Inside a shrine, on a lonely mountaintop secluded from Akagakure, Kushina, Kurama, and little Fū prepared for a ritual.
The air here was thinner, colder, and carried a stillness that pressed against the skin. Tall cedars surrounded the clearing, their branches swaying. The shrine stood at the heart of it all.
This place had been painstakingly built by her people. The original Noh Mask Hall had been lost in Uzushio's destruction, but here, atop this hidden peak, they had remade it. Dozens of eerie masks hung in rows along the walls, each one carved with a distinct, unsettling face- some laughing, some scowling, and some bearing expressions so lifelike that Fū had flinched upon first seeing them.
Below, just as in the original, a secret chamber waited, filled with scrolls and techniques known only within the Uzumaki clan.
Every inch of the shrine was laced with Kushina's seals. Woven into the wood, the stone, and the earth, they shimmered faintly if one looked hard enough. No intruder could set foot inside the secret chamber without Uzumaki blood flowing through their veins. Even then, to tamper recklessly with the place meant certain death- the entire structure would self-destruct, swallowing secrets and trespassers alike.
Kurama himself was barred from entry, though not by intent. The sealwork didn't recognize him; the barrier responded only to Uzumaki blood.
He had grumbled for a few seconds when he discovered the flaws. But in the end, he had dismissed them with a flick of his tails. It was a trivial matter, hardly worth more than a snort.
Lately, Kurama found his patience tested not by seals but by himself.
In recent months, with the immediate threats pushed back, he had nearly fallen into old patterns- the same rhythms that had defined centuries of his existence. Sleep, and then more sleep.
In the world's eyes, he had been a force of nature, a calamity that appeared, destroyed, and vanished again. What no one understood was that most of his days had been spent in silence. Lying in clearings and basking in the moonlight.
Occasionally, he entertained himself by studying the jutsu of nations he left in ruin, or by pondering the Sage's words from so long ago. But mostly, he slumbered.
It would have been easy- too easy- to drift back into that routine now. With the conflicts momentarily distant, the temptations of lethargy whispered to him. Yet there was one thing, one reason, that kept him sharp and alert.
Kushina.
There was never a dull moment with her. Never silence nor monotony. Around her, his thousand-year solitude seemed almost like a bad dream.
If he faltered now, the price would be more than his own pride. He would not simply reform years later, reborn from chakra as always. This time was different. Failure meant the destruction of his consciousness, and worse- the true death of Kushina. Everything would be over, for good.
He would not let that happen.
And so, they had come to this: the ritual. The consumption of the Seven-Tails, Chōmei, his brother.
That had been the original reason they brought Fū into their fold- to strip her of the beast sealed within. But as months passed, Kushina had grown attached to the girl. Kurama could see it in the way she spoke to her.
The ritual mattered for more than power. Done correctly, it would preserve Fū's life by leaving some of the Seven Tails chakra behind, inside of her. Kurama himself didn't care about that outcome- he would have devoured the Seven-Tails without hesitation if not for Kushina's insistence. But for her sake, he agreed. Because she had asked it of him.
He supposes even Kushina's hardened heart couldn't bear to kill her. It might be because she could relate to Fū as a fellow Jinchuriki.
Now the girl sat fidgeting at the edge of the shrine, her orange eyes darting between the masks and Kushina. Her fear was obvious.
"Kurama, is everything ready?" Kushina's voice was solemn.
"Hn." He grunted in confirmation.
He gestured toward the beds they brought into the shrine. "Lie down here when you're ready."
Kushina nodded. She turned, crouching so she was eye-level with Fū. The girl's small hands twisted at the hem of her dress.
"Lady Kushina, is it… gonna hurt a lot?" Her eyes darted between them, "The bug inside me- it's angry. I can feel it buzzing."
Kushina crouched beside her, resting a hand on her shoulder. "It'll hurt, Fū, I won't lie. But it's necessary, alright? You'll be okay." Her voice was gentle, almost maternal.
Fū bit her lip. "W-what if it… hurts too much? What if I… don't make it?"
