Naruto had just been about to click the lottery button.
The System could hardly wait to set Naruto on the path to redemption.
[The Host's potential Blackening may be influenced by the title of Demon Fox] [A new mission has appeared] [To prevent the Host from becoming an irresponsible Jinchuriki like Gaara, who skips naps and often stays up late] [Please make sure to handle your relationship with the Nine-Tails properly. Try communicating with the Tailed Beast and forming an unbreakable bond!] [As a Jinchuriki, you must have a good relationship with your Tailed Beast. Being polite is essential] [Successfully completing the mission will earn you 10 Goodwill Points] [Failing the mission will incur 100 Punishment Points]
"Get along with the Nine-Tails?"
Naruto nodded.
"Right, right. Just watch me be polite to it!"
He focused on the seal in his abdomen.
Naruto appeared before a wooden gate with gaps wide enough for a horse to run through.
Water covered the ground.
Ripples spread beneath his feet.
Deep in the darkness,
the Nine-Tails slowly turned its gaze toward him and snorted disdainfully.
Just some Uzumaki brat. How dare he stand before the strongest Tailed Beast? He really didn't know his place!
"Nine-Tails!"
The Nine-Tails made no move, merely flicking its tail.
A violent gust swept in,
nearly knocking Naruto off his feet.
"Stinky Fox!"
Hiss!
The Nine-Tails sprang to its feet in an instant.
It glared at Naruto, fur standing on end.
Back in the day, among the Nine Tailed Beasts, only One-Tail Shukaku, that damn tanuki, dared to run its mouth like that!
Ha!
The Nine-Tails flew into a rage, and a gale roared around it.
Its blood-red eyes looked down on Naruto outside the gate.
"Remember this!"
"You're a Tailed Beast, and I'm a Jinchuriki. I know you don't want to be trapped."
Naruto gripped the bars and met the Nine-Tails' gaze without fear.
Well, would you look at that!
Sure, there was a thing called megalophobia.
But a gigantic cat or fox right in front of him was still as adorable as ever!
The Nine-Tails stared at Naruto.
It figured the brat was about to say that he didn't want to be a Jinchuriki either, and didn't want people calling him a Demon Fox.
All these years,
the Nine-Tails had held just one view about the relationship between Tailed Beasts and Jinchuriki.
Tragedy.
Power, hatred, and forced confinement—all of it was miserable.
"So what if you don't like it?"
"I do!"
"You work a day, you earn a day's pay. I'm a Jinchuriki for a day, so you give me your chakra!"
Naruto held the bars with both hands and pressed his face against them.
From the Nine-Tails' point of view, he looked like a pitiful penguin gazing up at it.
He was clearly making a demand, yet he sounded so utterly self-righteous!
Hmph!
The Nine-Tails flicked its tail and turned away.
Even the Yellow Flash wouldn't dare speak to me like that!
Who do you think you are, kid?
You little blondie!
"You can keep throwing your little tantrums over there. Even little animals like to act cute sometimes."
"Besides, you're an adorable fox with all those tails. What's the point of having so many if you don't use them to look cute?"
Naruto turned and waved.
Damn it!
What did "adorable" mean?
And what was "acting cute" supposed to mean!
He even said I was throwing a tantrum and acting spoiled!
The strongest Tailed Beast was a little animal!
The Nine-Tails' fur stood on end.
It bared its teeth and looked back—
but Naruto had already disappeared.
Damn it!
The Nine-Tails spun around several times in a rage before finally resting its head on its own tail, which calmed it a little.
No matter how much it thought about it, it couldn't figure it out.
Had Kushina Uzumaki's son suddenly started acting like his mother?
That made no sense.
All these years, it had watched the boy get rejected by people, step by step—from the Hero's Son to the Demon Fox.
Then the Third Hokage had gradually led him astray.
Somehow, he'd managed to miss out on all the good genes from Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki.
So how had he changed overnight?
The Nine-Tails blinked, studying Naruto closely.
He really did seem a little different.
He often talked to himself.
Even the way he walked had become a third more cocky!
After leaving the hot spring,
Naruto strutted home with a swagger that said he didn't care who he upset.
After watching him the whole way, the Nine-Tails grew even more confused.
