"Hey! You bastard!"
"Are you really going to abandon all the years we spent together?"
Late at night, at the entrance of the orphanage, over twenty orphans and the director, Nono, watched as Kabuto walked toward a group of black-clad figures.
The one who had shouted was an orphan named Urushi, who is a few years older than Kabuto. He had some talent in Medical Ninjutsu, and had accompanied Nono to the front lines to treat Konoha's Ninjas.
It was also during the Battle of Kikyo Pass that Nono rescued an orphan and named him Kabuto.
After Kabuto displayed his talent as a Medical-Nin, he, along with Aki, had assisted Nono in providing battlefield treatment for Konoha's Ninjas.
Because of this, Urushi and Kabuto had grown quite close.
Standing at the back of the crowd, Menma watched Aki's outburst and Kabuto's departure.
His memories began to emerge, and he vaguely remembered that after the end of the Fourth Great Ninja War in Naruto, when Kabuto returned to Konoha Orphanage to be the director, it was this Urushi who accompanied him.
"Kabuto… why?" Nono clasped her hands together in a prayer-like gesture, unable to comprehend Kabuto's decision to leave. Her eyes were filled with worry.
She knew all too well how vile the Root was, and she didn't want any of her children to be taken away by Danzo.
"I just want to become a Ninja." Kabuto concealed his true emotions and thoughts. As he stood before Danzo and Orochimaru, he turned slightly, taking one last look at his family at the orphanage.
Just as Kabuto was about to say something more, he suddenly saw the smallest figure pushing through the crowd and stepping forward.
"Kabuto, remember our promise, okay?" Menma shouted at him.
"Menma?" Kabuto was surprised.
Then, he shook his head with a bitter smile: "Has everyone forgotten the orphanage's rules? It's time for bed."
After saying that, Kabuto turned and walked over to Danzo's side.
Orochimaru, who is wearing a black cloak, narrowed his eyes and examined the children in the orphanage, while sticking out his tongue to sense the Chakra in the air.
However, aside from Nono and the child who had shouted earlier, none of the others carried the scent of Chakra… including the boy who had spoken of some promise with Kabuto.
This disappointed Orochimaru, 'It seemed that, aside from Kabuto, none of these orphans possessed any notable Ninja talent.'
Danzo looked at Kabuto with satisfaction before nodding. Then, along with Orochimaru and Aburame Tatsuma, he turned to leave.
Kabuto followed the three of them, disappearing into the night.
The other caretakers of the orphanage began ushering the children back inside. Nono remained standing where she was, gazing in the direction Kabuto had left, her hands pressed together in prayer.
"Director." Menma walked up behind Nono and gently tugged at her sleeve.
"Menma, you should go to sleep now." Nono lowered her head, trying to hide her sorrow and pain as she spoke softly to Menma.
Unlike the other children, who called her Mother, Menma, who is a somewhat precocious child, had always been a bit of a headache for Nono.
Not only did he stand apart from the other orphans, but he also never called her Mother, only ever addressing her as Director.
"I'll bring Kabuto back." Menma's small face was filled with determination.
However, Nono simply assumed that Menma couldn't bear the thought of losing a family member.
But she still felt comforted, 'It seemed Menma wasn't as withdrawn as I had thought… he did have close friends after all.'
"It's alright. Kabuto will come back." Nono crouched down and affectionately ruffled Menma's black hair.
She couldn't help but wonder, 'When I had first found this child, hadn't his hair been blond? How had it turned black as he grew older?'
…
Late at night, when all the children were fast asleep...
Menma lay on his bed with his eyes closed, listening to the steady breathing of the other children as he continued refining the Chakra within his body.
But he felt as though there was a bottomless vortex near his stomach, greedily devouring his Chakra.
Even with his strong physical constitution from being a member of the Uzumaki Clan, the Chakra he refined couldn't fill this void.
Drip…
The sound of water droplets echoed and Menma's eyes snapped open.
What appeared before him wasn't the ceiling of the orphanage, nor were there any beds or the sound of children sleeping peacefully around him.
Instead, he found himself in a dim, damp environment, the air thick with moisture and an unsettling, restless energy.
Menma stepped barefoot in the shallow water and looked up at the tall, sealed iron gate in front of him.
Behind the gate, a dark red figure with nine tails slowly approached.
"Nine-Tails… long time no see." Menma called out softly, as if greeting an old friend.
As the figure drew closer, Menma finally saw clearly… the one imprisoned behind the gate wasn't the massive Nine-Tails he knew, but a tiny Nine-Tailed Fox, no bigger than himself.
"Menma! Where the heck is this place?" The small, black-furred Nine-Tailed Fox pressed her paws against the iron bars.
Her dark red fur bristled slightly, but unlike the rough, deep voice of the original Nine-Tails, her tone was gentle and carried a distinctly feminine softness.
"Tsk tsk, it really is you, Nine-Tails." Menma muttered, rubbing his forehead as he stared at the tiny dark red Nine-Tails, his mind reeling.
'Was that world really a parallel world that actually exists?'
"But if it was real, why was I, who was born in that world, forcibly ejected from it?"
Menma still couldn't make sense of it.
But at the very least, one thing was certain… the Black Nine-Tails before him was the one he had brought back from the [Limited Tsukuyomi World], and she is female.
Her personality was the complete opposite of Kurama's tsundere, lazy, and reclusive nature.
The Black Nine-Tails in the 'Limited Tsukuyomi World' is not only gentle in character, but also has a very good relationship with Menma.
"Menma! It's so dark in here, hurry up and let me out!" The little Nine-Tails rattled the iron gate.
"If someone sees your Nine-Tails form outside, it'll bring me a lot of trouble." Menma said, glancing at the seals on the iron gate. But his words were just an excuse… he knew the risks, yet he didn't truly mind.
In the [Limited Tsukuyomi World], he and Dark Nine-Tails had been the best of partners. During the final battle, Menma had even controlled Dark Nine-Tails to face off against an army of 80,000 Ninjas, reenacting Madara's infamous 'Do you want to dance too?' moment.
"You always have such weird preferences." The little Nine-Tails grumbled, but she quickly formed hand seals.
"Transformation Technique!"
Bang!
After a puff of smoke, the little Nine-Tails inside the gate transformed into a little fox girl.
She was barefoot and wearing a kimono with a red-patterned kimono. Her dark red hair were adorned with perky fox ears, while nine fluffy tails swayed behind her.
"My Chakra's too low… This is the best I can do for now. It'll take at least three to five years to fully recover." The Black Nine-Tails muttered, glancing down at her transformed appearance before looking back at Menma.
"But I won't need to keep absorbing your Chakra anymore. I can recover slowly now… and even supply Chakra to you."
Seeing the eager little fox girl who couldn't wait to share her Chakra with him, Uzumaki Menma grinned and gave her a thumbs-up.
In his mind, he was already imagining the sheer shock on Naruto and Kurama's faces when they saw Dark Nine-Tails over a decade later.