Chapter 134: The Nine-Tailed Fox, Minato Namikaze was stunned
"Third Hokage..." Minato's voice was very low. The face that always wore a gentle smile was filled with regret. "I treated him as my most respected elder. I entrusted my only son to him! The result of Kushina and I exchanging our lives... is this?"
Akira looked at Minato. "Hiruzen Sarutobi, he was never a kind grandfather; he was just a politician greedy for power." Every word was like a dagger to the heart. Minato's body swayed, and the light in his eyes dimmed. Right. How could he have been so naive? He wasn't ignorant of the dirtiness of politics. He just chose to believe in the bright side of human nature, to believe in the village for which he sacrificed. In the end, reality delivered the loudest slap to his face.
"What about Jiraiya Sensei? Isn't he Naruto's godfather? Where did he go?"
Akira said indifferently, "After your death, he made finding the Child of Prophecy the entire meaning of his life, wandering the world. When he occasionally returned to the village, it was only to gather material at the base of the women's bathhouse wall." Minato's fists clenched, cracking.
"What about Kakashi?"
"Kakashi Hatake," Akira continued, "He's immersed in the shadows of the past, saying some irrelevant things to the Memorial Stone every day, completely disheartened."
Minato fell completely silent. Jiraiya Sensei... Kakashi... The 2 people he trusted most, one chose to escape, the other chose to sink into despair. Minato bowed deeply to Akira again. "Fifth Hokage. There's no point in dwelling on the past. I only ask 1 thing of you. Please... make sure to take good care of Naruto. He is my... and Kushina's, everything."
Akira looked at him, not answering immediately. Seeing this, Minato turned around and looked at the iron grate with half of its seal torn open. "I will use my last remaining Chakra to reinforce the Eight Trigrams Seal. This way, at least the Nine-Tails won't cause trouble again." As he spoke, his hands began to form hand signs.
"No need." Akira's voice interrupted his movements. Minato froze.
"What?"
"I said, there's no need to reinforce the seal." Akira walked to the iron grate and, through the bars, met the gaze of those enormous beast eyes. "Constantly reinforcing it will only make it more hateful and less cooperative. If you treat it as a weapon, as a natural disaster, it will always be a weapon and a natural disaster. If you treat it as a prisoner, it will always think about escaping."
Kurama, behind the iron grate, heard this and a strange glint flashed in its enormous pupils. This Uchiha kid is different from the others. "Hmph!" Kurama let out an arrogant snort. "Don't think I'll be grateful just because you say a few nice words!"
"I don't need your gratitude," Akira said calmly. "I'll give you a suggestion. Kurama."
When this name came out of Akira's mouth, Kurama's massive body trembled violently. Its pupils contracted sharply. Kurama... How many years had it been since anyone called that name, besides the Sage of Six Paths? "You..."
"I'll give you a promise of true freedom," Akira ignored Kurama's shock and continued. "From today on, stop interfering with Naruto's Chakra refinement. When he needs it, lend him your power. In return, 1 day, I will let you truly walk out of this cage."
Kurama stared intently at Akira's pale purple Rinnegan. Freedom? This word was too distant, too luxurious for it. It had been treated as a tool, sealed, and fought over... It no longer remembered what freedom felt like. "Why should I believe you?" Kurama's voice was much lower.
"Because of these eyes," Akira's Rinnegan quietly gazed at it. "You should be able to tell that I bear you no ill will."
Kurama fell silent. Yes. It could feel it. The man in front of it had no greedy desire to possess it. Nor did he have the fearful hatred that wished to completely erase it. His eyes were calm. "I hope," Akira slowly began. "You can become friends with Naruto. Become partners who fight side by side."
Friends? Partners? An extremely human-like, confused expression appeared on Kurama's huge fox face. Beside them, Minato and Naruto were completely dumbfounded. Let Kurama... and Naruto... be friends? This Fifth Hokage's way of thinking was simply beyond everyone's imagination. In the end, Kurama neither agreed nor refused. It just took a deep look at Akira, then slowly lay down and closed its enormous eyes. It was, in a way, tacit approval.
Akira knew that was enough. He turned his head and looked at Minato. "Your time is running out." Minato's Chakra phantom had become very faint. He knew he had to go. He took 1 last look at Naruto, his eyes full of reluctance.
"Naruto..."
"Dad..." Naruto's eyes were filled with tears.
"Remember, eat well, don't be picky... shower every day... and, make some true friends..." Minato rambled on, like any worried father. "And... Dad... loves you."
After saying the last sentence, his figure transformed into specks of golden light and completely dissipated. "Dad—!" Naruto cried out heartbreakingly. Akira did not comfort him. Some farewells must be faced alone.
In the real world, on the training ground, Naruto suddenly opened his eyes, tears still streaking his face. He stood blankly, as if he hadn't yet recovered from the recent experience.
"How do you feel?" Akira's voice pulled him back to reality. "Sensei..."
"I have already helped you resolve the biggest obstacle," Akira said indifferently. "Now, continue. Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu."
Naruto took a deep breath and wiped away his tears. He remembered his father's final entrustment. He couldn't cry anymore. He had to become stronger! Naruto formed hand signs. This time, he clearly felt that the incredibly vast Chakra within him no longer had any obstruction, flowing smoothly. "Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
In an instant, the entire training ground was packed with 50 or 60 identical Narutos. Each Naruto looked at each other curiously, chattering away. Naruto's original body stared at this scene, dumbfounded.
"I... I succeeded?"
"Mm," Akira nodded, seemingly unsurprised by the result. "From today on, this Jutsu will be your most core training method."
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