"Kazuki-nii… did I do the right thing back there?"
In a quiet grove within Konohagakure, Naruto looked up at the clear blue sky. His bright, clear eyes seemed to mirror its endless expanse as he asked, with a trace of nervousness: "I think I'm starting to get it now… Kazuki-nii!"
"I do have something others don't… I have Kazuki-nii guiding me, and I've got that damn fox training with me. I don't need anyone else's approval!"
Naruto slowly clenched his fists, letting out a long, steady breath.
"If they look down on me, then why should I hold them in any regard?"
"I only need to care about those who actually treat me well. Why should I bother chasing anyone's recognition while they're busy bullying me?"
At that moment, the Nine-Tails let out a mocking snort and added snidely, "Because you're the kind of brat who gets slapped on one cheek… and then offers the other."
"Little idiots like you always have some weird preferences. Can't say I don't get it."
Still immersed in the depths of self-reflection, Naruto snapped back to reality in an instant—his moment of epiphany shattered, replaced by rising fury.
"You damn fox! Why are you yelling at me all of a sudden?!"
Fuming, Naruto pointed accusingly at the Nine-Tails.
"Did I say anything that wasn't true?!"
The Nine-Tails glanced over at Kazuki. When it saw that Kazuki remained calm and unfazed by its harsh commentary—in fact, even gave it a warm, encouraging smile—it immediately relaxed.
Over the past few days of training—
Kazuki's guidance could only be described as without discrimination, without holding back, and with nothing left unsaid.
He showed no prejudice against the Nine-Tails, despite it being a demon fox or lacking a human form.
Just like with Naruto, Kazuki patiently answered every question the fox had about ninjutsu and training.
And for a creature that had yearned for such instruction for nearly a century, this experience was utterly exhilarating.
As Kazuki unraveled the intricacies behind each technique, the Nine-Tails quickly absorbed one method after another, intoxicated by the sheer thrill of learning.
So many of the details Kazuki shared about how jutsu were constructed left the Nine-Tails amazed—
There's so much more to it than I ever realized!
No wonder I could never figure anything out on my own…
And in the process—
The Nine-Tails came to recognize just how special Kazuki truly was.
This man possessed strength that far surpassed even the Ten-Tails… and perhaps even the Sage of Six Paths.
Yet he still had the patience to teach Naruto—even the most trivial and foundational techniques like chakra control—with care and kindness.
And that included the fox itself, the very creature that had once attacked him.
The Nine-Tails simply couldn't understand it.
Why would someone like Kazuki willingly lower himself to reside inside a brat like Naruto, offering guidance without asking for anything in return?
It was as if he were a traveler, coming across a curious little flower on the verge of withering—
And, moved only by interest, he stopped to water it.
To tend it.
To help it grow.
The kind that asks for nothing—only acts out of interest.
From both the perspective of malicious intent and the vast gap in power between them, the Nine-Tails couldn't see any hidden agenda behind Kazuki's actions. The difference in strength was simply too overwhelming.
In the Nine-Tails' view, if Kazuki had wanted its chakra, it would've been drained long ago—thoroughly and mercilessly. There'd be nothing left of it by now.
Which meant… Kazuki truly was just an immensely powerful sensei who had descended from the heavens, moved purely by interest?
And in truth, the fox's instincts weren't wrong—
Kazuki had no need for the chakra within Naruto or the Nine-Tails. The foreign chakra they carried, touched by the aura of another world, held no value for him. In fact, it was a liability—nothing but excess baggage for the moment he returned to his original time and space.
Chakra from a different space-time?—dogs wouldn't even sniff it.
As the bearer of the dōjutsu Brahma-Manifested Svadhisthana, Kazuki's only desire was to help Naruto and the Nine-Tails grow stronger—guiding them to defy their given fate and carve out a path of their own.
"I just couldn't stand seeing a kid who, just days ago, was pulling dumb pranks to get attention—acting like he's attained enlightenment the moment he learns Shadow Clone Technique…"
Seeing Kazuki's relaxed smile, the Nine-Tails flicked its tail, narrowed its eyes, and upped the verbal assault.
"Oh, give me a break."
"If you ask me, in a few days you'll be pining over that pink-haired girl again, racking your little brain on how to impress her—getting excited just because you learned a couple scraps of ninjutsu."
"Pathetic little conquest fetish…"
The Nine-Tails shook its head in mock dismay.
"Go on then, waste your time chasing pointless insight. Meanwhile, I've been learning real jutsu with Kazuki-dono. Not just Shadow Clones, either—we're working on a refined version of the Yang Release-style Wood Clone!"
"What?! You damn fox—how are you learning so fast?!"
Naruto had been calmly enduring the Nine-Tails' taunts. After all, he genuinely no longer cared about Sakura. So even if the fox mocked him, the words didn't sting anymore.
But the moment he heard the Nine-Tails was ahead of him in training?
A cold sweat broke across his back.
No way. I can't let this happen!
"Hahaha! You idiot. Of course I'm learning faster than you—that's only natural!"
With a quick hand seal, the Nine-Tails summoned several perfect fox-shaped clones. Their many swaying tails moved with smug precision—oozing mockery and pride.
