Uchiha orphan, so what if I'm ruthless?

Uzumaki Naruto was startled. He rolled over and stood up from the ground, staring at the old man in front of him with wide eyes and shrinking pupils.

"Old man, who are you?"

His voice was loud, carrying a tone of vigilance.

Despite Uzumaki Naruto's usual careless and seemingly dense demeanor, he possessed an innate ability—or rather, a perception.

That was the ability to sense a person's good or evil intentions.

Although not as direct as the Mind's Eye of the Kagura, it could certainly be called a sixth sense.

He had this feeling since childhood. He could always sense who treated him well, who treated him poorly, who was sincere, and who was faking it.

So, upon hearing this old man's words, his subconscious immediately told him that the person standing before him was far from ordinary.

Naruto clenched his hands into fists at his sides, leaning forward slightly, ready to strike at any moment.

The newcomer was none other than Otsutsuki Hagoromo.

He floated in mid-air with his legs crossed in front of Naruto, his white robes fluttering gently in the wind.

He looked at the boy before him, his expression unchanging.

"I am Hagoromo Otsutsuki."

Uzumaki Naruto froze for a moment, his mouth slightly open, his eyes widening even further.

"What?"

His voice was filled with bewilderment.

An old man suddenly appeared in front of him, claimed to be Hagoromo Otsutsuki right off the bat, and then said the ninja world needed him.

Sure, he could be a bit goofy at times, but he wasn't actually stupid. How could he be fooled so easily?

He didn't remember knowing any Hagoromo Otsutsuki.

He had attended history classes at the Ninja Academy and knew that Hagoromo Otsutsuki was a legendary figure, the founder of Ninshu, and the ancestor of chakra.

But those were all myths, things from a long, long time ago.

A mythological figure suddenly appearing in front of him?

Who would believe that? Was he trying to coax a fool?

Naruto clenched his fists even tighter.

Otsutsuki Hagoromo looked at him and spoke again.

"Child, you are called a demon fox because the Nine-Tails was sealed inside you."

His voice was very calm.

"That is to say, a Tailed Beast."

He paused.

"You are actually the son of a hero."

Naruto furrowed his brows.

He didn't know what this old man was talking about.

Demon fox, Nine-Tails, son of a hero—some of these words he had heard before, while others he had never even considered.

The people in the village all called him a demon fox, saying he was the incarnation of the demon fox and that he had killed many people.

But he didn't know what 'son of a hero' meant.

Just as he was about to ask, Otsutsuki Hagoromo raised his hand and waved it at Naruto.

Naruto instantly felt his vision blur, as if something had exploded before his eyes. Lights flashed, shadows swayed, and the world spun.

He instinctively closed his eyes. When he opened them again, he found that he was no longer by the river.

This was a dim space, vast and empty.

The ground was wet and soft to step on, like treading on the surface of water or sinking into mud.

The area overhead was pitch black. Nothing could be seen—no sky, no stars, no light whatsoever.

Only a faint glimmer shone from an unknown source, casting a murky gloom over the entire space.

Naruto stood there, looking left and right.

In front of him was a massive iron gate.

The gate was enormous, stretching from the ground all the way up into the darkness above, its top nowhere in sight.

The iron bars were incredibly thick, each one as wide as his arm, covered in densely packed sealing tags that clung to the metal like insects.

Behind the bars, something was moving.

As Naruto's eyes adjusted to the dim light, he saw what lay behind the gate.

It was a colossal beast.

With orange-red fur and a massive, ferocious head, it was currently looking down at him.

Its eyes were huge with vertical pupils, and its orange-red irises burned like two balls of fire in the darkness.

Its mouth was slightly open, revealing razor-sharp teeth, each one as large as Naruto's hand.

'Demon fox?'

Naruto immediately associated it with that term. His body stiffened, and he stood frozen in place, unable to move.

Immediately after, Naruto saw a remarkably human-like expression of shock appear on the Nine-Tails's beastly face. Then, it spoke.

Its voice was booming, echoing through the space like thunder.

"Old man, it's actually you!"

Uzumaki Naruto turned his head and saw the old man right beside him.

The old man hovered cross-legged in mid-air, his feet off the ground, leaning forward slightly with his white robes hanging down, resembling a Buddha statue.

His expression was serene as he looked at the giant beast, his gaze holding something indescribable.

Naruto turned back to look at the giant beast before him and subconsciously asked a question.

"He really is Hagoromo Otsutsuki?"

His voice was somewhat hoarse.

The giant beast was naturally the Nine-Tails. It looked at Naruto, then at the old man, and let out a low chuckle.

The laughter was loud, rolling through the space like muffled thunder.

