Hearing Shukaku's furious roar, Nine-Tails felt utterly refreshed. He replied smugly, "What's so strange about that? A seal? What seal? There never was one to begin with! Hahahaha! Do you think I'm like you? Hahaha! As if some puny seal could stop me, you stupid tanuki."
Nine-Tails' mockery only made Shukaku angrier. He roared at Naruto, "Brat, your name is Naruto Uzumaki, right? Tell me why that stinking fox doesn't have a seal on him! What's going on? Tell me now!"
Hearing Shukaku's question, Naruto replied politely, "Uh, are you the tailed beast inside Gaara? What's your name?"
Shukaku replied threateningly, "I'm asking you a question! Tell me why that stinking fox doesn't have a seal!"
Naruto sounded puzzled. "Because it's already been undone. It was undone when I was five. Kurama is my best friend. Why would I lock him up? You're the strange one. Why hasn't your seal been undone? I saw how skillfully Gaara could use
your power, so I thought you two got along really well. Who knew your relationship wasn't all that great? Anyway, what's your name?"
When Shukaku heard Naruto call Nine-Tails his best friend, something stirred in his eyes. Hearing Naruto ask his name again, he asked in puzzlement, "Does my name really matter that much to you? Don't you humans only care about the power of the tailed beasts? Since when did you care about our names?"
Naruto said impatiently, "Seriously, why do you have to be so difficult? Aren't people supposed to introduce themselves when they first meet?"
Naruto's words sent a powerful surge of emotion through Shukaku's heart, leaving him unsettled for a long time. Looking into Naruto's innocent eyes, Shukaku said to Nine-Tails, "Hey, stinking fox. Could this brat be...?"
Nine-Tails chuckled. "Heh, you damned tanuki. Since when did