Kakuzu and Getsushoku rampaged their way forward, burning, killing, and looting. Kakuzu witnessed firsthand the madness hidden beneath Getsushoku's calm exterior.
When facing strong opponents, Getsushoku would maintain a semblance of normalcy—for a time.
But when dealing with the weak, he would raise his blade without hesitation, utterly shameless, devoid of morality or bottom line. It was as if he harbored a deep hatred for all living things in the world.
Kakuzu didn't particularly mind. After all, he was a villain himself. He simply hated lunatics.
Several ninja squads went missing in the field. The reports reached Konoha, but no one paid them any mind. It was as if nothing had happened.
Because right now, Konoha was teetering on the brink of collapse, on the verge of splintering apart.
Uchiha Itachi stood atop the Hokage Rock, his expression devoid of emotion. His shadow, cast onto the ground, squirmed slowly, whispering to itself.
In theory, Uchiha Itachi should be concerned about Konoha's worsening state. But in reality, he felt nothing at all—coldly watching everything unfold.
"What the hell is wrong with me..." he murmured to himself.
At some unknown point in time, Itachi had grown irritated with Sasuke's clingy dependence. He hated taking care of children!
When that emotion spread through his heart, he knew something was wrong. He had underestimated the influence of that shadow. Without even realizing it, his humanity had slipped away, leaving behind only selfishness and cold indifference.
That said, Itachi felt that he was in a great state. No more worrying about others—just focusing on loving himself. The village? The clan? What were those compared to his own importance?
The feeling of being selfish was just too good. Itachi was sinking deeper into it, thinking only of how to profit from the escalating conflict between clan and village.
What he didn't know was that his father, Uchiha Fugaku, had also fallen under the same influence. Lately, his actions had become increasingly ruthless—so much so that even Shimura Danzō had to retreat.
Unrestrained and reckless, Konoha had plunged into chaos. Hiruzen Sarutobi found no leads in his investigation and gradually shifted his suspicion onto Danzō.
...
Meanwhile, in Naruto's home—
Inside the sealed space, the Nine-Tails had both paws gripping the bars, baring his teeth and roaring in fury. The red chakra erupting around his body expanded outward again and again, only to be swallowed up and vanish as if consumed by some invisible force.
"Get out here, you bastard!!" the furious Nine-Tails bellowed, venting his rage. What pissed him off the most wasn't just the invasion—it was the intruder's ridiculous lies.
A strange shadow had infiltrated the seal not long ago.
That shadow wasn't just powerful—it was also disturbingly well-versed in the history of the ninja world. It treated the Nine-Tails like a living power bank, casually yanking out tufts of fur whenever it pleased.
The Nine-Tails had tolerated that much. But he couldn't stand the lies the shadow was feeding Naruto!
The shadow had initiated contact with Naruto and revealed his "true" origins—though, of course, the whole thing was made up nonsense.
According to the shadow, Naruto's father was still Namikaze Minato—but his mother wasn't Uzumaki Kushina. No, it was... a seductive fox spirit. The very Nine-Tailed Demon Fox that once rampaged through Konoha!
Using genjutsu, the shadow conjured an image—curvaceous, alluring, face full of seductive charm, eyes long and narrow, with an unreadable smile. Fox ears sprouted from her head, and six distinct whisker marks adorned her cheeks. Behind her swayed nine fluffy tails, exuding a dangerously bewitching aura.
The Nine-Tails roared in furious denial from inside the seal, but the shadow paid no mind.
Pointing at the illusion, the shadow told Naruto:
"That... is your mother. The Nine-Tailed Fox!"
The Nine-Tails was stunned. And Naruto, that little idiot, didn't even question it—he just believed. After all, hadn't everyone called him a demon fox his whole life?
The Nine-Tails howled with fury. He was a tailed beast—how could he possibly be someone's mother?
The shadow had distorted Konoha's history to a ridiculous degree, and then fed that version to Naruto. If not for the fact that he was being smeared in the process, the Nine-Tails might've actually been amused. But right now? He just wanted to fire off a Tailed Beast Bomb.
Gnashing his teeth, the Nine-Tails glared at the figure standing just outside the cage.
"Silence." The shadow seemed thoroughly annoyed. "Nine-Tails, I came here specifically to help you get your revenge. Don't be ungrateful."
The Nine-Tails: "???"
