Night, training space, the home of Nine-Tails and Naruto (Chapter 66).
Little Nine-Tails' lazy body was completely sunken into a huge, soft, cream-colored sofa. It was playing on a small handheld console with its not-so-small claws.
The game was called Ninja God, a 2D side-scrolling fighting game similar to Street Fighter.
At this moment, Kurama, the great fox, was controlling a formidable "Nine-Tails" character, relentlessly beating a pathetic "Hashirama Senju" into a corner.
"Roar! Cyclone Claw! Cyclone Claw!" Nine-Tails muttered to itself, its small eyes wide and gleaming with excitement.
"Wood Style? Block!"
"Witness the old man's ultimate move: Tailed Beast Bomb!!!"
Rumble!
Accompanied by a shocking sound effect, Hashirama's health bar was instantly depleted!
"Hahahaha!" Nine-Tails' tail tip was raised to the sky in triumph. "I won again! Hashirama Senju! You're too dangerous! But I've already beaten you 114,514 times!"
Whoosh!
With a flash of golden light, Naruto silently appeared back in the small house. Before he could even speak, his ears were tickled by Nine-Tails' self-satisfied roar.
Its nine tails swayed, four of them hovering over the handheld console, 'pointing and gesturing.' Without even looking, Naruto knew it was using a physical cheat.
His mouth couldn't help but twitch. "Tsk, Little Raccoon, bullying the First again? Haven't you gotten tired of it after over a hundred thousand matches?"
"Naruto! I told you not to call me Little Raccoon! I'm Kurama! If nothing else, Big Fox or Big Raccoon is fine, but why call me Little Raccoon? Do I have no dignity?"
They were like an old married couple, or rather, old friends. Nine-Tails huffed, its cheeks puffed out with annoyance, muttering the slang it had learned from Naruto.
But its paws didn't slow down. It started a new match, once again pitting Nine-Tails against Hashirama Senju.
"I know, Little Raccoon, okay, Little Raccoon!"
Naruto replied perfunctorily, sitting down on the sofa and hugging one of the fluffy tails.
"Little Raccoon, I need to ask you something."
"Hmm?"
Nine-Tails grunted through its nose, its four tails still moving at lightning speed on the console. It didn't even lift an eyelid. "Spit it out. Don't interrupt me while I'm defeating a powerful enemy."
"I've been thinking about the chakra in my body recently," Naruto said slowly, not stopping his petting. "I found that besides your chakra and my own, there are three other unfamiliar chakras."
The paw controlling the D-pad froze imperceptibly for a tenth of a second.
"Three?"
"Yes, three. Two of the chakras are connected to the sealing jutsu that sealed you. Do you have any idea what they are?"
"Two in the sealing jutsu?"
Two chakras... Instantly, two images flashed in Nine-Tails' mind: a conspicuous blond and a dazzling redhead. The "Tomato and Egg" duo!
Them again! Even after they died, they still treat me like a thief!
This Naruto is more of a monster than a monster! He's been dominating me since he was six, and they're still worried about this little monster!
A surge of unnamed anger flared up!
However, in the next second, it met Naruto's clear blue eyes, which held both a smile and a hint of mischief.
Kurama instantly remembered the fear of being dominated by Naruto, and its anger immediately vanished!
It swallowed the non-existent saliva with difficulty and nervously scratched its stomach with its paw. "Hmph. They're probably... the chakras of the one or two people who 'invited' me in here to be a prisoner, right?"
Naruto's smile deepened as he watched the big fox's instant change in expression. He nodded.
He wasn't surprised by the answer.
It was probably a failsafe to prevent him, a naive child, from being coaxed by Nine-Tails into breaking the seal.
Sealing their own chakra inside the seal at the same time showed a high level of sealing jutsu mastery.
But this kind of chakra was a one-time-use item, unlike his.
When he had some free time, he would pick an auspicious day and a beautiful location to personally open that 'lock.' Then, he would be able to meet them and, at the same time, give Kurama back its 'freedom.'
