My curious adventures with the Nine-Tailed Fox

Altay carefully looked at the options that appeared alongside the system notification in front of him and fell into deep thought.

'Hmm… Being a ninja is definitely not for me or my beliefs; the sneaky assassin mentality is completely contrary to my understanding of the military… Taijutsu (close combat), on the other hand, is always an indispensable area on the battlefield. I already have rigorous military training; I know Boxing, Sayokan, Muay Thai, wrestling, judo, and karate. Moreover, I am quite good at close-quarters knife arts. I even took kendo (wooden sword) lessons when I was little—the weird perks of having a Japanese neighbor, I guess. A Maroon Beret is trained to kill the enemy in front of them in the fastest, cleanest, and most effective way possible; we turn our own bodies into deadly weapons when necessary… All I have to do here is flawlessly combine these military martial arts I possess with the chakra system Kurama provided. But I don't want to use just my body on the battlefield. My foundation and development in Taijutsu are already in good shape; I can easily progress on that path by myself. As for Ninjutsu, I can't do that right now. Memorizing and learning those complex hand seals is too much of a hassle; being able to weave signs quickly in the middle of a battle requires intense neurological training and muscle memory. Let's make ninjutsu the 3rd priority for now. Genjutsu? Nah, that illusion stuff isn't for me at all. Ah, I've got it! I've always wanted to be a true swordsman my whole life, so why shouldn't I use a sword in this world?'

When Altay made his decision and sent the message through the system, just a few seconds later, a small training ground and a few high-quality wooden training swords appeared in his personal area outside the cage. Right next to them was a small library shelf. Altay was quite pleased with what he saw, but he left the detailed inspection for later, because his stomach was rumbling terribly at that moment. He walked over to the set table and opened the cover over the food. Before starting to eat, he turned and looked at Kurama.

"Kurama! Let's eat, I'm starving to death!"

Kurama looked at Altay with his giant eyes. He truly didn't know what he should feel right now. For the first time in his thousand-year life, he was experiencing such strange, warm, and human things. Even the Sage of Six Paths (Hagoromo) had never spent ordinary time with him like this. This human was definitely very different. Granted, he had seen where Altay came from and that culture from his memories; the people there were a sincere and sharing community, especially when it came to dining culture. Still, it felt very weird to Kurama that an ordinary human would prepare such pleasantries for a 'terrifying' monster like himself.

"…Hmph! I don't need those weird human foods of yours! Those things are completely meaningless for a supreme being like me!"

Altay rolled his eyes; this giant tsundere fox was truly very fussy.

"Oh come on, don't drag it out, I don't like eating alone at all. Besides, they sent you the exact same food they sent to my table! Cağ kebab is one of the best and most delicious meat dishes of our culture! The others are great too, especially that minced meat kol börek is to die for!"

After washing his hands, Altay sat at the table with great excitement. He picked up his fork, pierced a crispy slice of the hot kol börek, and popped it into his mouth. He began to chew with indescribable satisfaction on his face. Then, he took a large sip of his cold ayran.

"Ah... Now this is life!"

Kurama looked briefly at Altay, who was enjoying his meal so much, and then inevitably turned back to his own giant floor table. When he gently lifted the cover over it, he saw giant portions genuinely prepared to suit his massive size. They were the exact same dishes as Altay's. The moment he caught the hot and rich smell of meat, Kurama's appetite involuntarily surged. Under normal circumstances, he didn't need to eat to survive; he consisted purely of chakra, but in the past, whenever he got angry, there had been times he ate humans or animals. This thought made him shudder for a moment, and he rubbed his giant stomach with his paw. Anyway, the last two damn humans he had eaten had caused him terrible pain from the inside... Yielding to his curiosity, he grabbed the giant slice of börek from the table and threw it into his mouth.

