Naruto raised his sleeves to wipe the tears and snot from his face. He immediately straightened up, eyes sparkling again with determination. At this moment, he looked full of confidence.
"Yoshi!"
"One more time! I'm not losing to Sasuke in training!"
Without hesitation, he entered the sealed space inside his body again, sprinted toward the Nine-Tails' seal, and shouted at the massive fox behind the bars.
"Hey (#`O′)!"
"Kurama, let's try again! I think I can do it this time!"
Kurama, who had been lying lazily behind the sealed gate, lifted one eyelid in irritation and looked at the boy who had been "harassing" him every single day for half a year. The Nine-Tails looked as if he was about to laugh out of exasperation.
"What a drag."
"This has happened so many times already. It's about time you gave up. You can't even resist the negative emotions inside my chakra—let alone master my power."
Over the past six months, the relationship between Kurama and Naruto had become much closer, but that didn't mean the Nine-Tails would help Naruto whenever he asked to use his chakra.
First of all—Kurama regarded Naruto only as a younger brother at best. Helping him voluntarily was impossible.
Second—even if he wanted to help, he couldn't. The negative impact was an innate characteristic of the Nine-Tails' chakra. Naruto could only rely on his own spirit to withstand its corrosion.
After speaking, Kurama closed his eyes again, clearly done with the conversation. He had already endured today's attempt—he wasn't working overtime for free.
Suddenly, ripples spread across the water behind Naruto, and a figure stepped out of the distortion.
The moment Kurama sensed the chakra approaching, his pupils widened sharply. His claws slammed violently against the bars of the sealed gate, producing a thunderous boom.
"Hey! You—why do you have eyes like that!?"
"Who are you!?"
That familiar pupil pattern sent Kurama's thoughts flashing back over a thousand years. Those were the eyes of the Sage of Six Paths. And yet—this guy belonged to the Uchiha clan. Why did he possess Rinnegan instead of Mangekyō Sharingan?
"Huh?"
"Big Brother Hikaru!"
Naruto heard the commotion and turned around—astonished to see Uchiha Hikaru standing there. He hadn't expected his brother figure to appear inside his sealed space.
"Brother Hikaru, you're here to help me? That's amazing! Are you going to give me special training!?"
Uchiha Hikaru thought for a moment, then nodded. In a way, it could be called special training… although it felt more like giving Naruto a massive power boost.
"That's right. I'm here to train you personally, so don't let me down."
"Sasuke's strength has increased a lot recently. If this continues, you won't even be able to see his shadow."
Naruto's cheerful smile instantly vanished.
"If that's how it is, then there's no way I can lose to that bastard Sasuke."
"Brother Hikaru, how do we start? Let's begin right now!"
"I'll make sure that guy sees how strong I've become!"
Seeing Naruto burning with enthusiasm again, Hikaru floated forward until he was right in front of the seal. He raised his hand and grasped the edge of the sealing tag.
"What a waste of time. Before we begin training, let's meet someone first."
With a firm motion, he tore off the sealing paper, revealing the swirling formula beneath it. At its center, there was an extremely noticeable flaw—about one-tenth of the entire seal.
Inside the cage, Kurama's eyes blazed scarlet. His claws burst through the gap in the bars, and massive arms of chakra shot out through the opening, lunging toward Hikaru.
"You damned Uchiha brat! Where did you get those eyes!?"
"How dare you ignore me!"
Hikaru stood motionless, as if waiting for something.
Even Naruto, shocked, screamed instinctively:
"Brother Hikaru, move!"
"You can't just take Kurama's chakra head-on!"
In a flash of brilliant yellow light, a figure appeared beside Hikaru. A hand pressed quietly against the seal.
"Nine-Tails, be still. It isn't your time to appear yet."
Naruto stared in disbelief at the man he had dreamed of meeting countless times. He didn't know whether this was real or just another illusion. His whole body froze.
He didn't even dare pinch his cheek—terrified it would wake him up.
If it was a dream… then please, just let him stay here for a little while more…
The Eight Trigrams Seal reconstructed itself instantly under Minato's hand. He and Hikaru landed gently on the ground and walked toward Naruto.
Both fell silent. Neither knew what to say.
Minato, within Naruto's body for all these years, had seen everything his son had gone through.
And the man beside him—the one Naruto called "big brother," Uchiha Hikaru, Assistant to the Hokage of Konoha—was someone Minato felt deep gratitude toward. Hikaru had accomplished what he himself could not: purging Danzo's corruption, rebuilding Konoha's leadership, and protecting Naruto every step of the way.
If not for Hikaru, Naruto would have fallen into Danzo's hands, stripped of emotion, and transformed into a weapon of war.
Thinking this, Minato looked at Hikaru and raised his right hand.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Minato Namikaze—Naruto's father."
"Hello. Just call me Hikaru."
Minato smiled. "This is merely a trace of my chakra. I know everything Naruto has endured. Thank you for taking care of him."
Naruto stood crying, smiling brightly through his tears at the scene before him.
But while Naruto was overwhelmed, Hikaru glanced sideways at him, disappointed.
Naruto, no. In the original story, you punched your father the moment you met him. Where's your fire? Where's your justice fist?
Hikaru waited two more seconds. Naruto still didn't move.
Fine then.
(Naruto, since you can't bring yourself to hit your own father… I, your big brother, will do it for you!)
(After all, Minato technically takes advantage of my position. You call me big brother, and he's your biological father, so I won't be polite!)
Hikaru's eyes sparkled—
—and Minato suddenly felt an icy chill run down his spine.
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Send Power Stones
Bonus Chapter at 100 Power Stone
Second Bonus Chapter - 200 Power Stones
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