"Naruto."
Minato Namikaze's smile grew gentler.
He couldn't imagine how much hardship this child had endured growing up.
But anyone who could remain levelheaded amid negative emotions was unquestionably strong-willed.
"Have things been all right for you these past few years?"
Minato's concern seemed unrelated to Naruto's question.
"Everyone's been so good to me. It couldn't possibly be better."
"First of all, everyone knows I'm the Demon Fox, so hardly anyone wants to play with me."
"Also, I'm an amazing cook. I've been catching and grilling fish to fill my stomach all by myself since I was little."
"I became a Genin because I learned the Shadow Clone Technique and got back the scroll that was stolen. That's right, I've never been able to control my chakra properly, but nobody helped me fix that."
"The old Third Hokage comes to see me now and then, mostly to steal my grilled fish. He loves eating for free, and still tries to brainwash me."
"The village is getting better and better. The entire Uchiha Clan died a few years ago, and the only survivor is my friend."
"Recently, I became Jiraiya's student. He's taught me quite a few ninjutsu, but he doesn't seem to want much to do with the village. He always likes to meet in the forest."
"My life couldn't be any better. Is there anything else you want to ask?"
Naruto finished speaking in just a few sentences.
Black fumes began to rise from his whole body.
Yet he was completely unaffected.
Hatred, anger, and darkness were all naturally radiating from Naruto.
"No."
From those brief remarks, Minato could already sense what Naruto had been through all these years.
Sigh.
"I should have known. Just like Kakashi after White Fang died, this is the Ninja World. As long as there are ninja, war will never end."
Minato had wanted Naruto to look toward the light.
But after neglecting him for more than ten years, what right did he have to teach a child to deny himself?
"Naruto."
Minato knew he didn't have much time left.
"No matter which ninja way you choose, your mother and I never meant for you to bear all the responsibility."
"You aren't the Demon Fox, nor are you the Hokage's son or a hero's son. You're the one who sealed half of the Nine-Tails, born as the hero we hoped would protect Konoha!"
"Our hero, tell me what you need."
Minato had sensed something subtle in Naruto's emotions.
He'd come with a request!
It seemed the boy had deliberately let the darkness out to make him appear.
"I need your signature technique. If I'm not strong enough, I'll soon have nowhere left to go."
Naruto knew that once Orochimaru's Konoha Crush Plan came to pass,
a series of disasters would follow, and within two years the Akatsuki would begin hunting Tailed Beasts.
"You mean this?"
Minato took out a Kunai.
The Flying Thunder God Formula was inscribed on it.
"Exactly!"
Naruto and Minato bumped fists.
"Then let's start with how to use the Flying Thunder God Technique. I hope you can master it quickly. It's quite difficult to get the hang of!"
Minato explained the Flying Thunder God Formula and the Flying Thunder God - Second Stage attack in full.
"Naruto."
"If you can combine more ninjutsu and ninja tools with the Flying Thunder God, its power will increase several times over!"
"Like my Spiral Flash Super Round Dance Howl Style Three! It can work with flash bombs to disorient everyone on the battlefield and rescue people quickly!"
Minato spoke with easy laughter.
As though there were still plenty of time.
Only his body, already on the verge of fading away, said otherwise.
There wasn't much time left.
"Naruto, no matter which ninja way you choose, don't doubt yourself. This world has never stopped arguing, and the enemies who died at my hands weren't necessarily in the wrong, either."
"Find your ninja way and keep walking it. We'll always be watching over you!"
Minato Namikaze faded into light.
Naruto thought to himself,
It seemed Minato still wanted to make Naruto feel a little better.
Otherwise, telling him the truth—that his soul was in the Death God's stomach after the Dead Demon Consuming Seal—would have been despair itself.
After all, undoing the technique required going to the Uzumaki Clan's old, ruined village and taking the mask.
"I got the Flying Thunder God Formula!"
Naruto began training, satisfied.
"Looks like my sensory skills are pretty good, too. I wonder if that makes me a sensory-type ninja."
After throwing out a whole batch of Kunai,
Naruto looked again at the Nine-Tails, who was staring blankly.
After witnessing that heartwarming ninjutsu lesson,
the Nine-Tails could only think that humans were boring.
"Kurama, quit pretending. You've been watching me train this whole time. Aren't you going to say anything?"
Naruto spun the Kunai in his hand.
"My skills are still pretty average, and my overall combat strength isn't solid enough yet. I have to get stronger."
"What about you?"
Naruto tapped the bars of the cage.
"You might be thinking that once I die, you'll get the chance to escape. After all, the Uzumaki Clan in Konoha is all dead, and I haven't learned the clan's Sealing Techniques. But Konoha still has some old fogies around."
"Of course, I've been thinking about something lately. What if you refuse to cooperate with me for the rest of my life?"
"What happens after I die? I came up with one idea: turn myself into a human-shaped puppet. I wonder if that could keep you trapped forever."
"No sunshine for you in this lifetime! Though that's just a guess. Maybe it wouldn't work at all."
Naruto let it all out.
Then he quickly returned to his normal training.
The Nine-Tails glumly watched Naruto, its mood sinking lower and lower.
"Humans really are sly!"
Forest Training Ground.
After combining a series of ninjutsu,
Naruto realized that if he activated Lightning Release Chakra Mode and then used Kunai inscribed with the Flying Thunder God Formula,
he could send them flying like a rain of arrows, flash through in an instant, and then kill with a single Rasengan. That seemed to be the best way to fight.
But it looked a little difficult to train, and he'd have to keep conditioning his body to handle that extreme state.
Besides that,
Naruto had finally infused Wind Release chakra into the Rasengan.
He'd created his first ranged attack: Wind Release: Rasenshuriken!
"If I haven't become a Jonin at my age, how am I supposed to stand at the pinnacle of the Ninja World in the future?"
Naruto resumed training, while the Nine-Tails was at a loss.
There was one day left until the official Chunin Ninja Exams matches.
The Nine-Tails was staring blankly as usual.
Naruto, however, finished training early and went home to restock all his snacks and milk.
After nearly a month of training,
he'd used Lightning Armor to strengthen his body every day, the Flying Thunder God to train his senses and split-second reactions, and the Rasengan to develop his offense. He'd also combined that with the environmental effects of Earth Release and the wide-area attacks of Fire Release.
Clone Technique, Taijutsu, and Body Flicker Technique all worked together.
And then there were Summoning Techniques for Toad Gamabunta and the Rabbit Family.
Naruto had now put points into skills across the board.
Before the official matches and the Konoha Crush,
he had time to enjoy some tea!
Since he lived in an old apartment without a nice balcony for tea, Naruto simply stretched out across the rooftop.
He basked in the sun and took a sip of afternoon tea.
Inside the Sealing Space, he also began his ultimate conversation with the Nine-Tails.
"Kurama! Want to go out and bask in the sun?"