Naruto opened his eyes and immediately started talking excitedly, firing off questions at Orochimaru.
"Where was that just now? What was that giant fox doing there? It was so strong!"
"That place?" Orochimaru chuckled. "It wasn't somewhere else—it's inside you."
He reached over, lifted Naruto's shirt slightly, and pointed to just below his navel.
"Around here."
"Here?" Naruto pressed his hand to his stomach, confused.
"Why would anyone put a fox in my belly?"
"Because the Nine-Tails is powerful—and dangerous."
Orochimaru looked down from atop the Fourth Hokage's stone head, gazing at the village below where the lights were slowly going out. For a moment, he imagined again the chaos the Nine-Tails had once unleashed.
"Kyuubi might not have wanted to destroy the village, but it's all too easy to be used as a weapon."
He continued, explaining how, from the Warring States period to the founding of the ninja villages, the ability to capture and use tailed beasts evolved. What was once impossible for small clans or even powerful shinobi became standard military strategy.
"Even putting aside the First Hokage or Uchiha Madara," he said, "plenty of villages eventually figured out how to turn tailed beasts into tools of war."
This shift wasn't immediate. It wasn't until Madara returned to Konoha and set off the tailed beast conflict that the danger was fully recognized—and the First Five Kage Summit was held to discuss it.
As Orochimaru outlined the destruction caused by the Nine-Tails' attack on Konoha, Naruto's eyes widened. He'd never heard this before. In the village, the incident was a taboo subject—never brought up, not even by Aoi or Jiraiya.
Some saw Naruto as a monster. Others saw him as just a child. Orochimaru, however, didn't bother with such emotional filters.
Now that Naruto had met the Nine-Tails in his mind, it was time to be honest. Ignoring it would be the worst kind of neglect.
Naruto looked down at the spiral seal on his stomach.
"So that's why they call me the demon fox..."
It was hypocrisy. People feared him for harboring the Nine-Tails, but because he was under the protection of the two legendary Sannin, they were forced to smile and pretend otherwise. Behind his back, though, resentment festered.
Naruto wasn't clueless. He could sense emotions better than most—he'd always noticed the shift in atmosphere when people thought he wasn't watching.
"I thought I did something wrong," he said, then smiled and laughed, clapping his hands.
"So it's because of the fox in my belly!"
Orochimaru raised an eyebrow.
"You've been treated unfairly for something that wasn't your fault. Don't you hate them for it?"
"Why would I hate them?" Naruto replied. "That fox is scary as hell. I'd be scared too."
That answer made Orochimaru nod subtly. Naruto had an uncanny empathy—an ability to understand others and forgive without bitterness. And he was strong enough to carry the pain without turning it into hatred.
This was the kind of person who could become a perfect jinchūriki.
"But even if the fox is scary..." Naruto frowned, thinking aloud.
"Was it really okay to lock it up just because it's powerful?"
Orochimaru wasn't surprised by the question. If Naruto could sympathize with the villagers, it was natural he could also sympathize with the Nine-Tails.
This kind of compassion could make him a great jinchūriki—or a dangerous idealist.
"Some people would say that uncontrollable power is the original sin—that it deserves to be sealed," Orochimaru said, "but the truth is, the Nine-Tails didn't really do anything wrong."
He explained how, decades ago, the fox was simply roaming through the forest—its ordinary life—until Uchiha Madara showed up and forcefully bent it to his will.
"That's what I thought too," Naruto said brightly, encouraged to hear someone agree.
"Still," Orochimaru said more soberly, "just because it didn't do anything wrong doesn't mean there isn't a problem. The threat it poses is very real."
Naruto fell quiet, staring at his stomach again.
"It seems like that's our problem," he said slowly, "not the fox's."
"But it's all connected." Orochimaru's voice was calm. "Everything in this world is linked by invisible threads."
He paused, then abruptly asked,
"Naruto, what's your favorite food?"
Naruto blinked at the sudden change of topic.
"Uh... Ichiraku Ramen! Especially the char siu—so good!"
"Char siu... That's pork, right?"
Naruto nodded.
"You eat it to survive. But did that pig ever hurt you?"
Naruto looked confused.
"No... of course not."
"Exactly. You eat it because you need to. That's the connection between you and that pig—even though you never met it. It's the same with the Nine-Tails and the village."
