Early in the morning, Naruto awoke from his slumber. He stretched languidly, feeling refreshed and invigorated. Everything that had happened in the sealed space yesterday was still vivid in his mind.
"Nine-Tailed Demon Fox…" he murmured softly, a knowing, strategic smile playing on his lips. His first communication with the Nine-Tails hadn't been pleasant. The malicious, irascible Nine-Tails was constantly trying to influence him, even interfering with his chakra control. Naruto wasn't sure if he could completely rid himself of the Nine-Tails' chakra interference; perhaps his future chakra training would be fraught with difficulty. But at least he had now figured out his origins and the reason for the villagers' animosity.
"Just a beast, though," Naruto mused as he got out of bed and neatly made it. He felt surprisingly good, mentally.
He began to call out to Aizen-sensei in his mind. "Aizen-sensei."
"What is it?" Aizen's gentle voice sounded in his mind, and Naruto instantly let out a sigh of relief.
"Aizen-sensei, so you're still here."
Hearing Naruto's words, Aizen frowned slightly. His keen perception noticed that Naruto seemed a bit different today. There was a hint of relief in his tone. Naruto's next sentence cleared up Aizen's unspoken question.
"Aizen-sensei, last night, I met the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox."
Naruto briefly recounted his encounter with the Nine-Tails to Aizen, who immediately fell into deep thought. From the villagers' accounts, the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox possessed the power to destroy Konoha. Yet, such a powerful entity was still sealed by Konoha within Naruto's body. It seemed Konoha was not as weak as he had initially thought. It was a pity he couldn't personally interact with the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox. The ninja world had suddenly become much more interesting.
"Continue your ninjutsu and Reiatsu control training today. In a few days, you can begin to learn Kido," Aizen said. Having received a fair amount of information, Aizen had no intention of further idle chat and promptly ended the topic, preparing to sort through his thoughts.
"Kido?! I can finally learn Kido!" Naruto's eyes shone with excitement. Kido and ninjutsu were similar in that they both used specific methods to condense spiritual pressure into various forms of attack, defense, or support. The difference was that ninjutsu required hand seals, while Kido required incantations. Six months prior, Naruto had been fortunate enough to witness Aizen use Kido in the sealed space. At that time, he had been captivated by the complex, abstruse, yet inexplicably impressive incantations. For the past year, he had been diligently practicing Reiatsu control, eagerly awaiting the day he could begin Kido training.
That moment had finally arrived.
Filled with excitement and anticipation, Naruto quickly made himself a hearty breakfast: a slice of toast and two sunnyside-up eggs, drizzled with a little soy sauce. This was a simple breakfast Naruto had learned from a cookbook. After trying it once, he found it tasted good and was nutritious, so he often prepared the same meal. It saved time and effort, and it was delicious. Having read many books about the Shinigami's World of the Living, Naruto understood the importance of daily nutrition, so even when funds were tight, he would find ways to procure decent ingredients. Setting fish traps, hunting – he was quite skilled at these.
After breakfast, Naruto cleared his mind of distractions and continued to practice the Three Basic Jutsu. He wanted to reconfirm his internal suspicions. He formed the hand seals, controlling the flow of chakra within his body.
"Clone Jutsu!"
The moment he executed the jutsu, Naruto keenly sensed the red Nine-Tails chakra begin to interfere with his own. Although this chakra was very subtle and the disturbance negligible, the operation of human chakra was inherently precise; even a slight disruption could lead to the failure of a ninjutsu.
Poof. Smoke billowed.
Naruto turned his head. Standing right next to him was a fat 'Uzumaki Naruto' with sausage lips.
Thump. Naruto, expressionless, punched his clone, dispelling it. His eyes were filled with a dangerous light.
"Nine-Tailed Demon Fox, well done. You've done very well," he muttered through gritted teeth.
"Hahahahaha!! You damn brat! So high and mighty, were you? Hahaha, as long as I'm here, don't even think about successfully using a single ninjutsu! Hahaha, I'll definitely make you kneel and beg for mercy in the end! I'll even extend my paw and give you the chance to kiss my toes!" The Nine-Tails was rolling with laughter in the sealed space.
Then it began to mutter to itself: "With my interference, you damn brat won't be able to become an outstanding ninja."
"I'm waiting for the day you kneel and beg. So what if your mind is meticulous? You're just a little brat." The Nine-Tails harrumphed and began to count silently. "I'll count to five. If you come in and apologize to me within five seconds, I can forgive you and still offer you the previous conditions for cooperation. Five… four… three… two… two… three…"
The Nine-Tails started counting in the sealed space, but after several minutes, it was still stuck at five seconds. Its face gradually contorted, baring its teeth. Finally, an enraged roar echoed within the sealed space.
"Damn brat! You think this is cool?! You'll regret this!! I'll use all my strength to interfere with you! Don't even think about becoming a ninja!!"
What's it like to have an outrageous tenant in your body?
Naruto arrived at the training grounds and, expressionlessly holding Kyoka Suigetsu, began to practice Zanjutsu. With the Nine-Tails' interference, chakra control was now ten million times harder than before. However, if Naruto could still perfectly master the Three Basic Jutsu under such difficult conditions, it would mean his chakra control had reached an astonishing level. Once the Nine-Tails' interference disappeared, the results of this accumulated training would erupt explosively, and learning other ninjutsu would also be accomplished with twice the result for half the effort.
It was precisely because he understood this that Naruto wouldn't give up on practicing ninjutsu. But every time a jutsu failed, the Nine-Tails' ugly, sneering face, baring its teeth as if mocking him, would involuntarily flash in his mind. Even though Naruto was very mature, he was still a child at heart.
It was really frustrating!
At this thought, the speed and force of Naruto's sword swings increased. He stared intently at a large boulder before him, a sharp glint in his eyes. The next moment, his body's aura surged. The Kyoka Suigetsu in his hand became a streak of cold light as he slashed out fiercely.
An invisible sword energy erupted from Kyoka Suigetsu, rushing towards the boulder.
Bang! Under the impact of the sword energy, the boulder cracked from the inside out, then exploded violently from within, scattering stone fragments everywhere in an instant.
Naruto elegantly sheathed his sword, a relieved smile on his face. "Success."
His Zanjutsu training had finally reached the initial goal Aizen-sensei had set. Next up, then, was Kido.