My curious adventures with the Nine-Tailed Fox

After looking at the giant fox behind the bars for a while, Altay let out a heavy sigh.

"Look buddy, I know you don't like them. So don't rush, take a day or two to think and analyze the pros and cons. If you don't want to, there's nothing we can do; we'll think of another way. Kakashi could train the kid too, but Minato and Kushina are the best option, both emotionally and for training, and it could also be a step towards you making peace with Naruto."

Kurama instantly grasped the diplomatic and logical intent beneath Altay's words. Feeling thoroughly annoyed, he rubbed his eyes with his giant paw.

"Frankly, the benefits of bringing those two outweigh the drawbacks... but remember, they might interfere with your training. You made such a show of training the kid, even swore a blood oath."

Faced with this warning, Altay shrugged nonchalantly; he had already long accepted this aspect of the matter.

"Frankly, I'm aware. If it weren't for you, I'd never even attempt this. It would be tantamount to suicide; after all, who would want a stranger around Konoha's most powerful weapon and their child?"

At this honest confession, Kurama let out a weary sigh.

"To be honest, many people in the fanfics I saw in your mind captured one point very well."

This time, it was Altay who grew curious, tilting his head slightly to the side.

"What point?"

Kurama murmured in a grumpy manner, making it clear that he was not pleased with the sentence he was about to utter at all.

"Both of them are truly kind and understanding people as long as no hostility is shown... or as long as you are not a tailed beast... anyway, they won't kill you without listening to you, and once they hear your problem, they might even help. As long as you aren't an enemy of Konoha, of course..."

In response to this condition, Altay curled his lip with a careless expression.

"I don't have much of a problem with the village or the idiotic parasites in it; at most, I'll beat up anyone who touches Naruto under my protection, and Kushina would join me with great pleasure... but..."

In the middle of this sentence, Altay's usually calm eyes suddenly turned to ice. A sharp and spine-chilling killing intent radiated from him, making the air in the seal space grow heavy.

"Anyone who conducts human experiments on the innocent, especially on children, will die. Whether it's Danzo, the Hokage, or Orochimaru, it doesn't matter. There are some things in life that cannot be forgiven. Not everyone deserves a second chance; if anyone stands in my way to stop me, they will face my wrath."

Curious about the source of this pure anger, Kurama asked.

"Did you make this decision out of human emotion, or according to that Sharia you believe in?"

Altay straightened his posture and looked directly into Kurama's blood-red eyes. His voice was as sharp and unshakable as a mountain.

"My faith is clear, my place is clear, my homeland and my people are clear, Kurama. You have seen it all. I take orders from no one but my state. In this world, I recognize neither the Kages, nor the Sage of the Six Paths, nor anyone else. I will deal out whatever punishment my opponent deserves."

In response to these bold words, Kurama opened his mouth and laughed in a mocking, muffled tone.

"Normally, the so-called main characters in your situation would see even Orochimaru and cooperate with him."

Altay, feeling no need to hide his disgust, replied in a condescending tone.

"Those who have abandoned justice, morality, and humanity purely to gain power and dominance are worth less than trash in my eyes, no matter how strong they are. Orochimaru is a smart but sadistic serial killer, and he has murdered and conducted live experiments regardless of whether his victims were babies or children. His punishment is absolute execution. There is no pardon, no repentance, no second chance for him. His crimes are too many. Danzo is the same, and if the Uchiha massacre had taken place, I would execute Itachi without blinking an eye, no matter how heroic he might seem."

Since Kurama evaluated events according to Konoha's twisted ninja rules, he tilted his head and asked curiously.

"But according to the rules of your people, Itachi was fulfilling the village's orders, so his crime should be mitigated."

Altay shook his head, as if to prove the incompatibility of the justice systems of their two different worlds.

"No. Based on the official statements and Kishimoto's own words, Hiruzen—the true leader of the village—was against the massacre. The massacre happened because Danzo schemed behind his back, gave the order, and threatened Itachi. So Itachi is not a subordinate following orders here, but a rebel and a mutineer. He acted by ignoring the order of the true authority, the Hokage, and as if that wasn't enough, he colluded with Danzo and Obito—the very people who forced his clan into that situation and cornered them into attempting a coup. There isn't a single mitigating factor."

After finishing his words, not wanting to exhaust himself further, he closed the subject.

"Anyway, that's not our topic."

Weighing the idea of Minato and Kushina in his mind, Kurama nodded slowly.

"Give me some time to mentally prepare myself, and my chakra also needs to be refined and calmed a bit. I will let you know when I'm ready."

With the relief of overcoming the biggest hurdle, Altay took a deep breath and smiled warmly.

"Thanks, Kurama."

Kurama, as if his pride wouldn't let him accept this thanks, responded with a dismissive snort.

"Hmph!"

Then, he scooped up another mound of ice cream with his giant spoon, stuffed it into his mouth, and buried himself back in his manga. Grinning at this sight, Altay returned to his own business. To shape his body, he continued to lift the 400-kilogram dumbbell with his muscles trembling, aided by chakra, while simultaneously watching what was happening outside through his mind.

Hiruzen had completed his visit and left, while little Naruto had returned to his cleaning chores. When he finished his work, he called out to Altay in his inner world.

'Brother, what are we going to do now?'

Altay paused for a moment while struggling with the weight in his hand. He didn't want to tell Naruto about the possibility of his parents returning just yet; giving the child false hope in case things went wrong was the last thing he wanted.

"We will focus on training today, but first, I need to teach you how to cook. You can't just eat ramen all the time."

Naruto's face, which had just been freed from cleaning, instantly took on a dark, weary tone at these words.

'More chores?! Can't I just eat ramen?'

Altay shook his head without making any concessions.

