“I can do this.”
After learning about the true origins of the Nine-Tails, Kushina silently encouraged herself before sinking her consciousness into her Inner World.
Even so…
The moment she stood before the enormous fox, every ounce of her courage nearly vanished.
The Nine-Tails was simply too massive.
Could she really treat such a terrifying being as an equal?
Bound tightly by countless sealing chains, the Nine-Tails sensed her arrival.
It lazily opened one eye, glanced at her, then closed it again, showing no interest whatsoever.
Remembering Sima Ming’s advice, Kushina suppressed her fear and walked until she stood directly before the giant fox’s face.
“Hey, Nine-Tails…”
“Let’s be friends.”
Her voice was sincere.
Unfortunately, the Nine-Tails merely snorted in disdain.
It didn’t even bother opening its eyes.
After centuries of hatred between humans and Tailed Beasts, why would it believe that a human had suddenly changed?
To it, this was just another trick.
Another lie.
Another attempt to manipulate it.
When the Nine-Tails ignored her, Kushina’s nervousness gradually faded.
In its place…
A stubborn determination took root.
If I can’t even earn the trust of the Tailed Beast living inside me…
How can I ever hope to change Konoha?
Taking a deep breath, she made a bold decision.
She would remove every one of the Nine-Tails’ restraints.
Only by trusting it first could she hope to earn its trust.
Just as she reached toward the sealing chains…
Someone stopped her.
Sima Ming.
He hadn’t expected to appear inside Kushina’s Inner World either.
Originally, he believed the strange force binding them together only affected their physical bodies.
Apparently…
It also connected their consciousness.
“Ming-kun?”
“You came in too?”
The Nine-Tails’ eyes snapped open.
For the first time, it noticed the young man standing behind Kushina.
Its crimson eyes narrowed.
Outside Kushina’s body…
It could sense Sima Ming’s presence but couldn’t see him.
Inside the Inner World…
It could see him clearly.
Yet it couldn’t sense his existence at all.
Had Kushina not spoken his name, the Nine-Tails wouldn’t even have realized another person was standing there.
After stopping Kushina, Sima Ming stepped forward until he stood beside her.
Looking directly into the fox’s enormous eyes, he spoke calmly.
“Nine-Tails.”
“We sincerely want to treat you as our equal.”
“But after generations of hatred between humans and Tailed Beasts…”
“There isn’t enough trust for us to remove every restraint immediately.”
“I hope you’ll understand.”
“Given enough time, I’m certain you’ll recognize our sincerity.”
As he finished speaking, Sima Ming gestured for Kushina to loosen the fox’s restraints instead of removing them entirely.
The heavy chains binding its body relaxed slightly.
Then…
One of the Nine-Tails’ tails was completely freed.
The instant it regained its freedom…
The massive tail whipped toward them with terrifying speed.
Kushina’s expression changed dramatically.
She instinctively reached for her Adamantine Sealing Chains.
But Sima Ming stopped her.
The enormous tail roared through the air.
Powerful winds swept through the Inner World, sending Kushina’s long red hair dancing wildly.
She shut her eyes tightly.
Perhaps…
Sima Ming had been wrong.
Perhaps Tailed Beasts truly could never coexist with humans.
Just as she prepared to seal the Nine-Tails once again…
The wind suddenly stopped.
Slowly…
She opened her eyes.
The giant tail hovered less than half a meter in front of her.
It had stopped.
Sima Ming quietly let out the breath he had been holding.
Hidden behind Kushina’s back, his left hand slowly relaxed.
He had been gambling as well.
If the Nine-Tails had truly intended to attack, he had already prepared a Bakudō spell to buy Kushina enough time to restore the seal.
Fortunately…
His gamble had paid off.
The Nine-Tails still didn’t trust them.
But…
It was willing to give them a chance.
Looking at the tail suspended before her, joy filled Kushina’s face.
Sima Ming had been right.
Tailed Beasts weren’t mindless disasters incapable of reason.
No one had ever trusted them before.
