Let's Start with One Small Goal...

But once you let yourself slack off, getting started again...

Was harder than climbing to the heavens!

Naruto was in exactly that state.

He'd finally eaten his fill and recovered from his earlier exhaustion, but the system was forcing him to start training again immediately. He just couldn't take it.

[Warning! Baptism of Lightning Release countdown: 2...1...]

[0!]

Naruto gritted his teeth. He refused to keep training and braced himself to be shocked, every muscle in his body tensing as his features twisted into a grimace...

The next instant.

Bzzzt—

Boom!!!

The Baptism of Lightning Release arrived right on schedule!

A violent current surged through his body in an instant. Naruto felt as if all 130 trillion of his cells were being stabbed by needles. Then they seemed to explode all at once!

The agony was more than an ordinary person could endure.

Even with Naruto's exceptional talent, even with the Uzumaki Clan's blood flowing through his veins, even as the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, he couldn't escape that raw, direct pain.

"AAAGH—"

Naruto let out a bloodcurdling scream that rang across the night sky over all of Konoha.

But this was only the beginning...

[The Baptism of Lightning Release continues...]

"AAAAAAAH—"

Relying on his last shred of stubbornness, Naruto tried to withstand the Baptism of Lightning Release. But it didn't take long for him to realize how naive and childish he'd been...

Apparently, this thing didn't happen just once.

As long as he refused to cooperate, it would keep raining down "baptisms" on him!

Who could endure that?!

Naruto still wanted to fight to the bitter end, to stare death in the face and come out stronger...

Suddenly—

"Damn it, Naruto! Get back to training!"

Naruto jumped in fright.

"What was that?!"

"That wasn't the system's voice in my head..."

"W-Who are you?!"

Inside Naruto, in the Mental Space sealed by the Eight Trigrams Sealing Style.

Kurama, the legendary calamity who wielded the power to destroy heaven and earth, had once lived a quiet, undisturbed life.

Ever since that damn Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, sealed him away years ago, Kurama had been trapped inside this brat, Naruto Uzumaki, with no freedom at all.

It was a miserable existence, but over time, Kurama had gradually grown used to it and been forced to accept it.

Still, he had never given up hope.

The leakage of his chakra through the Eight Trigrams Sealing Style was part of Minato Namikaze's plan, but it was a double-edged sword.

His chakra was evil and filled with malice. It would subtly influence Naruto's will.

Given enough time, Naruto would eventually go berserk. Then Kurama would have the chance to seize his body, escape, and regain his freedom!

It might take a long time, but to Kurama—a Tailed Beast with no concept of death, able to revive again and again, and alive for more than a thousand years—that was nothing.

But then, his peaceful life was suddenly shattered.

That day, Kurama had been fast asleep in the sealed Mental Space.

He hadn't done anything to anyone.

Then, all of a sudden...

Bzzzt—

Rumble!

A violent bolt of lightning came crashing down from above and struck him in his sleep, leaving him scorched from head to toe!

Even Kurama, feared by the entire Shinobi World, couldn't help but cry out in agony.

The power of this Lightning Release seemed to surpass everything. It struck both body and mind at once, making it impossible to endure!

In pain and fury, Kurama immediately tried to figure out what had happened.

He soon discovered that something called a "system" had appeared inside Naruto.

Even Kurama had no idea what it was.

But its power was incomprehensible, its might beyond anything he could imagine!

It forced Naruto to train desperately. If he disobeyed, it immediately issued a warning and unleashed what it called the "Baptism of Lightning Release"!

Once he understood what was going on, Kurama was both shocked and furious!

He didn't care whether Naruto pushed himself or ever became Hokage. That had nothing to do with him. But if the system was going to shock Naruto, it couldn't shock Kurama too!

Kurama was far stronger than Naruto, of course.

But first, he was only half of the Yang Nine-Tails' chakra. Second, the Eight Trigrams Sealing Style had suppressed him and restricted his power. And third, this Baptism of Lightning Release was practically "true damage." It ignored all defenses and struck the soul directly!

