Furry Rage

Hiruzen Sarutobi was clearly overthinking things, and no matter how he saw it, he couldn't stop the "bromance" brewing between Kakashi and Zhang Miao.

The reason was simple: Kakashi had just lost his precious comrades and his teacher. To fill the void in his heart, he urgently needed a new emotional bond to share the pain.

And Zhang Miao, as the orphan of Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki, perfectly met Kakashi's needs. So Kakashi would wholeheartedly invest in this bond—or rather, this responsibility.

As for Zhang Miao, to carry out his plan to revive Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki while taking revenge on Obito Uchiha, he urgently needed to boost his strength. That meant collecting Kakashi's Ninja Fragments as quickly as possible to recruit the five-star Jonin Kakashi.

Once he recruited Kakashi, Zhang Miao wouldn't just gain a loyal ally; he'd also directly acquire a Jonin's Chakra and jutsu—critical for his future plans!

For all these reasons, Zhang Miao and Kakashi were about to share a long stretch of "bromance-fueled days."

And now, those days were just beginning.

"I'm here to take Uzumaki Ryunosuke out. I have the Third Lord's permission!"

Standing at the door to Zhang Miao's residence, Kakashi handed a scroll to the Anbu at the entrance.

The Anbu, wearing a Cat Face Mask, clearly recognized Kakashi. He took the scroll, glanced at it, handed it back, and nodded.

"I understand, senior. You may take the child."

Hearing the Anbu's words, Kakashi's brow furrowed slightly, but he said nothing. He nodded, opened the door, and stepped inside.

At that moment, Zhang Miao was crouched on the ground holding a Milk Bottle, staring wide-eyed at the Anbu guarding him. When he saw Kakashi enter, he immediately looked up and grinned.

"You're finally here. If you'd been any later, I'd have had to drink this tasteless stuff!"

With that, Zhang Miao tossed the Milk Bottle aside, pushed off his knees to stand up, and stretched.

"Ha! Let's go eat fish. Pan-fried river fish again today?"

Seeing Zhang Miao's actions, Kakashi felt a warmth in his heart and nodded immediately.

"Yeah, let's go."

With that, Kakashi turned and walked out.

Around others, Kakashi rarely spoke much. Zhang Miao knew this, so he didn't mind. Seeing Kakashi leave, he quickly followed.

But just as he reached the door, Zhang Miao heard a baby's cry from behind. He stopped abruptly, turned, and ran back.

Seeing this, Kakashi also stopped and looked at Zhang Miao.

The one crying was Naruto. Maybe he was hungry, or maybe Zhang Miao's voice had been too loud earlier and woke him up. Either way, he wouldn't stop.

Zhang Miao ran to his little bed, picked him up, then grabbed the Milk Bottle he'd tossed on the floor and shoved it into Naruto's mouth. Soon, Naruto stopped crying and focused on drinking.

Watching this, Kakashi's eyes widened.

This kid's not bad!

Truth be told, Zhang Miao had learned by watching. When Naruto cried before, that female Anbu ninja had done the same thing.

And nine times out of ten, when Naruto cried, he was hungry. Sticking a Milk Bottle in his mouth was always the right call!

After finishing his milk, Naruto quickly fell asleep. Zhang Miao smiled faintly at the sleeping little one, then carried him to the door and nodded at Kakashi.

"Let's go."

With that, Zhang Miao was about to step out, but the Anbu at the door blocked him.

"Put the Jinchuriki down."

"What?"

Hearing this, the smile vanished from Zhang Miao's face in an instant. He looked up, glaring at the Anbu who had spoken.

"This is my little brother, Naruto Uzumaki, not some damn Jinchuriki! How does the Third Elder teach his men? I'm warning you—don't let me hear that word again, or you can explain it to the Third Elder yourself!"

Zhang Miao's sudden outburst startled everyone present. Even Kakashi's eyes showed surprise.

"Didn't expect this kid to have such a temper... No, wait—the Uzumaki Clan all have hot tempers..."

Thinking this, Kakashi suddenly recalled his teacher's wife, Kushina Uzumaki, and a flicker of understanding crossed his eyes.

The Anbu Zhang Miao had yelled at naturally didn't appreciate being lectured by a child. But just as he was about to teach Zhang Miao a lesson, Kakashi reached out and stopped him.

"Alright, that's enough. The matter of the Jinchuriki does need to be kept secret. Don't bring up that word again."

Kakashi was young, but he was a "veteran" in the Anbu. His words carried weight. Hearing him, the Anbu could only obediently reply.

"Yes, sir!"

Hearing his answer, Kakashi nodded, then looked at Zhang Miao.

"Ryunosuke, your little brother Naruto Uzumaki does need Anbu protection. You should put him back. It's for his own good."

"Hmph!" Zhang Miao snorted dismissively as soon as Kakashi finished. "In other words, you're just afraid that thing sealed inside my little brother will get out, right? Tch!"

"..."

Zhang Miao's words clearly caught everyone off guard. They hadn't expected him to know such classified information. They exchanged bewildered glances, as if guessing who had let it slip.

But Zhang Miao had no time to care about them. After saying his piece, he put Naruto back in his bed, then raised his hand and smacked the sleeping Naruto's forehead with a loud "smack!"

"Waa... waa waa..."

Zhang Miao's action once again stunned everyone. Watching Naruto wail, even Kakashi was frozen in place.

What the hell is he doing?

Amid the crowd's stunned gazes, Zhang Miao turned around with a smile, slowly walked to the doorway, then casually lifted his chin at Kakashi.

"Let's go, I'm having fish at your place."

Kakashi: "..."

The Anbu: "..."

Ignoring everyone's bewildered looks, Zhang Miao strode out after speaking. Seeing him leave, Kakashi quickly nodded to the Anbu members in front of him and hurried after him.

Walking along the road to Kakashi's house, neither of them spoke at first. But after ten minutes, Kakashi finally couldn't hold back.

"Ryunosuke, do you hate your little brother?"

"How could I?" Hearing Kakashi's words, Zhang Miao turned to him with a look of utter surprise. "He's my only family in this world. I fucking love him to death. Anyone who dares bully him, I'll go for their throat."

Kakashi: "..."

Then why did you just make him cry?

But Kakashi didn't voice that thought. From the way Zhang Miao had bristled at the mere mention of "Jinchuriki," it was clear he truly loved his brother.

Anyway, this guy was clearly not normal. Maybe that slap was just his way of showing affection?

What Kakashi didn't know was that Zhang Miao's slap wasn't about expressing love for Naruto at all—it was for that delightful system notification.

"Ding, congratulations, host. Obtained Nine-Star Ninja Naruto Uzumaki (Asura) Fragment x1, Eight-Star Tailed Beast Kurama (Yang) Fragment x5!"

A double hit! Oh yeah!