"So fast… so strong… so ruthless…"
"And this time—three tails."
Kakashi exhaled slowly, his visible eye fixed on the direction where the forest still trembled faintly from lingering chakra disturbance. The smell of scorched earth and blood had not yet fully dissipated.
Sasuke stood rigid beside him, fists clenched, eyes burning.
Neither of them spoke for several breaths.
What they had just witnessed far exceeded the scope of a normal battlefield engagement.
Compared to the one-tailed manifestation from before, Lock's three-tailed state was on an entirely different level. The increase was not linear—it was overwhelming. Speed that bordered on teleportation. Strength is precise enough to sever limbs without collateral damage. Chakra control was refined to the point where even suffering could be regulated.
That wasn't raw power.
That was mastery.
And the method—
Kakashi's jaw tightened.
Lock hadn't simply killed Danzo's men. He had sent them back. Broken, mutilated, humiliated, and alive long enough to deliver a message.
This wasn't combat.
It was a declaration of war.
Danzo would understand it perfectly.
Kakashi could already picture it: the old man's expression darkening, teeth grinding, cane clenched so tightly the wood creaked. The hatred that had once been directed primarily at Kakashi himself would now shift.
Naruto—Uzumaki Naruto—had officially been elevated from "asset" to "enemy."
And worse…
An enemy Danzo could not control.
Within the Mind
The moment Lock's massacre ended, Naruto's voice erupted inside the shared consciousness.
"Lock! You broke your promise again!"
His emotions surged wildly—anger, fear, indignation, guilt—layered together in a familiar, messy storm.
"You killed someone! And you did it in such a cruel way!"
Naruto paused, then hurriedly added, as if afraid his ground was slipping,
"…But since it was to save Sakura, I'll forgive you this time."
There it was.
The concession. The moral loophole.
Naruto straightened in the mental space, seizing momentum.
"But you have to teach me how to control the Nine-Tails' power now! You already used three tails—so you must know how to do it!"
Lock didn't answer immediately.
Instead, he let go.
Control snapped back.
Outside, the golden chakra peeled away from Naruto's body like mist under sunlight. The oppressive pressure vanished. Naruto swayed, then steadied himself, his expression reverting to its usual clear, uncomplicated confusion.
Inside, Lock retreated a step, arms crossed, watching Naruto's mental form scramble forward again.
"Just one tail!" Naruto pleaded. "I'm not asking for much! Just enough so I can protect everyone myself!"
Lock stared at him.
Then rolled his eyes.
The motion was so exaggerated it would have been comical—if not for the cold irritation behind it.
"If you want to get stronger," Lock said flatly, "then train."
"And I've told you already—I don't know any magical shortcut. It's not a 'method.' It's talent."
Naruto frowned. "Talent?"
"Yes." Lock's lips curled slightly. "Talent forged from pain."
His gaze sharpened.
"I endure the memories you shove onto me every day. The resentment. The fear. The hatred you refuse to face. That's why the chakra answers me so easily."
He leaned closer, voice dropping.
"Want to master it too?"
"Fine. Switch with me for a month."
"You become the sub-personality. You take those memories. I'll stay on the surface."
"I guarantee you'll master it before the month's over."
Naruto froze.
The idea hadn't even fully formed before fear surged through him.
"What if you don't switch back?" he blurted out. "What if I get stuck?!"
He shook his head hard.
"No way! I'm not doing that!"
The answer came too quickly.
Lock watched him silently, then snorted.
"Thought so."
Naruto hesitated, clearly unwilling to give up.
"…There's really no other way?"
This time, Lock didn't answer immediately.
He did have a way. More than one, in fact. But every option came with consequences—for Naruto, and for himself.
If Naruto grew stronger, his dependence would weaken.
If Naruto no longer needed him, Lock's opportunities to surface would shrink.
Power shared was power diluted.
After a moment, Lock spoke again.
"There is a way," he said casually. "I've been looking into it since you asked last time. I've got a few ideas."
