Rumble—
The enormous fox claws stretched down from the sky, slowly enveloping Shukaku's body.
Shukaku looked up and saw Kurama towering among the clouds. The eyes of both beasts met — round, wide, and filled with boundless fear.
Kurama grabbed Shukaku from the ground and growled fiercely, "One Tail, what did you just say?"
"I... I mean, it's been a long time, no see." Shukaku lowered his ears timidly.
Although most of Shukaku's chakra had been blasted away by Naruto, the tailed beast was still massive — like a giant summon. Yet in Kurama's claws, he looked as small as Kurama once had in Hashirama Senju's hands.
Seeing Shukaku's cowardice, Kurama couldn't help but mock him mercilessly. "Shukaku, Shukaku... I thought you had the biggest mouth. Didn't expect you'd fold so easily!"
"Stupid fox, don't push it!" Shukaku roared, furious. "It's not like I've never died before!"
With that, he opened his mouth and bit down on Kurama's thumb.
Kurama winced in pain and angrily flung Shukaku away.
Shukaku flew hundreds of meters before crashing into the ground, leaving him dizzy and dazed.
"What's with this damn fox?" he grumbled. "He wasn't this strong before!"
"Forget it. I'm injured — I should retreat before he mocks me even more."
Muttering to himself, Shukaku began channeling chakra back into Gaara's body.
In the distance, Kurama laughed mockingly. "Coward!"
Not long after, Shukaku fully returned to Gaara's body.
A system notification echoed in Naruto's mind:
[Ding~ Congratulations to the Host for achieving S-level rating: +5 Simulation Chances]
Naruto glanced at his system panel.
Ten simulations remained — more than enough to make him stronger.
With his objective complete, Kurama returned to Naruto's body, and Naruto prepared to leave.
But just then, the sealing teams from Konoha and Sunagakure arrived.
They checked on Gaara, then looked up at Naruto in shock.
His actions were unbelievable — not only had he used sealing techniques to restrain Shukaku, but he'd also fought the tailed beast head-on with ninjutsu.
And from the way the Nine Tails had appeared, it looked like Kurama was actually cooperating with Naruto.
A tailed beast cooperating with its host — that was unheard of.
At this point, the Chūnin Exams were clearly over.
Naruto didn't care much. His mission was complete — the rest could be handled by Konoha and the Sand Shinobi.
He planned to regroup with Sakura and Sasuke.
But as he flew through the air, he faintly heard a weak, familiar voice.
"Na... Naruto... save... me..."
Naruto frowned. A bad feeling rose in his chest.
He followed the sound — but all he saw were the ruins of the Central Tower.
"An auditory illusion?" he muttered. "No... I'm too strong for something like that. Am I just tired?"
He shook his head. "Forget it. I'll ask Kurama."
"Kurama," he called inwardly, "sense the area around us."
Kurama's tone turned serious. "That voice just now? I heard it too."
A few seconds passed. Then Kurama's voice trembled. "Naruto, the red-haired girl you saved — she's dying."
"Huh?!" Naruto's eyes widened. "Karin?! Where is she?"
"In the ruins of the Central Tower," Kurama replied. "She hid there during your fight with Shukaku. She's good at hiding — went into the basement before the explosion, so she survived the first blast. But... she didn't expect the explosion to be that powerful. It destroyed the entire tower and buried the basement too."
Naruto's scalp tingled. He rushed toward the ruins, creating multiple Shadow Clones to dig through the rubble.
As the debris was cleared, Karin's faint cries for help grew clearer and clearer.
Naruto followed the sound, digging frantically until he uncovered something unusual — a Wood Style barrier.
It resembled Yamato's Wood Release: Wood Locking Wall, a defensive jutsu.
"Wait... is Yamato here?" Naruto muttered.
Kurama's voice echoed in his mind. "No, Naruto. That's an ancient Wood Style technique — it belongs to Senju Hashirama."
"Really?" Naruto rubbed his chin. "No wonder it looks different from Yamato's version."
Kurama grunted. "This forest was originally created by Hashirama himself. It's not surprising his techniques still linger here."
Naruto raised a brow. "And how do you know that?"
Kurama smirked. "Guess where I was sealed by Hashirama decades ago?"
Naruto: "..."
The Wood Style wall was incredibly sturdy, having withstood decades without decay.
Through a gap, Karin spotted Naruto and cried out in relief, "Naruto! I'm here! Hurry — save me!"
The Wood Locking Wall was shaped like an inverted bowl.
Naruto stepped forward and carefully opened a section of the barrier, revealing Karin trapped inside.
Her condition was terrible — bruised and bloodied. If not for the wooden wall that had burst from the basement during the blast, she would've been crushed to pieces.
The moment she was free, Karin threw herself into Naruto's arms, sobbing uncontrollably.
"Wait—" Naruto caught her and said quickly, "You should go to the hospital first. Stop crying."
"No need," Karin said softly, squirming uneasily. "My body will heal on its own soon."
Naruto blinked. "Huh? That strong?"
I'm an Uzumaki too... how come I didn't know we could do that?
Then again... maybe I've just never been hurt enough to notice.
"What happened, anyway?" Naruto asked, his voice filled with concern.
He had assumed Karin had escaped with Sasuke and Sakura — that's why he had fought Shukaku so recklessly.
If he had known she was still nearby, he would've held back.
Karin explained what had happened.
She had thought she could help Naruto, so she hid inside the Central Tower. But the battle between Naruto and Shukaku had been beyond imagination — even hiding wasn't enough.
When Shukaku began his sealing technique, Karin had rushed into the basement. Then came the explosion.
The Central Tower collapsed, burying Karin and several other Chūnin exam candidates underground.
In that desperate moment, a giant wooden dome had been blown loose by the shockwave and happened to cover Karin, shielding her from the rest of the blast.
Several people were trapped in the basement with her — but in the end, only one other survived.
That person had been in a corner where the collapsed walls formed a triangular space that just barely kept them alive.
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