The winds howled across the highest cliff of the pendant realm, an ancient training platform suspended above the clouds. Mist rolled gently beneath it like a sea of silver, and above, the twin suns of the realm cast a golden glow across the sky. It was a sacred place, untouched by time, saturated with spiritual energy from the five elements—an ideal ground for transformation.
In addition, there, standing in the center of it all, was a lone figure.
A young man, perhaps fifteen by the measure of the outside world, but carrying the weight of something far older within him. His crimson hair, once wild and messy, now flowed behind him like a fiery banner. The childish softness on his face had faded entirely, replaced by sharp angles and a solemn gaze. His golden eyes glowed faintly—like twin suns—deep, resolute, and fierce.
He stood tall at 160 cm, his body lean but forged like iron. Wrapped around him was a tightly fitted combat robe dyed deep black, with a Yin-Yang crest glowing faintly in spiritual light etched into both his chest and back. His bare arms flexed with every breath, revealing muscles chiseled through relentless discipline. Each step he took carried the air of a predator ready to strike.
In his right hand, he held a sword—its golden hilt coiled in celestial dragon patterns, the dual-edged blade glowing faintly with heat. It was not just a weapon—it was a manifestation of his intent, his Dao.
A sharp exhale left his lips as he stepped forward, lifting the blade before him.
The air around him tightened.
He lowered his stance.
"Decimating Divine Sword – First Form: Burning Heaven Slash!"
With that cry, the sword blazed.
Flames burst along the blade—golden and wild, roaring like a dragon. He swung in a smooth, fluid arc. The fire condensed into a luminous crescent that exploded forth, slicing through a towering boulder ahead.
CRACK!
The stone did not shatter—it split, cleanly and perfectly, its edges glowing molten-orange as if kissed by the sun. Chunks slid apart with a whisper of stone against stone.
Naruto exhaled slowly and slid the sword back into its scabbard.
His fingers trembled slightly, his Qi churned violently within his meridians, but he stood proud. This was the fruit of a year's bitter training. A boy, once mocked and ignored, had forged himself into a cultivator worthy of stepping onto the path of the strong.
He turned his gaze toward the distant horizon of the pendant realm—mountains of fire, rivers of spirit energy, floating islands cloaked in mist. He had lived here for nearly twelve months, isolated from the outside world, watched only by the piercing eyes of his master, Yin Long.
It had begun with a gift.
---
One Year Earlier
The Divine Scroll had arrived wrapped in seals and spiritual silk, and when Naruto unfurled it for the first time, the air itself had trembled.
Each line etched into the parchment burned with living flame—golden characters pulsating as if alive. A wave of heat had surged from the text, not scalding his skin, but searing his soul.
"Only by mastering the nature of flame can one carve the heavens with a single strike."
The scroll continued in poetic verse, not only describing the techniques but *philosophizing* the nature of fire.
"Flame is not rage—it is persistence. It is not chaos—it is order in destruction. Control it, or be devoured by it."
From that day on, Naruto trained without pause.
The Burning Heaven Slash, the first form of the *Decimating Divine Sword*, became his obsession. It was a fusion of intent, flame, and sword—a strike born not of brute power, but of perfect unity between mind, body, and soul.
His early attempts were humiliating. The flame barely answered his call. The sword grew hot but never blazed. The wind resisted his slashes.
However, he did not stop.
Every morning, he awoke before sunrise. Every night, he trained until he collapsed, body trembling, his Qi spent, bones aching, sweat evaporating under the heat of his own attempts. He listened to the scroll's verses. He recited the chants. He practiced *Heat-Gathering Posture* thousands of times, adjusting his breathing, his stance, his focus.
His master watched silently, offering no praise and no pity. Only a single phrase was offered during that year:
"Sword intent must burn brighter than the sun if it is to cast shadows across the heavens."
Therefore, Naruto became flame.
In addition, today—finally—the fire obeyed him.
---
However, his journey was far from over.