Orochimaru's gaze turned cold and analytical.
"It's not about blame anymore. It's about survival. And when survival's on the line, morality becomes... flexible."
"The village didn't have a perfect solution. So they settled for one they could live with—even if it meant imprisoning the Nine-Tails."
He ruffled Naruto's hair gently.
"That's how it is. Do you understand?"
Naruto stood still, visibly shaken.
He had heard many stories about justice and evil—about heroes and villains. But this was different. This was about survival and consequence. There were no villains—just choices.
Both the village and the Nine-Tails had reasons. The village acted out of fear. The fox acted because it was forced. And the cycle went on.
"It's stupid," Naruto murmured. "They keep fighting and hurting each other... Why don't they just figure out a better way together?"
Orochimaru didn't laugh. Most people lacked Naruto's clarity. The villagers were scared. The Nine-Tails was angry. Neither side was wrong—but neither wanted to back down.
"You're right," he said simply. "I think so too."
He placed a hand on Naruto's head.
"I'll handle the village. You try convincing the Nine-Tails. Sound good?"
Naruto's eyes lit up.
"Yeah! Leave it to me!"
Of course, it wouldn't be that easy. The Nine-Tails wasn't the type to be persuaded. Naruto would fail, struggle, and be frustrated—but that would be part of the journey. Orochimaru would guide him when the time came.
"Good. I look forward to seeing what you do. But for now, it's bedtime."
Orochimaru clapped his hands. A shadow clone appeared next to him.
Naruto's eyes lit up.
"Whoa! A clone?!"
"That's the Shadow Clone Technique," Orochimaru smiled. "I'll teach it to you when you become a proper ninja."
"You promise?"
"Promise."
Naruto let the clone pick him up and leapt down from the Hokage Rock.
Orochimaru watched him go, then his expression turned serious. He glanced at the Lamp God beside him.
"Well? What did you notice about the Nine-Tails?"
This meeting wasn't just to talk to Naruto—or even Kyuubi. It was also an investigation.
After his encounter with Shukaku in Sunagakure, Orochimaru had questions.
Despite being ancient creatures, the tailed beasts didn't seem to have mature minds. Shukaku behaved like a child. Even the Nine-Tails, though more composed, was mentally no older than a teenager.
"It's strange," Orochimaru muttered. "Even creatures like the White Snake Sage or the Slug Sage have deep awareness. But the tailed beasts... they feel stunted."
"My guess?" said the Lamp God, rubbing his chin. "The Nine-Tails has more than just chakra—it has a body of some kind. What I saw wasn't the same as the raw chakra that was extracted from Shukaku before."
He recalled a moment in the original timeline—how even after Naruto had taken a huge portion of Kyuubi's chakra, the fox still had enough left to fire massive Tailed Beast Bombs. That didn't make sense unless something was being held in reserve.
"So even after extraction, tailed beasts retain power the jinchūriki can't touch?"
"Exactly," the Lamp God said. "Even Killer Bee, as perfect a host as he was, never matched the full might of the real Eight-Tails."
Orochimaru nodded.
"When I fought the Eight-Tails jinchūriki, his chakra felt... calmer. Not like Kyuubi's overwhelming aggression."
Maybe their violent nature wasn't just from human mistreatment. Maybe it was innate. They came from Kaguya, after all—maybe their rage was part of that legacy.
But even that wasn't conclusive.
"We shouldn't jump to moral conclusions about Kaguya either," Orochimaru said. "To us she may seem cruel, but to her, we're no different than wheat to a farmer."
Then his gaze sharpened.
"By the way... have you seen the Minato couple?"
"Sleeping within the seal," the Lamp God replied. "They might only faintly sense what's happening around them—probably not worth trying to communicate for now."
He hesitated, then added,
"But there is an unexpected guest you should be aware of."
"Guest?" Orochimaru's eyes narrowed.
"Sage of the Six Paths."
The Lamp God smiled, hands spread.
"Seems the old man's keeping a close eye on his son's reincarnation."
Orochimaru folded his arms, thoughtful.
With all that was happening—White Zetsu clones, new Wood Release users, jinchūriki alignments—it made sense.
The Sage was watching.
_____________________
The story is Finished on patreon (394 Chapters)
Join my patreon
patreon.com/Silver757
Or Tip me on
coff.ee/silver7959
http://buymeacoffee.com/silver7959