[Kakashi left, feeling completely lifeless.]
[Before he left, Naruto reminded him not to slack off.]
[Chidori is a jutsu he created—how could he not innovate after all this time?]
[Kakashi wanted to say he had innovations that worked with the Sharingan.]
[But looking at Naruto's Chidori Stream… that lightning-bright blade of Raikiri…]
[Damn! I finally get serious for once…]
[How did I lose this badly in the blink of an eye?]
[And… this kid only watched twice… and learned the Chidori I worked so hard to develop—no! Not just that!]
[This Chidori Stream… isn't based on Chidori, but on the far more difficult Raikiri!]
[Is the gap really this huge?!]
[Putting everything else aside, Kakashi's mentality truly collapsed.]
Mei Terumī: "Say what you will—if I had a student like that, I probably wouldn't fare any better than Kakashi."
Temari: "It really is disheartening."
Sakura Haruno: "He didn't leave Kakashi-sensei a single way out… but… well done~!"
Senju Tobirama: "Good. That lazy attitude of his really is irritating to watch."
Might Guy: "Mm-hmm, Kakashi really is lazy."
Kakashi rolled his eyes at his close friend.
"Just wait. When the Naruto of our world awakens and gets the School, we'll compete with the power of youth."
[The days that followed were simple.]
[Team 7 basically moved between two points in a straight line.]
[Naruto kept exploring the Four Symbols Seal, then kept developing Raikiri Stream.]
[Research on Rasengan never stopped either.]
[The Great Fox was the same as ever.]
[Life seemed calm like this.]
[When night fell.]
[After checking Team 7's training, Naruto left.]
[Where to?]
[Naturally, to find Wife Izumi, of course.]
[He can't sleep well on tatami, plus over there someone warms the bed.]
[Even a fool knows which to choose.]
[Why set out the moment it turns dark?]
[Any slower and Wife Izumi would head for the kitchen.]
[Arrive late… and the reward goes to Zabuza.]
[And then… there was no then—Zabuza has been lying down for two days now.]
In the Pure Land World, Izumi's face flushed red.
She still had to endure Kushina and Uchiha Mikoto's teasing.
Is it really that bad?
Well… the issue doesn't seem to be whether it tastes bad or not.
[That day, a Shadow Clone far off in the Land of Fire sent back its memories and experience.]
[Konoha had indeed made a move.]
[Just as Naruto guessed.]
[The Old Thing's real target wasn't the wine. ]
[He assigned the mission to Team 7.]
[In truth, it was to interfere in another country's internal affairs with legitimate cause.]
[Most likely, wealth stirred his heart.]
[He wants to gobble up everyone's white gloves in one bite.]
[Team 7 has the strongest overall strength, and their Jōnin Instructor is the strongest as well.]
[This lineup is best suited to accept the mission.]
[As long as Zabuza is killed… anyway, he's a Ninja hired by Gato.]
[Then, for the sake of face, Gato absolutely won't let it go.]
[Next, with proper maneuvering, Gato is killed by the rogue Ninja he hired, and Gato's assets can be seized fair and square.]
[Sure enough, Anbu Ninja were dispatched.]
[Of course, not many Anbu moved; the bulk were Root Organization Ninja on Danzo's side.]
[Even if exposed, it was the darkness of konoha that did it—what does it have to do with the strongest Hokage?]
Senju Tobirama: "Hmph!"
Senju Tobirama: "Just hearing about it makes me furious."
Uchiha Izuna: Weren't you good at shouting?
Uchiha Izuna: Keep shouting~!
Senju Tobirama: "…"
["No need to deal with them for now."]
["They're still at least three days away."]
["They'll have to erase their tracks along the way… hmph, that's no small task."]
[Naruto gave a soft laugh.]
[Then took a deep breath.]
[The effort of these days hadn't been wasted.]
[Right now, the invisible shackles binding Naruto had finally found a key—barely worthy of being called a 'key'.]
[But to Naruto's surprise, the Scum Fox went back on its word again.]
[It had promised to tell everything it knew.]
[In the end…]
[The Scum Fox only said a few lines.]
[First, like the other eight Tailed Beasts, it split from the Ten-Tails; the stone tablet is basically correct except for the final Infinite Tsukuyomi.]
[Second, regarding the Gedo Statue and the Six Paths Sage: the Gedo Statue does need a Rinnegan to summon; it's the product of some Sealing Jutsu; the Six Paths Sage truly existed, since he was the one who split the Ten-Tails into nine parts.]
[According to the Scum Fox.]
[When dividing Chakra, it was probably: one part to Shukaku, one to itself, one to Matatabi, one to itself…]
[Apart from that, the Scum Fox shut its mouth tight.]
[On the info Naruto wanted most, not a single word was spoken.]
[Of course, after years together Naruto knew this Scum Fox well.]
[A little 'pressure' was applied.]
[And the old fox pretending to be an all-knowing ancient relic spilled everything.]
[That's all it knew.]
[The Six Paths Sage had run off when it was very small.]
[Saying he died, but the Scum Fox guessed he left to do something big.]
[Then he abandoned nine young, weak, helpless Tailed Beasts to survive on their own.]
[…]
["Ready?"]
[Inside the Sealing Space, Naruto looked at the Scum Fox and said in a deep voice.]
[The Scum Fox lay sprawled, its nine fluffy tails waving, huge fox eyes full of anxiety.]
["Are you sure about this?"]
[Hearing that, Naruto gave a slight nod, then the corner of his mouth lifted.]
[The serious atmosphere vanished in an instant.]
["Not calling yourself a genius now?"]
[The Scum Fox rolled its eyes. "Idiot."]
["This isn't a joke."]
["If you slip up, you could very well die!"]
["I won't die." Naruto shook his head.]
["Worst case… I add a seal at the end. As long as you can break the seal, I'll be fine."]
["Suit yourself!" The Scum Fox closed its eyes, too lazy to look at Naruto.]
[But inside, the Scum Fox was deeply shaken.]
[If this failed, Naruto's life would be in its paws.]
[Yet Naruto hadn't hesitated for a moment.]
[And he was still under the School's influence.]
[The Scum Fox was truly out of tricks.]
[This kid… every time it thought he was up to no good, he pulled something like this—his sure-kill technique to reassure the fox: sincerity.]
[How bizarre.]
[When did This Fox let itself be pushed around like this?]
[A secret technique has to be put on the agenda!]
[Then this damn blond will have to eat the consequences!]
[Naruto, of course, couldn't fully guess the Scum Fox's inner scheming.]
["Hoo—"]
["All right, then—let's begin the attempt."]
["Unseal."