After setting the scroll aside, Naruto sat down once again in a lotus posture on the warmed stone, drawing a deep breath. His eyes closed. His breathing slowed. The golden flames in his veins gave way to stillness.
Now came the second part of his training.
Hovering before him was a half-formed crystal—the **Void Spirit Core**—a wondrous artifact his master entrusted to him with great caution. It pulsed faintly with spatial light, the color of galaxies and starlight. Over the past year, Naruto had poured his Yang Qi into it, refining it bit by bit.
However, progress was agonizingly slow.
According to Yin Long, one could not enter the Dao of Space through brute force or cleverness. One had to *feel* it—its emptiness, its silence, its endless law of distance and distortion. Only when one could perceive the rhythm of space itself could one begin cultivating it.
Naruto had reached halfway.
He activated the **Heavenly Demon Combat Breathing Style**, refining the Void Spirit Core, his Qi spiraling around it like golden smoke. His mind drifted toward nothingness.
Then—it happened again.
A sharp, violent pull yanked his consciousness away from the pendant realm.
---
**The Inner World**
A red sky. Raging storms. Waves of malice.
He was inside his own soul.
In addition, there, behind massive chakra-forged bars and thick iron chains, sat a beast of legend—the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox.
Kurama.
Its massive form coiled like a hurricane of rage, eyes glowing with endless hatred, teeth bared. It radiated killing intent so thick that lesser cultivators might collapse under the pressure.
This had been happening for over six months.
Every time Naruto meditated to refine the Void Spirit Core, the fox would disrupt him—dragging his consciousness here with waves of bloodlust. It never spoke. It never answered. It simply *glared*, growled, and tried to provoke fear.
Naruto stood, arms crossed, staring at the massive creature through the bars of its cage.
"You again," he muttered.
Kurama's eyes narrowed.
"You've been doing this for half a year. Growling, snarling, calling me here, and then… nothing. It's annoying, you know."
The fox did not move.
Naruto sighed. "Fine. You want attention so badly. I'm giving you a name."
A tremor passed through the cage.
Naruto grinned, already knowing this would get a reaction.
"I'm calling you… Mikan."
The air stilled. The fox's brows twitched.
"You know—orange, sour, easy to irritate."
Suddenly—
"You dare?!"
The voice shattered the silence like a thunderclap.
The realm quaked. Chains rattled. The sky turned crimson.
"You dare call me that ridiculous name, human?!"
Naruto blinked. "Ah, so you *can* speak."
The fox roared.
"I am **Kurama**! The Nine-Tailed Fox! I am not your pet!"
Naruto shrugged. "You could've said that earlier. But no—you just sat there grunting like some overgrown hamster with anger issues."
Kurama's chakra surged, but Naruto stood his ground, calm.
"Listen," Naruto said after a moment. "You're in me. I did not ask for it, and I am sure you did not either. But this isn't helping either of us."
The beast snorted.
Naruto took a step closer.
"I'm not here to chain you. I am not here to use you like a tool. I am here to *cultivate*. To grow stronger. In addition, I want to understand the fire inside me—your fire. Because whether you like it or not, we're connected."
Kurama did not speak.
He simply stared, watching the boy who should have cowered but did not.
Something had changed.
---
Back in the pendant realm, Naruto's golden eyes opened slowly. His breath trembled, and sweat dotted his brow.
For the first time in over a year…
Kurama had spoken.
Not in rage. Not in defense.
However, in pride.
That name—Kurama—resounded in his soul now, binding them just a little closer.
Naruto grinned to himself, his eyes glowing brighter than ever.
"Step by step," he whispered. "Even the strongest beast can learn to talk."
He rose once more, drawing his sword, his stance relaxed but sharp.
The flame answered him instantly.
The Void Core pulsed gently in the air behind him.
For the first time, both flame and space resonated together.
His path was opening.
And the boy who was once broken and mocked—now walked the path of the sword and flame, watched by the fox of legends and the master of Daos.
---
**To Be Continued…**