"Hey, little Kurama," the shadow said with a mocking tone. "Do you know what the humans outside call you?"
Before the Nine-Tails could answer, the shadow went on, "They call you... the demon fox."
"But turns out, you're just... what a disappointment." The shadow shook its head in exaggerated sorrow.
The Nine-Tails was utterly confused.
"What are you even saying? I don't understand a word of it!"
The shadow glanced at him with disgust.
"Humans call you a demon fox—but look at yourself!"
"..." The Nine-Tails was baffled.
"I am a tailed beast. That is a kind of monster. What's the issue?"
"There are so many issues!" the shadow snapped, voice laced with frustration. "Didn't the Sage of Six Paths give you a name when he created you? 'Tailed Beast' is just a derogatory term humans slapped on you—how can you accept that as your identity?"
And yet, Kurama had accepted the term "Tailed Beast."
Staring into Kurama's burning red eyes, the shadow's wicked ideas came one after another. As a sentient chakra entity, the Nine-Tails should've played a far greater role—he wasn't meant to be just some monster.
"If humans call you a demon fox, then make them fear what it means to be ruled by a true demon."
"Your pathetic Tailed Beast Bombs mean nothing to true human powerhouses. That's why you were captured, why you're a toy for humans to play with. Even Shukaku's learned sealing techniques over the years—but you? You've lived for a thousand years and haven't grown at all. You're still stuck in the same place, trapped here, and you've got no one to blame but yourself!"
The Nine-Tails couldn't take it anymore. The rest was one thing, but being compared unfavorably to that dumb tanuki Shukaku? Unforgivable!
Unfortunately, he could only sit there, fuming in impotent rage—helpless within the confines of the seal.
The shadow slithered into the cage, voice low and seductive.
"Little Kurama... from where I'm standing, you're just short-sighted. But if you make just a few changes—you'll unlock an entirely new world."
The shadow slowly coiled itself around the Nine-Tails' body, conjuring a brand-new image through genjutsu—of a fox demoness, curvy and dangerous, her tails swaying seductively behind her.
"This... is your future," the shadow whispered.
"A calamity in crimson. A bewitching force of destruction..."
The alluring fox spirit swayed sensually within the sealed space, her nine tails fluttering in the wind.
"!!!" Kurama roared in rage.
"You bastard, I—!"
His roar was cut off mid-sentence.
The shadow cast him a dismissive glance.
"Enough with that 'I' crap. You're a sentient mass of chakra. You don't even have a gender."
The entire Nine-Tails fox felt... off.
What was that supposed to mean?
How did that shadow know it had no gender?
Tailed Beasts have psychological genders, but biologically, they don't possess any defining sexual organs.
A flood of questions surged through the Nine-Tails' mind, momentarily pushing aside its anger.
The black shadow locked eyes with the Nine-Tails, and from their gaze alone, they could read each other's emotions. Just this silent exchange was enough to win an acting award and crush any pretty-boy actor in the business.
The Nine-Tails' eyes were clear yet naïve, filled with three parts shame, seven parts embarrassment, and a full ten parts rejection.
Seeing this, the shadow felt the need to carefully explain some hard truths to this silly fox—so it could understand that only by becoming a qualified kitsune spirit could it claim a place in this chaotic shinobi world.
"Don't you want revenge? With your strength and intellect, how likely do you think you are to succeed?"
The shadow's tone was playfully mocking. At the same time, it cast a genjutsu, transforming into the image of Senju Hashirama, which appeared before the Nine-Tails.
The moment that goofy face of Hashirama appeared, the Nine-Tails' eyes turned crimson. Although its eyes were already red by nature, this red was different—it burned with rage, and violent chakra began to spill out uncontrollably.
Even if it couldn't win, the Nine-Tails had to make its hatred for Hashirama clear!
The shadow asked, "Can you defeat Senju Hashirama?"
"No," the Nine-Tails growled, gritting its teeth. It didn't even try to deny it. The fact that it had been sealed was undeniable, and trying to argue otherwise would only be a joke.
The shadow then transformed into Uchiha Madara.
"And what about him? Can you beat him?"
Although seething with fury, the Nine-Tails surprisingly managed to rein in its temper and shook its head in resignation. Whether it was Wood Release or the Mangekyō Sharingan, both had overwhelming suppressive power over Tailed Beasts.
