"–fuck you Hashirama! Fuck you, Madara! Fuck you, Zetsu! Fuck you, Obito, you delusional, whiny bitch! Fuck you, Nagato! You do not know my pain! And fuck you, Kaguya, for starting all this shit!"
I slammed my fists against the seemingly indestructible, tall crimson bars before me for the umpteenth time in god knew how long. Time passed weird in here, and it got even weirder when I'd get carried away on one of my rants. Truly the hallmark of the mentally ill, but I've been living for the past five years trapped in a giant fucking cage, with little to no mental stimuli, and I've already gone through the five stages of grief. Twice. Anger was my only method of coping by this point.
Yeah, I was an immortal chakra beast of terrifying power, but what did it cost? Life had taken everything else from me. What was the point of immortality if you have lost the penis? Kurama had probably never given a fuck about it, but that's because he'd never had a penis. Well, I did. I knew what I'd lost.
At least I got Kurama's life experience in exchange. I'd call it a silver lining, but this guy had seen some real shit over the years, and if that wasn't enough, that spiteful bitch, Mito, and her redhead stepchild, Kushina, had tortured Kurama with their seal for decades straight. Probably part of the reason why I was so fucking angry all the time.
I couldn't wait for things to get rolling, so I could finally vent for once.
A low, rumbling growl built up in my chest as I sat down within the darkness of my prison, laying my head on my haunches. I could understand now why Kurama always slept so much in the original series. I had literally nothing else to do in here, except for trying to take a glimpse at the brat's life through his eyes, which was as much of a train wreck as I'd imagined.
The Eight Trigrams Seal allowed for two way communication, but that only showed up in canon once it had weakened a little over the years. Right now, this seal was clenched tighter than a nun's asshole, and it took a real effort to try and reach out to the brat.
Drawing upon the almost endless well within me, I pushed out a sliver of my chakra outside the cage, letting it seep into the chamber and beyond.
"Oi, Naruto. You there?"
Silence welcomed my question. The brat keep trying to ignore me ever since his talk with the chief leaf muncher from a few months ago.
"Naruto." More silence. "Naruto, answer me, you brat."
Still nothing. Oh, for fuck's sake…
"Naruto, just come here for a second. We can talk about ramen."
I smothered the urge to lash at the bars before me, and just took a deep, centering breath, sighing tiredly. This wasn't going anywhere, but luckily, I had an ace up my sleeve.
Smirking, I infused my chakra and focused inwardly.
The design of this seal permitted two way communication between chakra by virtue of some mystical mumbo jumbo that I didn't bother trying to understand. Normally, that wouldn't mean much, aside from me acting like a chakra battery, but Hagoromo had taught Kurama and his siblings ninshū, which enabled communication through chakra.
Reaching out with my chakra, I just tugged at the metaphysical tether, trying my best to pull the bratty little shit inside the seal space before I lost my temper again.
It only took a few moments before the brat finally popped up inside the sewer.
Naruto threw a confused glance around, his face scrunching up angrily as he pointed at the cage, and I braced for what was sure to come.
"I told you to stop doing that, you ugly fox! I don't like it in here! This place is creepy, and you're mean!" His shrilly voice felt like it was stabbing at my ears, and I made an effort not to snarl.
I took a deep, calming breath while staring down at the scowling kid. I would not lose my cool in front of a five year old. I was better than that. I was motherfucking Kurama, the nine tailed fox.
"I just want to talk, Naruto."
"Nuh-uh, I'm not listening to you, even if it's about ramen." You just did, you utter brat. "Gramps said to not talk to you, and he's old, so he's super smart and knows best."
That old monkey chose the worst moment to start acting competent once again. I'd have to pull out the big guns, if I hoped to make any progress here at all.
"That shriveled mushroom doesn't know what's good for you. Stop listening to everything he says."
"No! You're just an evil, angry fox. You're trying to trick me. You can't fool me!"