The moment that crispy dough and spicy minced meat touched his tongue, Kurama's crimson eyes widened in astonishment. He had never tasted such a flavor in his entire life! Without a second thought, he grabbed another slice, tossed it into his mouth, and then downed the ayran. Kurama felt as if he had discovered an entirely new world; those nine great tails behind him began to wag side to side in absolute bliss.

"This is delicious!"

In a corner of Naruto's sealed space, Altay was enjoying his meal in an extremely calm manner. He realized how long it had been since he had eaten cağ kebab. He gently pulled the meat off the skewer into the warm lavash, rolled the meat in the lavash, ate it with great pleasure, and sipped his ayran right after.

"Hmm~ They cooked the meat really well, I haven't eaten such a good cağ kebab in a long time! How did you find it, Kurama?"

When Altay asked this question and looked at his big furry friend, he was completely astounded. Kurama had practically declared a one-sided war on the food! He was swallowing the meat on the giant skewers at an absolutely terrifying speed and obliterating the other dishes on the table like a black hole. Kurama looked quite pleased and happy with his situation. Hearing Altay asking him something while staring at him in bewilderment, he didn't break his composure at all. He simply raised his right paw and gave a 'thumbs up' in the air. While continuing to chew with his cheeks puffed up like balloons from the food, he mumbled with his mouth full.

"Gwud! Nohw dhon't dihsthurb mhe hooman, I hahv a vwery imphortant mheetihng with thish mheat!"

He made a shooing motion at Altay with his paw and completely focused on the table in front of him. Altay, on the other hand, chuckled in astonishment at this sight before returning to his own table. The system was truly generous; in accordance with the custom and tradition of cağ kebab, as the skewers on the table were finished, the system instantly replaced them with new, steaming skewers full of meat...

Half an Hour Later

Altay had finally finished his meal and leaned back comfortably in his chair with a toothpick in his mouth. His stomach was completely full; now, at least the danger of starving to death was over. As for the matter of those 'Dimensional Guardians' who sent him here by mistake, Altay chose not to think deeply about it for now. Obsessing over this cosmic group that he had never heard of, seen, or known the structure of in his life was unnecessary at the moment. If he somehow encountered them in the future and found more information, he would make a plan accordingly. His only reality right now was that he was trapped inside Naruto's stomach! Thinking about this, he let out a soft sigh.

"At least I'm not alone in here..."

Altay turned his head and looked inside the cage. The great Nine-Tailed Fox, whom the entire ninja world trembled in fear at the mere mention of his name, the eternal nightmare of Konoha, known as a demon and a monster of destruction, was currently lying on the ground with his giant belly visibly swollen, happily rubbing his stomach. At one point, he even opened his massive mouth and burped loudly enough to make the seal space echo.

BUUURP!!

Altay grimaced and rolled his eyes.

"Kurama, that's really very rude! Haven't you seen table manners or the rules of etiquette in my memories at all?"

Not caring about this warning in the slightest, Kurama lazily waved his giant paw.

"Those nonsense rules you mentioned only apply to humans like you. I am a great Bijuu, a fox! Furthermore, speaking based on those memories of yours; I am the host of this body, and you are just a late-arriving guest. The house is mine, I am the king who makes the rules!"

Altay's right eyebrow twitched with annoyance.

"Hold up, you scoundrel, slow down! This is technically Naruto's stomach, so that brat is the actual host! Since you live here for free, you're the one who should actually be paying him rent!"

Upon hearing this, Kurama cast an extremely disdainful glance at Altay. Pointing at him with his paw, he spoke in a cocky tone.

"HAH! Don't make me laugh! In that future I saw in your memories, I pulled that brat from the jaws of certain death exactly 16 times! He's the one who actually owes his life to me! And on top of that, he shamelessly keeps leaching my chakra! After all this, I'm still supposed to pay him rent!? THIS HOUSE OFFICIALLY BELONGS TO ME WITH THE PRICES I'VE PAID!"

Kurama had said this loudly and with great pride, but Altay was dumbfounded by the number he heard.

