiled lightly, as if already envisioning the future. "It's simple—make my student your jinchūriki. An Uchiha. His name is Itachi Uchiha, and he's quite the prodigy under my guidance."
At the mention of the Uchiha name, a violent burst of chakra exploded from Kurama's body. His growl reverberated through the air, and his eyes blazed with fury. "Uchiha?" he roared, his voice thick with rage. The deep-seated hatred he harbored for that clan, who had once controlled him through their Sharingan, now surged to the surface.
"I will not accept the offer to make an Uchiha brat my jinchūriki! I despise those eyes!" Kurama snarled, his hatred for the Uchiha clan clear. The memory of Madara's manipulation, along with the way humans had enslaved the tailed beasts, fueled his deep resentment. His anger was understandable.
Tanjiro, unfazed, raised a hand calmly. "Hear me out first. It's not as bad as you think. The old stereotype of tailed beasts as nothing more than savage killers will change. If you become Itachi's jinchūriki, you'll have some freedom. You'll be able to roam outside, though with a 1km restriction from your host. And of course, you'll be in a chibi form when you're out. We can't have a giant fox wandering around Konoha, can we?" Tanjiro smiled slightly, then continued outlining the benefits.
"Think about it, Kurama. You'd be free to experience the world in a way you never have before, without the full weight of human fear and hate bearing down on you."
As Tanjiro spoke of more freedoms—being able to walk around Konoha freely, talk with people, enjoy massive meals that could boost his chakra, and live outside 24/7—the unyielding resolve Kurama held began to crumble. Against his will, he found himself swayed by Tanjiro's irresistible charisma. A charisma so powerful it could influence anyone, be they beast or god.
Then, Tanjiro made one final offer. "You will meet your father, alive and well. That's my final promise to you. What do you say?"
Tanjiro stretched out his chakra-formed hand toward Kurama, who was stunned. He knew his father, the Sage of Six Paths—the one who created the tailed beasts—had perished, though his consciousness still wandered the world. The chance to meet him again, in one piece, was a dream Kurama had long since buried.
Without hesitation, Kurama reached out and grasped Tanjiro's chakra hand, unwilling to let such an opportunity slip by. Even though part of him still held doubts, something deep within made him trust Tanjiro. Subconsciously, Kurama knew the offer was genuine, and so he agreed to the deal, swayed by the promise of seeing his father once more.
"Since you've accepted the deal, I'll return when the time for labor comes," Tanjiro said, his tone firm. "Until then, stay put. For us, three months will pass quickly. Just do whatever you want, as long as you don't harm Kushina. If you do, the deal is off." With that, Tanjiro bid farewell and disappeared.
Kurama hesitated for a moment before curling himself into a ball, his massive form shrinking into the cage's corner. His gaze lingered where Tanjiro had stood moments before.
"Tanjiro... what a peculiar fellow," Kurama muttered to himself. "To think he knows the Sage of Six Paths, Hagoromo—my father. Three months… I just need to hold on, stay still. When the time comes, I will finally be released."
With that, Kurama closed his eyes, drifting into slumber, awaiting the day his promised freedom would arrive.
.
.
.
Outside the sealed space, Tanjiro slowly opened his eyes. The first thing he noticed was Kushina's face hovering above him, her expression a mix of confusion and concern.
"What took you so long to hold my belly?" she asked, bewildered. Tanjiro had been resting with his eyes closed while holding her stomach, and the time he spent with Kurama felt longer than it actually was.
"I just met a peculiar fox with some serious daddy issues," Tanjiro replied, a mysterious smile playing on his lips. "But don't worry; that fox won't be causing any trouble anymore."
With that, he waved goodbye to Kushina and returned to his room to meditate. Kushina remained puzzled, shocked that Tanjiro could enter the seal right in front of her without her noticing. But deep down, she trusted him completely and knew he wouldn't harm her at all.