Naruto's eyes lit up instantly.
"But," Lock continued, tone turning sharp, "what you said earlier annoyed me."
"So I'm putting that research on hold."
The reaction was immediate.
"I'm sorry! I was wrong!" Naruto blurted out. "Don't stop!"
"In the future, I won't get mad if you kill enemies! Just—just don't torture them! Let them die without pain!"
Lock's mouth twitched.
"Hmph. We'll see."
He turned away, cutting the connection.
Naruto kept pleading for several more seconds before realizing the silence wasn't going to break.
Inside the darkness, Lock laughed quietly.
No cruel torture, Naruto said.
And yet every time Lock did torture someone, the blackening surged.
Hypocrite.
When Lock had read the original story long ago, he hadn't noticed just how manipulative Naruto could be—how skilled he was at clinging to moral superiority while still benefiting from violence done in his name.
White lotus, indeed.
Outside the Mind
Only a few breaths had passed in the real world.
Naruto blinked, shaking his head slightly, as if coming out of a daze.
The pressure was gone.
Sakura, who had been hunched over unconsciously, finally straightened. The lingering flush on her face faded, replaced by visible relief.
Kakashi let out a quiet breath he hadn't realized he was holding.
Sasuke relaxed his stance marginally, though his eyes never left Naruto.
Compared to Lock, this Naruto was… familiar. Manageable. Human.
"Everyone okay?" Kakashi asked, scanning them.
No one answered immediately.
He nodded once.
"You've now seen what real shinobi combat looks like," he continued. "And you've seen how quickly things can turn fatal."
His voice hardened.
"I won't always be there to protect you. And even if I am, I may not arrive in time."
"If anyone wants to quit after this mission, you can come to me privately."
"There's no shame in choosing to live as an ordinary person."
"Boring."
Sasuke turned away, eyes cold.
"Until I kill that man, no danger matters."
Naruto waved his hands energetically. "I'm not scared either!"
Only Sakura hesitated.
Her fingers twisted together, conflict written plainly on her face.
Kakashi noticed.
"You don't have to decide now," he said gently. "Think about it after the mission."
Then he turned toward the restrained Hidden Mist ninja in the distance.
Tazuna's Fear
Farther back, Tazuna stood trembling.
He had run when Sakura told him to—and he hadn't stopped running until his lungs burned.
Now, watching from afar, he felt his legs weaken.
Is this… what shinobi are?
The image of Naruto surrounded by golden chakra, casually tearing enemies apart, burned itself into his mind.
Even Gatō, who ruled the Land of Waves through fear and blood, didn't do things like that.
And he had insulted that boy.
He had lied.
He had hidden information.
No one was watching him now.
Cold dread flooded his veins.
Before he could overthink it, Tazuna staggered forward and dropped to his knees before Naruto.
"I—I'm sorry!" he shouted hoarsely. "I was arrogant! I hid information! But I had no choice!"
He bowed his head repeatedly, desperation pouring out as he spoke of Gatō, of oppression, of starvation, and fear.
He embellished where he could. Added misery where necessary.
Not to secure help.
Just to survive.
Afterward, Kakashi interrogated the remaining Hidden Mist ninja.
One had already escaped during the chaos. The other refused to speak.
At that point, Kakashi's judgment was clear.
"With multiple Chunin involved, this mission has escalated to at least B-rank," he said. "We should return to the village."
Naruto hesitated.
Tazuna's story weighed on him.
"We can't just abandon him," Naruto said. "If we leave now, Gatō will kill him for sure."
Sasuke nodded. "This isa good experience."
After discussion, Kakashi agreed—warily.
They continued toward the Land of Waves.
Unaware that the most dangerous presence among them wasn't Gatō.
Nor Danzo.
But the quiet, smiling boy walking at the front—
And the monster patiently waiting behind his eyes.
---
A/N: Advance Chapter Has Been Uploaded. Please Check It Out. It will really help me out and will keep me motivated to continue.
Support: patreon.com/Narrator_San