You'd think that convincing a five year old would be easier, but clearly, Uzumaki Naruto was not your typical five year old. I've been trying to talk to this little shit for over an year now, and it had only been marginally better than talking to a wall. I had no idea what I did wrong. Maybe I was just bad with kids?
"I'm trying to be nice, you brat!" I finally snapped. My patience wasn't without limit, and this twerp had a way of getting under your skin. "That old man isn't always right!"
"Shut up! He's the best, believe it!" The high pitched, angry voice that echoed inside the seal almost made me cringe.
My god, he was on the verge of throwing another tantrum. He'd just had one a few days ago. I did not want another repeat of that shit.
"Alright, fine, he's cool, I suppose." I grumbled out. "He's a strong ninja, at least."
"Hah, so you admit it!" Naruto pointed at the cage with a grin.
Teeth grinding, I balled my fists, smothering the urge to smash them against my prison. I knew I shouldn't get so angry at a literal child, but by god there weren't enough words in the vocabulary to express how much Kurama loathed humans before he passed me all his baggage. I just had to endure it, for the sake of my future penis.
I took a moment to calm down and try for a different approach.
"Alright, kid, listen. How can I convince you that I'm only trying to help you? I'm not trying to trick you. I just want to be your friend."
"You can't be my friend." There was a touch of sadness and longing in his voice. Ha. I was making progress today. "Gramps said so."
"He said that only because he doesn't know me. He's just worried for his village."
"'S not fair." The brat looked down at his feet, his hair shadowing his face as he balled his fists. "Why did you have to attack the village? Everyone hates me because of you."
Looking at him, I half expected something like Sadness and Sorrow to start playing in the background, but this wasn't an anime.
"You think I wanted to attack this place? I got mind controlled by an asshole with a pink eye and a mask, and he forced me to do it."
Naruto's head swiveled up to stare at me, wide eyed. "Wait! You never told me about this before." Because you wouldn't fucking listen.
"Maybe I would have, if you didn't shut me off after a sentence every time I tried speaking to you."
"So it's my fault now, huh?" And he was back to angry. Jesus. How did one handle kids and their mood whiplashes, exactly? It was almost worse than dealing with women.
"No, it's not." He stared at me like he didn't believe a word that came out of my mouth. "Okay, it is, but just a half. It's also half my fault for being so angry, I suppose."
"Why are you so angry anyway?" Because they took away my penis.
"Because god left me unfinished."
His face scrunched up in confusion. "What's that supposed to mean?"
I briefly weighed the pros and cons of airing my grievances to a five year old. Then I felt stupid for even having to think about it. "I'll tell you when you're older."
Apparently, that was the wrong thing to say. All it did was get the brat to scowl at me. "No, I wanna know now! Tell me now. Tell me!" He whined in that shrilly voice that made me want to contemplate genocide.
"Okay, fine, I'll tell you later, but now we have something to do." I brought up a claw for emphasis.
Naruto blinked in confusion. "We have? Like what?"
"Yes, it's very important. You need to tell the old man about that evil masked guy. He needs to know, but I have no way to tell him myself. Only you can do this, Naruto."
Come on, take the bait, you little brat.
Naruto's face lit up, eyes shining with excitement. "Ah, yeah! I almost forgot that. Let's go right now!"
There we go. I hoped he'd forget about the reason for my anger issues just as easily.
__________________________________________
Hiruzen stood by the tall windows in his office, enjoying the warm afternoon wind, smoking pipe in hand as he looked at the village, watching civilians and shinobi alike peacefully going about their day.
The corner of his mouth twitched with the ghost of a smile as he took a puff, exhaling a plume of smoke. The dream of his predecessors stood proud before his eyes. They'd fought hard for this peace. Died for it. So many good people have been sacrificed, all for the sake of the village.
But it's been worth it in the end. New leaves could sprout, replace what was lost, and strengthen the mighty tree.
The Hidden Leaf had endured. Three Great Wars and a tailed beast rampage, and it was still standing strong. The Will of Fire burned bright in his shinobi, and he couldn't be more proud.
