The Sage of Six Paths' sudden appearance caught Naruto and Sasuke off guard. Naruto remembered that, in the original story, Naruto and Sasuke had only met the Sage of Six Paths when they were near death. Puzzled, he asked, "Are we about to die? Why else would we run into this old man?"
The Sage of Six Paths immediately felt awkward. What do you mean, you're about to die? And what do you mean, 'this old man'? Kid, do you have any idea how to talk to people? Why not ask me if you have questions, instead of making things up in your head?
The Sage of Six Paths cleared his throat and said, "Well, um, you aren't about to die. Your chakra mingled, which allowed me to appear in this consciousness space. This is the deepest consciousness space shared by all the Tailed Beasts. As for why you're here, that's because of Kurama. Yes, Kurama linked your chakra together, so you appeared here."
Only then did Naruto understand. "Oh, so that's it. Does that mean this is Kurama's consciousness space?"
The Sage of Six Paths nodded. "Yes, it is."
Sasuke asked, "Then why did you appear here and bring Naruto and me into this place?"
The Sage of Six Paths looked at Naruto, then at Sasuke, and said, "I simply came to see the two of you. Honestly, you've truly surprised me. Though I died many years ago, my consciousness has never perished. All these years, I've quietly watched the Shinobi World develop."
Naruto muttered, "The granddaddy of all peeping Toms. Still peeping even after death. Seriously..." Sasuke's face darkened with embarrassment, while the Sage of Six Paths shot Naruto a glare.
Naruto immediately felt he might have taken his teasing too far. He coughed to cover it up