"Hmph! Since Naruto asked, I’ll graciously help you this once."
Kurama lifted his head proudly.
A stream of crimson chakra flowed from his massive body, wrapping itself around Minato’s chakra form.
The moment Minato felt the foreign chakra replacing the energy his own body was consuming, his eyes lit up.
Although he still hadn’t let go of his resentment toward the Nine-Tails, he bowed sincerely.
"...Thank you."
"I may not like saying it, but... thank you, Nine-Tails."
"Hmph."
Kurama snorted dismissively.
"I’m helping Naruto, not you."
"Don’t flatter yourself, Fourth Hokage."
Enjoy yourself while you still can.
You’ll have plenty to cry about later.
Completely unaware of Kurama’s thoughts, Minato scratched the back of his head awkwardly after being rebuffed.
Naruto interrupted the moment.
"Alright, Fourth Hokage."
"Now, could you write down every ninjutsu you know?"
Now that Minato’s existence could be sustained, Naruto immediately returned to his original objective.
Minato smiled warmly.
"Naruto, learning ninjutsu is dangerous."
"You need to master the fundamentals first, and it’s best to have an experienced shinobi guide you."
"Now that Kurama’s chakra can sustain me..."
"Why don’t I teach you personally?"
Perfect.
This is the ideal opportunity to repair our father-son relationship.
Minato silently congratulated himself on the idea.
Naruto, however, replied without hesitation.
"I’m worried you’ll disappear one day."
"Write everything down first."
"If there’s anything I don’t understand, I’ll ask you."
His reason for asking about the techniques was simple.
He needed a believable explanation for how he knew them.
He didn’t actually need Minato’s instruction.
Nor was he interested in pretending they had a close father-son relationship.
"..."
Minato froze.
So cold...
After a brief moment of disappointment, his spirits lifted again.
I’ll start by writing down some of my strongest techniques.
The Rasengan, for example.
When Naruto can’t figure it out, I’ll teach him personally.
I’ll show him how reliable his father really is.
Surely then...
He’ll accept me.
Meanwhile...
Kurama narrowed his eyes.
His senses had remained focused on the outside world the entire time.
"The Third Hokage is here."
Naruto blinked.
"The Third Hokage?"
It took him only a moment to understand.
The surge of Kurama’s chakra had alerted the ANBU, who had immediately summoned Hiruzen.
Without warning...
Naruto reached over, grabbed a handful of Kurama’s mane, and gave it a hard yank.
"You little brat!"
"I just helped you!"
Kurama roared.
Naruto smirked.
"Tch."
"Don’t think I don’t know what you’re planning."
He whispered quietly into Kurama’s ear.
Then his consciousness vanished from the sealed space.
Kurama watched him disappear.
Only three years old...
Yet already eighty percent as clever as I am.
What an utterly unlovable brat.
The great fox silently admired himself once again.
At the same time...
Minato’s expression turned serious.
Now that doubts had already begun to form about Hiruzen...
He waved a hand toward the iron gate.
A fresh sealing tag appeared where Naruto had torn away the originals.
Then Minato’s figure quietly disappeared into the depths of the sealing space.
Kurama made no attempt to stop him.
He knew perfectly well that the sealing tag was nothing more than a disguise.
Besides...
He had never intended to leave in the first place.
Watching Minato conceal himself within the seal...
Kurama slowly grinned.
A gleam of anticipation flashed deep within his crimson eyes.
Things...
Are about to get interesting.
Outside...
"Lord Hokage!"
The ANBU assigned to watch over Naruto immediately appeared beside Hiruzen Sarutobi the moment the Third Hokage arrived outside the apartment.
Dropping to one knee, he reported respectfully.
Hiruzen gave a slight nod.
"Report."
"The Jinchūriki released crimson chakra approximately five minutes ago."
"It dissipated about two minutes later."
"The cause remains unknown."
The ANBU delivered his report concisely.
Hiruzen nodded thoughtfully.
The tension in his heart eased slightly.
He gestured toward the apartment door.
The ANBU stepped forward and produced a thin steel wire.
Click.
The lock opened effortlessly.
For an ANBU operative, picking locks was among the most basic of skills.
Sensing the lingering violent aura inside the apartment, Hiruzen frowned.
Using the Body Flicker Technique, he instantly appeared outside Naruto’s bedroom.
He turned the doorknob.
The door opened.
The room was still saturated with traces of darkness...
Hatred...
Malice...
And violent chakra.
It really is the Nine-Tails’ chakra.
Without wasting another second, Hiruzen hurried to Naruto’s bedside.
He pulled back the blanket.
Lifting Naruto’s pajama shirt with one hand, he formed a hand seal with the other before pressing it against the boy’s abdomen.
Immediately...
A sealing formula emerged.
The Eight Trigrams Seal, surrounded by intricate markings.
The seal has loosened slightly...
It was probably caused by the Nine-Tails pushing against it.
Nothing too serious.
After carefully examining it, Hiruzen reached his conclusion.
He immediately formed another series of hand seals before placing both hands against Naruto’s stomach.
"Seal."
Chakra flowed into the formula.
The Eight Trigrams Seal stabilized once again.
Hiruzen inspected it one final time to be certain.
The seal was created three years ago.
Although it’s inspected every month, nearly a month has passed since the last maintenance.
Some loosening is only natural.
Unlike the previous two Jinchūriki, Naruto knows nothing about sealing techniques.
He can’t reinforce the seal himself.
With the Nine-Tails constantly pressing against it...
Minor deterioration is inevitable.
Hiruzen had anticipated this long ago.
That was precisely why he inspected the seal every month.
He simply hadn’t expected something to happen just before the next scheduled inspection.
Fortunately...
The problem had been discovered early.
The damage was minimal.
Naruto showed no signs of being influenced.
Judging from the residual chakra...
Only a small amount of the Nine-Tails’ power had leaked out.
Satisfied that everything was secure, Hiruzen carefully pulled the blanket back over Naruto.
Then he dismissed the ANBU.
After the operative disappeared...
Hiruzen gently shook Naruto’s shoulder.
"Naruto."
"Naruto."
"Mmm...?"
The "sleeping" Naruto let out a sleepy murmur before slowly opening his eyes.
The moment he saw the Third Hokage sitting beside his bed, surprise immediately spread across his innocent face.
"Grandpa Third?"
"When did you get here?"
Author’s Note:
Thank you all so much!