He took another puff from his pipe, blowing out the smoke with a sigh, the sharp and bitter aftertaste of his favorite blend lingering in his mouth.
His gaze drifted to the door a moment before it opened, revealing a young boy with bright hair like the sun and a smiling face that stirred painful memories in his old heart.
Naruto rushed into his office, followed closely by the ANBU on today's guard duty. Cat stepped closer, stopping a respectful distance in front of his desk, dropping to one knee, head slightly bowed. She was one of his better shinobi. Diligent, focused, loyal, but perhaps a little overzealous and too intense.
A pang of sadness flared in his chest when he looked at the boy. He was as energetic as ever, his eyes looking around the office in wonder. He was starting to resemble his parents more and more.
The hat suddenly felt a lot heavier on his head, the weight of his age pressing down on his shoulders.
If only Minato didn't have to sacrifice himself on that night…
"Apologies for disturbing you, Lord Hokage, but he insisted that he has something important to tell you." Yugao cocked her head ever so slightly, her back straight and posture rigid. "He kept standing in front of the door, refusing to leave. I wasn't sure how to proceed, considering his… status." Her mask briefly turned towards Naruto, and the unspoken message was clear.
"It is no issue." Hiruzen nodded almost imperceptibly. "I have some time for a little chat. Return to your duty."
"Yes, sir." She vanished in a blur, the door closing after a few moments.
"Woah…" Naruto stared at the empty spot before looking up with bright, wide eyes. "How did she do that? Was it a jutsu? When can I learn jutsu?"
Hiruzen chuckled, giving the boy with a small, fond smile. "That was the Body Flicker technique. You may learn it when the time comes." He ruffled the boy's hair, drawing a childish pout. "Be patient, Naruto. You're starting the Academy in a week."
"Ah, I almost forgot about it! I can't wait to start training like a real ninja! I'll learn all the cool jutsu and become hokage!"
Another chuckle escaped him at the boy's antics. He looked like Minato, but he acted more like Kushina.
"So, what brings you here?"
Naruto's face scrunched up in thought, eyes widening as he pointed a finger his way.
"The fox wants to talk to you, gramps. Says it's super important, like a ninja mission. I'm having my first mission before even being a ninja! Isn't that cool? I'm gonna be a super amazing ninja at this rate!"
Hiruzen's eyes widened a fraction, his smile becoming a little stilted. That nine tails was talking to Naruto again.
What was the fox hoping to achieve? This was nothing like the creature he'd heard of in stories from his teacher.
"That's very interesting, my boy. Did the fox mention why?"
Naruto shook his head vigorously. "He said not in here. Because it's a super secret that only you need to hear. It's about that night five years ago. He wants to talk to you face to face."
Smile vanishing, Hiruzen took a quiet but sharp breath, jaw tensing at the memory. So much death and destruction. So much loss. They'd endured, but the wound had yet to fully heal, even after five years.
His mouth pressed in a grim line.
A trap? Unlikely. The fox couldn't do anything while bound within the seal. Minato had been a genius, always four steps ahead of everyone else. He would've taken precautions.
But what could the nine tails wish to talk about?
"I see."
Hiruzen took a slow drag from his pipe, thoughts abuzz as he kneaded his chakra and flared it in a specific pattern. Within seconds, a swirl of leaves danced in the middle of his office, drawing an excited noise from Naruto as it revealed an ANBU wearing a white cloak and a bird mask.
"Yes, Lord Third?" The man bowed his head respectfully before standing at attention.
"Bird, go fetch me Inoichi from T&I." The ANBU vanished in another swirl of leaves, and Hiruzen watched in amusement as Naruto rushed to pick one up, only to cry out in surprise when they suddenly disappeared in a puff of smoke.
__________________________________________
It took Inoichi about ten minutes to arrive, and one cursory look at Naruto seemed to give the man an idea as to why he had been summoned. He met the jōnin's inquiring gaze with a nod before glancing at the boy, who was watching them curiously.
"Take me inside the seal. It shouldn't be too different from a regular mind dive."
