"Naruto was probably summoned away by the toads. Don't worry, I'll go take a look."
Jiraiya examined the Summoning Formula Naruto had left behind, then understood.
He had noticed that Naruto's Summoning Formula hadn't fully unfolded. He turned to the worried Hinata beside him and reassured her.
"Summoned away by the toads?"
Hinata didn't quite understand.
"The pact you just signed was with the toad summoning beasts of Mount Myōboku. That means you aren't the only ones who can summon them—the toads can summon you, too..."
As Jiraiya spoke, he was already forming hand seals.
"Lord Jiraiya, could you take me with you?"
"Hmm? Oh, sure, sure. You two lovebirds really are close."
Jiraiya smiled and slapped the ground, and then he and Hinata vanished from the spot.
Meanwhile, at Mount Myōboku.
"Um... Great Toad Sage? The one you're looking for is... Kurama?"
Naruto froze.
"Oh, you too, you too."
Gamamaru, the Great Toad Sage, nodded cheerfully, then looked nostalgic. "It's been so long. How many years has it been...?"
[Kurama, do you know him?]
"..." The Nine-Tails fell unusually silent. After a while, he finally spoke. "Naruto, let me out so I can talk to him."
[Let you out? How do I do that?]
"Release just a little of my power..."
A faint Golden Light emerged from Naruto's body. Then it actually separated from him, gathering on his shoulder into a tiny golden Little Nine-Tails.
"Huh? You can even do that?"
Naruto stared at the little fox lying on his shoulder in shock.
And... why was he kind of cute?
"It's just a manifestation of chakra. I developed this technique ahead of time for situations like this. The principle is simple, though. It's no different from a shadow clone." The miniature Nine-Tails flicked his nine tails, which were as