He guessed Nine-Tails wouldn't even want to leave. The training space was perfect—it was spacious, there were no interruptions, and it had everything from delicious food to fun games.
But Nine-Tails' cage had to come down eventually!
"What about the other one? Do you know anything about it?"
Nine-Tails shook its head wildly.
Naruto shrugged. He would ask another day.
With that, he hugged the fluffy, chubby Kurama. "Little Raccoon, let's play against each other online!"
Feeling the hug, Nine-Tails completely relaxed. "Hmph, no way. I've never won against you!"
The next day.
Iwagakure, the Land of Earth.
Early in the morning, Onoki was drinking tea and taking a copy of the Ninja World Daily from Akatsuchi.
This was a newspaper he had to read every day, as its intelligence was sometimes faster than his own Iwagakure intelligence department.
Major events that happened in various parts of the ninja world the previous night, no matter how remote, would appear on the front page the next morning and quickly spread throughout the ninja world.
Whether the information was accurate was one thing, but the speed was something that Iwagakure's ninjas couldn't hope to match, even if they ran their legs off!
More importantly, the Ninja World Daily could always dig up jaw-dropping exclusive scoops beyond the usual intelligence!
The most representative example was the "Obito Uchiha Incident."
While the major villages had yet to hear of this person, the Ninja World Daily had already used an explosive, multi-page report to thoroughly analyze the mysterious person's identity, history of misdeeds, and the detailed abilities of his Mangekyō Sharingan, shocking the entire ninja world!
The source of this startlingly accurate intelligence remained a mystery to this day. It was by using this "Obito Uchiha" black hand of the ninja world that the Ninja World Daily had soared, cementing its position as the industry leader with sales that were leagues ahead of the competition.
However, the recent continuous theme of the Ninja World Daily was the Konoha 'Chunin Exams,' which made Onoki's brow furrow.
The Ninja World Daily was a major international paper, yet it was so actively promoting one village. Old Man Hiruzen must have spent a lot of money!
Onoki was already pondering whether to collaborate with the Ninja World Daily and hold some kind of tournament or event in Iwagakure.
What Konoha can do, my Iwagakure must not fall behind on!
This was a great opportunity to promote Iwagakure; as long as the promotion went well, various mission requests would come pouring in!
Iwagakure, though it had many ninjas, was also short on money!
Taking the newspaper, Onoki didn't rush to open it. Instead, he shot a sharp glance at Akatsuchi. "You didn't buy Men's Swagger again, did you?"
"No, Lord Tsuchikage!"
Akatsuchi quickly waved his hands, a helpless smile on his face. "The last batch of Men's Swagger was bundled with 'Soothing Pills.' The rule was that anyone who bought Soothing Pills of size '4' or above had to take a copy of Men's Swagger with it. I couldn't do anything about it..."
Hearing that, Onoki's old back instinctively began to ache. He forced himself to hold back his anger. "Hmph... Forget it!"
"Today's newspaper, I can guess what's in it with my eyes closed!"
Before even opening the paper, Onoki spoke with a tone of certainty and deep disdain. "The front page will definitely be about that Konoha Chunin Exam again! And the rest of the pages will surely be about that brat named Naruto Uzumaki! Constantly bragging that he's a once-in-a-century genius of Konoha!"
"After all, the biggest event in the ninja world right now is the Chunin Exams, isn't it?" Akatsuchi stammered, feeling that the Tsuchikage's reaction was a bit excessive.
"Idiot! I see you completely fail to understand how terrifying the invisible power behind this 'propaganda' is!"
Onoki slammed his hand on the table, his mustache trembling with anger. "Look! Ever since Men's Swagger started circulating in the village, people everywhere have been saying how amazing that Naruto Uzumaki is! Even my granddaughter, Kurotsuchi, keeps a copy hidden away!"