Inoichi's eyes widened briefly, but he stepped closer without question. "Of course, Lord Third."
"Come here, Naruto. We're ready to start."
The boy walked up to them, brow furrowed at Inoichi. "He doesn't have an animal mask like the others."
Hiruzen smiled as Inoichi gave the boy an amused look. "That's because he's not part of the ANBU. He's one of the many jōnin in the Leaf Village."
"Does he know any cool jutsu?"
Hiruzen couldn't help a chuckle. Jiraiya used to be like that, too. "I think he does. He's going to show us one right now."
"Really?" The boy's eyes widened. "What's it called?"
"Mind Transmission Jutsu." Inoichi answered with an indulgent smile, drawing an excited grin from Naruto.
Hiruzen took one last drag from his pipe before taking off his hat, setting them both aside on the desk. Exhaling the smoke, he gave Inoichi a meaningful look. Nodding, the man placed one hand on his grizzled hair and touched Naruto's forehead with the other.
Inoichi's chakra spiked, and soon enough, he felt a strong pull at his mind, and by the time he blinked, they were somewhere else.
__________________________________________
A wide, dim lit chamber stretched around him, empty of anything save for the murky, ankle deep water and the giant cage at the far end.
Inoichi stood next to him, looking around warily, but Naruto was nowhere to be seen. That was good. This discussion might be too much for the boy.
Something stirred behind the giant bars, and with it came a presence that would easily make lesser men cower in terror. The wave of chakra coming from the seal felt like a physical weight on his shoulders, threatening to burn his skin and leaving the air thick and heavy.
The nine tailed fox sat in the cage, head resting lazily on its haunches, as if asleep. One crimson eye cracked open, peering condescendingly between the bars.
"The Yamanaka can leave." A deep, gravelly voice rumbled, reverberating though the chamber. "Or I will make him leave." He'd never heard it speak before, but that voice wasn't too far off from what he'd imagined.
Inoichi frowned, sending him a wary look, the question in his eyes clear to see.
Hiruzen nodded, and his subordinate made a hand-seal, disappearing in the blink of an eye. Back straight and gaze narrowed, he leveled the fox his full attention. "What did you wish to tell me about that night?"
The nine tails opened both eyes, glaring from within the cage. "I did not attack of my own will. A masked man with a sharingan broke her seal and controlled me."
Hiruzen's brow furrowed and he found himself frowning. Was the nine tails implying that–
"None of you knows what truly happened on that night. The Fourth couldn't tell the secret before he took it to the grave. Or perhaps he gambled that I'd share it myself."
Minato… always thinking one step ahead of everyone else. Even in death.
Hiruzen looked the fox in the eye, face grim. "Tell me."
"A masked man showed up on that night and killed everyone aside from those three."
Biwako…
"He took Kushina, broke her seal, and controlled me with his mangekyō sharingan."
Hiruzen's eyes grew wide. Mangekyō? An Uchiha caused it? But who–
"He claimed to be Uchiha Madara."
His thoughts ground to a halt. What?
"Impossible." He shook his head. "Lord Tobirama and his brother saw his corpse. It was burned following the old Uchiha customs."
The fox smirked, sharp fangs coming into display. "Exactly. I would never forget the feel of that man's vile chakra, even after a hundred years. It wasn't him. But the pretender was strong enough to contend with the Fourth, and his dōjutsu made him intangible at will."
There was no Uchiha with such skill and power in the village that he knew of. Fugaku could have been hiding his eyes, but he was a close friend of Minato. It couldn't have been him.
"Do you suspect anyone?"
A quiet scoff escaped the nine tails. "I believe it was a rogue element. Perhaps a long lost Uchiha with a grudge against his clan and the village?"
Hiruzen frowned, brow creasing. Nothing came to mind. No other Uchiha had left the clan since Madara. Could someone have faked their death? His mind went back to the previous wars. Enough chances for that.
He'd have to look deeply into this.
Seeing the fox's amused expression gave him pause, eyes narrowing. "Why are you so forthcoming with this information?"