"Of course. According to your human legends, this old man is Hagoromo Otsutsuki, the one who created Ninshu."

Naruto's mouth fell open.

He looked at the old man, then back at the Nine-Tails.

"So, you're the Nine-Tails demon fox he mentioned?"

His voice carried an uncontrollable anger.

The Nine-Tails narrowed its eyes.

"Hmph."

Its voice was filled with disdain.

"I am the Nine-Tails, but I am no demon fox!"

Naruto's voice grew louder.

"Damn it, are you the reason I've been bullied all these years?"

His fists cracked as he clenched them.

The Nine-Tails parted its jaws, revealing its sharp teeth.

"You bastard brat, you have your father to blame for all of this."

Its voice also held anger.

"If he hadn't sealed me inside your body back then, I wouldn't be in this state right now."

Naruto was stunned.

"My father?"

His voice was filled with confusion.

Seeing that Uzumaki Naruto and the Nine-Tails were about to start arguing, Otsutsuki Hagoromo let out a soft sigh.

"Enough, Kurama, Naruto. There is no need to argue anymore. I am here this time because of a matter of great importance."

Sure enough, as soon as he spoke, the Nine-Tails immediately quieted down.

It closed its mouth, narrowed its eyes, and backed away slightly, saying no more.

Without someone to argue with, Uzumaki Naruto also fell silent.

He looked at the old man, waiting for him to continue.

Otsutsuki Hagoromo looked at Naruto and spoke, "The ninja world has reached a moment of crisis."

His voice was very calm.

"There is a force secretly plotting to overthrow the entire ninja world."

His gaze was heavy.

"Naruto, you are a Child of Destiny. It is time for you to shoulder your responsibility."

Uzumaki Naruto's eyes widened.

"There are enemies?"

His voice carried a hint of excitement.

Otsutsuki Hagoromo nodded.

"Yes."

Uzumaki Naruto clapped his hands together.

"Alright, then let's send them flying!"

His tone made it sound like the most natural thing in the world, and then he scratched his head.

"So, what should I do?"

He had completely thrown his previous doubts to the back of his mind.

He wasn't playing dumb at all; he was genuinely just that simple-minded. There was no need to pretend.

Even Otsutsuki Hagoromo hadn't expected Naruto to be convinced so easily.

He looked at Naruto's earnest face, fell silent for a moment, and then said, "First, you must find your comrade, Uchiha Sasuke."

Uzumaki Naruto's eyes lit up.

"I knew it! Is Sasuke a Child of Destiny too?"

His voice carried an irrepressible joy.

Otsutsuki Hagoromo nodded.

"Yes, you are both Children of Destiny, bearing the safety of the entire ninja world."

Uzumaki Naruto put his hands on his hips and laughed heartily, tilting his head back.

"Hahaha, so I'm actually this important?"

The Nine-Tails looked at him, its mouth twitching.

It wanted to say something, but after glancing at the old man beside it, it swallowed its words.

Otsutsuki Hagoromo looked at Naruto, the corners of his mouth twitching slightly.

He raised his hand and waved it at Naruto.

Before his laughter even stopped, Naruto felt his vision blur once again.

Lights flashed, shadows swayed, and the world spun.

He instinctively closed his eyes. When he opened them again, he found that everything had returned to normal.

There was no Nine-Tails, and there was no Hagoromo Otsutsuki.

He was lying on the grass, looking up at the sky.

The sky was blue, very blue and clear.

The clouds were white, very white and thin.

The wind blowing across his face was cool and comfortable.

Naruto subconsciously rubbed his eyes, thinking he had just been dreaming.

But right then, he noticed a slight itch in his palm.

He raised his hand and looked down. Right in the center of his palm, there was now a white circle.

It was a mark, not very large, only about the size of a fingernail. It looked like an unfinished drawing.

It was a bit strange.

Naruto stared at the white circle and frowned.

At the same time, he heard a voice in his ear.

It was very faint and ethereal, as if drifting over from a faraway place.

"Go forth, child."

It was the old man's voice.

Naruto immediately realized that everything he had just seen was not a dream.

He sat up abruptly and looked around.

The riverbank, the grass, the woods, the sky—there was nothing out of the ordinary.

The old man was gone, the Nine-Tails was gone, and that dim space was gone too.

He was all alone.

Just then, the sound of footsteps came from a distance.

Naruto turned his head and looked in the direction of the sound. Two people walked out of the woods.

Walking in front was Hatake Kakashi, and walking behind was Haruno Sakura. The two of them walked toward Naruto.

Hatake Kakashi stopped in front of Naruto. He looked at Naruto and narrowed his eyes.

"Naruto, you are already a mature ninja. You can't keep acting out like this."

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