"Fox!!"
"Calm down!"
"I… I didn't see anything just now!"
Shukaku instantly sensed something was off and started waving his arms in panic. If he weren't made of chakra, he'd be sweating buckets by now.
I'm doomed today… absolutely doomed.
No way…
I just realized that this stinky fox has gotten so fat it can't even control itself anymore!
Who would've thought that the proud, arrogant Kurama would turn into a pig in such a short amount of time?
Shukaku had originally planned to blackmail him with this secret for the rest of his life…
But as soon as Kurama appeared, Shukaku realized something was very wrong.
Why… why does the fox's chakra smell as strong as the old man's?!
Panic hit him hard. Shukaku was just about to retreat back into the sealed space, but Kurama didn't give him the chance. In the blink of an eye, he appeared in front of the raccoon, grabbed one of his legs, swung him up, and slammed him straight into the ground.
BOOM.
Sasori and Deidara blinked in stunned silence. The Bishop had gone full berserker, savagely beating the tailed beast inside the Son of God.
Each time Shukaku hit the ground, chakra fragments burst from his body and scattered into the air. If this continued, Kurama might just pound Shukaku to death on the spot.
Fortunately, Naruto came to his senses just in time.
"Big Fox!"
"Calm down! If you keep hitting him, he's seriously gonna die!"
Kurama, though fuming, paused to listen to Naruto.
"He dared to call this Immortal Emperor fat!!"
"This guy must die!"
"If this news spreads, how can I—the great Immortal Emperor—show my face?!"
Kurama's fury only intensified the more he thought about it, and his strikes became even more savage. Shukaku's wails echoed through the entire desert.
"Bishop! Stop hitting me!"
"If you keep this up, there won't be any Shukaku left!!"
Seeing things spiral out of control, Sasori and Deidara hurried over to intervene.
One feared that the Bishop might kill the Shukaku.
The other was worried the Grayl Stone mission would fail if the host died.
But their words were no match for Kurama's rage.
With a casual flick of his tail, the Nine-Tails sent both of them flying a hundred meters.
"Wait a second!"
"Immortal Emperor, killing Shukaku might feel good today—but wouldn't it be better to throw him in a sealed space?"
"That way you can beat him up every day…"
Naruto's idea had Kurama pausing mid-swing.
When he imagined being able to beat Shukaku up every single day to vent, his anger cooled a little.
After all, in his sealed space…
Even if Shukaku screamed his lungs out, no one else would hear it.
But now a new problem arose.
How exactly do you seal Shukaku into Naruto's body?
"Forget it, Naruto."
"This Immortal Emperor doesn't know any sealing jutsu. Better to just beat this raccoon to death."
Kurama, never one to overthink, defaulted to the simplest solution—murder.
"WAIT!"
"Fox! Give me a moment! I'll figure something out!"
"Please stop hitting me—I'm gonna die!"
Shukaku panicked as he listened to their conversation.
If the stinky fox actually killed him today, it could take hundreds—maybe thousands—of years to revive.
Worst case? He might never come back.
But neither Naruto nor Kurama were willing to accept that.
"Big Fox, hold on…"
"I think I have a way."
Naruto remembered the lingering chakra from his parents within Kurama's seal. Surely, they would know how to perform this sealing technique.
"Fine."
"For your sake, I'll let this raccoon live for half an hour."
Kurama finally withdrew, canceling his transformation and returning to the sealed space—but he kept a sharp eye on Shukaku.
The message was clear: if Naruto didn't figure out the sealing in time, Shukaku was toast.
"Wait here."
Naruto's consciousness dived into his inner world.
He immediately made his way to the cage where Kurama was sealed and reached out to tear off the paper seal.
Snap—
Just as his hand touched the seal, a hand grabbed his wrist.
"Which road is more—cold… huh?"
Minato, who had grabbed Naruto's hand, was prepared to deliver a serious dad-lecture about not removing the seal recklessly.
After all, only in extreme cases—like facing an overwhelming enemy—should Naruto ever open the seal. Typically, it would mean Kurama had manipulated him into doing something reckless.
But just as Minato opened his mouth…
Naruto looked up at him with the most hopeful expression in the world.
Wait. Something's off.
Minato blinked in confusion. He glanced at Kurama behind the bars—except…
"Oh?!"
"Where's the Kyuubi!?"
"This one—mmmph!!"
Naruto sprang into action and slapped a hand over his dad's mouth.
I'm dead. I'm gonna die. Shukaku's already half-dead, and now Dad's about to anger the fox again. I can't deal with this!!
"MINATO!!"
"OPEN YOUR DOG EYES AND LOOK AT ME!!!"
ROAR—!!
Kurama was absolutely livid that Minato hadn't recognized him. After everything they'd been through, this was the thanks he got?
How dare this guy open his mouth just to insult him!
Rude!
And another thing…
How am I fat?!
Couldn't Minato see that he'd bulked up?
This wasn't fat. This was muscle. Power. Majesty.
If not for Naruto's sake, Kurama would've spat chakra fire in Minato's face.
Minato: ???
What the hell was going on?
That voice…
Impossible.
How did Kurama turn into… this?
Naruto, seeing his father totally short-circuiting, slowly removed his hand and began winking furiously.
"This…"
"What the hell happened?"
Minato looked from his son to the pig-like Nine-Tails and promptly had a brain freeze.
"Dad."
"Let's not get into the details right now."
"Can you help me seal the One-Tailed Shukaku into my body?"
"Otherwise, Kurama's gonna beat him to death!"
Naruto got straight to the point, but Minato, still lost in confusion, only got more bewildered.
What?
Seal the One-Tail?
Or else he'll die??
Minato's mind leapt back to the previous Ninja War. He began piecing things together—maybe Konoha and the Sand Village were at war again.
With a long sigh, he muttered:
Sigh… another war, huh?
No wonder Naruto opened the seal…
"Which road is more…"
"So, the current Fourth Hokage—wait, no, it should be the Fifth now…"
"Who's the Fifth Kazekage?"
Minato figured he'd get a better understanding if he asked about the situation from the top.
Naruto, not sure why his father was asking, answered honestly.
"Oh, that?"
"The Fifth Kazekage is Uzumaki Naruto."
"That's me."
Minato: HUH?!