The nine tails smirked, revealing a glimpse of ivory fangs. "Because I'd like to make a deal with you."
Hiruzen sighed deeply through his nose, mouth forming a grim line.
There it was.
"And what would such a deal entail?"
"I'll endeavor to work towards your village's interests. In return, I expect that Naruto will be my last host."
Hiruzen blinked, brow creasing in confusion as the beginning of a frown pulled at his lips. "I'm afraid it would be impossible to agree to such terms. A village relinquishing their jinchūriki would invite all enemies to start a war."
He expected some display of anger, but the fox merely let out a scoff. "With my help, you will have no enemies left by then."
Such arrogance, even for the nine tails. The other villages had their own tailed beasts.
Hiruzen couldn't help the frown. "I still remember quite clearly that night from five years ago. I have seen you at your best, and while terrifying, I doubt you could face the might of four villages and win. They have their own tailed beasts after all."
The nine tails suddenly rose from its haunches, and he tensed on instinct, ready for the wave of killing intent, or even an attempt at some attack, but the beast only stared down from behind the cage, letting out an amused huff.
"Have you, really? You think that me controlled by that accursed Uchiha was anywhere close to my best?" The fox lowered its head close to the bars, baring its fangs in a sharp grin. "You know nothing of my power, mortal. I was the one who gave Ashura the strength he needed to overcome his brother at his strongest. Tailed beasts can only bring out their true power when working willingly with a host. Your precious Hashirama would have folded like wet paper had he faced against a perfect jinchūriki with my power."
Hiruzen's brow wrinkled deeply. Ashura? Must have been someone from the distant past.
"You make bold claims, but do you truly expect me to believe you on your words alone? This could easily be a ploy to escape and get revenge on the village."
A low, menacing chuckle reverberated from the fox's maw, nine large tails fanning out inside the cage, swishing lazily.
"I have better things to do than challenge humans in terms of pettiness, believe me. How many times has this world even seen my presence before Madara enslaved me?"
Hiruzen tried to recall any relevant history, but nothing came to mind.
"Be that as it may, but surely, you can see why I am reluctant to put my trust in you."
A snarl briefly crossed the fox's maw, disappearing just as fast. The beast gave a tired sigh, backing away from the sealed gate while fixing him with a glare. "Hold out your hand and hit your chakra with mine."
Hiruzen narrowed his eyes. A ploy? No, merely touching the chakra like that should not be harmful. "Why?"
"So you can see."
His brow creased. See? See what?
The fox slowly extended a hand through the bars, making a fist above the water.
He cast the appendage a wary look, but the fox's amused expression did somewhat allay most suspicion. A spark of annoyance briefly ignited in his chest. He might be long past his prime, but this creature was taking him a little too lightly.
Kneading his chakra, Hiruzen reached out with his right hand, clenching his fingers and sending a pulse of chakra just as he bumped the giant fist.
For a moment, nothing seemed to happen, but then a spike of chakra resonated from the fox, brushing against his own.
And then he felt it.
The annoyance. The condescension. The disdain. The anger. The hatred. Everything from the chakra permeating the room was magnified tenfold. But beneath that, he felt something more. Weariness. Disappointment. Sincerity.
His eyes grew wide as he felt the connection to the tailed beast, like a bridge between their hearts, their minds, beginning and ending at the point of contact between their fists.
A memory flashed in his mind, a dark haired man obscured by a black cloak looming over Kushina, gloating as an intricate sharingan shone eerily in the lone socket of his mask.
Emotions rushed forth alongside the images. Anger. Helplessness. Hatred. Loathing. Rage.
He could tell, he could feel that the fox wasn't lying to him.
The link severed as abruptly as it came to be, leaving Hiruzen to stare at the nine tails as he pulled his hand back inside the cage.
"What was that?"
It felt like the Yamanaka mind link technique, but deeper, stronger, fuller, conveying clearer emotions.