"Since you can't defeat either Senju Hashirama or Uchiha Madara head-on, then you need to take a different path," the shadow said earnestly.
The Nine-Tails narrowed its eyes and sneered,
"Those two bastards are long dead. Where the hell am I supposed to get my revenge?"
The shadow responded with a serious face:
"You might not be able to take revenge on them directly, but you can still take revenge on their descendants. Besides, Senju Tobirama once developed a forbidden jutsu—Edo Tensei. It can resurrect the dead."
"Just slapping someone to death—that's not real revenge! After all the suffering I've endured for decades, how could I let them off so easily?"
The Nine-Tails' eyes lit up with excitement. It had already entertained such ideas. Killing someone outright wasn't satisfying enough—especially that jerk Hashirama. If given the chance, the Nine-Tails would trap him in a dark, tiny cell and righteously proclaim: "Hashirama, your power is simply too great. I can't allow you to act unchecked…"
As if falling into a fantasy, its nine tails started wagging involuntarily, and it placed its two claws over one another, tsundere-style.
"Hmph! Fine, I'm a little convinced. Let's talk about the revenge plan in detail."
The shadow smiled and dispelled the genjutsu.
"Nine-Tails, the Sage of Six Paths never taught you real skills. You were born with natural advantages, yet got overtaken by weak humans. Luckily, you met me—it's not too late."
The shadow then gave the Nine-Tails a quick rundown of the current state of the shinobi world—especially the situation of the Senju and Uchiha clans. When it heard that both clans had fallen into decline, with the Senju practically extinct, the Nine-Tails nearly howled in joy.
"The Senju and Uzumaki clans are almost gone. You can exact your revenge through their few remaining descendants. Right now, your jinchūriki is Uzumaki Naruto, and there's also Hashirama's granddaughter, Tsunade. You should torment them both mercilessly!"
The Nine-Tails' eyes widened.
A whole new world had just opened up to it.
"But… why did you say I was Naruto's mother earlier?"
"Because you are Naruto's mother!" the shadow said with complete sincerity. "Not just his mother—you're also Tsunade's grandmother!"
"From this moment on, you must remember one thing: during the process of jinchūriki reproduction, your presence was there from beginning to end! You participated in the act of creating the child! The whisker marks on Naruto's face are the best proof!"
"You have both a male and female form. Hashirama preferred your female form, and Uzumaki Mito preferred your male form. That's why they got married. All Senju descendants carry the blood of the Nine-Tails fox!"
"It was for your love that Hashirama and Madara fought!"
"When Uzumaki Kushina fell asleep, Namikaze Minato would sneak off to be with you. When Minato was away, it was you who kept Kushina company and comforted her…"
"Cultivating bliss together! You're not here to destroy their family—you're here to become part of it!"
The shadow's twisted form danced in the gloom of the cage, its voice like a demonic whisper, echoing seductively.
The Nine-Tails shuddered uncontrollably.
It felt like an impenetrable wall of absurdity had just risen between itself and the shadow. People always claimed the Tailed Beasts were evil—but really, they were just a bit violent. The real evil... was this thing standing in front of it.
And the shadow was still talking.
"Turning you into a human form is only step one. Now comes the main event!"
"Humans are obsessed with this 'jinchūriki' concept, right? Then go big—tell them there's another way to create stable jinchūriki: use Edo Tensei to seal powerful dead shinobi into your body!"
"Let Hashirama, Uzumaki Mito, and Kushina taste what it's like to be locked in a dark little room for decades! Come on, I'll teach you the jutsu right now…"
And just like that, the Nine-Tails began walking the path of no return—a path of evil.
...
Elsewhere, Getsushoku was still causing chaos. Kakuzu had already parted ways with him, realizing that Getsushoku's mental state had suddenly deteriorated—he seemed to have lost all reason.
No one had noticed that behind Getsushoku, two terrifying figures had always been standing.
One voice asked, "Why stir up such a commotion all of a sudden?"
Another answered, "This isn't the real shinobi world."
"Impossible! I wouldn't end up in the wrong place!"
"I never said you got the location wrong. When we first arrived, this was the real Naruto world. But the moment the main plotline diverged, this world instantly became a 'branch.' Perhaps the real Sage of Six Paths is watching this 'testing ground' from across time and space."
"So what do you want to do?"
"At this point... let's go big."