Another Tsundere

"Big Fox, how long have you been here? There's water everywhere. Doesn't it make you uncomfortable?"

The Nine-Tails' ears twitched slightly as he shot Naruto a sidelong glance. "Do you think I want things this way? Don't just talk to me whenever you feel like it, brat."

"Honestly..." Naruto protested with an unhappy look. "I told you, my name is Uzumaki Naruto, not 'brat'! Since I introduced myself, shouldn't you politely tell me your name too?"

Kurama snorted. "Hmph, a name? Don't you humans all call me the 'Nine-Tails Fox Demon'? I got sick of that name long ago."

...Looks like if I want to get closer to this big fox, I'll have to use some unconventional methods.

Naruto rubbed his chin, then looked up with a sly smile. "Hmm... excuse me, is your name 'Kurama'?"

"What?!"

Kurama, who had been lying on the ground and barely acknowledging Naruto, suddenly raised his head. His massive body instantly tensed. His name—within this Ninja World, only the Sage of Six Paths and the other tailed beasts should know it! How could this brat possibly know?!

"Boom—!"

Kurama abruptly rose to his feet, slamming his enormous paw against the iron bars of the cage. The entire Sealing Space trembled faintly. "Brat... where did you learn that name?!"

I saw it in an anime. But Kurama would never accept that answer, and this world did not even have the concept of "anime." If he answered like that, Kurama would probably think he was mocking him.

"Hmm... well," Naruto said, putting on a hesitant expression, "what I'm about to say might sound a little strange."

"Then spit it out already!" Kurama impatiently smacked the ground with his paw, splashing water over Naruto's pant legs.

"Actually, I can't be sure whether it was real or not. A long time ago, I had a very strange dream."

"A dream?" Kurama wore a thoroughly mocking expression. "Brat, don't tell me you learned my name in a dream?"

"Though it does sound strange," Naruto said, staring directly into Kurama's eyes with an unusually serious tone, "that's the truth. In my dream, an old man in white robes with a very distinctive appearance told me there was a big fox living inside my body, and that his name was Kurama. He also told me to be friends with you, said something about understanding each other..."

The old man...?

That description struck Kurama hard. His enormous body visibly stiffened for a moment, and even his breathing quickened. White robes, an oddly featured old man, teaching humans and tailed beasts to understand one another... those details were far too specific to be a coincidence!

"One day, tailed beasts and humans will come to understand one another and find their true home."

The Sage of Six Paths' words thundered through Kurama's mind. These were secrets known only to tailed beasts who had personally lived through that era. There was no way a mere three-year-old human child could have made them up out of thin air!

Kurama's claws unconsciously tightened. "Brat... what else did that old man say?"

Noticing the subtle shift in Kurama's attitude, Naruto secretly rejoiced. "Um... he said some other strange things too. Like Chakra's true nature is connection, and true strength comes from understanding..."

With every sentence Naruto spoke, Kurama's pupils contracted further. Those words, those beliefs—every one of them was central to the Sage of Six Paths' teachings!

Naruto scratched his head. "There's one more especially strange thing about that old man."

"What?" Kurama immediately pressed, unable to hide the urgency in his voice. His mind raced, trying to piece together the truth from these fragments while carefully searching for any contradictions in Naruto's words.

"In the dream," Naruto said with a puzzled expression, "he kept calling me Ashura. Isn't that strange? Did he mistake me for someone else?"

"Ashura?!"

The name exploded beside Kurama's ears. The Sage of Six Paths, his true name, the old man's prophecy, and now this name... could this brat before him be Ashura's reincarnation?!

Naruto watched Kurama suddenly fall silent. Those orange-red eyes stared fixedly at him, yet Kurama said nothing for a long time. It seemed the information was too overwhelming; even a tailed beast that had lived for thousands of years did not know how to react.

"Hmm..." Naruto took the initiative to break the silence. "Kurama, that's your name, right? I'm Uzumaki Naruto!" He patted his chest. "Since you live inside my body, please take care of me from now on!"

Kurama was silent for a moment before slowly lying back down. He turned his massive head to one side and spoke in a deep voice. "...Kurama."

Though he already believed most of what Naruto had said, as a tailed beast who had seen far too much hatred and fear, he would not naively trust a human after a single conversation. Nor would he foolishly put some ideal of "mutual understanding" into practice right away.

I'll observe him first...

Kurama narrowed his eyes and studied the blond brat from the corner of his eye. He would see whether Naruto truly had any connection to the old man... and whether he was truly qualified to become the person in the old man's prophecy.

Kurama noticed Naruto's undisguised, burning gaze. Expectation shone in those azure eyes, making him uncomfortable enough to irritably swish his tails.

"So, brat, what exactly do you want?"

Naruto sat cross-legged on the damp ground, his smile brilliant. "Nothing in particular. Hardly anyone talks to me normally. You've been here all this time too, right? Does that mean... I was never really alone?"

"Hmph, I'm not here by choice."

"Hmm... at least our unwillingness makes us a pretty good match? If letting you out would be dangerous... how about, until we find a suitable way, we temporarily become not-so-quiet neighbors?"

"You sure know how to dream."

"Don't be so cold~" Naruto drawled. "Even though that old man told me to be friends with you, that isn't the grand reason why I want to talk to you."

Kurama did not answer. He merely watched Naruto quietly, waiting for him to continue.

Naruto's expression became somewhat lonely. "Because... nobody pays attention to me normally... having someone I can talk to really makes me happy."

Naruto's smile turned a little bitter. "Of course, if even you don't want to talk to me... then all I have left is my shadow. So... thank you for being willing to listen to me."

"...Hmph. Don't compare me to you."

Kurama turned his head away, but the several fluffy tails behind him swayed from side to side beyond his control.

Naruto merely smiled at Kurama's coldness. He knew this big guy was a tsundere too.

"Right now, I don't know how to get out, and I don't know how to help change this place's environment." Naruto looked around.

"Kurama, if you had to choose... would you rather stay here alone, or let me chatter away and tell you stories or something?"

"...Whatever you want."