Kushina reached out and tucked a stray lock of green hair behind her ear. "Then I'll be right here the whole time. You're not going anywhere."
Kurama snorted from where he loomed beside them, his tails flicking lazily. "Hmph. She'll live. The seals are stable. It's pain, nothing more."
Fū glanced up at him, frowning. "That's easy for you to say. You're… you're huge and scary and strong."
Kurama's crimson eyes narrowed slightly, amused. "Scary is the point, brat. Remember it."
"Kurama." Kushina shot him a sharp look, though there was no real anger in it. "Stop trying to terrify her."
"Ignore him." She squeezed the girl's shoulder. "We're doing this together. You're strong too, you know."
Fū managed a small smile, her anxiety easing slightly. "Okay. I'll try to be brave, like you."
Kurama huffed, turning to the altar. "Enough chatter. Lie down, both of you. This isn't a tea party." He gestured to the beds.
Kushina guided Fū to her bed, helping her settle onto the cushioned surface. "Just breathe, Fū. Think of something nice- like the flowers by the harbor." She climbed onto her own bed, her breathing steadying as she prepared for the ordeal.
Kurama began, "Stay calm, Kushina. Chōmei's gonna fight- don't let it rattle you." His voice was steady, commanding. "Kid, when you feel it moving, you let it go. Don't hold on, or it'll hurt worse."
Fū's voice trembled. "It's buzzing louder now. It doesn't like this." She gripped the bed's edges, her knuckles whitening.
"Tell it to shut up," Kurama growled, as the green aura erupted from Fū, shimmering like ethereal flames. It flowed toward Kushina's stomach, where the Nine-Tails' seal glowed in response.
Both tensed, pain etching their faces. Fū cried out, her small body arching, while Kushina clenched her jaw, her blue eyes burning with resolve.
"It's fighting hard," Kushina hissed through gritted teeth, her voice strained. "Chōmei's stubborn, huh?"
Kurama's gaze narrowed. The sight called back memories of the day Mito passed his burden to Kushina. He had been cautious then, careful not to fight too hard against the transfer. He had not wanted to give Kushina a nightmare on the very day she became his host. "He knows what's coming. He's always been a pest. But he's not escaping this."
"Just focus, Kushina."
"I'm trying, dattebane!" she snapped, sweat beading on her forehead. Her hands gripped the bed.
Fū whimpered, her voice small but fierce. "It's mad at me!" Tears streamed down her face, but she held still.
"Keep breathing, you're doing great." She forced a smile, though her body trembled with the effort of containing the Seven Tails, along with the Nine-Tails.
Kurama's voice cut through, sharp but steady. "Less talking, more focusing. The seal's holding, but you're both slipping."
"I'm not slipping!" Kushina retorted, though her ragged breathing betrayed her. "Just… help me, you overgrown fox!" Her defiance drew a low chuckle from Kurama.
Hours passed, and the shrine filled with the hum of chakra. Fū's cries faded to whimpers, her small frame exhausted, while Kushina's breathing grew labored, her hands white-knuckled.
Finally, the green aura dimmed, fully absorbed into Kushina's seal. Chōmei was gone, his divine fragment merged with Kurama's within her. Unlike the Zero-Tails' artificial malice, the Seven Tails was a real piece of the God Tree.
Fū collapsed back onto her bed, unconscious but alive. Kushina sat upright slowly, drenched in sweat, her chest rising and falling heavily.
Kurama's hand extended, brushing through her damp hair with a gentleness that would have stunned anyone who once feared him.
"It's over," he murmured.
For a moment, the world seemed still.
Then Kushina's eyes snapped open. Her expression hardened, cold as ice.
"What is it?" Kurama asked, his tone flat but alert.
Her Mind's Eye of Kagura stretched outward, and her voice dropped to ice.
"It's Nagato… and Yahiko. Konan, too."
Kurama's own awareness followed her lead. He swept his senses across the island, and there it was- a small boat slicing across the water, two figures aboard, heading away from the island.