After a full day of training, Naruto dragged his exhausted body home. He had just washed up and lain down in bed when his consciousness gradually grew hazy, and he began to fall downward. When he opened his eyes, he found himself in a dim sewer. Roars echoed from somewhere in the distance.
"Roar! Over here, brat. Come here!"
Naruto grinned at the sound. He had been searching for a way to enter this place but had never found one. He hadn't expected to arrive here today, so he headed toward the source of the roars.
Soon, Naruto reached a somewhat wider area. The first thing he saw was a massive iron gate. Behind it loomed an enormous beast, its two blood-red eyes glaring at him.
"Brat, come here and remove this sealing tag. I'll give you invincible power."
Naruto didn't answer. He merely snapped his fingers, and the Sealing Space lit up, no longer as dim as before. Now he could see the beast behind the gate. Just as in his memories, it was a red fox with nine tails.
"Kurama, don't be impatient. I'd like to talk with you first," Naruto said with a smile as he looked at the Nine-Tails.
The Nine-Tails froze when he heard Naruto call him by name. Then he came to his senses and roared at Naruto. "Brat, how do you know my name?"
"I'll tell you later. First, I want to talk about something else," Naruto replied.
"What do you want to talk about?" Seeing Naruto's smiling face, the Nine-Tails had also calmed down.
"I want to talk about how I see the Tailed Beasts," Naruto said, sitting cross-legged as he looked at the Nine-Tails.
The Nine-Tails watched Naruto sit down, then asked, "Then tell me how you see us Tailed Beasts."
"Tailed Beasts are living creatures. You have consciousness and your own thoughts. You each have your own way of life, so you shouldn't be called beasts."
"Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha saw how powerful you were. One controlled you, and the other sealed you away."
"Madara Uchiha controlled you and called you beasts. Hashirama Senju, in the name of so-called peace in the Shinobi World, treated you like possessions and distributed you among the great shinobi villages. You've been sealed away for decades in this cramped, lightless place. Humans fear your immense power and treat you as the embodiment of disaster. It makes me furious," Naruto said sincerely, looking at the Nine-Tails.
The Nine-Tails looked at Naruto and saw the sincerity in his eyes. As a being made up of Natural Energy, he could sense good and evil, and he couldn't detect even a trace of ill intent toward himself in Naruto. So he lay down.
"Then what do you think should be done?"
"I'll set you free and make you the guardians of the Shinobi World, instead of sealing you away like possessions," Naruto said, sharing his thoughts.
"Oh? Go on." The Nine-Tails grew interested when Naruto said he wanted to make the Tailed Beasts guardians.
"The Shinobi World isn't peaceful because there are too many factions and their interests are out of balance. On top of that, different ideologies have eroded people's trust in one another, and countries are constantly at war. There's also too great a gap in status between shinobi, nobles, and ordinary people."
"I believe true peace means people understanding one another, treating each other honestly, and helping each other. There would be no more wars in the Shinobi World, and everyone would have enough to eat and warm clothes to wear. The young would be cared for, and the old would be provided for."
"Of course, the first step toward achieving that would be to unite the Shinobi World. Then, over a long period of time, we could change people's thinking so there wouldn't be so many disagreements between them."
"Ever since you were sealed inside me, our lives have been connected. So I need your help, whether it's your power or something else." Naruto told the Nine-Tails everything he had in mind.
After hearing all this, the Nine-Tails remembered the prophecy the Sage of Six Paths had given them before he departed. He grinned and said, "I've waited a long time for this. I'm willing to help you. What should we do next?"
Hearing the Nine-Tails agree, Naruto smiled even more brightly. "Then let's bump fists first." He walked up to the iron gate and held out his right hand.
The Nine-Tails raised a paw and touched it to Naruto's fist. (This wasn't the Sage Fox Mode; he was just sharing memories with the Nine-Tails.)
After a long while, having seen all of Naruto's memories, the Nine-Tails said, "I see. No wonder you know so much, and even know my name. What do you want to do now? And what about Konoha?"
"I need to find a way out of the village first. That's the only way I can undo your seal. As for Konoha, Hiruzen Sarutobi, Shimura Danzō, and everyone who's abused me have to die. I'll decide what to do about the others who've insulted or bullied me. If they keep being so ignorant..." Naruto trailed off.
"Fine. Whatever you do, I'll support you."
"Thank you, Kurama," Naruto said gratefully.
"Naruto, as you said, ever since I was sealed inside you, our lives have been connected. So there's no need to thank me. I'm the one who should apologize to you, since your parents died because of me," Kurama said, full of remorse.
Hearing Kurama mention his parents, Naruto snorted. "It's fine, Kurama. They'll be revived sooner or later. Just think of it as their punishment."
Then the boy and the fox chatted in the Sealing Space. Perhaps they had both been repressed for too long and, for the first time, had someone to confide in. They talked for a long time, about the past and the future, and cheerful laughter rang through the Sealing Space now and then.
"All right, Kurama. Let's leave it here for today and take care of something else." Naruto began altering the Sealing Space. The place where Kurama was became a small island, though the massive iron gate remained. Water surrounded it, and a sun appeared overhead. The whole space filled with life and energy, far better than the oppressive, dim sewer had been.
"Heh heh, I haven't seen the sun in ages. I won't bother thanking you," Kurama said happily, seeing the surroundings change. No one would want to stay in such an oppressive place forever.
After changing the environment of the Sealing Space, Naruto walked through the gate and came to stand before Kurama. He placed his hand on the Nine-Tails' forehead. When Naruto withdrew it, a cultivation method had appeared in Kurama's mind.
"Kurama, I picked out this technique for you. Try it and see if you can cultivate it," Naruto said after transmitting the technique.
Kurama acknowledged him and began to try it out. What happened next startled Naruto. He clearly felt Natural Energy from the outside world surge like a tide toward the Sealing Space within his body as Kurama circulated the technique. Some of it gathered in his vortex before spreading throughout his body, tempering his flesh. The Supreme Demon Sutra he was cultivating also began to circulate.
Naruto hadn't expected this. His original plan had only been to have Kurama cultivate and grow stronger, so that the two of them could unleash greater power when they joined forces.
Watching Kurama immerse himself in cultivation, Naruto left the Sealing Space and began training as well.
The night passed without incident.
The next day, Naruto and Kurama both awoke from their cultivation. The spiritual energy in Naruto's vortex was showing signs of condensing into water, a sign that he was close to perfecting the first level of the technique. The Supreme Demon Sutra was difficult to cultivate, and progress was slow. At his usual pace, it might have taken him half a year to perfect the first level. He hadn't expected that after just one night of cultivating alongside Kurama, he'd be on the verge of completing it.
Although this effect had only come from their first session of cultivation together, training together in the future would surely still be faster than training alone.
Thinking of this, Naruto silently asked, "Kurama, how do you feel?"
"Great. I feel a lot stronger, and I've grown bigger too," Kurama replied, his voice tinged with excitement in Naruto's mind.
"Heh heh, then let's keep working hard and grow stronger together."
Before you continue