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The Nine-Tailed controlled the clone, its blue eyes now completely replaced by the Nine-Tailed's scarlet vertical pupils.
It was clumsily yet curiously experiencing the touch of its fingertips, a never-before-felt sensation called freedom quietly blossoming anew in its wisp of consciousness.
"How about that! Big Fox, I didn't lie to you, did I!" Naruto stood to the side, his face beaming with a sincere yet slightly smug smile, looking at the clone that carried the Nine-Tailed's consciousness.
If the Nine-Tailed could do it, then Minato and Kushina should be able to as well!
The Nine-Tailed Naruto clone's body stiffened, its vertical pupils glancing sideways at Naruto, a mix of novelty and a hint of self-consciousness at being exposed.
It controlled the clone, awkwardly turning its head and letting out a cold snort!
"Hmph..."
However, just as the Nine-Tailed was still immersed in the wondrous sensation of this brief freedom!
Poof!
A faint wisp of white smoke unexpectedly rose from the clone's body!
"?!"
The Nine-Tailed's wisp of consciousness attached to the clone instantly felt an irresistible sense of being pulled away!
It was like being forcibly dragged from warm sunlight back into a cold abyss! The real touch instantly vanished without a trace! In its place was the familiar sealing iron cage!
Its massive body violently shook within the Sealing Space! Its huge, molten vertical pupils suddenly snapped open, filled with shock, bewilderment, and a tremendous displeasure at having a wonderful experience forcibly interrupted!
"You brat!!!"
The Nine-Tailed's roar instantly filled the Sealing Space; the previous calm was gone, replaced only by a playful fury.
"What are you doing?! This Lord hasn't... hasn't seen enough yet!!! How dare you dispel the clone?! Are you toying with me?!"
The sound waves made the Sealing Space hum, and the Chakra liquid churned once more.
Naruto's main consciousness was still standing outside the iron bars, facing the Nine-Tailed's furious roar, but his face held an unprecedented solemnity and a hint of cunning. He raised his hand, making a gesture to calm down.
"Don't rush, don't rush, Big Fox," Naruto's voice was unusually clear, overriding the Nine-Tailed's roar.
"There's a reason for dispelling the clone. Bringing you back is to avoid... well, things getting out of hand later."
"Things getting out of hand?" The Nine-Tailed's huge beast eyes were filled with suspicion and unextinguished anger, "You brat, what new trick are you trying to pull?! This Lord..."
His words were cut short.
Naruto's main consciousness showed a smile on his face, a mix of determination and mischievous success.
He no longer paid attention to the Nine-Tailed's roar, his gaze suddenly turning to the massive, rune-engraved iron gate of the Sealing Space! His sight precisely locked onto the seemingly inconspicuous paper talisman with the character "Seal" in the center of the iron gate!
"Now!"
Naruto gave a low shout, his small consciousness bursting forth with astonishing speed, like an arrow shot from a bow, rushing towards the sealing iron gate! His target was that paper talisman that the Nine-Tailed believed maintained the core of the Eight Trigrams Sealing Style!
"Wh-...?!!!"
The Nine-Tailed's huge pupils instantly contracted to pinpricks! A chill exploded from the depths of its massive consciousness! It knew too well what that paper talisman meant! It was the last safeguard Minato had left! It was the last restraint preventing its consciousness from completely breaking the seal! Once torn...
"Stop!!! You brat, are you crazy?!!!"
The Nine-Tailed let out an unprecedented roar of horror! It instinctively wanted to stop him, but the seal restricted its movements. Originally, it should have been happy, but after a month of contact, it had already initially accepted this generation's Jinchuriki!
Moreover, it knew that if it got out now, it would definitely be re-sealed by Konoha, and then it would be stuck with an even more annoying Jinchuriki. What would it do then! It could only watch helplessly as Naruto's small figure rushed irrevocably towards that paper talisman!
Under the Nine-Tailed's horrified gaze, Naruto's small Chakra palm, with an unstoppable momentum, fiercely and precisely grabbed the yellow sealing strip!
Tear—!!!
A clear, unmistakable tearing sound, like a thunderclap, exploded within the Sealing Space!
Time seemed to freeze at this moment.
The Nine-Tailed's massive body completely stiffened, its huge beast eyes staring fixedly at the torn sealing strip clutched in Naruto's hand, its mind a blank.
It couldn't understand! This brat... why would he do this?! Didn't he know what tearing this seal meant?!
Just as Naruto was about to tear off the sealing paper strip, a tall, slender figure pulled Naruto's small hand, stopping him from continuing to tear the sealing strip!
His golden short hair gently fluttered, his azure eyes were identical to Naruto's, and his handsome face bore a hint of fatigue, filled with an indescribable complexity of emotions.
He wore a white Hokage robe, with the words "Fourth Hokage" embroidered on the back.
It was none other than the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze!
"Na... Namikaze Minato!!!"
The Nine-Tailed's roar instantly changed from horror to extreme fury and apprehension! Sure enough! Sure enough, that bastard was still here!
"It's you, you persistent nuisance! Roar—!!!"
Bang~
Bang~ Bang!
The Nine-Tailed on the other side of the iron gate instantly bristled. Its body first crouched, then it bared its fangs, threw its head back, sucked in its stomach, and extended a pair of exaggerated claws to furiously pound on the iron gate.
Naruto did not speak.
The suddenly appearing Fourth Hokage also did not speak.
In this dark space, only the Nine-Tailed remained, frantically slamming the gate, making a huge racket.
Not long after, the Nine-Tailed stopped. It realized that no matter how hard it tried, it couldn't break through this iron gate.
"Bastard! Why is the seal still not open! Fourth Hokage! Come here, I'm going to tear you to shreds!"
"I'm sorry, Nine-Tailed, that's impossible. I'm not here to see you. The time left for us father and son is very precious."
The Fourth Hokage said these words very calmly, with his back to the Nine-Tailed.
But when he saw Naruto looking at him with a smiling little face, his heart instantly sank.
Those azure eyes, identical to Naruto's, were now filled with an indescribable complexity of emotions. Excitement, guilt, relief, heartache... thousands of words seemed to be stuck in his throat.
He looked at the golden-haired, blue-eyed child before him, whose face showed a calmness and cunning unbefitting his age. That was his son! The son he had risked his life and soul to protect!
"Naruto..." Minato Namikaze's voice held a subtle tremor; he tried to force a smile, but it appeared somewhat strained, "I... I am..."
"I know."
Naruto interrupted his father. His voice was unusually calm, his equally azure eyes looking directly at Minato Namikaze. There was no childish excitement or unfamiliarity at seeing his father, only a clear and knowing understanding of everything.
"You are Minato Namikaze, the Fourth Hokage of Konoha. And my father."
Naruto raised his small finger and tapped his head:
"I told the Big Fox. I am a 'born knower'. I know who you are, I know why you are here. I know... everything you and Mom did! I remember the memories of that night clearly, I will never forget them!"
After all, experiencing several major life-threatening events right after birth was too stimulating! It's hard to forget.
Minato Namikaze's expression instantly froze, then turned into deep shock and a hint of understanding. From within the seal, he had watched Naruto grow up. Naruto was indeed very intelligent and a genius! He had always been mentally prepared for Naruto's special nature!
He looked into Naruto's eyes, which seemed to see through everything, and his last shred of doubt vanished. This child was indeed extraordinary!
"Naruto... I'm sorry!" Minato Namikaze's voice was full of guilt; a thousand words ultimately condensed into one most profound statement.
"I let you suffer alone!"