Naruto, Menma, and the Lazy Fox

Konoha Year 54.

Three years had already passed since the Nine-Tails Incident.

Yet the hatred and pain left behind in everyone's hearts remained deeply etched.

This hatred should have been buried in the deepest recesses of their hearts, surfacing only when they mourned the relatives they had lost in the Nine-Tails Incident.

But through the manipulation, indulgence, and indifference of certain people, all that malice had been redirected toward a child.

"Hey, that kid... that's the one, right? Why are they letting that thing stay in the village?"

"Did you hear? The Fourth Hokage died because of him."

"Just being near him makes me uncomfortable. What bad luck!"

"The Third Hokage is far too kind. Someone like that should've been killed outright."

Wherever the small figure went, people avoided him as though they had seen a plague god.

The lively, bustling streets instantly fell silent.

People stood on both sides of the road, watching the small child with disgusted, cold eyes.

Even their whispers were filled with malice and hatred.

Little Naruto was only three years old. Though he did not understand why, he had long noticed the villagers' disgust toward him and had already grown used to their hateful stares and vicious words.

Little Naruto simply kept walking, heading toward Hokage Rock.

Hokage Rock was the highest place in the village. Whenever the weather was good, he liked to stay there, gazing at the sky and letting his thoughts wander.

Just then, a ball rolled to his feet.

Little Naruto stopped, bent down to pick it up, and flashed a bright smile.

He was just about to return it to the child in front of him.

But a woman hurriedly pulled the child back and quietly scolded him, "What are you doing? Didn't I tell you not to go near him? Why are you being so disobedient?"

"Why, Mom?"

"That thing eats people!"

"Don't play with him. Who knows what he might do to you!"

Several other adults also earnestly warned their own children.

Little Naruto's azure eyes dimmed, and the smile on his face became forced.

The ball slipped from his hand and fell to the ground.

Why do they look at me like that? Did I do something wrong...?

They looked at him as though he were a monster—the monster that had killed their loved ones.

What was "that thing"? He clearly had a name. His name was Naruto Uzumaki, not a monster, and not "that thing."

Little Naruto lowered his head and left. His once-light steps became heavy as the question that had troubled him for years surfaced in his mind again.

Once he was gone, the street became lively once more.

Children played and roughhoused while adults chatted about gossip and rumors.

No one cared what "that thing" thought.

As the "incarnation of the demon fox," his purpose was to serve as everyone's punching bag.

Little Naruto crossed the streets, passed through the woods, and stepped over a stream before finally stopping at Hokage Rock.

He sat atop the Fourth Hokage's stone head, looking down at the prosperous, noisy village below.

Once again, he felt completely cut off from the entire world.

This loneliness of being far from everyone made him feel both safe and wronged.

Little Naruto knew very well.

No one liked him. He did not belong here, and he had never experienced the happiness those people had.

They had homes, families, friends, and endless milk and instant noodles that never expired.

But he had nothing.

Little Naruto lay down and raised a hand to shield his eyes from the glaring sun, watching the birds fly through the sky in pairs.

His mood sank even lower.

Why do I exist? What am I living for?

What do I have to do for them to remember and acknowledge "Naruto Uzumaki"?

Thinking about this question, Little Naruto closed his eyes.

But when he opened them again—

He had arrived somewhere that looked like a sewer.

Ten centimeters of water covered the ground, and the surroundings were dark and damp.

Something that sounded like a wild beast came from the distance, along with faint, unexplained crunching sounds.

Seeing this, Naruto's face filled with panic.

"Where is this?" He looked around and shouted, "Hey! Is anyone there?"

Anyone there...

There...

There...

Only his own echoes and that strange sound answered him. No one responded.

Naruto first looked at the path behind him, which was completely blocked off. He could only suppress his fear and walk toward the source of the noise.

When he reached the end, a burst of intense light flashed before him, making his vision swim.

Once Naruto's eyes adjusted to the change in light, the sight before him made him gape, his eyes widening into perfect circles.

"W-What is that?!"

Before him stretched an endless ocean and beach, with a small wooden cabin by the shore.

There was also an enormous iron cage on the beach, and inside it was a giant... fox several dozen meters tall?

The reason it was a question was because the fox's behavior completely clashed with its fierce, menacing appearance.

Little Naruto finally understood what that strange sound that had frightened him was.

The giant fox held an enormous bag of chips in its left hand, occasionally grabbing a handful and stuffing it into its huge maw with crisp crunch, crunch sounds.

Beside its right hand stood a drink bottle over ten meters tall. Every so often, it lowered its head and took a gulp through the straw.

The giant fox also rumbled with a purr like a pet being petted to bliss, its face full of humanlike comfort and enjoyment.

"Menma!" the Nine-Tails shouted. "Bring me another bag of chips! Barbecue flavor!"

"Eat, eat, eat. All you know how to do is eat. Aren't you afraid you'll eat yourself into a ball?"

Accompanied by that sharp retort, a figure walked out of the wooden cabin.

He had short, medium-length black hair and wore a white Three-Eyed Fox Mask. Black fingerless sleeves covered his arms, while dark-red bands were wrapped around his arms and calves.

"So cool!!"

That mysterious and unusual outfit immediately made the immature Little Naruto's eyes light up.

"Hmph, I'm only seven-tenths full." The Nine-Tails used a claw to pick its teeth. "Besides, I'm a Tailed Beast. How could I possibly get fat?"

Uzumaki Menma did not explain. He merely chuckled.

Although the "ingredients" of those snacks were the Nine-Tails' Chakra, after being processed by the Crimson Moon Book in his hands, they became good things that could strengthen life energy.

As for whether it would get fat...

As the ancients said, nine out of ten orange cats were fat, and the remaining one was exceptionally fat.

Though the Nine-Tails was a fox rather than a feline, it was at least orange.

And with its lifestyle of sleeping after eating and eating after sleeping, it would be letting down all those chips and cola if it did not get fat.

Uzumaki Menma was actually quite looking forward to it.

If the Nine-Tails really changed from an orange fox into an orange pig, then when it met the other eight Tailed Beasts, would it cling to Naruto's body and refuse to come out even if it died?

"Setting aside whether you're fat or not, Kurama, you really have gotten lazy."

Menma tapped one of its toenails, then pointed at the utterly bewildered Naruto Uzumaki nearby. "Can't you see we have a guest? Go say hello already."

Seeing the strange human and fox turn to look at him.

Little Naruto timidly raised a hand. "Um... hello?"

The new book was underway! It had passed internal review, so feel free to invest.