Inside the grand Akakage tower, Kurama found a quiet chamber to retreat to after Kushina's battle against Shinnō and the Land of the Sky. The tower's walls, reinforced with intricate fuinjutsu seals that glowed faintly in the dim light, hummed with latent chakra. The air was cool and still, carrying the faint scent of polished wood and incense from the adjacent shrine room.
Normally, Kurama would remain close to Kushina, either sealed within her or manifesting nearby in his natural or human form. But this time, he had a specific purpose that required solitude in the overworld- experimentation with the newfound power he'd absorbed.
He sat down in a meditative position on the polished stone floor, the room's high ceiling and large windows overlooking the island's coastline. The space was simple yet functional: a desk cluttered with scrolls, maps of the shinobi world pinned to the walls, and a single lantern casting a warm glow.
Kurama closed his red-slitted eyes and looked inwards. The so-called Zero-Tails he had absorbed earlier was the first 'Tailed Beast' he had ever consumed. Before that, he had merely theorized about it; he had no practical experience to draw from.
What would happen if one beast devoured another? Would the power mingle, granting him their abilities? Would he be warped? Would it merely strengthen him? The truth was untested- until now.
Maybe, in the future, he would even be able to use their signature abilities- like Kokuo's Boil Release or Son Goku's Lava Release.
The Zero-Tails, unlike his siblings, was an artificial construct born from human malice, not the Sage's division of the Ten-Tails. Its dark chakra was twisted, and Kurama was eager to dissect its effects.
As he probed the depths of his chakra, he was surprised at how… unchanged he felt. His body, his mind, and his malice- they were all the same as they had ever been. No personality differences or changes in appearance. That was good.
And then there was something else.
Kurama could feel it- something new curling in the pit of his being. A power that had not existed before.
The abilities of Tailed Beasts were inherent and innate. As soon as he was created from the Ten-Tails' division, he immediately comprehended how to sense malice. It came as naturally as breathing. Kushina had to spend months sharpening her sensitivity. He had simply known.
And now he simply knew again. He had two new abilities: the creation of dark chakra and absorbing negative emotions.
Kurama's lips peeled back in a vulpine grin. 'So this is the Zero-Tails' gift…'
He stretched one hand forward, letting a coil of the strange new chakra curl around his wrist. It flickered like smoke, faintly black, and it was hungry. Different from his own crimson chakra, but not incompatible. In fact, it felt almost natural paired with his malice.
"Next time we meet, Madara," Kurama thought, "things will be different."
He was already imagining Madara Uchiha, defeated underneath his heel, his cursed Sharingan dimmed forever. If there was one person he despised most in the whole world, it would definitely be Madara Uchiha- a mortal who dared to control him, like some kind of common tool.
The Senju who had bound him to a Jinchuriki had earned his scorn, too, but Madara's control was different. It was a violation of his free will, a desecration of his consciousness. The Uchiha's cursed eyes had enslaved him, forcing him to fight against his nature. The memory ignited a rage that burned red hot.
Once he got his hands on that damned Uchiha, he would know hell. His mind conjured the image easily: Madara beneath his claws, screaming, bones shattering as teeth closed around him. The fox would tear him limb from limb, burn him until nothing remained, scatter his ashes in the wind-
Kurama snapped his eyes open and growled, dragging himself back to the present. His thoughts got carried away. They always did when the Uchiha's name passed through his mind.
Breathing deep, he returned his focus to his boons.
The ability to absorb negative emotions sounded good on paper, but his chakra was already so immense that it'd take a nation of misery to make any noticeable difference.
A single person's despair, like Madara's, would be a drop in the ocean. But the ability to create Dark Chakra was much more interesting.
The way Shinnō used it was rudimentary. Kurama could already envision refinements.
Unlike his, which drowned any exposed to it in dread and primal fear, this black chakra was parasitic. It didn't just terrify- it inflamed those emotions. It latched onto the hatred already inside a heart and fanned it, swelling anger into rage, grief into despair, and doubt into loathing.
Against weak opponents, it would drop them into unconsciousness with the sheer weight of their emotions turning against them. Against the strong, it would corrode their precision, make their strikes wilder, and cloud their judgment.
And beyond that, it leeched chakra.
