Kurama Throwing a Tantrum

"What?"

"Hmph, one of my favorite things is saying 'no' to overly arrogant brats!"

"... Kurama, are you throwing a tantrum?"

"Wh... what!"

Kurama's voice suddenly rose, "Idiot! I am a Tailed Beast! How could I throw a tantrum! Would I do something so childish?"

Its voice grew louder and more urgent, and the fox's entire demeanor and expression were filled with guilt.

... Such pure tsundere.

Naruto felt a wave of familiar déjà vu; such pure tsundere.

Even with Kurama's affection level maxed out, he remained unchanged. To be honest, although Uchiha Satsuki was now incredibly gentle and obedient to him, a gentleness that made him feel safe, warm, and loved, he sometimes still missed the Satsuki from his childhood.

That girl who clearly cares about him but refuses to admit it, who clearly wants to walk with him but pretends to be "just passing by," and whose face turns bright red to the tips of her ears after he sees through her feelings—the proud and aloof Satsuki.

That's right, Kurama is throwing a tantrum. And it's the kind of tantrum that's childish, that's hard to express, that's how it is when it's incredibly upset but it stubbornly refuses to say "I need you".

It didn't refuse the power because it didn't want it; it refused it because the way Naruto gave it the power made it feel excluded.

It felt that Naruto gave it power only because Naruto felt he should, rather than to fight alongside it when it encountered an enemy next time.

It's not "Let's go together," nor "I need your strength," but rather "I'll give you this so you won't have to worry about being controlled."

This statement makes no sense whatsoever.

Indeed, Naruto hasn't used Kurama's chakra in battle for a long time.

In the last decisive battle against Akatsuki, Naruto used the power of his Star Eye throughout.

There was no Kurama Chakra Cloak, no Tailed Beast Ball, only that eye... Although Naruto wanted to explain that it was because he didn't want to reveal his identity.

Its mission is to fight alongside Naruto. That's how Kurama defines itself.

It felt incredibly proud of this. Watching the enemies who fought Naruto, seeing their terrified expressions in the face of the Nine-Tails Chakra, and witnessing their utter despair as they were blasted away, a sense of satisfaction welled up within it.

It thought, "What will happen to that kid if I'm not here?" It thought, "The only person in this world worthy of fighting alongside me is this brat."

It thought, "That's it. I'll just keep following him and fighting him until I can't fight anymore."

However... watching Naruto use that eye to perform godlike feats countless times, while I myself haven't fought in a long time.

If Naruto hadn't ignored it, frequently chatted with it, and talked to it, Kurama would have even thought that Naruto didn't need it anymore.

To be precise, in terms of combat, Naruto really seems to have stopped needing to fight.

"Um... Kurama? If I apologize to you now, would you accept it?"

"It's so noisy!"

Kurama ' voice suddenly exploded, "What apology?! I never asked you to apologize!"

... It didn't say "Go away," it didn't say "Leave me alone," it didn't say anything that actually wanted to get rid of people. It just kept babbling on, making it seem more like a child waiting.

"Then... if I encounter a difficult enemy next time, could you lend me your chakra?"

Kurama did not answer.

Its head was still tilted to one side, but its eyes, which were trying to look elsewhere, twitched slightly when it heard the words "please."

It's like a cat whose chin has been scratched; it's clearly enjoying it, but it stubbornly refuses to purr.

It glanced at it, then quickly looked away... It was easier to coax than I expected.

That one glance told Naruto that he was right. Sure enough, the best way to deal with a tsundere who likes you is to always go along with them.

"I'm sorry, Kurama."

Naruto's voice softened slightly, "It seems I've become a little too reliant on this power, causing me to neglect your feelings."

"Dependence? But compared to me, that eye is the true power within you. Don't be afraid of it being taken away..."

"It's different, because compared to Star Eye... you're my family."

Looking at Kurama's face, which was trying hard to maintain its dignity but was clearly moved, Naruto thought to himself, "It seems I've managed to appease Kurama."

The expression on the Kurama Fox's beast face changed from nonchalant to bewildered, and from bewildered to a look of barely concealing its emotions, clearly on the verge of being moved.

It suppressed the expression on its face that was about to break down, forcefully pulled down the corners of its mouth, pressed its ears back, and coiled its tail at its side, trying its best to make itself look like that arrogant Tailed Beast.

"Then let's make a deal."

Naruto stretched out his hand, his little finger pointing towards Kurama). "Let's fight together next time. If the enemy is more difficult than we expect, I hope you can protect me. If it really comes to that, I'll ask you for help."

Kurama) doesn't actually dislike strengthening itself. Who wouldn't want to become stronger?

"Snort."

Kurama's nose twitched again, and its tail wagged uncontrollably behind it, revealing its canine characteristics.

"Alright. Since you've asked me, I'll reluctantly agree."

Naruto smiled. "Alright. Then I'll leave it to the strongest Tailed Beast, Kurama."

Kurama found this statement very helpful.

"Then I'll be going now. See you later."

Naruto waved his hand, his consciousness beginning to detach from his inner world. The moment Naruto disappeared, Kurama finally relaxed.

It lay there, its tail wagging even more enthusiastically behind it, its ears standing straight up, its mouth grinning to reveal its enormous teeth, but there was no hint of threat on its face at the moment, only the satisfaction and pride of a large canine whose fur had been stroked.

It felt it should vent the light-hearted but pleasant feeling in its heart, so, to celebrate its improved mood, the Kurama ' consciousness went to its old acquaintance.