Chapter 11: Soul Transformation
"Your other half? What do you mean? Didn't you already become one again?"
Jiraiya asked in astonishment.
Back when Uchiha Obito controlled the Nine-Tails to attack the Hidden Leaf Village, Minato used the Uzumaki clan's forbidden technique to split the Nine-Tails in half, both to thwart Obito's plan and to make his child the Jinchuriki.
But during the Fourth Great Ninja War, the two halves of the Nine-Tails had voluntarily returned to Naruto's body, becoming whole once again.
"Under normal circumstances, that would indeed be the case. But it seems the effects of the Reaper Death Seal haven't truly been erased,"
Kurama's voice finally showed a hint of emotion. He hadn't expected the lingering effects of the Reaper Death Seal to be so profound.
"The power of space-time… it can cause this effect?"
Jiraiya's eyes widened. "So you're saying your other half returned to Naruto's body?"
"Perhaps."
Kurama wasn't sure either. The space-time force had severed his perception of the other half of his body.
"I see..."
Jiraiya murmured. If that were the case, then it wasn't the worst outcome. After thinking for a moment, he lifted his shirt.
Looking at his bare stomach, Jiraiya muttered, "I don't sense any sealing formula. How are you staying inside my body?"
A chakra as massive as Kurama's should normally require the assistance of a seal, even for someone with the Uzumaki clan's physique.
"On my back, maybe?"
Jiraiya, currently too weak to sense anything, tried forming a hand seal for Shadow Clone to check, but remembered mid-seal—
He had used up all his chakra during training just now.
"..."
"Are you an idiot?"
After a few seconds of silence, Kurama roared from within him, suppressing his irritation as he explained:
"I'm not residing inside your body via a seal."
"So if I wanted to, I could leave your body right now."
"Got it?"
"Oh."
Jiraiya understood now. The reason Kurama hadn't immediately left his body was likely because his chakra, if it appeared, would surely alert Lady Mito of the Uzumaki clan.
"If it's not a seal, then that chakra from earlier…"
Jiraiya then realized another issue: the Nine-Tails chakra that had surged out of his body during his Rasengan training earlier.
Leaving aside the fact that Kurama wouldn't usually involve himself in Jiraiya's training, even if he wanted to help, without a seal, it shouldn't have been so easy for that chakra to emerge from within him.
Kurama responded:
"Perhaps because, during your soul state, you came into such close contact with my power that your soul has now been tainted by my chakra…"
"So, when your body's chakra is depleted, my power will surface. And as your body continues to develop, there's a strong possibility that it will be affected by my chakra as well."
"Having my chakra is a great blessing for a shinobi."
"My soul…"
Jiraiya stared at his palm. The Tailed Beasts were created by the Sage of Six Paths, using the chakra of the Ten-Tails and Yin-Yang Release—pure chakra-based lifeforms.
So ultimately, a Tailed Beast's soul is also just chakra.
Though human souls are different, they also contain mysterious spiritual energy. Combined with the body's physical energy, this forms a chakra.
So changes in the soul would eventually manifest through spiritual energy into one's chakra.
"Looks like I'll have to be careful from now on…"
Jiraiya said. If others discovered he had chakra similar to the Nine-Tails, it could cause serious trouble.
But based on what Kurama said, as long as Jiraiya paid attention to his chakra usage, Kurama's power shouldn't reveal itself easily.
After understanding the situation, Jiraiya ended his training for the day and returned home. Along the way, he talked a lot to Kurama, but the latter didn't reply even once.
But that was Kurama's personality. Jiraiya had gotten used to it during his time in the Pure Land. Regardless, returning to this era and finding a companion—even if that companion was the Nine-Tails—was still something good.
Though admittedly, having this partner was… quite strange.
The next morning.
While eating at Lord Hiruzen's house yesterday, the three of them had agreed to meet up and begin accepting missions today at the Hokage Office.
Inside the Hokage Office, the person assigning tasks to Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Orochimaru was none other than Hiruzen Sarutobi himself, wearing the Hokage's cloak and the fire-emblazoned hat.
As newly minted Genin, they could only start with simple missions. However, in the early days of Konoha's founding, there weren't many civilian-commissioned missions.
Most of the odd jobs came from small ninja clans within the village or from wealthy families who had relocated to Konoha.
Their very first mission as Genin was to serve as sparring partners for the new generation being raised by one of these small ninja clans.
Even though the Second Hokage had promoted the ninja academy system for many years, some more traditional families still trained their children using old methods from the Warring States period.
The village leadership didn't interfere too much, but did suggest that new Genin spar with these families' trainees.
Of course, being a "suggestion" from the higher-ups, these clans complied. They were also curious to see how the ninja academy-trained Genin stacked up.
Somewhere in a Konoha courtyard—
Bang!
With a dull thud, a boy half a head taller than Orochimaru was sent flying by a single kick, crashing hard into the wall, which cracked slightly from the impact.
This young man—said to be the most talented of the clan's new generation—was defeated in less than ten exchanges with Orochimaru.
"Is a ninja's job really this easy?"
Under the shade of a tree, arms crossed, Tsunade looked bored. She shook her head but still walked into the field out of respect for the mission.
"Why don't you all come at me together? No point wasting time."
Even these kids knew who Tsunade was—no one could forget that she inherited the bloodline of the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju, the "God of Shinobi." That title still carried immense weight in Konoha, even after his passing.
Naturally, no one dared face his descendant directly.
"That guy looks kinda dopey. He must be the weakest of the three..."
The kids exchanged glances and set their sights on Jiraiya, who was sitting on the ground, chewing a stalk of grass and rocking back and forth.
One kid pointed at Jiraiya and said,
"I want to fight you!"
"Alright."
Since it was part of the mission, Jiraiya stood up naturally and replied.
"Wait!"
Just then, Tsunade suddenly shouted and stopped him, placing her arm in front of Jiraiya and glaring at the kid who had called him out.
Her little face showed clear displeasure.
"What's that supposed to mean? Are you looking down on me?"
(End of Chapter)