In the damp, freezing Sealing Space, a man and a fox silently faced each other from afar, separated by a red barred cell door, one high and one low.
Drip.
Drip.
Drip.
Water droplets fell from above the pitch-black prison, making the Sealing Space seem exceptionally silent.
"Human, how... how do you know my name?"
Unable to endure it any longer, the Nine-Tails spoke first, breaking the silence as he stared fixedly at Naruto.
Naruto stood with his hands in his pockets, draped in a loose black robe. Wearing an indifferent expression and dead-fish eyes, he answered.
"I heard it from someone else."
"You're lying!" The Nine-Tails reacted violently at once, baring his teeth as he roared, "Despicable human, do you still think you can deceive me?"
"Human? Are you calling me that?" Naruto asked curiously.
"Despicable human, once I get out, I'll tear you to pieces!"
"It seems you still haven't figured out the situation, Kurama." Naruto raised his head with a smile and suddenly pointed at the Nine-Tails.
"What are you trying to do?"
"Haha, I was just scaring you. Look how frightened you were." Naruto grinned.
"Damn it! You were making fun of me?"
The Nine-Tails flew into a rage, seemingly intending to unleash another wave of red chakra.
But this time, Naruto's expression changed in an instant. The smile vanished from his face, replaced by seriousness. Pointing remotely at the Nine-Tails, he said,
"Bind it."
As his words fell, the red barred cell door rapidly contracted inward, swiftly compressing the Nine-Tails' space to move.
"Roar!!!"
"Damn it! What did you do?! Ahhh!!!"
The Nine-Tails' furious roars rang out as he slammed against the red barred cell door, making it bang repeatedly.
Four Symbols Seal, max level.
Naruto stood calmly where he was, patiently waiting for the Nine-Tails' fury to gradually subside, until the Sealing Space fell silent once more.
"Human."
"I'll come again, Kurama. I hope we can have a pleasant conversation next time." Naruto's consciousness flickered, and he left the Sealing Space directly.
With a blur before his eyes, Naruto found himself standing in the corridor. The torrential rain outside had mostly stopped. He fumbled in his pocket, intending to find his apartment key.
The moment he pulled out the key, he suddenly heard footsteps climbing the stairs from the other end of the corridor. There seemed to be more than one person.
After what had just happened, Naruto furrowed his brow and stared intently at the stairwell entrance.
"Naruto!"
The girl's voice was bright and sweet, a stark contrast to death and blood. Her jade-like neck swayed with her cherry-blossom-pink hair, so pale it seemed almost creamy.
Sakura emerged from the corridor with a smile, waving at Naruto from afar as golden sunlight after the rain passed through every strand of her hair.
Two people followed behind her: the lazy Kakashi and the stone-faced Sasuke.
"Yo, Naruto." Kakashi had visited Naruto's home before, but it was his first time using the door, so he seemed somewhat unfamiliar with it.
For some reason, ANBU members all liked appearing on rooftops and outside windows—places animals liked to show up. No wonder they wore animal masks.
Sasuke did not avert his gaze as he looked from afar at the blond preparing to open the door. His eyes paused on Naruto's smooth forehead, which lacked a Ninja Headband, before he gave a disdainful yet regretful,
"Tch."
"Sakura? Kakashi-sensei, Sasuke? Why are you here?" Naruto kept his hands behind his back, ready at any moment to activate the Four Symbols Seal.
"About the Chunin Exams..." Sakura gathered her courage and said loudly, "We all want to take part with Naruto!"
"Huh?"
Naruto tilted his head, and the hand behind his back slowly relaxed.
Root Organization underground office.
"Lord Danzo, the mission failed. Yi is dead."
A Root Ninja wearing a mask with cyan patterns knelt on one knee. Danzo, his right eye wrapped in bandages, sat solemnly behind his desk without saying a word.
"Dead?" Danzo asked darkly. "What about the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki?"
"He..."
"Speak!" Danzo glared at the ninja and said with displeasure.
The ninja kneeling on the ground instantly broke out in cold sweat, answering mechanically.
"The Nine-Tails Jinchuriki swallowed Yi."
"Swallowed him?"
"It was Sealing Jutsu!" the Root Ninja reported truthfully. "It should have been the Uzumaki Clan's Four Symbols Seal. Yi was drawn into the seal."
Knock! Knock! Knock!
Danzo tapped on the desk and spoke coldly.
"Tell the Third Hokage that the Jinchuriki qualification test has failed. The target has exceeded the Root Organization's containment value."
Violation Level: 7
Within the Root Organization, Danzo's orders were met only with absolute obedience. No one ever had the right to speak out of turn. The Root Ninja acknowledged the command and vanished directly.
Elsewhere, the Third Hokage had received the news and was smoking a pipe as he looked at the two reports on his desk. His expression was grave, his brows tightly furrowed.
One was the Root Organization's report on the failed mission test. The other was Team Seven's joint petition to restore Naruto's eligibility for the Chunin Exams.
It contained not only Sakura and Sasuke's requests, but also Kakashi's unexpected letter accepting responsibility. The handprints and signatures were all complete.
"Lord Hokage, this..." Hokage guard Namiashi Raidō stood to one side, his expression equally grim. "The Jinchuriki's power has already exceeded the village's control."
"It has not reached that point yet." The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, exhaled a cloud of white smoke. His face was dry as tree bark, yet his eyes were as sharp as a hawk's.
"Kakashi mentioned Naruto's ninjutsu in his mission report from the Land of Waves. Scorching magma—that was the Lava Release ninjutsu created when the Four-Tails Jinchuriki of the Land of Earth combined Earth Release and Fire Release."
"A Tailed Beast... a Jinchuriki?" Namiashi Raidō was somewhat shocked. "How could Naruto use the ninjutsu of the Land of Earth's Tailed Beast Jinchuriki?"
"I don't know." The Third Hokage said solemnly, "Originally, I only wanted to test whether Naruto had been replaced in the Land of Waves. It is very possible that it was the person who recently appeared and called himself the God of Shinobi."
"Naruto's recent behavior has been strange—unexplained wealth and power... But only a descendant of the Uzumaki Clan could use the Four Symbols Seal, and only Naruto could contain the Nine-Tails..."
As he spoke, Hiruzen Sarutobi let out another helpless sigh, closed his eyes, and instructed,
"Order the ANBU to cancel their surveillance of the Jinchuriki."
"But... Lord Hokage, if that happens, if the Jinchuriki is no longer monitored, wouldn't that be too dangerous?"
"After all..." Namiashi Raidō's gaze swept over the report from the Root Organization, where the words were written clearly.
Violation Level: 7
"Lord Hokage, there are only ten Violation Levels in total, right?" Namiashi Raidō swallowed. "But even the Nine-Tails' danger level is only 6."
"The Four Symbols Seal is an extremely dangerous ninjutsu. It can seal the Nine-Tails, even all objects." The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, explained in a deep voice.
"Root personnel have always liked exaggerating facts and ignoring humans as independent individuals. But humans have emotions, and weapons can be controlled as well."
"Sunshine, flowers, the bonds of friendship, the budding of love, the village's acceptance—those are the best ways to store a weapon."
I got cursed out by someone using a blank account, ahhh! Please keep reading—I want to see if I can climb higher on the new book rankings.
A big shot tipped me—Big Jackie (Taking Off)
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