Eat Me, Nine-Tails (1/2)

A sharp pain twisted through Naruto's stomach and legs, making him cry out in pain.

Someone kicked Naruto first. Disgusted by the way Naruto had hurt their children, they naturally began punching and kicking him.

Seeing this, Kakashi hurried over with the Body Flicker Technique. He grabbed the shoulder of the person hitting Naruto the hardest and casually threw him backward, slamming him heavily onto the ground.

When they saw the Anbu suddenly appear, they stopped assaulting Naruto. Yes, assaulting him—their actions had long gone beyond venting their anger for their children. They had punched and kicked Naruto, who was incapable of fighting back.

Cold killing intent radiated from Kakashi. His sinister eyes regarded them without a trace of emotion, and his entire body was like a drawn blade.

Kakashi picked up the unconscious Naruto, and the killing intent around him grew even denser. Unable to withstand the killing intent Kakashi released, they fainted.

Drip...

Drip...

The sound of dripping water rang beside Naruto's ears. Naruto slowly opened his eyes. This was a dim place—his inner world.

A place he had seen countless times in the anime. Naruto sat up and watched ripples spread across the mirror-like water beneath him. He rose and walked forward. At the end, he saw a massive gate with a paper seal affixed to its center.

A pair of sharp, blood-red eyes glared furiously at Naruto.

"You are... the Nine-Tails..."

As he approached the gate, Naruto clearly saw the Nine-Tails' enormous body imprisoned within the cage.

A massive claw reached through the gate and swatted at Naruto. Naruto did not move from where he stood, merely watching the claw descend without the slightest fear in his eyes. Instead, there was a hint of relief on his face.

Maybe if I die like this, I can return to my original body. Even if I can't, I don't want to keep suffering... Living is really exhausting...

The claw stopped just before striking Naruto. The Nine-Tails looked at Naruto, who seemed to be seeking death, then withdrew its claw. With a dismissive snort, it lay down and could not be bothered to pay Naruto any attention.

Chapter 3: Eat Me, Nine-Tails (1/2)

"Why didn't you kill me?"

Naruto moved closer to the gate and touched its icy bars.

"If you want to die, go kill yourself. I don't want to kill a brat who's bent on dying!" The Nine-Tails opened one eye to a narrow slit and glanced at Naruto.

"Heh..." Naruto laughed bitterly and slapped the gate hard.

"Do you think the people of Konohagakure would let someone as important as a Jinchuriki die?" Naruto squeezed through the gap in the gate, came before the Nine-Tails, and spread his arms. His azure eyes were filled with anticipation.

"Nine-Tails, eat me! Then you'll be free too! And I can finally be free of this."

"Brat..."

The Nine-Tails widened its eyes at the child before it, who was not even as large as one of its claws. It had to admit that Naruto's words tempted it greatly.

This child gave it a feeling unlike anyone else. Those azure eyes looked at it without any fear or dread.

"Then I won't hold back!"

The Nine-Tails opened its mouth and bit down, swallowing the tiny Naruto in one gulp. Expecting Naruto to struggle, it felt nothing of the sort—only a deathly calm.

"Pah!"

The Nine-Tails spat Naruto back out, his entire body covered in its saliva. Naruto sat up, looked at the ripples on the water, then raised his head and glared accusingly at the Nine-Tails.

"Why didn't you eat me?!"

"Brat, you're so small I'm afraid you'd get stuck in my teeth! Get lost already! Stop disturbing my sleep!" Looking at Naruto covered in its saliva, the Nine-Tails inexplicably felt a little guilty. One ear twitched as it turned away from the puffed-up Naruto, lay down, and closed its eyes.

"Ugh... Ah! You bastard!"

Driven away by the Nine-Tails, Naruto could not take it anymore. His temper flared, and he rushed forward without a second thought, kicking the Nine-Tails in the leg. Then he grabbed its fur and climbed onto its body, ran all the way to its head, and tugged at its ears, rubbing and kneading them.

"Stupid Nine-Tails! If you won't eat me, I'm not leaving!"

"Hurry up and eat me!"

"You're so annoying, brat!"

The Nine-Tails roared angrily. It had never seen anyone so eager to be eaten. The Nine-Tails shook its head, trying to throw Naruto off, but Naruto clung tightly to its ear, laughing happily.

"Hahaha! This feels like riding a pirate ship! Nine-Tails, shake harder!"

Sitting atop the Nine-Tails' head, Naruto laughed happily. His beautiful azure eyes curved into crescents. This was the first time since coming to the world of Naruto that he had laughed so happily.

In the end, the furious Nine-Tails kicked Naruto out of his inner world.

Kakashi, who was flipping through Make-Out Paradise, saw the smile on the unconscious Naruto's face. A trace of heartache flashed through his eyes.

Did he dream of something wonderful...?

After being kicked out of his inner world by the Nine-Tails, Naruto woke from his unconsciousness and found himself back at home. His injuries had been treated, though waves of pain still coursed through his body.

Dragging his aching body to the window, Naruto drew the curtains, boiled a kettle of water, and prepared a cup of instant ramen. Sitting at the table, he watched steam rise through the gap in the lid that had not been pressed down properly. Naruto touched his stomach and recalled what had happened in his inner world, a happy smile curling his lips.

He snapped apart the disposable chopsticks and devoured the ramen in large mouthfuls.

"Eating ramen all the time will leave you malnourished." Kakashi's voice suddenly sounded, and several cartons of milk appeared on the table.

"Tch, I don't need you to worry about me!" Naruto said stubbornly. He continued eating his ramen, opened a carton of milk, and gulped it down.

"Kakashi, you really care about that Nine-Tails brat," the other Anbu said, confused by Kakashi's actions.

"Before this, did you just stand by and watch Naruto get bullied?" Kakashi lowered his head slightly, his eyes sweeping across their masked faces.

"We were protecting his safety. As long as his life was not in danger, there was no need to intervene. Besides, this could test how dangerous he was as a Jinchuriki. If he went berserk after being treated like that, Lord Hokage would find it difficult to let him remain in the village."

"Is that so..."

Kakashi sensed blunt malice in their words.

Were they venting their helplessness before the Nine-Tails on a child...? Kakashi narrowed his eyes, said nothing more, and left using the Body Flicker Technique.

The next day, Naruto once again came to the place in his inner world where the Nine-Tails was.

The third day...

The fourth day...

Every day, Naruto went to find the Nine-Tails. No matter how terrible the Nine-Tails' attitude was, Naruto would cling to it, talking and chatting with it until the impatient Nine-Tails drove him away.

As it spent more time with Naruto, the Nine-Tails could sense Naruto's loneliness and isolation. No matter how much it refused to admit it, its attitude toward Naruto gradually softened and was no longer as harsh as before.