Kyūbi, I Want Freedom

Naruto did a backflip and revived, looking at Ino with tears in her eyes.

"Ino, you're the best!"

"Are you okay?" Ino asked, full of concern.

"I'm fine."

Naruto smiled and waved his hand nonchalantly.

"Let's have some dumplings. I'll treat you." Ino said, holding her forehead.

With that, the two walked into the dumpling shop. Red bean dumplings are a sweet treat, very popular with girls, so the shop was quite crowded.

When Naruto, dressed in green, entered the dumpling shop, all eyes turned toward him. Fortunately, there was no big commotion, and the gazes quickly shifted away.

"Naruto, do you know what Sasuke has been up to lately?" Ino asked casually while eating red bean dumplings.

"Not really. He's probably training with Kakashi-sensei."

"Oh."

The two chatted casually, and when night fell, they each headed home. Naruto's house wasn't far from the flower shop in the mountains, so they naturally walked together for a bit.

The streets of Konoha were brightly lit, and the atmosphere could be described as peaceful.

Naruto had obtained the Flying Thunder God technique, which was undoubtedly a huge help to him.

From the perspective of the Chūnin Exam battles, the most troublesome opponent might be Oil Woman Shino's cursed insects. He wasn't sure if the Moonlight Breeze had died at Maki's hands, nor could he predict if the order of the exam battles would change.

As for the situation, it had to be figured out in more detail.

What was known for sure was that Orochimaru would launch the Konoha destruction plan during this Chūnin Exam and would also plant a "little strawberry" on Sasuke's neck. The Third Hokage had died in battle, and Moonlight Breeze had also perished. Konoha's streets were destroyed.

The night air was chilly, and Ino intermittently chatted about random things.

Naruto responded occasionally, his thoughts elsewhere.

"You don't need to worry too much. Since you ranked first in the graduation exam, as long as you don't run into that genius from the Hyūga clan, you should be fine." Ino said, wearing a brown short-sleeve shirt, her golden ponytail tied behind her. She spoke casually as if she was just mentioning it offhand.

"Ino, you're actually quite gentle," Naruto blurted out without thinking.

"Why do you say that?"

"You're very thoughtful of others," Naruto scratched his head and said sincerely. "Usually, I think of you as a bit carefree, but I didn't expect you to be so considerate."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Ino complained, looking a little upset. "We're all from the same village. Isn't it natural to help each other?"

"Well, I guess you're right," Naruto said with a smile and didn't say anything further.

They passed an intersection, and Naruto waved to Ino, saying goodbye.

Once back home, Naruto lay down on the sofa.

The living room was dimly lit, and the Anbu surveillance post had been removed. For now, Naruto was temporarily free.

It was as if the shackles had finally been unlocked, and he was allowed some freedom.

Unlike other villages, which continuously developed the potential of their jinchūriki, Konoha seemed to be consciously limiting the strength of its jinchūriki. Naruto suspected it might be because Konoha lacked the power to suppress the Nine-Tails. If a jinchūriki lost control, the damage to the village would be immeasurable.

Compared to using the Nine-Tails' power, they clearly preferred containment.

The Root ninja who had been swallowed by the Nine-Tails didn't leave any valuable information, and Naruto couldn't investigate further. But he could guess that it was Danzo's scheme, and perhaps the higher-ups had tacitly approved it.

Naruto closed his eyes, lost in thought.

Tick-tock.

Tick-tock.

He opened his eyes, and the once well-decorated living room was suddenly replaced by a damp and dark sewer.

In the darkness, a pair of lantern-sized eyes opened.

Inside the small cage, the Nine-Tails' massive form exuded immense pressure. The water in the sewer rippled continuously, and the next moment, the Nine-Tails let out an uncontrollable roar, shaking the entire sealing space.

"Long time no see, Kyūbi."

Naruto stepped on the water, ripples spreading outward from his feet. The dim yellow light illuminated the sealing space, faint yet sufficient to provide some visibility.

"Human..."

The Nine-Tails was still angry. Its hatred for Naruto hadn't faded over time; if anything, it had grown stronger. But this time, it had learned not to cause trouble, only letting out a loud roar at the beginning before settling down.

"Do you hate me?" Naruto asked, looking up.

"So what?" The Nine-Tails sneered, baring its teeth.

"I know why you hate me. It's simply because I took away your freedom," Naruto said calmly, gazing at the towering Nine-Tails, his face showing no emotion other than calm.

"Isn't it? I've been trapped in this dark, sunless seal for decades! How could I not hate you?"

"I didn't voluntarily become a jinchūriki," Naruto replied. "Who would want to be a container? But no one ever asked for my opinion."

"That's your human problem!"

The Nine-Tails growled, unwilling to argue about this. The real victim here was it, and it didn't care about the selfish and shameless humans and what they had said or done.

Naruto fell silent for a while before continuing.

"Now the situation is that I need you to survive, but you don't need me. That's not fair."

"Fair? Human, who cares about your life or death?" The Nine-Tails sneered. "If you die, I'll be free. If you don't want to live, just tell me, and I'll gladly help you out."

"Don't worry, I'll do whatever it takes to survive. Even if I have to use forbidden techniques, Kyūbi," Naruto said, looking up at the Nine-Tails with a serious expression, as if making a vow. "I will imprison you, continuously reinforce the seal, and torment you... forever."

"You better believe I can do it, just like I can control the Four Symbols Seal now."

Naruto's words felt like a sacred oath, his eyes fixed on the Nine-Tails. Each sentence sent a chill through the massive fox, reminding it of the painful memories from when previous jinchūriki had trapped it. If this human didn't die...

"Are you a psychopath?" The Nine-Tails was completely thrown off, glaring at Naruto with fury.

But Naruto smiled, his grin shining brightly like the sun.

"If I'm not happy, I'll make everyone cry!"

"This is the ninja way I follow!" Naruto said with a grin.

The Nine-Tails was thoroughly disgusted, its anger lingering over Naruto's threat.

It thought to itself, "I've lived for a thousand years, and this is the first time I've seen a jinchūriki with such a dark personality. This is insane! Who knows where this kid learned the Four Symbols Seal, but his current position is extremely disadvantageous to me."

"What do you want, really?" The Nine-Tails' tone was now tinged with helplessness. "Doing this doesn't benefit you either."

Naruto nodded and spoke.

"Kyūbi, I want freedom."

______________________________________________

If you want 20 chapters ahead, check out my Patreon: 

patreon.com/PureParadox