They left Ichiraku together, stepping out into the evening air.
Naruto walked ahead, practically glowing with contentment. Behind him, Iruka's expression was considerably more complicated.
Ten bowls. The kid had eaten ten bowls of ramen before declaring himself full.
Iruka's wallet had surrendered after bowl number six. He'd ended up putting the rest on credit, promising Teuchi he'd pay the difference next week.
Worth it, he decided, watching Naruto's pleased smile.
The meal had given him insight into his newest student. Naruto was surprisingly articulate when discussing things he cared about. And what he cared about, more than anything, was friendship.
"I want the whole village to be my friends," Naruto had said between slurps of noodles. "And then I'll make friends outside the village too. Everywhere I go!"
Such a simple dream. So impossibly ambitious.
Iruka had warned him it wouldn't be easy. That kind of goal required dedication, persistence, the willingness to never give up no matter how hard things got.
Naruto had nodded with complete seriousness, as if sealing a blood oath rather than agreeing to work toward a friendship goal.
They parted ways at an intersection. Iruka heading home to his apartment. Naruto turning toward the forest.
Training, probably. That would explain the physique.
Iruka watched the boy disappear between the trees, then headed home himself, already planning tomorrow's lesson.
THUNK. THUNK. THUNK.
The wooden rod struck Naruto's arm in steady rhythm. His breathing followed a specific pattern the system had taught him. Four counts in. Hold two. Six counts out. Synchronized with each impact.
The breathing technique let him feel what was happening inside. Muscle fibers compressing. Blood flow adjusting. Cellular activity increasing. He could sense it all, control it through focused concentration.
Six months ago, he'd finished conditioning his skin. Now the muscles were nearly complete. Just a few more days of this, and he'd move to the final stage.
[Once muscular conditioning is complete, only the final foundation stage remains,] the system had explained earlier.
[Strengthening the internal organs. That will produce a dramatic transformation in your overall capabilities.]
THUNK. THUNK.
His skin gleamed with sweat despite the abuse. Not rough or scarred like you'd expect. Smooth, almost luminous in the fading daylight.
[This is the benefit of proper technique,] the system had told him when he'd asked about it.
[Lesser training methods leave practitioners with damaged skin, sluggish thinking, chronic pain in their later years. But Ultimate Taijutsu refines the body. Makes it stronger AND more aesthetically perfect. The more you train, the better you'll look.]
Naruto didn't particularly care about looks. He cared about results. About being strong enough to earn friendships.
THUNK. THUNK.
He finished the evening's conditioning and reached for his medicine jar.
Then a voice echoed through his mind.
"Naruto."
He froze. That wasn't the system.
"Who—"
Reality twisted. His consciousness spiraled, pulled downward into darkness. When his vision cleared, he was standing somewhere completely different.
An enormous hallway stretched before him. Pipes ran along the walls and ceiling. Water dripped somewhere in the distance. And directly ahead sat a massive gate, taller than any building he'd ever seen, with a paper seal stuck to its center.
Behind the bars, something moved.
Red-orange fur the color of sunset. Eyes that glowed in the darkness, slitted pupils fixed on him with predatory focus. Nine massive tails swaying like serpents.
Naruto's breath caught.
"Are you... calling me?"
The creature shifted, and even that small movement seemed to shake the ground. "Yes, Naruto. I called you." Its voice was deep, ancient. It tried to make the tone friendly, but hunger lurked beneath the words.
Naruto took an involuntary step back.
The Nine-Tails had been sealed recently. The walls felt stronger than before, the range of its awareness shrinking. Something was causing the seal to tighten. And it had a very strong suspicion about what.
This brat. This human child was doing something that reinforced the prison.
"Where is this?" Naruto's voice came out smaller than he intended.
"Inside your body." The fox leaned closer to the bars. "This is where you keep me locked away."
Naruto's mind raced. Inside his body. A creature living inside him. The pieces clicked together with horrible clarity.
His legs felt weak. "You're the Nine-Tails. The demon fox. The one that killed Lord Fourth."
"I am the Nine-Tails, yes." The fox rose to its full height, all nine tails spreading like a fan behind it. Its massive head lowered until one enormous eye filled Naruto's vision. "But I didn't kill the Fourth Hokage. He died because of me. There's a difference. Before his death, he sealed me inside your body."
The words washed over Naruto like ice water.
Inside my body. The Nine-Tails. Inside me.
Everything made sense now. The hatred. The rejection. The whispered insults. "Demon brat." "Fox boy." "Monster."
They weren't calling him those things because he'd done something wrong.
They were calling him those things because of what lived inside him.
His hands shook. His vision blurred.
System?
[Yes, Naruto?]
There's a fox living in my body. Why didn't you tell me?
[Why would I? It's just a fox. Did you see what happened? Your body's getting stronger, so the seal is tightening. Once you complete foundation building, that creature will be locked away so securely it won't escape for ten thousand years. It's not worth discussing.]
The system's tone was utterly dismissive, like discussing a minor inconvenience rather than a world-destroying demon.
The Nine-Tails watched Naruto's face. The boy had gone silent, head lowered. Probably terrified of sharing space with the most powerful tailed beast.
Good. Fear made humans cooperative.
"Listen, boy—"
Naruto's head snapped up. His eyes blazed with intensity that made even the ancient fox pause.
"I. Don't. Call. Boy." Each word came out sharp and clear, punctuated with fierce emphasis. "My name is Uzumaki Naruto."