Mount Myoboku!
This was one of Mount Myoboku's training grounds. For miles around, towering rocky peaks stretched in every direction.
Atop one of the peaks, a boy sat cross-legged on a stone slab laid across its tip.
His long red hair fluttered in the wind, and the purple diamond-shaped mark between his brows looked almost eerie in the sunlight. Bare-chested and wearing only black shorts, he sat in the full lotus position, his hands resting loosely in his lap in a meditation mudra.
"Natural Energy is certainly difficult to master, but the power it grants is impressive."
Uzumaki Kuming sat on the stone slab. The wind was fierce at this altitude, but the slab remained rock-steady even with him sitting on it. He slowly opened his eyes and murmured to himself.
"Kurama, about what I told you a while ago—have you made up your mind?"
Uzumaki Kuming closed his eyes again and sent part of his consciousness into his mindscape to ask the Nine-Tails.
"Hmph. There's no way I'm cooperating with you."
The Nine-Tails lay inside its cage. It didn't even look at Kuming as it flatly refused.
"Won't you think it over? My offer should be right up your alley. All you have to do is help me gather Senjutsu Chakra during battle, and we'll work together. When I die a hundred years from now, I'll set you free."
"Wouldn't that be a good deal for you?"
"You're just sitting around in there anyway. Wouldn't it be better to have something to do?"
Uzumaki Kuming glanced at the Nine-Tails, puzzled.
"Hmph. No."
A forceful gust burst from the Nine-Tails' nostrils. It opened its eyes, shot Kuming a sidelong glance, then went back to sleep.
"You tsundere fox. Let me know when you change your mind, Kurama!"
Kuming left his