Becoming Partners with the Nine-Tails

All these insights would be gathered into the original body's mind when the Shadow Clone Technique was released, equivalent to one person tackling the same problem from over thirty different angles at once.

Naruto watched as his shadow clones entered their training states one by one. He nodded and prepared to sit down and join them.

"Kid, that's not a bad idea."

Just then, a deep, somewhat lazy voice sounded in Naruto's mind.

"Training with clones is like having more than thirty people working on the same technique at once. Your training progress has increased by more than thirtyfold."

"Only a freak Jinchuriki like you would dare use such a brain-burning training method."

Naruto froze for a moment, recognizing the Nine-Tails' voice. Then the corners of his mouth lifted slightly.

He walked over to a large boulder and sat with his back against it, lowering his voice. Though he knew he only needed to converse with the Nine-Tails in his mind, he still habitually spoke aloud.

"Kurama, I thought you weren't going to talk to me."

"Hmph."

At that, the Nine-Tails snorted heavily.

He rolled over on the grassland, spreading his nine tails across the ground in a more comfortable position. His chin rested on his crossed forepaws, and his fluffy ears twitched twice.

He certainly wasn't going to admit that he had been in a good mood after moving to a new environment, and had unconsciously slept until now.

He had spent the long years passing time this way!

But how could he possibly say something like that aloud?

He was the Nine-Tails, the strongest Tailed Beast—not some pet fox content enough to bask in the sun after a full meal and snore away.

Naruto caught the meaning hidden in the Nine-Tails' voice. He smiled but did not expose him.

He said nothing further, sat cross-legged, and closed his eyes, ready to join the training.

"Naruto Uzumaki..."

At that moment, the Nine-Tails spoke again. This time, his tone no longer carried surprise. It became low and solemn, even tinged with warning.

"Your method can indeed improve your training efficiency quickly, but have you considered what will happen when all those clones are released? More than thirty sets of memories of training the same technique will rush back into your mind all at once."

"These aren't more than thirty different memories. They're more than thirty highly similar yet not entirely identical memories, each carrying its own insights, trial and error, and thought processes. They'll overlap in the same memory region of your brain. You might suffer cognitive confusion—or even become an idiot."

"I have no interest in seeing my Jinchuriki turn into a drooling fool."

Naruto opened his eyes and looked at the moonlit water in the pool before him, shimmering with ripples. He gave a soft laugh.

He had calculated the number of thirty clones using Absolute Control.

With his current brain capacity and information-processing ability, he could just barely withstand the memories transmitted back by thirty clones at once without overloading.

Any more than that would risk brain damage.

But if the Nine-Tails offered to help, that limit could be raised considerably.

The Nine-Tails' Chakra possessed powerful restorative properties and could cushion the impact of information overload on the brain.

However, Naruto did not explain. He merely leaned back and shifted into a more comfortable position, smiling.

"Isn't that why I have you?"

"Hmph!"

The Nine-Tails fell silent for a moment before letting out a cold snort.

His chin rested on the backs of his paws. He pressed his ears back and closed his eyes, looking as though he could not be bothered to deal with Naruto.

He did not refute it.

And not refuting it was itself a form of tacit consent.

The silence lasted for a while. Just as Naruto closed his eyes again, the Nine-Tails suddenly spoke.

"Naruto Uzumaki."

The Nine-Tails' voice was low and soft, but its ending rose slightly, carrying the tone of an experienced hunter luring prey toward a trap.

"You train and train, but in the end, isn't it all just to become stronger?"

"Why work so hard? Why not just use my Chakra directly?"

Naruto did not answer.

He opened his eyes and watched the mist kicked up by the waterfall slowly drift apart beneath the moonlight. He remained silent for several seconds.

Then he spoke, his tone more serious than ever before.

"Kurama, I hope we can become partners. Friends."

"I hope you'll accept me from the bottom of your heart, and then willingly give me your Chakra!"

"Not because I can suppress you with some ability, and not because I want to use your power to accomplish some goal."

"You are an independent life, Kurama."

"You've lived far longer than I have and seen far more of humanity's darkness than I ever have. I completely understand why you can't trust humans."

"But I still want to say this: I want to become your true partner, not because of your strength, but because you are you."

The Nine-Tails' previously closed eyes snapped open.

His scarlet vertical pupils looked especially striking beneath the blue skies and white clouds of the Sealing Space, the pupils as narrow as slits.

One of his tails unconsciously flicked across the grass, sweeping up a small scatter of clippings.

"Partners?"

Mocking sarcasm filled the Nine-Tails' voice, but beneath it was a wavering even he himself had not noticed.

"You're willing to be friends with a Tailed Beast?"

In a daze, an image from a distant, distant past involuntarily surfaced in the Nine-Tails' mind.

The Sage of Six Paths, dressed in a loose white haori, sat among the nine Tailed Beasts with a kind yet imposing expression, telling them something.

He said that one day, someone would appear. That person would understand them, accept them, and treat them as partners rather than tools.

The Sage of Six Paths called their names one after another: Shukaku, Matatabi, Isobu, Son Goku... Kurama.

The Sage of Six Paths smiled and stroked his head. "Kurama, you're the most stubborn one. If you meet that person someday, don't scare them away."

The Nine-Tails shook his head fiercely, flinging the image from his mind.

He focused his gaze once more on the blond brat before him, his eyes sharper than before.

He had seen too much human greed and hypocrisy.

Without exception, those who wanted to use his power dangled sweet words as bait before eventually revealing chains and Sealing Techniques.

This brat talked about partners and friends, but who knew whether this was merely another pretty trap?

Naruto looked at the Nine-Tails' eyes, wavering between suspicion and uncertainty, but said nothing more.

He closed his eyes and let his consciousness sink into the Sealing Space.

Blue skies, white clouds, and an endless expanse of emerald grassland.

The Nine-Tails' enormous body lay in the center of the grassland. His nine tails slowly swept back and forth behind him, rustling the surrounding blades of grass.

His chin rested on his forepaws, and his scarlet vertical pupils stared through the bright sunlight at the tiny golden figure before him. His expression held wariness, along with a trace of anticipation that even the Nine-Tails himself had not noticed.