Akisada jumps down to the ground far away from Naruto but closer to the tigers and lions, who are staring at Naruto with hatred in their eyes.
Akisada didn't really blame them, though, since they were just kids, clearly a few years older than Naruto but still kids nonetheless.
Akisada moved closer to the leader of the lion to check his status. After a short inspection while the lion is knocked unconscious but still alive.
"Carry him back to receive medication," Akisada said while looking at the lion, who quickly moves.
Naruto didn't move or disturb the lions and the tigers since he already knew the fight was already over, and currently his interest was currently at Akisada.
Naruto believes that Akisada is a ninja, and a high-level one at that. He even dared to speculate that the man in front of him was a Kage-level ninja thanks to Akisada's chakra, comparable to Kage-level ninjas he saw throughout the village.
In terms of chakra reserves, Akisada greatly surpasses Naruto, but Naruto believes that it is only a matter of time before his reserves grow to a terrifying degree.
Aside from taking a look at the lions, Akisada also helps the tigers as well. In fact, the lions and tigers receive a well-needed first aid thanks to the damages they receive after receiving their own attacks thanks to Naruto using them as a meat shield.
After Akisada saw the tigers and lions return back to their area, his gaze returned back to Naruto, who had been staring at him at the exact same spot.
"Thanks for waiting patiently," Akisada said calmly.
Naruto didn't respond but continued to stare directly at Akisada. Akisada felt he was stripped naked by Naruto's eyes, as if all his secrets were in the open for Naruto to learn.
'Terrifying,' Akisada thought, appearing in his mind right now after sensing the energy reserves of Naruto.
"How come you ended up here? You're ninja training?" Akisada asks.
He didn't find it surprising that a child has already been groomed to become a weapon for his village since he also grew up like that.
What really intrigued Akisada was the terrifying talent this kid had, not only because of the incredible energy reserves Naruto had but also because of the fact that Naruto managed to perform the Summoning Technique at such a young age.
One must know that aside from the prerequisite chakra reserves, in order to successfully use the technique, they also need an adequate amount of chakra control, which is something this kid shouldn't have, especially with his reserves.
The question that lingers in his mind, though, is, "Did another great war happen in the Elemental Continent?"
"You could say that," Naruto responds.
Akisada's eyebrow raised slightly. From the tone of Naruto, it seems like he didn't receive formal training, which is surprising, especially considering the terrifying talent this kid had.
"From the way you said it, it seems like you didn't have formal training?" Akisada asks, his voice filled with curiosity.
"Yes," Naruto admits.
"Then how can you use the Summoning Technique?" Akisada further inquired.
"I follow the instruction in the scroll."
Akisada's eyes widen like a plate after hearing it.
The fact that Naruto manages to perform the Summoning Technique without guidance just shows the incredible comprehension and insight of Naruto.
This also made Akisada terrified about the future version of Naruto since he believed such talent would definitely grow into a terrifying and powerful existence.
"Aren't you too reckless to use the Summoning Technique? You should read in the scroll that you had the danger behind using the Summoning Technique without forming a contract first," Akisada said after calming himself down.
"I know," Naruto nodded, "but I find the technique interesting, and I also wanted to know which summoning animal I had great affinity with."
"Aren't you afraid that you'll die in the process?"
"Why should I?" Naruto slightly tilted his head. "Being alive or dead doesn't really mean anything to me."
Akisada frowns inwardly after hearing this. He already expected that the kid in front of him wasn't normal, but to have such a mentality wasn't something he ever expected.
"Can I ask a question?" Naruto asks, bringing Akisada back to reality.
"Sure," Akisada nodded since he didn't find it any problem.
Akisada already asked a few things he was interested about the boy, so answering the kid's questions was okay for Akisada, as he saw it as repaying a favor.
"What is this energy called?" Naruto asks while raising his right hand to his eye level and consolidating some of the unknown energy in his hand.
"That's cursed energy," Akisada answers while at the same time marveling at Naruto at how incredible the control he had with cursed energy.
Akisada already realized at first glance that Naruto didn't know a thing about cursed energy, and the fact that Naruto asked the official name of the cursed energy is proof of that.
"It seems like you wanted to learn more about the curse energy," Akisada added after seeing the interest burning in Naruto's eyes.
Akisada felt as if Naruto had found a new toy he could play with, which wasn't really far from the truth.
While Naruto wanted to discover the mystery behind the cursed energy, he wasn't against learning the mystery behind it from others. In fact, he prefers it that way since he can use their knowledge to further his understanding of the cursed energy.
"You mentioned before about wanting to know the summoning animal you had great affinity with, right?"
"Yes," Naruto responds but does not really get the reason why Akisada had to ask since he just said it a short while ago.
"Do you like to visit the rulers of this place and form a contract about summoning animals?"
"Why not?" Naruto responds, but if one listens carefully, they can hear the interest in Naruto's voice.
Clearly Naruto wanted to find out the ruler of this place and how strong they are.
This interest wasn't lost on Akisada, but he didn't bring it up and lead the way towards the ruler's palace.
While walking towards their destination, Naruto constantly asks about the cursed energy, which Akisada is happy to answer.
After walking for a few kilometers, Naruto saw tigers and lions interacting with each other. They had completely different sizes from the same one as the one he fought all the way to the huge one.
The thing that attracted Naruto's attention, though, wasn't the summoning animals nor the unknown energy in the surrounding area that was completely different from chakra and curse energy but the stone statues of tigers and lions that had been placed in two straight lines, creating a pathway towards the palace, which was Naruto and Akisada's destination.
The reason for this interest was due to the unknown energy he felt was stronger around the statues, which was one of the intriguing things he saw in this dimension.
After the duo entered the palace and walked towards the throne room, Naruto saw two large thrones with a large lion and tiger sitting on the thrones.
The lion had golden brown fur, and his mane is slightly darker than his fur. His golden eyes stared at Naruto with open interest.
The tiger next to him had white fur with black stripes and beautiful blue eyes, and he was also staring at Naruto with interest.
Both the tiger and lion are large enough that they can crush an adult human with their paw. Still, in Naruto's eyes, they weren't as tall as the Nine Tails Fox.
The tiger and lion were caught off guard after Naruto stared at them without being amazed by their size or feeling fear, which really interested the two of them.
"Akisada, who is this kid?" The lion asks in an intimidating voice.
"Lord Helios, this is a child name Naruto is one who ended up here after using the Summoning Technique without a contract. It appears that he has a natural affinity with you and Lord Shiro's people," Akisada responds with respect in his voice.
"Didn't we already tell you not to call us lord?" The tiger named Shiro said calmly.
"I wouldn't dare to call you informally," Akisada responds calmly.
"Forget about it." Helios slightly shakes his head. "You should know, Shiro, how stubborn this man is."
Helios's eyes then turn towards Naruto. He and Shiro already felt the immense power hidden within the child in front of them, and to say they were shocked was a great understatement.
The two were terrified by the kid's potential. Just like Akisada, they immediately saw the future of the kid in front of them to be a terrifying existence that might even surpass Hashirama and Madara.
It wasn't bad for them to form a contract with Naruto and even be willing to immediately teach him the sage arts, but they also understood they had to move slowly, or else it might backfire on them.
It wasn't uncommon for ninja to betray their summoning animals due to their poor relationship, and both Helios and Shiro know that they have to cultivate a good relationship with Naruto to gain benefits from his certainly successful future.