"Wait a minute! 16 times!? Kurama, are you exaggerating just to be right? While reading the story, I thought he came back from death only 4 or 5 times."

Kurama smirked in an extremely arrogant manner. He was just about to open his mouth to speak when Altay cut in and interrupted him.

"Before you tell me, please clean those pieces of meat from between your teeth! Etiquette, I say, aren't you hearing me! There's still meat stuck in those giant teeth of yours!"

Kurama was taken aback by this warning. After quickly checking his sharp teeth with his giant tongue, he shrugged indifferently. He picked up one of the giant toothpicks from his own table and set about cleaning his teeth.

"Anyway, where was I... Ah yes! The magnificent moments where I saved that brat from absolute death. Let's see..."

Raising his paw in the air, Kurama began to count on his giant claws one by one.

"The bridge battle with Haku and Zabuza from the Mist Village is one. His encounter with that snake-faced bastard Orochimaru during the Chunin Exams is two. When that stupid Tanuki (Shukaku) and the Sand's Kazekage brat (Gaara) were fighting, it was my chakra that helped him save the pink-haired girl, that makes three. During the first Waterfall battle between Sasuke and Naruto, when the Sasuke brat hit him right in the heart with a Chidori, I healed him instantly, that's four. On the mission to rescue the Kazekage brat from the Akatsuki, when that blond explosive psychopath (Deidara) tried to blow Naruto's head off, I protected him, making it five."

Kurama paused his counting for a moment, took a large sip from the giant soda in his hand, and then burped loudly again. Stroking his swollen belly, he continued cheerfully. Altay, on the other hand, kept listening in silence without interrupting; as Kurama counted, he grew even more amazed at the miracles of Naruto's survival.

"Where was I? Ah! In that great battle with Pain, I saved him from the brink of death exactly twice, that's seven. I saved him in the battle with Obito, eight. When Madara pulled my handsome half out of Naruto, I left him a little bit of chakra so the brat wouldn't die immediately, nine. When Madara actually killed him, my other half, my handsome self, entered him and brought him back to life again, ten. I saved him in the dimensional battle with the Old Man's (Hagoromo's) crazy mother Kaguya, eleven. And in the final battle with that damn bastard Isshiki; by completely sacrificing myself, I saved him again, and for the last time, with Baryon Mode! That makes twelve!"

Kurama stopped his speech and pulled out another soda. After opening the cap and taking a sip, he nodded, exceedingly pleased with himself. Altay was still looking at Kurama with a bewildered expression.

"Well wait a minute! All of these add up to 12 in total, so where did the remaining four come from?"

Smirking at Altay's ignorance, Kurama continued proudly.

"Let me tell you those right away too, mortal! In the witch Shion's cursed prophecy, I protected Naruto from an absolute death (Naruto Shippuden the Movie). When the deadly energy wave of that man called Mukade was about to kill him, it was me who protected him again (The Lost Tower). When he was caught, imprisoned in the Blood Prison, and had all his chakra ruthlessly drained, I secretly and constantly gave him chakra so he wouldn't die (Blood Prison). Even when that idiot went to space and ran out of air, I was the one who protected him again (The Last)! I am the true, unsung savior of this world! I was always the big boss behind the scenes of all those battles! Hahahahaha!"

As Kurama's extremely happy, insolent, proud, and arrogant laughter echoed throughout the entire dark seal space, Altay was quite literally stunned.

"I didn't know this number was really this high..."

Bragging and puffing out his chest, Kurama continued to speak.

"It would be fine if it stopped just there! Moreover, that brat used my pure power for his own benefit over and over again! My massive chakra protected his countless friends from death. When the soldiers of the Ninja Alliance were fighting a monster like the Ten-Tails, they were only able to survive and fight thanks to the chakra cloaks I distributed to them! What more could you want; even that lazy Shikamaru Nara, who will be Naruto's future right-hand man, his best friend, and the 8th Hokage of Konoha, was able to survive in that war purely thanks to me!"