As a result, Kurama suffered even more than Naruto!

He'd never wanted anything to do with the brat, but now he had no choice but to keep his fur standing on end and watch Naruto's every move.

Every time the system's warning sounded, Kurama couldn't help but shudder!

Fortunately, Naruto feared the pain too and had been training desperately all day.

That had let Kurama breathe a sigh of relief.

But now...

After dinner, that damn Naruto had actually started resisting, as if he had a death wish!

Kurama hadn't even had time to react.

The raging current crashed down on him again!

His fur burst outward as the terrifying current surged through his whole body. The agony was so intense that even this thousand-year-old fox couldn't help crying out that he couldn't take it anymore...

And the worst part was...

That damn Naruto was still being stubborn!

So the second wave of the baptism came down at once!

Kurama suffered even more than Naruto!

Naruto could endure it, but Kurama had reached his limit. For the first time ever, he roared at Naruto.

"Damn it, Naruto! Get back to training!"

"And you, you damn system!"

"If that brat won't work hard, shock him! Why are you shocking me?!"

Chapter 7: Let's Start with One Small Goal...

Naruto had vaguely known that some kind of monster was lurking inside him.

But only now did he truly confirm it.

"W-Who are you?!"

Kurama endured the Baptism of Lightning Release and roared furiously, "You brat!"

"Cut the crap! Get back to training!"

Naruto couldn't take it anymore either. Though still panicking, he immediately shouted, "Okay, okay! I get it!"

"I'll train, all right?!"

The system's punishment stopped at once.

Naruto gasped for breath. He'd already used up much of the strength he'd just recovered...

Daring not to resist again, he immediately started practicing the Chakra Refinement Technique.

Fortunately, he'd been training all day. He'd never stopped refining chakra, whether during lunch or in any of his breaks between classes.

By now, his Chakra Refinement Technique proficiency had already passed 60!

It was the first subject he'd managed to pass.

So Naruto was able to get into the rhythm of the Chakra Refinement Technique far more easily than he'd expected.

His efficiency was astonishing...

"Huh?!"

"When did I get so good at the Chakra Refinement Technique?!"

Naruto was still shaken, but when he felt how much he'd improved, he couldn't help feeling both pained and pleased...

Kurama was in even worse shape than he was.

His fur was singed and stood on end, his eyes wide and his fox pupils burning a fiery red!

"Damn it..."

"At this rate, I'll be dead before I can take this brat's body!"

"Damn system. What the hell is it?"

"I've lived for more than a thousand years and never heard of anything like this..."

Fuming, Kurama let his mind wander before forcing himself to calm down.

"Should I have a proper talk with that brat?"

"No... forget it. I don't trust humans."

"But I don't want to go through another Baptism of Lightning Release..."

"Looks like I'll have to cooperate with that little brat for now..."

All these years, Kurama had been exploiting the "loopholes" in the Eight Trigrams Sealing Style, constantly leaking his chakra and malice into Naruto.

Minato Namikaze had intended for Naruto to gradually master the Nine-Tails' chakra and use it for himself. But at this early stage, it only disrupted Naruto's training.

That was one of the main reasons Naruto was called a dead-last.

But now...

Fearing the Baptism of Lightning Release, Kurama decided to stop deliberately disrupting Naruto's chakra and training. In other words, he was solving the problem at its source.

It was a change even the system couldn't have predicted.

"Huh?"

"What's going on?"

"Why is refining my chakra suddenly so much easier?"

"I always felt like someone was interfering with me before, but now it seems to have completely disappeared!"

Naruto was overjoyed. His Chakra Refinement Technique proficiency had already passed 60, and now that the interference was gone, he could refine chakra far more efficiently!

He'd trained all day, including two hours at lunch and a little over an hour during his breaks between classes. He was still nowhere near eight hours.