Time, in Naruto's highly efficient rhythm of 'wool-gathering,' quietly passed for a month.
Inside the Sealing Space.
The once turbulent Chakra liquid now seemed to possess a resigned calm, as if its edges had been smoothed out by something.
In the center of the space, the enormous Nine-Tailed Demon Fox no longer slammed against the Sealing Gate with rolling roars. It lay on its side within the iron gate in a posture of almost utter despair, its nine tails drooping limply, its massive head resting on one of its forelegs.
Its vertical pupils, usually burning with fury, were now half-closed, its gaze hollow, filled with a deep-seated weariness and numbness.
It was even too lazy to look at the brat outside the iron cage, the one it hated to its core.
And outside those cold Sealing iron bars, what it saw made the Nine-Tailed feel its very perception of Fox Spirit life suffer a devastating impact!
Outside the iron bars, Naruto's figure was no longer alone! He had used Shadow Clone several more times, densely splitting into dozens of them!
Dozens of Naruto sat neatly cross-legged on the Chakra liquid surface outside the iron bars! Their postures were uniform, expressions solemn, as they cultivated Chakra attributes!
The entire space was terrifyingly quiet. There was only the occasional sound of dripping water, a sound that, to the Nine-Tailed, was a continuous mental torment!
The Nine-Tailed's enormous eyelids lifted weakly, its gaze sweeping over the group of meditating brats, finally landing on the figure sitting most upright at the front of the group—that was Naruto's main consciousness.
It opened its mouth, its voice no longer a deafening roar, but rather a deep, weary, and numb complaint, as if life had smoothed out all its rough edges:
"You brat!"
The Nine-Tailed said dryly and hoarsely, "Don't you have anything else to do? You come running to me every day for no reason!" It paused, then added, "And you bring so many clones, are you here for a tea party?"
It felt like a giant beast surrounded by countless mosquitoes, unable to move. It couldn't hit them, roaring was useless, and crashing against the seal would only make the mosquitoes suck more enthusiastically! What else could it do but watch its power be drained away bit by bit?
Naruto's main consciousness slowly opened his eyes, a harmless, even somewhat innocent smile on his face:
"Oh, Big Fox, you're awake?
" He pointed to the dozens of clones behind him who were cultivating water-style Chakra using the water in the Sealing Space, "Isn't it because your place has abundant resources and a serene environment, making it especially suitable for quiet cultivation! Look how serious and quiet everyone is, they haven't disturbed your rest at all, have they?"
Naruto and the Third Hokage had agreed that he would only use one Shadow Clone normally, but this did not include the Sealing Space! The Prince being able to use multiple Shadow Clones to fight the Big Fox in the Sealing Space indicated that this space could use Chakra!
Now, Naruto directly treated the Sealing Space as a training space, which was not only secret but also allowed him to bicker with the Fox Spirit! While bickering, he could also make the Nine-Tailed release more Chakra, offering many benefits, so Naruto naturally had to come often!
It was just that after only a month, the Fox Spirit seemed to have been broken!
"…"
The Nine-Tailed's mouth twitched violently.
Quiet cultivation? Serene? Abundant resources?
It looked at the dozens of 'pumps' silently drawing its Chakra, feeling a surge of anger rush to its head, but it was firmly suppressed by that deep-seated sense of powerlessness, ultimately transforming into a long sigh filled with frustration.
Resigned, it buried its massive head back into its forelegs, revealing only half an eye, and with a hollow gaze of "fine, just destroy me already," it numbly appreciated the scene of these dozens of professional wool-gatherers in quiet cultivation.
Naruto looked at the Nine-Tailed's numb, 'lie flat and let them shear' demeanor, his heart practically bursting with joy. He knew the Nine-Tailed was frustrated, but what did that have to do with him? If he didn't shear the wool, it would be wasted!
"Big Fox, don't be so depressed!" Naruto comforted with a grin, "How about this, let's make a deal: you give me Chakra, and I'll give you limited freedom, what do you say?"
"…"
The Sealing Space fell into a deathly silence.
The Nine-Tailed's vertical pupils, originally filled with numbness, suddenly constricted, then widened sharply! It stared intently at Naruto's small main consciousness!
A myriad of thoughts rushed through its mind!
An indescribable absurdity, disbelief, and a hint of… a stirring that it itself had never noticed, frozen for a thousand years, instantly shattered its numb mental defenses!
"Wh-what?!"
The Nine-Tailed's voice trembled violently, its massive head shot up, making the chains clatter, and it roared in disbelief:
"You brat! You… do you know what you're saying?! Fre-freedom?!"
This word, for the Nine-Tailed, was too unfamiliar, too heavy, and too ironic! How long had it been imprisoned? From the moment Uchiha Madara controlled it, it had never truly possessed freedom! Coveted, fought over, sealed, and exploited by humans!
Freedom? That was a forgotten luxury, existing only in distant fragments of memory!
And now, a three-year-old brat, a brat who treated it as a 'power bank' and relentlessly sheared its wool, was casually saying he would give it… freedom? And limited at that?
Absurd! Too absurd! This must be a new trick! A new insult!
"Heh… heh heh heh…"
The Nine-Tailed let out a series of low, distorted laughs, full of self-mockery and extreme distrust, "Limited freedom? Brat, put away your ridiculous tricks! Do you think this great one would believe a human, especially a… Jinchuriki's nonsense?!"
Its voice suddenly rose, filled with a thousand years of resentment and indignation:
"Freedom?! Do you know what the conflict between Tailed Beasts and humans is?! Do you know how many wars you humans have waged, how much blood you've shed, to covet and control our Tailed Beast power?!"
The Nine-Tailed's roar was filled with pain and destructive memories, and the crimson Chakra liquid churned again due to its agitation.
But this time, it was more like an outpouring, an accusation that had been repressed for far too long!
It stared intently at Naruto, its lava-like pupils seemingly trying to burn through him:
"Uzumaki Naruto! This great one is the embodiment of destruction! The product of your human desires and hatred! The blood of those I've killed flows within you! And now you tell me… you want to give me freedom?! Hahahahaha! Ridiculous! Hypocritical! Lies and betrayal are what you humans are best at!"