"No! You must eat healthily, Naruto! If you want to have a body like mine, you have to eat plenty of meat and protein! Today, you are going grocery shopping!"

Three-year-old Naruto just stood there for a moment, not knowing what to say. He seriously questioned why he was constantly made to work like a soldier while kids his own age played in the streets, but he had no choice but to submit.

"Okay~"

Reluctantly, he took his wallet lying on the table and stepped out of the house. However, the cruelty of the outside world was slightly harsher than Altay had anticipated.

Two hours later...

"GET OUT OF HERE, YOU DEMON!" "GAH!"

Naruto's small body was thrown out the shop door and onto the dusty street by a hard kick to his stomach. This was the tenth shop in the last two hours where he had been beaten and kicked out simply because he wanted to buy groceries. The shop owner stepped out to the door, yelled at the boy with hate-filled eyes, and slammed the door hard in his face.

"GET LOST!"

In the middle of the street, there wasn't an ounce of pity in the eyes of the other villagers surrounding Naruto as he writhed on the ground in pain. Most of them watched this helplessness with disdain and a sick pleasure.

"Hey, did you see that? Very satisfying, isn't it?"

"Yeah, yeah~ he deserved it."

"Wish he'd hit him harder and killed him."

"Hahahaha! I think he's going to cry~"

"This is so fun~"

Groaning from the pain of the kick to his stomach, Naruto tried to get up from the ground. His stomach hurt fiercely. Yet, he was so used to this hatred that he held back his tears. When he stood up, albeit limping, Kurama's warm chakra in his mind kicked in, healing the damage in his stomach within seconds. The physical pain was gone, but the heartbreak and feeling of isolation were still there. He quickly wiped away a couple of teardrops gathering in his eyes with his sleeve and, refusing to give up, attempted to head toward another shop.

But that voice echoing in his mind stopped him.

"Naruto! Stop, go back, and rest for a bit."

Naruto jumped in place when he heard this command. Thinking Altay was disappointed because he couldn't accomplish the shopping task assigned to him, he replied in panic.

"Brother, I can do it! Wait a little longer!"

However, Altay's voice was far from its usual harsh and commanding tone; instead, it had a highly soothing, calm resonance.

"Do as I say, kid. We'll think of something else. Rest a bit."

When Naruto realized his big brother wasn't mad, he felt a great sense of relief. Fleeing from the villagers' disgusting glares and venomous mockery, he ran towards a secluded corner, far from society, where no one else was.

Contrary to the innocence outside, however, a calm before the storm reigned in the seal space. Kurama had long since set his manga aside, watching Altay, whose back was turned to him, with cautious eyes. Normally, Altay always possessed an inner balance, but right now, things were very different. The savagery, intense bloodlust, and materialized killing intent radiating from Altay's body were poisoning the air in the seal space. The dumbbell in his hand had been crushed and broken simply because he clenched his fingers in anger with his chakra-supported strength. Altay's eyes were as wild and dark as a gray wolf staring at the hunters who had torn its cub apart.

His voice came out as an ice-cold whisper, miles away from the affectionate tone he had used while speaking to Naruto.

"...Kurama, do you want to destroy this village?"

He slowly turned and looked directly into Kurama's eyes. There wasn't an ounce of mercy in his gaze.

"You are right. This damn village needs to be destroyed."

Kurama flinched at this unexpected proposal. Having gotten used to Altay's logical nature over the past three months, this outburst surprised him, but he quickly weighed the situation and let out a deep sigh.

"...I can't believe I am about to say this sentence... Altay, calm down, think logically, and be honest. Let's say we broke out of the seal—which we can't—and destroyed the Konoha scum. Would Naruto forgive you or me? In your current state, would you be able to protect the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki without the village? Would Kushina and Minato help you? You shouldn't make decisions out of anger, buddy."

Faced with these facts presented by Kurama, Altay glared back at him. He knew very well that the fox was right, but the anger boiling inside him was gnawing at his logic.

Kurama sighed once again. The truth was, what drove Altay off the deep end wasn't just the bullying of ordinary villagers. It was the fact that Utatane Koharu, one of the Konoha Council advisors who had watched the events unfold on the street from afar, had simply cast condescending glances at the child and continued on her way instead of saving him. Because Altay knew this woman and had personally witnessed this rot in the village administration, his patience had finally reached its breaking point.

Gritting his teeth, Altay took a deep breath, as if trying to suppress his anger.

"You are right... but wait until I get out of here. Then I will see the courage of these villagers!"

Despite his words, his anger hadn't subsided; he ran his hands through his hair, aggressively ruffling it.

"ARGH! Still, just sitting here like this gets on my nerves, Kurama!"

Realizing that he couldn't soothe his roommate's uncontrollable fit of rage, Kurama returned to his own business with a deep sigh. He pressed the button on the side of the massage chair with his giant paw. As the back of the chair reclined with a mechanical sound, a massive platform rose from the bottom, and Kurama comfortably stretched his legs out. Picking up his manga volume again, he settled back into his spot.

"There is nothing you can do about this. Stop obsessing over it for nothing and relax~"

As his eyes roamed over the pages, he muttered to himself.

"This woman named Esdeath is very terrifying..."

Rolling his eyes, Altay ignored this lazy, indifferent otaku fox behind him and refocused his mind. Shaking off that feeling of helplessness, he thought about how he could turn the situation to his advantage. After a brief silence, a hard smirk appeared on his face as an idea came to his mind.

"Since they've stepped on my toes this much, I'll step on theirs! It's time to take to the battlefield!"

Startled by this harsh and assertive tone coming from behind him, Kurama tore his eyes away from the manga and looked at Altay. An uneasy feeling had bloomed within the fox's giant heart.

'I have a bad feeling about this...'