Naruto reached for the Nine-Tails' head.
The fox jerked away instinctively, then froze. Its eye twitched. That mysterious person behind him. Can't antagonize the brat.
It lowered its head with obvious reluctance.
Naruto's hand settled between the fox's ears, scratching gently. The fur was impossibly soft. "Alright, Nine-Tails. Lunch is your responsibility today."
"Obviously." The fox's tails swished with irritation. "I already agreed. Don't you trust me?"
"Just making sure." Naruto grinned and walked a short distance away to have some privacy.
System?
[Yes, Naruto?]
I've completed foundation building. Can I learn the real techniques now?
His pulse quickened. This was it. The moment he'd been working toward for two years. Real power. The kind that would earn him respect. Friends.
[Yes. I'll teach you now.]
Information slammed into Naruto's mind.
He gasped, staggering. His vision blurred. Concepts and techniques flooded his consciousness—too much, too fast. His skull felt like it might crack from the pressure. Breathing became difficult.
He collapsed to his knees, hands pressed against his temples.
Too much. Can't process it all.
Two hours crawled past.
Finally, the pressure eased. Naruto's eyes opened slowly, face pale and drenched with sweat. His entire body trembled with exhaustion. Mental fatigue was so much worse than physical pain.
After catching his breath, he turned his awareness inward.
There, floating in his mindscape, was a book. It opened as he focused on it, revealing page after page of detailed instructions.
Iron Body Technique.
Naruto read through the introduction, eyes widening with each line.
The technique trained both internal energy and external body simultaneously. A practitioner at the initial stage could receive knife strikes and leave only white marks on their skin. Spear thrusts would create shallow dents instead of penetrating.
At mastery level... the body became truly indestructible. Lightning couldn't harm it. Fire couldn't burn it. Water couldn't drown it. The ultimate defense.
I could just stand there and let people attack me until they collapsed from exhaustion. They wouldn't leave a scratch.
Heat flushed his cheeks. This was incredible. Beyond incredible.
The technique also included two supplementary skills:
Weapon Body - a method for turning every part of the body into a lethal weapon. Not just fists and feet, but elbows, knees, shoulders, even hair could be used to kill. Complete mastery of the indestructible body's offensive potential.
Mountain Embrace - a technique for channeling all the body's strength into the arms. Crush trees. Split boulders. Hug a person hard enough to... Naruto winced. He'd rather not think about that application.
This is how real fighters work. Direct. Powerful. Overwhelming.
His stomach growled loudly enough to echo through the clearing.
Naruto's hand flew to his abdomen. "What? I just ate this morning!"
[Your body has transformed, Naruto. Every breath now consumes significantly more energy than before. You'll need to eat much more—probably ten times what you used to.]
"Ten times?!" Naruto's voice cracked. "Do you know how expensive meat is? Pork prices have skyrocketed. I can barely afford my current diet, and that's only because I hunt my own food!"
[I'm aware. Which is why I have a solution.]
"Really?" Hope sparked in Naruto's chest. "Tell me!"
[Farming. The back mountain is unused land, perfect for raising livestock. Approach whoever manages village resources and request permission to contract the area. Raise your own cattle and sheep. Become self-sufficient.]
Naruto blinked. That... actually made sense. But he didn't know the first thing about raising animals.
[I have resources for that too.]
Books materialized in the air and dropped into Naruto's arms. He caught them, nearly stumbling under the weight. Flipping through the titles, he read:
Advanced Animal HusbandryLivestock Management for Beginners
Pasture Maintenance and Crop Rotation
Common Diseases in Cattle and SheepEfficient Feeding Strategies
A whole stack dedicated to farming and animal care.
Naruto clutched them to his chest. These books were his future. His survival. He couldn't lose them.
Stomach growling again, he gathered the books and headed toward where he'd left the Nine-Tails.
Smoke rose from a fire ahead. The smell of cooking meat drifted on the breeze.
"Nine-Tails! Is lunch ready?" Naruto called out.
"Stop rushing me!" The fox's irritated voice came back. "It's almost done!"
Naruto emerged from the trees to find the miniature Nine-Tails hunched over a fire, carefully rotating something on a spit. Four whole chickens, slowly turning golden brown.
He set his books aside and sat down. His hand reached out almost automatically.
Pat, pat.
The fox's ears twitched under his palm. So soft. So fluffy. The hunger pangs seemed less intense just from petting the creature.
"Quit that. I'm working." The Nine-Tails grumbled, but didn't pull away.
"Your fur is really beautiful, you know." Naruto meant it sincerely.
The fox's head immediately tilted upward at a proud angle. "Of course it is! Do you have any idea how much care and attention proper fur requires? my coat is the finest among all the tailed beasts. The Two-Tails wishes it had fur this lustrous. The Eight-Tails' tentacles could never—"
The boasting continued. Naruto let it wash over him while examining the cooking chickens.
"Why chickens? I prefer rabbit."
The Nine-Tails paused mid-brag. "Rabbit? There are no rabbits on this mountain."
"What?" Naruto scratched his head. If there were no rabbits, what had he been eating for the past two years?
Well, whatever. He was too hungry to care.
The chicken looked done enough. Naruto grabbed one, ignoring the heat, and bit down.
His face immediately twisted in disgust.
"Nine-Tails... do you know how to cook?"
"Of course I knows how to cook!" The fox's voice lacked conviction. "What kind of question is that?"
"Then why didn't you use any seasoning? This tastes like charred cardboard."
"Seasoning? I cooked it instead of giving it to you raw! You should be grateful!" The Nine-Tails huffed and tried to snatch the chicken away.
Naruto turned his shoulder, protecting his meal. "No way. I'm too hungry."
He forced down three chickens despite the bland, slightly burnt taste. Finally, the gnawing hunger subsided to a manageable level.
Standing and brushing himself off, Naruto communicated silently with the system. A book appeared in his hand.
He dropped it in front of the Nine-Tails. "Here. A cookbook. Study it."
The fox stared at the book, then at Naruto. How had he made that appear? No chakra fluctuation. No hand signs. No summoning technique.
What is backing this human child?
But the Nine-Tails was too annoyed to ask. Naruto had complained about perfectly good food! The audacity!
It turned its back on the boy with an indignant sniff, deliberately ignoring both him and the cookbook.