Kurama's hands flexed as he thought it through. Chakra was born from the balance of physical and spiritual energies. And what were negative emotions but twisted strands of spiritual energy? To sap those emotions was to drink directly from the well of another's chakra. It would be highly effective.
Especially against the Uchiha. Their dojutsu thrived on mental energy. If he could drain that, then even the Sharingan would falter.
A cruel, sharp smile spread across his face. This was a gift worth keeping.
----
While he studied his new powers, the rest of the clan was celebrating in the grand hall of the Akakage building.
This was their first conflict since the founding of Akagakure, and it was an overwhelming success. Although the nation they faced wasn't very impressive, the victory was a morale boost, a reminder that the Uzumaki were no longer prey but predators in the shinobi world.
In the grand hall, everyone was gathered. Music played, lively tunes from flutes and drums echoing off the high ceilings adorned with red and black banners. Drinks were shared- sake and herbal teas- and meals served on long tables laden with fresh fish, roasted meats, and vegetables from the island's fertile gardens.
Laughter filled the room, children darting between legs, elders sharing stories of Uzushio's glory days. It was a scene of unity, a far cry from the scattered, hunted existence they had endured for years.
Kushina encouraged such gatherings whenever possible. They weren't for her- she was never truly comfortable in the middle of a noisy crowd- but for her people. For those who had endured too much grief, who deserved some moments of joy.
She sat apart from the throng, high on the raised platform at the back of the hall. A throne carved from dark wood marked her seat, a table of delicacies set before her. At her side stood Aina, her ever-dutiful assistant. From her perch, Kushina observed with a faint, reserved smile.
It didn't take long before someone broke from the crowd.
An Uzumaki elder, stooped with age yet carrying the unmistakable vitality of his clan, approached slowly. For their kind to appear old at all meant his years were beyond count. He stopped before her throne, bowed deeply, and knelt.
"Lady Kushina," he said, his voice gravelly but steady, "may I speak?"
"You may," she replied, her tone level but not unkind. Though she projected the image of an aloof leader, she rarely denied requests of her people.
He lifted his head. "My name is Akaji Uzumaki."
Recognition stirred in Kushina. She remembered the report. He had been rescued not long ago by Akinari Uzumaki- he also found the Sword of the Thunder God on the same day, which she let him keep as a reward.
Akaji continued, "I was once an elder, before Uzushio fell." A shadow crossed his face, and his voice grew heavy. "I was among those who decided you would be sent to Konoha."
His face shadowed, "I was one of the ones who decided you would be sent to Konoha."
Kushina's eyes narrowed, just slightly.
Akaji bowed until his forehead touched the floor. His voice trembled, though his body remained steady. "After their betrayal… I regretted it every day. I regret it still, and will until the end of my life. It was my fault that Uzushio fell. My fault that we trusted in them- in the First Hokage's promise. Sending you away… was foolish beyond words."
"After they betrayed us, I regretted every day. I still regret it- and probably will for the rest of my life. It was my fault that Uzushiogakure fell. Sending you to Konoha- trusting them in the first place," he shook his head in self-derision. "It was foolish."
He pressed himself lower, slipping into full dogeza. "Please... forgive me. My life, my knowledge, and my wisdom- I offer it all to you. Allow me to atone, even if it means my death."
For a long moment, Kushina simply studied him. The hall beyond roared with joy, but between them there was silence.
Finally, she spoke. "Enough."
Akaji's face fell. The word struck him hard- would she decline?
But Kushina's next words were different. "You are still an elder of the clan. Thoughtless, perhaps, in the past, but your strength and knowledge are needed now more than ever. I will not waste them, dattebane. You will join the administrative council alongside Kaoru as an advisor."
Her blue eyes narrowed. "If you truly wish to repent, then do so with the rest of your life. Spend what years you have left serving the clan."
For a heartbeat, Akaji could only gape. Then he bowed again, trembling with relief. "Thank you, Lady Kushina. Thank you... I will serve, until my last breath." If he were younger, he might've cried.
Kushina leaned back on her throne, watching him quietly. She would be lying if she claimed she felt no resentment toward those who had sent her to Konoha.
That decision had shaped the pain of her childhood. But… in the end, it had led her here. To her clan restored, to the strength she wielded now. Her thoughts drifted to a certain fox, and a soft smile appeared on her face. Perhaps, in some twisted way, it had worked out for the best.