Naruto stared, stunned, his breath caught in his throat.
Damn it…
Those clones really were more lifelike than his own Shadow Clones.
"Aaaaarghhhhh!"
Naruto clutched his head and dropped into a squat, wailing in frustration.
"I'm not gonna let this slide! I will master a clone technique even more powerful than yours—just wait and see, you damn fox!"
The Nine-Tails burst into laughter.
"Haha! That's what you get for mocking me the other day, brat! This is what happens when you dare to ridicule Kurama-dono!"
The atmosphere turned unusually lively, even drawing a faint smile from Kazuki.
Both Naruto and the Nine-Tails—these two late bloomers in the art of ninjutsu—had faced initial setbacks when they first began their training. But that had been part of Kazuki's plan from the start.
Two greenhorns with natural talent, each eager to prove their intelligence in front of their sensei...
All it took was a slight increase in difficulty. Then the two would be forced to turn to each other, slowly developing a solid bond as classmates.
Naruto and the Nine-Tails were, after all, born to be a pair.
And from Kazuki's perspective, their complementary nature created a synergy greater than the sum of its parts—an outcome that yielded considerable feedback from his dōjutsu.
Through careful guidance, Kazuki had led them to break free from the fates originally laid out for them, forging a peculiar sort of bond—A classic sibling rivalry that went something like: You can be strong… but never stronger than me! Just like Goku and Vegeta… if one of them had tails and fangs.
Now, this boy and this beast would spend entire nights discussing Kazuki's techniques, exchanging insights, helping each other.
And they'd grind their teeth in genuine frustration whenever one of them progressed too fast.
Whatever the case, they had started competing—and that was enough.
As long as they kept pushing each other, constantly growing stronger, it served Kazuki's purpose well.
"Listen, Naruto," Kazuki said with a gentle smile as he watched the two bicker and spar, "the weak are often limited by talent. They cling to the group because they have no other choice."
"But even the gifted can be bound by their own relationships—held back by the emotional ties they were born into."
He paused for a moment, voice calm and steady.
"So I want to ask you, Naruto… what will you do if, from this day on, Konoha begins to see you differently? If the people who used to look down on you suddenly admire and favor you? If your academy teachers begin to shower you with praise—how will you respond?"
"Follow your heart, Naruto. Don't factor me into it. I have no intention of interfering in your growth. I just want to quietly watch—"
"—as your friend."
As Kazuki spoke, Naruto and the Nine-Tails froze mid-movement, listening intently in perfect sync.
"I… I won't change how I think, Kazuki-nii."
Naruto lowered his head for a moment, thoughtful, then slowly raised his eyes—clear and resolute.
"I don't need them to treat me any differently. In fact… whatever happens with the rest of the village, it has nothing to do with me."
"They might change their attitudes… but it won't be out of kindness. It'll be because they fear the jutsu and techniques Kazuki-nii taught me."
Naruto's voice was calm, but his eyes burned with quiet resolve.
"I still don't understand why my parents were betrayed by Konoha… Kazuki-nii, all I want right now is to grow stronger—fast. I want to find out why my father, the Fourth Hokage, was kept a secret from me… why I was treated this way by the village ever since I was a kid."
The Nine-Tails let out a cold snort.
"Brat, do you even understand what human nature is? Sounds like you want to go digging around in that twisted, filthy mess…"
"That's exactly why I need to dig, Fox—because I don't understand."
Naruto didn't snap back. Instead, he took a deep breath and replied seriously: "I want freedom. Real freedom. Just like Kazuki-nii said—I'm an orphan. I was born with no family to hold me back."
"There's only one thing… As the son of my father and mother, I want to uncover the truth behind the betrayal they suffered after their deaths. Once that's done, I won't be tied down by my lineage anymore."
"I'll only care about Kazuki-nii—the one who actually taught me."
He glanced over at the Nine-Tails and stuck out his tongue.
"What are you staring at me for? You think I care about you, dumb fox?"
The Nine-Tails rolled its eyes dramatically, but the corners of its mouth curled up ever so slightly.
"What a childish brat…"
"Alright, enough talk. Time to train."
Kazuki clapped his hands together.
"Now that you've grasped the Shadow Clone Technique, we'll move on according to the step-by-step curriculum. Today's lesson is—Dust Release, without hand seals."
[Vmmm—]
A pale gray, bone-chilling aura formed in the palm of his hand. A complex, crystalline barrier of Dust Release began to shimmer into shape.
"Awesome! I wanna learn that one—it looks insanely strong!"
Naruto cheered without hesitation, entirely unaware that going from Shadow Clones to Dust Release was not exactly what you'd call a gentle, incremental progression...
The leap was a little… extreme.
Beside him, the Nine-Tails stared, wide-eyed.
It could sense it clearly—this so-called Dust Release was an advanced technique that surpassed even the level of kekkei genkai.
Could something like that really be taught?
But then it looked at Kazuki's serene, smiling face… and somehow, it felt a quiet sense of peace.
If it was him—
Then maybe, just maybe… nothing was impossible.
And honestly, wouldn't a Nine-Tails that could use Dust Release be… kind of badass?
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