That was why no one had ever been able to communicate with them.
Unable to resist, Kushina slowly reached out toward the enormous, fluffy tail.
The Nine-Tails immediately yanked it away.
It glanced sideways at the two humans before letting out a dismissive snort.
“Tch.”
“How boring.”
Kushina puffed out her cheeks.
“So stingy!”
Seeing her childish complaint, Sima Ming smiled.
“That’s enough for today.”
“Come back and talk with it often.”
“Once you’ve truly earned each other’s trust…”
“I’m sure it’ll let you touch its tail.”
Together, they left the Inner World.
The moment they disappeared, the Nine-Tails bared its sharp fangs.
“Hmph.”
“What do you take this old fox for?”
“A puppy begging for human affection?”
Back in reality, Kushina slowly opened her eyes.
Her excitement couldn’t be contained.
“Ming-kun!”
“We actually did it!”
Without thinking, she spun around to celebrate.
As expected…
Sima Ming was immediately flung halfway around her by the strange force binding them together.
“…”
Kushina froze.
Then she awkwardly scratched her cheek.
“S-Sorry, Ming-kun.”
“I got carried away.”
By now, Sima Ming had long since become accustomed to moments like this.
He simply sighed and silently accepted his fate.
Meanwhile…
Deep beneath Konoha, inside Root Headquarters…
Crash!
Another wooden table shattered beneath Danzo’s fist.
Not only had the rumors about him failed to die down…
They had spread even further.
Originally, people only whispered about his involvement in secret disappearances and illegal human experimentation.
Now…
They blamed him for Sakumo Hatake’s death.
They accused him of embezzling funds meant for Konoha’s orphanage.
With every passing day, the civilians’ dissatisfaction toward the Hokage’s advisor continued to grow.
If only one or two people spread those rumors…
Danzo could simply send Root operatives to “persuade” them.
But now…
There were far too many.
If Root acted rashly, the mastermind hiding behind everything would immediately seize the opportunity to expose him further.
For perhaps the first time in his life…
Danzo experienced the frustration of becoming someone else’s target.
He had used these very tactics against countless enemies before.
Now…
He was the victim.
Unable to solve the problem himself, Danzo reluctantly sought out Hiruzen.
He hoped the Hokage would use his authority to suppress the growing rumors.
Once the discussions stopped…
Finding the true mastermind would become much easier.
Watching his old friend come asking for help…
Hiruzen secretly felt rather satisfied.
It wasn’t often Danzo lowered himself like this.
“It’s because you insisted on doing those things,” Hiruzen replied calmly.
“If you hadn’t…”
“No one would have had the opportunity to frame you.”
Originally, he intended those words as a mild reprimand.
Instead…
Danzo exploded.
“I did everything for Konoha!”
“Those human experiments?”
“You approved the proposal yourself!”
“Sakumo Hatake’s influence had already overshadowed both Orochimaru and Minato!”
“You allowed that situation to continue!”
“And there’s—”
“Enough!”
Hiruzen’s furious roar echoed throughout the office.
Danzo fell silent.
This was the first time he had seen Hiruzen display the authority expected of a Hokage.
His expression was colder than ever before.
“The research I approved involved voluntarily donated remains.”
“You crossed the line by experimenting on living people.”
“You even abducted civilians from our own village.”
“As for Sakumo…”
“I only intended to reprimand him over that failed mission.”
“It was your people who deliberately escalated public opinion.”
“Do you really expect me to forget who instructed the very people Sakumo saved…”
“…to turn around and condemn him afterward?”
“I was too lenient with you.”
“And because of that…”
“Many problems became impossible to fix.”
Danzo stood there in stunned silence.
Then…
His shock slowly transformed into anger.
Everything he had done over the years had been carried out with Hiruzen’s silent approval—or so he believed.
Now…
When everything was falling apart…
Hiruzen intended to place all the blame on him.
To Danzo, it felt like nothing less than abandoning an old ally after using him.
His fists slowly tightened.
The crack between the two old friends had finally begun to widen.