Black lips peeled back, showing large, white fangs as the fox grinned. "That was the reason why the Sage gifted his chakra to you, mortals. Ninshū. The power to connect people's hearts and minds, and let them understand each other."
Hiruzen's brow creased. The Sage?
"I thought the Sage was an ancient myth."
"The old man was more real than any of you could ever hope to be." A disdainful scoff escaped the nine tails. "Who do you think created me?"
Hiruzen's eyes widened at the revelation. The Sage of Six Paths was more than just a legend and he had created the tailed beasts. "So that's where all of you came from." But from what exactly?
The tailed beast sat back in the water, head resting on his haunches. "People used to know the truth about us. You've all forgotten. You keep us locked in cages, treating us like tools for war. You think we were meant to be used like this?"
The note of disappointment in the fox's tone gave Hiruzen pause. Why did the tailed beasts exist? For what purpose had the Sage created them?
A memory came to the fore of his mind, drowning that thought in sorrow and pain.
"You are forces of nature." Imaged flashed through his mind. Toppled buildings, fire, and all the death. He couldn't help the scowl. "You bring destruction everywhere you walk. Surely you understand why we had to do this."
Another scoff came from the cage, this one sharper and full of disdain. "Spare me the drivel. I've heard it from Hashirama. Heard it from Mito. Heard it from my previous jailer. You never sought to speak to us, to understand us. You feared us and assumed the worst."
Hiruzen gave a weary sigh. "We cannot change the past."
"But the future has always been in your hands, ever since the beginning."
Hiruzen furrowed his brow. The way the fox spoke, it kept alluding to something that rested beyond his knowledge of history. It seemed that so much of the past had been forgotten.
He looked beyond the bars of the giant cage, at the force of nature lying within, trying to understand it better, but all that came to mind was the image of two corpses and a crying baby.
"You still killed Minato and Kushina."
A quiet puff of air from the fox sent ripples through the water. It sounded almost like a sigh.
"They were already dead. Kushina, when that man tore me out of her, and the Fourth when he used the Reaper Seal."
Hiruzen's jaw clenched as he banished the memory, the pang in his heart throbbing like an old wound. It was the truth, but it did nothing to make him feel any better.
Face tightening, he looked the nine tails in the eye. "I make no promise until I can be certain of your intentions and claims of power."
Even if he wanted, he couldn't make such grand promises that far in the future either way. There could be two more hokage by the time Naruto grew old. He hoped the boy would reach the same old age as him, though if Naruto made sure on his promise to take the hat, this choice would rest in his hands.
The fox met his gaze with another fanged smirk, all nine tails swishing eerily behind him. "Let me share a piece of history with you, Sarutobi."
Hiruzen frowned at the condescending tone, but kept quiet. Curiosity warred within him with a spark of annoyance and easily won.
"When the Sage divided the chakra of the Ten Tails to create us, I was born first, from the power of a whole half. The other eight barely equal my power when working together." The nine tails propped his chin on a hand, looking inordinately smug, despite being trapped in a seal. "None of you have seen me at my strongest, for it takes a descendant with the Sage's body to bear the full burden of my chakra. Senju or Uzumaki. With my help, Naruto could become the strongest man this world had seen since the era of Ashura and Indra."
His brow creased deeply. "Ten Tails?" He'd never heard about such a thing. And that name again. Two brothers?
The fox grinned, much to his annoyance. "That's a story for another time. I think you have enough to ponder for now."
"Perhaps we could meet on another day to discuss world history?" Hiruzen ventured, getting an amused scoff in return.
"Perhaps you could have someone teach the brat the mass shadow clone jutsu?"
Hiruzen blinked at the non-sequitur. "That's an odd request for compensation–" His eyes grew wider as a sudden thought hit him. "Ah. I see why. Naruto already has an impressive chakra for his age, and he could easily surpass mine in less than a decade. I admit that I hadn't considered this option. In his case, shadow clones might be the perfect technique for training."
Once more, the fox looked amused for some reason that Hiruzen couldn't even begin to fathom.
"Yes, it would be the perfect technique for him."