[Ding!] [Detected an improvement in the Host's relationship with the Nine-Tails. The Nine-Tails' favorability has increased by 15%] [Mission complete. You have received 10 Goodwill Points as a reward]
"Huh?"
Naruto was stunned.
He'd almost forgotten that the Nine-Tails was a tsundere!
Damn it!
Naruto gritted his teeth so hard his molars nearly cracked.
Back home, he flopped onto the bed.
What else could he do?
Draw, of course!
[The Host has done a good deed today, making peace with the fox. Achievement unlocked: Good Person of Konoha. Reward: 10 Goodwill Points] [Keep doing good deeds and building merit, and this System will bless the Host]
"What do I need your blessing for? I just want missions and lottery draws!"
Naruto had had enough.
If he became the nicest person in the Ninja World, the Turn Back to the Shore System wouldn't give him any more missions!
And without missions, how could he draw prizes?
Thinking about the perfectly ordinary life he was about to lead—becoming Hokage, marrying the Hyuga princess, and defeating the Otsutsuki—
Naruto couldn't help feeling melancholy!
"Actually, that doesn't sound too bad."
Naruto rested his hands behind his head and crossed his legs.
"If you're going to be this useless, System, just die. I don't need you anymore."
"I'm already the greatest good person in the history of the Ninja World. Why would I need you to show me the way?"
"Get lost! Self-destruct right now!"
Naruto gave up on the lottery and decided to lie back and do nothing.
He already had the protagonist's script as the child of destiny.
What did he need a useless System for?
[Ding!] [The Host has begun to harbor ill intent. Good deeds and merit must be used to suppress it] [The Turn Back to the Shore System is searching for a new Goodwill Points mission. Please do not give up on yourself]
"You'd better hurry!"
"Or I really won't be able to stop myself from turning evil!"
Naruto's stomach was growling. He opened the fridge, then quickly shut it again.
"This is ridiculous! Ichiraku Ramen still doesn't offer delivery!"
"I'll go after I finish the lottery. Otherwise, if this useless System dies, I'll have to put it on credit."
Naruto had 20 Goodwill Points and 100 Punishment Points, enough for three draws.
"Spin!"
Naruto decided to use his Goodwill Points for two draws first.
[Incredible! The Host is bursting with good luck. Good things come to good people!] [The two Goodwill Point draws awarded Earth Release: Headhunter Jutsu and the Frilled Lizard Technique, which involves hanging upside down from a tree] [Go practice!]
"As expected."
"You really are useless! Just die already. Doesn't the Host have the right to make the System self-destruct?"
Naruto knew these two jutsu.
One used Earth Release to bury someone, leaving only their head aboveground. It was basically just for scaring people.
The other involved hanging upside down from a tree. If you wore a robe, it would fall down too. It was one of the few anime settings that brought Newton into the picture.
[The Host's ill intent has increased sharply. This System is searching faster for good deeds to do in Konoha]
"I'll take anything. I'll learn it all!"
Naruto practiced the jutsu a few times.
He ran around upside down on the ceiling.
Taking the expired milk from home, he went outside and buried it with Headhunter Jutsu, leaving only the tips sticking out.
"Meow!"
A white cat spotted the surprise and hurried off to get the others to come see.
At last, the world had started growing milk!
"Meow! Meow!"
A few cats meowed, saying they absolutely couldn't drink it because cats were lactose intolerant!
The cats happily emerged from the bushes. From then on, they made the area below Naruto's apartment their gathering place.
Every day, they ate their fill, slept, and basked in the sun.
Now they had a new pastime: watching the milk trees grow.
On the road,
Naruto made a quick lottery draw on his way to Ichiraku Ramen.
[What a shame] [On the other hand, things are looking grim when it comes to Punishment Points] [The Host only drew one jutsu, which can only be used in combat: Rasengan]
"That's so terrible it could kill me!"
Naruto's mood instantly lifted.
"Hey, Naruto. How are the Chunin Ninja Exams going?"
Uncle Ichiraku was still hiding the fact that he wasn't actually a member of the Otsutsuki Clan.
"If I don't pass, the Ninja World will be plunged into darkness for all eternity!"
Naruto's stomach rumbled.
He raised a hand, brimming with confidence.
"Uncle, let's make it extra deluxe today. Add an egg!"