Nine-Tails, Dare You Make a Three-Year Pact with Me?

"Stupid fox, where are you? Come out! Let's have a chat." Naruto stood within a maze filled with a violent aura, while the space in the distance seemed to twist slightly.

Seeing such a bizarre scene, Naruto naturally knew that this was not the real world. This was inside his body, the place where the Nine-Tails was sealed.

As soon as Naruto finished speaking, the maze's space began to distort. By the time Naruto came back to his senses, a towering iron gate had suddenly appeared before him.

A talisman bearing the character "Seal" was pasted onto the gate. Such a sturdy iron gate was actually held back by such a frail seal.

Naruto stared into the iron gate, his pupils widening continuously. Unable to control himself, fear abruptly rose in his heart and instantly crawled across his entire body.

A huge face emerged behind the gate. Its features could not be seen. Amid the darkness, only two ferocious eyes and a snarling, blood-filled maw were visible.

The sight before him was too terrifying, making Naruto's heart tremble. Before that gaping mouth, he felt incredibly small.

"Hey—you little rascal, you're putting on quite a scary act." Naruto forcibly suppressed the fear in his heart and instantly put on a playful grin. "This is our first face-to-face meeting. Aren't you going to show your true face?"

"Brat, what did you say? If you've got the guts, come closer."

Naruto took a deep breath and bravely stepped a few paces toward the iron gate. The Nine-Tails suddenly attacked, its massive claw reaching through the gaps in the gate and nearly touching Naruto.

"Interesting. You're actually not afraid."

"If you kill me, you'll die too." Naruto said confidently, "Though if I die, I'll truly be dead, while you'll be reborn somewhere else, the process of rebirth won't be pleasant for you either."

"Brat, you sure know a lot."

"Of course." Naruto said in a negotiating tone, "Want to make a bet with me?"

"A bet? What could I possibly bet on with you humans?"

"Let's bet on whether I can gather all nine tailed beasts." Naruto raised three fingers. "Within the next three years, I'll absorb Shukaku, the One-Tail, into my body and let the One-Tail meet you."

"..." The Nine-Tails remained silent for a long time.

"Not just Shukaku, the One-Tail. Matatabi, the Two-Tails; Isobu, the Three-Tails; Son Goku, the Four-Tails; Kokuo, the Five-Tails; Saiken, the Six-Tails; Chomei, the Seven-Tails; and Gyuki, the Eight-Tails—I'll absorb them all into my body."

Once Naruto finished speaking, the atmosphere became taut with tension. Naruto wore a confident expression, while the Nine-Tails was stunned.

The Nine-Tails sensed that the brat before it was dangerous. If he really gathered all nine tailed beasts inside a single body, it would be a disaster for the world.

"Hahahahaha—" The Nine-Tails laughed at Naruto madly, as if mocking his overestimation of himself. It used its laughter to conceal the panic in its heart.

"Hmph." Naruto thought, I named all eight tailed beasts except you, Nine-Tails, because I hope that one day, you'll tell me your name yourself.

The Nine-Tails recalled a detestable name: Uchiha Madara. He had been an evil human, and the brat before it might be even more evil than Uchiha Madara.

"But I won't force them. I'll make the other tailed beasts willingly enter my body." Naruto's words instantly shocked the Nine-Tails.

At that moment, a figure appeared in the Nine-Tails' mind—the Sage of Six Paths.

A very, very long time ago, when the Nine-Tails was still young, the other eight tailed beasts had been its brothers and sisters. The nine young tailed beasts had followed the Sage of Six Paths.

Back then, the Sage of Six Paths had once said, "One day, someone will appear who can guide the tailed beasts down the right path!"

The Nine-Tails' thoughts returned from the past to the present. It looked at Naruto with an odd gaze, at the short brat standing before it.

"Nine-Tails." Naruto extended his palm. "Do you dare make a pact with me?"

"As long as you share your chakra with me, I'll reunite you with your brothers and sisters. When all nine tailed beasts gather, no ninja will ever dare bully you again."

The Nine-Tails knew that the brat before it was no ordinary person. Simple threats were already useless against Naruto.

"Well? Can you or can't you?" Naruto was somewhat flustered inside. Why isn't the Nine-Tails saying anything? This is strange. I wonder if I can fool it... If I can't fool it, I'm done for...

"Why should I believe you?" The Nine-Tails finally spoke. "Do you think a brat like you can really do it?"

"Yes." Naruto said domineeringly, "From now on, if anyone dares bully you, I, Naruto Uzumaki, will be the first to refuse."

"Then break the seal."

"I can't." Naruto said awkwardly, "Only when all nine tailed beasts gather can this seal be lifted."

"Roar—" The Nine-Tails let out an enraged roar, and Naruto was jolted awake from his dream.

Naruto sat up in bed, drenched in cold sweat. He muttered under his breath, "Damn fox, its resentment is really deep. This is going to be difficult."

The next morning, Jiraiya took the freshly awakened Naruto out and headed toward a secluded area of Konoha Village.

"Pervy Sage, what are you going to teach me?"

"It's Toad Sage, you ungrateful disciple." Jiraiya said irritably, "Today, I'm teaching you the Summoning Technique."

Jiraiya rapidly formed hand seals and pressed his palm to the ground. After a burst of white smoke, a large orange toad appeared beneath Jiraiya's feet. Jiraiya stood atop the toad's head, and his lofty posture gave him an air of transcendent pride.

"The Summoning Technique really is pretty cool." Naruto thought, Even if it doesn't seem that powerful, summoning a bunch of underlings to fight for me would still look impressive.

The large orange toad that had been summoned was called Gamachu. A scroll was clenched in its long tongue. As Gamachu extended its tongue, the scroll was delivered before Naruto, and Naruto reached out to take it.

"Open the scroll. It's the contract our lineage has passed down through generations with the toads." Jiraiya explained how to use the scroll. "Write your name on the contract in blood, then press down your five-fingered handprint."

Naruto unfolded the toad contract scroll and saw that quite a few names had already been written on it. The two most recent names were Jiraiya and Minato Namikaze.

Naruto stared at Minato Namikaze's name for a long time. At last, he forced himself to remain calm, bit his finger, and wrote the four characters "Naruto Uzumaki" on the contract with his bloody finger before pressing down his five-finger bloodprint.

"Very good." Jiraiya continued, "Gather as much chakra as you can. The hand seals are Boar, Dog, Rooster, Monkey, Ram. Finally, press the hand that signed the contract onto the ground."

Naruto formed the hand seals and shouted, "Ninja Art! Summoning Technique!" At the same time, he thought, Damn fox, whether I eat rice or drink porridge depends entirely on you.

Within the seal inside Naruto's body, the Nine-Tails pondered bitterly. It recalled Naruto's words over and over again, until it finally made a decision.

"Aah—" Naruto shouted and pressed his palm toward the ground. The Summoning Technique activated, and enormous white smoke shot hundreds of feet into the sky. Such a terrifying disturbance from a ninja technique caught the attention of every Jonin in Konoha Village.

"Aah—" Jiraiya was so shocked that his jaw nearly dropped to the ground, his eyes wide and round.

Naruto kept his eyes tightly shut. He did not dare look. When he noticed that the wind by his ears was unusually strong, he slowly opened his eyes.

When Naruto opened his eyes, he discovered that he seemed to be standing high in the sky, looking down over the entirety of Konoha Village.

"Gamabunta, Gamaken, Gamahiro... they all came..." Jiraiya said tremblingly. "Even Gamayū and Gamami were summoned... That kid Naruto is incredible..."