Thinking of his granddaughter's shy expression as she praised Naruto Uzumaki as a genius who was idealistic, determined, filial, simple, pure, righteous, and cute, Onoki was filled with sorrow and indignation.
"If this keeps up, why even fight? When that Naruto Uzumaki comes knocking, Iwagakure might as well just surrender!"
"But..." Akatsuchi hesitated to remind him. "Lord Tsuchikage, the Ninja World Media Group behind the Ninja World Daily and the Soothing Pills are in a partnership. If we stop selling Men's Swagger, the Soothing Pills will have to go with it."
"Hmph!" At the mention of "Soothing Pills," the anger Onoki had just worked up instantly dissipated.
The Soothing Pills had become a necessity for ninjas, a strategic resource they couldn't live without for training and combat.
The deep and mysterious network behind it was complex and untraceable. They couldn't even find a single lead to follow.
"Fine!"
Onoki grabbed his teacup and took a big gulp, then opened the newspaper!
Pfft—!!!
As soon as he opened the paper, Onoki spit out all the tea he had just drunk.
He was looking at the headline on the front page of the Ninja World Daily: [Chunin Exams in Crisis — Orochimaru's Plan to Destroy Konoha]
Orochimaru? Plan to Destroy Konoha?
"Hahahaha." Onoki instantly burst into laughter.
The content was so explosive, yet it was on the front page?
Who said the Ninja World Daily was bought out? This newspaper was excellent!
Onoki smiled and read the details. The front-page article described the ins and outs of Orochimaru's plan to crush Konoha.
Orochimaru's own forces: The Village Hidden in the Sound + Orochimaru, one of the Legendary Sannin
Allies: The First Hokage and the Second Hokage, resurrected through a special jutsu
Allies: The Village Hidden in the Sand + The One-Tailed Shukaku
Allies: Obito Uchiha
Objective: To destroy Konoha
Orochimaru + The Village Hidden in the Sound + The Village Hidden in the Sand + The First and Second Hokages + Obito Uchiha!
At first, Onoki had some doubts about the headline's authenticity, but when he saw the lineup, he could barely contain his laughter. Konoha was surely going to suffer heavy losses. Could it have... already been destroyed?
Onoki eagerly read on, filled with anticipation.
It turned out Orochimaru failed?!
With the resurrected First and Second Hokages, the One-Tailed Tailed Beast, the S-rank rogue ninja Obito Uchiha, and two ninja villages, he still failed?
The mere thought of the First Hokage—no, the mere thought of Madara Uchiha, who was defeated by the First Hokage—filled Onoki's life with gloom.
Who in Konoha could possibly defeat the First Hokage?
The article ended by mentioning a name: Naruto Uzumaki!
The more specific details were on page four!
"Heh, just as I expected! The Ninja World Daily will stop at nothing to promote Konoha and that brat Naruto Uzumaki! They'll make up any lie! To claim that a 12-year-old kid can defeat the First Hokage... it's a joke!"
As a Kage, Onoki had no illusions about this kind of newspaper.
This ridiculous paper wasn't worth reading!
Onoki took another big gulp of tea, intending to throw the paper away. But his curiosity got the better of him, and he absentmindedly turned to page four.
Pfft—!!!
As soon as he opened the page, Onoki spit out all the tea he had just drunk again.
The headline read: [The God of Shinobi — Naruto Uzumaki]
The headline wasn't the point; the image was!
A blond teenager was floating in the sky, his eyes looking down on the world with silent disdain. With a casual wave of his right hand, a massive pillar of pure white light instantly connected heaven and earth!
"This... this horrifyingly wide pillar of light... is that... my Dust Release?" Onoki was shocked and speechless, his mouth gaping open. He didn't even notice the old pain in his back flaring up.
He felt that his decades-long view of the ninja world had been completely overturned!
He had been worried that Konoha might use the Edo Tensei jutsu to resurrect the First Hokage in a war.
Now, he didn't need to worry anymore.
Because a youngster stronger than the First Hokage was still alive!
This damn youngster!